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CARDINALS PROFIT FROM Time to pop to DIXON’S NET DEFICIT it in the kitchen VOLLEYBALL, B1
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Wednesday, September 28, 2016 n SERVING DIXON AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1851
DIXON | CITY GOVERNMENT
City cuts costs, names city clerk Finance department office manager, others will take on extra duties as part of restructure BY RACHEL RODGERS rrodgers@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5529 @rj_rodgers
DIXON – In a restructuring that will save the city about $70,000 a year, the City Council will give its finance department office manager the title of city
clerk, and the bulk of the work. Becky Fredericks, also one of two employees handling human resources duties, will retain most of her key finance duties, and all of her HR duties, Mayor Liandro Arellano Jr. said in a news release Tuesday night. The extra work will come with a $5,000
stipend, bringing Fredericks’ salary to just less than $60,000 a year. Some managerial duties will go back to Finance Director Paula Meyer, and other administrative functions formerly handled by retiring City Clerk Kathe Swanson will be spread throughout the administrative staff, he said.
Fredericks was hired as an accounting technician in December 2012, in the wake of the massive Rita Crundwell theft as the city took steps to create a finance department to provide more checks and balances when managing its budget. CITY CLERK continued on A54
STERLING
EDUCATION
Sunny disposition TV gig is a dream come true for local weather whiz BY KACIE LONG klong@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5521 @kacieek4
Show tell & time
STERLING – A bright future seems to be in the forecast for a Sterling native working his first meteorology gig at a TV station in Rockford. Weather has piqued his interest since middle school, Andrew Stutzke said. “I’ve always been fascinated by weather, whether it be thunderstorms or winter storms,” he said. “I’ve always wondered how it works. ... Anytime we had a storm in general I was like, ‘Wow, I wonder what causes all of that to occur.’” Stutzke’s first day with WIFR in Rockford was Sept. 8. It took a lot of hard work for the 30-year-old Sterling High grad to achieve his meteorological dream. “It’s been an interesting journey to get to where I’m at, just because I’ve been in school for so long.” He worked full time at Staples in Sterling while taking classes part-time at Sauk Valley Community College. After earning his associate’s in science, he dropped down to parttime work so he could take classes full time at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. “It also took me awhile to get my bachelor’s, because the math is so grueling and math has not been my strong point in school at all,” he said. “There were many times, and nights, where I struggled with that kind of work and I thought, ‘Is it really worth it?’” Encouragement from family and friends helped to keep him motivated. One of those friends who not only encouraged Stutzke, but also contributed to his weather enthusiasm, is Kyle Morgan, 20. The two met through their church.
Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Head Start teacher Dana Bass, 25, of Polo, works with Kole Kiro, 3, at Wallace School in Sterling. Bass attended Head Start for a year when she was 3, and credits it with helping her to get ready for kindergarten in many areas – including socialization.
Head Start’s first community showcase will give people a chance to see how program gets kids headed in the right direction BY CHRISTOPHER HEIMERMAN cheimerman@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5523 CHeimerman_SVM
STERLING – Want to know where Head Start can help kids get? You need look no further than Wallace School, one of the program’s sites. That’s where two former Head Starters, Aeriel Williams, 25, of Rock Falls, and Dana Bass, 26, of Polo, now teach. They both took advantage of Head Start for a year a little more than 2 decades ago.
“I value everything that Head Start stands for: helping lowincome families give their children education that they otherwise couldn’t have,” said Williams, a teacher’s assistant for children 6 weeks to 3 years. Before that, she spent the past 2 years in the 3 to 5 classroom. She was the only one of five siblings to attend Head Start, and credits it for helping her read by the time she reached kindergarten. HEAD START continued on A24
Community showcase Head Start will host a community showcase from noon to 3 p.m. Oct. 10 at Grandon Civic Center in downtown Sterling. Head Start representatives, including teachers who used the program when they were younger, and families who have succeeded thanks to its offerings, will be on hand. Vendors are invited to get involved. Call Amber Scavenger or April Wilkinson at 815-669-5904, ext. 113, to sign up, or for more information about Head Start.
LEE COUNTY ZONING BOARD
Farm will get a second wind
WEATHER continued on A54
Andrew Stutzke of Sterling has been a weather reporter for WIFR for a few weeks now. “I have some history with 23; I watched it growing up as a kid, so how cool would it be to actually work there,” he said.
First generation of turbines will make way for more efficient models BY RACHEL RODGERS rrodgers@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5529 @rj_rodgers
DIXON – County Zoning Board members decided Tuesday that they are fans of the Mendota Hills Wind Farm project. The board unanimously approved a recommendation in favor of the wind farm decommis-
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sioning its 63 turbines and replacing them with 27 to 34 upgraded models. “I think it will be a good addition to the county as far as new construction and temporary jobs, and it’s a first-of-its-kind project,” Zoning Board Chairman Bruce Forster said. The decision came after about 10 hours of testimony, public com-
INDEX
ABBY.................... A8 BUSINESS.......... A12 COMICS................B6
ment and discussion during the past few weeks, then compiling all that information into a formal document. “I think we’ve gone through all of the conditions, I think we’ve gone through all of the testimony, and I think we put all of our statements and facts together,” Forster said. “I think we’re ready to do this.” ZONING BOARD continued on A34 CROSSWORD.....B10 LIFESTYLE............ A8 LOTTERY.............. A2
OBITUARIES......... A4 OPINION............... A6 POLICE................. A2
Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Today’s weather High 62. Low 52. More on A3.
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