Elderly woman crashes her car at a local golf course

It was a beautiful day to be golfing but that’s not why area firefighters were at Spring Creek Golf Course in Spring Valley.

A 91-year-old woman had to be helped out of her car after police say she drove off of Spring Creek Drive and into a ditch Wednesday morning.

Muriel Miller of Geneseo was taken to St. Margaret’s Hospital for treatment.

IVCC Trustees call a special meeting to discuss contract negotiations

Friday evening is an unusual time for a board meeting, but that’s when the Illinois Valley Community College Board of Trustees is getting together to talk about employee contracts.

The closed session will begin at 5pm. The board could talk about the ongoing negotiations with the teacher’s union. Instructors began the semester without a new contract.

The board could also approve a contract with the Service Employees International Union when they come out of closed session.

That contract would cover the custodians but not the instructors.

Former Ottawa building trades teacher addresses school board

The next school board election for Ottawa High School could be a testy one.

Candidate and former building trades teacher Dave Keely told the current school board Tuesday night that he and his group called “SOS” or Save Our School, plan to have at least three candidates running for board seats in the spring. They also want Superintendent Matt Winchester replaced by someone who “understands the value of respect toward students, faculty, staff and the community at large”. Keely called for a no confidence vote against Winchester.

Winchester and the board caused public outcry by letting go of Keely in the spring which cut the building trades course.

Massive cleanup begins at Ottawa nature preserve

If you think cleaning your garden is tough imagine taking care of a 253-acre nature preserve.

Twelve busloads of workers from Fairmount Minerals arrived in Ottawa Tuesday morning to clean out invasive plants, branches and other debris so restoration can start on the Dayton Bluffs Preserve. It’s along the Fox River, just west of the Route 71 and Interstate 80 interchange.

The Conservation Foundation bought the land last year for $2 million. They’re leasing it to the city of Ottawa for a dollar a year to offer as a public preserve.