Voting Opportunities Prior To Election Day

Early Voting for the April 5 Election will soon end. The last possible day to take advantage of this is Thursday, March 31.

(See Friday, March 25 posting "Voting Before Election Day").

However, there is still "in person" absentee voting which begins Friday, April 1 and lasts through Monday, April 4 at these locations:

Except for voting at the County Administration Building, voters must vote in the Township in which they reside.

McHenry County Administration Building

667 Ware Road, Conference Room A

Woodstock

Friday, April 1 from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Saturday, April 2 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

Monday, April 4 from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

For all qualified voters in McHenry County

Algonquin Township Voters

Algonquin Township Office

3702 Northwest Highway, Clerk's Office,

Crystal Lake

Friday, April 1 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

Monday, April 4 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

For all qualified voters in Algonquin Township

Grafton Township Voters

The Huntley Park District

12015 Mill Street,

Huntley

Friday, April 1 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Saturday, April 2 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

Monday, April 4 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM

For all qualified voters in Grafton Township

McHenry Township Voters

McHenry Township Office

3703 N. Richmond Road

McHenry

Friday, April 1 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Saturday, April 2 from 9:00 AM to 12:00 Noon

Monday, April 4 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM

For all qualified voters in McHenry Township

Nunda Township Voters

Nunda Township Supervisor's Office (Annex)

3510 Bay Road

Crystal Lake

Friday, April 1 from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

Saturday, April 2 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Monday, April 4 from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

For all qualified voters in Nunda Township

All McHenry County Voters

Changes For McHenry County College

Some physical changes will be taking place at McHenry County College. It all began with planning for a Culinary Lab. A Culinary program has been offered at McHenry County College but currently takes place by using facilities at Woodstock High School.

The program has become popular with students and there is a need to bring the program to the McHenry County College campus. Added room exists adjoining the current cafeteria of the college.

By making some changes in the current cafeteria, a culinary laboratory can be implemented along with a change in the vestibule of that building. Further work would include remodeling the kitchen and the servery, which is where the food is served.

The estimated cost for all the remodeling work to take place over next few years is approximately $3.8 million. This will also provide added space with the removal of columns in the area adjoining the current cafeteria. These are not supporting columns and were installed for decor purposes at the time that portion of the facility was built.

The project will also remove what is known as the Belly of the Whale, a student "lounge " area. Instead, it is planned to provide a Starbucks type area where computers can be "plugged in".

Voting Before Election Day

Early Voting

Voters do not have to wait until Election Day to cast their votes. They may vote at any of the following locations prior to the April 5 Election Day, It is not necessary to vote in a designated polling location. However, it should be noted this is not true on Election Day.
The following locations are available for Early Voting.
Some locations include Sunday hours.

MCHENRY COUNTY ADMINISTRATION BUILDING

667 Ware Road--2nd Floor, Conference Room

Woodstock

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday

Hours: 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Wednesday, March 30

Hours: 8:30 AM to 7:00 PM

Saturday March 26 Hours: 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Sunday March 27 Hours: 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

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ALGONQUIN TOWNSHIP OFFICES

3702 US Highway 14, Clerk's Office

Crystal Lake

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Friday Hours: 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

No Saturday Hours

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CITY OF CRYSTAL LAKE

100 W. Municipal Complex, Room P106

Woodstock and N. Walkup Avenue

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Friday Hours: 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Saturday, March 26 Hours: 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Sunday, March 27 Hours: 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

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GRAFTON TOWNSHIP

Huntley Park District

12015 Mill Street

Huntley

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Thursday, March 31 - Hours: 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Saturday, March 26 - Hours 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

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VILLAGE of LAKE in the HILLS

Village Hall

600 Harvest Gate, Executive Conference Room

Lake in the Hills

(Enter thru Board Room)

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Friday Hours 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM

Saturday, March 26 Hours 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Sunday, March 27 Hours 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

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CITY OF McHENRY

McHenry City Hall 

333 Green St. – Court Entrance Only

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Friday Hours 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Saturday, March 26 Hours 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Sunday, March 27 Hours 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

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McHENRY TOWNSHIP OFFICES

3703 N. Richmond Road

McHenry

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Friday Hours 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Saturdays NO Hours

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NUNDA TOWNSHIP OFFICES

3510 Bay Road Annex

Crystal Lake

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Friday Hours 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

Saturdays NO Hours

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HARVARD AREA

Dunham Township Office

107 Airport Road

Harvard

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Friday Hours 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Saturday, March 26 Hours 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM

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MARENGO AREA

Marengo City Hall

132 E. Prairie Street, Upper Chambers

Marengo

Now Thru Thursday, March 31

Monday thru Friday Hours 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Saturday, March 26 Hours 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM

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State law requires that a registered voter show valid photo identification before voting early. Voter casting an early ballot must display a current driver's license, a state-issued ID card or another government-issued ID with a photograph.

State Law also prohibits any voter who has been issued an "In Person Absentee Ballot" or "Early Ballot" from appearing at this precinct polling place and requesting another ballot.

Tuition Increase For MCC Students

McHenry County College Board of Trustees, at Thursday's Board meeting, thoroughly discussed finances of the college as well as how tuition costs affect those attending classes at the institution. The end result is that tuition for the college will be increased by $8 a credit hour for a total of $90 per credit hour for in district students...

During discussion it was noted that there is considerable help available for those who have trouble meeting the costs. There are various grants available, and personnel at the College are available to help those needing assistance to apply for financial aid.

Surrounding community college fees are in the same category. College of Lake County fee is $90 per credit hour. Elgin Community College is listed at $99 per credit hour.

One MCC student, Jamie, told the Board she thinks a tuition increase would be better if it were applied all at one time, instead of incremental increases. This she says is similar to ripping off a band-aid. It only hurts for a short time. She explained that she is a single mother working toward being able to transfer her degree to a four-year college.

The Fox River Continues To Rise

AT 3:45 AM this morning the stage was 2.0 feet, however, observed stages are being affected by gate operations at the Algonquin Dam.

Flood stage is 3.0 feet.

Forecast:

Since river stages upstream of Algonquin continue to rise, the river is still expected to rise to near flood stage early Friday at Algonquin.

Impact at 3.0 feet—flooding begins to affect residences along River Road in Fox River Grove.

Water inundates some streets in mobile home park in northwest Elgin. Street flooding begins in Holiday Hills.

McHenry County College Board Thursday Meetings

Two meetings are being held for the McHenry County College Board Thursday evening. The first is a meeting of the Finance Committee at 6:00 p.m...

The agenda lists the opening of the meeting including an opportunity for visitors and presentations.

The next item listed is a closed session, but no reason is listed. That is followed by Tuition and Fees, then a discussion on publication of W2s and compensation, and summary comments by board members before future agenda times and adjournment.

The regular board meeting is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. with the usual reports of committees, the Friends MCC Foundation Report, President's Report.

A presentation is to be made by Rich Gruber, Vice President of Mercy Health System, regarding plans for the construction of a 128 –bed hospital o the southeast corner of Route 31 and Three Oaks Road, Crystal Lake. The Board is to consider adoption of a resolution regarding the proposed hospital.

The board approved a resolution supporting Centegra Hospital's proposed 128-bed Hospital on properly Centegra owns at Haligus Road and Reed Road, Huntley. Centegra located a Health Center and Centegra Health Bridge and Fitness Center at this location in 2008.

Flood Warning Continues for Fox River At Algonquin

At 9:45 am Wed the stage was estimated to be 2.8 feet

Stage readings are affected by gate operations at the dam.

* Flood stage is 3.0 feet.

* Minor flooding is forecast.

* Forecast.rise above flood stage by early thur & continue to rise to near 3.1 feet by early Friday morning.

* Impact--at 3.0 feet.flooding begins to affect residences along River Road in Fox River Grove.

Water inundates some streets in mobile home park in NW Elgin.

Street flooding begins in Holiday Hills.

Not Registered To Vote? There Is Opportunity To Vote

Voters who missed the March 8 deadline to register to vote but would still like to be able to vote in the April 5 election--there is help!

State law allows a "Grace Period" for people to register to vote until March 29 for the April 5 Election. Individuals may register in person duirng normal office hours at the clerk's office, County Administration Building, 667 Ware Road, Woodstock.

However, people who register to vote during this three-week period MUST vote in the County Clerk's Office at the time they register. They are not eligible to vote in their precinct polling place on April 5.

Eligibility to vote includes:

• U.S. Citizenship
• 18 years old by Election Day
• Residency of the precinct at least 30 days prior to Election Day
• Two (2) forms of ID, both with the voter's name and one with their current address.

More information about grace period registration is available by contacting the County Clerk's office at 815-334-4242.

MCC Trustees Vote Support For Centegra Hospital Proposal

McHenry County College Board of Trustees, at a meeting last evenng, joined others in voting support for the proposed Centegra Health System hospital for the southern part of McHenry County.

Five of the seven members were present including Barbara Walters, Carol Larson, George Lowe, Dennis Adams, and Ron Parrish

Susan Milford, Senior Vice President of Strategic Marketing for Centegra presented the plans for the facility to be located at Haligus Road and Reed Road on an existing campus of Centegra.

Ms. Milford told the MCC trustees that Centegra plans to build a 128-bed facility on land purchased four years ago when the existing healthcare campus was begun at that location.

She explained that the $233 million project demonstrates Centegra's continued commitment to providing access to high-quality healthcare that includes wellness services to comprehensive medical care for residents of the region.

The hospital is to include private patient rooms, state-of the-art-technology, and a bright and airy architectural design. The facility is planned to provide convenient healthcare services to the greater Huntley, Lake in the Hills, Algonquin, Carpentersville, Lakewood and southern Crystal Lake communities.

Centegra, a 100-year old health care provider, has a long-term partnership with MCC, coordinating all EMS courses and was instrumental in the nursing program at the college.

Ms. Milford also noted that Centegra is the only area provider of mental health services, even though they lose money in the process. She also noted that health care costs do not decrease by having competitors across the street. The Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board will consider the impact on other hospitals in the area. This agency did identify an 83-bed need in McHenry County with the second greatest need in northern Kane and southern Cook Counties.

The five MCC trustees present voted unanimously for the Centegra proposal, although it was mentioned that they should also hear from the other hospital project proposed by Mercy Health System for a 128-bed acute care facility to be located at Route 31 and Three Oaks Road, Crystal Lake.

MCC Board Facilities Planning Committee Meeting Tuesday

The Facilities Planning Committee of McHenry County College Board is meeting at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday in the Board Room of the College, 8900 U.S. Highway 14, Crystal Lake.

A facility condition analysis report is to be provided the committee. A Deco lighting grant is also being presented.

A discussion is expected on the culinary management/cafeteria project which involves renovating the current cafeteria.

Government At Work

5:30 p.m.—McHenry County College Board Finance Committee

is meeting in the Board Room of the College for a discussion on the Fiscal Year 2012 Budget. Other matters for discussion include: tuition and fees; possible publication of W2s and total Compensation.

McHenry County College Special Board Meeing

Immediately following the Finance Committee meeting. The Board will hear a presentation from Michael Eesley, CEO and Ms. Susan Milford, ice President, Strategic Marketing Planning for Centegra Helth System. The hospital group had requested a letter of support from the Board for the proposed facility.

6:00 p.m.—McHenry County Conservation District Board of Trustees

is meeting in executive session for collective bargaining, real estate, sale/lease real estate/ probable or imminent litigation and pending litigation, and review of closed session minutes.

The Board will reconvene at 7:00 p.m. to handle the regular business of the District.

A report is to be presented regarding Community Gardens Tax Force from the Citizens Advisory Committee.

A number of reports from trustees on conferences and meetings attended will be followed by a verbal report of a Finance Committee meeting held earlier.

A number of contracts are to be awarded including construction of the asphalt entrance drive, porous paving parking lot, asphalt ADA path, small shelter, unisex restroom native landscaping and site amenities at the Fel-Pro RRR Conservation Area. Carmichael Construction is the lowest responsible bidder for a cost not to exceed $577,206.

Other contract work being presented for board approval includes Construction Staking and Supervision of the Fel Pro RRR-(Detrana Fen) in Cary for a cost not to exceed $36,000 with Condon Consulting Engineers, Ringwood.

The Board is being asked to approve a contract for the installation of handrail on the boardwalk at the Kishwaukee Headwaters Conservation Area. The lowest qualified and responsible bidder is Rosemann & Sons, Union for a cost not to exceed $40,303.

The Board is also being asked to approve a Professional Service Agreement with Recreation Accessibility Consultants, LLC of Hoffman Estates, to work with District staff in conducting an American with Disabilities Audit for a cost not to exceed $26,720.

7:00 p.m.—Crystal Lake District 47 Board

Will meet in executive session at 5:30 p.m. Monday at Lundahl Middle School, 560 Nash Road, Crystal Lake to consider a student discipline matter. The Board will return to open session to take action on administrative recommendation for student discipline.

At 7:00 p.m. the Board will conduct the regular monthly Board meeting in the same location.

In addition to the necessary financial matters, various personnel matters, the Board is expected to approve a South School Principal along with a number of repair projects for roofing, windows, and doors.

The agenda also lists a discussion on early release option; first reading of a number of policy sections. The board is to provide approval for student disciplinary rules and curriculum recommendation.

A First For Well Established Woodstock Congregation

For the first time in the 144 year history of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Woodstock, a retired minister has been elected Minister Emeritus. The honor was voted unanimously for the Rev. Dan Larsen at a congregational meeting last fall. Earlier in the year Larsen retired after serving the congregation for 19 years.

The Congregation will recognize his remarkable career and achievements at a special worship service at 4 P.M. Sunday, April 10. There will be a pre-service reception at Pirro’s Restaurante, 28 Main St, Woodstock from 1 to 3:30 P.M. Tickets can be purchased through the church at 221 S. Dean Street for a suggested $25 donation each. A separate monetary gift is welcome, as well as the purchase of additional tickets to be donated to those who may not otherwise be able to attend including many of the poor and disenfranchised of McHenry County to whom Rev. Larsen devoted so much time and care.

The reception will include Hors d ‘Oeuvres, a cash bar, and live jazz performance by Barry White & Company. Guests are asked to use Pirro’s Benton Street entrance to the ball room.

Rev. Larsen came to the pulpit of what was then known as the Congregational Unitarian Church in 1991 as a part time minister. The congregation had fallen on hard times after the contentious departure of the husband and wife ministerial team who had preceded him. Membership had dropped by half and moral was low. But Larsen threw himself into his work and soon conducted a major capital campaign that re-modeled the crumbling sanctuary of the 1905 building. Over the years his stewardship of the congregation led to steady growth. Originally ordained a Presbyterian, he returned to school and was fellowshipped at a Unitarian Universalist minister and ordained by the Congregation. He was able to become a full time minister and oversaw many changes, including a vote to end a dual affiliation with the United Church of Christ, a centennial celebration for the church building, and the decision to change the name to the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Woodstock.

But Larsen is best known around the country for his courageous advocacy of those forgotten or outcast by society and his tireless work for social justice.

Almost immediately upon assuming the Woodstock pulpit he reached out to the Latino community creating the first county wide Hispanic Concerns Task Force and battling housing discrimination and other hurdles faced by that community. As numbers of Latinos in the county swelled, so did an ugly racist backlash and in recent years a virulent anti-immigrant sentiment fueled by groups like the Illinois Minutemen. Rev. Larsen helped organize and lead the county’s first big immigration reform march and organized protests to Minutemen meetings. At church, he developed special outreach and service programs for the community, including a weekly group for Latino women that combined help with learning English with support in finding employment and, when necessary, assistance.

When a faction of the Ku Klux Klan targeted McHenry County in 1997 with a rally at the County Courthouse, Dan Larsen helped organize an interfaith alternative event on historic Woodstock Square. That event became the Diversity Day Festival which ran annually through 2010, intentionally bringing together people of different racial, ethnic, religious, language, physical and mental challenges, gender, and sexual orientation. The Festival, held in late September or early October, helped local Muslims introduce themselves as a human community in the dark days after the 9/11 attacks. It was also the first public forum in which Gays and Lesbians felt comfortable in participating.

Starting with work educating the public about the truth about the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the early 1990’s, Larsen has been an advocate for Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, and Transgender community. He offered the church building as the only safe haven in McHenry County for Gay and Gay ally groups to meet. A support group became McHenry County Pride, the first openly gay organization in the county, which continues to meet at the church. The church also housed a pioneering counseling program for Gay teens who were often the objects of bullying and violence in their high schools, and is the home for the county chapter of PFLAG. Larsen helped the Congregation become certified as a Welcoming Congregation and becoming a comfortable home for Gays and Lesbians. He pioneered in performing religious union ceremonies in the county and in forthrightly advocating marriage equality.

Larsen was also a leader of the peace movement in McHenry County and helped organize and mobilize demonstrations, marches, and public forums.

On the level of practical community service, Larsen helped found the Woodstock Community Ministry, a consortium of local congregations which now is responsible for the PADS emergency homeless shelter housed at the church on Wednesday nights October through April and the Direct Assistance Program which provides small emergency grants to those in dire need. As minister he also helped countless individuals with his Minister’s Discretionary Fund.

The public is welcome to both the reception and service, but reservations for the reception should be made as soon as possible.

For more information call the church at 815 338-0731 or e-mail office@uucofwoodstock.org .