LaSalle County Board members figured out how to spend $21 million in pandemic relief funds this year in one of our top stories of 2022. Member Douglas Trager of Ottawa urged the board to do something and not just let the federal funds sit while people need relief. The board came up with a way of ranking projects.
It’s giving $1 million to the Lighted Way Association to remodel the former Heritage Manor Nursing Home in LaSalle into a special needs school. It’s also giving $500,000 to the Community Food Basket of Ottawa to get a new building. Dozens of projects are being awarded funds, and some county projects are being funded too.