1 Front Volume 140 No. 3
Friday, March 15, 2013
The Tonica News
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Lostant looks into diamonds Ruff Brothers buys property By Ken Schroeder news@tonicanews.com
LOSTANT – The village of Lostant is considering investing in diamonds. At the village board’s regular meeting March 11, a request came from Carol Stoens of the Lostant Youth Ball
Leagues to perform upkeep on the diamonds on the south side of town during the ball season while school is closed. After some discussion, the board may look into acquiring the diamonds. The school had made the offer to sell the ball diamonds to the village a few years ago, but noth-
ing was ever finalized. Lostant already owns the concession stand at the ball fields. While nothing official could be decided at the meeting, a straw poll of board members showed interest in maintaining the fields. The item will go on next month’s agenda. The matter of purchasing the diamonds will be investigated further.
In other business, Ruff Brothers Grain has purchased some additional land in Lostant across the street from its current operation with the intent of moving its scales and offices to the new property. Ruff Brothers asked the board to allow vehicles to use Pond Street for the transport of empty vehicles. Concern was voiced
about how the new facility would affect the surrounding neighborhood and the condition of the streets. The board will ask a representative from the grain facility to give a presentation to the board and answer questions about the proposed changes. In other action. the board: • Approved hiring a
new part-time police officer. Doug Hayse will fill the position left by the departing officer. • Agreed to address a TIF district in an effort to bring new business to town. • Continued a discussion about changing the ordinance for kennel fees. That action was put on hold until the next meeting.
Postal customers waiting ... and waiting By Barb Kromphardt news@tonicanews.com
The U.S. Postal Service has begun its process of cutting hours at post offices across the country, but many communities are still waiting to see how the change will affect them. It’s been a somewhat confusing road as the USPS attempts to deal with a flood of red ink. In July 2011, the USPS announced Leonore and Cedar Point were on the list for possible closing, two of more than 3,600 retail offices nationwide that were to be studied to determine customers’ needs. After a series of meetings, in May 2012 the USPS came up with a plan to save the two LaSalle County post offices marked for possible extinction. However, to keep those post offices open, they and numerous other post offices would see their hours cut, some by as much as 75 percent. “Meeting the needs of postal customers is, and will always be, a top priority. We continue to balance that by better aligning service options with customer demand and reducing the cost to serve,” said Postmaster General and CEO Patrick R. Donahoe. “With that said, we’ve listened to our customers in rural America and we’ve heard them loud and clear – they want to keep their post office open.” Under the plan, access to the retail lobby and to P.O. boxes would remain unchanged, and the town’s ZIP code and community identity will be retained. The existing post office would be maintained, staffed by a postal employee, with modified retail hours to match customer use.
See USPS Page 3
Tonica News photo/Barb Kromphardt
Staying on their toes at TGS Fourth-graders at Tonica Grade School warm up with some stretching exercises before PE class with teacher Carrie Christman. After warming up, students participated in a number of volleyball drills.
Buzzi Unicem bid for tax break turned down Attorney: Appeal is being considered By Ken Schroeder news@tonicanews.com
OGLESBY – Buzzi Unicem will not receive a property tax relief on its facility in Oglesby. The LaSalle County’s Board of Review decided March 7 not to lower Buzzi’s tax assessment by 75 percent as requested
by the company, which would have lowered its tax bill from $4 million to $1 million. The ruling is a relief for the Tonica School District, which receives property tax payments from Buzzi. However, Oglesby city attorney Jim Andreoni cautioned the matter is not necessarily
finished yet, as Buzzi can appeal to the state Property Tax Appeal Board. “We made our arguments, and we understand how the board ruled,” said David Rifkind, an attorney for Buzzi Unicem. Rifkind said they were evaluating the situation. “This is routine for us where operations have been suspended,” he
said. “We look for some relief. Sometimes we get it: sometimes we don’t.” The company issued the following statement March 12 regarding the appeal: “Like every taxpayer, Buzzi Unicem USA expects to be treated fairly by the county in the assessment process. While the LaSalle County Board of Review deci-
Inside
Vol. 140 No. 3 One Section - 8 Pages
From Germany to Tonica See Page 2 © The Tonica News
sion has been reported in the press, Buzzi Unicem USA has not received the official decision from the board. No decision regarding whether to appeal to the Illinois Property Tax Appeals Board will be made until the company receives the written decision from the LaSalle County Board.” The cement plant, which is more than a
First Person See Page 4
century old, no longer produces cement, and much of the facility is deteriorating. Buzzi Unicem estimates it would take $20 million to bring the plant back online, which is an amount the company is not willing to spend on the facility. Currently, the plant is used as a distribution facility with just a skeleton crew of a work force.