Thursday March 31, 2016 Vol. 4, No. 5 Hot news tip? Want to advertise? Call (309) 741-9790
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Princeville saves by refinancing
THE STATE OF THE PARKS
Elmwood improvements include plants, more lights
By BILL KNIGHT
PRINCEVILLE – Like some savvy borrowers who notice the difference between the interest on their mortgages and new terms from lenders, the Princeville School District 326 last month realized it might be able to refinance some of its loans and save taxpayers some money. It turned out that they’ll be saving a lot of money, after a presentation March 22 by First Midstate’s David Pistorius that Superintendent Shannon Duling called “awesome news.” Princeville schools will be saving about $82,000 more than they’d For The Weekly Post
By JEFF LAMPE
ELMWOOD – Parks are more than just somewhere to play baseball or to swoosh down a slide – though those are significant roles for public spaces. Local parks are also places to walk, relax, shop, dine, to admire nature and to simply enjoy a sunny spring day. Though our green spaces often make Our Parks up only a small part This is the first of our towns, they in a series on play a disproporparks in local tionally important communities. role in increasing quality of life. It’s with that in mind that we are undertaking a series outlining information, improvements and plans for the parks in our towns. First up is Elmwood, where the city has planned improvements to the community’s three public green spaces – and civic groups have planned plenty of activities for those same spaces. Of course not all activities are planned. On a warm day last September, Bradley graduate assistant Paul Lange brought his class to Elmwood for a chance to sketch Lorado Taft’s statue “The Pioneers.” Artists set up camp around the statue for a class in the field. “I thought it would be helpful to draw from Taft’s sculpture so they could observe the way he simplified form. It was also a good way encourage them to draw from life,” Lange said. “Elmwood is lucky to have his beautiful sculptures.” Though not a typical activity, the ar-
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Weekly Post Staff Writer
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Abandoned coal mines dot the area By BILL KNIGHT
Last week, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan demanded that the financially troubled Peabody Energy prove it has the $92 million necessary to reclaim coal mines if it shuts Inside down. In a letter she sent List of area’s abandoned the St. Louis-based coal mines, coal company on Page 13. March 21, Madigan asked Peabody to produce details showing it has the bond amount available for its southern Illinois coal mines since the previous week, Peabody told federal regulators it might “not have For The Weekly Post
Students from a Bradley University drawing class spent a morning last summer sketching Lorado Taft’s sculpture “The Pioneers,” located in Central Park – one of three parks in Elmwood. Photo by Jeff Lampe.
rival of artists underlines the variety of events and people drawn to Elmwood’s well-kept Central Park, where improvements last year included new plantings around the familiar green-topped bandstand. “We put new flowers around the bandstand last year and we’re going to add to that,” said Alderman Bob Paige, who is in charge of city parks. “And the
veterans are working on putting new flags on either side of the memorial (in the southwest corner of the park).” Beyond that Paige anticipates plenty of maintenance in a park that will see a steady stream of events and attractions – many that put more stress on the grass than did the feet of a few artists. On April 30, the first of three cruiseContinued on Page 17
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