Latest / WIXN AM 1460 - Shaw Local Radio / Talk-Line: Charlene Bielema and Brandon Clark on election results

Transcript

Talk-Line: Charlene Bielema and Brandon Clark on election results · WIXN AM 1460 - Shaw Local Radio

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Friends from Shaw Local News have joined us in studio
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: today for our update of news and information from Shaw
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: Local News. And that means our managing editor of the
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Sterling Gazette and Dixon Telegraph is live with us at
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: the microphones this morning this morning, returning after a week's hiatus.
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: I was off last yes you were. I gave the
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: guys here a breakthrough so that they can gather all
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: kinds of news and information, and boy, we've got that
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: to deliver. Charlene Beelamus with us. Good to see you again, ma'am, yes.
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: You too, welcome back.
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: And Brandon Clark is with us once again from Shaw
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: Local News. Welcome serve and well the focal point of
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: activity today can solidated elections are in the books.
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: Yes, yes, they are the books.
• 0:37
  Speaker 3: Yes, it's always a couple months of getting ready for
• 0:40
  Speaker 3: the elections and then it's over in one crazy night.
• 0:44
  Speaker 3: And I think we had our election results pretty much
• 0:46
  Speaker 3: in by ten o'clock last night. That's kind of what
• 0:47
  Speaker 3: it felt like. And of course there were I think
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: we said five six races that we were watching closely.
• 0:53
  Speaker 3: One was the Sterling City Council election, and then also
• 0:57
  Speaker 3: of course the Rock Falls. They had two seats that
• 0:59
  Speaker 3: were up contested elections. And then the public Safety sales
• 1:03
  Speaker 3: tax in Whiteside County, which is kind of the lead
• 1:07
  Speaker 3: story for us because we've been following that. This is
• 1:09
  Speaker 3: the third time that it's actually gone in front of
• 1:11
  Speaker 3: the voters. Was voted down in November, but came up
• 1:13
  Speaker 3: with fifty five percent of the vote approval from the
• 1:15
  Speaker 3: voters yesterday. So we'll have a follow up story about
• 1:19
  Speaker 3: that tomorrow. The Brandons I was.
• 1:21
  Speaker 4: Surprised but pleasantly last night. Yeah, when as that was
• 1:24
  Speaker 4: going so.
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: Yeah, and why do you suppose that was Brandon? I mean,
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: why do you suppose that, you know, after the first
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: two you know votes took place, why do you suppose
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: that this you know, I passed.
• 1:37
  Speaker 4: My personal opinion. I just I just think there's been
• 1:41
  Speaker 4: an increased push in trying to share what this tax
• 1:46
  Speaker 4: actually actually does, and a lot more. I've seen a
• 1:49
  Speaker 4: lot more people online, whether it's my stories or other
• 1:52
  Speaker 4: individuals who are posting and talking about the tax. I've
• 1:56
  Speaker 4: seen more people engaging and asking questions, which led me
• 1:59
  Speaker 4: to believe a lot of folks just didn't understand what
• 2:02
  Speaker 4: the situation was and what this would do. And so yeah,
• 2:06
  Speaker 4: I just think that continued push for education. What it
• 2:10
  Speaker 4: was is what did it? That's just my opinion.
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: Well, we were in touch with the Whiteside County sheriff
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: share booker, you know, very pleased about the outcome of
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: this mat and now we move forward with now a
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: consolidated nine to one to one center. Is it going
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: to be located Morrison Stirling to Charline? Do we know?
• 2:26
  Speaker 3: I will believe that Morson because we had a story
• 2:28
  Speaker 3: last year where they were moving things and upgrading Morson.
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: But again we'll do that as part of our follow up,
• 2:33
  Speaker 3: just to make sure what their plans are that they're
• 2:35
  Speaker 3: solidified there. But I agree, I think especially grass roots
• 2:39
  Speaker 3: rise when you would look at different fire departments and
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: things that you.
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: Would follow on Facebook. Although I mean that's one source
• 2:45
  Speaker 2: of news.
• 2:45
  Speaker 3: That's not all of it as far as you know
• 2:47
  Speaker 3: what departments share, but a lot of that, like the
• 2:50
  Speaker 3: graphics and the explanation of what it was, was out
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: there constantly. And I also think just as those kind
• 2:56
  Speaker 3: of taxes are put in front of the public, especially
• 2:59
  Speaker 3: when it fails and then it comes out again, it
• 3:01
  Speaker 3: kind of gathers steam over time, like what is this
• 3:04
  Speaker 3: And the explanation that it was a sales tax and
• 3:06
  Speaker 3: not just something that was levied on every household I
• 3:09
  Speaker 3: think makes a difference. And if we didn't pay their
• 3:11
  Speaker 3: property taxes were kind of where it would go next.
• 3:13
  Speaker 3: So talking to mayors throughout the last six months, it
• 3:16
  Speaker 3: became important for them to kind of mention that. Also
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: they didn't know the impact, but they knew that there'd
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: be one that they would have to deal with in
• 3:22
  Speaker 3: a city council.
• 3:23
  Speaker 4: And of course the good follow up that'll be with
• 3:25
  Speaker 4: that is what are they going to do with that
• 3:26
  Speaker 4: money now that it's safe? Right? You know, that was
• 3:28
  Speaker 4: immediately what I seen after you know, news started circulating
• 3:31
  Speaker 4: online after this is like, okay, this is going to
• 3:35
  Speaker 4: change our property taxes? Now is that still going to happen?
• 3:37
  Speaker 4: What are you going to do with that money since
• 3:39
  Speaker 4: it's already budgeted? And so that'll be the interesting thing
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: to see moving forward.
• 3:42
  Speaker 3: With sterling Rock Falls, particularly with them picking up the
• 3:44
  Speaker 3: main cost of that. You know, does that mean that
• 3:46
  Speaker 3: they get to bank that or do they have to
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: take action at the county board level.
• 3:49
  Speaker 2: That's all the questions that we have to kind of
• 3:51
  Speaker 2: go through, right.
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: And again with this tax, it's not on everything.
• 3:55
  Speaker 4: No, this is not on.
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: Everything that you're purchasing in Whiteside County. This is just
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: on so you know, a particular areas, right, you know,
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: no vehicle purchases things like that are going to be
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: affected by this pre dedication.
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, there was a list that we had, correct. Yeah.
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: And the great thing too about a sales tax, I've
• 4:13
  Speaker 3: seen that in areas that I've covered before. It's that
• 4:16
  Speaker 3: you truly are letting everybody kind of share that burden,
• 4:19
  Speaker 3: and people who come to town, who shop in your town,
• 4:21
  Speaker 3: who may not live there. Clinton got several new schools
• 4:24
  Speaker 3: based on that under Iowa and Iowa.
• 4:26
  Speaker 4: You know, Rock Falls is the new Loves Travel Center,
• 4:29
  Speaker 4: right exactly. That's expected to generate a lot of money.
• 4:32
  Speaker 4: So I mean that's a lot of money that can
• 4:35
  Speaker 4: go to help that as.
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: Well, exactly exactly. So now the move is forward then
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: and obviously you know, put in place with the new
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: emergency unit and the new emergency center. Then will we'll
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: keep tabs on that through shat local news.
• 4:47
  Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, always an update because you know, I think
• 4:50
  Speaker 3: we had a reporter that did a story last year
• 4:52
  Speaker 3: about kind of what they were doing looking ahead merging
• 4:55
  Speaker 3: those two offices. Now, now, how do we carry through
• 4:58
  Speaker 3: with especially you deficit?
• 5:01
  Speaker 2: Does that cover your deficit? Does it do with the
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: tax said that it would so, all right.
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: That was the headline of the consolidated election area of
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: our northern Illinois area. Lots of obviously unopposed races. You know,
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: most of the incumbents are back in their seats, you know,
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: as far as school boards.
• 5:17
  Speaker 3: In some cases, yeah, in some cases we did have
• 5:20
  Speaker 3: kind of the the Snow Brian Snow.
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: Marshall doan race right right, which is.
• 5:26
  Speaker 3: Ward two and Marshall doan unseated Brian Snow. We've been
• 5:30
  Speaker 3: there since two thousand and five.
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: Okay.
• 5:32
  Speaker 3: We saw Sterling City Council Jim Weiss got re elected
• 5:37
  Speaker 3: and then also yeah, newcomer.
• 5:40
  Speaker 4: Okay, newcomer, yeah, yeah, and Sterling Board of Education was
• 5:45
  Speaker 4: almost a close race. Speaking of newcomer, for a while
• 5:48
  Speaker 4: it almost looked like newcomer Tyler whole Singer was going
• 5:52
  Speaker 4: to beat out longtime board mentors Savannah Mussington. But it
• 5:56
  Speaker 4: was the last precinct that came really changed that It
• 6:00
  Speaker 4: was a little over a percent difference, but it was
• 6:03
  Speaker 4: very close. I was surprised it was that close, honestly, right.
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: But yeah, so some of the more interesting races again
• 6:12
  Speaker 1: on that Tuesday, April first for the consolidating election period
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: now in the books across our northern Illinois area. But
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: again look for follow up stories from Shaw local news
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: coming shortly to our area. What else is going on
• 6:25
  Speaker 1: in Sterling? You wanted to mention it ago I did.
• 6:28
  Speaker 3: Brandon has a story that he's written about the leadership
• 6:32
  Speaker 3: in the future at Sterling Public Schools.
• 6:34
  Speaker 4: Yeah. So the last Board of Education meeting they wanted
• 6:37
  Speaker 4: to finalize there's a new con five year contract with
• 6:41
  Speaker 4: assistant Superintendent Sarah Dale to replace current superintendent Ted Everett
• 6:47
  Speaker 4: when he retires in twenty twenty eight. Okay, yeah, so
• 6:51
  Speaker 4: they were very happy with that. She's she's she's been
• 6:55
  Speaker 4: with Sterling Public Schools for over twenty years now. She's
• 6:58
  Speaker 4: been a teacher in facilities, an elementary school principal, the
• 7:03
  Speaker 4: assistant superintendent I think for the last nine years, and
• 7:06
  Speaker 4: so now they're happy to have some one of their
• 7:10
  Speaker 4: own secured coming up and not having to worry how
• 7:14
  Speaker 4: they're going to secure another administrator.
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: Okay, all right, so that coming down the pipe again
• 7:19
  Speaker 1: after the retirement takes place, then we got a new
• 7:22
  Speaker 1: face coming in as that superintendent. Not a word about
• 7:25
  Speaker 1: the Dixon situation though yet.
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: Charlnne I haven't heard anything yet.
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: Find that Okay, you know, obviously you Margo up and
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: we'll be leaving her post.
• 7:34
  Speaker 3: And which came up a lot in our candidate interviews
• 7:37
  Speaker 3: for Dixon school Board. We had four incumbents that were
• 7:39
  Speaker 3: running for four seats, but we interviewed them all and
• 7:41
  Speaker 3: all of them had that as one of the top
• 7:44
  Speaker 3: priorities for them, was filling that position and what it
• 7:47
  Speaker 3: takes to actually get the right person for that spot.
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: So, speaking about education, thank you teachers, right, thank you teachers.
• 7:54
  Speaker 3: That'll be coming out the early part of May. I'm
• 7:56
  Speaker 3: not sure on the date yet, but I believe it's
• 7:58
  Speaker 3: the first week. We're writing stories right now interviewing teachers.
• 8:01
  Speaker 3: We're about halfway through that fifteen stories that will be
• 8:04
  Speaker 3: local coming from us, and we're about forgot about seven.
• 8:07
  Speaker 3: I think interview's done. Probably more so, we're in the
• 8:09
  Speaker 3: editing process of that. That's always great because the reporters
• 8:12
  Speaker 3: are able to find some really cool angles about our teachers,
• 8:14
  Speaker 3: like what did they like to do in their off time,
• 8:16
  Speaker 3: or I think. Don't you have a story about two
• 8:18
  Speaker 3: teachers that met and fell in love I believe, yeah, which.
• 8:21
  Speaker 4: Is kind of cool high school teachers. Yeah, all right, Yeah,
• 8:24
  Speaker 4: they met as teachers aides or as system during their
• 8:28
  Speaker 4: their college years to become educators and ended up deciding
• 8:31
  Speaker 4: they wanted to move back to the area and settled
• 8:33
  Speaker 4: on Sterling and nice. Coincidentally, there were two jobs opened
• 8:37
  Speaker 4: up at the same time, so.
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: Yeah, great story.
• 8:40
  Speaker 4: Yeah good, that'll be just one of many, just one
• 8:43
  Speaker 4: of many, and thank you teachers.
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: All right, we'll be looking for that to come our way.
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: Courtesy of Shaw Local News. You had an anniversary story.
• 8:51
  Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, So Our Savior Lutheran Church and Sterling's turning
• 8:54
  Speaker 4: one hundred and fifty years old and they're having a
• 8:57
  Speaker 4: special service on Palm Sunday at nine am. There'll be
• 9:01
  Speaker 4: a light lunch and cake in the basement to help
• 9:04
  Speaker 4: celebrate and celebrate and anybody who wants to come, you know,
• 9:07
  Speaker 4: attend that service, they're inviting to come celebrate with it. So,
• 9:11
  Speaker 4: you know, very interesting, they said. A lot of the
• 9:15
  Speaker 4: I want to say, said the Warship Center of the
• 9:18
  Speaker 4: original structure of the building is still there. The steeple
• 9:21
  Speaker 4: was replaced, I want to say, in like the twenties, Wow,
• 9:25
  Speaker 4: after the wind had blown it down. But yeah, just
• 9:27
  Speaker 4: just one of those just kind of cool little things,
• 9:29
  Speaker 4: you know, building, you know, especially a church that old.
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: Yeah, one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the again location
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: in the Sterling area. So congratulations there first.
• 9:39
  Speaker 4: Rever it came over on horseback from Clinton.
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: I wow. Yeah, wow, that is a real yeah wow cool.
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: All right, Charlie. You had a couple of other things
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: you want.
• 9:50
  Speaker 3: To Yeah, I know that Brandon has been working on
• 9:53
  Speaker 3: a story about another solar farm that's coming your Sterling Stories.
• 9:56
  Speaker 3: Written plan is to run it. My hope is tomorrow.
• 9:59
  Speaker 3: We have a lo of news tomorrow, so we can
• 10:01
  Speaker 3: all get in that newspaper, but at least we can
• 10:03
  Speaker 3: get it up online. So do you want to talk
• 10:04
  Speaker 3: a little bit about that.
• 10:05
  Speaker 4: Yeah, So it's it's it's a proposed five megawatt solar
• 10:11
  Speaker 4: farm through Sundial Energy on Prairieville Road and Holly Road.
• 10:15
  Speaker 4: So it's only been recommended through the Planning Commission. It
• 10:19
  Speaker 4: still has to receive approval through city Council and then
• 10:23
  Speaker 4: the County Board to get final approval. But from what
• 10:27
  Speaker 4: I've talked through, it seems like the Sundal, the folks
• 10:29
  Speaker 4: that came through it, has done their homework and nobody's
• 10:32
  Speaker 4: had any objections, and this doesn't seem like it's going
• 10:35
  Speaker 4: to interfere with the city's long term comprehensive plan. So
• 10:40
  Speaker 4: so far, it doesn't seem like there's going to be
• 10:42
  Speaker 4: any objections to this one, all.
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: Right, so we'll look forward that to again move along
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: obviously in that establishment here in our Northernlini area. Anything else, just.
• 10:52
  Speaker 3: Some stories that we're work working on. Courts always there's
• 10:55
  Speaker 3: something going on in courts. We have a hearing that's
• 10:58
  Speaker 3: coming up tomorrow for Michael Bennett Junior. He's the teen
• 11:03
  Speaker 3: that's accused of shooting the fourteen year old and the
• 11:05
  Speaker 3: seventeen year old last July. This is going to be
• 11:08
  Speaker 3: basically transfer hearing. Sounds like the question is are we
• 11:10
  Speaker 3: going to be able to move him here and getting
• 11:12
  Speaker 3: him ready for his eighteenth birthday? And then also there
• 11:16
  Speaker 3: is another hearing for Kyle Cooper, he is charged with
• 11:20
  Speaker 3: the rap Falls Valentine's Day stabbing. That should be an
• 11:24
  Speaker 3: interesting discussion because it's about DNA consumptive evidence and how
• 11:28
  Speaker 3: that process works and kind of new a new topic
• 11:32
  Speaker 3: for us to cover on this particular trial in case,
• 11:34
  Speaker 3: So that will be Friday.
• 11:36
  Speaker 2: I'llbeit both of those hearings.
• 11:38
  Speaker 3: And of course we had the eerie case yesterday where
• 11:40
  Speaker 3: there was a man that was sent to prison for
• 11:41
  Speaker 3: four years and some sex charges there.
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: That story ran.
• 11:46
  Speaker 3: Today, okay, so there's always something going on in course. Also,
• 11:51
  Speaker 3: the other thing that happened since the last time we
• 11:53
  Speaker 3: were here that the Cooper trial got moved. It was
• 11:55
  Speaker 3: planned to be starting on April eighth because of speedy
• 11:57
  Speaker 3: trial that they had invoked, but because they don't have
• 12:00
  Speaker 3: state crime lab results back on, the prosecution asked for
• 12:04
  Speaker 3: an extension, which was granted to them. So now that
• 12:07
  Speaker 3: trial is set to start May thirteenth.
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: Very good. So an update of court cases and again
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: go to Shaw Local News, go to Shaw Local Media
• 12:14
  Speaker 1: and check it all out. It is coming your way
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: across our northern Illinois area, along with more that we
• 12:20
  Speaker 1: will kind of put on the back burner for now
• 12:22
  Speaker 1: because we're out of time, but unfortunately, but we'll pick
• 12:25
  Speaker 1: it up again next week as we continue our coverage
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: in April right here on the AM fourteen sixteen FM
• 12:30
  Speaker 1: ninety five one, Brandon Clark, Charline Bidelma. Guys, thanks for joining, uyes.
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: I always appreciate I always appreciate a visit from Shall
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: local news. Here at w Docent Sports versus.
• 12:37
  Speaker 2: Next, diabetes, high blood pressure, anxiety meds. Everyone's on them.
• 12:41
  Speaker 3: If you're a fifty year old male, maybe a bit porky,
• 12:44
  Speaker 3: and you may even have type two diabetes, a million
• 12:46
  Speaker 3: dollars of term insurance may