Lake County Launches New Website

Lake County spent $500,000 redesigning the county's website. You can find the new site at the following web address www.lakecountyil.gov I browsed it for awhile seeing what they had to offer and some of the features are quite useful, not sure however they got our moneys worth out of the site.

• MAP IT! CLOSE TO HOME - Enter your address and find your elected officials, schools, polling places, police and fire stations, and more close to your home.
• REQUEST A SERVICE – Report a pot hole on a county road, submit a complaint about a restaurant, and request other services.
• The site allows users to interact with county government, access services on-line, and find information easily using “I WANT TO…” and “County Services A to Z,” or through information portals for residents, business, and visitors.

The public is encouraged to visit the new site and send their comments. A short survey can be found at www.lakecountyil.gov. The old website will remain active through Friday, November 21 and there will be a link to the new site. Starting next week, visitors to www.co.lake.il.us will be redirected to the new website at the new web address. County email addresses have also changed from name@co.lake.il.us to name@lakecountyil.gov.

Nippersink Forest Preserve!

NOTE: Here is an old post about the Nippersink Forest Preserve. The breaking news is its open and looks great! Go check it out. This is the original post from two years ago, so you can have some of the back story

A couple of years ago I got frustrated with a series of developers who kept insisting that they need to build homes on Nippersink Road across from Village School. In a partnership with County Board Member Larry Leafblad we were able to chase off Neumann Homes and secure the 219 acre marsh to be added to the Lake County Forest Preserve. Now granted I did not do much other then frown and express dismay with the project and the Forest Preserve did the buying of the land.

I do have issues with the Forest Preserve buying land and then not letting any one use the land that they buy, if you doubt me drive around and see all the land in the Forest Preserve, but this purchase made long term sense for the village and the area. Then about 2 years ago Toll Brothers wanted to bring 300 senior oriented houses to the Country Lakes Resort on 120 across from Bacon Road. I had some conversations with the owners and the desire of the family who owned the resort to sell the property.

I then thought about it and referred to our comprehensive plan which led me to invite Bonnie Thompson Carter who is the President of the Lake County Forest Preserve and one of Round Lake's county board members. I drove her around the property which she knew well since her family owned portions of it way back when! I told her that I could prevent the development from happening if the Forest Preserve put up their money and bought the land for active recreation purposes. Kudos to her and the rest of the Forrest Preserve for carrying through.

Last week I attended the sneak preview of whats coming and the graphic above is a representation of what is coming. The result of all of this is the Nippersink Forrest Preserve area in Round Lake. The Millennium Trail will also be coming through the area as well which is a wonderful addition to the area.

Album Art on Display at Lake County Discovery Museum

Explore 60 years of outstanding album cover artwork in the special exhibition "LP Art," on display thru August 3, 2008, at the Lake County Discovery Museum near Wauconda. The exhibit showcases some of the most memorable and inventive Long Playing (LP) record album covers of all time from artists like Frank Sinatra, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and Beck. "LP Art" is sponsored by the Daily Herald.

Since the conception of album art by Alex Steinweiss in 1939, it has become an integral part of music and popular culture. See the cover evolve from early jazz sleeves to iconic rock albums to interactive CD booklets. The exhibit contains sections on rock, punk, jazz, funk, hip hop, pop, novelty and children's records. It also features highlights from the remarkable catalogues of The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and Pink Floyd. A special area focuses on album covers by famous visual artists such as Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, Takashi Murakami and Robert Mapplethorpe. The exhibit also includes the history of the various audio formats and packaging used to distribute music over the years, including Edison phonographic cylinders, records, 8-tracks, cassette tapes, Compact Discs (CDs) and MP3 files.

The exhibition features numerous hands-on activities for children and adults. In the Cover Art Studio kids can design their own album cover or interpret a classic such as Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon." At the Cover Shoot visitors can take the stage with various costumes and props and get in touch with their inner rock star. Adults can get in on the fun as they try to recall band logos in our Album Art Alphabet game. A free audio tour provides a soundtrack for visitors as they explore the exhibit.

The entrance to the Lake County Discovery Museum is located on Route 176, just west of Fairfield Road and east of Wauconda in Lakewood Forest Preserve. Gallery hours are Monday - Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Sunday from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission is $6 for adults and $2.50 for youth ages four to 17. Children three years and under are free. Seniors are $2.50 after 2 p.m. On Discount Tuesdays, admission is $3 for adults, and youth 17 years and under are free. Admission is always free for Museum members.

"LP Art" is sponsored by the Daily Herald. For more information about the exhibit or to download discount admission coupons, call 847-968-3400 or visit online at www.LCFPD.org/LPart.

About the Lake County Discovery Museum

The Lake County Discovery Museum in Wauconda, Illinois, provides visitors with hands-on exhibits and educational programs. The nationally accredited Museum also is home to the nation's largest collection of picture postcards. The Museum is part of the Lake County Forest Preserve District, which manages more than 26,000 acres of land and offers innovative educational, recreational and cultural opportunities for all ages.

Shape Lake County’s Future at Community Forum

In a democracy, citizens are owners of their government and with ownership comes influence. Citizens can influence the goals and strategies that drive how and where the County will focus its resources by sharing their thoughts and views at one of five Lake County Community Forums.

Lake County will use the input to identify the most critical challenges facing our region, determine the County’s role in addressing those issues, and develop a long-term plan. The County’s goal is to listen and deliberate issues among residents with diverse interests, backgrounds and perspectives, so we can develop results that matter to citizens.

6 – 7 p.m. Open House
Learn about County services and programs from health and transportation to where to go for help and property information; Get free stuff; Be a guest on LCTV and more!

7 p.m. Community Forum
Let your voice be heard! Your input will help shape the future direction of Lake County and the region.

CENTRAL LAKE COUNTY COMMUNITY FORUM	Monday, March 10	Division of Transportation	600 W. Winchester Road Libertyville
SOUTHEAST LAKE COUNTY COMMUNITY FORUM	Tuesday, March 18	Highland Park Country Club	1201 Park Avenue West Highland Park
NORTHWEST LAKE COUNTY COMMUNITY FORUM	Wednesday, March 19	Lake Villa Public Library	1001 E. Grand Ave. Lindenhurst
SOUTHWEST LAKE COUNTY COMMUNITY FORUM	Monday, March 31	Ela Area Public Library	275 Mohawk Trail Lake Zurich
NORTHEAST LAKE COUNTY COMMUNITY FORUM	Tuesday, April 1	Warren Newport Public Library	224 N. O’Plaine Rd. Gurnee

For more information, contact Lake County Communications at 847-377-2550 or visit www.co.lake.il.us.

Nippersink Takes Shape

NOTE: This is a post that I ran quite awhile ago about the Nippersink Forest Preserve Project, I have gotten a couple of questions about the project recently so I decided to re post it here. I would add that the proposed Synnesvedt project has a connection from the Millennium Trail to this park. One of my long range goals is to then get a crossing for 120 so we connect via a path to the homes on the south side of 120. This project is between Cedar Lake and Fairfield on 120 if you look at the graphic upper right corner you can see the compass so you can orient yourself.

A couple of years ago I got frustrated with a series of developers who kept insisting that they need to build homes on Nippersink Road across from Village School. In a partnership with County Board Member Larry Leafblad we were able to chase off Neumann Homes and secure the 219 acre marsh to be added to the Lake County Forest Preserve. Now granted I did not do much other then frown and express dismay with the project and the Forest Preserve did the buying of the land.

I do have issues with the Forest Preserve buying land and then not letting any one use the land that they buy, if you doubt me drive around and see all the land in the Forest Preserve, but this purchase made long term sense for the village and the area. Then about 2 years ago Toll Brothers wanted to bring 300 senior oriented houses to the Country Lakes Resort on 120 across from Bacon Road. I had some conversations with the owners and the desire of the family who owned the resort to sell the property.

I then thought about it and referred to our comprehensive plan which led me to invite Bonnie Thompson Carter who is the President of the Lake County Forest Preserve and one of Round Lake's county board members. I drove her around the property which she knew well since her family owned portions of it way back when! I told her that I could prevent the development from happening if the Forest Preserve put up their money and bought the land for active recreation purposes. Kudos to her and the rest of the Forrest Preserve for carrying through.

The result of all of this is the Nippersink Forrest Preserve area in Round Lake. The Millennium Trail will also be coming through the area as well which is a wonderful addition to the area.

What am I?

Deputy Chief Francis Foy saw this animal running across the field at the NW corner of 120 and Cedar Lake Road. He took a picture (obviously) but since his police training did not encompass a segment as a naturalist, we are wondering what this animal is? Answers in the comment section please!

Fairfield and Gilmer Road Intersection to Close this Summer

This is a painful post to write since I commute this way to my day job! Here is a great link to the project web page at Lake County Department of Transportation

Lake County travelers who use Fairfield and Gilmer roads near the Village of Wauconda are likely familiar with the traffic jams at this intersection. The Lake County Division of Transportation (DOT) is embarking on an intersection reconstruction project that will ease congestion in this area long-term. However, Lake County asks for residents’ patience during the short-term.

DOT will close the intersection of Fairfield and Gilmer Roads, near the Village of Wauconda, from May 15 through September 15. In an effort to limit the impact on motorists, Lake County is doing this project during the summer months, when school is out of session, and requiring the contractor to work an accelerated and strict schedule. DOT will place supplemental signage near the intersection to raise awareness in advance of the commencement of the project. DOT staff will also hand-deliver informational flyers to motorists in the days leading up to the closure. “Extraordinary measures have been taken on this project to limit the impact on motorists that use this intersection,” Marty Buehler, Lake County Director of Transportation/County Engineer said. “Every effort is being made to complete this construction as quickly as possible so that users can enjoy the benefits of the completed improvement.”

When the project is complete, this intersection will be an overpass allowing Gilmer Road to pass over Fairfield Road. Traffic passing through the intersection will flow freely without having to slow or stop at the intersection as would be necessary with a conventional traffic signal. A connecting road will be constructed between the north leg of Fairfield Road and the west leg of Gilmer Road to allow traffic to travel between Gilmer Road and Fairfield Road.

The intersection will be closed until August 15. Beginning on August 15, Fairfield Road, the west leg of Gilmer Road and the connecting road will be open to traffic. The east leg of Gilmer Road will open to traffic on September 15. Motorists can visit www.lakegov.info/roadwork to learn more about this project, view maps, updates, and detour information.

There will be two detour routes for this project; the Fairfield Road detour will be Illinois Route 60, to Illinois Route 120, Belvidere Road, to U.S. Route 12, Rand Road, to Bonner Road (see map above). The Gilmer Road detour will be Illinois Route 120, Belvidere Road, to Illinois Route 60, to Illinois Route 176.

Mayors for Meals in Lake County

I am spending the morning participating in "Mayors for Meals" which was organized locally by Catholic Charities Lake County Senior Community Services and nationally by Meals on Wheels Association of America. We spend a hour or so socializing and listening to information about the program from a national perspective. We then pair up with our local community rep as well and then went go off to the distribution site. This is the second year that this program was offered and I enjoyed it last year immensely, along with learning quite abit about Catholic Charities program that are offered here in the Round Lake Area.

Lake County had more mayors participating then any other site in the United States last year! 18 mayors participating and only 462 nationwide so we got to pat ourselves on the back for that! Last year that is!

I delivered 5 hot meals to various seniors in the village and had a good time talking with the seniors, and hopefully they had a good time talking to me as well.

If you are looking to volunteer with some free time, I can assure you that Catholic Charities located right off of Cedar Lake road in our downtown area will welcome you with open arms.
There are numerous programs and services that Catholic Charities offer outside of the meals program, and if you know of a senior in need of help, I would refer them there for help!All in all I had a worthwhile time! I am already pledged to do it again next year!

Talked to the Latino Alliance Yesterday

I was invited to speak at the Latino Alliance yesterday for lunch at the College of Lake County. They wanted to hear how being bilingual has helped my career and what type of volunteering in the community they could get involved in. I would guess there were 30 kids in the room while I was talking, and overall I had a good time, and I think they did as well.

Metropolitan Mayors Forum on Housing

With the changing housing market there are quite a few "rules" that are changing as well. Are elderly residents afraid they might not be able to remain in the community once they sell the home they've lived in for years? Are local businesses starting to complain that their employees are having trouble finding homes close to work? I have had these questions directed at me more then once in the last year.

The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus is sponsoring a December Housing Forum "Supporting Workforce Housing Deals in Our Own Backyard: A Conversation with Mayors and Developers on the Give and Take in a Changing Environment." Co-Chairs of the Caucus' Housing Committee, Mayor Zenovia G. Evans of Riverdale and Mayor Rita L. Mullins of Palatine. I am planning on attending to see if there are answers to the questions!

This forum will be an opportunity for Mayors and Homebuilders to discuss the questions above, focusing on:

• The changing housing market and how it will affect housing production.
• Innovative local and regional housing issues and efforts, including: interjurisdictional initiatives; fee negotiations; community acceptance of housing policies and developments; school funding debates; and housing preservation.

I think this will be a great opportunity to meet some of the homebuilders in the region that are doing workforce housing. The forum will allow attendees to share their ideas regarding what can be done on the local and regional levels to encourage the creation or preservation of workforce housing. Last year I attended and over 100 municipal and development representatives offered their thoughts on how the state could help with this effort; this year, the committee is following up to explore what is being done "on the ground" in the Chicago area, and what else could be done, to create a balance of housing options across the region.

While I think our housing stock is moving in a differnt direction it was fascinating to hear about this issue that affects western Lake County in a big way.

Warning from the Recorder of Deeds for Lake County

Our Village Clerk Jeanne Kristan (pictured) attended the monthly Lake County Clerks meeting where Mary Ellen Vanderventer spoke. Ms Vanderventer is the Lake County Recorder of Deeds. She wanted to pass along some valuable information to residents so Jeanne asked me to mention this.

"Take a moment to call the recorder of deeds at 847-377-2575 and the ask the staff to see if there have been any "liens" placed against your property. Unresolved liens can hold up refinance or selling your home, in addtion many times a lien has been placed on a property and the owner is unaware of it.

Also if you need a copy of your deed the recorders office will send you a certified copy (free for seniors). Please do not fall for recent scams asking for large amounts of money to process your request for a deed, contact the recorders office directly and get it safely and easily."

I recently became aware of liens placed by a concrete company on 37 homeowners because the developer has not been paying the contractor. The village is putting pressure on the builder to bring this matter to a close and have the liens removed quickly. So it can happen to you.

Traffic Woes Coming

I was not going to post today because I was running late this morning, but as I drove to work and sat in traffic I noticed the sign indicating traffic information could be found at www.lakegov.info so when I got to work I went to the site and looked up the project at Fairfield and Gilmer (the one I was sitting at when I saw the sign) interesting site.

This intersection will contain a tunnel when they are done! Imagine that, 4 way stop sign to a tunnel, that's quite the jump in service level! Anyway what I could not find was when the road will shut down because a few months ago I read an article about the date of the shut down, and planned to blog on it, but got sidetracked. I will now be on a mission to find the information and post it here. I have some thoughts on how those of us who commute down Fairfield can avoid the mess as we go South on the 53-less county roads!