News

City to homeowners: Pay your water bills

Published by admin on Tue, 06/20/2017 - 6:51pm

The city of Braidwood is cracking down on homeowners who have gotten too far behind in paying their utility bills.

On June 13, Public Buildings and Property Commissioner Jim Hutton said that as of this month, dozens of people were on the list for delinquent water bills.

“Monday and Tuesday, we tagged 58 houses to be shut off,” Hutton said. “People aren’t paying their bills.”

Hutton said the city was giving those folks one week — until Tuesday, June 20 — to pay those bills, or they’d shut off water service.

“We’ve got to stop the bleeding,” Hutton said.

Braidwood police to be outfitted with body cams

Published by admin on Tue, 06/20/2017 - 6:48pm

The Braidwood Police Department has a new tool in its box of tricks for keeping law and order.

On June 13, members of the City Council approved a services and purchasing agreement with Axon and Evidence.com for new police body cameras, for a total purchase price of $62,226.

“The Axon police and body cameras sync with each other, allowing video to be taken from all angles and uploaded,” Public Health and Safety Commissioner Eric Tessler said. “This will allow the officer/investigator to see all sides of a scene at one time.”

Elwood working on new, 2,000-acre industrial park

Published by admin on Tue, 06/20/2017 - 5:24pm

    A new 2,000-acre industrial park will be built between the villages of Elwood and Manhattan, but will have a dedicated truck route and a privately funded bridge to keep trucks off of Route 53 and local roads.

City to begin cutting ash trees

Published by admin on Tue, 06/20/2017 - 5:14pm

    A bright green insect has decimated the ash tree population in Wilmington, and the city, recognizing that many of the dead or dying trees are in its parkways, is going to start taking them down.

Wilmington gets a little smarter

Published by admin on Tue, 06/20/2017 - 5:11pm

    It's hard to miss the fleet of ComEd Smart Meter Installation trucks rolling through Wilmington neighborhoods. The utility provider is in its second week of changing all of its Wilmington customers over to the new technology.

Welter postpones Wilmington Town Hall meeting

Published by admin on Fri, 06/16/2017 - 10:26am

State Representative David A. Welter (R-Morris) has announced that his upcoming town hall meetings scheduled in Morris and Wilmington have been postponed following the proclamation from  Gov. Bruce Rauner calling the Illinois General Assembly back to Springfield.
Rauner has called legislators back for a 10-day special session starting  Wednesday, June 21 with the goal of passing a balanced state budget.

Search for Kay Gray continues Wednesday

Published by admin on Wed, 06/14/2017 - 2:14pm

The search for Kim Ellen "Kay" Gray continued on Wednesday, June 14, as water rescue teams searched a channel in Shadow Lakes.

Braidwood Police Chief Nick Ficarello said early on Wednesday, a cadaver dog indicated a hit at the channel that intersects Largemouth Lane.

Gray was reported missing from her Smallmouth Lane home around 8:30 a.m. Monday. Her son noted that while he had not seen his mother since Sunday night, neighbors reported to have seen her on a walk on Monday morning. When she didn't return to her home, family called police.

Coalition makes progress, but foresees change

Published by admin on Tue, 06/13/2017 - 7:50pm

    Although it’s made progress in keeping alcohol and tobacco out of the hands of teens, changing perceptions are undercutting the Wilmington Coalition for a Healthy Community’s message about harm, and indicators say change could be coming.

Public encouraged to take Narcan training

Published by admin on Tue, 06/13/2017 - 7:46pm

    Who would have thought a quick stop at a convenience store in Coal City would have turned out that way? Wilmington Coalition program coordinator Deborah Tomey and her son helped save the life of a young man who had overdosed in the store’s restroom. She knows such events are becoming increasingly more common, and that few people could help while waiting for first responders to arrive.

School Board makes policy on social, emotional screenings

Published by admin on Tue, 06/13/2017 - 7:44pm

    Beginning in the next school year, age-appropriate developmental and social and emotional screenings are required parts of the health examinations given when students enter kindergarten or first grade, sixth  and ninth grade, or when enrolling in an Illinois school for the first time.