OAK PARK-RIVER FOREST
District 200 to find a new schools chief
Oak Park-River Forest High School District 200 soon will begin searching for a new superintendent.
Efforts to negotiate a one-year contract for current Superintendent Attila Weninger have been unsuccessful, so the district will look for a new chief administrator to take over when he retires from the district at the end of his three-year contract in June.
The District 200 board voted Thursday to work with School Exec Connect, which will assist with the search.
The hiring of the search firm ended weeks of speculation about whether Weninger would remain at the helm for at least one more year. Weninger said that an agreement could not be reached and that the issues were both financial and nonfinancial. He added that he and the board will be parting on good terms.
Weninger, who started his education career as an English teacher at Montini High School in 1973, said he has no specific plans after he retires.
— Victoria Pierce
HINSDALE
Village takes a pass on video gambling
Village trustees in Hinsdale have voted to ban video gambling even though they said they know of no establishment that is qualified to host the gambling that has expressed an interest in doing so.
The trustees approved the ban by a 5-1 vote at the Dec. 15 Village Board meeting.
The state legislature has approved video gambling for certain businesses as a way to raise funds for capital improvements. But counties and municipalities are allowed to opt out if they don’t want video gambling.
Hinsdale Police Chief Bradley Bloom said that Belloumini’s Madison Liquors expressed an interest in hosting video gambling, but that state law prohibits it because Belloumini’s, 5425 S. Madison St., is too close to Hinsdale Central High School.
Trustee Cindy Williams voted against the ban, saying the village expects to receive state money for local infrastructure projects that could be funded with taxes on video gambling receipts.
— Christine Martin
MAYWOOD
Property taxes going up in 2010
Maywood residents will have to pay more municipal property taxes next year.
At a Village Board meeting last week, trustees unanimously approved raising the tax levy by 3 percent.
Residents who own a $200,000 home will see an increase of about $40 a year, according to Village Manager Jason Ervin.
The tax increase will help pay for a spike in employee health care costs along with increases in the fire and police pension costs and make up for a lack of sales taxes, Ervin said.
— Joseph Ruzich
BLOOMINGDALE
Blood center gets zoning approval
Bloomingdale trustees have unanimously approved an amendment to an ordinance that paves the way for a new blood center to open next year in a commercial building at 200-204 Gary Ave.
The Heartland Blood Centers of America, a voluntary blood center, is seeking to move into a space zoned for retail use.
According to Janice Hernon, planning and development coordinator for the village, Bloomingdale currently does not have a voluntary blood center as a permitted or nonpermitted use in the zoning ordinance.
“The Heartland Blood Centers are in retail buildings in other localities such as St. Charles,” Hernon said. “However, the zoning for this particular building limits it to retail uses.”
The approval to the amendment provides for the center to reflect a use that is similar and compatible to a medical clinic.
— David Sharos
WHEATON
City Council may hike property tax
Wheaton taxpayers could see about a 7 percent increase in the city portion of their property tax bill next year.
The City Council took the first step toward the increase at a meeting Monday night by approving a 7 percent hike in the tax levy. If the city did raise taxes by that amount, the average homeowner would see an increase of about $29 on his tax bill, City Manager Don Rose said.
The possible tax hike is among several measures that Wheaton is considering to make up for recession-related revenue shortfalls.
In 2009, the city cut staff and increased its home rule sales tax in an attempt to make up a budget deficit. But Rose said that revenue projections for this year are running about $2.5 million behind.
Council member Phil Suess was the only member to vote against the increased levy, saying he couldn’t justify the larger increase in a bad economy. The city should hold at a 5 percent increase, he said.
Earlier in the meeting, Wheaton Chamber of Commerce Board President David Frazza urged the city to not implement any revenue increase measures that would solely affect the business community.
That prompted a reply from Councilman Howard Levine, who said the city is not proposing increases in things like sales or motor fuel tax increases.
“You’re giving the false impression we are considering these taxes when we are not,” Levine said.
— Clifford Ward
