Water main and sewer work began yesterday in the 2000 block of Elm Lane which should be completed next week. The project then moves to the 1100 block of Sanger Street from Washington to Superior, the 1000 block of Superior from Sanger to Poplar, the 1000 block of Washington from Sanger to Poplar, and the 100 and 200 blocks of Anita Drive from LaSalle Street to the end.
————————————————
IDOT says ongoing construction work on Interstate 80 in Bureau County will cause overnight lane closures. Crews doing bridge work and resurfacing will cause westbound I-80 from Illinois 40 to Illinois 78 to close from 8:00 p.m. Wednesday to 6:00 a.m. Thursday while the eastbound lanes will remain open between Exits 33 and 45.
————————————————
The brand new $26.5-million dollar Ottawa YMCA is set to fully open Monday. A “sneak-peek” gala for donors to the project was held Friday evening while YMCA members who took advantage of the pre-opening “Charter Membership” promotion can use the new facility for a few afternoon hours this week. The new site, at the southern end of Canal Street, has parking on the west and south sides of the building. The current Ottawa YMCA facility on East Jackson Street will be closed Friday for movers to move some items to the new location, even though most of what is in the new building is all brand new. The current YMCA will be open regular hours this Saturday and Sunday. Beginning Monday, May 13th, the new YMCA building will be fully operational with hours of 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on weekdays, 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturdays, and 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sundays. Ottawa YMCA Executive Director Joe Capece will join Jay LeSeure this morning at 8:30.
————————————————
LaSalle County Health Department has begun collecting dead crows, blue jays, and robins and will continue this process until October 15, 2024. Dead birds are important sentinels for early detection of West Nile virus activity. West Nile virus generally appears in birds and mosquitoes before it is transmitted to humans. Over the past twenty years, West Nile virus activity has been documented throughout LaSalle County. If you find a dead bird, please contact the Health Department’s Environmental Health Division at 815-433-3366.
————————————————
The Asian longhorned tick is in Illinois. Illinois is the 20th state to discover the invasive species. The tick was found on April 12th during routine active tick surveillance in Morgan County. Additional surveillance in the area on April 24th discovered two additional Asian long-horned ticks, which are capable of carrying tick-borne diseases that affect cattle.
————————————————
Some 225 students who completed degrees or certificates are expected to participate in Illinois Valley Community College’s 58th annual commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 18th. Kim “Howard” Johnson will be the keynote speaker. Johnson is an Ottawa native, author, comedy performer and instructor, and “Monty Python” biographer.
The ceremony also will include remarks from incoming Student Trustee Emma Garretson and outgoing Student Trustee Elizabeth Boyles, as well as President Dr. Tracy Morris. The Paul Simon Essay Contest winner, Lauren Frost, will read her essay. The ceremony begins at 1:30 p.m. Doors to the IVCC Gym open at noon. A reception will follow immediately after the ceremony. The ceremony will be live-streamed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hql69cbS6w
————————————————
The Illinois Senate is advancing a plan that would provide more educational opportunities for younger people serving time in the Department of Corrections. The Senate approved a measure that would require the Illinois Department of -Juvenile Justice to establish an emerging adult program for prisoners ages 18 to 21. The bill now moves to the House.
————————————————
A group of University of Chicago faculty members are lending support to Pro-Palestinian student protesters on campus. The University of Chicago Faculty for Justice in Palestine is calling on the school’s administration to resume negotiations with the pro-Palestinian encampment organizers. The coalition claims administrators suspended negotiations Sunday and issued a midnight deadline to dismantle the encampment on the university’s main quad. However, no action was taken at midnight.
————————————————
A new lawsuit claims juvenile detainees were sexually abused at youth centers across Illinois for more than two decades. Nearly 100 people have joined a suit filed in the Illinois Court of Claims that accuses the state of allowing sexual abuse to thrive at juvenile facilities. The alleged abuse took place between 1996 and 2017. Some of the plaintiffs independently accused the same staffers of being abusers.
————————————————
Google’s redevelopment of the Thompson Center in Chicago is underway. Governor Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson were on hand for a groundbreaking ceremony yesterday to officially kick off the 280-million-dollar project. Crews are transforming the building at 100 West Randolph Street into the tech giant’s Chicago headquarters. The site is expected to be operational by 2026 and will house two thousand employees.
—————————————————————–
WEATHER:
Today
Showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 10 am. Some of the storms could produce heavy rainfall. High near 77. Southeast wind around 15 mph becoming west-southwest in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 25 mph. The chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
—————————————————————–
Tonight
A 10 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 7 pm. Mostly clear, with a low around 54. West southwest wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 15 mph.
—————————————————————–
OBITUARIES:
Michael S. Farrell, 65, of Ottawa, passed away Thursday, May 2nd, at OSF St. Elizabeth Medical Center. Visitation will be on Wednesday, May 8th, from 2:00 pm until 5:00 pm at Ottawa Funeral Home. A funeral ceremony will follow at 5:00 pm. Cremation rites have been entrusted to Ottawa Funeral Home.
—————————————————————–
Arla Elaine Severson, 92, of Ottawa, passed away on Monday, April 29th, at Pleasant View. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, May 9th at the First Presbyterian Church in Ottawa. Burial will follow at Deer Park Cemetery. Visitation will be from 9:30 to 11 a.m. at the church. Arrangements have been entrusted to the Mueller Funeral Home in Ottawa.
—————————————————————–
LOCAL SPORTS:
Softball
Marquette 14, Midland 1 (5 inn.): At rural Varna
Morris 5, Ottawa 3: At Morris,
Sycamore 1, LPHS 0: At LaSalle,
Seneca 3, St. Bede 2: At Seneca,
Wilmington 4, Streator 3: At Wilmington,
—————————————————————–
Baseball
Ottawa 10, Rochelle 6: At Rochelle,
Wilmington 1, Streator 0: At Wilmington,
Marquette 10, Midland 1: At rural Varna
Seneca 5, St. Bede 1: At Seneca
—————————————————————–
Track and field
Ottawa boys 1st, girls 2nd at Illinois Valley Invite: At King Field,
—————————————————————–
GIRLS SOCCER
La Salle-Peru 9, DePue-Hall 0: At LaSalle
—————————————————————–
BOYS TENNIS
Ottawa (Twp.) – 0, LaSalle (L.-Peru) – 5,
—————————————————————–
MIDDLE SCHOOL SPORTS:
Grand Ridge Grade School has 2 individual athletes and a relay team that qualified on Saturday for the IESA 1A State track and field finals in East Peoria! The 7th-grade girls long jump and 8th-grade boys high jump and shot put. The girl’s 8th grade 4X100 relay team qualified, IESA 1A/2A State Finals are Friday and Saturday at the EastSide Centre, East Peoria.
—————————————————————–
PRO SPORTS:
The Chicago White Sox got tagged for 13 hits during an 8-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Tommy Pham drove in Chicago’s only runs with a two-run home run in the top of the third, but the White Sox never led in the game. Mike Clevinger made his season debut and was charged with his first loss after allowing three earned runs and one unearned run on six hits in two innings. The Southsiders are in last place in the AL Central at 8-and-27. They send Mike Soroka to the mound against the Rays tonight.
—————————————————————–
The Chicago Cubs gave up six runs in the top of the sixth during a 6-3 loss to the San Diego Padres at Wrigley Field. The game was scoreless before San Diego’s offensive eruption. Richard Lovelady was charged with the loss after giving up three runs in a third of an inning out of the pen. Christopher Morel and Yan Gomes both homered in the losing effort. The Cubs remain in second place in the NL Central at 21-and-15. The Northsiders send Shota Imanaga to the mound against San Diego tonight
—————————————————————–
The Chicago Sky won’t have their top draft pick to begin the 2024 season. The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that forward Kamilla Cardoso will miss four to six weeks after suffering a shoulder injury during Chicago’s preseason game against Minnesota over the weekend. Cardoso was the third overall pick in the WNBA Draft last month. She had six points and four rebounds in her preseason debut. Chicago wraps up the preseason with a game against the Liberty tonight.