Your source for community news and sports 7 days a week.
Warden escorted off premises
SVM ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
DIXON, A3
SPORTS, B3
TELEGRAPH
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
SERVING DIXON AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1851
DIXON | CRUNDWELL AFTERMATH
Pensions’ fate at issue Former comptroller contesting inclusion for restitution BY MATT MENCARINI mmencarini@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5529
DIXON – Rita Crundwell doesn’t think her pension funds should be part of a court-ordered repayment of the nearly $54 million she stole from the city of Dixon. Motions will be presented next week in federal court regarding the inclusion of the former Dixon comptroller’s pen-
sion funds in her court-ordered restitution to the city. Crundwell, who was arrested in April 2012 and later convicted of stealing $53.7 million from the city over 2 decades, sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. State’s Attorney’s Office on Aug. 30. “I wish to object to the inclusion of these funds in the judgment,” she said in the letter from a federal prison in
Waseca, Minnesota. “I feel these funds should be exempt.” Motions will be made Sept. 29 in Chicago regarding her Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, which has $73,104.50, and another fund, through Nationwide Retirement Solutions, that has $17,461.36, according to court documents.
Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Former Dixon Comptroller Rita Crundwell is seen outside of the federal courthouse in Rockford on Nov. 14, 2012, after pleading guilty to a single count of federal wire fraud.
PENSIONS CONTINUED ON A4
NORTHLAND MALL DUNHAM’S SPORTS
WHITESIDE AREA CAREER CENTER | CONGRESSWOMAN VISITS
Bridge for ‘skills gap’?
Athletes can look forward to a treat Store summons workforce, eyes Halloween open BY PAM EGGEMEIER peggemeier@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5570
STERLING – The third time appears to be the charm for Northland Mall’s newest retailer. After previously targeting two earlier opening dates, only to face delays, Dunham’s Sports is set to open its doors Oct. 31. Store Manager John Watts said things are looking good for the Halloween opening. “We had a few things to work out that delayed the opening a bit, but things are rolling now,” Watts said. The Sterling Dunham’s will inhabit 50,000 square feet at the mall. Most of that space became available when Hibbett Sporting Goods left the mall, closing its doors for the last time Feb. 13. Hibbett opened a store in the Walmart Supercenter plaza in Dixon in September. Watts said the Sterling Dunham’s will employ between and 40 and 50 full- and part-time workers. “We’re real close to being at full staff with our hiring,” Watts said.
Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (right), D-East Moline, and Whiteside Area Career Center Director Kim Purvis speak about the many facets of education offered to the 17 school districts that use the center.
Bustos commends center, will tout it at economic summit BY MATT MENCARINI mmencarini@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5529
STERLING – U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos toured the Whiteside Area Career Center on Monday morning and emphasized its role for career preparation. Bustos, D-East Moline, said there’s a “skills gap problem” in the region and
state, and local programs like those at WACC can help prepare students to fill that gap. She also met with students from the center’s Creating Entrepreneurial Opportunities class. Those students talked about the “soft skills” they learned in class, such as making eye contract, using firm handshakes and being punctual,
skills Bustos said students often lack after graduating high school. “That’s also, in a sense, a gap that’s out in the work world,” she said. “You have 600-plus students [here]. If they’re learning that by the time they get out of here, that’s impressive.” BRIDGE CONTINUED ON A2
RECREATION | PARK DISTRICTS
Smoking ban making way through area
DUNHAM’S CONTINUED ON A4
Two districts already enforcing restrictions that go beyond letter of law BY CHRISTI WARREN cwarren@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5521
ROCK FALLS – Slowly but surely, the Whiteside County Health Department, in conjunction with the American Lung Association, has been working to convert all of
$1.00
the Sauk Valley’s parks into smoke-free zones. So far, both the Oregon and Sterling park districts have instituted tight restrictions on where park users can smoke, said Marcia Widolff, director of public health. The next park districts on
TODAY’S EDITION: 24 PAGES 2 SECTIONS VOL. 163 ISSUE 101
INDEX
her radar are Freeport and Dixon, she said. The Smoke-Free Illinois Act, passed in 2008, mandates that public places and places of employment must be completely smoke-free inside and within 15 feet of entrances, exits, windows,
ABBY ................... A7 BUSINESS ......... A11 COMICS ............... A9
CROSSWORD....B11 LIFESTYLE ........... A7 LOTTERY ............. A2
and ventilation intakes. The Oregon and Sterling park districts both took that a step further, implementing a ban on smoking within 50 feet of all park amenities such as playgrounds and fields. BAN CONTINUED ON A4
NATION/WORLD .. A8 OBITUARIES ........ A4 OPINION .............. A6
About the company Northland Mall location will join a roster of more than 200 stores and employ between 40 and 50 full- and part-time workers. For more information, visit dunhamssports.com
Today’s weather High 73. Low 47. More on A3.
Need work? Check out your classifieds, B7.
TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE PAPER, CALL 815-284-2224 OR 800-798-4085