Arteaga drug trial begins in La Salle County

The trial’s underway for a Spring Valley man who owned a western boot shop raided by police.

Alejandro Arteaga faces three counts of dealing cocaine out of the store across the street from the Peru Municipal Building.  Several police officers raided the shop in May of 2010.

Arrested and already convicted as co-defendants in the drug ring were Daniel Thorndyke of Earlville and Gabriel Arteaga of Mendota.  They’ve agreed to testify against Alejandro Arteaga.

He’ll be sentenced next week in Bureau County for drugs after he was arrested while out on bond in the current case he’s on trial for in Ottawa.

Putnam County Teen Improving After Car Crash

A teenage girl from Granville is on the mend after a fiery crash.

Katlyn Casford has been upgraded from critical to fair condition at St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria.  She was flown there December 30th after losing control on Route 26 at the Coffee Creek Bridge in Putnam County.  She hit a guardrail and the car started on fire.

No one else was involved in the crash.

La Salle Cracking Down On Leaf Burning

Pretty soon, you’ll need a permit to burn leaves in La Salle.  Unless you have some legitimate reason why you have to burn leaves instead of using the city’s leaf vac.

The La Salle Public Health Committee is proposing a permit system where you would have to get a permit to burn leaves.  You could only get a permit if there was some physical reason you couldn’t bag leaves or rake them so the city leaf vac couldn’t get them.  Committee member John Duncan says there will be other cases where permits are needed because leaf vac trucks can’t reach the property.

Duncan admitted it wasn’t a perfect solution but he thinks it’s the best one to protect public health.  He says too many people are burning garbage now instead of leaves.  He called it abusing the system.

The full city council will now work out the details of the leaf burning ban.  Aldermen Bacidore and Herndon voted against the idea.

Days Are Numbered For Chickens In La Salle

Have any pet chickens in La Salle?  You have six months to enjoy their company.

The La Salle City Council last night passed a nuisance ordinance banning chickens or other similar livestock at homes in city limits.  Alderman Jim Edgcomb says he’s gotten complaints about a home along Route 351 and 11^th Street that has chickens roaming the neighborhood, walking onto other people’s porches and cars.

Alderman Boo Herndon questioned the need for an ordinance if it only targeted one home, saying instead they should just send an officer to the door.  Fellow Alderman John Duncan responded by asking how they can be reasonable to someone living an unreasonable lifestyle.

Alderman Jim Bacidore said another household on Tonti Street keeps chickens and geese as pets, so he wondered what they’d tell the kids about losing the pets in six months.  Attorney James McPhedran answered by saying they don’t need to kill them, just move them outside city limits.

The council passed the chicken ban ordinance 5 to 1 with Bacidore voting against it.

Tax Breaks Coming Today In Illinois

CHICAGO (AP) -Gov. Pat Quinn is expected to sign legislation aimed at helping poor families keep more of what they
earn.

Under the bill, the state’s earned-income tax credit, which is now 5 percent of the federal credit, would climb to 7.5 percent next year and 10 percent the year after. A bill signing is planned for today in Chicago.

The new law would increase the personal exemption by $50 to $2,050. That’s the amount of money exempt from income taxes for each person. The law would also increase each year by the rate of inflation.

Utica Village Board approves sand mine requests

A controversial sand mine proposal won over the Utica Village Board of Trustees after leaving the planning commission unimpressed.  All but one trustee voted in favor of Illinois Sand Company’s plans to annex land into the village to create a sand mine.  The decision came shortly before midnight Monday.

Attorney John Duncan was representing Illinois Sand.  He says they’re pleased with outcome and want to be a good neighbor.

For three nights, a crowd of a couple hundred listened and asked questions during the planning commission hearing.  Most of them opposed the mine proposal, especially people living along East 2803^rd Road.

The planning commission voted against the annexation, special use permit and variance with its members saying that Illinois Sand weren’t prepared to answer their questions.

That didn’t stop the village board from approving Illinois Sand’s plans.

An attorney representing more than 30 people against the mine, George Mueller says he’ll consider their options when he meets with his clients next week.