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Pritzker’s war on the Republicans
Governor Pritzker spoke at a New Hampshire Democrat Party fundraising event April 27, calling for “mass protests, mobilization, and disruption” against Republicans to protest the current administration.
“These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace,” he said in the speech. “They must understand that we will fight their cruelty with every megaphone and microphone that we have. We must castigate them on the soapbox and then punish them at the ballot box .”(The Guardian)
He has labeled Republicans as “farright extremists,” “carnival barkers,” and “too cowardly” to act in the nation’s interest. (Chicago Tribune)
These statements are hardly consistent with Pritzker’s claim that “he is a peaceful leader,” arguing that true leaders should offer “words of solace and calm” in the face of political violence.
According to the Independent Voter Project, as of August 2025, Illinois voter registration data shows that 37.7% of registered voters in Illinois are Democrats (3,044,805 individuals), 27.53% are Republicans (2,223,314 individuals), and the remaining are unaffiliated with either party. The governor should show empathy for all individuals in Illinois and not beat up on 27.5% of those registered as Republicans.
In January 2023, Pritzker signed House Bill 4412, also known as Public Act 102-1123, into law. The law preempts county authority to enact local ordinances that prohibit wind and solar projects. (See Rochelle News-Leader,
IT’S YOUR WRITE
Reader enjoyed Harris column on Why I love Rochelle
I just read Reed Harris’ column, “Consider this: Why I love Rochelle”, in the Sunday, Nov. 23, Rochelle News-Leader and I commend his love of Rochelle.
And I agree that “it takes a village” – the people, reasonable restaurants, a newspaper, a hospital, recreational facilities, the
Sept. 14, 2025).
COMMUNITY VIEWS
Chuck Roberts
In Illinois, most urban areas lean Democrat, and most rural areas are Republican. Large solar projects require several hundred acres in counties consisting of farmland, mostly in Republican counties.
It is impractical to locate a large solar farm in a predominantly Democratic county, such as Cook County. However, in many rural areas, there is opposition to large solar projects encompassing several hundred acres of arable farmland. So, probably expecting opposition to the “green new deal” (renewable energy), Pritzker signed a bill that knocks out the opposition.
Pritzker is constantly fighting with President Trump. He has stated that the administration is drifting “toward authoritarianism” and compared ICE agent tactics to those of Germany in the 1930s. (Newsbreak)
For the non-historians out there, this implies Nazi policies. Pritzker is embroiled in a controversy over whether he referred to Trump as Adolf Hitler, which he denies. However, Pritzker has, through his rhetoric, implied that Trump is Hitler.
Public perception differs when a governor uses the eponym “Hitler” versus when they warn about authoritarian pat-
terns rooted in historical analogies. Pritzker, in an interview with reporters at FOX 32 Chicago, stated, “The President of the United States is causing mayhem in the grounds of our state. He is going after his political opponents. I don’t know why anybody would look at the situation and not recognize he’s moving toward an authoritarian regime in his own image.”
This rhetoric has fomented violence in Chicago, as evidenced by a recent gunshot taken at ICE agents. The Illinois Freedom Caucus condemned Pritzker’s remarks as “vile” and incompatible with democratic norms. If a municipality is counting on federal grants, this rhetoric may not be helpful in that regard.
The Pritzker family has ranked near the top of Forbes’ “America’s Richest Families” list since its first publication in 1982. The family is the heir to the Hyatt Hotel fortune. Political pundits say that Pritzker is positioning himself to run as the Democrat nominee for president of the United States. Apparently, he must pander to the radical left of the Democratic party, which often advocates violence to attain its goals. It does not take a political genius to conclude that Pritzker has not endeared himself to Illinois Republicans. In my opinion, Pritzker should stop fighting with Trump, stop the vitriol, become bipartisan, and apologize to Republicans for his hate speech, but don’t bet on it.
Chuck Roberts is a freelance writer in Rochelle.
community foundation, organizations to help those in need, the airport, his reminiscences about “days long ago” and even the progress in the community – all those things he mentioned.
I also realize that ICE, the military, and the economy that he ended his column with are a concern.
What I think is missing from his column
The city of Rochelle is looking into possible projects involving the airport and tech center. MAIN: The Rochelle Technology Center on Dement Road. INSERT: The Rochelle Municipal Airport at 1201 E. Gurler Road. Photos by Jeff Helfrich ON THE COVER
are the other things that make a small community great … the locally owned businesses, the schools, the places of worship, the library and my favorite place, the Flagg Township Museum.
Makes me want to know what you love best about Rochelle.
-Jan Devore, Flagg Township Museum director Rochelle
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Rochelle looking at issuing bonds for airport, tech center improvements
‘We’re trying to reinvest back into the infrastructure to supply the best service we can for our residents’
By JEFF HELFRICH jhelfrich@shawmedia.com
The city of Rochelle is considering issuing alternate revenue bonds for potential projects at the Rochelle Municipal Airport and the Rochelle Technology Center that would likely total $2.7 million, City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh said Nov. 20.
The airport project would see the city construct a $1.9 million, eight-unit hangar to be leased out to consumers, City Public Works Director Tim Isley said. All current city-owned hangar space at the airport is currently full with waiting lists. The hangar project could see $1.2 million in grant funding after the city funded it up front.
The Rochelle Technology Center work would involve electrical upgrades to the system that supports Rochelle Municipal Utilities fiber service customers, city data center customers, and the information technology system of the city itself. That potential project would cost $550,000, City Advanced Communications Director Pat Brust said.
Fiegenschuh said that if approved by the city council, the bonds could be issued with the borrowed funds delivered by sometime in February.
“We’re just trying to reinvest back into the infrastructure to supply the best service we can for our residents,” Fiegenschuh said. “I would put our fiber up against any other utility. We have employees in town that service our customers. The airport and tech center are both extremely important to our economic development future.”
Brust said the Rochelle Technology Center has two electrical feeds coming into the building, along with a large diesel generator. All three currently feed into one battery backup that then feeds the computer system. The project would provide redundancy so there isn’t one single power choke point in the building.
Having multiple power feeds and redundancy in the case of outages would differentiate the Rochelle Technology Center from other small data centers, Brust said.
“Rochelle is a unicorn in the sense that it’s a municipality that owns a data center,” Brust said. “This building itself is very critical not only to drawing interest from other customers and providing services, but the way the city is structured, all of the fiber communications for all of our different departments and buildings come through the tech center. We want to be able to provide redundancy for customers as well as the city.”
Isley said the Rochelle Municipal Airport currently has seven different hangars with about 40 aircraft based there. The new hangar would be located to the south of the city’s current newest hangar.
Monthly rent and property leasing are the biggest sources of revenue at the airport. More hangar space would result in more lease revenue along with more traffic and fuel sales at the airport. The airport receives funding from the state and federal governments and more takeoff and landing at the airport would result in more federal funding, Isley said.
The new hangar would result in about $2,000 or more in monthly lease payments to the city.
“It’s a long-term investment,” Isley said. “The hangars we have out there now, some of them are 63-64 years old. This would be bringing in $2,000+ per month over the next 75 years. They’re long-lasting steel hangars and you don’t have to worry about salt impacts at the airports. It’s a long-term investment that will bring money to the city for quite some time.”
Isley said if the bonds are issued, he hopes to start construction on the new hangar in early spring 2026. Brust said the tech center project would start after that due to a longer engineering process. The
bond funds would have to be spent within three years of the city receiving them.
Fiegenschuh praised the services and revenue that the airport and tech center bring to the community and city.
“The airport is used significantly and we’ve talked about ways to expand and generate more revenue,” Fiegenschuh said. “We’re a unicorn community where we offer all of these services. The airport is a vital cog in our economic development. The case is the same with the tech center. Pretty much all the fiber that runs into the community comes through that data center.”
Photos by Jeff Helfrich
The Rochelle Municipal Airport at 1201 E. Gurler Road in Rochelle.
The Rochelle Technology Center on Dement Road in Rochelle.
City of Rochelle holds workshop on proposed $120M 2026 budget
City manager: ‘Our department heads did a really good job of holding the line on their budgets’
By JEFF HELFRICH jhelfrich@shawmedia.com
The city of Rochelle’s fiscal 2026 budget is $13 million less than the previous year’s, primarily due to less spending on capital projects, City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh said.
The total budget this year is $120,019,874, down from last year’s $133.5 million budget. The 2026 budget includes funding for hiring police officers, construction of a new hangar at the Rochelle Municipal Airport, a new electric substation on Centerpoint Drive, completion of an event space and utility undergrounding in the downtown area, and new pickleball courts at Fairways Golf Course.
Of the total 2026 budget, 335 of expenditures are made up of contractual services (power purchases), 27% is made up of capital outlay, 19% is made up of personnel costs, 13% is made up of transfers, 4% is debt service, 3% percent is supplies and 1% is other.
The city’s planned total general fund revenue in 2026 is $16,326,475 with expenditures of $16,603,887. Police, fire and public works comprise 80% of the city’s general fund expenses, Fiegenschuh said.
“Our department heads did a really good job of holding the line on their budgets as best as possible,” Fiegenschuh said. “We are adding staff in a couple of departments. Overall, every department’s budget remained pretty flat.”
The city has seen its overall property tax levy rate decrease since 2021. In 2021 the rate was 1.04307, in 2022 it was 1.00636, in 2023 it was 0.94124, in 2024 it was 0.92812, and in 2025 it is 0.87592.
“That’s primarily due to equalized assessed value (EAV) going up every year.” Fiegenschuh said. “There’s a lot of factors in that, but one of those is the successful economic development work we’ve done bringing in more EAV dol -
restrooms facility and parking lots, the new airport hangar, new carpet and flooring at City Hall and RPD, a new dump truck for public works, pavement improvements on South Main Street, upgrades to the Flagg Road and 20th Street intersection, a new electric substation and line, development of a new water well, Rochelle Technology Center electrical upgrades and new pickleball courts at the golf course.
Fiegenschuh closed the Nov. 17 budget workshop by recapping city accomplishments and teamwork in 2024 and 2025.
lars to the community to allow us to lower our overall levy.”
As of Jan. 1, 2026, the city will have $35,064,464 in debt across all funds. It plans to make $3,966,225 in payments during 2026 to bring the number to $31,098,239 at the end of the year.
“We continue to pay our debt down,” Fiegenschuh said. “We’ll be paying off multiple individual project portions in the next few years.”
Planned and budgeted staffing changes in 2026 for the city include the hiring of two additional police officers in anticipation of future retirements, hiring an additional electric lineman in anticipation of pending retirements, and the addition of an engineering technician.
From 2017 to 2025, the Rochelle Police Department has added staffing across its entire department, including nine additional patrol officers.
“Very clearly we were understaffed when it came to patrol back in 2017,” Fiegenschuh said. “The chief at the time had no administrative support and we are where we need to be with dispatchers. We’ve increased staffing by almost 12 people at RPD since 2017. We want to make sure our police department is fully staffed, especially with patrol officers on the streets keeping our people safe.”
Staffing has also recently increased in the Rochelle Fire Department due to increased call volumes and in the city’s street department due to an effort to do more work in house rather than pay contractors. The city of Rochelle has a total of 148 full-time employees, Fiegenschuh said.
The city’s capital improvement plan for 2026 totals $32,257,211, with a majority of those funds dedicated to streets, electric and water projects.
Capital improvement projects in 2026 include the downtown stage, storage and
“One of the reasons our budget is lower than it was last year is because our team did a really good job of getting projects done,” Fiegenschuh said. “They don’t mess around. We have some of the best staff I’ve worked with in my 20 years in this profession.”
Jeff Helfrich
Rochelle City Hall announced the city’s 2026 proposed budget, which was $13 million less than last year. City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh said the difference was due to less spending on capital projects.
State’s omnibus energy bill to incur new costs
years. The requirement affects municipal utilities with 7,000 customers or more. RMU has about 7,500 customers.
sis, to determine appropriate next steps.
By JEFF HELFRICH jhelfrich@shawmedia.com
The Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act passed by the state legislature in late October stands to impact the city of Rochelle-owned Rochelle Municipal Utilities and its customers, city officials said Nov. 19. Gov. JB Pritzker has pledged to sign the bill.
City Attorney Dominick Lanzito said that by 2027, the omnibus energy bill will require the city to put together an integrated resource plan with all of its current electric infrastructure, facilities and generation and expectations for growth and improvements in the system and submit to the state.
The work would be done every five
The new legislation also involves statewide battery storage and renewable energy requirements for utilities. Lanzito said the city is still working its way through the 700-page bill to determine what all it means for RMU. City officials are unsure of the cost of an integrated resource plan. Lanzito said the cost is “probably close to $250,000 a year.”
“The cost is likely going to be funded by ratepayers, which is why it’s important to grow the utility,” Lanzito said.
“That cost will have to come from somewhere in the next 14 months. We’ll get started on that process. The city has done a great job of tracking its assets and planning for the future. It’s probably one of the most forward-facing municipal utilities.”
City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh said a rate adjustment will be made to cover the new unfunded state mandate, but it’s too early to say on a timeline or amount. Once the bill is finalized, the city will work with Utility Financial Solutions, which handles its rate analy-
Fiegenschuh said city representatives had a hand in negotiating the bill. There was previously a desire for an integrated resource plan requirement every three years instead of five.
“That’s what happens when the state legislature gets involved,” Fiegenschuh said. “They tend to pass on unfunded mandates to localities. The bill could have been worse. We’re now required to do it and that’s what we’re going to do. The additional cost will be paid by our ratepayers. I don’t know what the numbers will be, but we’ll have a rate adjustment to help fund it.”
RMU Superintendent of Electric Operations Blake Toliver said the city is still reviewing the bill to determine what an integrated resource plan will consist of. The city will find a vendor to do the IRP for it. The process will involve future power load forecasting and “a lot of legwork,” Toliver said.
The city’s baseload power it purchases from Prairie State would come offline completely in 2042 and be reduced by 45 percent in 2038 based on current legislation.
“These projects with RMU infrastructure and generation all have long lead times,” Lanzito said. “It’s something we’re going to have to start planning on now. That will create an additional expense with that level of forecasting and planning and how we’ll obtain electricity in the future. With a large push toward renewables, we’re going to have to change a lot of our practices and our dependency on some of that baseload power in order to meet some of those standards. That’s going to unfortunately cause rates to rise.”
Lanzito said the load forecasting piece will be difficult for RMU due to its main source of baseload power, the Prairie State Energy Campus in southern Marissa, Ill., being required to be carbon-free by 2045, either by going offline or installing sequestration technology. The state’s Climate and Equitable Jobs (CEJA) Act in 2021 put those requirements in place for the coal plant the city bought into in 2007.
See EnERgy on page 14
Rochelle DAR Chapter hosts exhibit at library
SHAW LOCAL NEWS NETWORK contact@shawmedia.com
The Rochelle Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution is excited to announce the opening of the American Revolution Experience at the Flagg-Rochelle Public Library, effective immediately.
The innovative pop-up exhibition includes display panels and interactive digital kiosks that use storytelling, illustration, technology and unique artifacts and primary accounts to connect modern audiences with the people and places that shaped the birth of our nation.
Created through a collaboration between the American Battlefield Trust and the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, the exhibit is also made possible by generous matching funds from the National Park Service’s American Battlefield Protection Program battlefield interpretation grants.
The exhibit will run through Wednesday, Dec, 17, at the Flagg-Rochelle Public Library in Rochelle. The display is free and open to the public at any time the library is open.
The American Revolution Experience launched online in its first digital-only iteration during the summer of 2022 to rapid acclaim and received a Bronze Award in the Education, Art, & Culture division of the second annual Anthem Awards, an initiative of the Webby Awards celebrating purpose and mission-driven work.
It was also a finalist in the “People’s Choice” category of the Webbys themselves.
“The American Revolution would not have happened without the decisions, sacrifices, and valor of ordinary people,” DAR President General Pamela Rouse Wright said. “DAR is honored to have collaborated with the American Battlefield Trust on this initiative to highlight some of our patriots and their roles in the founding of this great country. We are thrilled for people in communities across the country to learn more about these individuals.”
The traveling exhibit includes 12 panels highlighting thematic connections between profiled individuals and three interactive kiosks that connect to the full digital biographies, provide documentary context on the Revolutionary War and offer information on how to visit the places tied to these individuals today.
Both online and on-site, the American Revolution Experience features custom illustrations by South Carolina-based art-
ist Dale Watson. The exhibit also draws from documents and objects in DAR’s collection, as well as the Trust’s industry-leading digital interpretation resources.
“Independence may have been declared in Philadelphia by the Declaration’s 56 signers, but it was hard-won on the battlefields we protect by the thousands of patriot soldiers from whom today’s Daughters trace descent,” said Trust President David Duncan. “Together, our organizations bear witness to the fact that we are not so far removed from those impactful events, that there are meaningful ways to bridge those 250 years.”
The Flagg-Rochelle is among the scores of libraries, historical societies and museums that will host the American Revolution Experience through 2027, introducing visitors to a cast of historical characters with diverse experiences throughout the conflict and the places they visited on their journey.
A longer-term mounting of the exhibit will remain at DAR’s national headquarters in Washington, D.C. Individual DAR chapters across the nation, including Rochelle Chapter, have partnered with institutions in their communities to offer venues for the exhibit, booking its current complement of copies to capacity; further inquiries will be placed on a waitlist. The hosting request form and the touring calendar are available at www.battlefields. org/ontour.
The American Revolution Experience invites visitors to consider the choice faced by members of the revolutionary generation as tensions mounted in the 1770s: Would these ordinary citizens risk their lives and livelihoods in pursuit of liberty? Or would they remain loyal subjects of the British crown, coming into conflict with neighbors and family? The exhibit surfaces diverse viewpoints and experiences, touching on the journeys – both literal and figurative – of Patriots and Loyalists, men and women, Black and Native
almost 60,000 acres associated with the Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and Civil War, representing 160 sites in 25 states from Massachusetts to New Mexico. Its 350,000 members and supporters believe in the power of place and the continued relevance of our shared history to modern American society. Learn more at www. battlefields.org.
populations and even international allies. Rather than focusing only on generals and famous statesmen, it introduces audiences to drummer boys, military mapmakers and other ordinary people who were impacted by global events.
About the organizations
From a grassroots organization started by historians nearly 40 years ago, the American Battlefield Trust has grown into one of the most successful land preservation and education organizations in the nation. The Trust has protected
The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in 1890 to promote historic preservation, education, and patriotism. Its members are descended from the patriots who won American independence during the Revolutionary War. With nearly 190,000 members in approximately 3,000 chapters worldwide, DAR is one of the world’s largest and most active service organizations.
Requests for information or presentations by Rochelle Chapter, relating to local service projects, scholarships, genealogy, membership, DAR mission areas of patriotism, historic preservation, and education, as well as historical events, may be requested by visiting the chapter’s website at https://www.ildar.org/chapters/ rochelle/ and using the “contact us” tab.
Photo provided by Rochelle DAR
The Rochelle Chapter DAR is pictured this year.
City’s new electric substation project progressing
By JEFF HELFRICH jhelfrich@shawmedia.com
The city of Rochelle is moving toward construction on a new electrical substation project for Rochelle Municipal Utilities on Centerpoint Drive off Illinois Route 38 west of town, RMU Superintendent of Electric Operations Blake Toliver said Nov. 19.
At its Oct. 27 meeting, the Rochelle City Council approved a $7,673,358 bid from Tri-City Electric Co. for the construction of the substation. At its Nov. 10 meeting, the council approved five easement agreements totaling $403,273 for the project, which also will see overhead lines run from RMU’s Ritchie Road substation to the new Centerpoint Drive substation.
Toliver said the next steps will include the city council considering bids for steel utility poles at its Dec. 8 meeting and bids for the line construction at a meeting in
The City of Rochelle is moving toward construction on a new electrical substation project for Rochelle Municipal Utilities on Centerpoint Drive off Illinois Route 38 west of town, RMU
tendent of Electric Operations Blake Toliver said.
January. He hopes the construction of the line and substation will be substantially complete by the end of 2026.
In early 2024, the city council purchased switchgear for $2.672 million and a transformer for $2.047 million for the project, which is expected to cost around $20 million total. The project will be cashfunded using RMU reserve funds and will have no impact on customers’ electric rates, Toliver said.
The new substation project will be RMU’s second in six years. The city completed a $13.8 million substation on Ritchie Road in May 2022.
“Many, many hours have gone into this project,” Toliver said. “It’s been three years in the making to bring this substation to fruition. The day after we energized the Ritchie Road substation we started planning for the Centerpoint Drive substation.
“It takes a lot of work behind the scenes with engineering, planning, stormwater issues and more to make sure this is a successful project for RMU and its customers. For this substation we have to build about five miles of line to be able to energize it, and that’s where the extra cost is coming in.”
The new steel utility poles will run from Ritchie Road to Steward Road to South Main Street to Jack Dame Road to Illinois Route 38 to Centerpoint Drive. The portion that runs along South Main Street behind the Lake Lida subdivision will be run underground, Toliver said.
commercial and residential load.
“MightyVine is very much an industrial load,” Toliver said. “Having this 34.5kV tie out to that area will help alleviate the loading constraints we have on the two feeds out there currently as well as allow for extra development to happen in that industrial park out there. If another industry wanted to come in, it wouldn’t negatively impact any of the residential customers that are fed off of those lines.”
The new substation will allow for about 50 additional megawatts of growth on the west side of RMU’s territory, Toliver said.
Rochelle City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh thanked Toliver and RMU electric team, City Attorney Dominick Lanzito and the city council for their work on the project so far.
“This project has been three years in the making,” Fiegenschuh said. “We went from building one substation to moving on to this one. It’s been a process, but that’s why we have a great team in place, to get this stuff done. I’m super excited about the project. For a town of 9,000 people, building two substations in six years is pretty remarkable.” Jeff
The new substation will improve power redundancy on the western edge of RMU’s service territory, Toliver said. MightyVine, a greenhouse tomato farm at 222 Centerpoint Drive, currently is supplied with power by two of RMU’s existing feeders, which are more designed for
Helfrich
Superin-
Plans for bonds set for airport, tech center projects
By JEFF HELFRICH jhelfrich@shawmedia.com
The Rochelle City Council has unanimously approved two parameters ordinances authorizing the future issuance of general obligation bonds to fund projects at the Rochelle Technology Center and the Rochelle Municipal Airport.
The first approval Monday, Nov. 24, was not to exceed $1.5 million for financing electrical upgrades at the Rochelle Technology Center. City Advanced Communications Director Pat Brust said the project would involve electrical upgrades to the system that supports Rochelle Municipal Utilities fiber service customers, city data center customers and the information technology system of the city itself. The project could cost in the area of $550,000.
The Rochelle Technology Center has
two electrical feeds coming into the building, along with a large diesel generator. All three currently feed into one battery backup that then feeds the computer system. The project would provide redundancy so there isn’t one single power choke point in the building. Having multiple power feeds and redundancy in the case of outages would differentiate the Rochelle Technology Center from other small data centers, Brust said.
“Our current setup was identified by some potential customers as a reason not to come and lease space from us,” Brust said. “We’re looking at updating some of that equipment to make us more available to other people. The building is 15 years old and some of the equipment we have in the battery section is close to end of life. This is a way for us to generate revenue.”
Brust said the project strictly involves the Rochelle Technology Center and has nothing to do with a large proposed data center potentially locating elsewhere in the city.
The second approval was not to exceed $3.5 million for financing the addition of a new eight-unit airplane T-hangar at the Rochelle Municipal Airport. The cost of
constructing the new hangar is $1.9 million, City Public Works Director Tim Isley said.
All current city-owned hangar space at the airport is currently full with a waiting list of 15 planes. The hangar project could see $1.2 million in grant funding after the city funded it up front. The Rochelle Municipal Airport currently has seven different hangars with about 40 aircraft based there.
Monthly rent and property leasing are the biggest sources of revenue at the airport. More hangar space would result in more lease revenue along with more traffic and fuel sales at the airport. The airport receives funding from the state and federal governments and more takeoff and landing at the airport would result in more federal funding, Isley said.
The new hangar would result in about $2,000 or more in monthly lease payments to the city. The city hopes to start construction on the new hangar in early spring 2026.
“This has been needed and now the dollars are right to do it,” Mayor John Bearrows said. “We have a great little airport.”
The tech center bonds will be repaid primarily through tech center revenues and other legally available city funds. The airport project bonds will be repaid using pledged revenues, federal grants and other city funds.
City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh called the tech center improvements “desperately needed” and said Monday’s approvals were just for parameters. The council has not issued the bonds yet and will hold a public hearing on the matter at its Dec. 8 meeting.
“If anything falls outside the parameters, we will not be issuing debt,” Fiegenschuh said. “This is just establishing the parameters for us to investigate. If the projects come in at less than the approved bond amount, we will only issue that much debt.”
Grant program
The council unanimously approved a resolution establishing a small business interior improvement grant program for businesses located within its Downtown TIF (tax increment financing)
An Old-Fashioned Christmas Walk
The city will hold its annual Old-Fashioned Christmas Walk on Friday, December 5, 2025, in downtown Rochelle.
Reindeer will be at Terri Schaefer State Farm from 4-6 p.m.
Santa Claus will be at the Flagg Township Museum from 4-7 p.m.
Carriage rides will take place from 4-8 p.m. and will begin in front of the Flagg Township Museum. The lighted parade will take place at 5:30 p.m., followed by the community tree lighting at 6 p.m. at City Hall. The Flagg-Rochelle Public Library will host activities after the parade at 7:30.
Attendees can enjoy the hospitality of downtown shops and businesses during the event.
Join us for an evening of
Invites Everyone to Downtown Events December 5th and 6th
An Old-Fashioned Christmas Walk
Enjoy the Hospitality of our Downtown Businesses.
926 Crafted Apparel: Refreshments and a drawing
Acres Bistro: Food & drink specials, Open till 9p
Scale House Lounge: Guest Bartenders from The Coyote 7p-8p (proceeds going to Toys for Tots), Live music 7p-10p, open till 11p
Artists Garden: Gift with purchase, raffle, in store specials, Open till 9
Audyn Boutique: 15% off Clothing
Bill’s Trading Post: In store sales
Colonial Flowers and Gifts: Free flower, a drawing & refreshments
Down Range: Sales & discounts
Fashion Nails: Hot Chocolate & a drawing
VFW Ladies Auxiliary
Craft Fair: Friday: 4p-8p and Saturday: 10a-2p
Flagg-Rochelle Public Library: Family friendly activities, hot chocolate & treats
Hair Express: Enjoy treats
Hope Chest: Sales & discounts throughout the store
Joyeria Ruby: Refreshments & sales
Pickin’ Station: Refreshments, a drawing, sales & discounts
Quinn’s Jewelry: Refreshments, sales & a drawing
Rochelle Pharmacy: Hot Chocolate & cookies
Roiel Scoop: Refreshments, sales, a drawing, coloring for the kids & Arcade will be open
Spark Shop: Open during Christmas Walk
Sweet Blessings: Refreshments, sales & discounts
Visit Santa’ s Reindeer Terri Schaefer State Farm 4-6 pm
Horse Drawn Carriage Ride 4-8 pm In front of Flagg Township Museum.
Visit Santa & Mrs. Claus Flagg Township Museum
Warm up with a roaring fire, Guess the M&M’s and enjoy Courtney’s Lights and Creations
Lighting of the Community Tree 6:15 pm
“A Charlie Brown Christmas Walk” 7:30p At the Library
Ralfie’s BBQ On the corner of Lincoln & 4th
Horicon Masonic Lodge Bike Giveaway
Tri County Opportunity Council: Kids crafts, refreshments, & a drawing
Entry starts at 3pm on Dec. 5th, in front of the Masonic lodge. Winner will be drawn by Mayor Bearrows at 6pm during the Tree Lighting Must be present to win.
First-$50 DrawingDecember 6th
Second-$150 DrawingDecember 13th
Goody Basket Drawing
Grand Prize - $200 Drawing December 20th
OBITUARIES
PATRICIA STOLL
Born: November 23, 1946 in Belvidere
Died: November 28, 2025 in Esmond, IL
Patricia Ann Stoll, 79, passed away Friday, November 28, 2025. Patrica was born on November 23, 1946, to Donald L. and Elsie M. Dittbenner (Johnson) in Belvidere, IL. She married Richard Lee Stoll on August 21st,1965 in Belvidere, IL. Pat was a farmer’s wife for the majority of her life and drove a school bus until she retired 16 years later. She loved to go camping, making cards with her friends, drinking black coffee, reading books, and watching western shows.
Pat is survived by her five children: Susan (David) Degelau of Tamaroa, IL, John Stoll
of Naples, FL, Carrie (Cliff) Smart of Rochelle, Timothy Stoll Sr. of Greenville, TN, Elizabeth (Jonathan) Petrash of Victoria, TX; Brothers, Donald (Barb) Dittbenner of Belvidere, IL, and August (Evelyn) Dittbenner of Conway, SC;16 grandchildren: Bradley Degelau (Brittany Winder), Christopher Degelau, Brian (Tommie) Stoll, Joseph Stoll, Brittney Stoll, Kyle (Emma) Smart, Kole (Brittany) Smart, Kara Smart (David Theine), Timothy Stoll Jr., Jasmine (Michael) Cox, Connie (Michael) Stewart, Bailey Wallen, Kiya Wallen, Dalton (Ryan) Petrash, Victoria (Baxter) Bradicich, and Riley Petrash; and 9 great grandchildren.
Visitation will be held from 5:00 P.M. - 7:00
P.M. on Thursday, December 4, 2025 at the Unger Horner Funeral Home, 400 N 6th St., Rochelle. Funeral will be at 10:00 A.M. on Friday at the Unger Horner Funeral Home. Burial at Greenview Cemetery in Esmond. Guest book at www.UngerHorner.com
ANTHONY ROGDE-HINDERLITER
Born: July 13, 1994 in Rockford
Died: November 29, 2025 in Rochelle
Anthony “Tony” Rogde-Hinderliter, age 31, passed away suddenly on Saturday, November 29, 2025 at the Rochelle Hospital ER. He was born on July 13, 1994 in Rockford, IL, the son of Bonnie Rogde and Timothy Hinderliter. Tony graduated from Rochelle Township High School and received his bachelor’s degree from Knox College in Galesburg. Tony was passionate about his writing, and worked as a SEO writer. He loved spending time with his family, going out to eat, playing board games and watching movies. He is preceded in death by his grandparents: Don and Joanne Rogde, Don Hinderliter, and Barbara Fairbairn; and 2
uncles: Eric Bell and David Hinderliter. Survived by his mother, Bonnie Moore of Rochelle, father, Timothy (Jennifer) Hinderliter of Texas; 4 siblings: Andrew (Brittney) Rogde, Sam Moore, William Hinderliter, and Angela Hinderliter; aunts and uncles: Robert (Amanda) Rogde, Barbara Bell, Brenda (Clint) Garner, and Chris Hinderliter; nephew and niece: Bentley and Stella Rogde; and many cousins. Visitation will be from 5 - 7 P.M. on Wednesday, December 3, 2025 at the Unger Horner Funeral Home, 400 N 6th St., Rochelle, IL. Funeral service will be held at 10:00 A.M. on Thursday at Unger Horner Funeral Home with Chaplain Tessa Stouffer officiating. Burial will follow at Lawnridge Cemetery. Tony loved writing and his wishes were to be surrounded by words, so everyone will have the opportunity to write on his white casket with a permanent marker. Memorial may be made to Tails Humane Society in DeKalb. Guest book at www.UngerHorner.com
Continued from page 9
District.
Starting Jan. 1, 2026, the city will provide 50% matching grants with a maximum city portion of $10,000 to downtown businesses or building owners who complete eligible interior improvements. The city will budget $30,000 for the program in its first year.
City Community Development Director Michelle Pease said the grants will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis.
“I’ve had two businesses already reach out and say they’re really interested and excited about being able to use this program,” Pease said. “Businesses will have to be approved for the grant prior to the work being completed.”
Improvements must be made within six months of application approval. A complete list of eligible expenses, boundary map and application procedures are available for pick up at the city’s community development department at 420 N. Sixth St. and on the city’s website at www.cityofrochelle.net.
“It’s a great way to help our local businesses,” Bearrows said. “We saw that
LOCAL NEWS BRIEF
RTHS to host 8th Grade Curriculum Night Dec. 3
Rochelle Township High School will host its eighth-grade curriculum night on Wednesday, Dec. 3, for eighth-grade students and parents from 6:30-8 p.m. in the RTHS Auditorium.
The program will include a 15-minute presentation followed by time to talk with staff and students and see displays from a
during the COVID-19 pandemic and we’re still trying to do things to help them. And a lot of them haven’t really bounced back 100% yet from the pandemic. It’s a great program.”
The city already has a similar city-wide facade grant program that only applies to business exteriors.
Alcohol
The council unanimously approved an ordinance amending its code to remove restrictions on the sale of alcoholic beverages on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Establishments will now follow regularly permitted hours on both Dec. 24 and Dec. 25.
Before the amendment, alcohol sales rules mandated early closure at 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve and closure on Christmas Day. The move was made to “modernize liquor regulations, provide consistency in operating hours, and support business operations.”
“What started this was a letter from tavern owners,” Bearrows said. “A few of them have done Thanksgiving promotions and wanted to do the same thing on Christmas for people without a place to go. I know this is being done in other towns and it’s only fair to local businesses that they’re allowed to do it here.”
Continued from page 6
Fiegenschuh said the city-owned electric utility being at the mercy of state legislation and dealing with unfunded mandates is “difficult,” with Rochelle’s mayor and city council being tasked with making rate adjustments to cover the costs.
“These costs are being pushed on us by the state legislature,” Fiegenschuh said. “The average person is looking to our mayor and council and our city staff and asking why our rates are going up. We’re the ones that will take the heat for it. But we have to implement these policies because we’re a political subdivision
variety of academic departments and extracurricular activities.
Families will also receive a letter in the mail.
The presentation will include information on high school credits, required courses, college preparation, vocational preparation, elective course options and a scheduling overview for 2026-2027.
– Shaw Local
of the state and don’t have a choice.”
Lanzito said RMU rates have gone up by a lower percentage than “pretty much any” comparable municipal or investor-owned utility in the state recently.
Fiegenschuh said rates went down when the city did a rate adjustment during the COVID-19 pandemic and reduced commercial electric rates by 2-8 percent.
“Our kilowatt hour rate to our residents has actually decreased,” Toliver said. “Our customer charge went up recently, but our hourly rate decreased. Good financial practices have put the utility in a great financial position. The negative effects of this legislation might not be seen right away, but they will be seen eventually.”
FUN&GAMES
Archie
B.C.
Pearls Before Swine
Frank & Ernest
Beetle Bailey
Blondie
Monty
Baby Blues
Arlo & Janis
Zits
HOW TO PLAY
Each row, column and set of 3-by-3 boxes must contain the numbers 1 through 9 without repetition.
Pickles
Wizard of Id
Alley Oop
Garfield
Hagar the Horrible
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
Daddy Daze
JANRIC CLASSIC SUDOKU
CLASSIFIED
FLAGG-ROCHELLE PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT 12-MONTH TREASURER'S REPORT
July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025
I, Susan Sevedge, Secretary-Treasurer of the Flagg-Rochelle Public Library District, Ogle County, Illinois do hereby certify that the following statements of revenues and expenditures of funds for the Flagg-Rochelle Public Library District for the Twelve-months ending to June 30, 2025, are true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.
Susan Sevedge Secretary-Treasurer
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 21 day of NOVEMBER, 2025
Notary Public
FLAGG-ROCHELLE PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT; 2024-2025 INCOME FOR 12-MONTHS ENDING JUNE 30,
General Fund Vendors paid more than $2500 Ashley Capes $2,685.31; Baker & Taylor $14,288.95; Blue Cross Blue Shield of IL $24,846.44; Catherine Urban $5,341.00; Chase Card Services $16,351.94; Children’s Plus $5,570.92; Entré Computer Solutions $19,552.40; Fischers Inc. $12,964.24; Hoopla $20,990.74; Nicor Gas $5,688.59; PrairieCat $13,061.00; Rochelle Municipal Utilities $20,881.61;Sikich, LLP $12,542.40; Steve’s Landscaping$4,440.00; Turner Cleaning Service $23,400.00 Vendors paid less than $2500.00 $19,217.01
Compensation under $25,000; Christine Adams, Deb Julifs, Judith Fulgencio, Marilyn Janssen, Tina Vincent.
Compensation $25,000 – $49,999.99; Anne Ankney, Ashley Capes.
Compensation $50,000 to $76,999.00; Juan Martinez, Sarah Flanagan.
Vendors Paid More Than $2500 Chase Card Services $6,543.53; Children’s Plus 2537.56; EBSCO Subscription Services $5,081.51;
2025 All-Interstate 8 Conference team announced
Morris’s Caeden Curran, Mick Smith earn Player of the Year honors; 6 Hubs players named to squad
By RUSS HODGES rhodges@shawmedia.com
Here are the Interstate 8 All-Conference football players for the 2025 season, as voted on by coaches of member schools.
Offensive Player of the Year: Caeden Curran, sr., RB/LB, Morris
Defensive Player of the Year: Mick Smith, jr., LB/RB, Morris
Lineman of the Year: Jake Buckley, sr., OL/DL, Kaneland
Oct. 10. Villalobos was one of six Hubs players to
Rochelle volleyball players named academic all-conference were Meredith Bruns, Audyn Kemp, Jaydin Dickey, Briel Metzger, Emma Metzger, Kyrie Cragin, Rylie Thomas, Emori Mickley and Leah O’Brien. Jillian Bruns (not pictured)
Rochelle girls volleyball recognizes award winners
By JOSHUA WELGE jwelge@shawmedia.com
The Rochelle volleyball program recognized their award winners for the fall season.
For varsity, Meredith Bruns was named MVP and Leah O’Brien most improved. Maggie Louis was named MVP and Morgan DeLille most improved for the sophomore team.
Jamie Riddell was named MVP for the freshman team.
Named Academic All-Interstate 8 Conference were Meredith Bruns, Audyn Kemp, Jaydin Dickey, Briel Metzger, Emma Metzger, Kyrie Cragin, Rylie Thomas, Emori Mickley, Leah O’Brien and Jillian Bruns (not pictured).
All-Interstate 8 First Team was Meredith Bruns, with Audyn Kemp All-Interstate 8 Honorable Mention.
All-Interstate 8 First Team was Meredith Bruns (right), with Audyn Kemp All-Interstate 8 Honorable Mention for Rochelle volleyball.
Boys soccer: 2025 All-Interstate 8 Conference team announced
Rochelle’s Antonio Ruiz named Player of the Year
By RUSS HODGES rhodges@shawmedia.com
Here are the 2025 Interstate 8 All-Conference boys soccer award winners, as voted on by coaches of the member schools. Player of the Year: Antonio Ruiz, sr., Rochelle
All-Conference
Kaneland: Jackson Boryc, sr., Noah McKittrick, sr., Carlos Landa, sr., Abe Paulino, sr., Tyler Adams, jr.
LaSalle-Peru: Ismael Mejia, jr., Alex Rax, so.
Morris: Grady Jensen, jr.
Ottawa: Alexio Fernandez, jr., Jorge Lopez, sr.
Rochelle: Antonio Ruiz, sr., Heilly
Zepeda, sr., Eliud Lombardia, jr.
Sycamore: Gavin Crouch, sr., Noah
Daykin, sr., Tyler Hiland, sr., Ryan Guz-
inski, sr., Felix Arends, sr.
Honorable Mentions
Kaneland: Eli Stoltzner, jr., Isaac Stoltzner, fr., Dylan Pilz, jr.
LaSalle-Peru: Logan Grzywa, jr., Adrian Gonzalez, sr.
Morris: Xander Braun, jr.
Ottawa: Ian Fulkerson, jr., Manuel Saucedo-Garcia, sr.
Rochelle: Antonio Hueramo, sr.
Sycamore: Maddux McLaughlin, jr., Paxton Nicol, jr., Leo Padilla, so.
Photos provided by Rochelle volleyball
Photo provided by Marcy DeLille
Rochelle’s Antonio Ruiz (10) was named the conference player of the year and to the all-conference team.
Big favorite Byron fends off Tolono to win state
Andy Colbert SPORTS VIEWS
Friday morning at the Nash Rec Center, a friend asked me what the 3A football championship point spread would be in the Byron-Tolono Unity game. At first, I said Byron by 50 points, thinking that this would be easier for them than the IC Catholic and Richmond-Burton were. Remembering Tolono had a good quarterback; I amended that to be more along the lines of 30 points.
Boy, was I ever wrong in predicting a blowout win by the Tigers. At least I had company on that one with prognosticators all over the state. About the only person who dared give Tolono a chance was Matt Leng on the popular “Edgy Tim” high school football podcast.
Being from central Illinois, Leng was hip to the abilities of Tolono quarterback Dane Eisenmenger. He boldly stated that if Tolono could stay close into the fourth quarter, they would win because of Eisenmenger.
Not only did Tolono stay close (56-50), but after recovering an onside kick, they had the ball first-and-goal with under a minute left in the game. Considering Tolono had already scored 21 points in the fourth quarter and Eisenmenger had 205 yards passing in that quarter alone, the odds were now stacked against Byron. What a stunning development.
Needing only three yards to score and all the momentum in the world, Tolono was poised for one of the biggest championship game upsets in IHSA history and the opportunity to win its first state title after six runner-up finishes.
What could prevent them from getting a simple three yards on four tries after already piling up 652 yards of offense? But, football is a crazy game, one reason for its widespread popularity.
First, it was an incomplete pass. Then a false start penalty, another incompletion, another penalty, another incompletion and suddenly it was fourth-and-13.
Still, Tolono was 3-3 on fourth down attempts and 13 yards was no impediment for a quarterback who had already had 14 completions of over 15 yards. Strangely, it can sometimes be
an advantage to have an extra 10 yards to work with so close to the end zone.
With fans all over the state getting a dose of entertainment rarely seen for all 48 minutes of the IHSA football finals, everyone had to be on edge as the ball left Eisenmenger’s golden arm.
Tyler Henry, who had 16 catches for 160 yards, was the intended receiver in the corner of the end zone. He had company, though, in the form of Caden Considine.
Considine, who had set a 3A championship game record with 367 yards rushing, made a defensive play that will likely be remembered more than any of his 30 rushing attempts. He knocked the ball away from the sure-handed Henry and Byron could finally party like it was 2023, its last state title.
In the aftermath, those very same fans, be it inside Hancock Stadium, watching online or on TV, are calling this thriller one of the best ever played in the annals of IHSA history.
I can’t dispute that. To me, it harkens back to 2001 when Riverside-Brookfield was in a similar sce-
nario against Joliet Catholic in the 5A playoffs.
Like Tolono, Riverside-Brookfield had a prolific passing attack, while Joliet Catholic was more in the vein of the Byron-type power rushing game. There was so much hype leading up to this game, a carload of us went in to watch it, my first time back in Brookfield since going to the zoo there as a kid.
With thousands of fans and not enough bleachers, I seem to remember fans hanging from trees like monkeys, just to get a glimpse of the action.
A pronounced underdog, R-B stunned big, bad Joliet the same way Tolono did to Byron. With under a minute to play, it was an identical 56-50 score and R-B had a first-and-goal.
Here was a chance to shake up the hierarchy of prep football and send shockwaves all over the state? Since they hadn’t been stopped all night, wasn’t it a given R-B was going to score.
Unfortunately not. As was stated earlier, football is a crazy game and Joliet managed to keep the R-B out of the end zone on four tries, just like
Byron did to Tolono.
Joliet went on to win one of its 15 state titles. Byron is up to four crowns and it isn’t out of the question for them to reach 15 state titles.
In the last 10 years, the Tigers have won more games (113) than anyone in Illinois other than Lena-Winslow (117), which made it state title number seven with a blowout win over Brown County.
In post-game comments, L-W coach Ric Arand made it a point to mention that conference rival Stockton was better than any other 1A team in the state. So very true and it was a shame Stockton couldn’t have been in the title game.
Getting back to the Byron-Tolono game, credit needs to go to both squads for tremendous sportsmanship. Play after play, kids were helping each other up from the ground. Extending a friendly hand to an opponent during heated competition says a lot about the character of a program.
• Andy Colbert is a longtime Ogle County resident with years of experience covering sports and more for multiple area publications.
Alex T. Paschal
The Byron Tigers celebrate their 56-50 win over Tolono-Unity Nov. 28 in the Class 3A football finals at Hancock Stadium at ISU.
Byron hangs on, claims title with wild win
Multiple state records fall in thrilling, high-paced tilt
By STEVE SOUCIE ssoucie@shawmedia.com
In a game that saw over 100 points and 1,200 total yards, it seemed strange that it all came down to a defensive stop to decide the Class 3A state title game on Friday night.
But Byron got that stop, and that, coupled with an amazing effort from Caden Considine, allowed the Tigers to claim a 56-50 win over the Rockets.
“It was a great year, a great game and all credit to Tolono Unity,” Byron coach Jeff Boyer said. “All the respect in the world to their program and their kids and their coaches because they played one heck of a game and probably deserved to win too.”
Considine ran for a Class 3A state record 367 yards, breaking the previous record of 270 yards held by IC Catholic’s Jordan Rowell in 2016.
Considine did it by powering through tacklers and, in some cases, simply running them over in a game that turned into much more of an offensive shootout than most expected.
“I’m happy that this wasn’t a blowout tonight like a lot of people expected it to be, and I’m happy that they played us down to the wire,” Considine said. “It makes this game so much more special to win.”
Byron (14-0) turned the tide of the game after trailing 29-28 at halftime by getting a pair of 6-yard touchdowns, one by Andrew Talbert and the other by Considine, that went unanswered by Tolono Unity.
Unity (12-2) had managed to keep the game close largely due to a prolific passing effort by Dane Eisenmenger.
Eisenmenger eclipsed the 3A passing yardage record by the end of the third quarter by throwing for 340 yards through three quarters, eclipsing the previous record set by Williamsville’s Conor McCormick of 335 from 2019.
Eisenmenger’s final numbers of 42 for 65 for 545 yards and seven touchdowns also gave him 3A records for completions and touchdown passes.
That fifth touchdown did allow Tolono to climb within 42-36, but after
Considine broke a long run to give him the Class 3A record for rushing yardage in a game, Talbert scored from seven yards out to increase the Byron lead to 50-36.
Eisenmenger tossed his sixth touchdown pass to once again turn it into a one-score game once again only to see Byron answer quickly on Considine’s third touchdown run on a drive that broke another record, total yardage achieved by both teams, with the final tally ending up at 1,211 yards.
Tolono still had a little left in the tank and Eisenmenger tossed his seventh touchdown pass to pull the Rockets to within 56-50 with two minutes to play. Unity then recovered an onside kick and drove all the way down to the Byron 13-yard line before being denied on a fourth down and goal play, with the deciding play being shut down ultimately by Considine.
The two teams battled through an explosive first half that saw Tolono emerge with a 29-28 lead.
The two teams have combined for 633 yards of first-half offense as Tolono’s Eisenmenger threw for 299 yards and four touchdowns and Byron’s Considine ran for 145 yards on just 10 carries.
The loss was tough to swallow for Tolono, its seventh time in a state title game without a victory. But first-year
coach Tony Reetz focused on the accomplishments his Rocket team put forth.
“I never had a doubt that we’d be right there at the end,” Reetz said. “I think these kids have never given us any reason to believe that we’re out of a game and think that it was very fitting for us to be in a game that nobody gives us a chance to be in.”
Photos by Alex T. Paschal Byron’s Caden Considine fights for yards against Tolono-Unity Nov. 28 in the Class 3A football finals at Hancock Stadium at ISU in Normal.
Byron’s Kade Politsch lifts the first place trophy as Byron celebrates their 56-50 win over Tolono-Unity Nov. 28, in the Class 3A football finals at Hancock Stadium at ISU in Normal.
SPORTS
TIGERS CLAW WAY TO TITLE
TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
1956: Wilt Chamberlain makes college debut, scoring 52 points for Kansas.
2009: Patrick Kane signs 5-yearm $31.5 million contract extension with Chicago.
Wednesday, December 3, 2025
Byron hangs on to claim a thrilling 56-50 victory over Tolono Unity in Class 3A final as multiple state records fall / 22, 23
Byron hoists its first place trophy Friday, Nov. 28, in the Class 3A football final at Hancock Stadium at ISU in Normal. The Tigers beat Tolono Unity, 56-50.
