Good News For New Ottawa School

It looks like the state is coming through in helping to pay for a new Central School in Ottawa.

Ottawa Elementary Superintendent Craig Doster announced today that he’s received a School Construction Program Grant Entitlement Letter from the state board of education.  This means the district is eligible for state funds for a new school but doesn’t guarantee grant money.  Doster has said in the past he thinks the state could give the district between four to 14 million dollars towards things like land purchase, the construction of new school and design fees.

The next step is for the State’s Capital Development Board to meet with the district to review their project costs of a new building.  This meeting is expected to happen within the next few weeks.

Alleged Cockfighters Indicted

Ten men charged in the Earlville cockfighting raid were indicted Tuesday in La Salle County Court.

Rudolfo Villaneuva of Earlville, Jose Reyes of Oswego, Jose Ulloa and Juan Galvan of Joliet, Jorge Ramirez of Montgomery, Ramon Magana of Aurora, Luis Lopez, Luis Perez and Jacobo Lopez of Milwaukee, and Luis Ceja of Guadalajara all face charges of attempting to take part in gambling on cockfights.  Over 50 officers raided a barn outside of Earlville before the alleged fights started.  According to investigators, attendees paid up to a thousand dollars to enter five gamecocks into the fights.  Officials think the cockfighting ring could’ve been going on for the last five years.

Bond for Villaneuva was set at 25 thousand dollars.  Everyone else has bond of 15 thousand.   All have posted bond and been released from jail.

Donkey basketball game on for Streator High School

Protests from an animal rights group aren’t preventing a donkey basketball game at Streator High School.  People for Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, issued a press release Friday calling on people to ask the school to cancel the game. 

          Kevin Myers is the superintendent at Streator High School.  He says he hasn’t received any phone calls from people in the community upset with their plans.

          He says they’ve sold 500 tickets for the student-group fundraiser.  It’s the first time they’re hosting this type of game.

          The game is tonight at 7pm at Streator High School.  It’s between seniors and high school staff and local educators versus community leaders.

New substation ready in Oglesby

A substation nearly 15 years in the making will finally be online this week.

          Advantage Logistics will have its power switched over to the new Mallick Road Substation this Saturday night at 6.  The switchover is expected to take four to six hours and not affect any homes or others businesses.

The Oglesby City Council agreed in 2008 to go out for bonds to pay for the $1.6 million substation.  The idea for a new substation came up in 2007 when lights flickered at Advantage and elsewhere on the west side when the company Wire Mesh came online to the city’s power supply.            City officials also realized that when Advantage Logistics opened in 1996, there was an agreement made where the city agreed to build the distribution center its own substation.

La Salle and Utica officials work with homeowners on drainage issue

Correcting a drainage problem along Oak Ridge Drive in La Salle has become a community effort of sorts.  An informal council meeting Monday night brought homeowners and officials and engineers from La Salle and Utica.

Utica is involved because the homes affected by extra ground and surface water border Utica.  Proposed solutions would involve using some of Utica’s easements. 

In about an hour La Salle City Engineer Mike Furlan had outlined a proposal for a 12 inch pipe that would either run north of a paved lane or under the lane.

Engineers and mayors Jeff Grove and Fred Esmond were able to hear feedback from the people living in the area.  When the meeting was over there was a sense something had been accomplished.

The cost of the project isn’t know yet.  Grove thinks the price tag will determine how much they can do to help people with drainage issues.  About a dozen homeowners would be affected.