Unit 4 Moves Upset Teachers Union

The various renovations and changes in Unit 4 involve a lot of work to move teachers and classrooms around during the process. This has raised questions by the local teachers union about labor and compensation issues. The district released a statement stating that a previous agreement should already cover the issues. From WILL:

The Champaign Federation of Teachers has filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge against the Unit 4 school district. The union says the district is refusing to bargain over the impact of teachers changing classrooms.

The CFT filed the charge with the Illinois Educational Relations Board Thursday evening. It comes as teachers at Dr. Howard Elementary and the Columbia Center prepare to move, ahead of Dr. Howard being demolished and rebuilt over the next two years.

"The Board refuses to sit down and negotiate with the union on how the moves shall be made, when they shall be made, and how the teachers will be compensated for their time in making the moves without being overly disruptive to the end of the school year,” CFT president Jen White said in a statement.

In a statement, the district says it is “confused” by the union’s action, and that it bargained with the union over the issue and signed an agreement in 2013.

More at the full article here. FoxIllinois had a video segment on the issue available here.

Local Immigration Data

The University YMCA's New American Welcome Center and others have issued a report and analysis of local immigration data for Champaign, Urbana, and Champaign County overall presented in today's News-Gazette (article here with more information below). The full report is available here. A local panel discussion was also held.  A quick snippet from the overview:

Champaign County is home to one of the largest immigrant populations in Illinois outside of Chicagoland. In 2016, 1 in 10 county residents, 1 in 8 Champaign residents, and 1 in 5 Urbana residents were immigrants—joining our community from over 76 countries around the world. Our neighbors are from China and Mexico, Germany and India, Pakistan and the Philippines, Colombia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Champaign County was 1 of only 13 counties in Illinois with a growing population in 2016, in no small part thanks to immigrants.

And the overview numbers (click to enlarge):

Today's News-Gazette had an article today which went through the data and methodology and work behind it. It included some common myths that the study debunked:

Debunking myths

Andre said the findings challenge the narrative that immigrants aren't educated enough to contribute to the community, including:

— Education: Among non-college students, immigrants were 50 percent more likely to hold a bachelor's degree or higher than their U.S.-born counterparts. More than 21 percent had a doctoral degree, compared to about 4 percent of their U.S. counterparts.

— Health care: Fewer immigrants received government-subsidized health benefits, with 8.6 percent on Medicaid or Medicare, compared with 26.2 percent of U.S.-born residents. More than 84 percent of immigrants had private health care coverage.

— Marriage: Non-student immigrants were also more likely to be married — 74.1 percent, compared to 53.9 percent for U.S.-born residents not in college.

— Home ownership: Immigrants owned $746.7 million in property, though a smaller percentage (31.2 percent) owned homes compared to U.S.-born residents (48.1 percent).

— Labor force: Immigrants made up 12.3 percent of the labor force and 25.1 percent of STEM workers in 2016. They tended to concentrate in certain jobs: teachers, scientists, software developers, cooks and scientific technicians.

The report estimated that immigrants helped preserve 1,104 manufacturing jobs "that would have otherwise vanished or moved elsewhere."

Andrew Lim, director of quantitative research at New American Economy, said that number is derived in part from a detailed study by a University of Washington professor of how undocumented immigrants affect counties across the United States. It concluded that immigrants fill critical niches in manufacturing industries, from highly skilled engineers and researchers to manual labor, keeping companies competitive and operating costs low and allowing them to stay in the United States rather than move overseas, he said.

Full article here.

UIUC and Community Investment

Community investment was a major topic at a recent conference hosting roughly a hundred local community leaders. From today's News-Gazette:

UI chancellor: Chicago initiatives will add resources for C-U, not drain them
Chancellor Robert Jones reassured community leaders Tuesday that expanding the University of Illinois' presence in Chicago won't drain resources from Champaign-Urbana, arguing that two new initiatives there will do "just the opposite."

He also committed to expanding the "wildly successful" UI Research Park in Champaign — with its 100 companies, 2,000 employees and $60 million payroll — arguing that it will be a major draw for Chicago innovators looking to develop startups and use the UI's expertise to become more competitive globally.

Jones was referring to the proposed Discovery Partners Institute in Chicago, a public-private research partnership led by the UI that would anchor a statewide "innovation network," in addition to a new joint project with the University of Chicago in Hyde Park...

Topping his list is the new Carle Illinois College of Medicine, which just accepted its first class of 32 students and will open its doors July 1.

Drawing applause, Jones credited the vision and determination of former Chancellor Phyllis Wise and Carle CEO James Leonard "for bringing something to the table that we believe is going to revolutionize health care, how medicine is taught and how medicine is practiced."

He predicted the medical school could be the catalyst for a new medical district, "a robust biomedical and health sciences research and innovation ecosystem second to none on the planet."

On other topics:

— Enrollment: With more than 40,000 applications for fall 2018, Jones predicted the next freshman class could be a record, falling somewhere between 7,500 and 7,600 students. A total of 7,518 freshmen enrolled last fall, just below the 2016 record of 7,592.

— Hockey: Asked for an update on a proposed hockey arena downtown, Jones said the university has to make sure that adding hockey makes sense programmatically, academically and financially. With startup costs estimated at $50 million, its future hinges on donor support, he said.

"We're excited," Jones said, but added, "It's not going to happen next year."

— Advisory council: Jones plans to finalize his new community advisory council in a few weeks, made up of civic and business leaders. He said membership will rotate to ensure broad perspectives are included. He hopes it can address economic development as well as larger challenges such as homelessness and access to education and health care.

Full article with more details here.

Urbana Budget Update

Urbana's City Budget appears to be getting a positive reception according to yesterday's News-Gazette:

Urbana council members voice support for mayor's proposed budget
The city council expressed mainly favorable views on the proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year when it was presented at Monday night's meeting.

Mayor Diane Marlin's proposal has cuts that are slated to save the city about $600,000. A public hearing on it is set for June 4; the council will vote on it June 18.

Marlin said the city is working to regain financial stability after having expenditures outpace revenue, the ongoing Carle Foundation Hospital property-tax case and continued fallout from the state budget impasse that ended last year.

One of the biggest cuts is to close the Urbana Civic Center at 108 E. Water St., which Marlin said operates at a loss of $40,000 to $50,000 a year. Little has been done to maintain the building after it was built in the 1970s, and she said the city can't afford to renovate it now.

"It's painful ... especially for my constituents, because they go there a lot," Alderman Aaron Ammons said about the center. "I do agree with the mayor, though. It's definitely unfortunate that the maintenance wasn't kept up with."

Another proposed cut is to reduce funding for the Urbana Free Library by $55,400 annually. Chris Scherer, director of the library's board, said the reductions won't result in cuts to staff or operating hours at this time.

One option Marlin picked to increase city revenues is to raise parking-meter rates for downtown streets and lots. Those would increase from 25 to 50 cents per hour and be enforced from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Full article with more details here. The day before the News-Gazette had a more detailed breakdown of the proposed budget available here.

Champaign Library

The Champaign Public Library will be opening an hour early at 9am on Saturdays starting in June. From Today's News-Gazette:

Champaign council gives initial OK to library's budget, extra hour
...
The hour increase comes a year after the library was able to restore hours previously cut in a cost-saving measure.

Included in the proposed budget is $49,643 to be used to fill a half-time position and increase the hours for a librarian and library associate. There's no funding for several other full-time-equivalent positions that remain unfilled, but Pittman said that could change in future budgets.

Public library officials did a community survey to establish their focus for upcoming years, and Pittman said a big takeaway was that people want more library hours on Fridays and weekends.

"Our priority in the future will be to fill more vacant positions, to add back hours at the main library and possibly even expand to better serve our community," Pittman said.

One way the library is expanding its services now is by letting all Unit 4 School District students receive a library card, no matter the city they live in.

Full article here.

Champaign Police Face Lawsuit

The Champaign Police Department is facing an excessive force lawsuit from an incident last year. From today's News-Gazette:

Suit claims Champaign officers used excessive force, covered it up with charges
A Chicago attorney whose firm has filed several excessive-force lawsuits against the Champaign Police Department has filed another, alleging that two officers slammed a man into a door in his home last fall without provocation, knocking him out, then concealed their excessive use of force by charging the man with battery to a police officer...

The suit says Corey was at home recovering from a medical procedure when officers William Killin and Dillon Holloway knocked on his door about 10:45 p.m. to investigate the report. It says when Corey told them they could not come in, Killin shoved Corey into the apartment, then both officers slammed him face-first into an interior door, causing him to black out and resulting in injuries to his shoulder and face.

The lawsuit claims that the officers then attempted to cover up their excessive use of force by arresting Corey on a preliminary charge of battery to a police officer, but prosecutors later voluntarily dismissed the charge after viewing video from one of the officers' body cameras...

Nathan has filed several lawsuits against authorities in Champaign and Vermilion counties, calling it an area in which his firm has "specialty and expertise." He was the attorney of record in several lawsuits against twice-fired former Champaign police Officer Matt Rush...

Champaign police spokeswoman LaEisha Meaderds said the two officers named in the suit are still with the department and declined to comment further.

Full article here.

Cabbie Rules and Convictions

In a joint project by the cities of Champaign and Urbana, local cab drivers have given a preliminary okay to proposed new regulations. Part of those regulations would avoid a blanket ban for any criminal convictions but still allow discretion on hiring. From yesterday's News-Gazette:

Cabbies give C-U rule tweaks the nod
A handful of local taxicab employees reviewed proposed changes to vehicle-for-hire regulations in Champaign and Urbana on Thursday.

The cities are proposing the changes jointly and are planning to have councils vote on them in July. They would only apply to each city's public streets.

Services such as taxicabs and limousines — not ride-share companies like Uber and Lyft — are what both cities define as vehicles for hire.

When asked if the city governments should consider putting regulations on ride-share companies, all of the meeting attendees said yes. They said current ride-share regulations from the state, and within the companies themselves, are substandard.

Under the proposed tweaks, those who apply for a vehicle-for-hire license wouldn't be automatically rejected if they have any prior conviction. Instead, they would be considered if they haven't been convicted of the following offenses:

— Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

— Fraud.

— Sexual offenses — or being in the National Sex Offenders Registry database.

— Use of a motor vehicle to commit a felony.

— Crimes involving property damage, theft, acts of violence or acts of terror.

In addition, an applicant's conviction has to be at least four years old. If an application is rejected, it can be appealed under the proposed regulations.

More information at the full article here. In related news, one local cab company has had to cut back its hours recently. From the News-Gazette earlier this week:

Yellow Checker Cab will no longer run taxis on weekends or between the hours of midnight and 5 a.m., owner Redith Ewing said Wednesday.

"We have shut down for Saturday and Sunday and will be running shorter hours due to not having enough drivers and dispatchers," Ewing said. "Some of our customers are in a panic thinking we are closing, and that is not the case."

The company previously operated 24 hours a day.

UIUC Employment Followup

In a followup of yesterday's Education Roundup post, there were a couple additional stories today that bear on the employment plan discussed at the UIUC Board of Trustee meeting in it. From yesterday's News-Gazette on the potential retention crisis:

Is UI faculty 'retention crisis' looming?
As the University of Illinois gears up to hire hundreds of new faculty, the head of a faculty advisory group warned trustees Thursday about a potential faculty "retention crisis" because of stagnating pay and retirement benefits.

Ranjan Karri, associate professor in the UI Springfield's College of Business and Management and a member of the University Senates Conference, said the number of tenure-system faculty is on the decline even as non-tenure track faculty ranks have risen by 5 percent over the past 19 years. In all, 44 percent of UI faculty are now non-tenure track, including 36 percent at the Urbana campus, he said.

Adjusting for inflation, average salaries for full professors are 2 percent below 2013 levels at the Urbana campus, he said, and flat for associate or assistant professors there.

The UI provided no raises in 2016, a 2 percent midyear salary program in 2017 and 1 percent this year.

The retirement system adds another challenge, he said. Faculty members hired since 2011 are part of the state's "Tier 2" pension system, which is far less generous than the plan covering more senior employees.

"Retention and morale of existing faculty across the system needs some specific attention, to avoid a two-class system among faculty," Karri said.

Full article here.

And today on an employment agreement with State Universities Civil Service System on other academic professional jobs at the university:

Deal may impact UI jobs
Some University of Illinois academic professionals could see their jobs reclassified into civil service positions in coming months under state rules that take effect in October.

After years of wrangling, Illinois public universities have reached an agreement with the State Universities Civil Service System on new criteria for exempting certain positions from civil service rules.

The changes will affect only new hires at first, starting Oct. 1, said Deb Stone, director of UI academic human resources.

But over time, current employees could see their job titles reclassified as the civil service system audits universities' compliance every two years, officials said.

It's unclear how many of the hundreds of administrative-oriented academic professional jobs on campus might ultimately be affected, but Stone said the number could be "significant."

The two sides have argued for years about whether some academic professional positions — those that don't have a teaching or research component — should be exempted from civil service requirements. 

That full article here. More information from the University's website here.

More Lincoln Square Input

[UPDATE: A blurb from yesterday's News-Gazette had additional news about input from the Square Advisory Board as well:

I was waiting for it to appear on the main website, but it doesn't appear that this little blurb is getting that treatment. It's available on the eEdition here.]

Following up on previous requests for input on the future of Lincoln Square Mall property by the City of Urbana and the owner pointing out that he has final say and it was weird he wasn't included in this future planning... more planning sessions and ideas have been sprouting up in the news. First from yesterday's News-Gazette:

85 people representing 40 groups give input on Lincoln Square's future
Representatives from around 40 local organizations gathered at Lincoln Square Mall on Tuesday to discuss how the area can be revitalized.

The Lincoln Square area is 16 acres bordered by Race, Vine, Illinois and Elm Streets. It includes the mall and Landmark Hotel, which are privately owned, along with city-owned public parking lots.

Tuesday's meeting drew around 85 people from area businesses, engineering groups, brokers, realtors, law firms, small businesses, contractors, homebuilders, banks and developers. There were also attendees from groups including Visit Champaign County and the Champaign County Economic Development Corp. and its Small Business Development Center.

The full article available here. And from Smile Politely editorial board today:

A park proposal for Lincoln Square
...
Urbana's Market at the Square — held every Saturday, May through November — is the most vibrant and engaging weekly outdoor activity in a 60 mile radius. It takes place in one of the aforementioned parking lots, at the southeast corner of Vine and Illinois. The lot south of Illinois, nearby public street parking, and the Urbana parking garage are existing parking options that should be able to handle the current Saturday morning traffic. The lot south of Illinois needs to be marked as accessible parking; additional parking needs for nearby businesses can be voiced and addressed during public feedback periods. Though humor us for a moment — allow us, just for this moment, to look beyond some very practical and important details in order to imagine a future version of this space that could change the way we live and appreciate Urbana.

Our immediate suggestion is to let the leases on the south side parking lots expire, and turn them into a fabulous, and well programmed public park. Forget the actual mall itself for the moment. Its future, who owns it, and how it functions within this proposal, will hinge on a decision like this one. We can talk about the actual mall and hotel in a different column.

This park should be designed with its crown jewel — the market — in mind. It should be a park that is seamless with a plaza that can host the Saturday market, but be plenty more the other 7 nights and 6 days of the week.

It should be expansive, from Race to Vine, but with the future in mind, mostly. No cars should be able to drive into it, except for emergencies, or to load and unload for the market or a special event. There should be old growth trees planted, not for us, but for the generations to come. There should be a lot of things to do, for all kinds of people. There should be an interesting playground for families with children. There should be a dog park for people with dogs. There should be a public fitness space that encourages calisthenics. There should be walking paths that lead you in and out of the park. There should be sculptures and odd bits of artistic engagement throughout. There should be a plaza, that hosts the market, but that can be most anything at any time that isn’t 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays, which is to say the Market at the Square should stay open later in the day moving forward.

It goes on at the full article here.

[Originally posted 5/17/2018 at 7:51pm]

Cry Honk Honk and Let Slip the Dogs of War

Your tax dollars at work. If you hate the local goose hooligans, the Urbana Park District is looking out for you. From today's News-Gazette:

Urbana Park District to try dogs for geese overcrowding at Crystal Lake Park
The Urbana Park District's latest weapon in the fight against geese overcrowding at Crystal Lake Park comes with four legs and a tail.

Starting this month, an outside company will bring specially-trained border collies into the park to scare off the geese, said park district spokesperson Mark Schultz.

More at the full article here, including an audio interview and additional related goose-busting news links. UPDATE: Video segment from WCIA here:

Local Education Roundup

Local education and government updates were in the paper for Urbana's District 116 and eliminating the Deans for a restorative system, a summary of the UIUC Board of Trustees Meeting, and the Parkland Board were all in the paper today. First an excerpt from the Urbana schools:

Urbana school officials find a change in disciplinary approach is in order
Plans to continue implementing new disciplinary systems in Urbana secondary schools have the blessing of school board members.

During a marathon meeting that started Tuesday night and lasted until early Wednesday morning, Urbana High School Principal Matt Stark detailed new plans for his building, which he said are part of a district-wide effort to focus more on restorative practices and less on punishments that send students out of class.

The shift is intended to create a culture that is less punitive in nature, school officials said.

"The purpose of school discipline is not to punish," Stark said. "It is to change behavior."

To help that behavioral change, Stark requested and received permission to hire a new assistant principal, a student engagement advocate and a clinical professional. The assistant principal would deal with "exclusionary" punishments, such as suspensions, that deans did in the prior system.

While the dean positions are being eliminated under Urbana's new structure, those who held the positions would have an opportunity to transition into newly-created "student interventionist" jobs, officials said...

In other board action

— Members approved an increase in substitute pay rates. Daily rates will go from the current $105 to $110.

The plan the board approved also includes a four-level system that provides higher rates of pay to substitute teachers and teacher's aides who work more frequently throughout the quarter.

— Also OK'd: an expansion of the district's dual-language program. It will add a French program at Yankee Ridge Elementary.

Full article here.

And the UIUC Board of Trustees Meeting (with an updated list of issues voted on available here):

UI has five-year hiring plan in works
The University of Illinois plans to hire hundreds of new professors over the next five years to keep pace with rising student enrollment and make up for slow faculty growth during the state's two-year budget crisis.

The university is developing an ambitious hiring program for its three campuses, though specific targets are still being developed, top administrators said Wednesday.

UI President Tim Killeen planned to announce the initiative at today's UI Board of Trustees' meeting in Springfield...

Killeen said UI leaders were conservative in their hiring during the two-year state budget impasse, which ended last year and delayed hundreds of millions of dollars in state appropriations while reducing funding for day-to-day activities. UI faculty were also targets of aggressive recruiting by other universities.

As a result, the UI saw a net gain of only 139 professors over the last five years, or about 2 percent, even as systemwide enrollment grew by 7 percent, he said.

Full article here. More items voted on by the board listed here.

And the Parkland Board:

Parkland College's board approves new faculty contract
Parkland College faculty have a new contract, and the college has a new vice president.

On Wednesday night, the Parkland College Board voted 6-0 to approve a collective-bargaining contract with Parkland Academic Employees, the union representing its faculty.

Under the three-year contract, which affects 162 employees, base salaries for faculty members will increase a minimum of 2.75 percent.

Parkland may add as much as a half-percent increase to the base salaries at a later date, depending on what happens with the state budget and the State Universities Retirement System...

In other business:

— New police officers join force. Jason R. Metzelaars of Charleston and Alex M. Osterbuhr of Bloomington were sworn in as the Parkland College Police Department's newest officers.

— Financial adviser hired. The board voted 6-0 to hire Naperville-based PMA Securities Inc. as the college administration's financial adviser. The firm is expected to evaluate Parkland's options for restructuring its bond debt and analyze opportunities for refinancing...

— Parking lot work approved. The board voted 6-0 to award a bid to Cross Construction of Urbana to upgrade the M2 and M3 parking lots on the Parkland campus for $1,150,692.

Full article here.

Champaign City Council 5/15

From yesterday's News-Gazette: A round up of the Champaign City Council meeting this past Tuesday.

Champaign council officially puts hotel project in former Illini's hands
After being in limbo for a few months, downtown's upcoming millennial-focused boutique hotel is officially back on track with a new developer.

The Champaign City Council unanimously voted Tuesday to turn the Best Western Hotel Vib (pronounced "vibe") project over to former Illini basketball player-turned-developer Doug Altenberger...

Construction on the hotel was supposed to start in January, after the city council approved the project last September. The new plan is to start work no later than Jan. 1, 2019, and be substantially complete by Dec. 1, 2020, according to a city staff report...

In other business:

— The council approved giving out $100,000 in Redevelopment Incentive Program funding to Main Street Rail LLC, which wants to turn the vacant building at 40 E. University Ave. into a microbrewery with upper-floor residential space. If the project goes through, the building would open up for the first time in 12 years...

— Council members heard a presentation Tuesday from a group of Centennial High School students, who proposed that Champaign ban the use of e-cigarettes, vaporizers and JUULs in places where traditional smoking is prohibited.

— The council officially approved an honorary street designation for Rabbi Benjamin Frankel, who created the University of Illinois' Illini Hillel in 1923. John Street, between Fifth and Sixth streets, will become Honorary Rabbi Ben Frankel Way for 10 years.

Mayor Deb Feinen also officially recognized and endorsed the Champaign-Urbana Eruv, which is a wire boundary set up to extend Jewish households out into public areas. Within it, activities that are normally not allowed in public on the Sabbath are permitted.

Full article here.

Urbana Deans Update

There were more updates on the issue of switching from disciplinary deans to restorative practices that appear to be a bit more difficult to explain than the more familiar current system. The News-Gazette had some of the issues discussed at last night's forum arranged to discuss them:

Staffing changes, fighting top parents' concerns at Urbana district forum
...
Still, some in the audience said they were worried that the dean positions were disappearing just as the number of violent incidents among students seemed to increase at the middle school.

"The thought of not having deans is scary," said Tori Exum-Johnson, a UMS parent.

But Owen disagreed.

"I hear a lot of people saying this isn't new, that the middle school has progressively been getting worse," Owen said. "Adding more deans is not necessarily the best solution. If you have people who aren't necessarily trained in social-emotional learning or restorative practices, and we add a bunch more of those people, I'm not sure we're making the change we need to make."

Owen referred several parents to the district's strategic plan, which outlines its goals in upcoming years and includes objectives like hiring more student support staff and improving "interpersonal relationships among staff and historically marginalized groups."

That plan won't be finalized until December, though plans call for a working draft to be available by August...

By hiring more student support staff, Owen said, the district will be able to curb bad behavior before it happens and implement a culture that focuses less on kicking a student out of class and more on hearing both sides.

Tonight, the Urbana school board will vote on a proposal written by middle school staff. It outlines staffing plans and policies that will guide the school on how it moves forward without deans.

UMS Associate Principal Shawna Scherer said the lack of communication from district leaders about all of the changes was a mistake.

"Hopefully, as we continue to roll things out, we'll better engage you guys," she told the crowd.

Full article here, which also addresses staff turnover which is high this year, but it has been higher in other recent years. For more information on tonight's District 116 Board of Education meeting, check out their meeting page here. Tonight's agenda available here. It appears that their live streaming link is broken, but it looks like they're still posting videos on their YouTube channel when they become available here. [UPDATE: WCCU Fox Illinois also had segment on this here.]

Champaign PD and Local NAACP Talk to Students

In an unexpected team up, the Champaign Police and local county chapter of the NAACP talked to Champaign students about interacting with police. From today's News-Gazette:

Facing the Critics
Chief Unfazed by Students' Negative Reaction, Aims to Reverse it.

The easiest question Jefferson Middle School seventh-graders fielded Monday might have come from that day’s special guest — Anthony Cobb.

The Champaign police chief kicked off a series of presentations by asking the cafeteria gathering: “Is there anyone in this room who doesn’t like the police?”

Hands flew up — more being raised than not.

For Cobb, one of the goals of Monday was to reverse that. And if he couldn’t change their perceptions through the video and information he brought to show them, at least the students could leave knowing more about their rights and what to do if they’re ever stopped by police.

That was why Cobb, along with local NAACP President Minnie Pearson, showed up Monday, he said. Pearson added that the event marked the first time anything like it — with NAACP backing— had occurred in Unit 4 schools.

“I think in addition to the wonderful job Unit 4 is doing, we want to also look after the safety of children and make them aware ... that they don’t have a negative view of police,” Pearson said. “The more you know about your police officers, who are sworn to protect and serve, you will be more apt to trust them and when you see something, say something.”

More at the full article here.

Urbana Fee Changes

Last night's Urbana City Council meeting deliberated on fees to give the budget a boost. From today's News-Gazette:

Fee hikes to boost city’s revenue by $198K
...
The Urbana City Council on Monday gave initial approval to fee changes for the upcoming fiscal year, including increases for parking meters and video gambling terminals.

A final council vote on the proposed license and permit fee tweaks, chosen by the city’s financial department, will happen June 18. That’s also when the council will take a final vote on approving the city budget for fiscal year 2018-19.

All of the proposed fee changes would generate about $198,000 in additional revenue, according to a city staff report. While most of the fee tweaks are 2.13 percent increases, some are higher than that.

The fee on every video gambling terminal, or machine, would rise 7 percent — from $1,010 to $1,080...

One fee that would double is the parking meter rate for streets and parking lots in the downtown area. It would go from 25 to 50 cents per hour, but would still only be enforced from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

More details, including more information on parking fees and a rejected increase on car impound fees, at the full article here.

Champaign Council Preview

Tonight's Champaign City Council meeting (agenda here) will include a vote on a redevelopment in downtown. From the News-Gazette website last night:

Champaign council to vote on funds to help redevelop downtown building

After sitting vacant for 12 years, a downtown building is on track to begin a new phase of its life.

Main Street Rail LLC is planning to redevelop the building at 40 E. University Ave. into a microbrewery with upper-floor residential space. On Tuesday, the city council will vote on giving the project $100,000 in Redevelopment Incentive Program funding...

The building, which sits behind Jon's Pipe Shop and across the street from Seven Saints in downtown Champaign, is in a tax-increment-financing district, meaning it can use the funds the council is considering approving to make permanent enhancements.

The TIF district that it's in has no funds, according to a city report, so the $100,000 would be reimbursed over 10 years with additional taxes generated from the project.

Main Street Rail is planning to put a total of about $1.2 million into redeveloping the building with new storefronts, windows and flooring and upgraded services. It's aiming to have the work done in August.

More details at the full article here. More information on attending a City Council meeting locally here.

Unit 4 Board Meeting and Farmland

Yesterday's News-Gazette had some interesting information on the undeveloped land north of Interstate 74 the school owns from previous school plans. The vote it refers to passed last night (see follow up article below), but these excerpts from that article highlight the United Way project leasing the land:

A new purpose for Unit 4's pricey purchase on Interstate Drive
Four years after Unit 4 spent $3.2 million for 80 acres of farmland near Interstate Drive, the onetime would-be home of the new Champaign Central High School will serve a dual purpose this summer.

While the bulk of the land will continue to be used by the United Way to harvest crops, under an agreement that will be put to a vote at tonight's school board meeting, a smaller chunk will be reserved for referendum-related projects.

"The district is using a couple acres to store topsoil from the Tommy Stewart Field project to then be able to reuse when it's needed at some of our other projects," said Tom Lockman, Unit 4's chief financial officer...

Not anywhere in those referendum plans is any use for the Interstate Drive farmland, which was scrapped as the next home of Central after two failed attempts at getting voters' approval...

As part of the deal, the United Way would pay Unit 4 $18,000 to lease the farmland — with half due on Aug. 1 and the other half on Nov. 1.

Proceeds from the sale of crops harvested by the United Way are donated to local food pantries as part of the Farmers Feeding Families program.

Full article here with more information on the related referendum projects and other details. Today's paper had updates on last night's Unit 4 Board meeting:

Oversight panel grows by nine new members
A citizens’ committee that provides oversight for Unit 4’s various facility projects has nine new members.

On Monday night, the Champaign school board voted 7-0 to add members to the Referendum Oversight Committee, whose six current members have been meeting since December...

The board also voted Monday to approve an amendment to a contract with Clark Dietz to provide private utility locating services as part of the Centennial High and Tommy Stewart Field projects.

It also voted to extend by one year a cash farm lease agreement with The United Way for the farmland in north Champaign.

Full article with a list of the new members of the Referendum Oversight Committee here.

Employment Roundup

Today the News-Gazette had rankings of the area's top 15 employers with information about how the number of jobs they provide has shifted recently. Here are some excerpts and highlights:

Champaign County | Hire Education
While the list of top local employers includes each of the same companies as last year, there were some significant changes in where they were ranked. FedEx is the fastest-growing company on the list, Carle continues to grow at a steady clip, and Kraft Heinz is slowly shrinking. Each spring, the Champaign County Economic Development Corp. compiles the list, which is based on numbers self-reported by the companies. Here’s a look, courtesy business reporter Ben Zigterman:

1. University of Illinois ( 13,934)

After reporting fewer jobs last year, the Urbana campus reported 77 more employees this year as the state budget stabilized...

2. Carle ( 6,921)

Carle grew by more than 8 percent last year, adding 535 new jobs...

3. Champaign Unit 4 school district ( 1,664)

4. Kraft Heinz (925)

The fourth-largest employer lost about 100 jobs for the second year in a row...

5. Christie Clinic (916) 6. Champaign County (893) 7. Urbana school District 116 (828)...

8. FedEx (815)

Two years ago, FedEx had 407 employees and was the 19th-largest employer in the county. It has since doubled, quickly climbing the top employers ranks...

9. Presence Health/OSF Healthcare (774)...

10. Parkland College (741) 11. Plastipak (735) 12. City of Champaign (630)...

13. Rantoul Foods (541)...

14. Busey Bank (525)...

15. SuperValu (429)...

Notes on the numbers: The figures show how many people each company employs in Champaign County, not across the company. Also, the EDC compiled the list of the top 15 employers in time for the annual Busey Economic Seminar, but is still working on its full list of the top 25 employers.

Full article with more ranking details here. There was also news earlier in the week that 200 jobs were in jeopardy of being moved or replaced by automation. More on that from Friday's News-Gazette:

Rockwell Automation closing its Champaign facilities in a year
More than 200 employees learned this week they may soon be out of a job after Rockwell Automation announced it will be closing its two Champaign locations.

Rockwell, which makes automated manufacturing products, plans to open a new distribution center in Indianapolis while closing its distribution center in Memphis, Tenn., and its distribution and customer-returns centers in northwest Champaign...

The Indianapolis plant will use automation to improve operations, the company said, and will be managed by Kuehne + Nagel, a global logistics company headquartered in Switzerland.

The full Rockwell article here. And while all that may seem a bit gloomy, the News-Gazette has also recently reported that "Busey Bank Vice Chairman Ed Scharlau is as optimistic as he's ever been about the state of the local economy." From Thursday:

Busey vice chairman leaves 'em upbeat in final economic seminar
...
"After reviewing so many positive figures, I hope you feel very fortunate to live and work here in Champaign County," Scharlau told a full house Wednesday at the I Hotel for the annual Busey Economic Seminar...

Yields are expected to be slightly lower this year, so Scharlau is projecting a decline in 2018 output to $350 million.

That was one of the few data points Scharlau presented that wasn't improving.

Retail sales continue to show steady growth, increasing to $2.808 billion in 2017, and are projected to grow to $2.858 billion this year.

The local population is also growing.

According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimates, Champaign County added 980 people in the last year, increasing to 209,399. And since the 2010 Census, the county has added more than 8,000 people.

"We're one of the few counties in downstate Illinois that is growing, population-wise," Scharlau said.

Unemployment also remains low in the county, at 3.7 percent, down from 4.2 percent last year.

"Even though Champaign County has one of the lower unemployment rates in the state, we need to remember there are several people unemployed and underemployed and are looking for a job," Scharlau said.

The top employers also appear to be doing well, Scharlau said.

Full article with more encouraging local conditions here. And as recently posted here, unemployment in the area has been down compared to the region, State, and national statistics. That information again:

There were some recent unemployment data from the state about our metro area and county from the News-Gazette (with more information from the Illinois Department of Employment Security here) today along with a couple handy charts in the on-line version:

March unemployment: C-U's rate tied for lowest in state; Danville's is highest
The unemployment rate remains low in the Champaign-Urbana metro area.

At 3.8 percent this March, it is tied with the Bloomington for the lowest unemployment rate among Illinois' 14 metro areas, according to the latest data from the Illinois Department of Employment Security.

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate in Danville is the highest among Illinois metro areas, at 5.8 percent.

But across the state, the unemployment rate continued to drop compared with a year ago.

Champaign and County Police Week Events

A listing of local events with the City of Champaign and Champaign County police from yesterday's News-Gazette:

More information at the City of Champaign Police Department facebook event page here. The Champaign County Sheriff's Office website and social media links don't appear to have any information yet, but that link is pretty straightforward when there is.

Champaign City Council Meeting

Following up on this preview of Tuesday's City of Champaign Council meeting, the News-Gazette had a summary of last night's meeting:

Champaign council gives initial OK to funding for two economic agencies
The city council gave initial approval Tuesday to extending funding agreements with the Champaign County Economic Development Corp. and the Champaign Center Partnership.

If they approved in a second vote, both agreements would extend for one year from June 30. The city would continue contributing $115,815 to the county agency and $57,500 to the city agency, according to a city report.

Bruce Knight, the city's planning and development director, said he worked with the county agency recently when it created a new economic-development council and reorganized its board of directors. He said the group would spend its upcoming year developing a new strategic plan.

The Champaign Center Partnership would use its upcoming year to focus on funding and becoming self-sustaining, said T.J. Blakeman, the city's senior planner for economic development. The group is a nonprofit that does joint marketing for businesses in downtown, Midtown and Campustown...

In other business, the council heard from Centennial and University Laboratory High School students affiliated with iMatter, a national youth climate-change group, who encouraged the city to increase its efforts to fight climate change, including creating a plan to reduce carbon emissions.

The group's presentation came on the heels of a similar one it made to the Urbana City Council, which responded by passing a Climate Inheritance Resolution for quickly reducing that city's greenhouse-gas levels.

Full article with City Council member reactions here.

Champaign Schools Safety and Renovations

A little bit of a round up. WCIA's Illinois Homepage had a video and article on coming security upgrades:

Schools work on safety, security improvements
MAHOMET, MONTICELLO, and CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) -- Over the last several months, districts across the state have been working on adding safety and security improvements.

Those include things like safe rooms, cameras, school resource officers, and advanced staff training. Some had these upgrades planned for a long time. For others, they're coming just as the subject of school safety has become a bigger concern than it used to be.

This fall, Mahomet-Seymour's first and second graders will be taught at Middletown Prairie Elementary for the first time.

"The whole building has been designed around the best practices of school safety," says Superintendent Lindsey Hall.

She says that's one of the perks that came with constructing a new building.

"We have safe rooms, we have a gym that's a FEMA-rated storm shelter, we've got an entryway that's designed around the best practices of how we let visitors into the building." 

While that's great for the kids that will walk those halls, we don't need to tell you older schools don't have the same "Fort Knox" factor...

And Champaign schools are working with police on a plan to involve students in active shooter drills. They're also looking into giving their staff trauma and mental health first aid training.

Full article here with parent interviews and concerns.

There was also news on the breaking ground of one of the first referendum items for Unit 4. Also from WCIA:

School improvement project breaks ground
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) - It's been a long time coming, but now people are finally seeing the results of their "yes" votes more than a year ago.

Crews have broken ground on Tommy Stewart Field.

It's right behind Centennial High School in Champaign.

It's more than just a construction project.

It's a visual for voters, because now they can see the thumbs up they gave the school district bringing some tangible results...

There will be an official groundbreaking for Tommy Stewart Field on May 22nd.

Most phases of construction on the different Champaign schools will start late this fall or early next year.

All of them are expected to be done by 2022.

More at the full article here. The News-Gazette had a similar article here.

UIUC Works out Dockless Bike Kinks

Dockless Bikes in Champaign-Urbana keep inching closer to reality. From today's News-Gazette:

UI officials working on incentives to keep shared bikes in populated areas
...
Lily Wilcock, active transportation coordinator for the UI, said the campus's rules will require the bikes to be returned to a rack so as not to block sidewalks or entrances to buildings, and the UI is working with bike-share companies to make that easier.

"One of the concerns we had as the University of Illinois was, what do you do if someone just rides it to their house and then they leave it there?" Wilcock said. "Some of the companies have responded to that, in that they've been using in other cities an incentive program. They've been allowing someone to ride the bus out to an area to get the bicycle, and then they get a free ride back to leave it in a more populated area. ... And then they get incentives like a certain amount of ride credit."

Full article here.

Cunningham Township Social Service Funding

The Cunningham Township Board (township boundaries and board members are identical to that of Urbana and the Urbana City Council respectively) discussed social-service funding yesterday. From today's News-Gazette:

Cunningham Township Board reviews proposal for social-service funding
The Cunningham Township Board on Monday reviewed a proposal for distributing $250,000 in social-service funding during fiscal year 2018-19.

Programs that will receive portions of the money have already applied for it. On June 11, the Urbana City Council — made up of the same members as the Cunningham Township Board — will vote on approving a final distribution plan.

Township Supervisor Danielle Chenoweth and Urbana city employees Matthew Rejc, community development coordinator, and Kelly Mierkowski, grants management division manager, created a proposed breakdown of how much each applicant should receive.

The group prioritized service areas including housing/homelessness, employment, health care, physical disabilities, racial equity/immigration and mental health/substance abuse.

"We have a significant mental health care crisis in this community," Chenoweth said.

Full article with a breakdown of top recipients and amount budgeted here.

Champaign Council on Budget Tonight

The News-Gazette a preview of the City of Champaign's Council meeting tonight. From Today's paper:

Champaign council to review proposed economic-development budget 
At its meeting tonight, the city council will review a proposed $1,190,572 economic-development program budget for the upcoming fiscal year.

As part of this year's budgeting process, council members have been going over different aspects of city funding before taking a final vote on the entire fiscal year 2018-19 budget. That will take place June 19, after a public hearing on June 5.

Senior city planner T.J. Blakeman said the proposed economic-development budget is financially level compared with previous years, except for an increase in funding for Visit Champaign County that is the result of a previous increase in the hotel-motel tax...

Blakeman said city partnerships in the proposed budget are the same as ones in this current fiscal year, but the council can propose new ones at this week's meeting.

Full article here with a breakdown list of various budget item.

Lincoln Square Owner Weighs In

While Urbana has been soliciting ideas on what to do with the Lincoln Square mall property, one voice hasn't been heard from: the actual owner of the property. Tom Kacich had his thoughts about the property, ideas for its future and people leaving him out of the conversation. From Sunday's News-Gazette:

Tom Kacich | Lincoln Square's owner has ultimate say
It's great that people have grand ideas for what to do with the Lincoln Square mall and its parking lots that lie smack in the middle of downtown Urbana.

More retail, more greenspace, outdoor seating, music venues, public art, apartments, water features, more parking, less parking and on and on. The city of Urbana is even offering an online survey, asking people what they'd like to see at the site of the downtown indoor shopping center that was an architectural marvel in 1964, and is still pretty attractive and solid.

But wait a minute. Lincoln Square may feel like a public space, but it isn't. It's not owned by the city of Urbana or the university or Carle.

It's owned by Jim Webster, a guy who took a fly on a downtown mall about 15 years ago and deserves some respect before we all decide what to do with his property...

Webster was insistent about one thing: "It's not for sale. The property is not for sale."

Despite all the talk about the property's future and the uncertainties that creates, Webster said he's signed a handful of new tenants and he's still optimistic about its future.

"I'm committed to Lincoln Square, and I really want it to be an asset that the people of Urbana can be proud of," he said. "It is encouraging to see how involved the community is relative to Lincoln Square. We think there could be some positive outcomes. However, any changes are determined privately and are based on economic decisions."

Full article here.

Champaign Youth Press City Council on Climate Change

Students from the local chapter of iMatter (Local facebook page here and event here) will be asking the Champaign City Council to do more to reduce its impact on climate change. From Smile-Politely:

High school students will be presenting a Youth Climate Report Card for Champaign
High school and college students from the area involved with the group iMatter, a national climate change organization founded by a 13 year old in 2007, have assessed the City of Champaign on their actions related to greenhouse gas emissions. They did a similar assessment of the City of Urbana last year, which we wrote about here. Since that time, the group helped pass the Climate Inheritance Resolution, committing the city to working towards the goals of 100% renewable electricity by 2025 and net zero emissions by 2040.

Local students representing iMatter will be presenting their findings during the public comment period at next week's Champaign City Council meeting.

More at the full article here. More information on this and other upcoming City Council meetings, including information on attending, here.

UIUC Diverse Business Fair

The University of Illinois is attempting to promote and connect with minority owned businesses for opportunities to work with the University on various work and contracts with a Diverse Business Opportunity Fair. From today's News-Gazette:

UI's first Diverse Business Opportunity Fair set May 18
A first-ever campus business fair designed to expand opportunities for companies owned by minorities, women, veterans and people with disabilities is scheduled for later this month at the University of Illinois.

The Diverse Business Opportunity Fair, set for May 18 at the I Hotel and Conference Center in Champaign, invites companies to connect with staff members from more than 30 campus units and explore opportunities in all areas of spending, from construction and food services to office and athletic supplies.

University officials said diversity is a priority across all UI operations, and the board of trustees has challenged administrators to develop a supplier program that will be a national model for higher education.

The business fair will be the first to showcase opportunities on a single campus, and similar events are planned at the UI's campuses in Chicago and Springfield. The UI system has held an annual Professional Services Diversity Symposium in Chicago for six years, highlighting system-wide opportunities in specific areas such architecture, information technology and legal services.

Full article here. More information at the the event's website here.

Lincoln Square Future Input

Local community groups are working on ideas for the future of the Lincoln Square mall location. I've heard ideas from proactive programs for homelessness, transition housing, educational children's museums and economic innovation tools for local business. The News-Gazette highlighted the Urbana Historic Preservation Commission's work on their ideas today. From the News-Gazette:

Urbana Historic Preservation Commission maps out vision for Lincoln Square
An Italian cemetery, European plazas, New Hope, Pa., and Rockport, Mass.

That's what came to mind Wednesday for Urbana Historic Preservation Commission members when asked to pick a great place — and it's their idea for a starting point when planning how the Lincoln Square area should be redeveloped.

Built over about 16 acres, Lincoln Square mall is roughly bordered by Race Street to the west, Illinois Street to the south, Vine Street to the east and Elm Street to the north. Mayor Diane Marlin has launched a revitalization project for the area, which is in the input-gathering phase.

All of the city's boards and commissions have been doing visioning exercises to express how they want the mall site to change. The public has been asked to contribute as well, by taking a survey on the "What's in Your Square?" page on the city's website.

Full article here. City web page to learn more and submit your individual or organization's ideas: What's in Your Square?

CU 1 to 1 Mentoring Banquet

CU 1-to-1 had a banquet for graduates that included interviews in the video above. The News-Gazette had a "behind the scenes" introduction to the interviews here. C-U One-to-One Mentoring is the school-based mentoring program of the Champaign Unit 4 and Urbana District #116 Schools. Mentoring is about building relationships of trust between a young person and an adult for the purpose of providing support, encouragement and guidance. From the "Top of the Morning" blurb in the News-Gazette today:

Article web link here. And link to CU 1 to 1 website here. More information and links on their twitter feed here.

Davis Backs Federal Side of Terminal Expansion

From today's News-Gazette:

Davis says he'll advocate for federal funding for Illinois Terminal expansion
U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis is on board with the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District's plan to expand its Illinois Terminal facility in downtown Champaign, a project that also could lead to a privately developed hotel, conference center and sports arena.

Davis, whose 13th Congressional District includes Champaign-Urbana, reviewed the project worth as much as $150 million Wednesday at the Illinois Terminal with officials from the University of Illinois, city of Champaign and Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District.

He said he would advocate with the federal Department of Transportation for BUILD program funding for the development.

"If that means talking to Secretary (Elaine) Chao, I'll gladly make that call again," he said.

Davis earlier this year voted for an omnibus spending bill that boosts federal funding for transportation projects, like the Illinois Terminal expansion...

Jane Sullivan, the grants manager at the MTD, said that applications for the BUILD grants are due by mid-July and that an award could be made as early as October.

The MTD is seeking $25 million from one grant program and $15 million from another "and what we're trying to do is create flexibility for the administration to fund the project from one or the other or both of those programs," Gnadt said.

Full article and more information on the grant process here.