Serving the Forreston area since 1865
FORRESTON Journal May 11, 2017 Volume 155, Number 3 - $1.00
Girls Basketball
Class of 2017
Brian Rahn, who coached in Milledgeville will take over the girls post in Forreston. B1
Seniors from 5 Ogle County Schools are ready to graduate. Inside
WWII at Stronghold Stronghold Retreat and Conference Center is hosting a WWII re-enactment May 20-21. A6
Kennel decision was postponed By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com The decision to allow a DeKalb County dog breeder to expand her kennel into Ogle County has been delayed for a month. The Ogle County Planning & Zoning Committee postponed making a decision Tuesday morning until members have the chance to read the transcripts from the April 27 Zoning Board of Appeals hearing on a special use request from Christie Hardt, owner of B&C Kennel, Clare, and her husband Robert DeCosta. That means the final decision cannot come from the county board until at least its June 20 meeting. Hardt and DeCosta have requested the special use permit to operate a commercial dog kennel on property they own at 14189 E. Dutch Rd., northeast of Kings. The site is zoned for agricultural use, and the request asks for a special use permit to allow dog breeding, import and sale of puppies, dog grooming, and dog obedience training at the kennel. Zoning Administrator Mike Reibel told the Planning & Zoning Committee that the transcript from the five and one-half hours long ZBA hearing is not yet completed and will not be available until the end of the week. He estimated that the transcript will be 200 pages long. Committee member Lyle Hopkins then made a motion to postpone making a recommendation on the matter until the transcript is available.
However, committee member Tom Smith, Kings, objected. “We don’t review the transcripts on anything else,” he said. Smith is also the supervisor of White Rock Township, whose board voted against the special use request. Committee member Wayne Reising, Oregon, disagreed with Smith. “I read the transcripts before we meet,” he said. “Ordinarily we get them a week ahead of time. “I would like to read the transcript before we vote on this.” Rick Fritz, Monroe Center, also a committee member, said he, too, reads the transcripts before voting. Hopkins’ motion was approved 5-1 with Smith casting the only no vote. Voting yes were Hopkins, Reising, Fritz, Ron Colson, Mt. Morris, and Bruce McKinney, Rochelle. All six are also county board members. Several county residents spoke in opposition to the kennel at the ZBA hearing, voicing concern that it is a “puppy mill,” and 2,500 signed a petition against it. Hardt read a statement refuting allegations that she runs a puppy mill, and several people testified in her behalf to the ZBA, which voted 3-2 to recommend denial of the special use permit. The Regional Planning Committee also voted 4-1 for denial on March 23. Special use permits are considered by the three committees and they each make a recommendation to the county board, which makes the final decision.
“I want this to not just be a place to eat, but a place where people can relax, watch TV, and call the place home.” Greg Regole decorated the entire restaurant to feel both like a country home and a piece of Leaf River history. Photo by Zach Arbogast
Deli is a place to call home By Zach Arbogast zarbogast@oglecountynews.com
A Leaf River deli on the corner of Main and Second street serves up sandwiches, history, and home comfort. After moving to Leaf River in 2013, Greg Regole saw the community
didn’t have the convenient place to stop, get a bite to eat, and pick up a few necessities that he’d been wanting. “I asked around - about 50 people - if they thought opening up a little coffee shop with breakfast and lunch would be a good idea,” said Regole. “Every person said it was a great
idea.” Four months and a few renovations later, Country Deli opened Jan. 30 at 122 N. Main St. Currently, the eatery serves classic deli cold sandwiches, with your choice of cheese and vegetable Turn to A2
Students look into their futures Sauk Valley Media More than 1,100 eighthgraders from 23 area schools flooded into the Whiteside Area Career Center last week and were pointed in a dozen different directions of potential career paths. Jerry Winger, student services coordinator at WACC, said the number of
schools participating in the tours, which were held May 3-5, has grown from 15 to 23 during the past seven years, allowing the center to reach out to more and more prospective students. “They are getting exposure to all of our careers and much-needed skills they are going to use for the rest of their lives,” Winger said.
The tour guides were center students who volunteered out of a pool of about 630 high schoolers from throughout the area, most of whom were in the eighth-graders’ shoes just a few years ago. “They’re proud of what they’re doing, and they’re sharing that pride with others,” Winger said. “It
takes the whole building to put this together, and we couldn’t be more appreciative of their efforts.” Emily Dawson, a Milledgeville High School senior studying criminal justice at the center, on Wednesday led one of the 14 groups of students from Turn to A2
Filming on location: LOMC, Stronghold By Zach Arbogast zarbogast@oglecounty news.com Two independent filmmakers have chosen Oregon locations for their film productions. Two independent films are being shot at the Lutheran Outdoor Ministries Center, 1834 Ill. 2, and Stronghold Castle, 1922 Ill. 2 North. The LOMC will be the location for Robb Chase’s “The Flickering Light,” a story about a young man possessed by a past murderer who regrets his past. The two must fight another, evil spirit, before it completely overtakes a young girl’s father. The movie is an original script from Chase, based on his novels.
Chase, based out of Genoa City, Wisconsin, said LOMC is the perfect place for his film, being shot May 16 through June 10. He could not give an exact date when the film will be ready for release. “There’s lodging for us to stay in, they cook on-site, and the acres upon acres of field and trees is a great location,” said Chase. “The community as a whole has been very supportive of us.” Russ Senti, LOMC Executive Director, is excited that a film is coming to their retreat - which, he says, hasn’t happened in the 12 years he’s been there. “What pleased me the most is that he employs youth for his production, and we’re all about supporting the youth Turn to A8
In This Week’s Edition...
Under Construction Construction is underway for Forreston’s new Dollar General Store at the intersection of Ill. 26 and Baileyville Road. A crew was at work Friday morning preparing the surface inside the footings for more concrete. Photo by Vinde Wells
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B6-B10 Entertainment, A6 Marriage Licenses, A4
Public Voice, A7 Property Transfers, B3 Sheriff’s Arrests, B3
Social News, A4 Sports, A10, B1, B2 Weather, A3
Deaths, B4 Helen M. Boyden, Domenick J. Castaldo, Rick L. Hagemann, Charles R. Hufford, Janet D. Kliebe, Steven E. Rucker, David L. Waack
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com