By CAROL TOWNSEND For The Prairie News GALVA – The Galva school board on Monday approved reducing its tax levy from $4.84 to $4.71 per $100 of assessed valuation. The total levy is $4,215,450. In other business, the board unanimously voted to accept a bid from East Moline Glass in the amount of $197,330 for new windows at the Galva Junior Senior High School. The board also approved a bid from Ideal Environmental to remove 74 windows that contain asbestos containing glazing and/or caulking from 46 openings in the original 1960s building. Windows will be removed from the exterior. The…

By JOHN A. BALLENTINE For The Prairie News WYOMING – Prior to the regular school board meeting, Stark county School District 100 held a Truth in Taxation hearing. School superintendent Brett Elliott presented a “rationale for the levy and any increase.” The equalized assessed value [EAV] for 2020 was $123,023,423 and was compared to the 2021 EAV of $127,944,360. The actual tax rate for 2020 was 5.0792 percent compared to the 2021 rate of 5.5757 percent. The estimated increase therefore was 0.4965. Elliott said the school district is anticipating the $40,000 minimum salary for teachers, which will occur in the…

By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post BRIMFIELD – The Brimfield boys basketball team successfully navigated an emotional week to record two wins before heading into an extended break. Three days after packing the high school gymnasium for a memorial service for teammate Jacob Look, who died in a tragic hot tub drowning, Brimfield was back in action at home against Stark County. And instead of a moment of silence in honor of Look , the Indians took part in a moment of loud – with the blessings of the Look family. “It was about as loud as I’ve ever heard…

By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post KNOXVILLE – While winning easily is enjoyable, teams need to be in close games to learn how to win the hard ones. The promising Elmwood girls basketball team experienced that this weekend, falling just short of winning the Knoxville Tournament. After topping the host team last Saturday morning, 51-35, Elmwood (9-3) fell to Illini Bluffs in the title game, 36-29. Elmwood led IB 27-26 after three quarters, but was outscored 10-2 in the final quarter. “Early on we had a lot of good looks at the basket and they just weren’t falling,” Coach Gregg…

By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post ELMWOOD – After years of discussion, and plenty of warm August school days, the Elmwood School Board on Monday approved the installation of a new heating and cooling system for the grade school building. Cost of the HVAC project is estimated to be $2.29 million. Warner Mechanical LLC of Edwards had the low base bid of $2.02 million (before add-ons and $109,200 for contingencies) and will be awarded the project after the board voted unanimously to move ahead. Other bidders were O’Brien Brothers Inc. ($2.16 million base bid), Mechanical Service Inc. ($2.3 million) and…

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Police reports • TRIVOLI – A 24-year-old Canton woman died Tuesday morning after a single-vehicle accident in the 18200 block of Smithville Road, south of Trivoli and northwest of Glasford. At about 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Peoria County Sheriff’s deputies reported finding a vehicle that had struck a power pole and was overturned. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the sheriff’s office. At press time, the Peoria County Coroner’s Office had not yet released information about the…

By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post BRIMFIELD – Though two major issues remain to be resolved, plans are moving forward for the construction of an OSF HealthCare complex on the east edge of Brimfield. “OSF is committed to the project, with the donation of land and a specified amount of philanthropy,” said Christine Bare-Kemper, the strategic philanthropy officer for OSF. “This is a project that’s been going on for two years.” Rita Kress of Brimfield said Tuesday that she will donate 3.5 acres on the southeast corner of Maher Road and U.S. 150 for construction of a new health care…

By JOHN A. BALLENTINE For The Prairie News TOULON – Progress on a new sanitary lift station, or the lack thereof, was a hot topic at the latest meeting of the Toulon City Council. When city engineer Ed Andrews told the council he did not have an exact date when Stark Construction would start moving dirt for the new sanitary sewer system, Mayor Larry Hollis asked, “What about the fabrication of the lift station itself?” Andrews replied that the USEMCO [the fabricator] package is “progressing.” Hollis then asked, “They don’t have a date when that’ll be finished, either?” Andrews went…

Outpouring of support for Jacob Look By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post BRIMFIELD – The tragic death of senior Jacob Look has generated an outpouring of support from the Brimfield community and elsewhere in central Illinois. Look, 17, was found unresponsive in a hot tub by his parents on the evening of Dec. 6. Despite resuscitation efforts by his parents and first responders, Look died shortly after 4 a.m. on Dec. 7. Cause of death was drowning, according to Peoria County Coroner Jamie Harwood. Friends, coaches and administrators uniformly praised Look as an outgoing and inclusive person. Last Sunday, hundreds attended…

Three local county sheriffs retiring By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post The law enforcement scene is changing rapidly across the country – and locally. All three sheriffs in counties where The Weekly Post circulates have announced they will not be seeking reelection next November. That is part of a growing trend in Illinois. Peoria County Sheriff Brian Asbell said he has heard that 18 sheriffs in Illinois have left office since January. “And the rumor is that 80 percent of the sheriffs are not going to run for reelection,” Asbell said.  While each case is different, common motivations to quit include…