FRIDAY
No vem ber 21, 2014 • $ 1 .0 0
SEASON OF IMPROVEMENT Richmond-Burton’s Blake Betke is the 2014 Northwest Herald Girls Golfer of Year / C2 NWHerald.com
THE ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER PUBLISHED IN McHENRY COUNTY
HIGH
LOW
29 23 Complete forecast on page A10
Facebook.com/NWHerald
@NWHerald
Business’s relocation plan OK’d CL City Council issues special permit allowing car repair shop on Virginia St. By EMILY K. COLEMAN ecoleman@shawmedia.com CRYSTAL LAKE – Despite initial opposition from the mayor, a Crystal Lake automotive repair shop has received the go-ahead to relocate to a vacant corner on Virginia Street. The Crystal Lake City Council unanimously approved a special use permit so that Auto Tech, a repair shop
and tire distributor with four locations in McHenry County, could build a new storefront at Virginia Street and McHenry Avenue. The location sits in the Virginia Street corridor, which comes with architectural design restrictions, and is in a tax increment financing district. The corner has been vacant since Crystal Lake Home Furnishings closed and its building was later demol-
business raised concerns for ished. Mayor Aaron Shepley. When Auto An automotive use was Tech first subnot what he had “envisioned mitted its prothat corner to be,” Shepley posal, it did not said at the meeting, pointing meet the criteto the three other automotive ria laid out for businesses already located on the Virginia corners along that stretch of Street corridor or under the Aaron Shepley Virginia Street. But at the Planning and city’s Unified Crystal Lake Zoning Commission meeting, D e v e l o p m e n t mayor the business agreed to meet Ordinance. That along with the type of the guidelines laid out in the
city’s planning ordinances, earning it a 5-2 vote in favor of the proposal, and the plan submitted to the City Council for final approval meets the standards, according to council documents. “That changes the game,” Shepley said, adding it would still prefer something other than an automotive-geared business would move into the spot but that regardless, the business will add value to the
McHENRY COUNTY, NATIONAL EXPERTS CITE SHORTAGE OF IN-HOME CAREGIVERS FOR SENIORS
TIF district. Property tax revenue earned on value added to businesses and other properties in a TIF district can be used to improve that district. Auto Tech would be making a $2 million investment in the property, giving the city a significant bump in both property and sales tax, according to the attorney representing
See COUNCIL, page A8
Obama moves to protect millions from deportation Ignites fierce fight with GOP By JULIE PACE The Associated Press
H. Rick Bamman – hbamman@shawmedia.com
Charlie Marsh of Wauconda jokes Nov. 12 with Home Instead Senior Care caregiver Shawnee Damitz, who assists him several days a week.
CAREGIVER SHORTAGE Need for in-home help for seniors on the rise in county, nation By ALLISON GOODRICH agoodrich@shawmedia.com Charlie Marsh, 76, of Wauconda had been lying on his bedroom floor for two days, unable to get himself up, when his in-home caregiver found her way into his house and discovered him. “His blood sugar went low, and he ended up on the floor,” Marsh’s daughter Barb Chamberlain said. “When we got him into the hospital, he was close to renal failure.” A manager at Home Instead Senior Care in Cary, Suzanne Reuss months later said it’s incidents like this that make inhome caregivers like the one who cares for Marsh invaluable. However, in McHenry County there is a shortage of workers. “We’re in dire need of more caregivers,” Reuss said. “I get five or six calls per week from
“We don’t think any senior should lose their home just because they lose their license or they ... can’t cook anymore. Their memories and lives are in those homes, so why move them?” Suzanne Reuss Manager of Home Instead Senior Care
more seniors that are calling for some kind of help. I could probably hire five people a week and keep them working.” The manager said she suspects the deficit of caregivers – their duties can include preparing meals, driving to appointments, bathing, etc. – comes as the Baby Boomer generation is aging and living longer than previous generations, resulting in a rise of the
United States’ elderly population. Between 2000 and 2010, the number of Americans age 65 and older rose nearly 15 percent to more than 40 million, according to the Administration on Aging. By 2030, there will be a projected 72 million older Americans and 2.4 million older Illinoisans. That said, experts in the field have indicated more seniors, like Marsh, are choosing to main-
tain independence and remain in their own homes for as long as possible. Nancy Lundebjerg, chief operating officer for the American Geriatrics Society and a co-convener for the Eldercare Workforce Alliance, in a statement said access to a welltrained workforce to care for older adults will, therefore, be critical in the coming years. “The Bureau of Labor Statistics has said over the past several years that direct-care workers, including home health and personal care aids, are one of the fastest-growing jobs in the country,” Lundebjerg said. “Yet, many direct-care positions remain unfilled, especially those who provide care in the home setting.” The demand for both personal care aides and home
See CAREGIVERS, page A8
WASHINGTON – Spurning furious Republicans, President Barack Obama unveiled expansive executive actions on immigration Thursday night to spare nearly 5 million people in the U.S. illegally from deportation and refocus enforcement efforts on “felons, not families.” The moves, affecting mostly parents and young people, marked the most sweeping changes to the nation’s fractured immigration laws in nearly three decades and set off a fierce fight with Re- Barack Obama publicans over the limits of presidential powers. In a televised address to the nation, Obama defended the legality of his actions and challenged GOP lawmakers to focus their energy not on blocking his actions, but on approving long-stalled legislation to take its place. “To those members of Congress who question my authority to make our immigration system work better, or question the wisdom of me acting where Congress has failed, I have one answer: Pass a bill,” Obama said, flexing his presidential powers just two weeks after his political standing was challenged in the midterm elections. As Obama addressed the nation from the White House, immigration supporters with American flags draped over their shoulders marched on the street outside carrying signs that read, “Gracias, Presidente Obama.” Despite Obama’s challenge to Republicans to pass a broader immigration bill, his actions and the angry GOP response could largely stamp out prospects for Congress passing comprehensive legislation under the current administration, ensuring the contentious debate will spill over into the 2016 presidential campaign. Republicans, emboldened by their sweeping victories in the midterms, are weighing responses to the president’s
Voice your opinion: Do you or a relative use at-home care? Vote online at NWHerald.com.
See OBAMA, page A7
SPORTS
NATION
LOCAL NEWS
WHERE IT’S AT
Girls basketball
Getting worse?
Blame game
Prairie Ridge defense forces 21 turnovers, rolls past R-B / C2
Roofs collapse as Buffalo clobbered by more snow; warm-up coming / B5
Nunda Utility Co., township face-off freezes repairs / A3
Advice ................................ C7 Buzz.....................................C8 Classified........................ E1-8 Comics ............................... C9 Community ........................B1 Local News.................... A2-8 Lottery................................ A2 Movies................................ C6
Nation&World...................B5 Obituaries .........................A9 Opinion...............................B2 Puzzles ............................ E7-8 Sports..............................C1-5 Stocks.................................A9 Weather ........................... A10 Wheels .......................... D1-16
By the numbers President Barack Obama’s administrative actions will cover as many as 5 million immigrants living in the country illegally. Rough estimates of those affected:
4.1
million Parents of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents who have lived in the United States for at least five years and who will qualify for protection from deportation. Not all of those people are expected to sign up.
290,000 Immigrants who came to the U.S. as children before 2010 could qualify under liberalized requirements for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, originally launched in 2012.
610,000 Young immigrants already protected from deportation. Hundreds of thousands more people are believed to be eligible for the program.