Serving the Mt. Morris area since 1967
MT.Times MORRIS March 23, 2017 Volume 50, Number 23 - $1.00
Maiden Season
Helping Hands
Job Fair
The new Oregon girls soccer team has been practicing for the inaugural season. B1
Ogle County residents spend hours of their lives volunteering. Inside
Brush up the resumes and prepare to attend an April 6 job fair at the Oregon Coliseum. A6
Crops can grow in the village By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com A farmer will be allowed to plant row crops on the 12 acres he owns within the Mt. Morris village limits. The village board approved a conditional use request from Dan Luepkes March 14 allowing him to plant crops for four years on his 12 acres that wraps around the bowling alley and is adjacent to both Mud Creek and Leaf River Roads. Board members Don Sorenson, Jon Murray, Shane Pope, and Jeff Pennington voted yes, while Tim Harvey abstained. Phil Labash did not attend the meeting. After several months of sometimes heated debate,
Encore! Above, The audience at an Encore! Mt. Morris event March 18 listens to updates about what the group has accomplished in recent months. The meeting was held at the Pinecrest Grove Community Center. At right, Jeff Bold spoke to the crowd at the Encore! Mt. Morris update. Photos by Vinde Wells
Oregon property will be appraised By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com
Byron man dies; stabbed his wife By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com A Byron man who police say stabbed his wife died March 16 in a car accident while fleeing the scene. Michael J. Gorman, 48, a public service administrator at the Dixon Correctional Center, was pronounced dead at Rockford Memorial Hospital. According to a press release from Ogle County Sheriff Brian VanVickle, Gorman stabbed his wife Jodi, 45, during a domestic dispute at their home at
last November the board approved row crops, such as corn or soybeans, as a conditional use on parcels of 10 acres or more in areas zoned residential. Residents of nearby Katie’s Way voiced strong opposition throughout the discussions to having farm crops growing so close to their homes. Luepkes told the board previously that his future plan for the land is to subdivide it for homes. In the meantime, he said, raising crops will provide him with an income from it. In another zoning matter, the board approved a request from Arkadiusz Stachurski and Angelika BrandeisStachurski to annex and Turn to A3
8438 Winnebago Lane, rural Byron. Jodi Gorman remains in a Rockford hospital for treatment of life-threatening injuries. The press release said Ogle County deputies were called to a domestic dispute involving a stabbing victim at 5:15 p.m., and when they arrived Michael Gorman had already fled in his car. The car he was driving struck a tree on Ill. 26 in Stephenson County just before 6 p.m. Gorman was ejected from the vehicle. According to a crash report
from the Stephenson County Sheriff’s Department, Gorman was southbound on Ill. 26 approximately about a mile and a half north of the Ogle-Stephenson county line when his vehicle left the roadway on the west side, went up an embankment, and hit the tree. The car spun around and came to rest partially in the southbound lane. Gorman was transported to FHN Hospital, Freeport, and then flown to Rockford. The preliminary report from the autopsy, completed by the Winnebago Coroner’s Office, indicates he died
from blunt force trauma as a result of the traffic crash. VanVickle said Monday that police were not pursuing Gorman at the time of the crash. According to Ogle County Court records, Michael Gorman filed for a divorce in 2014, but the couple both remained living in the home on Winnebago Lane. They have two children. The Ogle County Sheriff’s Department was assisted by the Byron Police Department, Byron Fire Department, Stephenson County Sheriff’s Department, and Illinois State Police.
The Ogle County Board approved spending up to $6,000 Tuesday for appraisals of property surrounding the 100 block of South Sixth Street, where it plans to build a new county jail. The properties were designated as part of the 50 year Property Acquisition Plan adopted by the board in 2014 for long range planning. The resolution to get the appraisals authorizes county officials to contact the affected property owners for their permission to proceed with the appraisals. “This provides property value protection for people
near the [new] jail,” said county board member Ron Colson, Mt. Morris. “That’s been a big concern.” The properties listed for the appraisals are five residences and four businesses - the four houses and law office on the east side of the 100 block of South Seventh Street, a house on Jefferson Street next to one already owned by the county, and the three business properties on Washington Street north of the judicial center. Board chairman Kim Gouker, Byron, said at the February meeting that getting the appraisals now would provide a basis for the setting prices for the properties when they come up for sale. Turn to A3
Oregon Public Library shows off renovated facility By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Oregon residents gave rave reviews March 17 of the renovations to their centuryold public library. “I think its fabulous, absolutely fabulous,” said Marine Kuethe. Pat Farraday agreed. “I think they’ve done a wonderful job,” she said. “It’s so light downstairs.” Cliff Knapp made it unanimous. He said he especially approved of the decision to preserve and restore the library, which was built in 1908. An estimated 150 people turned out to see the transformed building at the corner of Jefferson and Third Streets. The library board and staff Harold Harrison, Mt. Morris, visits with his sister and his wife at a table in front of the restored fireplace at the Oregon Public Library March 17 during an open house. Photo rolled out the red carpet, offering refreshments and by Vinde Wells
In This Week’s Edition...
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B7-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B4 Library News, B2
Marriage Licenses, A4 Mt. Morris Police, A2 Public Voice, A7 Property Transfers, B4 Sheriff’s Arrests, B3
information during the open house. Library Director Andy Dettman said the event went “very well.” “It was a good turnout. We had a lot of kids in and we had older people who hadn’t seen the elevator yet.” The recently published “The Art of Oregon” was featured at the open house with a book-signing by author Beth Simeone. Renovations were made to all three floors of the Carnegie library, which was built with money donated by Pittsburg businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. The library is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. One of the main goals of the renovations was to make the building handicapped accessible and meet Americans with Disabilities
Social News, A4 Sports, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B3
Acts (ADA) requirements. That was accomplished with a small addition for an elevator that runs from the basement to the second floor art gallery. Spacious handicapped accessible restrooms completed the project. The basement has been converted into space for programs and materials for children and youth. That freed up space on the first and second floors. Book stacks on the first floor were moved, allowing room for a large computer room and a room to relax and read in front of the restored fireplace. The stacks were also lowered and situated farther apart, another part of meeting ADA standards. With children’s programs no longer on the second Turn to A10
Deaths, B4 Virginia G. Borneman, Tera S. Frano, Kelli R. Huneke, Marvin L. Ludwig, Francis C. Michael
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com