Analysis of our economy an what we need to do

I had the good fortune of hearing Diane Swonk at a recent conference. She's referenced in this article that I think is very telling of our economy. The article offers some suggestions on what we need to do. In short, we have to have a tough conversation with ourselves about how we're going to prepare our 21st century workforce so we can keep jobs in America since we're now competing in a global marketplace. We need to examine long-term change and not short-term platitudes. Middle class jobs for unskilled workers are going to continue to shrink. Not only are we losing unskilled and low-skill jobs to overseas, our education system is falling behind some of the same overseas economies too, putting us behind in new unskilled and skilled jobs. Schools, community leaders and most importantly, parents, have to re-prioritize education and how it is delivered. Please take a few minutes to read: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20101216/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_special

Congratulations Sterling Newman

Four state championships in 20 years! Absolutely amazing. Congratulations to the team and a job well done representing the community.

Expanding our Web Presence

We're taking our second foray into the world of social media. If you missed our first social media entrance, you can find more here at Nixle. The Nixle service allows you to receive alerts, advisories or other information from the Sterling Police Department via text or email. The sign up link is at the top of the linked page.

This week, we've started our Facebook page. Facebook allows us an additional and very convenient way to get fresh, accurate information out quickly from all of our departments. Check it out today!

Where to start?

I've neglected this page again, a habit I have to break. It's just so easy to get caught up in everything either already on the desk or happening on job sites or out in other departments.

The summer of 2010 was really quite remarkable in retrospect. Hopefully most people will find the majority of the efforts to be quite positive.

-New Trash program
-NWSW Demolition
-$1,000,000 in forgivable loans from EPA
-Demo project in the 600 block of E. 3rd Street
-$2.7million in grants for abandoned and foreclosed home repair
-New Menard's under construction
-Buffalo Wild Wings Opening
-New Kohl's/PetSmart under construction and the old Wal*mart demolished
-The 14"Mill was sold while we continue cleanup work with EPA Grants behind it
-The most street work ever done with the exception of 1996-97 when the MFT bonds were issued thanks to the local option sales tax and stimulus funds
-VA Clinic announced in Sterling
-Continued sewer separation projects
-Created an Administrative Hearing process to speed up cases and ease the case load of an overwhelmed Whiteside County Circuit Court
-Started the planning process for the future of the riverfront

It's been incredible, but that's really just scratching the surface!

It has taken lot of work to get this much accomplished in a down economy without breaking the bank. There has been assistance from the feds, grant writing, cooperation from the county, help from Sterling Today, the Greater Sterling Development Corporation, U of I Extension, and Rock Island Renaissance. Most importantly, we've had a Council willing to look at new ideas and cooperating with others to bring good things here. I can't say enough about the people I get to work with and that help the City do this. I probably owe a whole post about the great people that work in the background and keep a positive attitude! It's not always sunshine and roses, but we have to keep ourselves pointed in that direction to overcome the negatives.

Municipal Band - A Real Sterling Asset

Tonight was Sterling Municipal Band's annual "Spring Concert." Another fine performance from Jon James and the crew. Hope you were able to get out and enjoy it!

The summer concert series at Grandon in downtown Sterling starts the 2nd Wednesday in June and runs through the summer each Wednesday evening. Concerts are free. Bring your blanket or lawn chair and join everyone at the band shell. Each week, service groups are there to provide drinks and food, so you can enjoy a light dinner or evening snack with the concert.

Come on down! http://www.sterlingmunicipalband.com/

Big Changes to Solid Waste!

The City of Sterling is making a big change to how your garbage and recycling are picked up and how the program is paid for.

Trash pickup: Currently, citizens must throw household waste into a special waste pickup bag that must be purchased at the current price of $1.60 each. Buying bags helps encourage people to cut down waste, but it also comes with the inconvenience of buying special bags, ripping and tearing of bags, animals, additional plastic in the landfill, etc.

In July, we will switch to 64+/- gallon garbage carts. No more need for late night trash bag runs on trash night! Simply place your kitchen trash bags in the cart and wheel it to the curb on trash night. The lid will help contain the garbage and keep litter from blowing and animals from getting too inquisitive. The carts are surprisingly easy to move, and unlike a bag, you don't have to drag it nor lift it! If it's still too cumbersome due to a bona fide medical condition or similar, the hauler will work to help you get it picked up.

We also hope that buy having a set fee and no bags to buy, we can help eliminate illegal dumping and trash accumulation in our neighborhoods!

Recycling pickup: Currently, residents have an 18 gallon recycle tub to place all recyclables in. Unfortunately, 18 gallons is hardly enough for most residents these days as we've gotten better about recycling. The open bins overflow and on windy days, we find a lot of plastics in the street. Residents will now receive a second cart for recyclables of either 42 or 64 gallons (to be determined). Everything you can currently recycle, you can continue to recycle, except now you have more room and there will be less litter blowing around your neighborhood!

Rewards $$$! We are very excited to introduce RecycleBank to you! Sterling will be just the 2nd city in Illinois to partner with RecycleBank to bring you rewards just for recycling! Check out their website for more details! In short, each cart is weighed and the more your area of town recycles, the greater the monthly rewards. These rewards include gift certificates and coupons to local and national businesses. If you take advantage of these rewards, you've just taken down your monthly cost of waste disposal while doing your part to help the environment. How neat is that?

Check out these YouTube videos about RecycleBank: Video 1 Video 2 Video 3

Costs: Currently, residents pay $7.50/mo on their water bill for Solid Waste, which includes recycling, yard waste and trash. Additionally, residents pay $1.60 for each "City bag" that has to be used. If you use one bag per week, you'll pay $13.90 to $15.50 per month depending on the number of pick up days that month. Now, you'll have a bill of approximately $13.85 +/- and you'll also get credits back for recycling, effectively reducing that amount even further!

FAQ
When will my trash recycling be picked up?
At this point, your current pick up dates will not change

How will my yard waste be disposed of?
Just as it is now, using either the Kraft paper bags or a container marked with a large "X." You will also have the option of buying a yard waste specific cart if you like.

Do I set my trash in the same place?
At this point, yes. The cart does require space on either side of the cart for the truck to pick up the cart. The Council is considering whether to move trash collection out of the alleys. Alleys require significant maintenance due to the weight of the trucks combined with the freezing and thawing of the alleys each year. Alleys are not built with the same strength as city streets which have much stronger bases beneath them. Trash trucks also run over curbs at alley entrances due to the tight turns required at many alleys. If the Council chooses to move to street collection only, you would be allowed to store your cart neatly against the side of your house.

Who else uses carts?
In Northern Illinois and the Quad Cities, Rock Island, Moline, Dixon, Naperville, Bettendorf, Macomb, Davenport, Sycamore, Mendota, Princeton use carts for trash collection.

Can they be used in the snow?
Toronto, Ontario; Minneapolis,MN; Fargo,ND; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Detroit,MI; Anchorage, AK; Milwaukee, WI; Toledo, OH; Bozeman, MT; Grand Rapids, MI; Saskatoon, Saskatchewan; Billings, MT; Casper, WY; Rapid City, SD; Bismarck,ND; and Madison, WI are all major northern cities that have successfully adopted various cart collection systems. Carts are easily pushed or pulled down driveways or yards by design. While larger than a bag, there's no lifting, dripping or balancing a heavy bag while walking down the drive. No need to push drag or carry a heavy recycling cart to the curb either.

Do I have to buy the carts?
You will receive a trash cart and a recycle cart as part of your regular bill at no additional charge. You may elect to choose a larger trash container for a monthly premium. Yard waste carts are available for separate purchase. The trash and recycle carts are property of the waste hauler. The yard waste cart would become yours and your responsibility.

All of my trash won't fit in the 64 gallon cart, what do I do?
If this is a rare occurrence, you will be able to purchase stickers to place on extra bags like today's bulk waste stickers. If this is a frequent occurrence, you may want to, or you may be asked to switch to a larger container. Most families won't have this issue with good recycling habits. The 64 gallon carts hold more than an equivalent sized bag since there are no wasted corners or lost space to tie up the bags.

In all, this should be a cost effective means to cleaner neighborhoods, added convenience and increased recycling!

Rural Fire Tax Referendum

As in the past, life gets in the way and this gets neglected unfortunately. However, there is a very important issue on Tuesday's ballot for residents in the Sterling Rural Fire District. On January 26th, there was an informational meeting held at the Coliseum. For anyone unable to attend, I have uploaded slide from the meeting here.

Much has been made that rural resident pay one-third the rate of City residents and since the rural area is no more than one-third the calls, that is appropriate. What the City is concerned with is that if the rural district is up to a third of the calls, the rural district should contribute up to a third the total cost.

If rural residents, as they are now, pay one-third the rate, a person with a rural home 1 foot outside city limits is paying one third the taxes of the person next door and inside the City. The City Council has been clear that it's not fair for the City to send the same number of firefighters and equipment to the rural district when those residents are paying a fraction of what City residents pay.

I have also been told that comments have been made that the substation or Station 1 is unnecessary. While we can operate without it, it will no doubt have a service impact in some instances. Unfortunately, whether we cut police, spending on infrastructure or economic development, there will be an impact. That's the unfortunate reality of where we are. The costs of general insurance, health insurance, pensions, road construction and specialty equipment have all risen much faster than normal inflation and revenues.

Lastly, I would ask everyone to review Page 15 of the presentation. Sterling Rural Fire District residents have the LOWEST rate in Whiteside's 12 rural fire districts yet are one of only two districts receiving fire services from full-time firefighters. 8 of 12 districts pay either double or triple the Sterling Rural rate for volunteer service. One cannot reasonably expect the City of Sterling to provide fulltime firefighters at a rate that's half of what other districts pay for volunteers.

Please examine all the facts carefully before voting.