June 30, 2009
Wider parking in Havana... How many times have you parked your car and returned to find a huge diesel drinking monster truck parked on one side and a equally large off-road limousine on the other side. If you can somehow manage to actually get into your normal sized car good luck backing out of the parking spot without hearing the sound of honking horns or squealing/breaking tires from someone hurrying to nowhere as you have no chance of seeing if anyone is bearing down on your location. Wider parking spots in downtown Havana have been needed for years and now it is happening.
June 29, 2009
Thirty years ago... the HHS Class of 1979 were freshly graduated and ready to tackle the challenges of our world. Saturday evening they gathered again to recall those great high school days and share their new experiences with old friends. To view and purchase photos from the reunion you can visit the two galleries of photos by using these links... HHS Class of 1979 Gallery 1 and HHS Class of 1979 Gallery 2 .
June 28, 2009
The 103 degree heat from Saturday... touched off a line of severe thunderstorms from Canton into Havana. I have not heard of any official local rotation activity reported for Havana although rotation within the storm was reported in Canton and St. David activating the warning sirens there. I didn't see any flying cows but I did spot one flying tent from the Cat Tournament set-up at River Front Park. When last seen it was headed East over Schrader Street at about 300 feet.
June 27, 2009
The Big Cat Quest Tournament is in town. Ken Freeman's Outdoor Promotions has rolled into Havana for the 3rd year with his popular fishing tournament and television show. The festivities will continue through Sunday at Havana's River Front Park. Come down and watch the big guys chase the big cats right here in Central Illinois.
June 26, 2009
A perfect sunny side up. With the mid to high 90's heat wave still taking up residence in the Havana area, I thought it would be a good time to get something positive out of the heat and have some breakfast so it was off to the sidewalk. Maybe I'll try some bacon to go with my egg tomorrow.
June 25, 2009
On the move. Johnson Monuments is preparing their new business location at 343 E. Dearborn. As you can see they do beautiful work and this new location should give them much better availability and exposure.
June 24, 2009
The National Weather Service issued a heat index of 105 at 10:30 am on Tuesday. This should grant all the wishes from folks a couple of weeks ago who were wanting summer weather to get here. J Today’s Shot of the Day is about keeping cool and what a better way to do that than to head for our local pool. It looks to me like that idea works.
June 23, 2009
Our very own IBCA All-star, Rachel Noll...fights her way to the net in Saturday's IBCA 1A/2A All-Star basketball game in Bloomington. Noll and the North team defeated the South squad, 76-68. Thanks to DeKalb based professional sports photographer, Ryan Gaines, you can visit his site and see Rachel and her fellow All-stars battle it out by CLICKING HERE . A big thank you to Ryan and a huge CONGRATULATIONS to Rachel on a great game and our best wishes to her on her career at Kankakee Community College.
June 22, 2009
The Environmental Protection Agency monitors standards of all communities in the United States with combined sewer overflows, Havana is one of only 772 communities in the United States with this type of system. Basically this system contains domestic sewage, industrial waste water, and rainwater runoff all in the same pipes. The levels of toxins discharged into the Illinois River by Havana's system is a concern to the EPA. The Farnsworth Group has begun work on a $191,800 contract with the City of Havana to develop a long term control plan for overflow events. There is no estimate or even a guess at this time on the amount of work or the cost of that work required to get into compliance of the required EPA standards. The bottom line is that this first step will determine what problems exist and what will be required to fix these problems in Havana's system.
June 21, 2009
The 2010 HHS Dance Team gathered on Saturday at a local grocery store parking lot for a fund raising pork chop cook-out and a good old fashioned car wash. Team Leader and Team Mom, Debbie Yetter, told me that they have 10 new faces this year and are looking forward to another great year. The HHS Dance Team has a tradition of being very creative and polished. After seeing these girls attack all that dirt, I think their determination will make them part of that long tradition.
June 20, 2009
The March fire destroyed the Town House Plaza. Today the clean-up process is nearly completed. Since three different sections of the Plaza is owned independently they were able to work together in securing the services Hodgson Lumber and Land Improvement of Kilbourne to complete the demolition of the remaining structures and remove the debris. It is not known if the three owners will rebuild on this location.
June 19, 2009
Go straight west to Denver then turn right. Sounds simple but Chuck Carroll knows all to well that the directions to find a new life are much more complex. Chuck and his family have left their home in Forrest City and are heading west in search of work and that new life and they are doing it in a covered wagon. The family passed through Havana on Monday when I was required to be out of town but I was able to catch up with them in rural Fulton County on Thursday, June 18th. Taking a moment for a cold soft drink with one of his trusted horses who had just been injured earlier in the day and will have to return to Forrest City, not destined to see the Rockies. WMBD recently did a video report on the plight of this family, to view this please CLICK HERE . Secretly, many folks like myself, would love to do something like this, but very few of us would ever actually do it. My hat is off to this determined family, and I wish them all the very best on their quest for a new life. Godspeed Carroll family and all the best of luck on your journey. If you would like you may leave a message for the Carroll Family by CLICKING HERE .
June 18, 2009
I thought it fitting to begin this new feature with the hard work being done by Havana's Park District to un-do all the water damage to River Front Park over the last few months. The park has been underwater for a long time and cleaning the residue along with all the debris is quite a task with the clock clicking down very fast to the annual Catfish Tournament. At the same time the work is going forward on the new boat ramps and the new observation building.
