"Summertime, and the livin' is easy"

Therefore, in true "Porgy and Bess" style:

McHenry County College is closed on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays beginning the week of June 6 through the week of July 25, except for special events in the Conference Center and breakout rooms.

For more information on college classes, programs and events, visit http://www.mchenry.edu/.

Words of Wisdom

"And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with his wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just: that his justice cannot sleep for ever."

 Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia, Query 18, 1781

Congressman Manzullo's Wife Hospitalized Early This Week; Now Resting At Home

Freda Manzullo, wife of Congressman Don Manzullo, (R-IL) is recovering in northern Virginia following a procedure to clear a clogged artery that sent her into cardiac arrest early Sunday. She was revived and was rushed to Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Virginia, where she underwent an angioplasty Monday to clear a significant blockage.

Mrs. Manzullo, 54, responded well to treatment and was released from the hospital today. She is resting comfortably and is expected to make full recovery. Mrs. Manzullo was with the Congressman in Washington, DC while the House was in session the past two weeks.

Congressman Manzullo was scheduled to return home to northern Illinois for several events this weekend and next week, but he has cancelled those plans so he can stay with his wife while she recovers.

Friday County Board Committee Meeting

FRIDAY, JUNE 3

8:15 am—Public Health and Human Services Committee--

Will meet in the Conference room of the McHenry County Administration Building,

667 Ware Road, Woodstock

.

A proposal for reduced Animal Registration Fees for Disabled Persons is being brought to the committee’s attention by County Board Member Tina Hill, D-5, Woodstock.

Interviews of three people seeking appointment to the Valley Hi Operating Board and five seeking appointment to the McHenry County Board of Health. A sixth person seeking the latter appointment is unable to be present.

A Delegation Agreement with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency regarding participation in a joint solid waste inspection, investigation and enforcement program is to be renewed. This provides for surveillance and regular or periodic inspection of refuse disposal sites as well as the investigation of any violations of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act. The agreement is for the next five years, beginning July 1, 2011.

A $50,202 grant from the Illinois Department of public Health for a mosquito prevention program is being presented for approval. The McHenry County Board has been offered the grant to help the County Department of Health improve its capacity to respond to West Nile Virus and other vector borne disease outbreaks that may impact McHenry County residents. The Committee is asked to recommend to the County Board approval of acceptance of the grant

Driving Course Designed For The 50-Plus Crowd

A driving course designed for drivers over the age of 50 is offered in the Grafton Township offices each day Wednesday, June 15 and Thursday, June 16 from 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm.  Although the course is designed especially for drivers in this age category, all drivers are welcome to participate.

They will learn how to operate their vehicles more safely in today’s increasingly challenging driving environment and receive a thorough review of the “rules of the road,” with an emphasis on safety strategies of defensive driving

Additionally, class participants will also find out how to safely adjust driving to compensate for age-related changes in vision, hearing and reaction time.

Certificates of completion are provided for those who complete the course. Under Illinois law this entitles a 55 plus year old driver a reduction in auto insurance premiums for three years. A check with the individual insurance company is needed to know the amount of reduction.

This is a two-day course that is open to AARP members and non-members of all ages. There are no tests. But all participants must pre-register. This can be accomplished by sending a check made out to AARP for $14 to Grafton Township Supervisor, Linda Moore,

P.O. Box 37, Huntley, IL 60142

. AARP members receive a $2 discount.

More information is available by contacting the Township Office at 847-669-3328. The program is coordinated by the Grafton Township Supervisor Linda Moore. Snacks and drinks during the class are sponsored by LMR Healthcare.

Vehicle Sticker Time In Crystal Lake

We are heading toward the completion of the first half of 2011. That also means it is time to obtain a new Crystal Lake City auto sticker.

The stickers for 2011-2012 are now on sale from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, at City Hall.

Residents with receive a vehicle sticker application in a first-class business envelope with a return envelope enclosed for convenience in applying for this year’s vehicle stickers.

A current City vehicle sticker is required to be displayed on the lower passenger side of the front windshield of the car. All funds generated from the sale of vehicle stickers are used in the City’s road resurfacing and reconstruction program.

An Advantage of A City Vehicle Sticker

The City of Crystal Lake vehicle stickers will provide parking access to Three Oaks Recreation Area, free of charge.

                                                                        Rate through               Rate after

Vehicle sticker prices are as follows:                        

Passenger Cars, SUVs, motorcycles,           $10.00                         $15.00

and Mopeds

Trucks:

A-B plates, RV plates                                      $14.25                         $21.38

C-D plates                                                       $20.00                         $30.00

All others                                                         $30.00                         $45.00

(Higher rates apply after September 30)

Senior citizens own a passenger car, SUV, truck with B-plates or a motorcycle will be able to purchase one vehicle sticker per senior for $1.00.  Additional stickers are charged at the standard rate. Stickers must be purchased at City Hall to receive the senior discount.

Passenger stickers will also be available by bringing in a pre-printed application at Dominick’s Finer Foods, First Midwest Bank, West Suburban Currency Exchange, Jewel Food Stores, American Community Bank, Home Depot, Lloyd’s Paint n’ Paper, Joseph’s Marketplace, Julie Ann’s Frozen Custard and Crystal Lake Public Library.

The Finance Department can make alternative arrangements for residents who may be unable to purchase their stickers during regular business hours.

Residents who would like to speak with someone regarding alternative arrangements, or who have questions regarding vehicle stickers, are asked to contact the Finance Department at (815) 459-2020 or by email at finance@crystallake.org.

Words of Wisdom

"It should be your care, therefore, and mine, to elevate the minds of our children and exalt their courage; to accelerate and animate their industry and activity; to excite in them an habitual contempt of meanness, abhorrence of injustice and inhumanity, and an ambition to excel in every capacity, faculty, and virtue. If we suffer their minds to grovel and creep in infancy, they will grovel all their lives." –

John Adams, Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law, 1756

Tonight At Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

7:30 p.m.—Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning Commission—

Meets in the Crystal Lake City Hall,

100 Woodstock Street  The agenda calls for:

McDonalds, 7615 Route 176, A public hearing is being continued to the June 15, commission meeting.

835 Hawthorne Drive (Ahmed)—A simplified variation from a requirement regarding location of accessory structure to allow an above ground pool to be located in the corner side setback as close as 15 feet from the property line along Colony Drive.

Chick-fil-A-4812 Northwest Highway—The former Hooters was annexed to the City in 2001 and subsequently was retrofitted from an existing vacant fast food (Hardees) with a drive-through into a sit down restaurant.

In 2005, the PUD was amended to accommodate an outdoor seating area and additional parking for variations. When Cog Circle ROW was constructed, it resulted in an irregular lot with frontage on

Northwest Highway, Cog Circle and Manor Drive.

Chick-fil-A is a national restaurant chain with over 1,500 locations in 39 states with annual sales of over $3.5 billion. The proposed development would demolish the existing enclosed with a wrought iron style fence, an indoor play place for children and a drive-through for the convenience of customers

The proposed one-story building is to be constructed of principally masonry materials with partial metal canopy to finish certain sections of the roofline.

Cal Elite Kids, –825 Munshaw Lane--The proposed location is in an existing building with Dolphin Swim Club as the main tenant. This commercial recreation use changed the intended use and marketing of the building to more recreation or service uses rather than manufacturing. However, the property remains zoned as Manufacturing. Therefore the petitioner is requesting a variation to locate a physical fitness facility for dance and gymnastics as well as possible commercial daycare. A special use permit is requested for this proposal.

/

Alexander Leigh Center for Autism, 620 Route 31 –The property where this facility for children ages 3 to 14 years is planned is located in an office complex with four separate buildings.

The proposal is to provide an education and therapy for children as well as family member support. The Center is currently located in Lake in the Hills and needs to expand to a new location due to the demand for services. The Center accepts referrals from 14 of the surrounding school districts. Classes operate at a 1.1 student to teacher ratio.

The requested use is considered by the City as an elementary or secondary school which is not permitted in the office zoning district. Therefore, the petitioner is required to seek a Use Variation.

There are concerns expressed by the Planning staff regarding site circulation and the impact of bus stacking in the parking lot. Stacking is proposed along the detention pond on the south side of the site. Bus loading will be in front of the building, behind parking spaces.

Currently many of the office suites are vacant. However, if they should become occupied the site circulation problem would be compounded. City staff has put a condition of approval for the provision of a parking lot striping plan, illustrating bus stacking and loading but still maintaining two-way access for vehicles and access for emergency vehicle.

C & D Recycling Facility, 1350 S. Virginia Road—is seeking a special use permit for a construction and demolition recycling and processing facility and landscape waste transfer station.  This site is located in an area of manufacturing zoning, and adjacent to the northwest side of the existing Waste Management waste transfer station facility. A Special Use Permit is requested for a construction and demolition recycling and processing facility and landscape waste transfer station.

The proposed facility is to receive loads predominantly containing recyclable construction or demolition materials including wood, metals, paper and cardboard, plastics, glass, drywall, brick, concrete, rock, asphalt, and roofing materials. Additionally, tires, batteries and electronics will be collected and sorted into designated roll-off boxes and shipped off-site to a permitted facility.

The landscape waste material arriving at the facility will be inspected and unloaded in a separate facility from the C & D tipping floor. There are approximately eight to ten transfer tuck trailers to be stored overnight in a covered, clear span tension membrane fabric structure. Salt is to be stored during winter in another covered structure.

Floors for the recycling facility and the landscape waste material transfer station are to be asphalt. The property was formerly used as a land fill, therefore, traditional construction methods are challenging and gravel base is proposed for the access drives and maneuvering areas.

Busy Time For County Transportation Committee

Wednesday, June 1

8:15 a.m.—Transportation Committee of McHenry County Board, --meeting at the Division of Transportation Main Conference Room, 16111 Nelson Road, Woodstock
.

The Committee is being presented a revision to the policy for the establishment and posting of speed limits on County and Township highways during construction and maintenance work.

This policy provides for specific traffic reductions, speed reductions and personnel required depending upon the construction involved.

Lake In The Hills Airport

Committee consideration is to be given to the exchange of road area between the Village of Lake in the Hills and the County regarding a portion of Road. The issue involves moving a portion of Pyott Road eastward to benefit the expansion of the Lake –In-The Hills Airport. The Village is to pay for all costs associated with the acquisition of property for the construction of the improvements.

Study of Public Transportation

The Committee is being asked to consider recommending approval of $149,997 expenditure for an engineering study of public transportation problems and developments. An agreement for this amount is to be awarded to TranSystems Inc. of Kansas City, Mo. for the study. A grant of $120,000 is being provided by the RTA. This is part of the 2040 McHenry County Long-Range Transportation Plan.

Another $150,000 RTA grant is to be considered for technical services in connection with Public Transportation development.

Other matters the committee will be considering include approving an intergovernmental agreement with the State and appropriating $35,017 for improvements on Burlington Road in Richmond Township.

An intergovernmental agreement between the County and McHenry County Conservation District is to be considered for approval to provide for the installation of a bike trail crossing of Walkup Road.

The acquisition of property for the improvement of Miller Road between Illinois Route 31 and

River Road is being considered. The Transportation Committee is expected to grant approval for the County Board to authorize the State’s Attorney to handle condemnation proceedings for the necessary property for the project

Public Hearings On RTA's Seniors Ride Free Program

The Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) will host a series of public hearings to communicate changes to the Seniors Ride Free program. Legislation that became law in February restricted free rides to low income Illinois seniors that are enrolled in the Circui

All other seniors will be required to pay a reduced fare. The changes take effect this summer. Seniors age 65 or older are encouraged to attend the hearings to learn about the program changes and the timetable for the changes to take effect.

 t Breaker program managed by the Illinois Department on Aging.

Meetings are open to the public and locations are ADA accessible. If you require a reasonable accommodation such as a language translator or hearing interpreter in order to attend a meeting or have questions, please call 312-913-3153 (TTY: 312-913-3111) or email comunications@rtachicago.org at least three business days before the meeting. For more information, visit www.RTAchicago.com.

Following are the dates and times for the hearings:

Thursday, June 9

McHenry County - 2:00 p.m.

McHenry Administration Bldg., - 2nd Fl., Conf. Rm. A,

667 Ware Rd., Woodstock

Monday, June 13

Kane County - 10:30 a.m.

Aurora Police Dept., - Community Room, 1200 E. Indian Trail, Aurora

Thursday, June 16

Lake County - 10:30 a.m.

Waukegan Public Library - Bradbury Room,

128 N. County St., Waukegan

Understanding Social Security For Accountants, Financial Planners

Help for accountants and financial planners on understanding Social Security is available at McHenry County College.

A two-hour presentation is being held Thursday, June 2 from 12:00 to 2:00 in the McHenry County College Employee Dining Room (Room B177C). The College is located at 8900 U.S. Highway 14, Crystal Lake.

This two-hour presentation will focus on the social security statement and the retirement estimator benefit calculator, including an overview of the methodology for calculating benefits.  Other topics will highlight retiree and auxiliary benefits, work rules for beneficiaries, taxation of social security benefits, Medicare, online services, windfall elimination provision and government pension offset, and claim withdrawal.

The speaker will be Darrin Salzman, district manager for the Social Security Administration in Woodstock.  He has worked for the federal government for the past 21 years.  He earned a master's degree in social work from the University of Illinois and previously served in the United States Army as a captain in the Medical Services Corps at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

For more information, contact Ruth Kormanak at (815) 479-7879 or rkormanak@mchenry.edu. To register for this presentation, contact the MCC Registration office at (815) 455-8588 and use course ID: and the course ID: USB U25-001.

Words of Wisdom

"[T]he only foundation for a useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion. Without this there can be no virtue, and without virtue there can be no liberty, and liberty is the object and life of all republican governments." --Benjamin Rush, On the Mode of Education Proper in a Republic, 1806

Memorial Day - Originally Known As Decoration Day

It is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s service. Naturally, every community would like to be the location of the beginning of the commemorative day. There is evidence that organized women’s groups in the South decorated graves before the end of the Civil War.

President Lyndon Johnson, in May 1966, declared Waterloo, N.Y. the birthplace of Memorial Day. It is difficult to say just when and where the practice officially began. It is believed the idea was taking place in many different areas where people gathered to honor the war dead. Each of the many gatherings contributed to a growing movement that culminated in General Logan giving his official proclamation in 1868.

It is not important where the first ceremony was held. It is important that Memorial Day was established to honor those who gave their lives for the benefit of maintaining freedom of this country.

Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on May 5, 1868 by General John Logan, the national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic and was first observed on May 30, 1868. The celebration at that historic event included the placing of flowers on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.

The first state to recognize the day was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The south refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war.

Now, it is a holiday celebrated in almost every state on the last Monday in May to ensure a three-day weekend for Federal holidays. And every so many years the holiday does fall on May 30, such as this year.

Several southern states have an additional separate day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas, April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South Carolina; and June 3 (Jefferson Davis’ birthday) in Louisiana and Tennessee.

Services Locally—Crystal Lake—11 a.m. Memorial Day parade from the high school traveling east on Franklin Avenue, north on Williams Street and west on Woodstock Street to the Union Cemetery for a memorial service. If it rains, the parade will be cancelled and the ceremony will take place in Crystal Lake Central High School Field House.

At nearby Cary, a parade will begin at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, First Street and Three Oaks Road, travel south on First Street to Cary veterans Park for a memorial service.

Woodstock ‘s service is scheduled to get underway at 10:00 a.m. in the park on the Square, followed immediately by a parade around the square, up West Jackson Street, back down West Judd Street and disband at the Throop Street parking lot. Lunch is to be served after the parade at the VFW Post 5040,

240 N. Throop Street

.

Celebrations are taking place mostly on Monday with a special short ceremony and other activities planned, mostly dependent upon the weather.

FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR THE AREA

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SENDS A WARNING--

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR.
DUPAGE COUNTY IN NE IL.
KANE COUNTY IN NE IL.
N. COOK COUNTY IN NE IL.
N. DE KALB COUNTY IN NO. CNTL IL.
N. LEE COUNTY IN NO. CNTL IL.
OGLE COUNTY IN NO. CNTL IL.
S. BOONE COUNTY IN NO. CNTL IL.
S. LAKE COUNTY IN NE IL.
S. MCHENRY COUNTY IN NE IL.
S. WINNEBAGO COUNTY IN NO. CNTL IL.

* UNTIL 630 PM CDT