Serving the Polo Area Since 1857
POLO
Tri-County Press August 24, 2017 Volume 159, Number 37 - $1.00
Season Begins
VW Buses Roll
Going Green
The high school golf season is underway. The golfers are ready to drive, chip, and putt. B1
Volkswagen buses roll through White Pines State Park. A10
The 16th Renewable Energy Fair offered a look at new ideas to save energy. A7
Former Polo man arrested in armed robbery By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com A former Polo man, charged with robbing the Casey’s General Store there at knifepoint more than year ago, is in jail in Missouri awaiting extradition, the Ogle County Sheriff’s Department said in a news release. Zachary T. Stivers, 27, was arrested Aug. 18 in Grandin in Carter County. Police said he was masked when he robbed the Casey’s at 120 N. Division Ave. (Ill. 26) around 11:30 p.m. on July 29, 2016, and took an undisclosed amount of cash. Stivers was indicted by an Ogle County Grand Jury on July 25 on one count of
Zachary T. Stivers
armed robbery and faces 6 to 30 years in prison if convicted. Stivers also is wanted in Ogle County on a $5,000 warrant for failure to appear in an Oct. 31 traffic case in which he is charged with reckless driving, illegal use of a cellphone, and having no insurance. Turn to A2
Council will not give residents a garbage rate hike By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Polo residents and businesses caught a break Monday evening when the city council decided against passing along a recent hike in garbage rates. The council approved a rate hike Aug. 7 from Moring Disposal Inc., Forreston, that will increase the monthly residential rate paid by the city by 50 cents for the first of the four years remaining in the contract, and 25 cents for each of the three years after that. Monthly commercial rates will increase by five percent. The hike goes into effect Sept. 1.
Aldermen agreed that the increase should not be passed on to residents and businesses. “In my mind we ought to leave this alone,” said Alderman Randy Schoon. Mayor Doug Knapp said the matter will be considered again during planning for next year’s budget. The fiscal year runs from May 1 to April 30. In another matter, the council gave its unanimous approval to allowing Jim O’Connor to tunnel under the alley behind his property on East Mason Street to connect it to geothermal wells to the north. O’Connor told the council
Looking to the Sky Clouds above Ogle County Monday afternoon blocked part of the solar eclipse but residents still were able to see parts. Above, Paul Johnson, Oregon, uses a welding helmet with shade 14 glass to view the eclipse. The three parts of the eclipse he was able to view are pictured above from left to right: near the start at noon, 30 minutes past the 90 percent eclipse, and the end of the eclipse at 2:16 p.m. Photos by Chris Johnson
Resident asks for help with sewer back-up By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com A Polo resident requested the city council’s assistance Monday night with a recurring sewer back-up in his basement. Andy Bartelt, the husband of city clerk Sydney Bartelt,
said sewage backed up into the finished basement of his home at 508 N. Thomas Ave. after several inches of rain fell July 21 and 22. He said the same thing happened about four years ago. “This time it was worse,” Bartelt said, noting that sewage came up through a
shower drain and toilet. He said plumbers have told him the back-ups are the city’s responsibility because the sewer main in the area is too small and nearby residents’ sump pumps empty into the sewer main. “I’m at the low point at the end of the main,” Bartelt said.
He asked the council to remedy the problem or reimburse him for the cleanup and repairs. “It’s a big headache and a lot of money,” he said. Alderman Randy Schoon, who chairs the Water and Sewer Committee, said the Turn to A2
Turn to A2
Homeowner holds burglar at gunpoint By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com A Rockford man was arrested for residential burglary last week after a Creston resident held him at gunpoint until police arrived. Elijah T. Greer, 25, Rockford, was charged with residential burglary, a Class 1 felony, and is being held at the Ogle County Jail in lieu of $250,000 bond. Ogle County Sheriff Brian VanVickle said when the homeowner came home for lunch on Aug. 15, he opened the garage door and found Greer inside holding some of
Elijah T. Greer
his belongings. “He has a concealed carry permit so he held him at gunpoint until we got there,” VanVickle said. He declined to release the homeowner’s name. Greer was arraigned in Ogle County Court on Aug. 18, and a preliminary hearing Turn to A2
In This Week’s Edition...
Pep Rally “Some people are counting us out, but that just makes us want to prove them wrong even harder.” Senior and team captain Randal Gabaldon addresses the crowd during Friday evening’s Meet the Marcos pep rally. Standing with Gabaldon is senior captains Reid Taylor, Baylee Wiemken, and Luke Peterson. Head Coach Jeff Bumsted stands behind his team. Photo by Zach Arbogast
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B6-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B5 Marriage Licenses, A4
Oregon Police, B3 Public Voice, A7 Property Transfers, B4 Sheriff’s Arrests, B4
Social News, A4 Sports, B1-B2 State’s Attorney, B4 Weather, A3
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com
Death, B5 Joseph D. Deuth