Bureau County Relay for Life to be held Friday

Good weather could make for a good Relay for Life of Bureau County.  The annual fundraiser for the American Cancer Society is Friday night at Hall High School in Spring Valley.

232 people and 23 teams have signed up.  Nearly $37,000 has already been raised.

The opening ceremony is at 6:30pm and the closing ceremony is at 5am Saturday.

La Salle’s Rotary Park progressing on time

The soccer fields are almost in at Rotary Park in La Salle.  Crews have spent the summer developing the space off of the Troy Grove Blacktop.

Engineers working on the park told the city council Tuesday night that the fields are days away from completion.  They won’t be ready until next year like most of the park.

The city council agreed to hire a company to install a handicap accessible playground for $127,000.  Soon crews will be working on drainage features.  The project is moving on time.

Carnival and Welcomeburger Wednesday in Ottawa

A sign that summer vacation will be over in a few weeks- Ottawa Riverfest.  The annual festival kicks off Wednesday  with the traditional “Welcomeburger Picnic” in Washington Park.  It goes from 5-8pm and costs $25 at the gate.

The carnival also opens at 6pm Wednesday near the Illinois River front.

The Taste of Ottawa opens Thursday night.  The Steve Sharp Band featuring members of Buckacre play at 8:15pm followed by Liverpool Legends, a Beatles tribute band at 10pm.

Neighbor testifies about finding Savio’s body

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) – The first day of testimony has ended at Drew Peterson’s murder trial with prosecutors’ first and only witness of the day describing how she found the body of Peterson’s third wife.

Mary Pontarelli began testifying after opening statements Tuesday and remained on the stand for three hour before the judge adjourned for the day.

Pontarelli was a neighbor and close friend of Kathleen Savio. She described coming across Savio’s body in a dry bathtub. She told jurors she threw herself on the ground and started screaming. Peterson has pleaded not guilty to killing Savio. He was charged in her 2004 death after his fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, disappeared.

The state’s attorney’s office says Pontarelli’s husband and a locksmith are expected to be called to the stand Wednesday.

Culvert replace to affect La Salle County Highway 57

If you do any driving through Farm Ridge Township one of the main roads will be closed Thursday.  County Highway 57 also known as Red, White, and Blue Bridge Road will be closed from N. 2250^th Road to the Deer Park Blacktop for a culvert replacement.  The road will reopen at the end of the day.  A detour won’t be posted.

Peru alderman wants to stream council meetings

If you could watch a city council meeting online would you?  Peru Alderman Rodney Perez is suggesting that the city set up a camera to offer live-streaming of city council meetings.

He says it would be similar to what the Princeton City Council does with their meetings and that it would improve transparency.  As for how much it would cost, he says he’s not sure but probably not more than the cost of a camera.  He wants to talk about it more during next week’s council meeting, a fact pointed out by Alderman Dave Potthoff.

You can already attend and record any public meeting under the Opens Meeting Act.

Massachusetts man accused of having marijuana

25 pounds of marijuana is what police say they found in the trunk of a car stopped on Interstate 80.  State Troopers pulled over Kevin Darosa of Cambridge, Massachusetts Thursday in Bureau County.  They say he was speeding.

Police say they searched the car after smelling marijuana.  Darosa was arrested for Possession of Cannabis with Intent to Deliver.

Pumps and dam to be removed from Lake DePue

The pumps will no longer be bringing in river water in to Lake DePue.  The lake was dammed a couple of weeks so the water level could be raised to five feet to make it suitable for the boat races.  Pumps were used to pull in water from the Illinois River.

The races ended Sunday.  Village President Eric Bryant says that they’re taking down the tractors and pumps Monday.  He says the sandbag dam will be slowly removed when the Illinois Department of Natural Resources says it’s okay.

Bryant thinks the lake will be about three feet deep once the dam is removed.

Body found after fire in Pekin home

PEKIN, Ill. (AP) – Authorities in central Illinois are investigating after a body was found when firefighters responded to a fire that engulfed a Pekin home.

The (Peoria) Journal Star reports that several departments responded to the fire, which broke out late Saturday. Cincinnati Fire Chief Curtis Cornwell says the fire took several hours to control and by the time it was extinguished Sunday the home was a total loss.

Tazewell County Coroner Carl Powell isn’t releasing any information about the body that was found. The victim hasn’t been identified, and an autopsy is planned.

Several agencies, including the Illinois State Police and the Illinois State Fire Marshal’s Office, are investigating.

Big Bureau Creek watershed focus of field day

Learn a little something about the Big Bureau Creek watershed during a day of field demonstrations. The “Big Bureau Creek Field Day & Tour” is Tuesday, August 7 and will include a series of different conservation practices.  Farmers will learn about how conservation programs and practices can protect valuable soil and water resources and boost farm productivity.

Registration begins at 7:45a.m. at City County Park north of I-80 in Princeton, IL. The tour will begin at 8am.