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Tuesday, April 7, 2015
SERVING ROCK FALLS, STERLING AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1854
STERLING | 5-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN
Council OKs hiring consultants Work on project will begin immediately BY PAM EGGEMEIER peggemeier@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5570 @pam_eggemeier
STERLING – The city council on Monday approved a contract for consultants to begin work on a 5-year strategic plan for the city. Geneva-based Peter Bur-
Next meeting The Sterling City Council next meets at 6:30 p.m. April 20, at City Hall, 212 Third Ave., on the first floor in the Council Chambers. Go to sterling-il.gov or call City Hall at 815-632-6621 for an agenda or more information. chard LLC and facilitator Gerald Gabris were hired at a cost of $10,800 plus expenses. Burchard, a former Naperville city manager and health care executive, has done consult-
ing work with more than 100 municipalities. The consultants gave a presentation during a special council meeting on March 30. Gabris, a member of the
Northern Illinois University public policy staff since 1986, will gather information from focus groups that will be used in the planning process. The focus groups will be made up of residents, business owners, city staff, and council members. City Manager Scott Shumard said he wanted to make sure the project was part of this year’s budget. “With state cuts to the Local
Government Distributive Fund looming, we wanted to make sure this gets done as soon as possible,” Shumard said. Now that the contract is approved, work will begin right away. “We’ll start the background work immediately – basic demographics information and identifying the stakeholders,” Shumard said. CONSULTANTS CONTINUED ON A5
STERLING
WAIT IS OVER FOR NEW EQUIPMENT AT REAGAN MIDDLE SCHOOL
AG rules council violated OMA Sterling has since adopted rules on public comments BY PAM EGGEMEIER peggemeier@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5570 @pam_eggemeier
Photos by Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
ABOVE: Dixon schools maintenance workers (from left) Mark Whisenand, Kevin Schultz and Steve James wheel a weight machine into the gym at Reagan Middle School on Monday. The Dixon YMCA is replacing its strength and conditioning gear and donated its used equipment to the school. BELOW, LEFT: Mike Miller steadies a weight machine Monday as Aaron Wolber maneuvers the equipment with a tractor. BELOW, RIGHT: Jamie Anderson (left) and Mike Miller secure a strap around a piece of equipment Monday.
DIXON
Open Sesame stops pursuing Lincoln School Purchase plan on hold amid budget concerns BY JERMAINE PIGEE jpigee@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5525 @JPigee84
DIXON – Officials at Open Sesame Children’s Learning
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Center in Dixon have decided to stop pursuing the purchase of the vacant Lincoln School. Officials have expressed concerns about Gov. Bruce Rauner’s budget proposal, which would cut about $400 million from the Department of Human Services. “In my opinion, we are on hold because we don’t know
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what those cuts will be,” said Arlan McClain, vice president of the Open Sesame board of directors. “We are pretty nervous about taking on a project like that right now.” The district closed Lincoln School at the end of last school year to save money, and Open Sesame’s staff had considered
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moving all of its operations into the school at 501 S. Lincoln Ave., since the learning center has outgrown its current site. To do that, state fire officials say, Open Sesame would have to install a fire sprinkler system, which would cost more than $200,000.
STERLING – The Illinois attorney general’s office has ruled that the Sterling City Council violated the Open Meetings Act by not allowing several local landlords to speak during its January meeting. That came as no surprise to city officials, who had already acknowledged the violation and have since approved a formal policy on allowing public comments. Rod Kleckler, Rod president of Kleckler the Sauk Valley Landlord Association and a candidate for Rock Falls City Council, filed a complaint with the state after he and three others in the Skip audience were Lee not allowed to address aldermen during the public comment part of the meeting. Kleckler said he received a letter Saturday informing him of the state’s decision. He said he was pleased with the result, but wishes the situation wouldn’t have occurred to begin with. “I was always sure of what the outcome would be,” Kleckler said, “but I had expected a little stronger language from the state.”
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VIOLATED CONTINUED ON A5
Today’s weather High 53. Low 44. More on A3.
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