‘EXHILARATING’ Fox River Grove ski jumper A.J. Brown has sights set on Olympics / C1
January 25, 2015 • $1.50
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29 16 Complete forecast on page A12
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Rep. revives efforts to cut government Hopes consolidation bills fare better under new gov. By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com
Photo illustration by Kyle Grillot – kgrillot@shawmedia.com
Motorists travel northbound Jan. 7 on Northwest Highway in Fox River Grove. The Fox River Grove Village Board has talked about getting rid of the red-light cameras at the end of their current contract. Ohio has already banned the cameras.
Local communities examine effects of red-light cameras By EMILY K. COLEMAN ecoleman@shawmedia.com FOX RIVER GROVE – When the contract for the red-light camera at Routes 22 and 14 comes up for renewal, Trustee Steve Knar wants Fox River Grove to take a second look. The camera is one of six scattered across four McHenry County communities, the first of which was installed in 2008. “I think – how should I say – it’s certainly not a popular thing with the residents, and it’s right at 22 and 14, and that’s a crossroads of our town,” Knar said. “We hear from a lot of residents.” The conversation hasn’t gotten too far, mostly because the village would be on the hook for the cost of removing the cameras if they cancel the contract midway through, he said. State Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills, filed legislation earlier this month that would eliminate the program, which allows cameras in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, Madison, McHenry, St. Clair and Will counties. The proposal is similar to one state Sen. Dan Duffy, R-Lake Barrington, has filed in the past along with proposals that would have added one second to yellow lights. The biggest barrier to removal – one cited by both critics who would be glad to see them go and proponents who see them as boosts to public safety – is the revenue they bring. “Right now we would not be fixing roads if we did not have red-light cameras,” Fox River Grove Village President Bob Nunamaker said, adding he’s heard from business owners and residents who now feel comfortable
walking the sidewalks that line Route 14. And that safety component is why Lake in the Hills uses them, said Village President Paul Mulcahy. “It’s never been question to me or my Village Board or anyone in the village of revenue,” he said. “The cameras have a positive effect on driving habits. ... For most of us, it’s been a long time since driver’s ed. The cameras re-teach or remind us.” Lake in the Hills initially had cameras installed at three intersections but took them down from two intersections where the number of violations showed there wasn’t a problem with people running red lights, Mulcahy said. The remaining camera at Randall Road and Acorn Lane has led to about 3,500 tickets since January 2010, generating about $412,000, according to the village’s response to a Freedom of Information Act request. The number of tickets issued in Lake in the Hills doesn’t approach the numbers issued in other McHenry County communities. In 2014 alone, more than 30,000 tickets were issued by the Village of Lakemoor for violations caught by its camera at Routes 120 and 12, according to a report created by the village’s police department. The $1.8 million generated by those tickets accounted for about 36 percent of the village’s revenue over the last fiscal year, according to an estimate calculated using the village’s 2013-14 annual financial statement. Nearly 7,600 tickets were issued in Fox River Grove in 2014, and the village of
LOCAL NEWS
REVENUE FROM RED LIGHT CAMERA TICKETS 2012
2013
2014
$ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $
$ $ $ $
$402,828.84
$342,805.86
$339,299.69
LAKE IN THE HILLS 2012 2013 2014 $
$89,635
$86,801.92
2012
LAKEMOOR 2013
$ $ $ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $ $ $
STOP
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $ $ $
harkush@shawmedia.com
$88,157.71
2014 $ $ $ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $ $
$1,816,078.89
FOX RIVER GROVE 2012 2013 2014 $ $ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $
$ $ $ $ $
$601,041.06
$423,654.53
$441,898.06
$
= $100,000
See CAMERAS, page A9
The saddest thing about Ernie Banks leaving us is so many of you who mourn his passing never really knew him at all. To three or four generations of Cubs fans, Ernie Banks is a Hall of Famer – so you know he must have been good – but more he is the quintessential ambassador of the game and neverending source of hope to the VIEWS legion of Cubs fans who’ve Hub always known Arkush in their hearts it probably wouldn’t happen Inside: Tom Musick: Ernie next year either. Banks, Mr. Cub, remembered by All most of Mr. Reynolds. Sports, C1 you know is an endless smile, a bad rhyme as to why this year will be the year and the neverending desire to play two today. More than anything, I mourn today for all of you because Lord, he was so much more. I was born in Rogers Park in 1953, almost seven months to the day before Ernie played his first game as a Cub. My Dad was working on the copy desk at the old American Sun just before it became the Sun-Times. And in the two-bedroom apartment that housed our folks and my two brothers and
See BANKS, page A9
BUSINESS
WHERE IT’S AT
4th-generation family business
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PLANIT STYLE
Students from 24 area high schools compete in FIRST Tech Challenge robotics event at Lundahl Middle in Crystal Lake / A3
$ $ $ $ $ $
Ernie Banks’ skill went far beyond baseball By HUB ARKUSH
$
$2,061,876.03 $2,224,314.12
With new owner, Woodstock manufacturer Charter Dura-Bar aims to double revenue / D1
Mind sport
See GOVERNMENT, page A9
ALGONQUIN
$
Bills aimed at helping consolidate some of the state’s almost 7,000 units of government may have a better chance of passing with a new governor in Springfield – or at least that’s what the sponsor hopes. Rep. Jack Franks, D-Marengo, re-filed bills with the new General Assembly aimed at giving counties more power to dissolve more units of government, and placing a four-year ban on lawmakers’ ability to create new ones. They are similar to bills he attempted to pass during the last session. Franks said he is hopeful that the election of Gov. Bruce Rauner, a Republican who ran on a platform of trimming state government and reining in local property taxes, will better the odds. “We need to do this to rein in government. There’s no question – our state has the most local taxing bodies and the second-highest property taxes in the country. This is in direct correlation,” Franks said. House Bill 229 would give all Illinois counties the same authority that a 2013 law granted the DuPage County Board to abolish certain units of local government. Bodies that can be eliminated
IS THIS LEAVING
YOU IN THE COLD? WE’LL HAVE HIM HEATING YOUR HOME IN NO TIME!
Transform your space Local companies, stars to share ideas at Old House New House Home Show / Planit 6-7
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