Bugle Newspapers 3-23-23

WIll CouNTY

Troy wrestling places 2nd at IeSa State Finals

The Troy Wrestling Team finished 2nd in its class at the recent IESA Wrestling State Tournament Finals, finishing only 11 points behind the returning state champions - a feat Coach Rudy Meza called, “a huge accomplishment.”

“I speak for myself and the rest of the coaching staff when I say that we are extremely proud of all our wrestlers,” Meza said. “Every one of them gave us all they had. They wrestled with heart, determination and grit.”

Meza said after many long practices, hard drilling and tough competition, it all paid off.

“Qualifying 10 wrestlers for state is a big deal,” he added. “Not many teams can do that, and having all 10 of them wrestling on day two is even harder. Each wrestler played a huge part in Troy winning second. We couldn’t ask for a better and more hard-working team. Each wrestler had a mindset to become a champion. If you wrestle with heart no one can compete with you.”

Meza added that the team will be

strong next year, as well, with more than half of its state qualifiers returning.

Troy Athletics and Activities Director Meagan DeGroot said that in addition to the team members being high caliber athletes, they excelled in the classroom.

“The Troy wrestling coaches and athletes amaze me everyday with their ongoing dedication to this sport,” DeGroot said. “They set the bar high and succeeded. I am excited to watch what great things are to come for our Troy Wrestling Team, and I expect to see our 8th graders excel at the next level in high school.”

The Troy state qualifiers who attend William B. Orenic Intermediate School in the 5th grade are Calihan Weber, who took 2nd place at 70 pounds, and Austin Latarewicz, who was a state qualifier at 90 pounds.

Attending Troy Middle School in the 7th grade are Jacob Tyderek, who took 2nd place at 215 pounds; Logan Hudson, who was a state qualifier at 85 pounds; Regan Pas-

tori, who was a state qualifier at 105 pounds; and Colton Coughlen, who was a state qualifier at 155 pounds.

Troy Middle School 8th graders who competed at state were Coehn

Weber, who took 1st place at 105 pounds; Casey Koerner, who took 2nd place at 75 pounds; Joseph Pedrosa, who took 4th place at 119 pounds and Michael Murphy, who was a state qualifier at 100 pounds.

Coaches are Rudy Meza, Chris Meza, Michelangelo Flores, Danny Landando and Austin Poch. The Troy Wrestling Team is a Troy Community Consolidated School District 30-C athletic team.

lawmakers look at ride-shares as ‘common carriers’

Lawmakers are considering a bill that would treat ride-share companies such as Uber and Lyft as “common carriers,” opening them up to the same level of liability as other forms of public transportation.

House Bill 2231 passed on the House floor this week with a 73-36 vote. The bill now awaits consideration in the Senate.

The common carrier status is defined as a “standard of care” under which passengers surrender their safety to certain modes of transportation. Currently in Illinois, this includes taxicabs, railways and elevators, among others.

“The reason for treating common carriers and holding common carriers to a higher standard of care is the lack of control that the rider has,” Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, a Democrat from Glenview and the bill’s lead sponsor, said in an interview. “There is no difference between the lack of control that a rider has the moment they step into an Uber or a Lyft and the lack of control that a rider has when they step into a taxicab or a train or an elevator.”

The push for the bill is spurred by concerns for rider safety, particularly after an Illinois Supreme Court case that was settled out of court in January 2022. The case’s prior appellate court opinion affirmed ride-share companies’ exemption from the common carrier status after a Lyft driver allegedly raped a passenger in 2017.

The alleged rape occurred in Chicago, when a woman identified as Jane Doe hailed a Lyft after a night out with her friends. The Lyft driver picked her up and, at some point during the ride, Doe fell asleep. The driver then drove to a secluded alley where he brandished a knife, zip-tied her hands and repeatedly sexually assaulted her, according to a court filing in the case that was settled in 2022.

Despite Doe’s argument that ride-share companies such as Lyft should be held to the same liability standard as established common carriers, the appellate court upheld the exemption because of the specificity of the statute. The case was settled out of court before the Supreme Court could rule on it.

The statute in question, part of the 2014 Transportation Network Providers Act, states Transportation Network Companies and their drivers “are not common carriers,

contract carriers or motor carriers, as defined by applicable State law, nor do they provide taxicab or forhire vehicle service.”

“Were we to hold that TNCs are subject to the same liability standards as common carriers, it would strip the relevant language of (the section of the statute) of all meaning,” Illinois First District Justice Bertina Lampkin wrote in the appellate court decision.

Gong-Gershowitz argued that, if not for the law, Lyft may have been liable in this instance.

“This exemption from the common carrier doctrine insulates TNC’s liability from the acts of their drivers when injuries to their consumers occur,” Gong-Gershowitz said in a committee hearing. “Other common carriers…do not enjoy this exemption and it has been used by ride-share companies to shield themselves from liability and auto crashes and cases where drivers have sexually assaulted their passengers.”

Opposition to the legislation centered on a concern that the common carrier classification may negatively impact business for ride-share companies.

“One of the reasons these entities have been so successful has been costs aren’t as great as they are with other entities,” Rep. Patrick Windhorst, R-Metropolis, said on the House floor. “So by increasing regulations or burdens on business then we may drive them out or

make them less successful.”

In an interview, Gong-Gershowitz refuted that claim, asserting ride-share companies are not a cheaper option anymore.

“When you look at surge pricing, when you look now at what riders pay to take an Uber or Lyft from one place or another, I would argue that the price comparison to other forms of transportation…being a less expensive option no longer is what’s born out in the market,” Gong-Gershowitz said.

According to Crain’s Chicago Business, the average fare for Ubers in Chicago increased by 80 percent and by 73 percent for Lyft since 2019. According to the same report, the average fare for taxis increased by 50 percent.

Gong-Gershowitz added the cultural landscape around ride-share companies has shifted since their inception, eliminating the need to treat them differently from alternative modes of transportation.

“I think almost everybody now, at all ages, has an app on their phone and knows how to use both ride-share apps for Uber and Lyft, as well as other things,” Gong-Gershowitz said. “So the dominance of technology in terms of the way we handle transportation, and many other things, has transformed the world that we live in over the last 10 years. And so the rationale that existed in 2015 just doesn’t hold up in today’s market.”

bY NIKa SCHooNoVeR Capitol News Illinois

pritzker: Tax cuts on the table if state revenues continue to exceed expectations

With two months to go before the legislature adjourns and current-year revenues continuing to smash expectations, Gov. JB Pritzker said he and legislative leaders are considering tax cuts.

His comments came one week after the legislature’s nonpartisan Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, or COGFA, increased its revenue estimates by about $1 billion for the current and upcoming budget years combined.

“I would like to see – as we feel comfortable with these new revenues coming in and their stability; and I think we’re seeing a few years in a row now of the stability of that revenue – that we should be talking about whether there are tax cuts that we can implement,” he said at an unrelated news conference at a Springfield community college.

The governor did not say whether tax cuts would be permanent or which taxes he and lawmakers are considering cutting.

And tax cuts were one of several potential uses of excess revenues the governor said he would like to consider. Others include contributions to the state’s “rainy day” fund and added payments beyond required amounts to the state’s pension system.

The conversation about what to do with excess revenues that show year-over-year stability is one Pritzker said has involved both Democrats and Republicans.

House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, R-Savanna, told Capitol News Illinois in a statement that the House GOP stands ready to work with the governor.

“To hear the governor mention any tax cuts is an exciting prospect for families across our state. At the first meeting I had with Gov. Pritzker, we discussed the cumbersome franchise tax on small businesses and high estate taxes that unfairly target family farms,” she said. “The governor recognizing conversations with Democrats and Republicans gives me hope that we will reinstitute the bipartisan budget working group with our budgeteers and appropriation teams leading the way.”

McCombie also noted the House Republicans oppose a graduated income tax, which Pritzker has said he has no interest in reviving as a legislative proposal this year.

Senate Minority Leader John Curran, R-Downers Grove, referred to business-related tax incentives that Pritzker and lawmakers approved on bipartisan lines in 2019 but which Democrats froze in future budget years.

“Initial discussions on tax relief have been receptive,” Curran said in a statement. “We will continue to call for implementing the business incentives that the governor agreed to in the Blue Collar Jobs Act, along with additional tax relief for Illinois families and small businesses.”

He said the Senate GOP is hopeful Pritzker will “include Republicans at the table of substantive budget meetings,” and they are “willing to negotiate in good faith.”

In their budget approved last summer for the current fiscal year, lawmakers included an array of mostly temporary tax relief. That included direct checks of $50 or more to most Illinoisans depending on income and number of children, a permanent expansion of the state’s earned income tax credit to 20 percent of the federal credit, a six-month pause on a 2-cent gas tax increase that ended Jan. 1, a one-year suspension of the state’s 1 percent grocery tax that ends June 30, and a property tax rebate up to $300 for some Illinoisans.

The governor’s office estimated those measures amounted to about $1.8 billion in tax relief overall. The state approved legislation bringing its rainy day fund balance to an estimated $1.9 billion by the end of the fiscal year and contributing $500 million beyond statutory requirements to its pension fund over the past two years.

The revenue update announced by COGFA last week represents just the latest in a remarkable stretch for state government revenues that have boomed nationwide over the course of the past two years. In Illinois, the growth has been driven by wage growth, corporate profits, inflation, changes to the corporate and online sales tax structures, revenues from marijuana sales

and other factors.

“You can see in every single month so far this fiscal year we’ve actually had a gain where we’ve generated more revenue in this fiscal year compared to the same time a year ago,” Eric Noggle, senior revenue analyst for COGFA, said at the commission’s March meeting last week.

COGFA’s new estimate of $51.9 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year that ends June 30 is $545 million beyond the amount assumed by the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget in Pritzker’s budget proposal. And its

$50.4 billion estimate for the fiscal year that begins July 1 is $465 million beyond GOMB’s initial estimate.

All told, COGFA now expects the state to end the fiscal year with revenues surpassing their initial estimates by more than $5 billion. While that’s partially because base sales and income tax receipts continue to produce at record levels, it’s also because the state’s estimates approved last summer were conservative, Pritzker said.

The current fiscal year still has three and a half months left, so COGFA noted in its recent report

that the revenue estimate could be bumped even higher if final income tax receipts are stronger than expected as taxpayers file their returns for the year.

But it could also move downward, the commission noted, if those revenues come in lower than expected due to weakening market conditions. They noted other factors could change the state’s revenue outlook, including the possibility of another COVID-19 resurgence, a worsening of the war in Ukraine, or a potential recession.

bY JeRRY NoWICKI Capitol News Illinois

TAX DEED NO. 2023TX000051

FILED March 2, 2023

TAKE NOTICE

TO: LAUREN STALEY FERRY, WILL COUNTY CLERK; PINE MEADOW CONDOMINIUM NO. 2; SABRINA JEAN FREDERICK; OCCUPANT; UNKNOWN OWNERS OR PARTIES INTERESTED; AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS.

This is NOTICE of the filing of the Petition for Tax Deed on the following described property:

UNIT D-8-2, IN PINE MEADOW CONDOMINIUM NO. 2, AS DELINEATED ON THE PINE MEADOW CONDOMINIUM NO.

2, SURVEY OF CERTAIN LOTS OF PARTS

THEREOF, IN PINE MEADOW, A SUBDIVISION IN THE SOUTHWEST QUARTER OF THE NORTHEAST QUARTER OF SECTION 15, IN TOWNSHIP 37 NORTH, AND IN RANGE 10 EAST OF THE THIRD PRINCIPAL MERDIAN, ACCORDING TO THE PLAT THEREOF RECORDED SEPTEMBER 10, 1971, AS DOCUMENT NO.

R71-21842, WHICH SURVEY IS ATTACHED AS EXHIBIT “A” TO DECLARATION OF CONDOMINIUM MADE BY KAUFMAN AND BROAD HOMES, INC., AN ILLINOIS CORPORATION, RECORDED IN THE OFFICE OF THE RECORDER OF DEEDS OF WILL COUNTY, ILLINOIS, AS DOCUMENT NO. R74-2040, AS AMENDED FROM TIME TO TIME, TOGETHER WITH AN UNDIVIDED PERCENTAGE INTEREST IN SAID PARCEL. (EXCEPTING FROM SAID PARCEL ALL THE PROPERTY AND SPACE COMPRISING ALL THE UNITS THEREOF AS DEFINED AND SET FORTH IN SAID DECLARATION AND SURVEY), IN WILL COUNTY, ILLINOIS.

Parcel Index Number 12-02-15-222-033-0000

On July 17, 2023 at 9:00 a.m., Courtroom 905 the Petitioner intends to make application for an order on the petition that a Tax Deed be issued. The real estate was sold on December 9, 2020 for general taxes of the year 2019. The period of redemption will expire July 10, 2023.

Heather Ottenfeld, Attorney for Petitioner (847) 721-4996

Cert. # 19-00409

8147-930892

Published 3/15/23, 3/22/23, 3/29/23

TO: Kathy S. Yauk; Estate of Kathy S. Yauk; Sokha Yauk; Martha “Marti” M. Barton, as Village Clerk for the Village of Bolingbrook; Occupant at 15B Fernwood Drive, Bolingbrook, IL 60440; Chanta Yauk; Tony Yauk; Nadia Yauk; Desiree Novy, a/k/a Desiree Yauk; Pine Meadow II Condominium Association; Costello, Sury, & Rooney, P.C., as Registered Agent for Pine Meadow II Condominium Association; Lauren Staley Ferry, County Clerk of Will County; their spouses, heirs, devisees, successors or assigns, if any; persons in occupancy or actual possession and unknown owners or parties interested in the above described real estate.

TAX DEED NO. 2023TX000037

FILED: February 17, 2023

TAKE NOTICE

County of Will

Date Premises Sold: December 9, 2020

Certificate No.: 19-00408

Sold for General Taxes of (year): 2019

Sold for Special Assessment of (Municipality) and special assessment number: N/A

Warrant No.: N/A Inst. No.: N/A

THIS PROPERTY HAS BEEN SOLD FOR DELINQUENT TAXES

Property located at: 15B Fernwood Drive, Bolingbrook, Illinois

Legal Description or Property Index No.: 1202-15-220-014-0000

This notice is to advise you that the above property has been sold for delinquent taxes and that the period of redemption from the sale will expire on August 14, 2023.

The amount to redeem is subject to increase at 6 month intervals from the date of sale and may be further increased if the purchaser at the tax sale or his or her assignee pays any subsequently accruing taxes or special assessments to redeem the property from subsequent forfeitures or tax sales. Check with the county clerk as to the exact amount you owe before redeeming.

This notice is also to advise you that a petition has been filed for a tax deed which will transfer title and the right to possession of this property if redemption is not made on or before August 14, 2023.

This matter is set for hearing in the Circuit Court of Will County in Joliet, Illinois (100 W. Jefferson Street) on September 7, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. in Room 905.

You may be present at this hearing but your right to redeem will already have expired at that time.

YOU ARE URGED TO REDEEM IMMEDIATELY TO PREVENT LOSS OF PROPERTY Redemption can be made at any time on or before August 14, 2023 by applying to the County Clerk of Will County, Illinois at the Office of the County Clerk in Will County, Illinois (302 N. Chicago Street, Joliet).

For further information contact the County Clerk

ADDRESS: 302 N. Chicago Street, Joliet, Illinois 60432

TELEPHONE: (815) 724-1880

ZHY Investments, LLC

Purchaser or Assignee

Dated: February 28, 2023

Zoom Information/Remote Hearing: https://www.circuitclerkofwillcounty.com/ click on Administrative Order 2023-2 - Remote Video Hearings for further information. 8147-930733

Published 3/22/23, 3/29/23, 4/5/23

TO: Theodore F. Adams; Estate of Theodore F. Adams; Eleanor Adams; Estate of Eleanor Adams; Joel Adams; Mark Adams; Martha

“Marti” M. Barton, as Village Clerk for the Village of Bolingbrook; Occupant at 148 Seabury Road, Bolingbrook, IL 60440; Lauren Staley Ferry, County Clerk of Will County; their spouses, heirs, devisees, successors or assigns, if any; persons in occupancy or actual possession and unknown owners or parties interested in the above described real estate.

TAX DEED NO. 2023TX000036

FILED: February 17, 2023

TAKE

02-11-406-007-0000

This notice is to advise you that the above property has been sold for delinquent taxes and that the period of redemption from the sale will expire on August 14, 2023.

The amount to redeem is subject to increase at 6 month intervals from the date of sale and may be further increased if the purchaser at the tax sale or his or her assignee pays any subsequently accruing taxes or special assessments to redeem the property from subsequent forfeitures or tax sales. Check with the county clerk as to the exact amount you owe before redeeming.

This notice is also to advise you that a petition has been filed for a tax deed which will transfer title and the right to possession of this property if redemption is not made on or before August 14, 2023.

This matter is set for hearing in the Circuit Court of Will County in Joliet, Illinois (100 W. Jefferson Street) on September 7, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. in Room 905.

You may be present at this hearing but your right to redeem will already have expired at that time.

YOU ARE URGED TO REDEEM IMMEDI-

ATELY TO PREVENT LOSS OF PROPERTY Redemption can be made at any time on or before August 14, 2023 by applying to the County Clerk of Will County, Illinois at the Office of the County Clerk in Will County, Illinois (302 N. Chicago Street, Joliet). For further information contact the County Clerk

ADDRESS: 302 N. Chicago Street, Joliet, Illinois 60432

TELEPHONE: (815) 724-1880

Sabrina Investments, LLC

Purchaser or Assignee

Dated: February 28, 2023

Zoom Information/Remote Hearing: https://www.circuitclerkofwillcounty.com/ click on Administrative Order 2023-2 - Remote Video Hearings for further information.

8147-930732

Published 3/22/23, 3/29/23, 4/5/23

TO: White Rose Angels, LLC – 412 Birch Drive, LLC; White Rose Angels, LLC; Jenee L. Polaczek; Randy R. Polaczek; The Revocable Trust Agreement of Trust No. 90125; The Restatement of Trust known as Trust No. 73345 dated 1/13/2012; Lona Jakaitis, as Village Clerk for the Village of Shorewood; Occupant at 412 Birch Drive, Shorewood, IL 60404; Eric Wittekiend; Jenee L. Polaczek, as Registered Agent for White Rose Angels, LLC – 412 Birch Drive, LLC; Jenee L. Polaczek, as Registered Agent for White Rose Angels, LLC; Steven Darin; Lauren Staley Ferry, County Clerk of Will County; their spouses, heirs, devisees, successors or assigns, if any; persons in occupancy or actual possession and unknown owners or parties interested in the above described real estate.

TAX DEED NO. 2023TX000034

FILED: February 17, 2023

TAKE NOTICE

County of Will

Date Premises Sold: December 9, 2020

Certificate No.: 19-01378

Sold for General Taxes of (year): 2019

Sold for Special Assessment of (Municipality) and special assessment number: N/A

Warrant No.: N/A Inst. No.: N/A

THIS PROPERTY HAS BEEN SOLD FOR DELINQUENT TAXES

Property located at: 412 Birch Drive, Shorewood, Illinois

Legal Description or Property Index No.: 0506-09-401-002-0000

This notice is to advise you that the above property has been sold for delinquent taxes and that the period of redemption from the sale will expire on August 14, 2023.

The amount to redeem is subject to increase at 6 month intervals from the date of sale and may be further increased if the purchaser at the tax sale or his or her assignee pays any subsequently accruing taxes or special assessments to redeem the property from subsequent forfeitures or tax sales. Check with the county clerk as to the exact amount you owe before redeeming. This notice is also to advise you that a petition has been filed for a tax deed which will transfer title and the right to possession of this property if redemption is not made on or before August 14, 2023.

This matter is set for hearing in the Circuit Court of Will County in Joliet, Illinois (100 W. Jefferson Street) on September 7, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. in Room 905.

You may be present at this hearing but your right to redeem will already have expired at that time.

YOU ARE URGED TO REDEEM IMMEDIATELY TO PREVENT LOSS OF PROPERTY

Redemption can be made at any time on or before August 14, 2023 by applying to the County Clerk of Will County, Illinois at the Office of the County Clerk in Will County, Illinois (302 N. Chicago Street, Joliet).

For further information contact the County Clerk

ADDRESS: 302 N. Chicago Street, Joliet, Illinois 60432

TELEPHONE: (815) 724-1880

ZHY Investments, LLC

Purchaser or Assignee

Dated: February 28, 2023

Zoom Information/Remote Hearing: https://www.circuitclerkofwillcounty.com/ click on Administrative Order 2023-2 - Remote Video Hearings for further information.

10732-930730

Published 3/22/23, 3/29/23, 4/5/23

may be further increased if the purchaser at the tax sale or his or her assignee pays any subsequently accruing taxes or special assessments to redeem the property from subsequent forfeitures or tax sales. Check with the county clerk as to the exact amount you owe before redeeming.

This notice is also to advise you that a petition has been filed for a tax deed which will transfer title and the right to possession of this property if redemption is not made on or before August 14, 2023.

This matter is set for hearing in the Circuit Court of Will County in Joliet, Illinois (100 W. Jefferson Street) on September 7, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. in Room 905.

You may be present at this hearing but your right to redeem will already have expired at that time.

YOU ARE URGED TO REDEEM IMMEDIATELY TO PREVENT LOSS OF PROPERTY Redemption can be made at any time on or before August 14, 2023 by applying to the County Clerk of Will County, Illinois at the Office of the County Clerk in Will County, Illinois (302 N. Chicago Street, Joliet).

For further information contact the County Clerk ADDRESS: 302 N. Chicago Street, Joliet, Illinois 60432

TO: Daniel J. Smith; Ann M. Smith, a/k/a

Ann Hlavka; Lona Jakaitis, as Village Clerk for the Village of Shorewood; Occupant at 407 Thames Drive, Shorewood, IL 60404; Savannah Smith; Daniel M. Smith; Fox Bend Lake Owners Association; KGG, LLC, as Registered Agent for the Fox Bend Lake Owners Association; JP Morgan Chase, N.A.; Lauren Staley Ferry, County Clerk of Will County; their spouses, heirs, devisees, successors or assigns, if any; persons in occupancy or actual possession and unknown owners or parties interested in the above described real estate.

TAX DEED NO. 2023TX000033

FILED: February 17, 2023

TAKE NOTICE

County of Will

Date Premises Sold: December 9, 2020

Certificate No.: 19-01367

Sold for General Taxes of (year): 2019

Sold for Special Assessment of (Municipality) and special assessment number: N/A

Warrant No.: N/A Inst. No.: N/A

THIS PROPERTY HAS BEEN SOLD FOR DELINQUENT TAXES

Property located at: 407 Thames Drive, Shorewood, Illinois Legal Description or Property Index No.: 0506-08-402-007-0000

This notice is to advise you that the above property has been sold for delinquent taxes and that the period of redemption from the sale will expire on August 14, 2023. The amount to redeem is subject to increase at 6 month intervals from the date of sale and

TELEPHONE: (815) 724-1880

ZHY Investments, LLC

Purchaser or Assignee

Dated: February 28, 2023

Zoom Information/Remote Hearing: https://www.circuitclerkofwillcounty.com/ click on Administrative Order 2023-2 - Remote Video Hearings for further information. 10732-930729

Published 3/22/23, 3/29/23, 4/5/23