Mt. Morris Times / oglecountynews.com • Friday, Jul 30, 2021
MT. MORRIS BEAT
ALL ABOUT ROCKETTE 2 MT. MORRIS TIMES MT. MORRIS TIMES oglecountynews.com ShawLocal.com FAR LEFT: Immanuel Arellano, 14 of Mt. Morris, a member of the Blackhawk Crossing 4-H Club, talks about his bearded dragon, Rockette (center), as judge Mary Beth Overmyer listens at the Ogle County 4-H Fair on Saturday. LEFT: Immanuel gives Rockette a hug after the judging. 4-H projects will be on display throughout the fair which continues through Sunday at the fairgrounds between Oregon and Mt. Morris.
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Photos by Earleen Hinton/Shaw Media
VILLAGE BOARD
New way to file complaints coming soon BY ALEXA ZOELLNER
azoellner@shawmedia.com Mt. Morris citizens soon will have another option for reporting issues with streets and sidewalks. Village officials plan to go live with a new page on the village website, www. mtmorrisil.net, within the next week or two. It will allow residents to fill out an online form detailing their complaint or request for maintenance. “[We’re] trying to make it a little easier for everybody to report problems with trees, sidewalks, streets, gutters, whatever it is that has to be taken care of,” Streets Trustee Ed Higley said during Tuesday’s
village board meeting. Up until now, there has been no uniform method of filing a complaint or documenting steps taken to address the issue, Village President Phil Labash said. The information usually gets to the right channels — but how it gets there varies widely. “There was no way for us to capture all of this information in one place, so ultimately the streets trustee would know who has lodged a complaint and who has an issue and who doesn’t,” he said. Those filling out the online complaint form will be asked to provide: the date of the request; their name, address, phone number and, if possible, their email address; select which area of concern is
being reported — street repair or maintenance issue, sidewalk needs repair or replacement or a street evaluation is needed; and a brief description of the problem. The request will be added to a running list and prioritized by streets department staff based on their evaluation. If an email address is provided in the form, a confirmation email will be sent after the person clicks “submit.” Higley said his goal then is to reach out to the citizen. “One way or another, they’re going to get contacted,” Higley said. “I’m hoping to be back in touch with them within 48 hours. That’s my goal.”
grant the Advisory Committee 60 days to prepare and present an alternative recommendation(s) to a proposal by Oregon Superintendent Tom Mahoney to close of the DLR building. “Presumably the OCUSD School Board will vote on the matter at its regular meeting, Aug. 16,” the press release said.
For more information about this event or Young Leaders, call the Ogle County Farm Bureau at 815-732-2231.
NEWS BRIEFS Special school board meeting set for Monday, Aug 2 An advisory committee of citizens who have been researching alternatives to closing the David L. Rahn Junior High School is encouraging the public to attend an a special school board meeting on Monday, Aug. 2 at 6:30 p.m. in the Oregon High School gymnasium. “The scheduled reason for this meeting is to hear from the Advisory Committee of Citizens who are researching the details and finding alternatives to the Oregon Community Unit School District Superintendent’s recommendation to close the David L Rahn (“DLR”) Junior High School building at the end of the 2021-2022 school year, and move all 7th and 8th grade students into the current Oregon High School building,” read a July 19 press release from the committee. The Oregon School Board voted in June, 5-2 to
Donate non-perishable foods during ‘Battle of the Barns’ The Ogle County Farm Bureau Young Leaders are sponsoring a food drive during the 2021 Ogle County Fair. In the “Battle of the Barns,” each livestock barn will have a tub for fair-goers to donate non-perishable food items. The barn with the most items donated July 28-31 will receive a cash donation to be used for barn improvements. The donation site will be inside the 4-H Exhibit Building, and all donations will be distributed to local food pantries.
Zach Hall to bring vocal talent to final Kable Band concert on Aug. 4 The Kable Band brings their last concert of the 125th season on Wednesday, Aug 4. “We are happy to announce Zach Hall will bring his vocal talent to the concert,” said Sylvia Saunders, volunteer and band member. Hall is the choral director for the Oregon High School District and is an Oregon High School graduate and a long-time Kable Band member. The Kable Band, under the direction of Andy Eckardt, is held throughout the summer at 7:30 p.m. at the Warren G. Reckmeyer Band Shell on the Campus Square in Mt. Morris. “Don’t miss the last concert of the season and we’ll see you all next summer,” said Saunders.
