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M c H E N R Y AN EDITION OF THE NORTHWEST HERALD F K I D A Y , S E P T E M B E R 1 3 . 1 9 8 S a Good Morning T oday's Weather MOSTLY SUNNY today. ,High around 70. Tonight fair and cool again. Lows ranging from the mid 50s to the mid 40s. . Lottery Daily game: 269 Pick Four: 7478 LOTTO grand prize: $7 million Local report Landmark needs volunteers At a recent meeting of the McHenry Landmark Commission, members gave approval to the survey form developed by a special committee. Nancy Fike, chairman of the commission, noted that as work progresses help will be needed from home and business owners. ^ In all, about 20 volunteers are needed to conduct the survey according to routes recently established within the city limits. A meeting for these volunteers, and others who feel they may be interested, will be held Thursday, Sept. 26, at 7 p.m. in the McHenry Public Library. Fike said it is essential that everyone who will help is present at this meeting, which will feature slides by Thomas Hopkirife, archi­ tect, of some McHenry buildings to be surveyed. Planaare to survey, for a detailed history, all homes and businesses buut prior to 1910. Among features to be taken into consideration and recorded will be structure use, name of the original owner, style, integrity of the original design and the condition of the building. Results of the survey will form a basis for plaquing and also for future land use develbpment. The commission will serve as a clearing house for.businesses and homeowners regarding restora­ tion and structure improvement. INDEX/SECTION A Weather 2 Neighbors 5 Obituary 3 Sports 10-12 rv •?" ' ' ; v . : . . . . This is a 3 section, 38 page newspaper © PSloRTHWEST nEWSPAPERS Panel rules road a By Alex Rodriguez Plaindealer News Service A coroner's jury found Tuesday that the death of a McHenry man who was killed in a DUI pedestrian- /car accident was a homicide. The finding <$mes a week after the McHenry County state's attor­ ney's office decided not to charge the driver of the car, 24-year-old Jaqueline Staley with any additional charges in connection with the death of 21-year-old Daniel Clark. Staley was charged with DUI, leaving the scene of an accident, and failure to give information. She pleaded not guilty to all three charges and her case has been con­ tinued to Sept. 27. Clark, his fiance Kim Baran, 19, of Crystal Lake, and a friend, Tim Bar­ ry, 20, of McHenry, were walking down Lincoln Road in July when they were allegedly struck by Sta- ley's car in July. Baran was not seriously injured. Barry suffered a broken neck, broken leg and broken arm in the accident. Harry Stafford, county deputy cor­ oner handling the case, said he be­ lieved that the fact that Staley left the scene of the accident and did not report immediately may have been contributing factors in the coroner's jury's decision. He also noted that the inquest finding is not binding on the actions of the state's attorney's office. State's Attorney Ted Floro said there was not enough evidence to support a charge of reckless homi­ cide against Staley. * "It's a God-awful tragedy but there's nothing we can do about it," • Floro said. "Drunk driving in and of itself is not reason enough to charge somebody with reckless homicide." TWO factors contributed to their decision, %ccording to Assistant State's Attorney Steve McArdle. neither Barry nor Baran could re­ call whether they were walking on or off the road at the time of the accident; and no physical evidence was found to indicate where the three were positioned. Floro added that the three pedes­ trians were walking on the wrong side of the road. "We have to have a case we feel we have a good chance of winning," Floro said. "There's nothing we have that can prove she swerved off the roadway." Tuesday's finding at the inquest is not binding, Floro said, and he does not expect any additional charges to be levied against Staley at this time. Floro also pointed out that the amount of evidence the coroner's jury reviews typically is limited compared to the amount his office reviews. Roads to close for rail work Lovers of Country Western music will have the chance to enjoy an entire afternoon of bluegrass and traditional country tunes Sunday, Sept 15 at Veterans' Acres Park in Crystal Lake. This mini-live Aid' will be held for the bene­ fit of the Northern Illinois S p e c i a l R e c r e a t i o n Association. SEC. B, PAGE 1 If you thought the Elm Street bridge project caused some traffic snarl6 and flared tempers, just wait. Mayor William Busse reported at Wednesday's meeting that there could be some "real problems" as­ sociated with railroad crossing im­ provements elated for the end of September or early October. » The Illinois Department of Trans­ portation, Division of Public Trans­ portation has agreed to install rub­ berized crossings at the track intersections with Bull Valley Road, Lillian Street, Main Street and Elm Street. Busse said information received at a McHenry County Highway De­ partment meeting last week indicat­ ed that at least three of the streets could be closed for up to three weeks in order to complete the project. The work involves pulling up the old crossing, excavating, back-filling, installing the new crossing and lay­ ing new track. The county highway department is coordinating the ef­ fort, according to Busse. "What are we going to do...run 40,000 cars a day down Main Street?" Busse quipped. "They (IDOT) admitted the traffic vol­ umes were quite high on Route 120." The mayor noted Thursday that no specific timetable has been set, nor had the Route 120 problem been resolved. '3 "There will be a period t>f time that Bull Valley, Main Street and Lillian will probably be closed," Busse said. "We don't know how long." He also commented that officials were working on a plan to keep Route 120 at least partially open while the improvements are made. In two unrelated matters* the city council approved payment of $41,500 to James L. Althoff for additional land for the commuter parking lot at the Chicago and North Western station. When all is complete, the city will have a paved and lighted parking area at the CNW station. The parking lot Improvement is being funded by a 100 percent reim­ bursement grant from the federal government. Also, the council voted to go to bid on a project to extend water mains under Route 31 before the resurfac­ ing project gets underway. IDOT is scheduled to let the bid Sept. 27 for the widening and resurfacing of Route 31 (Front Street) from Elm Street south to High Street. No plates get driver 3 tickets A McHenry man was ticketed Tuesday for three different viola­ tions after a police officer.stopped him for missing a license plate. James Umbarger, 20, 914 Laguna Drive, was traveling on River Road and North Avenue when the officer observed the alleged plate violation. He was charged with driving while license suspensed, improper display of plates and purchase or accep­ tance of liquor by person underage. Motorcyclist injured A young man was injured Monday when his motorcycle collided with a van on Main St. John P Schultz, 20, was taken to Northern Illinois Medical Center by the Spring Grove Rescue Squad af­ ter sustaining injuries In the accident. Schultz told police he was travel­ ing west on Main St., east of Beverly Way when a van began to slow In front of him. LaRea Jellnek, 39, 4817 Hampshire Lane., McHenry, said his van's left turn signal was on. Schultz began to pass the van, entering the east bound lane. He struck the rear of Jellnek's vehicle as it turned left. Plaindealer photo by Scott J Brook* Third graders from Harrison School, McHenry, sing some songs to grandparents and senior citi­ zens visiting the school on the first Grandparents- Senior Citizen Day. The event drew about 125 people, and included entertainment by the school children, and a tour of the school. Alliance Awana Alliance Awana Club begins Monday, Sept. 16, at Valley View School, McHenry. Meetings are from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the school gym. All children grades kindergarten through eighth grade are invited. The McHenry Township is offering a $100 reward to anyone with information leading to the arrest of road sign thieves. Township officials report roads are being stripped of speed signs and stop signs at a cost of at least $1,150. Are college students trafficking in signs? By Kelly S. Thompson Plaindealer Staff Writer Pranksters who believe stolen road signs make Inexpensive dormitory decorations had better think again. Besides paying a hefty fine if caught, they also might be threatening lives. John Regner, McHenry Township road commissioner, said there has been a steep rise in the number of road signs being stolen since the end of August. "There has been a rash of signs stolen this month and last," he said. Regner believes college students are behind many of the sign thefts. It's more than a coincidence that the increase came just before college students returned to classes, he said. Areas hit hardest by offenders include the Dutch Creek Woodlands Subdivision, Eastwood Manor Subdivision and Ringwood area. A total of 23 signs have been taken from those areas. Regner said it cost taxpayers $50 to install each sign. Already $1,150 has gone to fund new road signs. That amount covers labor and the signs. "It's a waste of our time and effort" to do something twice, he said. But besides extra time and dollars being spent unnecessarily, Regner said the threat of a lawsuit looms larger over the township anytime a sign is moved from its designated area. "Signs are put up to improve safety," he said. The township is offering $100 for any information leading to the apprehension and conviction of persons responsible. Convicted offenders of misdemeanor theft could face up to a $1,000 fine and 364 days in jail, said a spokesman for the State's Attorney office. If the same person is responsible for stealing six signs or more, they could be facing felony charges, the spokesman said. ---- * Builders seek city annexation By Anthony Oliver Plaindealer staff writer Two area developers approached the McHenry City Council Wednes­ day night to see if there was any strong opposition to their proceeding with two separate annexations. Local builder Brian Cunat asked if the council would consider annexing about 2.5 acres on Green Street ad­ jacent to the southeast corner of Knox Park.' Cunat said he would seek multi- family zoning for the parcel in order to build 25 apartments. He said the construction would be "strictly by the book," meaning he would be seeking no variations from the zon­ ing ordinance. Mayor William Busse asked if the builder could meet the city code, which allows only 10 units per acre. "I hate to say that. I'm very much against the code. I feel it's very restrictive," Cunat said. "This piece? Yes, I Qpuld do it under the current code." Cunat said the project was eco­ nomically feasible because the utili­ ties were hot too far away and the land was available at a good price. He said the rent would be a little higher than average and he could put "higher quality" people in the complex. Aid. Elizabeth Nolan (1st) asked if Cunat intended to do more landscap­ ing than was done at the Lillian Street apartments. Cunat said there was more natural landscaping to work with at this location than there was on Lillian Street. The councilmen voiced no objec­ tion to the proposal In a separate annexation proposal, attorney Iver Johnson of Crystal Lake, realtor Joseph Blenner and Alan Moll, told councilmen they were interested in building a "mini warehouse" storage facility on Crys­ tal Lake Road near Marietta Koad. Marietta is a private road that con­ nects with the part of Ponca Street south of the city limits. .The property is located across from the Oaks Marathon station and consists of 1.88 acres. Blenner com­ mented that the long, slender parcel was not really suited to residential development. "We have found a need In McHen­ ry for this type of facility," Blenner said, noting that area residents go out-of-town to store various items. Aid. Michael Teta (2nd) asked if they should first approach the Plan Commission and the Zoning Board of Appeals. City Attorney Bernard Narusls said, "The petitioners are before you to determine if the door is even open ...before they proceed to Incur costs (engineering, fees, etc.)." Aid. William Bolger (1st) pointed out that there was no permitted use for a mini-warehouse classification in any of the zones. Busse agreed and said, if annexed, the property would probably need a conditional use permit. Teta asked .if the project was started because of need or because the petitioners were in the business of building warehouses. Blenner replied that this was their first venture and said they "were not really in the warehouse business." The trio is seeking to build a 230- unit facility which would be fenced and lighted for security. They said there would be background checks on renters and limitations on what could be stored. Also the hours of operation would be restricted, ac­ cord! ng to Blenner m Teta and Gary Snell (4th) said they wanted more information, which Johnson said he would supply . The councilmen made no state­ ments against the proposal; neither did they make any commitmenu. Burglary arrests made Three McHenry area youths have been arrested in connection with the burglary of a home in Lakeland Park in mid-August. Following an investigation by pa trol officers and detectives, police arrested Allan K. Ganin, 19, of 4500 Parkway; David W. Bialachowski, 17, of 2003 Sunset, both of McHenry, for the Aug 14 burglary of a home at 5408 iShore Drive. A 16-year-old juve­ nile was also taken Into custody, police said According to police, a 12-gauge shotgun, an electric guitar, some tapes and a quantity of change were taken in the burglary.