Here's a notice from the City of Lake Forest regarding public pension funding, an issue that will impact tax payers and which will appear as a public advisory question on the ballot for the Feb. 2 General Primary Election: 

The City of Lake Forest supports its police and fire professionals, and preserving public safety is of paramount concern. Like many communities across the state, however, Lake Forest has experienced an exponential increase in required contributions to fund public pensions. This statewide situation threatens the long-term sustainability of the pension funds in the absence of significant new revenues or reductions in services.  

Without legislative relief, Lake Forest and many other communities are faced with complex choices, including budget cuts, deferred infrastructure improvements, or an increased burden on taxpayers to fund these pension benefits. 

At its Nov. 16 meeting, the Lake Forest City Council approved a resolution to place the following public advisory question on the Feb. 2, 2010, General Primary Election ballot: 

“Shall the Illinois General Assembly and the Governor take immediate steps
to implement meaningful pension reform which will relieve the unsustainable burden
on local taxpayers?” 

The public forum on Jan. 11 will give residents an opportunity to learn more about this community issue. A panel discussion will explore the causes of the current pension problems in Illinois, as well as opportunities to strengthen the long-term viability of the pension systems. Panel members will include representatives from the Illinois Legislature, police and fire pension boards, and Lake Forest City Council. Questions and comments will be taken from the public following the panel discussion. 

The forum will be broadcast live on LFTV channel 17 with rebroadcasts to be scheduled in the future. 

Visit the City’s website at www.cityoflakeforest.com/pensions.htm to learn more about the public pension funding issue in Lake Forest and review the City Council resolution. Residents are urged to make an informed choice on Feb. 2.

The Village of Lake Bluff provided this map, which illustrates the new trash and recycling pick-up schedule that will begin in Lake Bluff on Feb. 1. (See "New Trash System" story a few posts down for more details)

Lake Forest is back at the top of the Western Golf Association. Roger J.  Mohr has been elected WGA chairman 2010-11, following in the footsteps (or golf shoes) of Hobart Chatfield-Taylor, a Lake Forest resident who was the first to lead the WGA back when it was formed in 1899. The City's connection to golf goes back even further—Mr. Chatfield-Taylor was the son-in-law of John B. Farwell, whose estate was home to the Chicago area's first golf course, according to the Lake Forest/Lake Bluff Historical Society, which presently is showing an exhibit on the history of golf in Lake Forest. But back to Mr. Mohr and his new role as chairman. Here's what the WGA has posted on its website:

GOLF, IL – Roger J. Mohr of Lake Forest has been elected chairman of the Western Golf Association for 2010-11.  Mr. Mohr, who succeeds John N. Fix, of Kenilworth, was selected in 1980 as one of the WGA’s first Evans Scholars Alumni directors. He has served as WGA vice chairman since 2008. From 1986-1999, he was chairman of the WGA’s Endowment Committee. 

“Roger has been an invaluable contributor to the Western Golf Association and Evans Scholars Foundation,” said WGA/ESF President and CEO Donald D. Johnson. “His leadership skills over the years as our Endowment chairman have helped us raise millions of dollars for the young men and women we send to college on Evans Scholarships. Roger’s commitment and experience make him well-equipped to guide our organization as chairman the next two years.”

Mr. Mohr, the first Marquette University Evans Scholar graduate, said he is looking forward to the opportunity to serve as chairman and to continue efforts to raise awareness of, and support for, the Western Golf Association’s championships and the Evans Scholars Program.

“My involvement with the Western Golf Association and Evans Scholars Foundation has allowed me to give back to the program that was truly a life-changing experience for me,” said Mr. Mohr, who earned his Evans Scholarship as a caddie at Milwaukee Country Club in the late 1940s. “I’m honored to be trusted with the leadership of our organization for the next two years, and

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CenterStage in Lake Forest is hosting auditions on Jan. 3 for "The Phantom Tollbooth," a play based on a novel by Norton Juster. The auditions run Jan. 3 from 1 to 5 p.m. and Jan. 4 from 6 to 9 p.m., with call backs on Jan. 6 at 6:30 p.m. There is no appointment necessary for the auditions, which will be in the Baggett Auditorium at the Gorton Community Center, 400 E. Illinois Road, Lake Forest. 

The first cast meeting is 7 p.m. Jan. 10; show dates are Feb. 12, 13, 19 and 20. The theatre company is looking for adults and young people (with an emphasis on adults). Visit CenterStage's website for more information.

Citadel Theatre submitted the following information about it's newest show:

Citadel Theatre's Artistic Director, Scott Phelps and his wife, Ellen Phelps, will co-star in the theatre company's production of "The Prisoner of Second Avenue," by Neil Simon. Citadel's second show of the 2009/2010 season will open on Jan. 15 and close on the last day of the month. It will be the first time since they were married 25 years ago that Scott and Ellen, founders of Citadel Theatre, will perform together. The show also features Tom Beck, Nancy Greco, Rita Simon, and Amy Ticho.

Scott and Ellen met in the early 1980s at the Actors Theatre of Louisville. They married, raised four children and managed careers while staying involved in the world of theatre. After settling on the North Shore, they saw a need for quality theatre in the suburbs and, in 2002, they pursued their lifelong passion by starting the Citadel Theatre Company in Lake Forest. Since then the theatre has produced 17 shows. Scott directed five of those productions, one of which was the critically acclaimed "And Neither Have I Wings to Fly" by local playwright, Ann Noble. Ellen has performed in a number Citadel's shows, most notably in 2008 as Pat O'Niel in Scott McPherson's comedy " 'Til the Fat Lady Sings."

Scott and Ellen have been eager to perform together, but were waiting for the right opportunity to come along. It did when their longtime friend Will Casey, an equity actor and director who teaches theatre at Columbia College, persuaded the couple to star alongside each other "The

 
Tom Beck rehearses with Ellen and Scott Phelps for Neil Simon's "The Prisoner of Second Avenue." Photo credit: Daniel Kullman of Bitter Jester Creative

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What with all the entertaining and gift opening that's been going on lately, there's probably been a bit of overflow in your recycling and trash bins. This makes it a good time for residents of Lake Bluff to prepare for the changes afoot in the Village's waste-hauling operations, which begin Feb. 1, 2010. The Village Board approved a contract with Groot Industries at its meeting on Dec. 14, thus switching all waste and recycling services to a private company. The new program reduces the standard pick-up cycle of household trash to once a week and requires residents to take the trash to their curbs. GazeboNews asked Public Works Director Tom Cahill to answer some questions about the program. At the end of this Q&A, please continue reading for information from the Village's press release, which provides a full explanation of the new program.

GazeboNews: Did the Village lay off any of the trash-hauling guys?

Mr. Cahill: Yes, three employees will be laid off and one supervisory position will be eliminated. The other sanitation employee will be leaving on a disability retirement.

GazeboNews: Did Groot hire all of them, some of them, or none of them?

Mr. Cahill: Groot will hire all of them.

GazeboNews: How much does the Village expect to save annually with this new program?

Mr. Cahill: We had initially stated that the Village would be saving $200,000 annually, however, as Village Administrator Drew Irvin mentioned at the December 14th Village Board meeting, he believes that it will be around $325,000.

GazeboNews: On what day of the week will trash and recycling get picked up? Will they be picked up on the same day or on a separate day? For example, if you previously had your trash picked up on Tuesday and Friday, will it be one of those days with Groot? If you previously had your recycling picked up on Friday, will it still be picked up on Friday?

Mr. Cahill: All refuse, recycling and yard waste will be collected on Monday for those who live west of Sheridan Road, and on Tuesday for households east of Sheridan Road. This is the basic service with no cost to residents using Groot-supplied 95-gallon carts.

GazeboNews: What if you want more than once-a-week services–how do you get those, and when will the second collection be? 

Mr. Cahill: The a la carte service collections will be on Thursday or Friday, which requires residents to arrange with Groot and pay an additional [...]

Two people died in a car accident on Route 60 near Lake Forest Academy on Saturday, Dec. 26. Please visit ChicagoBreakingNews.com for the story.

The League of Women Voters issued the following press release and invites the community to attend the forum: 

On Sunday, Jan. 17, the League of Women Voters of Lake County and the Daily Herald will host a Candidate Forum for the five Republican and Democratic candidates running for the 59th State Representative position. Carol Sente, the Democratic incumbent from Vernon Hills, and her opponent Elliott Hartstein of Buffalo Grove will attend. Dan Sugrue of Green Oaks, Cynthia Hebda of Vernon Hills, and Mohan Manian of Green Oaks are the Republican candidates and will participate. After opening statements, the candidates will answer questions from the audience.

The forum will be held at the Laschen Community Center Board Room, 294 Evergreen Dr., Vernon Hills (which is just south of Route 60 and off of Route 45). Doors will open at 1:30 p.m. and the forum will begin at 2 p.m.

Also, audience members will have the rare opportunity to meet and hear candidates for Appellate Court Judge, 2nd District, and 19th Circuit Court Judge, 4th Subdistrict. The judicial candidates will make a short presentation about their qualifications, although they will not participate in a formal question period. The Appellate Court candidates are: Ann Jorgensen of Wheaton; Kenneth Moy of Hinsdale; Mary Schostok of Libertyville; and Donna K. Kelly of McHenry. The Circuit Court candidates are Mark Levitt of Deerfield; Chris Kennedy of Libertyville; Jeremy Schwartz of Highland Park; and Dwayne Douglas of Highland Park. 

The Appellate Court 2nd District includes all of Lake County. The 19th Circuit Court, 4th Subdistrict includes Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, Mettawa, Highland Park, Lincolnshire, and parts of Buffalo Grove and Vernon Hills. With the recent retirement of Kathy Ryg as state representative, the western portion of Lake Forest that is part of the 59th District is showing a lot of interest in the race. Susan Garrett was the State Representative for the district before Kathy Ryg. Ms. Garrett presently is state senator for the 29th District.

Here are links to blogs that mentioned Lake Forest or Lake Bluff in the past few weeks. If you write a blog or read about our communities in someone else's blog, please let GazeboNews know so that we can share the links.

PowerPop: This is "an idiosyncratic blog dedicated to the precursors, the practioners, and the descendants of power pop." On Tuesday, Dec. 8, PowerPop blogger Steve Simels wrote a story reminiscing about "The Bryds," a garage band that was popular in Lake Forest in the mid 1960s. Here's a summary of what he writes—be sure to visit the PowerPop website for the full story–you can even see a copy of the 45 "Your Lies" and click on a link to hear the song, which Mr. Simels said got a lot of air time on WLS-AM back in the day.

From PowerPop: "Anyway, like I said, almost every town in the country had a band like I've just described, but for me the one that best exemplified the ethos (or the movement, or what have you) is the one that ruled the area around Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, Illinois, when I was a college freshman. To wit: The Bryds. As in The Byrds, but with the letters cleverly reversed so that it was pronounced The Brides. Heh heh.
Not to mince words, but these guys were pretty much considered gods in the neighborhood, and when I finally went to see them — at a dance at Waukegan High School (Waukegan being Jack Benny's old home town, BTW) sometime in late '65 I was pretty much blown away. The Bryds had the hair, the musicianship, the attitude, the Vox amplifiers, and — have I mentioned? — the attitude; they may not have been The Beatles or The Rolling Stones, but as far as the several hundred kids crowded into that high school gym that night were concerned, they might as well have been. Like I said, I was blown away — and yes, jealous as hell, given my own participation in a bunch of rather not so great bands at the time." 

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ColdPeasOut: It rained every day this Arizona-based blogger visited Chicago and its suburbs. While passing through Lake Forest, he got to thinking about John Hughes. Here's what he wrote about his trip, and about Mr. Hughes: "The most interesting parts weren't in the city. I think driving [...]

This week’s on-again/off-again snow and rain didn’t hold Santa back, nor did it slow down GazeboNews photographer Cyn Sansing Mycoskie, who grabbed her cameras and went out to explore Lake Forest and Lake Bluff. Here’s what she found:

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