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COMETS DOWNED BY ROCKETS
GIRLS BASKETBALL, B1
Local folks are in a giving mood SAUK VALLEY, A8
dailyGAZETTE Tuesday, November 15, 2016 n SERVING ROCK FALLS, STERLING AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1854
STERLING | SCHOOLS
Making good on a tax promise School board vote could shave money from property tax bills BY CHRISTOPHER HEIMERMAN cheimerman@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5523 CHeimerman_SVM
STERLING – A rare bump to the equalized assessed value in the Sterling school district will help the school board start mak-
ing good on its promise to abate $1 million in property taxes. The expiration of Walmart Distribution Center’s 10-year Enterprise Zone property tax abatement means a 5.71 percent increase to the EAV in the district. That number has been stagnant in recent history, so a bump such as this doesn’t
happen very often. How rarely does it happen? “Never,” Tim Schwingle, the district’s director of finances, said with a laugh. “It’s been a long, long time – 10 to 15 years maybe – since it’s gone up that much.” LEVY continued on A34
To attend The Sterling school board meets at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the high school library, 1608 Fourth Ave. Go to sterlingpublicschools.org, or call 815626-5050 for more information.
SAUK VALLEY
He wants to bring it all together for development
EDUCATION
Council’s new director will help region tap into resources for local growth BY RACHEL RODGERS rrodgers@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5529 @rj_rodgers
Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com
From left: Natalia Barrientos, Lily Cantu, and Dulce Lopez were among the students in Julia Guerrero’s third-grade class at Washington Elementary School who decided where the $40 Guerrero’s daughter had found weeks earlier would go. The vote was close, but students elected to send CGH Medical Center the money, where it went to buy rubber duckies for kids who are a little nervous about a visit to the emergency room.
What do you do when some unexpected cash flows your way? A Sterling teacher let her students make that decision, and what they did was just ...
Positively ducky BY CHRISTOPHER HEIMERMAN cheimerman@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5523 CHeimerman_SVM
STERLING – It’s true, kids will be kids. They play like there’s no tomorrow and sometimes horse around, and as a result, they break bones. Get nosebleeds. Get stitches. Many of them also have hearts of gold, like the 25 kiddos in Julia Guerrero’s third-grade class at Washington Elementary School. About a month ago, Guerrero’s daughter,
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Vanessa, 12, found $40 on the ground at a cross-country meet at Hoover Park. Her mom gave her number to Sterling High Principal Jason Austin and they waited for weeks, but no one called to claim the loot. So she gave her 25 friends – that’s what she calls them: “All my students are my extrawonderful friends” – a mighty creative creative writing assignment: Convince me who should get the money. DUCKY continued on A54
ABBY.................... A7 BUSINESS............ A8 COMICS................B5
CROSSWORD.......B8 LIFESTYLE............ A7 LOTTERY.............. A2
Online extra
Read this story at saukvalley.com to watch video of Julia Guerrero tell her students what became of their $40 donation.
Inside
Mrs. Guerrero’s class taught us a lesson we could all learn from. Page A2
POLICE................. A2 OBITUARIES......... A4 OPINION............... A6
ROCK FALLS – Daniel Payette aims to keep the economic development wheel turning within the six-county region. The 32-year-old Shannon native was named executive director of Blackhawk Hills Regional Council last month. The agency serves Whiteside, Lee, Ogle, Carroll, Stephenson and Jo Daviess counties, providing resources to foster enhanced Daniel economic growth, Payette workforce development, natural resources conservation and quality of life for their communities. Payette replaced his colleague, former Executive Director Theresa Wittenauer, who became Lee County’s first administrator on Aug. 8 after about 5 years with the council. Wittenauer has been a valuable resource during the transition, Payette said. “You can’t replace knowledge, but you can hope to supplement it over time,” he said. Payette’s professional demeanor, organizational knowledge and work in local communities will make him a strong leader, Blackhawk Hills Board President Ed Juracek said. Payette has a master’s degree in urban and regional development from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, and before coming to Blackhawk Hills in 2011, he was an assistant for the Wisconsin Homeland Security Council. He started at the local agency as outreach coordinator and planning manager, tasked with implementing the nine-county, $69 million iFiber broadband project that improved high-speed internet access for schools, libraries, hospitals and municipal offices throughout northwestern Illinois. DEVELOPMENT continued on A54
Today’s weather High 58. Low 35. More on A3.
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