Deputy Chief named in Bureau County

It’s a new era for the Bureau County Sheriff’s Department, but if you’ve spent any time in Princeton, you’re probably familiar with much of the new leadership.

A month after being sworn-in, Sheriff Jim Reed has chosen Lieutenant Bret Taylor to be his Deputy Chief. Taylor has been with the department for 26 years and will help Reed run the sheriff’s office and jail.

Timothy Trevier has been chosen to be the Administrative Lieutenant. Trevier has been with the department for 28 years.

Blowing snow creates low visibility and hazardous driving conditions

Not a lot of snow fell Thursday afternoon but if you were driving in it, it felt like a blizzard. Blowing and falling snow reduced visibility, especially on rural east-west roads. There were a number of accidents, most of them minor.

The snow was enough for Illinois Valley Community College to close their Oglesby and Ottawa campuses early and cancel tonight’s basketball games.

There’s a Winter Weather Advisory in place for La Salle, Bureau and area counties until 3am Friday.

Ottawa offering scrap metal pickup

Getting rid of an old washer or dryer is easy if you live in Ottawa. As they have for the past seven years, the city is working with Ace Auto Salvage in Tonica for appliance and scrap metal pickups.

Commissioner Dale Baxter says 139 people used their free metal and appliance pickups last year. If you live in Ottawa, you can sign up to have your stuff take from your curb every Wednesday.  To sign up, call city hall or visit the City of Ottawa website.

Oglesby mayor getting antsy over lack of medical marijuana announcement

Is there a chance that Governor-elect Bruce Rauner slows down medical marijuana even more in Illinois? Oglesby’s mayor is fearful of that happening.

In talking with the cultivation center applicant in Oglesby, Don Finley says he gets the sense that Governor Pat Quinn may not announce cultivation center licenses before he hands things over to Bruce Rauner on Monday. While Quinn has supported medical marijuana, Rauner’s been opposed to the idea.

Through Oglesby’s city Facebook page, Finley is asking you to call the governor’s office and urge him to take action on medical marijuana. Finley says even if Oglesby isn’t picked to grow medical marijuana, someone in the Illinois Valley will be fortunate enough to offer up new jobs.

Fundraising group looking forward to bringing new features to Peru park

Saturday was a day for members of Friends for Peru Pool to celebrate. The group and city officials announced that Peru is receiving a $256,000 state grant for a splash pad. Applying for the grant was an effort that included Friends for Peru Pool and engineers designing park features that would attract people of all ages to Washington Park.

Claudia Mikyska is a member of Friends for Peru Pool. She says they were very involved with the design of the splash pads and expects them to stay involved.

She says the splash pad, volleyball court, bocce ball court and parking are part of what they’re calling phase one. Phase two would include a swimming pool.

Friends for Peru Pool is contributing $100,000 toward the grant match. The match will take most of the money they’ve been able to raise, but Mikyska is hopeful that more people donate after they see things actually being done.

The group is already planning their next fundraiser.

Caterpillar laying off workers due to weak market for mining

PEORIA, Ill. (AP) – Know anyone who works at Caterpillar? The company has announced layoffs of about 200 full-time production employees at its East Peoria and Decatur plants.

A company spokeswoman says the layoffs are at plants that produce equipment for the mining industry. She says that industry continues to see weak market conditions, which means the layoffs will be for an indefinite period.

The layoffs are expected to take effect Jan. 19. Caterpillar is expected to offer affected workers support services.

Caterpillar reported third-quarter net income of $1.02 billion as of Sept. 30, compared with $951 million in the same quarter a year before.

Small percentage of medical marijuana applications approved so far

CHICAGO (AP) – Have you signed up to be a medical marijuana patient? The state approved 50 new patient applications for medical marijuana last month, bringing the total to 650 patients with complete paperwork.

Almost 13,000 people have registered online and started an application. Qualifying patients pay an annual fee of $100 for a marijuana card. Patients aren’t allowed to grow their own cannabis, and, for now, are waiting for the legal industry to start up.

The state hasn’t yet revealed which businesses will be picked to grow and sell medical marijuana, but that announcement could come soon. The Illinois Valley is expected to get one cultivation center and one dispensary.