Serving the Polo Area Since 1857
POLO Upset Loss
Tri-County Press December 15, 2016 Volume 159, Number 13 - $1.00
Recognition
The Polo Marcos were upset by Orangeville Monday night at the Forreston Tournament. B1
Volunteer
The Ogle County Fair Board named a volunteer of the year. B1
Families are encouraged to volunteer together throughout the year. B3
Mayor gets surprise vote from “aldermen” By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Polo Mayor Doug Knapp was at a brief loss for words last week when his “city council” voted down his list of appointments for the coming year. He recovered quickly, however, and did the only sensible thing. He tabled the matter. Fortunately, the vote wasn’t binding and his tableful of youthful “aldermen” were seated unofficially. The six alderman seats were temporarily filled Dec. 7 by Polo Cub Scouts there to learn about local government. The Arrow of Light Den, whose leader is Ginger Cub Scouts and city officials listen Dec. 7 as Polo Mayor Doug Knapp explains a motion at a mock city council meeting. The Cub Scouts Albano, attended the specially attended the meeting and some acted as aldermen as part of earning their citizenship badge. Pictured left to right are: Riley Wooden, city clerk Turn to A2 Susie Corbitt, Knapp, city attorney Tom Suits, Ben Ryan, and Gage Lagee. Photo by Vinde Wells
It’s time to file election petitions By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Candidates running for office in the April 4 Consolidated Election have just a few days to get their petitions filed. The filing period for signed petitions and the related paperwork started Dec. 12 and runs through Monday, Dec. 19. Offices on the April ballot include cities and villages, fire protection districts, forest preserve districts, public library districts, multi-
Food Baskets
New reporter has a passion for writing
Volunteers pack Christmas food baskets Friday at Faith Discovery Church for almost 200 needy families in the area. The baskets were delivered on Saturday. Churches and the community donated food to fill the baskets. The Polo Town & Country Committee also donated gifts for the children. The Polo Council of Churches sponsors the annual food drive. Photos by Zach Arbogast
By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com
Highway Department prepared for snow y Vinde Wells B vwells@oglecounty news.com The Ogle County Highway Department was wellprepared for the one-two wintry punch that came in early December. A storm on Dec. 4 dropped six to eight inches of wet snow on the county and was followed less than a week
township assessor, park districts, school districts, community college districts, and townships. The election is nonpartisan, which means candidates do not declare an affiliation with a political party. The completed petitions must contain a specified number of signatures of registered voters residing in the area the elected office in question serves. The number of signatures needed is based on how many people voted in the previous election.
later by another snowstorm that began in the midafternoon of Dec. 10 and continued for the next 28 hours. County engineer Jeremy Ciesiel said he has stored plenty of salt in readiness for whatever Mother Nature deals out. “We started the season with two full bins, so we were ready,” he said. “The last two
In This Week’s Edition...
weekends have made a dent in it, but we are prepared to order more as we need it.” He said he was thankful, however, that the most recent snowfall proved to be less than the 10 to 15 inches predicted. The snowfall Dec. 10-11 varied across the county, with eight inches in the north, diminishing to the south.
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B6-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B5
“We had more issues with blowing snow in the southwest part of the county,” Ciesiel said. The storms coming on the weekend have posed a challenge for snowplow drivers. “They’ve already worked all week, and then they get called in again,” he said. “It
Marriage Licenses, A4 Oregon Police, B3 Public Voice, A7 Property Transfers, B5
Turn to A3
A love of writing and the desire for truth brought a Polo man into journalism. Zach Arbogast, 30, has been a reporter for Ogle County Newspapers since Oct. 3, covering events, meetings, writing features, and taking photos for the Oregon Republican Reporter, Mt. Morris Times, Polo Tri-County Press, and Forreston Journal. He also writes for Sauk Valley Media. Arbogast was born in Naperville and grew up in Joliet and Lyons. He and his wife Clea moved to Polo a year and a half ago. “I’ve loved to write all my life,” he said. His career has included working for a professional wrestling news site and a video game news site, and most recently as a broadcast journalist for Dixon radio
Sheriff’s Arrests, B4 Social News, A4 Sports, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B3
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com
station WIXN. Arbogast said he has always been interested in newspaper reporting. “I’m very frustrated Zach when Arbogast people don’t research the truth,” he said. “I want people to be educated and informed on the issues. I want to be one of the people who help the public to be more informed.” Arbogast is involved in two local community theater groups, the Polo Area Community Theater (PACT) and the Performing Arts Guild (PAG). His hobbies are video games and cooking. He also has his own voice-over business. Arbogast can be reached at 815-732-6166 ext 5904 or at zarbogast@oglecounty news.com.
Death, B4 Wilborn D. Reagan