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Bleacher plan receives thumbs-up City commission casts series of votes approving project at CL South By EMILY K. COLEMAN ecoleman@shawmedia.com CRYSTAL LAKE – The last time the controversial Crystal Lake South High School bleachers were the subject of a city Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, there were tears and harsh words. There was none of that Wednesday evening as the
County approves list of ’16 priorities
bleacher issue returned for another public hearing, this time with a much-revised plan approved in a series of votes that ranged from unanimous to 4-2 in favor. Community High School District 155 officials now are asking to return the home side to the east bleachers through the addition of nearly 80 more feet in length and
eight rows for a total of 22 rows, two more than existed before the renovation. They also Jim Batastini want to keep the west bleachers, the ones that back up to homes, at their current
height of nine rows, five fewer rows than existed before the renovation and about a third fewer than what the new bleachers had, according to city documents. The proposal still needs to be considered by the Crystal Lake City Council. “First off with the bleachers, thank you,” Commissioner Jim Batastini said.
“To flip-flop them, thank you. I mean, how we got here is immaterial but thank you for working on the plan you brought forward.” The commissioners and the residents of Amberwood Drive, the street that runs parallel to the bleachers, did have some concerns, although the district’s attorney, Lisa Waggoner, said the
district was willing to accommodate the requests made, including keeping the security fence and extending the landscaping. Parking was the main concern for Chairman Tom Hayden, who voted against a variance that would allow the district to have about 350
See BLEACHERS, page A6
CENSUS: 14.6 PERCENT OF PEOPLE IN COUNTY SPEAK LANGUAGE OTHER THAN ENGLISH AT HOME
Vote nixes support for online sales tax By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com WOODSTOCK – The McHenry County Board removed collecting online sales tax from its list of 2016 legislative priorities, and rejected efforts by some to remove a request to pass laws that would make township consolidation easier. County Board members voted Tuesday evening, 18-4, to approve list of initiatives they want state and federal lawmakers to pursue this year, but not before more than an hour of debate on the nonbinding document that prompted Chairman Joe Gottemoller, R-Crystal Lake, to admonish members that they were “beating these to death.” The vote to remove the statement supporting what Joe is commonly Gottemoller referred to as “marketplace fairness” – taxing online retailers the same way brickand-mortar customers are taxed – passed by a 13-9 margin. Member Charles Wheeler, R-McHenry, made the motion to remove what he called “taxing the Internet.” “I can’t in good conscience support a resolution that will ask for that or mandate that,” Wheeler said. Board members in the minority, such as member Donna Kurtz, argued that collecting sales tax from online retailers is a matter of “taxation equity.” While Illinois can impose sales tax on online purchases from in-state companies, the issue predominantly is a federal one, given that the power to regulate interstate commerce under the U.S. Constitution rests with Congress. Illinois residents are supposed to report their Internet purchases on their state income tax form, but the requirement is widely ignored.
Sarah Nader – snader@shawmedia.com
Police officer Julio Lara starts his shift Tuesday at the Harvard Police Department. Lara is one of the only officers at the police department who speaks fluent Spanish. Lara said he sometimes will have Spanish-speaking people waiting to talk to him when he gets to the department in time to start his shift. Census data shows that in Harvard almost half of the population speaks English less than “very well.”
Communities aim to boost Spanish-language resources By HANNAH PROKOP hprokop@shawmedia.com When Harvard police officer Julio Lara comes into work, he said, there is sometimes a line of Spanish-speaking residents in the station parking lot waiting for him to start his shift. Lara, who has been working with the Harvard Police Department for about 20 years, said he’s one of the only officers who is Hispanic and fluent in Spanish at the department. “I know that even if they know how to speak [English] a little bit, the easiest thing for them to do is ask for me right away,” Lara said. According to the 2010-2014 American Community Survey fiveyear estimates collected by the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2014 in Harvard, 51.8 percent of people age 5 and older spoke a language other than English at home.
See COUNTY, page A5
Voice your opinion How many languages do you speak? Vote online at NWHerald. com. An estimated 49.8 percent of people spoke Spanish or Spanish Creole, and of that population, 48.5 percent spoke English less than “very well,” according to the survey. The trend follows in other McHenry County towns, too. Overall, the census estimated 14.6 percent of the 289,677 people in the county speaks a language other than English at home. Breakdowns for other towns, including Woodstock, Marengo and Crystal Lake, show the number of Spanish speakers who don’t speak English “very well” is more than 30 percent. Institutions in the community
ranging from police departments, to preschool dual language classes, to libraries, are incorporating and teaching both the Spanish and English languages. Lara said a language barrier and cultural differences are part of what make Spanish-speaking residents ask for a Hispanic officer with whom they feel more comfortable. With the high population of Spanish-speaking people in Harvard, Lara said his workload is heavy. “I definitely, definitely think that we need more Spanish [speaking] officers,” Lara said. Harvard Police Department Chief Mark Krause said there are three Spanish-speaking officers at the department and one dispatcher, but there are other ways to get assistance for those who speak any language other than English. Officials from police depart-
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ments in Harvard, Woodstock and Crystal Lake all said they sometimes call surrounding towns or the county if they need an officer who speaks a language other than English. Another resource used is an AT&T interpreter line, Krause said. “If we can communicate with someone in a language they’re more comfortable in, that benefits us and them,” Crystal Lake Police Cmdr. Tom Kretschmer said. He said it’s important for anyone who does not speak English to know that they can call the police for help. Another way communities incorporate both Spanish and English is through dual language programs. Keely Krueger, director of language and culture for Woodstock Community Unit School District
See LANGUAGE, page A5
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