The sandhill cranes are flying over our houses, heading south. On these cold, clear, late-fall days, their presence is unmistakable. They fly high in the sky and it’s sometimes hard to see the V-shaped flocks of birds that have chosen our towns for the route of their autumn migration. But[Read More…]
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State finances could put school districts in precarious situations
Illinois’ fiscal house is not in order and there’s no clear path to making it right, said Bloom Township School Treasurer Bob Grossi. Depending on the direction legislators take, schools could be negatively impacted. Grossi, who spoke to the District 233 school board at its Nov. 17 meeting, said in[Read More…]
District 153 tax levy up 3%
The District 153 school board approved a $15.46 million 2020 levy at its Nov. 23 meeting. It reflects a 3% increase over the previous year. In a report to the board, John Gibson, chief school business manager, said the levy stays within the 2.3% Consumer Price Index increase. It maximizes[Read More…]
Homewood warns restaurants to comply with state COVID-19 restrictions
Restaurants and bars in Homewood and Flossmoor can begin indoor service if they choose after state health officials announced Saturday that Region 10 moved from Tier 2 to Tier 1 COVID-19 mitigation restrictions. The news might be welcome by struggling businesses and by patrons who have resisted the state’s tight[Read More…]
Proposal to review videotaping of H-F meetings gets voted down again
Interest in video recording District 233 board meetings continues among some board members, but others, citing legal concerns, costs and long-term maintenance issues, again shot down a recent proposal to begin the practice. The Homewood-Flossmoor High School board last voted on the issue in September 2019. In a 2-1 vote[Read More…]
State agencies encourage people to prepare for winter weather
While the official start of winter is not for several weeks, those in Illinois know that winter weather can occur any time during late fall. Knowing what to do before a winter storm strikes can provide peace of mind and ultimately impact how well people respond and recover from any[Read More…]
Homewood again suspends its tax collection on restaurants, bars
The Homewood village board approved a second round of relief for local bars and restaurants affected by Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s executive order restricting on-site eating. The village will not ask businesses to pay the “places for eating tax” for November, December or January. Homewood approved a similar measure in the[Read More…]
H-F theater program presents ‘Clue’ Dec. 3, 4, 5
Small Business Saturday more important than ever this year
Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, gets more attention in the media as a peak shopping day, but the day after — Small Business Saturday — might be a more important day, according to local businesspeople. The COVID-19 pandemic has been brutal on small businesses that often don’t have the[Read More…]
Several utilities will protect customers against disconnections this winter
Over the last week, several Illinois utilities have announced that they voluntarily ceased disconnections for all residential customers through the winter months. The voluntary moratorium on residential disconnections applies to customers of Ameren Illinois, ComEd, Liberty Utilities, Nicor, North Shore and Peoples Gas, providing greater protection to all residential customers[Read More…]
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