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FINE TIME FOR A FIRST VARSITY GOAL BOYS SOCCER, B1
FOOD & TECHNOLOGY, A9-10
dailyGAZETTE Wednesday, September 17, 2014
SERVING ROCK FALLS, STERLING AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1854
ROCK FALLS POLICE | CHANGE IN LEADERSHIP
Kuelper will retire as chief Council OKs agreement putting Nelson in interim role BY PAM EGGEMEIER peggemeier@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5570
ROCK FALLS – Police Chief Mike Kuelper has told the city he will retire next year after 31 years on the force. Kuelper’s official retirement date is May 1, 2015, but unused vacation days will make Feb. 27 his last day as chief. The council approved a resolu-
tion Tuesday to make Operations Commander Tammy Nelson acting chief of police when Kuelper retires. Nelson was a finalist for the position when Kuelper was named chief in 2008. Nelson will do double duty from Feb. 27 to May 1, Kuelper said. “She would be starting the same way I did when I took over for Chief [Beto] Perez,” he said.
Kuelper, who turns 56 next week, said he had no specific reasons for retiring at this time, although the fact that police pensions don’t change after 30 years made it a little more enticing. “It was just time,” he said. Nelson had earlier approached the city about leaving her current position with the department, Mayor Bill Wescott said.
“We had a conversation with Tammy, and we think we have come to an agreement with her to keep her here,” Wescott said. The council resolution provides her with conditional employment, because Nelson would later have to be appointed permanent chief by the mayor, with the council’s approval.
THOMSON | PRISON JOB FAIR
Long road for some
CHIEF CONTINUED ON A4
Mike Kuelper Rock Falls police chief to retire after 31 years.
DIXON CITY COUNCIL | MEDICAL MARIJUANA
Proposal for center approved Commissioners change votes, break deadlock BY MATT MENCARINI mmencarini@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5529
Photos by Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Bradley Yates, 27, of Lexington, Kentucky, was in Illinois for the first time Tuesday to apply for a job at the federal prison in Thomson. Yates made the trip with his wife, Tamra, and their 14-month-old daughter, Miela. Tamra works at a federal prison in Kentucky, and said she would ask for a transfer to the Thomson facility if Bradley gets a job there.
Hopefuls make the trip from as far as Kentucky, Minnesota BY CHRISTI WARREN cwarren@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5521
THOMSON – Tamra and Bradley Yates traveled more than 8 hours from Lexington, Kentucky, with their 14-month-old daughter to be in Thomson on Monday. They were there to be ready for Tuesday, the first day of the 3-day hiring fair for jobs at the federal prison. Tamra, a nurse at a federal prison in Lexington, waited outside with their daughter, Miela, while her husband went in to talk with Federal Bureau of Prison employees about the open positions. Bradley will likely be applying for a job as a correctional officer, he said. It’s his most recent attempt to work in a federal prison – he’s applied for numerous positions at the Lexington prison, but the competition is high, and so far he’s been unsuccessful. PRISON CONTINUED ON A2
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TODAY’S EDITION: 28 PAGES 2 SECTIONS VOL. 160 ISSUE 199
Video online Visit saukvalley.com to see interviews with job-seekers who attended the fair, as well as Beth Pottios with the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
More inside Beth Pottios, regional public information officer for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, speaks about the Thomson Correctional Center’s job fair which was held on site Tuesday. The 3-day fair continues through Thursday. It is purely informational; no one will be hired during the job fair.
INDEX
BUSINESS ......... A13 COMICS ............. A12 CROSSWORD......B8
DEAR ABBY ......... A8 LIFESTYLE ........... A8 LOTTERY ............. A2
Get more information on the 3-day event, including how to contact the bureau about jobs, on A2.
OBITUARIES ........ A4 OPINION .............. A6 SPORTS ...............B1
DIXON – The City Council unanimously voted to sell an 8.85-acre piece of land in the Lee County Industrial Park less than 24 hours after the vote was deadlocked. The city was considering two proposals – from IPP LLC and Green Thumb Industries LLC – to purchase the property with the intent of building a medical marijuana cultivation center. The discussion started during the regular council meeting Monday night but was tabled until Tuesday, so that the council members could spend more time considering both proposals. During that time, Commissioners Dennis Considine and Colleen Brechon changed their minds, and Commissioner Jeff Kuhn made up his. The full council supported the proposal from IPP on Tuesday night and voted to approve the sale for $320,000. Mayor Jim Burke and Commissioner Dave Blackburn supported IPP on Monday night. In order for the city to sell the land, which was appraised at $257,000, the council needed four votes in favor of one of the proposals. PROPOSAL CONTINUED ON A4
Inside Stories Two parcels of land in Rock Falls ready for medical marijuana ventures. Page A3 Whiteside County Board willing to give letters of support for cultivation centers. Page A4 Another company – it’s one of at least four – vying for grow operation in Lee County. Page A5
Today’s weather High 69. Low 46. More on A3.
Outreach
Wipfli employees to donate time, A5.
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