Serving the Forreston area since 1865
FORRESTON Journal November 17, 2016 Volume 154, Number 30 - $1.00
Final Four!!
Polo Theater
Elkhorn Creek
Forreston dominates Lena-Winslow to advance to the Class 1A semifinals on Saturday. B1
“It’s A Wonderful Life” will be performed on Dec. 2, 3 in Polo. A6
The Audubon Society will host a field trip Saturday to learn about biodiversity. A6
Former sheriff Michael Harn pleads not guilty Bond was set at $10,000 By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Former Ogle County Sheriff Michael Harn pleaded not guilty in Ogle County Court Nov. 10 to charges that he used county funds for his own use while he was in office. Carroll County Judge Val Gunnarsson, who is presiding over the case, set Harn’s bond at $10,000 on his own recognizance. Under the bond conditions, Harn is prohibited from possessing firearms. Gunnarsson set Harn’s Former Ogle County Sheriff Michael Harn, left, and his attorney John Nocita, West next court appearance for Chester, appeared in Ogle County Court Nov. 10 before Judge Val Gunnarsson. Harn Dec. 19. is charged with two counts of theft of public funds while he was sheriff. Harn, 54, was charged
Oct. 12 with two counts of felony theft. According to court documents, he is accused of buying numerous items with county funds, including electronic equipment, boat equipment, radio-controlled toys, party tents, coolers, weapons, hunting guns, Harley-Davidson clothing and accessories, adult novelty items, and outdoor fountains. The list goes on to include auto maintenance for his personal vehicles, Apple iTunes products, and radio advertising. The total cost of the items falls between $500 and $10,000. Harn’s attorney John Nocita, West Chester, told Gunnarsson that Harn wished to waive a preliminary hearing and proceed to
arraignment. At the request of Special Prosecutor Dave Neal, of the Illinois Office of State’s Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor’s Office, Gunnarsson ordered Harn to report to the Illinois State Police District 1 headquarters at Sterling to be fingerprinted. The state police investigated the case. Neal said Thursday he could not yet say the exact amount Harn is accusing of taking. “I can’t give you an exact amount because we’re working out an agreement,” he said. “It won’t be more than $10,000 on each count.” Neal said he expects both sides to be ready for trial by January or February depending on the court Turn to A3
County officials oppose proposed railroad plan By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Following the lead of other affected counties, the Ogle County Board came out in opposition Tuesday to the proposed Great Lakes Basin Railroad. The board approved a resolution, by a vote of 23 to 1, that says members believe “the purported gains in
efficiency from the proposed rail line would be far outweighed by the negative environmental impact.” The decision was applauded by a large group of people in the audience who are opposed to the rail line. Board member Ron Colson, Mt. Morris, cast the only negative vote. “We really don’t know what we’re dealing with,”
Colson said. “There’s already been two plans; there could be four or five.” “I can’t really see any benefit to our county of this railroad,” said board member Bill Welty, Chana. The rail system would be funded by private investors led by Frank Patton, Crete, a former software developer. If approved by the Surface Transportation Board of the U.S. Department of
Transportation, the rail line will extend from Milton, Wisconsin, to La Porte, Indiana, passing through Scott, White Rock, Lynnville, Dement, and Flagg Townships on the east side of Ogle County. Tom Smith, Kings, who was elected to the county board Nov. 8, spoke in behalf of residents opposed to the project. He said information
Preferred location for jail approved By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com South Sixth Street in Oregon is the preferred location for the proposed Ogle County Jail. The Ogle County Board approved a resolution Tuesday evening for the concept design of the new jail located in the 100 block of South Sixth
Street across the street from the judicial center. Jeff Goodale, Director of Justice at HOK, a Chicago architectural and planning firm, presented a design which was fine-tuned from the one he bought to the board last month. HOK was hired a year ago to do a jail needs assessment. Like last month’s the
drawing shows South Sixth Street closed to traffic with a sally port across what is now the street connecting the new detention center to the judicial center. Oregon Mayor Ken Williams said Tuesday that the city council has not yet discussed whether or not to close South Sixth Street between Washington and
Jefferson Streets. However, he has received a formal request from Ogle County Board Chairman Kim Gouker asking the city to vacate the street. “We’re doing an engineering study,” Williams said. “Once we have the results of the study, it will go to the Planning Commission and then to the city council.”
about the proposal has been sketchy. “There’s so many unknowns they’re not telling us,” he said. “It’s not fair to us.” Smith said school buses, emergency services, and law enforcement will all be slowed or re-routed by the trains that pass through on the new tracks. Davis Junction Village Trustee William Luchsinger said the GLB tracks will pass through the heart of the village and has already put business and residential development plans on hold until a decision is made. He said an estimated 85 to 100 trains per day of 100 cars each would use the new
Gas station will remain the Depot
Fire stands made for Candlelight Walk y Earleen Hinton B ehinton@oglecounty news.com Visitors to this year’s Candlelight Walk will want to give a nod to the employees of an Oregon manufacturing company while they warm up by one of the brand new fire stands on Candy Cane Lane. Workers from E.D. Etnyre & Co, located on S. Daysville Road, designed and then created the metal fire stands last week, just in time for the annual Nov. 26 event in Oregon. “The Oregon Chamber of Commerce and The Candlelight Walk Committee are so excited and extremely grateful for this generous contribution from the E. D. Etnyre crew,” said Debbie Dickson, executive director of the Oregon Chamber of Turn to A7
Here are some of the E.D. Etnyre employees who worked on the fire stands for Candlelight Walk. Pictured left to right, are: Kathy Taylor, Sarah Cahill, Shawn Schwartzrock, Nate Linboom, Joshua Hawkins, Doug Heilemeier, Kurt Vail, and Jesse Mazanec. Employees Al Jensen, Bryan Geiger, and Byron Hogan were not present when the photo was taken. Photo by Earleen Hinton
In This Week’s Edition...
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B5-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B4 Marriage Licenses, A4
Oregon Police, B3 Public Voice, A7 Property Transfers, B3 Sheriff’s Arrests, B3
tracks. “That’s a train every 13 minutes,” Luchsinger said. “It’s detrimental to our village.” James Milligan, Kings, said the track will intersect his beef operation, causing him to travel five miles just to feed his cattle. “There’s an awful lot of good farmland that’s going to be covered up,” he said. Smith said it appears that the railroad will pay less taxes than current property owners do. “The farmers and their families live here, work here, go to school here, go to church here,” he said. “Are Turn to A8
By Zach Arbogast zarbogast@oglecounty news.com After years of talks between Casey’s and the Depot, the Forreston community staple is staying put. Earlier this summer, Eileen and Keith Anderson announced they would be selling the railroad-themed Depot gas station at 314 E. Main St. (ill. 72) to Casey’s General Store. Casey’s, based in Ankney, Iowa, already has stores in several Ogle County communities, including Polo, Oregon, Mt. Morris, Byron, Hillcrest, and Stillman Valley. The Casey’s stores in Oregon and Byron were replaced with larger versions last year, and the Mt. Morris Store opened in late October. The chain has had its eye on the Depot since 2012. In November of 2015, Casey’s officials finally made
Social News, A4 Sports, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B4 Weather, A3
an offer the Andersons felt was right. However, according to a press release issued Monday afternoon by Tracey Anderson, co-owner and manager of the store, after a year’s worth of negotiations, a mutual decision was recently reached to “table” the project indefinitely. According to a press release, Casey’s and The Depot could not come to an agreement on certain easement terms which involved Anderson Transportation Company, also owned by the Andersons and next door to the Depot. Tracey thanked all the loyal customers for their support. The Depot will undergo a restructuring period through mid-December, at which point it will be back in “full operation,” the press release said. Tracey declined to give further details on the easement disagreement. Casey’s could not be reached for comment.
Deaths, B4 George D. Chester, Rosa Ditto, Theodore (Ted) M. Gapinski
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com