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4 | December 8, 2016 | The New Lenox Patriot news newlenoxpatriot.com New Lenox Village Board Trustees take next step with Route 30, Cedar intersection update Board amends Village Code regarding RV parking Meredith Dobes Freelance Reporter Round it up A brief recap of Village Board action Nov. 28 • The board unanimously approved the purchase of replacement mobile data computers for $14, 309.10 from Brite Computers for the New Lenox Police Department. • Trustees briefly reviewed the first read of an ordinance amending construction value in the International Building Code, and it is expected the item will be brought back for approval at the next board meeting. • Mayor Tim Baldermann encouraged residents to shop local, small businesses during the holidays. • The Nelson Road extension is expected to officially open the afternoon of Friday, Dec. 2, according to Village Engineer Will Nash. Beginning with voting to vacate a portion of Church Street and ending with the final plat approval for new developments planned for the northeast corner of U.S. Route 30 and Cedar Road, the New Lenox Village Board made further progress on downtown redevelopment at its Nov. 28 meeting. At a previous meeting, the board briefly discussed the benefit the vacation of a portion of Church Street would provide to the development of the area, and it unanimously approved the matter on the consent agenda at last week’s meeting, with Trustees Emily Johnson and Doug Finnegan absent. The board then reviewed the resubdivision of the property the Village purchased that includes the former BP gas station, as well as a former dry cleaning establishment and the former House of Hughes restaurant. The subdivision is to be known as Rock Island Station and consists of two lots that will each be sold to developers. One lot is for the CVS planned for the far western portion of the property, and the second lot is for the building planned for the eastern portion of the property that is to house Fleckenstein’s Bakery, Durbin’s and additional tenants, said Robin Ellis, community development director. The board unanimously approved the item. Both lots are zoned for commercial uses and take up a total of 2.89 acres. Shifting its focus, the board moved to approve an amendment to Chapter 106 of Village Code, regarding the parking of non-commercial trailers, RVs and boats. Two residents attended the meeting to speak or ask questions about the amendment. John Kohlhagen asked the board to clarify what the proposed changes are. Ellis said the ordinance currently allows residents to park one trailer, RV or boat on their property April 1-Oct. 31, and the change to the ordinance would allow residents to park two such vehicles, provided one vehicle is drivable and is used to pull the other. For example, if a resident owns a drivable camper that is used to pull a boat, he or she can park both the camper and the boat on the driveway, as long as the vehicles do not block the sidewalk. However, if a resident owns two motorized RVs or two non-motorized trailers, for example, he or she would not be able to park both on the driveway. Bob Kernwein said he has a drivable RV and a trailer that is towed behind it, which he uses regularly for his son, who is a junior dragster. He said having both parked in the driveway is a matter of convenience for him, especially if he and his son are coming back from a racing event late on a Sunday night. Trustee Annette Bowden said she thought it was important for the board to pass the amendment because it is easy and accessible to have the ability to park an RV at home rather than at a storage facility when it is heavily in use during the summer months. “The logic is that one vehicle pulls the other,” Mayor Tim Baldermann said. “It’s not just two of whatever you want there. I tend to fall on the side of it’s private property, and you should be able to do what you want to do.” The board voted to approve the amendment to the ordinance with Trustee David Butterfield voting “no,” and the rest of the board voting “yes.” holiday From Page 3 the United States, which were provided through a deal with Artistic Holiday Designs, a Broadview-based company. “We’ve added this attraction that has just come to have a very far-reaching draw,” Baldermann said, noting that people have traveled from nearby communities, and even other states, to see the decorations in New Lenox. However, many residents have been entranced by the decorations, as well. Dawn Kolosh said that she and her children love the new decorations. “We’ve driven through the Commons every night this week; they love it,” Kolosh said. She said that the family comes to Christmas in the Commons every year to start their holiday season, but this year, her children were particularly excited about the opportunity to ice skate. “They wanted to check out the ice skating rink,” Kolosh said. “They play hockey, so they’re pretty excited about that.” The New Lenox Community Park District debuted its new synthetic ice skating rink at the Village Commons during the event. “In its first day, it’s been very successful,” Baldermann said. “We’ve already had quite a few community members that said they like it.” The synthetic ice skating rink is 30-by-64 feet and can be used during any time of the year, according to Greg Lewis, executive director at the New Lenox Community Park District. With free admission, the synthetic ice skating rink will be open during select hours and days with ice skate rentals and concessions. The rink will be open for those who bring their own skates any time, Lewis said. The rink Camden Bruley, of New Lenox, slides down a hill of snow. Photos by Laurie Fanelli/22nd Century Media will be available in the Commons through early January. “It’s really cool, and this is what it’s all about,” Lewis said. “We’re one day in, and everybody wants us to make it bigger next year.” Eleven-year-old Joe Lullo was full of excitement as his mother, Carrie, helped him get ready to get in the rink. “I love skating outside, it’s more fun than indoors,” he said. “We kind of have a picture perfect day for it, too,” Carrie added. Eric and Sandi Wesel brought their youngest son, Joe, 9, who has been waiting for the rink to open. “This is the first time I’ve been skating outside,” Joe said. “It was fun.” Looking ahead, Baldermann said that he hopes to continue to build New Lenox’s Christmas in the Commons celebrations. “We’re looking at the possibility of adding a Kringle Market,” he said. Joe Wesel, of New Lenox, ice skates at the Commons’ new synthetic ice rink, which will be available all through the month and early January.
newlenoxpatriot.com news the New Lenox Patriot | December 8, 2016 | 5 Students take root LW Transition students grow plants, skills Amanda Stoll, Assistant Editor The greenhouse at Lincoln-Way Central High School is filled wall to wall with poinsettias, but it won’t be for long. Students in the Lincoln- Way Transition Program have been growing the plants since the start of the school year for a holiday fundraiser to benefit the program. “When the students came back to school, we had to go clean and disinfect the greenhouse,” said Josh Kreske, the instructor for the greenhouse class. “The poinsettias came the second week of school, so they spent about two days planting them” After planting, the students regularly monitored overall health, watered, fertilized and rotated them so they would receive even amounts of sunlight. The students also learned to “pinch” the plants, a technique gardeners use to help the plants grow fuller instead of straight up. “It takes a very long time to grow these, but I think we’ve been doing a really good job,” said Morgan Alcoser, a student in the program. “I think whoever is going to buy them is going to really love them.” Abby DeVries, another student in the program, said she likes growing plants outside of school and has some tulips and roses growing at home. Students spend a lot of time and effort making cards to be sold in the community, as well, and have an entire classroom devoted to Students in the Lincoln-Way Transition Program create and assemble greeting cards as part of an ongoing project. While students are currently making cards to be sold for the holidays, they make cards for many different occasions. die cutting, embossing — which adds texture to the paper — and assembling the cards. Jan Smith is the instructor in the card classroom and helps the students create the cards and fill orders. In addition to their work in the greenhouse and card making classroom, the students are responsible for helping with sales and bookkeeping as orders start to come in. “In the card room, I work on cards for the orders, and we sell them, too,” DeVries said. “I like helping with that.” Mary Harrison, director of special services, said the main goal of the program is to help the students become more independent by helping them develop job skills, social skills and life skills. The two businesses that the students run help financially support the program and provide a place for them to develop their skills. “I think overall what we’re trying to do is just prepare them for life after us,” she said. “For some of our students, they need that push into independence, and so that’s what we’re trying to do with this program.” The Lincoln-Way Transition Program is in its third year, and Kreske and Harrison both said they have seen a lot of progress in the students. “I think a lot of students have developed those work stills, improved their daily living skills and they’ve become more independent and learned how to utilize the community,” Kreske said. “[The students have] learned how to access different resources, in school and out of school, and how to interact with others.” Though some students are interested in jobs that involve growing plants, it is unlikely that most of the students will pursue jobs at greenhouses or making cards. Harrison said the skills they learn in the program, however, are transferable to employment elsewhere. Harrison said the program has helped many of the students “come out of Morgan Alcoser (from left), Evan Lewis, Danny Gengo and Abby DeVries show off some of the poinsettias they helped grow in the greenhouse at Lincoln-Way Central High School. Students in the Lincoln-Way Transition Program have grown 500 poinsettias since the start of the school year. Photos by Amanda Stoll/22nd Century Media their shells” and show their strengths in leadership, staying on task and learning empathy for other students. 1st FLOOR, 2 BEDROOM CONDO $124,900 Freshly painted condo with NO Stairs, Updated Kitchen, Granite Counter Top, Newer Appliances, In-Unit Laundry, Kitchen & Dining Rm, Huge Balcony, 1 Car Garage. CaLL ChRis KaCzMaRsKi 815.474.1450 2 sTORY hOME ON 5 WOODED aCREs Wow! 2,600 sq. ft, 4 large bedrooms, 2.5 baths, New remodeled Kitchen w/granite counter tops high end appliances, 60 x 45 pole/barn building. $359,900 CaLL ChRis KaCzMaRsKi 815.474.1450 “Overall, it’s just the exposure to different things,” she said. “We may find strengths in the students RaNCh DUPLEX $194,900 LOW TaXEs Largest Model in the Subdivsion, Updated 1,750 sq. ft home + basement, 2 Huge bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, Great Room w/Fireplace, SS Appliances, A MUST SEE! CaLL ChRis KaCzMaRsKi 815.474.1450 <strong>NL</strong> CUsTOM BUiLT hOME ON a 1.15 aCRE LOT 5 bedrooms, 4 full baths, Full finished basement, huge 30 x 15 Kitchen w/72 “ center island, 1st floor bedroom 3,405 sq. ft. so many upgrade. You must SEE! $419,900 CaLL ChRis KaCzMaRsKi 815.474.1450 that we didn’t know they had. The more that they are exposed to different things, Please see plant, 8 BUYING OR SELLING? CALL CHRISTINE KACZMARSKI 815.474.1450 • chriskaczmarski@yahoo.com lincoln-Way residential & commercial specialist CUTE hOME WiTh a 28 x 20 GaRaGE Beautiful updated kitchen with Stainless Steel Appliances, Full basement, Newer Windows & Roof, awesome Huge deck, fenced yard. Low Property Taxes!! $134,900 CaLL ChRis KaCzMaRsKi 815.474.1450 MONEE - 10 YEaR OLD RaNCh $209,900 Flat ranch with 3 nice size bedrooms, 2 full Baths, huge Great Room w/Fireplace, nice Kitchen all appliances, main level laundry, 3 car garage & Full Basement. CaLL ChRis KaCzMaRsKi 815.474.1450 Full time local Broker • c all For a Free m arket e valuation
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