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CINDERELLA STORIES Glam rock band’s lead singer to perform at Fiesta Days. Plus: A full events schedule. Planit Pl@y
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Tom Keifer
NWHerald.com
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$2M bond for Fla. man sought on sex charges Arrested in LITH, but wanted in Fla. for crimes against kids By CHELSEA McDOUGALL cmcdougall@shawmedia.com
Illustration by R. Scott Helmchen – shelmchen@shawmedia.com
A SAFE BET? County businesses laud reversal of video gambling bans By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com
At 5 percent of the cut, municipal governments don’t get a very big piece of the action when it comes to video gambling as compared to their other sources of revenues. But the much larger share that the establishments with the machines get is proving to be a needed windfall, according to owners, a number of whom have more recently acquired video gambling machines as a result of local governments reversing gambling bans. Cary last October reversed its ban, joining Algonquin and the McHenry County Board, which reversed theirs earlier in 2013 under pressure from bar and restaurant owners. Coleman’s in the Park owner Brett Coleman said the downtown Cary restaurant and bar have plans for the money. “Eventually, we’ll be able to use it to upgrade our property and hire local contractors to improve our parking lot, repair our roof and use it to pay our property tax,” Coleman said. The five machines that Old Rivers Inn acquired after the County Board reversed its ban have been “a blessing” for the rural tavern, owner Bob McDaniel said. Revenues are bringing the establishment on Route 14 be-
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“It’s been good. Sales are down, but the machines help out, which is all we wanted in the first place. It’s been what I expected, maybe a little bit more.” Bob McDaniel Old Rivers Inn owner
Voice your opinion How often have you used a local video poker machine? Vote online at NWHerald.com. tween Harvard and Woodstock into the black, and will soon go toward a slew of needed repairs. “It’s been good. Sales are down, but the machines help out, which is all we wanted in the first place. It’s been what I expected, maybe a little bit more,” McDaniel said. More than 140 businesses in McHenry County have a total of 630 of the machines as of May, the latest month of data available from the Illinois Gaming Board. But McHenry County’s largest municipality, Crystal Lake, remains the sole holdout in not allowing the machines. Illinois legalized video gambling in n n
There are 143 establishments in McHenry County with a total of 630 video gambling machines as of May 2014.
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Algonquin and Johnsburg each have six establishments with 25 machines. Carpentersville has 10 establishments with 45 machines. Cary has three establishments with a total of 13 machines. Fox Lake has 22 establishments with a total of 102 machines.
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Fox River Grove has three establishments with a total of 14 machines. Harvard and Huntley each have seven establishments with 31 machines. Lake in the Hills has two establishments with a total of eight machines. Lakemoor, Port Barrington and Ringwood each have two establishments with 10 machines. Marengo has eight establishments with a total of 31 machines. McCullom Lake’s sole dining establishment has five machines. McHenry has 16 establishments with a total
2009 to help generate revenue to pay off the bonds for its $31 billion Illinois Jobs Now! capital plan, although the machines didn’t go live in local establishments until late 2012. Establishments that serve alcohol, fraternal or veterans organizations and truck stops can have up to five of the machines. The state gets 30 percent of the proceeds and gives 5 percent of that back to local governments, which also can charge an annual permit fee for each machine. The remaining 70 percent of the proceeds are split between the machine owner and the establishment. In May alone, revenues from the 16,879 machines in Illinois totaled $54.5 million, of which $13.6 million went to the state and $2.7 million went to municipal and county coffers. Local governments differ as to how they use their share of the revenue. Some, like Woodstock and Lake in the Hills, deposit it into their general funds. Algonquin’s revenues are slated for parks and recreation capital improvements, and Fox River Grove slated its revenues for its tree replacement program. Video gambling revenue played a part in the Johnsburg Village Board’s decision earlier this year to no longer require vehicle stickers. See VIDEO GAMBLING, page A4
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of 70 machines. Unincorporated McHenry County has 18 establishments with a total of 80 machines. Richmond has five establishments with 21 machines. Spring Grove has four establishments with a total of 15 machines. Union has three establishments with a total of 12 machines. Woodstock has 16 establishments with a total of 72 machines.
Source: Illinois Gaming Board
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WOODSTOCK – A McHenry County judge set bond at $2 million for a Florida man wanted for sex crimes with children. The defense attorney for 73-year-old Bruce D. Lisle indicated that he’d be able to post 10 percent, or $200,000, necessary for his release. McHenry County Judge Sharon Prather on Wednesday said that if Lisle posts bond, he has seven days to turn himself in to authorities in Indian River County, Florida. Lisle, of Alachua, Florida – which is outside Gainesville – was arrested July 4, while visiting family in Lake in the Hills. A no-bond warrant was issued for his arrest out of Indian River County, Florida, for what prosecutors there call capital sexual battery. The charge is similar to Illinois’ predatory sexual assault of a child and involves sexual contact with a child under 12 years old. Lisle is accused in six counts, each carrying a possible life sentence, Indian River County Assistant State’s Attorney
Chris Taylor said. In court Wednesday, defense attorney Mark Facchini told Prather that there was “no specificity” to the charges against Lisle and that they occurred between 1998 and 2003. The defense attorney said the allegations stem from a family member w h o m L i s l e o n c e but no longer supportBruce D. Lisle ed financially. Assistant State’s Attorney Dave Johnston asked the judge to continue to hold Lisle without bond while the extradition process played out. Taylor said his office was working to secure a governor’s warrant to extradite Lisle. “I doubt he will turn himself in to the state of Florida,” Johnston said. Lisle had not bonded out as of early Wednesday afternoon, McHenry County Jail officials said. Indian River County, Florida, is about 150 miles north of Miami, and is named one of the United States’ wealthiest counties.
In rare move, Ill. sends schools checks on time By KERRY LESTER The Associated Press CHICAGO – Illinois schools have received promised grant payments from the state on time for the first time since 2007 – but in another sign of the state’s precarious financial situation, a top education official has warned schools not to expect the pleasant surprise to become a permanent habit. The state cited higher income and sales tax revenues and court settlement proceeds among the factors in having the funds available. “While this is exciting news for districts, the comptroller’s office said this is the result of several unique circumstances and that districts should not expect to receive all payments on time next
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year,” State Superintendent of Education Christopher Koch wrote in the July 1 letter to superintendents around the state. All-purpose state aid – money used to offset the basic cost of educating students – has been paid on time in recent years, b u t grants and other funding for i t e m s Christopher such as Koch transportation, technical classes and special education have been lumped into the state’s backlog of unpaid bills, with schools often waiting months for promised funds.
See SCHOOLS, page A4