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POLO AOP Oct. 4-5
Marcos Win The Lady Marcos volleyball team picked up their first win of the season. A13
Tri-County Press September 11, 2014 Volume 156, Number 51 - $1.00
Mark Twain The Oregon Rotary Club held its annual Mark Twain Day at Maxons Sept. 6. A9
Oregon’s 44th Autumn on Parade festival is Oct. 4-5. Insert
Schools see the enrollment slip By Vinde Wells Editor For the first time in several years, one local school district has more students this year than last, while enrollment at two others remains down. Enrollment in the Forrestville Valley School District is on the upswing with a gain of 24 students this year for a total of 906, compared to last year’s 882. “This is the first year since 2007-08 that enrollment increased,� said Forrestville Valley Superintendent Sheri Smith. That year the district had 1,065 students. Smith attributed the increase to new families moving into the district. Forreston Junior-Senior High School, which includes grades 6-12, increased from 456 last year to 470 this year, a gain of 14 students, and Forreston Grade School, which houses kindergarten through fifth grade, gained 18 students to go from 305 last year to 323 this year. German Valley Grade School, however, lost eight students, going from 121 to 113. Students in preschool through second grade attend classes there. Enrollments in the Oregon and Polo School Districts declined again this year, as has been the recent trend for most area districts. Oregon Schools decreased from 1470 last year to 1448 this year, an overall loss of 22 students. Associate Superintendent Adam Larsen said the loss is apparently due to families moving out of the district for employment. “It appears to be moveouts,� he said. “We had 137 [new] non-12th grade students who were enrolled at some point last year but not this year. Compare that to only 95 students who are new this year in grades other than kindergarten. It’s more exports than imports. Anecdotally, I’d attribute
this to jobs. I know a few families who moved out of state to find better work.� Although the high school lost 26 students from 485 to 459 and the junior high 18, going from 210 to 192, the news is not all bad. Oregon Elementary School picked up 22 students, with the enrollment there going from 775 to 797. Polo Schools, with the smallest enrollment, took the hardest hit, losing a total of 47 students from 650 at this time last year to 603 this year. Superintendent Chris Rademacher agreed with Larsen that jobs plays an important role in the loss. “We have been affected by the closing of the printing plants in Mt. Morris. This is a downward trend at the schools in our area,� he said. Polo has faced steadily declining enrollment for more than a decade. Enrollment in pre-school through 12th grade was 805 at the start of the 2001-02 school year. Rademacher said a trend toward larger farms and a lack of new homes being built in the district are factors. “In the rural areas, farming has gotten bigger over the last 20 years. We do not pick up as many students in the country. The farmhouses on 160-acre plots have disappeared,� he said. “The home start-ups have stagnated from 35 from 2000 to 2007 to four from 2008 to 2012.� The population in the City of Polo decreased six percent from 2000 to 2012, he said. “When I look at the enrollment we had 30 kindergarteners enter [this fall] and actually 50 graduating seniors [last spring] so that is a loss of 20 students,� Rademacher said. “We are down seven students in our Pre-K program. We had two families transfer who had 12 students together. We are now averaging 40 students per class at the elementary.�
Chili Cook-off will be held on Sept. 27 Plans are underway for the Polo Chamber of Commerce annual Chili Cook-off on Saturday, Sept. 27. Cooking begins at 8 a.m. and tasting begins at noon. The event will be on Division Avenue right beside the Shell Express Lane. Trophies will be awarded for People’s Choice, Judge’s Choice, Showmanship and Non-Traditional Chili. “Blind� judging will be conducted. Registration forms are available at First State Bank Shannon-Polo-Lake Carroll, Shell Express, City Hall
or Scholl Insurance, or by calling Susie Corbitt at 815946-3131. Forms can be downloaded under the event calendar at www.poloil.org. The registration fee of $25 is due with the completed form no later than Tuesday, Sept. 23 at 5 p.m. The Eighth Annual Larry Lannen Memorial Blood Drive will also be held again this year in conjunction with the chili cook-off at the same location. This day also marks Polo All-Town Garage Sales event.
In This Week’s Edition...
Workers install the fiber board insulation on the walls of the south side of the new Sheriff’s Administration Building Sept. 5 while bricklayers began work on the north side of the building. Photo by Chris Johnson
New building is taking shape By Chris Johnson Reporter The new Ogle County Sheriff’s Administration Building is taking shape. “The building is starting to show physical changes,� said Ogle County Long Range Planning Commission chairman Don Griffin Tuesday morning. “You see a lot of changes happening with the exterior of the building. Brick layers are on site and anyone driving past the
construction site can start to see how the building will look when complete. “The exterior walls are up and workers were installing fiber board insulation and laying bricks,� said Griffin. “Some of the decorative bricks were also installed.� Work on the exterior will continue for the next two months. Griffin is cautiously optimistic that the building will be completely enclosed from the weather in November.
“We are looking to be closed up by November and be working on the inside,� he said. “I think the contractors are doing a good job with the project.� The cement floor was poured this week and the sheet metal has been installed on the roof. “There is still a lot of work to be completed before the interior of the building can be worked on,� said Griffin. Once the site was prepared, there have been few issues with the project.
“There have been no real issues but there are little things that always come up on projects of these magnitudes,� said Griffin. “You learn a lot about a project with the small change orders.� He said the employees that will be using the new building have had input to make sure everything is how it needs to be. Changing an outlet location is an easy change before the Turn to A3
River cleaned during annual sweep By Chris Johnson Reporter Picking up a piece of trash is easy, but picking up thousands of pieces of trash in one morning requires the help of a team of volunteers. These volunteers were taking part in the sixth annual Rock River Sweep Saturday morning. “The volunteers are very important to this sweep,� said section organizer Mark Nehrkorn. “We can not get the coverage without them.� Volunteers gathered at Kiwanis Park at 7:30 a.m. to learn about the plan to clean the river from the Oregon boat launch south to Castle Rock. “The biggest thing out there. Safety,� said Nehrkorn. “You know, if it does not look safe to pick up, do not touch it. We don’t want anyone getting hurt, its not worth it.� He advised the volunteers to take care around the dam. “Stay away from the dam,� Nehrkorn said. “Don’t take any chances around the water and pay attention to where you are at.� Unfortunately for these volunteers the garbage was plentiful. “There is plenty of garbage out there to pick up,� said Nehrkorn. “This is a one day event, one morning. It has to be a year round effort by everyone to take care of this great resource we have.� He said boaters and fisherman can help year round by just picking up a piece of trash or two every time they use the river. All the garbage collected during the sweep was brought to Kiwanis Park to be sorted for recycling.
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B9-B14 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B8
Nick Meives-Wylie and Angela Reigle pick up trash in Oregon Park East near the dam Saturday morning. There was still trash trapped near the dam including tires that could not safely be removed during the annual Rock River Sweep. Photo by Chris Johnson
This year the pile was larger because the islands north of the dam were cleaned this year. “Stay off of private property,� said Nehrkorn. “This year on the islands north of the dam we have permission from the owner to go on those islands so hopefully we will do some good work out there.� Volunteers took boats, canoes, and kayaks to get to the island to clean up. “We are going to get the islands and we have the volunteers to clean it,� said Nehrkorn. The weather was perfect for the volunteers with clear skies and temperatures in the 50s. “It is great weather today,� said Nehrkorn. “It is going to be beautiful out there. It is a
Marriage Licenses, A4 Public Voice, A10 Property Transfers, B3 Sheriff’s Arrests, B7
Social News, A4 Sports, A13, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B3
Burt Schoor, Oregon, paddles away from shore before turning his motor on in the deeper water Saturday morning. Schoor was heading to the islands north of the Oregon dam to help clean it during the annual Rock River Sweep. Photo by Chris Johnson
little chilly but is a great day.� Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts Volunteers of all ages along with adults who wanted came out to assist with the to help out. river sweep. Turn to A2 There were members of the
Deaths, B4 Beverly J. Hammer, June A. Hinrichs, Barbara L. Holland, Helen I. Palmer
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