McHenry County Blog

Got a couple of photos of Jeaepea’s late afternoon fire this afternoon on the Woodstock Square from a friend of McHenry County Blog.

They appear below:

Windows were broken out at Jenapea's on the Woodstock Square.

Here’s a photo of the stairway to the second floor:

The stairs after the Sunday afternoon fire.

Terry Menzel, Deputy Chief of the Woodstock Fire Rescue District, informs me that the “fire [was] reported during afternoon on Sunday from smoke in apartments above business which was closed.

“Appears origin to be closet with heating /AC unit furnace motor. Awaiting further investigation with insurance company.”

A friend of McHenry County Blog turned photojournalist this afternoon when he spotted a fire in Woodstock.

No flames were visible coming out of the two-story wooden house on Calhoun Street in Woodstock.

Another shot of the response to the house fire.

The view of the house and a fire engine from a different location.

“Tons of equipment,” our correspondent wrote.

Some of the fire fighters and equipment that sped to Calhoun Street.

“About 20 – 35 men,” continued our cell phone guy.

A closer view of some of the Woodstock fire fighters.

Our cameraman was not the only one trying to get shots of the action.

A camera woman with something a bit more powerful than a cell phone camera was on the scene.

The Sunday before, the Tribune syndicated Dick Tracy comic strip’s current creators Joe Staton and Mike Curtis honored Dick Locher for his time as chief cartoonist.

This is how the Dick Tracy comic strip started the day it honored Dick Locher.

Locher has retired and been honored with a statue of Dick Tracy in his hometown of Naperville.  I looked for it briefly a couple of weeks ago, but couldn’t find it.

A summary of Dick Locher's Dick Tracy accomplishments.

The text says that Locher was an assistant to originator Chester Gould, starting in 1957.  When Michael Kilian, who wrote the story, died in 2005, Locher took over those duties, too.  His relationship to the strip is longer than anyone but Gould, the description reads.

When Gould’s assistant Rick Fletcher, who took over when Gould retired, died in 1983, Locher stepped in to save the strip.

I believe it was 1999 in which Woodstock honored Locher at its Dick Tracy Days Parade, which seem to have gone by the wayside, as did the VJ (Victory over Japan) it replaced.

I remember being surprised that day at the boldness with which newly-elected Democratic Party State Representative Jack Franks approached Woodstock Firemen for their votes before the parade.   He reminded those on duty of all the money he had gotten them.  (That was in the days of the big checks and photos of them, Franks and recipients in the Northwest Herald.)

Locher was better known for being the editorial cartoonist for the Chicago Tribune.

One of my favorites was a pitch against higher income taxes run in June of 2009.

It didn’t pass until the Tribune denied him his platform.

= = = = =

I first became aware of Bull Valley’s Rick Fletcher at a Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission.  Sometime in the late 1960′s when I was County Treasurer NIPC held a hearing at the Opera House about its obviously failed finger plan.  A proposal to limit growth along rail lines under what I guess was the mistaken prediction that most people would commute to and from Chicago by rail.

“Where’s your American Flag?” he shouted at the beginning of the meeting.

Fletcher, whose daughter worked for me during the summer, would have really been in tune with the Tea Party sentiments expressed at the Lake County League of Women Voters’ debate between Joe Walsh, Melissa Bean and Bill Scheurer. The demand for the Pledge of Allegiance hit national cable news shows and may have made the difference in Walsh’s narrow defeat of Bean.

A lot of them were on lunch hour, but those who were not got an extra break when fire alarms went off in the McHenry County Courthouse complex.

I was operating a hand drier in a bathroom when a light above it started blinking.

It said, “Fire.”

So, back out in the hall I went and out into the 60-degree weather.

People came out into the back parking lot.

I went to get my camera, which is not allowed in the Courthouse for some reason, and started taking pictures.

Seeing no smoke in back, I decided to walk around the building.

A view of the folks standing outside in front of the Courthouse.

In front there were more people standing in the parking lot.

The Woodstock Fire Protection District station near Woodstock North High School.

As I was next to the jail, I heard fire engines coming.

It seemed like it was ten minutes since I had to leave the courthouse.

The sirens were coming from town, rather than from what I thought was the closest station, which is located near the new Woodstock North High School.

I found Judge Charles Weech after i walked around the jail (no evacuation there).  I told him I didn’t envy him his job and that I was impressed by the quality of judges I had observed.

After a couple of minutes, those who were standing outside went back to work.

A friend of McHenry County Blog on the scene at the McHenry County Fair got this shot of Woodstock Fire Department paramedics treating a person.

Emergency medical personnel assist an overcome fair goer.

There were not many contested races in the April 5, 2011, election to start with, but there are fewer now.

In the Village of Barrington Hills, Trustee candidate Dawn Davis has withdrawn.

Blake Hobson, appointed to fill a vacancy, is no longer in the running for Village of Lakewood Trustee.

Likewise Dennis Palys, who ran unsuccessfully as a Democrat for the McHenry County Board, has dropped his candidacy for Village of Wonder Lake Trustee.

In the contest for Woodstock Fire/Rescue District Trustee, Stephen Jagman withdrew.

Four people have climbed out of the candidate pool for the McHenry High School Board. This pool is at McHenry West High School.

But the real withdrawal story is in the 13-person race for the McHenry High School District 156 Board of Education. Four people withdrew:

• Marybeth Varvil
• Donald Cichoski
• Paul A Stevens
• Joseph W Meyer

Lakewood Fire Department

At its Tuesday night meeting in the village-owned Red Tail Golf Course trailer complex, the Lakewood Village Board voted to hire the Woodstock Fire Protection District to replace American Emergency Service Corporation.

The Gary Jensen firm, which provides privatized fire protection services, provided service to the village when the City of Crystal Lake wanted to charge an amount which village officials thought would eat up a disproportionate proportion of the budget.

Woodstock Fire Protection District Chief Ralph Webster attended the meeting to answer questions.

Crystal Lake wanted to charge an amount equal to the tax rate levied on city residents, even though the mix of buildings needing protection in Lakewood was far different than that in Crystal Lake.

One of my economics professors probably would have observed that Crystal Lake officials did not know the meaning of marginal cost, that they did not compare marginal cost with marginal benefit.

In other words, Crystal Lake could provide Lakewood with the fire protection its mainly homes needed for far less than it wanted to charge. The result of the break-up was that Crystal Lake’s Fire Department lost about $500,000 a year.

And the creation of an new Lakewood Fire Department.

Lakewood Village Board met in the Redtail Golf Course Club House and voted with out dissent to have the Woodstock Fire Protection District provide coverage.

Now, Lakewood village officials have cut a five-year deal with Woodstock’s fire department with a five-year automatic extension that allows the savings of $100,000 next year, despite the $120,000 buyout.

While that is good news for village coffers, the news was decidedly bad for the golf course.

That will be explained tomorrow.

Four years ago negotiations broke down between the City of Crystal Lake and the Village of Lakewood concerning fire protection.

Crystal Lake officials insisted that Lakewood residents pay an amount calculated by using the tax rate Crystal Lake residents pay.

Sounds reasonable, doesn’t it?

The problem was that, with projected increases, most of Lakewood’s budget would be eaten up by providing fire protection in the foreseeable future.

Because there were other essential services–police protection and snow removal come to mind–a more economical approach was sought.

And, one was found by contracting with Gary Jensen’ American Emergency Service Corporation.

And Crystal Lake officials, seemingly not understanding the concept of marginal income and marginal expense, lost about a half a million a year in revenue which most assuredly did not cost that much in expenses.

Here's the unostentatious Lakewood Fire Station.

The privatized bargain resulted in Lakewood having its own fire station (nothing that looks like a traditional fire station, but serviceable) and ownership of the fire equipment.

Now, after shopping around, Lakewood officials are on the verge of contracting with the Woodstock Fire Protection District for the five years beginning on January 1st.

Because there is one year left in the contract with Jensen’s firm, there will be some kind of a buyout. I would imagine that there would still be less total outlay than if the switch to Woodstock were not made.

I got an email from a fireman last night which expressed fears that all would lose their jobs.

According to the letter below, that is not automatically to be the case. I’m told supervisory personnel will not be officer positions in Woodstock, but regular firemen will have the chance to take the entry level test and, if successful, would be hired by Woodstock.

Because Woodstock is a union shop, anyone hired would undoubtedly be required to join.

But with Woodstock FPD employment would probably come better fringe benefits than are now offered.

The letter below from Village President Erin Smith says Lakewood residents will notice no differences.

The fire trucks will still have “Lakewood Fire Department” painted on their sides. The equipment will still be housed on Haligus Road.

RE: Lakewood Fire Department

Dear Resident:

Approximately four years ago, you received a letter from Village President Julie Richardson and the Board of Trustees regarding the creation of the Lakewood Fire Department. This announcement was the culmination of many months of study and discussion.

At midnight on January 1, 2007 the Lakewood Fire Department began to provide services to our residents. It was a proud and historic day for our community.

As you may recall from the original letter, the fire protection and paramedic services of the Lakewood Fire Department are being provided by American Emergency Services (AES). Under this business model, the Village of Lakewood owns the Fire Station on Haligus Road and all of the fire equipment.

A contractor provides the oversight and personnel for the daily operations. AES has acted with the utmost professionalism, and we will forever owe Gary Jensen a debt of gratitude for his pivotal role in the creation of the Lakewood Fire Department.

From the beginning of this endeavor, we contemplated that the contractual relationship would be reviewed periodically to ensure that the services were being provided in the most effective and cost efficient manner possible.

At this time, we have determined that the Woodstock Fire/Rescue District (WFRD) is best able to provide these services.

This is in no way a reflection of the quality of services being provided by AES. The WFRD simply has economies of scale that are not available to AES.

As proposed, the current firefighters and paramedics (not the supervisory staff) will keep their jobs and will be eligible to apply for full-time positions with the WFRD during the next testing cycle. For our residents, this transition will be seamless.

A Lakewood Fire Truck on Lake Avenue at Gate 10.

If emergency services are needed, a call will be made to 911 and a Lakewood Fire Department engine and ambulance will be dispatched to the scene. All parties are working towards a January 1, 2011 effective date.The WFRD will begin its formal deliberations of this proposal this week, and our Board of Trustees will consider the intergovernmental agreement at our meeting on December 14.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions regarding the changes at the Lakewood Fire Department.

Sincerely,

Erin Smith, Village President