La Salle officials give approval to rental ordinance changes

Inspecting 1100 rental units is going to take a lot of time, but La Salle’s Building Inspector is close to having a formal plan in place to do it. The city is expected to change its rental ordinance and require that all units be inspected in between tenants.

Chris Covert is the building inspector. He says his biggest concern is just getting into the rentals. He told the city council Tuesday that he doesn’t know what to expect when he gets inside. Covert says usually the only times he checks out a rental is when a renter complains and usually that’s after they have been evicted.

The city’s rental rules already require a $30 rental license. That’s not changing. The rules also allow for annual inspections but that is being changed to inspections in between renters. The exception is when tenants move in and move out in less than three months.

There will be no charge for inspections unless Covert needs to revisit the property several times.

The updated ordinance still needs to be formally approved by the city council. Covert says landlords will be made aware of the changes.

Peru Red Cross office getting swallowed up in consolidation

Saying the organization wants to use more volunteers, the Illinois Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross is being consolidated with other chapters in northern Illinois.

Red Cross spokeswoman Martha Carlos says the local area will become part of the Greater Chicago and Northern Illinois regional office that is based in Chicago. Carlos says the Red Cross has been reevaluating its operations and is looking for the best way to use donor dollars.

Carlos won’t say which chapter would include La Salle County, though local volunteers have been told it would be based in Joliet. She also won’t say if employees would lose their jobs. She says their goal is to increase our services by adding more volunteer leaders and involving them in more ways.

Local volunteers were told this week about the changes.

Couple kayakers get stuck on the Vermilion in Oglesby

Apparently its not too late to go kayaking on the Vermilion River.

Oglesby rescuers and the Conservation Police were called Wednesday afternoon to the Wildcat gorge near the Buzzi Unicem property for two kayakers who got stuck near a short drop. Rescuers took out their own boat and got the women who were from Peru and Oglesby.

Nobody was hurt.

Quinn and Rauner ready for televised debate

PEORIA, Ill. (AP) – Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn and Republican Bruce Rauner are meeting for their first true debate of the governor’s race.

The candidates face off Thursday night in Peoria. The debate comes as the race has grown increasingly personal and nasty. Both candidates have attacked the other’s character and how they’ve conducted themselves.

Rauner and Quinn are scheduled to debate two more times before the Nov. 4 election. You can watch tonight’s debate on WTTW out of Chicago and all other PBS stations.