Serving the Forreston area since 1865
FORRESTON Journal July 27, 2018 Volume 156, Number 14 - $1.00
Movie released
Fair Guide
Fair Royalty
An Oregon High School grad has completed and released an independent film. A9
The Ogle County Fair offers a wide variety of family fun Aug. 1-5. Inside
Four teens will compete for the title of Ogle County Fair Queen. A7
Sauerkraut Days Car Show set for Aug. 4 at park The Ogle County Board released this artist’s rendering of the proposed Ogle County Jail.
New jail offers improved security, better worker, inmate conditions By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecountynews.com The plan for Ogle County’s new jail offers better conditions for both corrections officers and prisoners, according to county officials. “It will provide a better workplace, better environment for inmates, and provide more educational opportunities,” Sheriff Brian VanVickle said. “We’re very excited about it.” “The old building is simply outdated,” said county board chairman Kim Gouker. “The new one will provide more efficiency, better security, and improved public safety.” A sally port large enough to accommodate several vehicles for transporting prisoners is a key part of the increased security, Gouker said. Currently, the sally ports at the jail and the judicial center each hold only one vehicle. “Right now, if a vehicle is already in the sally port at the judicial center, the Illinois Department of Corrections has to park their vehicle in the street and walk prisoners in [for court appearances],” Gouker
said. “That’s not what we want done. This will allow for better efficiency and handling of inmates for public safety.” The county board approved a plan presented July 17 by Thomas Leonard, of Gilbane Building Company, the firm hired in February for the design and construction of the new facility. Gilbane is working with Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum, Inc. Chicago, which was hired last year to do the architectural and engineering design. The new jail will be located in the 100 block of South Sixth Street in Oregon on property already owned by the county. The $26.7 million plan approved by the board was scaled down in size from a preliminary design presented by HOK last year. In an effort to minimize costs, the plan was downsized from three stories to a story and a half, from 70,000 square feet to 50,796 square feet, and from 180 to 200 beds to 152 beds with the capacity to go to 176. Despite being larger than the current jail, which has 110 beds, VanVickle said no additional corrections officers will be needed because of its more efficient design.
“We never intended to increase the number of corrections officers. It is designed to use the staff we have,” he said. An additional support person may be needed in the public and administration area of the facility, VanVickle said. Cells in the new facility will be stacked in two tiers, allowing corrections officers to monitor prisoners from a main control area. Cells for men will be on the west side, and a smaller area for women’s cells will be on the east. The housing units will include the required exercise areas for prisoners. To maximize security, an intake area for processing prisoners will be on the east side, connected to the sally port, as well as to an enclosed passageway into the judicial center across what is now South Sixth Street, which will be closed. The new sally port will hold six regular-sized vehicles and a semi tractor-trailer, Gouker said. Preliminary work has already begun on the jail site. Construction will likely begin next April and the project completed in 19 to 20 months, near the end of 2020.
The Forreston American Legion Family will sponsor its 10th annual car show as part of the yearly Sauerkraut Day on Saturday, Aug. 4 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Forreston’s Memorial Park. More than 150 cars and motorcycles are expected during the daylong show. Dash plaques will be given to the first 100 entries, and door prizes will be given out during the day. Sauerkraut lunches will be served from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The cost of a lunch is $5 for adults and $3 for children ages 7-12.
By Pam Eggemeier peggemeier@saukvalley.com
Fresh Sealer for Veteran’s Memorial
In This Week’s Edition...
Library News, A2 Marriage Licenses, A4 Oregon Police, B6 Public Voice, B6 Property Transfers, B5
Turn to A2 for information about Forreston Hometown Days planned for Aug. 3-5.
Ogle leads way in tourism revenue
In a record-setting year for Illinois tourism, the four-county Blackhawk Waterways Convention and Visitors Bureau region also saw an uptick in travel-related spending and tax revenues in 2017. Ogle County, one of four counties in the region, brought in the most money, $78.81 million last year, thanks mainly to the Black Hawk Statue, three state parks, and the John Deere Historic Site. The Illinois Office of Tourism announced in May that travelers spent $39.5 billion statewide last year, a $1.1 billion, three percent increase over the previous year. That spending generated $2.95 billion in state and local tax revenue, a $75 million increase. The breakdown by region and county was released July 18. The numbers track the total economic impact of tourism, including travel-related spending, employment and payroll, and tax revenues generated. The Blackhawk Waterways CVB, headquartered in Polo, covers Ogle, Lee, Whiteside, and Carroll counties. Collectively, the region brought in $174.77 million in travel dollars, a 3.78 percent increase from 2016. The number of tourismrelated jobs came in an 11,600, a 2.65 percent jump. Tourism brought $4.23 million in tax revenue to the region, up 3.68 percent from Jason Thibodeau, German Valley, applies sealer Monday evening to the bricks at the veterans’ memorial at Memorial Park in Forreston. Thibodeau, who has his own landscaping business, said the sealer will give the bricks a gloss as well as seal the previous year. Whiteside County led the the polymeric sand between them. Photo by Vinde Wells
Agriculture, B4 Church News, A5 Classifieds, B7-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B5
The lunch includes a brat or hot dog (with or without sauerkraut topping), a bag of chips, and a can of pop. Music will be provided by 3D Sound. For information about car entries call Bret Schemel, American Legion Riders, at 815-238-0713. Trophies for the car and bike show will be awarded at 3 p.m. The annual 50-50 drawing winner will be announced at 3:30 p.m.
Sheriff’s Arrests, B5 Social News, A4 Sports, B2 State’s Attorney, B5
Published every Friday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com
“Thanks largely to the Rock and Mississippi Rivers, canoeing, kayaking, biking, hiking and bird-watching is exploding.” — Diane Bausman Executive Director Blackhawk Waterways way, percentage-wise with a healthy 7.6 percent boost in travel spending, totaling $39.67 million, and $940 million in local tax revenue, a 7.9 percent bump from 2016. Lee County saw travel spending jump to $33.07 million, a 4.6 percent increase, while local tax revenue checked in at $660,000, a 4.8 percent increase. Ogle and Carroll counties saw smaller percentage increases across the board. Ogle, however, has about double the tourism spending seen in Whiteside, even after its healthy jump. Two of Ogle’s biggest attractions are steeped in history – the Black Hawk Statue in Lowden State Park near Oregon and the John Deere Historic Site in Grand Detour. Its three state parks, Lowden, White Pines, in rural Mt. Morris, and Castle Rock, south of Oregon, draw thousands of visitors annually. Many of those visit the White Pines Resort, known for its lodging, fine dining, and dinner theater. Both Lowden and Castle Rock are bordered by the Rock River, which offers boating and fishing.
Deaths, B5 Francis P. Bral, Donald E. Wiltfang
Turn to A3