WC_120816

14 | December 8, 2016 | The winnetka Current news
winnetkacurrent.com
THE NORTHBROOK TOWER
District 31 hires new
Winkelman principal
West Northfield District
31 has hired a DePaul
and University of Illinois
graduate as its new principal
at Winkelman Elementary
School.
Dana Tamez, a Northbrook
resident, has been
hired on to replace Michael
Kahn, who resigned
June 30. Tamez spent the
last four years as assistant
principal of Hawthorn
Middle School South in
Vernon Hills.
“It’s been wonderful so
far — the staff, the students
and the community
are so welcoming,” Tamez
said. “It’s really nice to be
a part of the school and
giving back to my own
community as well.”
Tamez has a Master of
Education degree in administration
and supervision
from the University
of Illinois and a Master
of Education degree in
teaching and learning
from DePaul. She also
has a bachelor’s in Spanish
from the University of
Texas.
Prior to working at
Hawthorn, Tamez spent
10 years at Jones College
Prep in the South
Loop, teaching Spanish
and leading the world languages
department. She is
also a native of the North
Shore, having graduated
from Deerfield High
School.
The number one factor
that attracted Tamez to
Winkelman was its diversity,
she said.
“Winkelman is unlike
a lot of schools on the
North Shore,” Tamez
said, “in that it has
such a high diversity,
socioeconomically as
well as ethnically. It’s
really, really nice to be
working in a school where
we’re teaching children
about the real world and
working with others,
having tolerance for
others.”
Reporting by Matt Yan, Contributing
Editor. Full story
at NorthbrookTower.com.
THE HIGHLAND PARK LANDMARK
FY17 budget approved,
property tax levy
proposed
The Highland Park City
Council held a public
hearing on a proposed
property tax levy
and approved the budget
for the 2017 fiscal year at
its meeting Monday, Nov.
28.
The budget of
approximately $84
million was unanimously
approved by the city
council, and includes $14.4
million in infrastructure
improvements, $3.4
million in street
improvements, $3.4
million in sewer upgrades,
$2.7 million in water
upgrades, $1.1 million
in bridge improvements
and $1.2 million in other
infrastructure updates.
The budget will also include
a tax levy increase
of $524,000, which would
impact a $500,000 household
by approximately
$10 per month. The tax
levy will help provide
funding for police and fire
pensions.
State law requires police
and fire pensions to be 90
percent funded by 2040, so
the City has been making
“annual state-mandated
contributions,” according
to Highland Park Finance
Director Julie Logan.
The city council and
Logan discussed how to
efficiently raise funds for
city pensions, while also
minimizing the impact
that it has on the taxpayers
of the city.
Instead of solely relying
on the property tax
levy, Highland Park also
funds its pension contributions
from partial state
income tax receipts and
partial proceeds from the
sale of assets, when available.
In 2017, the City is responsible
for a $6.4 million
contribution to pension
funds, which is $1.8
million lower than the estimated
contribution due
to budgeting by the city
council.
Reporting by Erin Yarnall,
Freelance Reporter. Full
story at HPLandmark.com.
THE GLENCOE ANCHOR
Board approves tax levy
request
After holding the required
public hearing
earlier in the meeting, the
Glencoe School District
35 Board of Education
unanimously approved its
annual tax levy request
at its meeting Thursday,
Dec. 1, with no changes
from the tentative levy approved
in October.
The tax levy amounts
to $26,763,482, with an
increase of 8.56 percent
over the 2015 tax extension.
The increase was
recommended in light of
the tax cap limitation of
0.7 percent. The levy increase
also incorporates
the possibility of $40 million
of new growth for
the district, Director of
Finance and Operations
Jason Edelheit said. New
growth in 2015 amounted
to $8.1 million, up from
$6.9 million in 2014.
The operating tax extension,
then, will increase
by 0.7 percent, or
$172,565.
“[The levy] only increases
existing property
taxes for operational purposes
by that tax cap level
of 0.7 percent,” Edelheit
said. “At the end of the
day, that’s going to be the
number we’re looking at
for what the actual levy
increase will wind up being.”
The levy is the statutory
basis by which the
school district obtains the
local property tax dollars
in order to operate the
schools. The levy is simply
a request for dollars,
however, as Cook County
sets the property tax rates.
In Cook County, tax rates
are assessed on a triannual
basis.
The levy process officially
began when the
board approved its Fiscal
Year 2016-17 budget at its
September meeting.
Story by Fouad Egbaria,
Contributing Editor. Full
story at GlencoeAnchor.com.
THE GLENVIEW LANTERN
Village breaks down
water meter charges
The Village of Glenview
addressed residents’
concerns regarding water
bill increases during a
Water and Sanitary Sewers
Workshop on Wednesday,
Nov. 30, at Village
Hall.
Joining Deputy Village
Manager Don Owen in
providing answers were
Amy Ahner, director of
administrative services;
Sarah Kuechler, the Village’s
strategic services
manager; Nick Santoro,
deputy director of administrative
services; Judy
Ruiz, resolutions center
supervisor; and Jerry
Burke, director of public
works.
Ahner began the workshop
with an overview.
“There is no profit in
these funds,” she said.
“Ongoing revenue has to
match ongoing expenses.
We want correct data.
What we don’t want is
rate spikes.”
She explained that the
decision to install and upgrade
water meters in all
of Glenview’s residences,
commercial buildings
and apartments between
September 2015 and June
2016 was because water
meters across the village
were approaching or had
exceeded the manufacturer’s
recommended lifecycle
of 20 years. An estimated
8,300 meters were
more than 20 years old.
The old mechanical meters
had internal moving
parts that became worn
over time, decreasing
their effectiveness in registering
water consumption.
Reporting by Neil Milbert,
Freelance Reporter. Full
story at GlenviewLantern.
com.
police
From Page 4
WINNETKA
Nov. 21
• At 12:46 p.m., a customer
at Citibank,
814 Elm St., reported
that between 11:30 a.m.-
8:42 p.m., she was given
a counterfeit bill while
making a bank transaction.
• A resident of the 900
block of Pine Tree Lane
discovered that between
1:40 p.m.- 4:30 p.m.,
an unknown offender
attempted to enter and
burglarize the secured
residence by damaging
the west doors of of the
home. Repair costs were
$300.
• Someone from New
Trier High School, 385
Winnetka Ave., reported
that between 12:48 p.m.-
12:58 p.m. on Nov. 18,
an unknown offender removed
a secured bicycle
from the bike rack on the
east side of the school.
The amount of loss was
$660.
Nov. 22
• Kenneth Robertson, 37,
of Chicago, was arrested
for theft and possession
of burglary tools at 2:24
p.m. at the Winnetka
Police Station, 410 Green
Bay Road. The arrest
was made subsequent to
an investigation for an
incident that occurred on
Sept. 13.
Nov. 23
• A resident of the 1000
block of Westmoor Road
discovered that at 9:04
pm., an unknown person
used an unknown object
to damage the front storm
window. Repair costs
were $300.
Nov. 26
• A resident of the 1000
block of Ash Street
discovered that between 9
a.m. on Nov. 14- 11 a.m.
on Nov. 26, an unknown
offender cashed their
check for a fraudulent
property listing on
Craigslist. The amount of
loss was $1,300.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The
Winnetka Current Police
Reports are compiled by the
Winnetka Police Department
and found on file at the
Northfield Police Department.
They are ordered by
the date the incident was
reported. Individuals named
in these reports are considered
innocent of all charges
until proven guilty in a court
of law.