Illinois

URBANA – Construction of an environmentally friendly dining area and lounge should begin soon at Hendrick House in Urbana.

The private residence hall at Green Street and Lincoln Avenue has embarked on a $3 million construction and renovation project that includes remodeling the existing dining area and installing a geothermal heating and cooling system, according to Betsy Hendrick, president of Hendrick Dorms Inc.

Project architect Kristine Chalifoux of Architectural Spectrum hopes the work, which calls for a “green” roof on the new dining area, qualifies for LEED Gold certification.

LEED – which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – is a rating system developed by the U.S.

(Read the full post about ‘New ‘green’ dining area ready to go up’…)

URBANA – In Debbie Insana’s vision of a subdivision, you don’t just buy a lot but a way of life.

Insana is the force behind the new Brickhouses Road Subdivision, located about 5 miles northeast of Urbana near Airport and High Cross roads.

This is not a sprawling subdivision. In fact, only seven lots are available at this point, although they are big at approximately 1 acre each. And they are pricey, too, ranging from $120,000 to $140,000.

“We’ve had people calling. A lot of people are concerned about the price of the lots.

(Read the full post about ‘Developer has eco-friendly plans in mind for subdivision’…)

RANTOUL – A Rantoul developer said he expects construction to begin this fall on a new residential subdivision and a new commercial subdivision south of the Rantoul Wal-Mart SuperCenter.

Developer Joe Warner said he will proceed with the projects along South Murray Road following Thursday’s vote by the Rantoul Village Board to create a tax-increment-financing district.

The district will reimburse Warner for the cost of infrastructure at the subdivisions, lowering his costs.

“I’m very pleased with the decision by the village board to create the district,” Warner said.

Warner said he plans to begin construction this fall on the first 100-acre phase of a new residential subdivision on farmland east of Murray Road.

(Read the full post about ‘Developer hopes to start building in fall’…)

ARTHUR – The Arthur village board will visit a local business on Monday to see damage caused by recent floods firsthand.

The board will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. Monday at Masterbrand Cabinet, 217 S. Oak St., Arthur.

“We are coming as the guests of Masterbrand,” said Arthur Village Administrator John McCurtain. “We’ll be touring their facility to take a look at some flood issues in their docking area.”

Following the tour, the village board is expected to discuss possible steps to prevent or reduce flooding in the area.

TUSCOLA – Construction on the newest pipeline to run through Douglas County is expected to start soon.

The Rockies Express Pipeline will funnel natural gas 1,679 miles, from the Rocky Mountains in Colorado to eastern Ohio.

Construction on the eastern portion of the pipeline should start as soon as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission gives the OK, said REX spokesman Allen Fore. The portion, or spread, through Douglas County south of U.S. 36 will probably be the first to start. A construction yard is already set up on U.S. 36 just west of Tuscola.

Fore said he expects contractor H.C. Price to hire between 500 and 600 employees through union locals for the project.

(Read the full post about ‘Douglas County pipeline construction to start soon’…)

by Mark Rhoads

Last year a student at Loyola University of Chicago asked me how did I define what "a conservative" was.  His question reminded me of what William F. Buckley, Jr. said about Sen. Bob Dole during the 1996 campaign for president. When asked by a reporter his opinion of Dole, Buckley said in effect, "Sen. Dole holds some conservative beliefs and values and is conservative in some areas, but he is not "a conservative." Buckley meant that in his opinion Dole did not see himself as someone who was a part of a larger conservative "movement" or collection of people who supported each other and cooperated to advance common conservative ideas.

(Read the full post about ‘What is a Conservative? What is a Liberal? What is a Progressive? What is a Libertarian?’…)

The Rockefeller Institute just released a new study finding gambling revenues not the cure-all for capital programs and balancing budgets once thought it to be…

• State revenues from gambling have risen steadily over the past decade, reaching $23.3 billion in fiscal 2007. Ten states now collect more than $1 billion a year in gambling revenue, and another seven states collect more than $500 million a year.
• Gambling revenue plays a consistently important role in state finances, representing 2.1 to 2.5 percent of states’ own-source revenues each year from 1998 through 2007.
• However, resistance to further expansion of state-sanctioned gambling may be increasing, and revenue growth has slowed.

(Read the full post about ‘Gambling’s not best bet, new study says’…)

California parents are bypassing a careless state legislature and going directly to the voters this November with an appeal to demand protection for their teenage daughters against child predators:

The Illinois constitution doesn’t allow voter-intiated binding referendum, only legislative advisories. Although the state legislature passed a parental notification law over ten years ago, the state’s Supreme Court dragged its heels in promulgating the rules.

Now that the rules have been written, a court order is stopping its enforcement and continues to protect child predators in Illinois.

(Read the full post about ‘IL parents wait for AG Madigan to enforce child protection law’…)

Well? 

How can you go wrong on “Honky-Tonk Friday” with a band named Ruby Dee and the Snakehandlers? This duo adds a bit of rockabilly and sass to the mix making them a unique example of this peculiarly American genre.

The band’s new record was released this past Tuesday and is titled Miles From Home. “Don’t Need A Man” joins that long list of songs that eschews men completely while comping some of the attitude and swagger of Elvis Presley (the consummate man’s man!).

Buy the new record here.

Don’t Need A Man