March 23, 2012

County Update:

An Inside Look at Naval Station Great Lakes 

Naval Station Great Lakes, located in North Chicago, has been a tremendous asset to Lake County for more than 100 years. Many Lake County residents may not realize that on any given day, more than 20,000 military and civilian personnel work, train and live at the naval station. It contributes more than $748.8 million to our local economy, which includes payrolls, government purchases, and contracts. In this edition of County Update, Captain Randall Lynch, Naval Station Great Lakes Commanding Officer, gives us an inside look into Naval Station Great Lakes and what goes on behind those gates.  Watch now: 16 minutes.

 New Veterans Center Opens

Lake County recently celebrated the grand opening of the new Veterans Center of Lake County officially, co-located with the Veterans Assistance Commission (VAC) at 20 S. King Avenue in Waukegan.The center features an Internet café for veterans and their families to check Veterans Assistanceclaim status and health care records, and receive one-on-one assistance from VAC employees, as needed. Also, by enhancing the ability for veterans to access records, the VAC can submit all of the required documentation with a claim, which significantly reduces the amount of time for that claim to be processed by the VA. Veterans will also be able to learn about other available services and programs, including: peer-to-peer counseling through the Lake-McHenry Veterans Family Services, Veterans Treatment Court, the Emergency Assistance program, the Dental Treatment Program, and the American Legion Family Assistance Program, as well as other assistance programs.

Watch the video from grand opening and learn more about the Veterans Assistance Commission.

Board Commits to Work Toward 60% Recycling Rate by 2020 

The average pounds per day of waste disposed of by each resident in Lake County is about 4.8 pounds (based on 2010 statistics). Most of that waste ends up in a local landfill and as a result, Lake County has an estimated landfill capacity of around 12 to 13 years.

That is why leaders from across Lake County have been working on a plan to reduce the amount of waste and extend the life of our landfills. The specific recommendations are outlined in the "60% Recycling Task Force" report recently adopted by the Lake County Board.  The task force, which is made up of 27 members representing a wide range of stakeholders including two county board members, produced the report with 36 recommendations to achieve a 60% recycling rate by 2020.

To put the 60% goal in perspective, in 2010, Lake County achieved a 39% recycling rate. The goal is to reduce waste disposed of in the landfills to 40% of what is generated. The recommendations are grouped into three sectors: residential, commercial, and construction and demolition debris. The residential strategies include: enhancing existing programs, expanding use of franchising, implementing a pilot food scraps/organics collection programs and backyard composting, and other measures. Commercial strategies include: enhancing existing programs. For example, the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County (SWALCO) will work with partners to implement an award program that promotes awareness of businesses that recycle. Also, SWALCO will assist local governments with use of franchising, developing model contracts for commercial businesses, and providing waste audit assistance. Also, the plan recommends strategies such as developing model ordinances. Additionally, SWALCO, in collaboration with its partners, will embark in a multi-faceted community outreach and education effort to provide information on how to recycle, why it is important, and the impact it has on our own community and beyond.

The plan has also been approved by many Lake County municipalities. The intent is to have Lake County government and all of the municipalities adopt the report and commit to begin implementing the recommended actions outlined in the plan. To view the report, visit www.swalco.org. 

Forest Preserve Board Approves New Approach to Fort Sheridan

At its March meeting, the Lake County Forest Preserve Board of Commissioners approved a resolution requesting that the Army remove the golf course deed restriction at the Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve and allow the District to use that land as open space for recreational trails, habitat restoration and scenic overlooks.  

The construction, financing and operation of the proposed Fort Sheridan Golf Course have been extensively discussed by the Forest Preserve District since the early 2000s. During that time period, the Forest Preserve has examined and analyzed many alternative golf plans: 9 holes, 18 holes, different levels of course quality, length, configuration and attributes; and evaluated various financial plans and green fee rate structures consistent with course attributes.

Although many options were reviewed, the Board of Commissioners deemed no plan was financially viable and affordable for the residents of Lake County.

The Board of Commissioners determined that building a golf course at Fort Sheridan has proven neither financially prudent nor practical, given that a golf plan that was affordable to Lake County residents, and one in which revenues covered all operations and debt service costs and green fees, could not be developed in this economic climate.  Additionally, no proposals from the private sector were received, and the local golf market continues to be stressed with rounds declining 23 percent over the past five years at District-owned courses.

More information here.

Senior Citizen Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemptions 

This week the Chief County Assessment Office mailed the 2012 Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption Applications to all homeowners currently receiving the Senior Homestead. The qualifications are:

• 65 years old or older during the tax year;
• Own the property as your principal residence for the last two Jan. 1st;
• 2011 total household income is $55,000 or less. 

Need help filling out the application? Visit one of the scheduled Outreach Sessions. Applications need to be filed by July 2, 2012. For forms or additional information please visit the Chief County Assessment Office website.

Programs for Affordable Home Ownership

Beginning April 15, 2012, Lake County in association with a number of Illinois communities will offer a two-pronged approach to assist eligible homebuyers. The Assist program provides families with funds to pay all or most of their closing costs and down payment, and the mortgage credit certificate ("MCC") program reduces the homebuyer's ongoing cost of borrowing.  Homebuyers must been certain eligibility criteria, including purchase price and income limits.  Read this flyer to learn more about how these programs work.  

Six New Degrees Available at University Center

Six new degrees were added to the University Center of Lake County's program array.  The group includes the first bachelor's degree for off-campus students developed by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  Each of the six degrees is offered by a different University Center member institution, four by public institutions and two by private non-profit institutions.

The newly-added programs are:

• An online  BS in Earth, Society and Environmental Sustainability offered by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,
• A BS in Early Childhood Education (Type 04) with a preschool special education approval offered by Northern Illinois University,
• An online BSN completion program offered by University of Illinois at Chicago,
• An online BA in Legal Studies offered by Dominican University,
• An online MA in Legal Studies offered by University of Illinois at Springfield, and
• An MA in Differentiated Instruction offered by Concordia University Chicago.

More information is also available at www.ucenter.org or by contacting the University Center at 847/665-4000.

Lake County's Website Gets an A+ for Transparency

For the third straight year, Lake County has received a "Sunny Award" and an A+ transparency grade for its website. Sunshine Review, a national non-profit organization dedicated to government transparency, reviewed more than 6,000 government websites and recently announced the 2012 winners. Websites are graded on having items such as: budgets, meetings, lobbying, financial audits, contracts, academic performance, public records and taxes. Lake County is one of only six counties in Illinois to receive this top grade. Visit the Lake County website at www.lakecountyil.gov!

Village of Antioch Landscape/Yard Waste Pickup Begins April 1

Village of Antioch residents landscape/yard waste pick up will begin the week of April 1, 2012.

This announcement only applies to addresses located within the Village limits serviced by Waste Management and does not include Antioch Township or Unincorporated Antioch areas.

Landscape/yard waste shall be placed curbside in biodegradable paper "kraft" type bags, up to thirty three gallon capacity or plastic container up to thirty three gallons in capacity, not exceeding fifty pounds. Yard waste will be picked up once a week on your usual service day. The landscape/yard waste pick up program ends December 15.

For more information, contact Waste Management at 1-800-796-9696.    

Join the Antioch CERT Team

The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program helps train people to be better prepared to respond to emergency situations in their communities. When emergencies happen, CERT members can give critical support to first responders, provide immediate assistance to victims, and organize spontaneous volunteers at a disaster site. CERT members can also help with non-emergency projects that help improve the safety of the community.

The training covers basic skills that are important to know in a disaster when emergency services are not available.  With training and practice and by working as a team, you will be able to do the greatest good for the greatest number of victims after a disaster, while protecting yourself from becoming a victim.

Classes will be taught by trained emergency personnel, including firefighters and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel.  The program consists of 20 hours of training and emphasizes hands-on practice.