Post-Easter post

The grass is green and growing and many people have already begun mowing. The trees are getting leaves and should be much greener by the weekend. There was a girls softball game in Brookside Park on Monday evening with a big crowd. I am not sure who was playing, but it might be middle-school girls. In February parents were given permission to use the field for practice and games.

Construction for the Parks for People Campaign has resumed. Concrete sidewalks and a shelter floor were poured last week for the dog park on Bunkum. A bit more fencing needs to be installed, and then it should pretty much ready for the dogs. At the Monnett/Staddon park grading and stone removal have begun.

Speaking of Bunkum, the early history of Rensselaer has frequent mention of a town called Bunkum downstream along the Iroquois. This past week I learned where it was. The town changed its name sometime in the past and is now Iroquois, Illinois. The town has about 150 residents. (Picture provided by Dave V.)

An April 19 post to the Facebook SJC Puma Pride page by three people who seem to have reliable information discussed issues in re-opening SJC. It noted that without accreditation, SJC needs to partner with another institution to get restarted. That is the role that Marian is serving. They noted that in the past SJC had served in the helper role to get Calumet College started. That took 22 years, so people should not expect that SJC will stand alone for many years. It also noted that time is taking a toll on the buildings and that some will have to be razed and others renovated, and estimates of that cost are in the $20 to $30 million range. Perhaps the most interesting item in the note was that the College is paying half the income from the Waugh land to Farm Credit for an undisclosed number of years to settle the debt.

The Rensselaer City Council met on Monday evening for a short meeting. The most interesting item on the agenda was SJC related, a discussion of a proposed Little 500 cart race that would use Drexel Drive. This had been presented at the previous meeting and tabled. The person who came to the meeting, Ron Kasperian, requested that it be tabled again to the next meeting because he had not been able to contact all the people who might be impacted by the race. Rather than vote on a motion to table, several Council members asked questions and raised concerns. Rick Odle thought that the $2 million in insurance that the organizers had arranged was not enough. George Cover said he saw no upside to the community from the event and Odle agreed. Cover also suggested that closing the streets as requested would set a precedent that the Council should not set and Bill Hollerman agreed. Cover then moved to proceed to a vote and the motion passed as did the motion to deny the closing of the roads for the race.

In other business, the Council approved a transfer of funds within the Clerk/Treasurer's office to pay for renovation for new office space. The Council approved placing a street light on Wood Road. It also approved changing the date of its second May meeting from the 27th to the 28th. (The 27th is Memorial Day.) A request from the Chamber of Commerce for a $100 sponsorship for Shred Day was approved as were requests or flowers for funerals of two mothers of City employees. The Park Department reported that its 1999 Chevy truck was failing and it received permission to get quotes for replacement. A 5-K race with an in-town route was approved for July 20. The Police Chief, responding to a request at the previous Council meeting, reported that when cars parked on both sides of Weston by St. Augustine's, the road was single lane and he will consult with the principal of the school before proceeding further. The City Attorney reported he is working on an ordinance to deal with unsightly properties. The Fire Department has a fish fry on May 3,  the town-wide yard sale is May 4, and the Gas Department Open House is May 3, 11-2. Practical Tree Service has removed about ten of the approximately 80 trees that they will be cutting down.