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Farmers Hoping to Play "Catch Up" on Planting
This year's May is starting to look a lot like last year's April; with dreary, rainy, and cool conditions. With all the rain that has fallen, Will County farmers are about 16 days behind schedule when it comes to getting the new corn crop in the ground. Farm Bureau office manager Mark Schneidewind has told 1340 WJOL News that the corn planting will get done eventually, but a 'quicker growing corn' may be needed to make sure the corn is completely matured by the first frost. Schneidewind says of all the midwestern states, Illinois seems to be the most behind right now on corn planting.
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JJC Board Fine Tunes Master Plan Funding
The Joliet Junior College Board of Trustees has given final approval to the funding options for JJC's Master Plan, the campus' first major overhaul since 1974. A nine dollar "capital assessment fee" will be attached to each credit hour for the funding of 159 million of the 220 million dollar plan for four-year implementation. There will be a voter referendum for an 89 million dollar building bond referendum, while the remaining 61 million dollars will be raised through not-for-profit, private, and other funding options. Passage of the referendum would allow the per credit hour capital assessment fee to eventually be lowered. A statement released by JJC points out that their average cost for one year of tuition, 26-hundred-40 dollars, still falls far below the average cost at an Illinois public university of 81-hundred-96 dollars; or at an Illinois private university of 19-thousand-132 dollars.
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State Police Targeting Route 59 on Friday
The Illinois State Police will be working throughout the day Friday in conjuction with numerous law enforcement agencies along the Route 59 corridor, as they participate in a joint safety initiative. The goal is to provide for safer travels along this state route by aggressively enforcing traffic laws and educating the motoring public on the importance of driving safely and wearing seat belts. Participating agencies will include the Joliet, Shorewood, and Plainfield Police Departments; along with the Will and DuPage County Sheriff's offices.
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Mall Proposal Passed by Joliet City Council
The Joliet City Council has unanimously approved plans for the Bridge Street Town Center Mall proposal, northeast of the I-80 - I-55 interchange. O and S Holdings from California is planning to develop 314 acres into three and a half million square feet of retail, restaurants, offices, hotels, a movie theatre, and residences; with plans to break ground in 2009 and open in 2010. They are hoping to create about 47-hundred permanent jobs.
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Romeoville's New Facility One Step Closer
The Romeoville Village Board has approved around 44 million dollars in bids for the new Village Hall and Police Station on Romeo Road. Mayor John Noak says this all has come in well under budget. The site for the new Village Hall and Police Station is 60 acres on the north side of Romeo Road, just west of the Romeoville Recreation Center.
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Romeoville Looking for Safety at Businesses
The Romeoville Village Board is looking to clear the way for a new Business Surveylance Camera System. Mayor John Noak says considering the recent tragedy in Tinley Park, it only makes sense to take this step. Noak says this would be a requirement for new businesses, and that the village would assist current businesses in figuring out how to implement the system.
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Advise From County Tax Assessor
Will County Tax Assessor Rhonda Novak says property owners receiving their tax bills within the past week and wondering why their taxes have gone up need to remember a few basic things. First, since the bill you received is actually for 2007, payable in 2008, you need to look at the value of your property not just for last year but for the last three years. The average is what the bill is based upon. Second, there is the fact that even if your property assessment has gone done over the past couple of years, certain taxing entities may now have larger levies, and therefore are now allowed to collect more money via taxes. The first installment of the property taxes is due on June 2nd, payable at the Will County Treasurer's Office.
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April Gaming Numbers Released
The state gaming numbers from the month of April are out. The Illinois Gaming Board reports that Joliet's Harrah's brought in over 26-point-four million dollars for the month, a drop of three-point-six-five percent from the month of March. Joliet's Empress, meanwhile, took in just above 15-point-nine million, a 14-point-2 percent drop from March. As we continue to monitor how the casinos are doing compared to last year, prior to the smoking ban, the latest report states that the Empress' total for last month was a 26-point-four percent drop from April of 2007. Harrah's totals were 17-point-eight percent below April of last year. Illinois casinos as a whole saw a 19-point-three percent drop in revenues from April of 2007 to April of 2008, as well as a drop of eight-and-a-half percent from March to April of this year. Elgin was Illinois' top money-making casino for last month, with Harrah's second, Aurora third, and the Empress fourth.
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