City pools opening back up for the year

Is it warm enough yet for you to take a dip in the pool?

Saturday is opening day for the Hegeler Park pool in La Salle. The city pool in Spring Valley will open next Saturday.

Ottawa’s city pool opens for business June 1st while the Oglesby, Mendota and Princeton pools will open June 7th.

Several Memorial Day services planned in the valley

No matter where you live, there’s a Memorial Day service happening just minutes away.

Tonica will get a jump start on everyone else by having a Memorial Day observance Sunday at the grade school starting at 12:30. On Monday, Ladd will have three services starting at 8:15 in the Berean Cemetery. Granville, Oglesby and Ottawa all start their memorial service Monday at 10. Granville Cemetery will host a service while Washington Square in Ottawa and Memorial Park in Oglesby will have ceremonies.

Utica will have a Memorial Day Parade starting Monday morning at 9:15 in the downtown while veterans will march into Washington Park in Peru Monday starting at 10:30. Streator and Dalzell will start their Memorial Day programs after 11 Monday while Spring Valley will have a service Monday afternoon at 2 at Valley Memorial Park.

Ottawa teachers don’t want building trades partnership

The future of building trades at Ottawa High School continues to be cloudy at best.

The school’s teachers union has told the school board they’re against cutting out building trades at Ottawa High and partnering with either Illinois Valley Community College or L-P with their Area Career Center. Administrators had said in a statement on the district website that partnering with IVCC or L-P is something they would look at.

The statement did say administrators “hope to provide some building trades courses for our students next year in a cost efficient manner”.

Health officials warn about dangers of tick bites

When the weather warms up, you worry about mosquitoes and West Nile Virus. But how much do you know about the dangers of “Tickborne Disease”?

The La Salle County Health Department says cases of Lyme Disease which comes from ticks has increased over recent years. Last year there was a dozen cases of Lyme Disease compared to just four the year before.

Your best defense against tick bites is to avoid walking in weeds, use repellent like DEET and check your pets for ticks. The most common signs of Lyme Disease are fevers, chills, aches and a rash.