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CARDINALS LET THEIR GUARD Less stress, DOWN AGAINST DUKES more snacks GIRLS BASKETBALL, B1
FOOD, A9-A11
TELEGRAPH
Wednesday, December 21, 2016 n SERVING DIXON AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1851
LEE COUNTY | APRIL 4 SALES TAX REFERENDUM
Hinging on a half-percent Whether the jail stays open or closes could all depend on how voters feel about a sales tax
BY RACHEL RODGERS rrodgers@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5529 @rj_rodgers
DIXON – The county once again will ask voters to OK a one-half percent sales tax to pay for a new jail. The Lee County Board signed off on a referendum Tuesday that will go on the April 4 consolidated election ballot. If passed, consumers would pay an extra 50 cents per $100 purchase on items, excluding
groceries, medications, medical appliances and vehicles. That would raise a little more than $1 million a year. In March, about 61 percent of voters rejected a 1 percent sales tax increase, which would have been cut in half had it been approved. Lee County Sheriff John Simonton said the county’s options have come down to building a new jail or closing the one at 306 S. Hennepin Ave. HALF-PERCENT continued on A54
Hark!
It’s all weld and good
The little angels sing
$107,000 grant will pay for state-of-the-art welding lab at school BY VINDE WELLS vwells@shawmedia.com Shaw Media
Photos by Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Preschoolers through eighth-graders at St. Anne School in Dixon filled the halls with music and the audience with joy Tuesday night during the school’s annual Christmas program. Students took turns singing, and between numbers, narrators, as shown here, read passages about how the people must have felt that first Christmas Day long ago, from the Virgin Mary to the shepherds to the Three Wise Men. People could also bring cookies or treats to be shared after the program, a favorite post-performance tradition of the students.
LEFT: During the program’s closing number, one young man was really feeling the Christmas spirit and busted out some spontaneous dance moves, much to the delight of the audience. RIGHT: Fourth-grader Leah Stees sings a solo lullaby as the Virgin Mary.
WHITESIDE COUNTY
County names interim state’s attorney First assistant state’s attorney will take over for Joyce; search is on for successor
MORRISON – As Trish Joyce starts her new job as judge today, Terry Costello will start his new job, as interim state’s
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attorney for Whiteside County. Costello, who served as Joyce’s first assistant state’s attorney, was appointed to the interim position by Whiteside County Board Chairman James Duffy during Tuesday’s board meeting. Joyce’s job opened up after she was
INDEX
Monday was the deadline to land a spot on the April 4 consolidated ballot for a variety of municipal boards overseeing schools and park districts in Lee County. A look at who will be on the ballot: A3
OREGON SCHOOLS
DIXON
BY ASHLEY CADY acady@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5521 @ashleycady_svm
Also on the ballot
ABBY.................... A7 BUSINESS.......... A12 COMICS................B6
appointed resident circuit judge in the 14th Judicial Circuit Court earlier this month. Her term will run through Dec. 3, 2018. The position will then be filled by the winner of the 2018 general election. INTERIM continued on A54
CROSSWORD.....B11 LIFESTYLE............ A7 LOTTERY.............. A2
OBITUARIES......... A4 OPINION............... A6 POLICE................. A2
OREGON – The Oregon School District is getting an early Christmas present in the form of a $106,868 grant to build a state-of-the-art welding lab at the high school. The expanded program will provide valuable experience in welding and manufacturing technology not only to Oregon High School students, but also to students at Highland Community College in Freeport, and current professionals in need of ongoing training, Superintendent Tom Mahoney said. “The district is happy to enhance our welding program and extend our faciliTom Mahoney ties in cooperation Supt. says lab will with community help students and manufacturers and industries Highland Community College,” he said. The grant from Community Foundation of Northern Illinois will allow the district to update its facilities and equipment, and give students “more opportunity to develop Josh Nelson and explore their Ag teacher mechanical inclinahelped make tions,” Mahoney said. grant possible Agriculture teacher Josh Nelson wrote the grant application, and worked to bring the opportunity to OHS with the assistance of officials at Woods Manufacturing, F.N. Smith, and E.D. Etnyre Co., all Oregon manufacturers, Mahoney said. The new welding lab, which is expected to be ready for students in the fall, will be in the same area of the high school where welding classes now are held. The program will be a boon to area employers. “Our intent is to help our students and our local industries,” Mahoney said. “We can help our students become employment-ready, and our local manufacturers can use our facilities to train their employees.”
Today’s weather High 33. Low 21. More on A3.
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