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Record The Putnam County
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Volume 145 No. 40
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Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Still treading water Granville board tackles water and sewage issues By Ken Schroeder kschroeder@putnamcountyrecord.com
GRANVILLE – Water continues to be the main topic at the Granville Village Board meetings, with four of the items on the June 4 agenda addressing progress and concerns on Granville’s water and sewage lines.
Resident Bob Cofoid delivered a report to the board detailing the problems he has had since the installation of the new storm sewer system in 2012. Cofoid said he had reported the issue to village officials since then, but he has been unsatisfied with the response from the village.
Village engineer Larry Good told the board he had examined the problems and video tapes Cofoid had filmed to determine what can be done, and he recommended a special meeting be set up. The meeting was set for 3 p.m. June 10. Also to be discussed at
the meeting is the hiring of additional public works employees. Currently, all of the work done in the village is completed by two employees. Good told the board the Ossola Construction Co. has installed the sewer and water extensions for the Dollar General store from the north side of Route 71 heading south to the site.
“We’re ready to start back up on the north end and run the sewer and water main from there down to the highway,” Good said. However, Good reported when the contractor dug down to the expected 8-inch water main heading east, another 12-inch combination storm-sewage pipe was found head-
ing northeast. The pipe does not show up on the map of the pipes in town. “We have no idea where it goes,” Good said. “We left it alone.” On Good’s recommendation, the board decided to proceed with plans for a new manhole at that juncture.
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There and back again John and Lynn Shimkus still on the go and will share their experiences By Ken Schroeder kschroeder@putnamcountyrecord.com
GRANVILLE – The Putnam County Library system is continuing its anniversary celebration with a presentation by John Shimkus of Granville. Shimkus and his wife, Lynn, have visited all seven continents during 13 years of travel and will be sharing some of their fun experiences as well as a couple notso-fun moments. Shimkus took his first overseas trip on a tour of Europe in 1989. It was a memorable experience, and he and his wife decided to start their travels again after he retired in 1999. Since then, they have packed their bags nearly every year (a planned trip for Lynn to China fell through in 2002) and set out on a new adventure. “I was always interested in travel, ever since I was a kid,” Shimkus said. “We decided we had time to do this so we saved up our money, and we went on the European Grand tour. Lynn’s father told me when we first got married to travel when you’re young. He said, ‘Don’t wait ‘til you’re old, or you won’t go.’” Shimkus had always wanted to go to Egypt to see the pyramids, so he
and Lynn booked a trip to do so. However, just days before they were to depart, conflicts in the Middle East made travel too dangerous. “I called the travel agent, I was mad – I cursed – ‘I want to see the pyramids!’ and he said he’d see what he could do,” Shimkus said. “He called and said, ‘I can set you up on a Caribbean cruise and you can see the pyramids on the Yucatan peninsula.’” The journey from ship to the pyramids was a bumpy ride followed by a long trek through the jungle, but to Shimkus the journey was worth it. “We got around to the base of it, and it took my breath away. It was stupendous,” Shimkus said. “I said ‘I’m going to climb that,’ because there were other people climbing it. Our guide said, ‘Old man, you can’t go up there.’ I said ‘Old? I’m only 60!’” Shimkus made the climb and looked over the tree line at the other pyramids throughout the area. That, to Shimkus, was the turning point. “That was the thing that really stimulated my years of travel because that was something I never thought
See Presentation Page 3
Putnam County Record photo/Ken Schroeder
Chalk Champ draws hope for Relay for Life Chicago Chalk Champ Shaun Hayes stands at a chalk drawing he donated to the 2013 Marshall-Putnam Relay for Life in Henry on June 8. Before the day of the walk, the local charity had already raised $69,000 of its $72,000 goal.
Mosquito-watching time begins Traps set in Putnam/Bureau counties By Donna Barker Shaw Media Service
The West Nile Virus season has officially begun in Illinois with its first West Nile Virus positive mosquito batch reported by the Illinois Department of Public Health. On June 3 Illinois Department of Pub-
lic Health Director Dr. LaMar Hasbrouck confirmed the first positive mosquito batch in the state, with the positive mosquito sample taken May 21 in Cook County. “Although we have been seeing a lot of what we call ‘nuisance’ mosquitoes due to the flooding, those mosquitoes
typically do not carry West Nile Virus,” Hasbrouck said. “We are now starting to see Culex mosquitoes, which often do carry disease.” Locally, the Bureau/ Putnam County Health Department staff has started its annual West Nile Virus (WNV) surveillance program, which
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Vol. 145 No. 40 One Section - 12 Pages The Putnam County
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Fighting the battle
Home on the range
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is funded by a $25,000 IDPH grant. Kurt Kuchle, director of health protection for the Bureau/Putnam County Health Department, said the local department has already set out three of its four mosquito traps, two in each county. Each trap starts with a bag of alfalfa pellets mixed with
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