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POLO
Tri-County Press July 14, 2016 Volume 158, Number 43 - $1.00
Vintage Game
Art Gallery
Judge Vacancy
The Ganymedes took on Aurora Sunday afternoon in Oregon. B1
An art gallery will open in Mt. Morris July 15. A9
15th Circuit Judges seek public comments about judge applicants to fill a vacancy. A2
County clerk sends out call for election judges By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Ogle County Clerk Laura J. Cook is looking for some help on Election Day. In the last several weeks, she has addressed city councils and village boards all over the county seeking individuals to serve as election judges. Cook said last Friday that judges are often in short supply for the March primary elections and April consolidated elections. “A lot of our election judges are snow birds,” she said. “So for the spring elections we are short.” Being an election judge involves overseeing the procedures at the county’s 32 polling places whenever an election is held. Each of the 52 precincts has its own judges, although several precincts may use the same polling place. They have to be there at 5 a.m. to set things up, stay all day, and then deliver the
ballots and voting machines to the courthouse in Oregon after the polls close at 7 p.m. “It’s a long day,” Cook said. “It’s not a very glamorous job, but it’s an important job.” “The election judges who operate the polling places are a very important part of the electoral process,” she said. “These persons are the only contact the county clerk’s office has with the general public during voting hours, and they’re responsible for administrating the actual voting procedures in each precinct. Without them it would be impossible to conduct an election.” According to the county clerk’s website, the duties of election judges include: • Arrive at 5 a.m. to set up election equipment in the polling place, • Open the polling place promptly at 6 a.m., • Ensure that every person qualified to vote is permitted to vote, • Give assistance to voters with disabilities, • Be responsible for the
Laura Cook
proper and lawful conduct of the election in the polling place, • Give instructions in the method of voting when requested by a voter, • Maintain order in the polling place throughout the day, • Be responsible for all election materials, • Close the polls at 7 p.m. promptly following procedures, Turn to A2
Election judge Indya Bauer checks in voter Meggan Dickson-Grennan at Oregon Nashua Precinct 5 at the March 15 primary election at the Nash Recreation Center in Oregon. Also pictured are election judges Cleo Bauer, Brenda Florin, and Don Stevens. Photo by Earleen Hinton
Council tweaks proposed skateboard ordinance By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com
Road Construction Construction signs have been going up along Milledgeville Road between Polo and the Carroll County Line. Martin and Company Excavating was hired by Ogle County to replace seven culverts on Milledgeville Road this summer at a cost of $500,000. The road will be closed during construction and detour routes are posted. The closure is scheduled to begin this week and last until the fall. Photo by Chris Johnson
Alderman Randy Schoon said he was contacted by Chris Eaton, owner of the car wash and laundromat on North Division Avenue, who wants the devices prohibited from his business as well. Police Chief Dennis Christen said because that is private property, officers can enforce the ordinance there only if Eaton makes a request. Christen told the council last month that prohibiting skateboards and the other devices on the sidewalks is necessary for the safety of people coming out of businesses. The council also discussed a proposed change to its ordinance governing golf carts and utility task vehicles on city streets. The current ordinance
The Polo City Council discussed and tweaked a proposed ordinance July 5 that will prohibit skateboards, bicycles, and related devices from the sidewalks in the downtown area. The proposed ordinance bans skateboards, roller skates, roller blades, hover boards, unicycles, bicycles, tricycles, Segways, coasters, toy vehicles, and similar devices from the “business district.” The council decided to make the area more specific by changing “business district” to the 100 blocks of North and South Franklin Avenue and the 100 blocks of East and West Mason Street.
allows the vehicles on the streets from April 1 through Nov. 1 from sunrise to sunset. The proposed change will allow them to be on the streets all year round. The council also discussed allowing the vehicles to be operated on the streets until 11 p.m. The council will likely vote on both ordinances at its July 18 meeting. In other business July 5, the council met in closed session to discuss personnel and the lease or purchase of real estate. The city recently received an offer from Mike and Kent Dearborn to sell the property at 113 E. Colden St. for $50,000. No action was taken after the closed session.
IDNR officials meet with conservator applicants By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Another step was taken in the right direction this week for the restoration of the Black Hawk statue. Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) officials and engineer Amy Lamb Woods met Tuesday morning with two applicants for conservator on the project to repair the iconic monument. The group met at Lowden State Park near Oregon where the 105-year-old statue stands on a high bluff overlooking the Rock River. State Rep. Tom Demmer (R-Dixon) said Tuesday that he had spoken with IDNR officials, who told him they have narrowed their search for a new conservator to two candidates and were meeting with them to discuss the project.
Woods confirmed Tuesday morning that she was attending the meetings as well. Previous conservator Dr. Andrzej Dajnowski from Conservation of Sculpture & Objects Studio, Forest Park, declined to sign a new contract with the IDNR for this year due to a conflict with Lamb Woods over how to proceed with the repairs. Created by sculptor Lorado Taft in 1910 as a tribute to Native Americans, the 50foot statue draws thousands of visitors each year. It was unveiled and dedicated in 1911. Black Hawk, as it is commonly called, has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2009. The effects of time and weather have caused parts of the statue to crumble and fall off. The repair project ground
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to a halt earlier this year because of state budget woes and the conflict between Lamb Woods and Dajnowski. Demmer assured a group of Oregon residents at a Chamber of Commerce Lunch ’n’ Learn June 21 that he would work with the IDNR to get the project underway again. “I’ll definitely be a strong advocate for Black Hawk,” he said then. Part of the lunch discussion focused on funds raised to repair the statue. The Friends of the Black Hawk Statue, an organization formed approximately seven years ago to develop a plan and raise the funds to have the statue repaired, has raised most of the estimated $900,000 needed. All but $350,000 came from private donations that are being kept in a fund with the Illinois Conservation
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B6-B10 College News, A4 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B4
Foundation, which supports IDNR programs. The rest is a $350,000 grant to the IDNR from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO). The DCEO grant must be spent before the private donations can be tapped. The grant money can’t be released until the General Assembly passes budget legislation allowing it, which Demmer said still hasn’t happened. “Money for the grant was not included in the stop-gap budget [passed June 30],” Demmer said. “We mainly focused on keeping agencies open.” He said grants will be considered in future budget action. “Hopefully, that will happen in the next round — hopefully,” he said. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Marriage Licenses, A4 Property Transfers, B4 Sheriff’s Arrests, B3 Social News, A4
Staff at Lowden State Park put up orange plastic fence around the Blackhawk Statue after chain link fence and scaffolding around the 105-year-old statue was removed in June. Photo by Earleen Hinton
Sports, B2 State’s Attorney, B3 Weather Forecast, A3 Zoning, B4
Deaths, B5 Doris J. Ackerman, Gregory M. Frantz, Ewell D. Gardner, Wilma P. Pierce, Megan M. Wells
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com