Local 150 workers went on strike July 1, days before the scheduled closure of the Belmont crossing. That project is expected to resume shortly.  The crossing is now scheduled to be closed from 5 a.m. Wednesday, July 28 to on or before 5 a.m., Thursday, Aug. 12.

“Work has resumed on several, but not all, Village projects,” according to the village website. Among the projects halted by the strike were the Washington and McCollum park stormwater retention projects, storm sewers along Benton Avenue and several resurfacing projects.

Local 150 members operate heavy machinery.  At the time of the job action, the union said contractors are seeking too many concessions, including increased costs for health insurance.  The union is not not seeking a net increase in pay, only increases to cover current health benefit costs, according to the union statement.

Local 150 members are expected to vote on the agreement at 6:30 p.m. today.

Bryan Place residents can look to regain power later today, once Com Ed has finished installing a new transformer, said Communications Director Doug Kozlowski, who with Village Manager Dave Fieldman, has been maintaining contact with Com Ed since Friday’s storms knocked out power to at least 1,000 Downers Grove residents.

Another 25 customers in the area of Belmont Road and Pershing Avenue are due to see power restored – if Com Ed can locate the household that has been running a generator.

The generator could be a serious safety concern once the electrical grid comes back online, because it could send unregulated voltage through the system, Kozlowski explained. Com Ed personnel are going door to door in an attempt to locate the generator, he said.

Also of concern to the village is the one or two customers who may not get power restored along with the rest of their neighborhood. Once it appears the area is back online, Com Ed considers the job accomplished.

Residents without power may not realize that they have to contact Com Ed again if they continue to have a problem, so the village has been helping with that, Kozlowski said. “We were working phones pretty late last night.”

As of last night, at least one resident of the Banchory Woods development was still without power, he said.

The village is attributing the outages to tree branches falling on wires. Public Works has been attending to the damages since the first storm was clearing the area and was preparing chippers and calling in workers by mid-afternoon on Friday.

While many areas have been cleared, the village continues to address damage to parkway trees, Kozlowski said. “Part of it is waiting to see what branches turns brown on trees,” he said.

As a reminder, the village doesn’t dispose of vegetation that falls on private property.

Photo credit: Greg

These photos were taken in the immediate aftermath of the afternoon wave of high winds and heavy rain.

In my neighborhood, the area north of Prairie and west of Main seemed hardest hit, with many big limbs down.

The village public works department was out as soon as the worst of the storm had passed, working to free a Mercedes at Seeley and Chicago, right, from branches that had fallen on it (no one was injured) and also to clear an tree split by the winds on Chicago near Saratoga (bottom photo, right).

The second round of storms blew through Friday night, leaving many homes on the northwest side (including mine) without electricity for more than 12 hours. Power was restored by Saturday afternoon.

Pictured at right (click to enlarge) is a commercial property on Ogden Avenue at Prince Street, where the weeds have grown tall enough to obscure the fire hydrant. Another formerly shaggy downtown commercial property, which is currently for sale, has been recently restored to neatness by a grounds crew.

The village code calls for action once grass or weeds hit the 10-inch mark, said Doug Kozlowski, director of communications.

With the growing number of foreclosures and unoccupied commercial properties, the problem of overgrown green spaces is also on the upswing.

When Code Services personnel observe or are alerted to  such properties, they contact the mortgage holders and give them 10 days to deal with the overgrowth.

That task is more complicated when the foreclosure process is underway, Kozlowski said. “In those situations it may be difficult to contact the lender or mortgage company. So at that point, the village will hire a contractor to do the work.”

The village recoups its costs by putting a lien on the property, he said.

Neighbors or other residents are often the first to report overgrown properties or other property maintenance issues. “They are absolutely encouraged to contact us so we can take steps to remedy the situation,” Kozlowski said.

“Because of the weather we’ve had things are definitely growing and the calls have increased.”

Want to report an overgrown property? Call the village at (630)434-5500.

The club, which has hosted annual Oktoberfest celebrations and also operated the Heritage Fest Beer Garden for the past five  years, is confident in its ability to pull off Grove Fest, said President Barb Wysocki. The three-day event is scheduled for July 15-18.

“We’ve taken a hard look at this,” Wysocki told the DGreport. “We know the risks involved, but we feel if we run it effectively, we will be able to make a profit.”

Rotary will be responsible for covering all expenses relating to the festival, including those incurred by police, fire, public works and senior village staff. The club is required to pay $25,600 two weeks before the festival and also to furnish another $30,720 in cash or letter of credit to cover any overruns.

When the item was discussed at last week’s workshop meeting, commissioners repeatedly emphasized that all costs associated with the festival will be born by Rotary.

Concerns were also expressed regarding Rotary’s attendance estimate of 25,000, which some commissioners considered too low. If more people come than can be accommodated in the entertainment garden, they will be encouraged to visit local shops and restaurants, Wysocki said. Police will be on hand to help with crowd control.

With public safety its chief concern and responsibility, the village reserves the right to cancel or shutdown the festival at any time. “They want us to execute perfectly,” Wysocki said.

Realizing that crowd control could be an issue, the Rotary purposely conceived GroveFest as a much smaller event than previous village-run festivals. There will be about a dozen amusement rides for all ages, a single stage featuring local bands and other homegrown talent, and an “entertainment garden” that will serve beer and food provided by local restaurants.

“This will be a total community event,” Wysocki said. “There won’t be lots of vendors from other cities or states.”

The site will be the library parking lot and nearby commuter parking lot along the south side of the train tracks. Main and Curtiss streets will remain open.

Wysocki said GroveFest will be marketed only to Downers Grove and neighboring communities in an attempt to keep attendance within bounds. Heritage Fest typically attracted more than 100,000 attendees.

The club plans to recruit and train as many as 200 volunteers to staff the festival, Wysocki said. Members are also carving out an opportunity for up to 20 local non-profit organizations to participate. The groups have in the past relied on Heritage Fest for fundraising.

The council also encouraged Rotary to work with the Downers Grove Arts Council, which also had a festival proposal in the works. The arts council was looking to create an event that would allow local arts groups to recoup some of the financial support lost as a result of the 2010 village budget cuts.

Wysocki said the Rotary and the arts council had discussed working together on a festival, however philosophical differences made the difficult. The arts council wanted to use an events company to produce the festival, while Rotarians wanted to handle it themselves, Wysocki said.

“We respectfully and cordially decided (a partnership) wouldn’t work,” she said.

The arts council submitted its proposal to the village on April 8. Given that it had taken several weeks of discussion to bring the Rotary proposal up to village standards, commissioners decided time is too short to fully vet the arts council’s submission.

Rotary has also made contact with the teen organizers of the “Bring Back the 2010 Downers Grove Heritage Fest” page on Facebook, which has more than 6,000 members.

“We will be looking for volunteers if any of those individuals would like to help out and volunteer for service hours,” Wysocki said.  “We’re going to need people to clean up tables and perform other tasks and we will be reaching out through Facebook.”

Now that the council has approved the proposal, work can swing into high gear with less than three months until opening day. Wysocki said the organization is confident its 44 member professionals — ” a lot of smart people capable of planning and executing events” — are up to the task.

And “we’re crossing our fingers that we have great weather.”

Photo credit: Todd McDaniel

Updated: 9 a.m. April 9 with bank account information.

Aid efforts are underway for displaced residents

Fire Chief Jim Jackson told a breath-taking story of courage and cooperation as he recounted for the village council April 6 the department’s mammoth effort against the three-alarm fire that devastated a west-side apartment building in the early morning hours of April 5.

In all, 100 firefighters representing 25 departments and 45 companies battled the fire, which investigators have determined broke out in the attic of the 16-unit Downers Belmont Apartments at 4901 Belmont Ave.  The preliminary investigation was not able to pinpoint the cause due to the building’s precarious and unsafe condition, Jackson told the DGreport.

Firefighters arrived at the scene within four minutes of receiving the 12:15 a.m. call to find heavy smoke at the roof line and a fire already engulfing the center portion of the building.

There was no alarm notification inside the two-story, 16-unit building, Jackson told commissioners. “It was a true life-and-death situation.”

Five people were assisted out of the first floor and six people from the second floor, he said. At that point, a partial ceiling collapse cut off the firefighters’ exit and threatened an imminent flashover or simultaneous ignition of all combustible material.

Earlier, firefighters had heard a rumbling  in the second-floor ceiling, which indicated the fire had already had a “great head start,” Jackson said.

“We found fire from one end to the other of the attic, which is an indication we need to get out,” he said. He likened the trusses in the 165-foot by 60-foot attic to “a lumber yard.”

“We found a second way out and went into a defensive attack from the outside to control the fire to the building of origin, Jackson said. The roof of the structure collapsed within 20 minutes and the interior pancaked, leaving the exterior walls with no support.

It took firefighters more than three hours to tamp down the fire and more than 15 hours to entirely extinguish it, said Jackson, who praised the work of village fire, police and public works departments, the mutual aid companies, and Commissioner Geoff Neustadt, a District 58 employee, who arrived to open Henry Puffer Elementary School to the building’s evacuated residents.

He also commended the residents who assisted the first engine company in getting the heavy hoses to some of the five hydrants used to douse the fire. “They wanted to do something to help,” Jackson said. “It was a great thing.”

The fact that there were no lives lost and no injuries suffered, “is a true account of our firefighters,” he said. The building was less than half-occupied, which made the rescuers’ task less daunting.

The fire is the third major residential fire in five months and the first apartment fire in a decade, Jackson said.

Now comes the aftermath.

Rev. Mark Moore of Belmont Baptist Church, 5430 Belmont Road,  is coordinating the aid effort. Immediate needs are for clothing, bedding, towels, sheets, toiletries and non-perishable groceries, particularly items that can be made quickly and easily.  Grocery and big-box store gift cards would also be appreciated. However, none of the residents is settled yet, so furniture needs have not yet been determined.

One of the displaced families has eight children ranging in age from toddlers to teens, so girls’ and boys’ clothing of all sizes is needed, Moore said. Toys and books, preferably new,  also would be appreciated.

“My understanding is they lost it all,” Moore said of the residents, who escaped with only their lives.

Local residents who wish to donate can bring items to the church between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. daily through the next  or call (630)963-2230 for an appointment.

More good news

Todd McDaniel, principal of Henry Puffer school is also working closely with the displaced families who have children at the school.

Both his school community and others — including a Pierce Downer mother who arrived first thing Tuesday morning with four new backpacks — have sprung into action, McDaniel said.

The school is collecting clothing for the six children affected by the fire, while staff members brought the families groceries and pizza for dinner last night.

“There’s been a steady stream of people bringing in small appliances, linens and bedding,” McDaniel said. “It’s really unbelievable. This is when a community’s true integrity is tested.”

Businesses have also been quick to help. One of the families lost their car keys in the fire and were concerned how to gain access to their older automobile. Bob Carter Auto Body not only found a used steering column and keys, but also offered to donate all labor for the repair, McDaniel said.

O’Hare Towing, another local company stepped up to tow the car into Carter’s — again at no charge.

Meanwhile, McDaniel met Mike Busse, president of the Community Bank of Downers Grove, to establish a fund to help with rent, utilities,  food, medication and other necessities for the three Puffer school families who lost their homes.

Checks made payable to  “Puffer Elementary Fire Fund” can be dropped off or mailed to Community Bank of Downers Grove, Attn: Jeanine Sorn, 1111 Warren Avenue, Downers Grove, IL  60515

The village is asking residents to complete a 16-question Garbage Service Survey online, or to stop by Village Hall, 801 Burlington Ave., Public Works, 5101 Walnut Ave. or the library, 1050 Curtiss St., for a paper copy. The village says the survey takes about seven minutes, but most will probably be able to dispense with it in half that time.

“The results of the survey will be presented in a report to the Village Council and will be used to help determine customer preferences regarding garbage services,” the village Web site states.

The survey will be available for about a month.

As for last month’s DGreport poll on preferences for local garbage collection, a third of respondents favored a toter for recyclables and half wanted a choice of stickers or toters for garbage. The current 18-gallon recycling bins were favored by only two of 74 respondents.

Liquid freeze-point depressant chemicals were applied to the road surfaces to help prevent the snow or ice from bonding to the roadway.  The result is that the winter precipitation either melts or at least becomes easier to plow. The anti-icing compounds also result in the need for less salt and lower labor costs, according to the village.

“It also has a number of additional benefits, including reductions in the amount of damage to trees, grass, and shrubs adjacent to the roads and in the chloride content of run-off that goes into lakes and streams,” the village stated on its Web site.

Residents can expect the same level of service as in previous years, Newlon said, with public works crews attacking the 170 miles of village streets on a triage basis.

Priority One streets, those with the highest traffic volume or which lead to schools and Good Samaritan Hospital, are addressed first.

Secondary roadways with daily traffic of 200 to 2,000 vehicles are considered Priority Two streets.  Priority Three streets are the village’s 333 cul-de-sacs and dead-end streets with daily traffic of fewer than 200 cars.

Public Works  aims to clear Priority One and Two roadways down to bare pavement within 12 hours after a snow event, Newlon said.

“With Priority Three, we strive to provide bare pavement within 18 hours.”  However, salt products aren’t as effective on low-volume streets, so bare pavement isn’t always achievable, she said.

The village also works to control snow and ice on downtown sidewalks and at the village’s three commuter stations within eight hours of the end of a snowfall.

Other village thoroughfares are maintained by the county and the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Newlon reminded residents that the village doesn’t allow parking on streets between 9 p.m. and 6 p.m. when more than three inches of snow has fallen. She also encouraged homeowners to clear their sidewalks and keep hydrants accessible.

In remarks to the council, resident Bill Wrobel of the Downers Grove Watch asked that the village to require businesses along Ogden Avenue and Main Street to properly dispose of driveway and parking lot snow.

“We are advocating citizens and merchants alike to keep the sidewalks clean,” he said. “We will be contacting merchants this month and next month to try to ask their cooperation to abide by the village ordinance. We think public safety warrents everyone’s cooperation.”

The village’s 2008-09 Snow Removal and Ice Control policy is available here. For a map of village snow routes, click here.

Members of the budget team, which includes personnel from the village manager’s office and finance office, have been posting a series of “budget responses’ on the village Web site for the first time this year.

“We’re trying to be as transparent as possible,” said Doug Kozlowski, community relations director. “So much more is available now as part of the discussion.”

The responses seek to answer questions posed by village commissioners and residents. They are brief, to the point and well-written. Here’s the current list, with links:

• Community Events and Community Grants

• Counseling and Social Services

• DuPage Senior Citizens Council

• Fleet Budget Responses

• General Budget Questions

• Infrastructure and Facilities

• Other Funds Responses

• Police Department Operations and DARE

• Property Tax and Other Revenues