I am always looking for feedback on my newsletter as well as what's
happening in Lake County. If you have any comments or concerns, feel
free to send me an email,
or give me a call at 224-627-0767. If this newsletter was forwarded to
you, please sign up to continue to receive news about Lake County and
District 7.
The Lake County Board will vote on the FY2018
budget in November. Lake County is committed to investing in people and our
communities — that is at the foundation of our strategic plan and carries
through to our budget. It’s a balanced budget that spends $437 million to fund
core services, including transportation and infrastructure, health services,
and public safety. For more than 20 years, Lake County has maintained a AAA bond
rating from both major credit agencies – the highest rating possible. This
budget continues to deliver efficient, cost-effective and accountable programs
and services, by leveraging shared services and consolidation, like in the area
of regional 911, utilizing technology, and streamlining operations.
Watch this video with
the Chair of the Finance and Administrative Services Committee. Check out our
reader-friendly budget summary, and read the entire budget.
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Property owners residing in unincorporated Lake County may be eligible
to save an average of $271 a year on their flood insurance policies.
Through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Community Rating
System program, residents who meet certain requirements are eligible for up to 20
percent savings on flood insurance premiums. Property owners should contact
their flood insurance agent to obtain individual savings information. Visit the
FEMA Flood Smart website as
well as the county’s flood information website to
find more resources.
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Don’t Throw Out Your Pumpkins! Drop Them Off to
be Composted
Bring your pumpkin to
these free drop-off events, so your pumpkins can be composted. Any pumpkins,
gourds and other organics can be included. Please remove candles, yarn, plastic
or other decorations before dropping off your pumpkin.
- 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Nov. 4
at the Village of Gurnee, 235 O’Plaine Road
- 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 4 at the College of Lake County, Parking Lot 3, Grayslake
- 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sunday,
Nov. 5 at the Mundelein Park District’s Community Park Sled Hill, 1401 N.
Midlothian Road
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Household Chemical Waste
Collection The Solid Waste
Agency of Lake County will hold its next household chemical waste collection
from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 4 at the Mundelein Metra train
station, 205 N. Archer Ave. Year-round HCW collections also are offered the
second Saturday and fourth Monday of every month, by appointment only, at the
Gurnee facility. These collections are open to Illinois residents only. View
accepted items |
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To better address veteran
homelessness and veterans in need and in crisis, the Lake County Sheriff’s
Office has partnered with the Veterans Assistance Commission and other county
resources to ensure nobody is left behind.
To address the
challenge and ensure crisis services are available after hours, select
Sheriff’s Office employees received training on issues of veteran homelessness
and veterans “in crisis” as well as transport, shelter, and referral options
for immediate assistance. Watch this
video to learn more about the Veteran Ambassador Program.
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In Lake County, we appreciate
the dedication and commitment of the men and women who have served in the
United States Military. To honor their service, we offer resources to help
veterans and their families. To learn more, visit the Veterans Assistance
Commission website, and sign
up for their monthly newsletter.
Recorder of Deed's
Office Offers Information to Our Veterans
The Lake County Recorder of Deed's Office offers
various services to our veterans and their families. This includes being
the official keeper of veteran’s military records, or DD214. The Recorder’s
Office is happy to provide veterans a free copy of this form upon the
completion of a request for discharge
record.
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Forest Preserve News
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Celebrate Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Day
Whether
you are an expert, novice or just interested in knowing
more about GIS, we invite you to attend GIS Day from
11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 1 in Libertyville. Learn how GIS
is being used by Lake County government and the Lake County
Forest Preserves to improve transparency, create
efficiencies and save tax dollars. See how Lake County used GIS to
respond to the July flood event, learn how to easily eliminate paper
maps and forms by leveraging mobile GIS, view the new
interactive preserve and trail application, and more. Event information
Chili Scramble
at Countryside Golf Course Grab
a friend and join this fall favorite. The Chili Scramble has a 10 a.m. shotgun
start on Sunday, Nov. 5 on Countryside's
traditional course in Mundelein.
With your two-player team you’ll enjoy 18 holes with a cart, chili,
beverages, prizes for winners, and free range balls. Register online or at the Pro Shop.
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Engaging Volunteers for Nature
Walking through Greenbelt Forest Preserve in North Chicago
this fall, you can’t miss the changes. Where there was once a dense wall of
buckthorn, you can now look out across a rare combination of prairie,
interspersed with native shrubs and small trees. This
unique scrubland habitat draws migrating birds such as eastern kingbird,
northern flicker, and brown thrasher.
People are flocking to enjoy Greenbelt and to
help with restoration efforts. In 2016, a $100,000 grant from the Illinois
Coastal Management Program supported this restoration work and
funded project partner, Audubon Great Lakes, to engage the community.
From April 2016 to April 2017, nearly 400 volunteers logged more than 1,000
hours cutting and burning brush, weeding, shrub and seed planting, and
seed collecting. On one workday, 30 students from Abbott Middle
School donned work gloves loppers, and saws to cut buckthorn. Become a volunteer
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When it comes to safe drinking water, public bodies are
required to test for lead and copper. Our water systems are typically tested
for lead and copper every three years. Lake County Public Works has no
lead water lines, and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) even
reduced our lead monitoring requirements as a result of no sampling violations.
However, systems that change water sources, such as switching from wells to
Lake Michigan water, are tested more frequently after the cross over. This
year eight systems were tested and found to be within standards.
- Systems tested in 2017: Vernon Hills, Wildwood, Brooks Farm,
Pekara, Hawthorn Woods, Arden Shores, Grandwood Park, Forest Lake
- Systems to be tested in 2018: Countryside Lake, Fox
Lake Hills, Highland Lake, Knollwood, Arden Shores, Grandwood Park, Forest
Lake
Watch this video to learn how Lake County Public Works is working to keep
the county’s drinking water safe.
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Beginning Jan. 1,
2018, Illinois will require all civil cases to be submitted electronically. eFileIL, Illinois’ new e-filing system, will provide
the ability to electronically file documents through an authorized Electronic
Filing Service Provider (EFSP) anytime for no additional cost using a secure
web portal, thus reducing filing time and trips to the courthouse. The
Lake County Circuit Clerk’s Office will offer free training for attorneys and
other filers on Nov. 16 and Nov. 30 at the Lake County Courthouse to learn more
about the e-filing process. Register by Nov. 1 for the Nov. 16 training.
Register now
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The 2017 Lake County Summer Youth Employment Program
recently wrapped up another exciting summer as more than 200 youth gained
meaningful work experience while earning a paycheck. Funded by the Lake
County Board, the program matches youth with local worksites that offer a paid,
part-time work experience. Learn
more about the Summer Youth Employment Program. |
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More
than 96,000 Lake County students from 142 schools participated in this year’s
Fall Attendance Competition. The top 10 schools in weekly attendance rate
recently were honored by the Lake County Regional Office of Education. Watch this video to learn more about
the competition. |
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Join the Turkey Day Bootcamp Come to the Hunt Club Park Community Center from
7:30 to 9 a.m. Nov. 23 to work off those calories before you feast. Out-of-town
family and friends are welcome to this free event. Learn more
Grandwood
Park scrapbook crops
Join the Grandwood Park Park District's next 12-hour scrapbook crops on Nov. 11
and Dec. 2. Open to ages 15 and older, the scrapbook crops open at 10:30 a.m. Learn more
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