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PLAINDEALER §§gj / yfi - > ; - S H A W F R E E P R E S S M E D I A I N C Wednesday, February 13 , 1985 2 5 C E N T S Big job, little glory- - So, automobile and truck drivers think they have It rough in this are rewarded by the smiles of children as they js to and Ham weather, just think about the crossing guards who have to endure all school. A group of kids cross Wankegan Road at Green Street kinds of weather during the McHenry school year. In addition to the Monday afternoon under the watchful eye of crossing guard Carmoa relatively small stipend they receive for their service, the guards Hodges. Johnsburg Library board votes to initiate relations program to improve image By Carol Stevens rHmldNmtarlM In a move to combat "rumors" and dissension within the Johnsburg community regarding the library, the board of directors of the Johnsburg District library voted this week to launch a public relations r^mpoign The board said it hopes to encourage residents of the district to use the library and to discover its benefits to the community. A recent petition asking that the library issue be put on the April ballot, was withdrawn by opponents of the library after library counsel challenged the validity of some of the signatures. Opponents of the library have indicated that they will continue collecting signatures to put the issue on the ballot in November. Much of the controversy surrounding the library is ap­ parently due to the fact that a referendum to establish the facility was brought before the voters three times before being approved. Board President Dick Kucik said he feels that arguments against the library based on that issue are "not legitimate." Each time the issue was place on the ballot, new boundaries for the district were drawn. Each time the boundaries were redrawn, the general consenses of the residents of the areas being omitted was taken into consideration, the board in­ dicated. In all three elections, residents of Precinct 15 were overwhelmingly against the library, but the entire precinct was not removed from the district until the third election, when the referendum passed. Kucik pointed out that had Precinct 15 been omitted originally, the library would have passed on the first ballot. He added that residents of that precinct are "not suffering." Those who do not want the library are paying nothing, and those who wish to use the library can apply for an out-of-district library card and pay the same rate that a resident of the district pays, he indicated. The only difference is that the money is paid directly to the library rather than through real estate taxes, he continued. Another problem perceived by the board are rumors that the board has plans to build a new building or purchase property for a new building. Library Director Handy Bellinger reported that one resident ap­ proached him and said that he heard there are "definite plans" for a new building, and that he believed a piece of property had been purchased and a con­ tractor contacted. The board emphasized tlu% there are no current plans for a FOP solicitation clarified Many McHenry residents and businessmen are receiving phone calls from the Fraternal Order of Policemen (FOP) soliciting McHenry Police Chief Patrick Joyce said Monday _ that while the FOP may be a worthwhile organization, the-McHenry Police Of­ ficers' Association is not affiliated with it in any way. Any donations made to the FOP should be done so with the understanding that it is not a donation that will benefit the local association. building, nor any plans for the future. There is no item in the budget that would indicate the search for a new building, said Board Mpmber Carol Ken- nebeck. She added that the board meetings are open to the public and furthermore, members of the public are welcome to review the budget and meeting minutes. Kennebeck, who is employed by Johnsburg High School in the learning center, added that if the library is dissolved, she feels the high school will also "lose out." The Johnsburg library has recently become a member of the Northern Illinois Library System (NILS), since it is now within the boundaries of a public library. Membership in NILS allows students to have access to a great number of materials through inter-library loan, she said, and should the library be dissolved, the high school's membership in NILS would become void. Kucik stated, "The only legitimate question is, 'Do you want a library or not?'" One plan of the board in its public relations campaign is to implement a newsletter, which will keep residents informed on what's new in the library, and what services are available through it. One such service which has been in existence for some time, but one which has not been fully utilized, according to the board, is an outreach program for the home-bound and elderly. Library materials are delivered to the homes of the people in this program. The newsletter will be mailed to the homes of district residents through the use of bulk rate postage. There was some discussion regarding sponsoring a contest to name the newsletter, with the winner being awarded a prize such as a new book or a set of put illu Council agrees to seek status as'certified city' By Anthony Oliver PlatadMtor HwaM ataff vrttar Hie city is seeking to bolster its economic development at­ titude by participating in the state's "Certified City" program. Action authorizing par­ ticipation passed unanimously at Monday night's council meeting. Sponsored by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs (DCCA). the program is billed as a self-help >rogram for Illinois com- bookends. Details of the contest will be discussed further and will be included in the first newsletter. Board member Judy Robel suggested that a Johnsburg trivia question be put in each issue as a point of interest. Board member Edna Robel said she would work on items to be directed to children. Each issue will also indicate new materials which are available, including new video tapes and magazines. Kennebeck reported that she had been approached by the high school director of vocational education, Steve Pollock, regarding the possibility of the graphic arts department printing the newsletter. She said she would be discussing the idea with him further. • The overall concensus of the board was that the newsletter is a necessary step to inform the lblic about the library and to lustrate that the library plays, what they feel, is an important part in the community. In other board business: -Federal tax forms are available at the library. There are many copies of the most common forms, and a notebook contains the less-common federal forms, from which copies can be made. State forms are on order and are expected to be available soon. -Bellinger announced the purchase of new materials in­ cluding 20 new video cassettes, and a series of "how-to" books, which cover repairs on snowmobiles, lawn mowers, snow blowers and other household items. -The library board plans to apply for revenue sharing funds from McHenry Township. The funds, if granted, would pur­ chase books for the children's section ; as well as some large print books for use by han­ dicapped and elderly in­ dividuals. After meeting various criteria set by DCCA, a municipality is "certified." To date, omythree cities have completed the program and 58 are in the process of doing so, according to Aid. William Busse (2nd). Mayor Joseph Stanek com­ mented that the program highlights a community's appeal to companies seeking expansion or relocation. "Being a certified city would give us some advantages over other municipalities," Stanek said. "And, many of the things have already been ac­ complished." Busse added that the program would provide an effective framework to coordinate the activities of the council. Economic ^Development Z^^ri^CChainber ot Commerce. in aimBiftr matter, the voted unanimously to grant a variation to developers Lawrence Ekeroth Sr. and Lee Cooney. The two men own the Riverside Retail Outlet building at Riverside Drive and Pean fU.., n j Street. Ekeroth told councilmen the refurbishing of the structure would involve retail shops on the first floor and a relatively large open area on the second. Further plans include development of the basement, with pedestrian access from the river frontage. The variation sought was to allow encroachment of one foot onto the sidewalk on the south side of the building along Pearl Street. Ekeroth said the plan was for a platform to allow access through double doors on Pearl Street. The platform would allow stair access from the west and a ramp from the east. Ekeroth commented that the slight encroachment would not impede pedestrian traffic, since, the bridge sidewalk was on the; other ride of the street. . > j Following some discussion the city council opted to retain; three meetings pier month. ; Aid. Elizabeth Nolan (1*> brought the matter to the floot saying meetings were too short to be worth $600. The eight alderman are eadfc paid $75 per meeting. "The reason we went to three: meetings was because we were here so late we were not giving proper attention to city Business," said Aid. Ray Smith (3rd). "Since we have gone to three meetings, we have had more time for discussion. Previously, council were held twice durii when there were four~Mondays and three times when there were five. Stanek admitted the council experiences "surges of activity" but added that aldermen do much more to earn the fee than come to meetings. Aid. Gary Snell (4th) agreed saying, "This may be what the people see because of the press and the media, but meetings are only the tip of the iceberg. There are committee meetings and others. We are doing no injustice to our taxpayers. I am more with having more & and the council three meetings per month. \ In other business: -The council voted to pur- Joyce noted that fum^p from chemicals used for fingerprints and other needs made the system necessary. -The purchase of an at* tachment for a public works department backhoe which would break concrete and pavement was approved unanimously. -The council approved various tag days for national organizations like Easter Seals; Knights of Columbus, etc. -The council also approved installation of a public phone M the recently-enclosed entrance to city hall. -Payment of $22,963.50 to thtf engineering firm of Baxter lr Woodman for work on the water tower in Tonyan Industrial PaHt was approved. Bus ridership up Total suburban bus ridership jumped nearly 16 percent in 1984, while McHenry County bus routes increased 7.7 percent, according to the Suburban Bus Division of the Regional Transportation Authority. Suburban bus systems, which had the third best year ever, carried more than 35.3 million jers in 1964 • the most 1960. The increase marked a 15.8 jump over 1963 ridership totals, according to the SBD. In McHenry County, 183,784 passengers were carried on fixed-route buses, operated by WORTS Transit Inc. of McHenry. In 1983, total rider­ ship was 170,625, according to SBD spokesman A1 Cubbage. . "It was a good year overall, and McHenry County is part of that good year," Cubbage said. Some of the county route ridership levels remained stable in 1964, but the county Saturday BUS RIDERSHIP--Page 2 GOOD MORNING the first segment of a tout? series on the business of d u c a t i o n , r e p o r t e r Braun delves into financial status of area and how state fun* affects them. For see page two. I N D E X S H A W E R E E P R E S S M E D I A . I N C Business ,. Sec. 2, Page 5 Church Sec. 2. Page 1 Life Today. Page 6 Neighbors. Sec. 2, Page 10 Volume 109, Number SO Obituaries Page 3 Schools... Sec. 2. Page 6 Sports .. Pages 20.21. 22 2 Sections, 32 pages