Round Lake Area News

Rep. Schneider on Russia-Syria Arms Deal

May 21st, 2013

by Gene Carey

Schneider Calls for Prevention of Russian Transfer of Advanced Weapons to al-Assad

10th District Rep. Brad Schneider

WASHINGTON – In a bipartisan letter sent to Secretary of State John Kerry, U.S. Congressman Brad Schneider (IL-10) urged action to dissuade the Russians from completing an advanced-arms deal with the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad. It has been reported that the Russian government is planning to deliver surface-to-air missiles to al-Assad’s regime. Schneider, who led the letter, has previously warned of the dangers of such a transfer.

“Any transfer of advanced weapons from the Russians to the Syrian regime is unacceptable and threatens to destabilize the entire region even further,” Schneider said. “Any and all flows of weapons to the Syrian regime only prolong the bloodshed and postpone the move to a post-al-Assad transitional government. My colleagues and I urge Secretary Kerry to urgently work to prevent the completion of this dangerous transfer from ever occurring, and to focus on how to best bring about an end to al-Assad’s grip on power.”

Schneider, a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, has been vocal about the need to replace al-Assad and move to a transitional government. This latest call for action follows his urging of the Iraqi government to crack down on Iran’s use of Iraqi airspace to transfer arms to al-Assad and questioning of former U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford on the future of national unity and regional stability as the crisis continues in Syria.

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Yingling to Host Town Hall Meeting June 5th

May 21st, 2013

by Gene Carey

End of Session Town Hall Meeting in Grayslake

IL State Representative Sam Yingling

HAINESVILLE, Ill. – State Rep. Sam Yingling will host a Summer Town Hall Meeting at the Grayslake Middle School, located at 440 Barron Blvd., on Wednesday, June 5 at 7 p.m. to update residents about the General Assembly’s spring legislative session.

“I am committed to making every effort to listen to the concerns and to stay accessible to the constituents of the 62nd District,” Yingling said. “This upcoming town hall meeting is one of the ways I plan to engage with residents and learn more about what issues they are most concerned about.”

As a full-time legislator, Yingling is committed to remaining accessible to the residents of the 62nd District. At the Grayslake Town Hall Meeting, Yingling plans to provide an update regarding the end of the legislative session, discuss current concerns, and will take questions from the audience.

“I encourage Grayslake area residents to attend the town hall to discuss any issues they have or simply to learn more about the legislation we passed at the Capitol this spring,” Yingling continued. “I am here to represent the people of this district and I look forward to hearing feedback and ideas from as many residents as possible.”

Yingling represents the 62nd District, which contains portions of Gages Lake, Grayslake, Hainesville, the Round Lake communities, and Wauconda. For more information, please contact Yingling’s fulltime constituent service office at 847-231-6262 or repsamyingling@gmail.com

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PNC Bank Closes Round Lake Beach Branch

May 17th, 2013

by Gene Carey

Leaves Area With NO ATMs Available for Current Depositers

Today at 3:00 PM the local PNC Bank located at 801 E. Rollins Road in Round Lake Beach officially closed their doors for good. This was brought about due to the upcoming reconfiguration of the intersection at the corner of Rollins Rd. and Route 83. With a future railroad overpass over Rollins Road, Route 83 will shift Eastery thus the PNC Bank building is scheduled to be demolished. Another casualty is the small strip mall where Payless Shoes was located (and has already vacated).

I arrived at PNC Bank today at 2:15 to make one last deposit, having been a customer at that location since 1985. There was a medium size moving truck in the lot that they were loading the drive-thru ATM onto after disassembling it. For about the tenth time I asked the people working inside if PNC Bank was going to have a local ATM available or at least share one that we wouldn’t be charged a fee to use. Again the answer was NO. I had their last letter with me which states “You can look forward to the same personal service you expect from PNC Bank at your new branch, as well as convenient account access at more than 7,300 PNC Bank ATMs with no transaction fees” I ‘bolded” the word “convenient” on purpose because I don’t consider driving to Grayslake, Fox lake, or Antioch ‘convenient” when all I want to do is deposit a check or draw out a few bucks at any particular hour of the day without paying a fee to use someone elses ATM.

PNC Bank was reportedly in talks to re-open in the vacant Blockbuster building in front of Garden Fresh Market on Rollins Road but for whatever reason that never materialized. Instead they have thumbed their noses at the residents of the Round Lake Area and said “Good-Bye”, enjoy the drive to the nearest branch!

The 2011 census shows the following population for the villages that they are thumbing their noses at:
Round Lake = 18,365
Round Lake Beach = 28,289
Round Lake Heights = 2,678
Round Lake Park = 7536

That’s a total of 56,868 residents that they feel that they can survive without. PNC Bank suggests that we use our “new” branch, meaning one in a neighboring town. How far is that “new” branch and how long will it take to get there and back?

Double the following figures to get “round trip” mileage and travel time and then decide whether you are going to do as I did today and open up an account elsewhere here in town (distances below are calculated from 801 Rollins Rd to the other branch).

Grayslake branch, 202 Center St. = 3.49 miles, 7 minutes
Fox Lake branch, 66 E. Grand = 7.36 miles, 17 minutes
Antioch branch, 574 W. Rt 173 = 7.42 miles, 14 minutes

Join me in saying “So Long” to PNC Bank

While depositing money in my separate tax escrow account at NorWest Bank which I have had an account at for over 40 years when they were Round Lake Bank on Goodnow in downtown Round Lake, I opened up a new checking account. I hope that others join me and find a local bank or credit union and send a STRONG message that we are divorcing PNC Bank just like they did us.

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Mayor Lumpkins Begins 6th Term in Round Lake Heights

May 14th, 2013

by Gene Carey

Anthony Pekar Replaces Jeremy McIntyre on Village Board

Trustee Jeremy McIntyre honored for his public service

Round Lake Heights was another local village that did not have opposing slates running in the recent elections. In fact, Mayor Terry Lumpkins popularity won him a sixth term as Village Mayor. Other incumbents who were sworn in at the May 14th village board meeting were Trustees Andrew Walker and Jeff Katzel along with Village Clerk Marla McIntyre. Newly elected Trustee Anthony Pekar was sworn in to replace outgoing Trustee Jeremy McIntyre who had elected not to run for re-election. Trustee Jeremy McIntyre was honored for his service with a plaque from Mayor Lumpkins and the Board. Also sworn in was Shane Page as a part time police officer

During the meeting there was an updated presentation from CMAP regarding the ongoing long term plans for the Village of Round Lake Heights. I had attended the initial Q&A forum that was presented offering various plans for creating a shopping district that might end up being located off of Rollins Road. Tonight’s update was well received by the Board and Mayor Lumpkins asked “So what’s the next step?” With that, it was suggested that the Village hold an open house that would have eisle displays showing what was planned so that any future hearings wouldn’t blind-side the village residents. RLH residents should watch their local newsletters for an update on that open house schedule.

After the meeting everyone was invited to stay for cake and coffee. The cake had already been cut by the time I took the following photo that honored Mayor Lumpkins for his current 20 years of service.

With 20 years of service, Mayor Terry Lumpkins begins his 6th term

The cover shot on the following video of the swearing in ceremony is newly elected Trustee Anthony Pekar

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Round Lake Beach Officials Swearing in Ceremony 2013

May 13th, 2013

by Gene Carey

Husk Replaces Armstrong on Round Lake Beach Village Board

At tonight’s Round Lake Beach village board meeting the newly elected officials were sworn in. They ran unopposed with Trustee candidate Chuck Husk running to replace Judy Armstrong who did not seek re-election. Besides swearing in Trustee Husk, Judge Raymond D. Collins from the Criminal Division swore in incumbents Mayor Rich Hill, Trustee Larry Mount, Trustee Sylvia Valadez, and Village Clerk Marge Cleveland.

Outgoing Trustee Judy Armstrong honored at the May 13th village board meeting for her past services.

Following the swearing in, Mayor Hill motioned for a resolution honoring outgoing Trustee Judy Armstrong for her years of service to the village. The resolution was read by Clerk Cleveland and immediately seconded at which time the Mayor then presented it, along with a service plaque, to Trustee Armstrong.

Earlier in the meeting several area students were awarded Round Lake Beach scholarships to help with their college expenses. One young lady was in attendance and spoke briefly, thanking the Board and talking a little bit about what and where she plans to study.

The following video is only the first portion of the meeting up to when Trustee Armstrong addressed the board.

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Round Lake’s New Mayoral Appointments

May 9th, 2013

by Gene Carey

Within days after being sworn in, new Round Lake Village President, Dan MacGillis, scheduled a special meeting on May 9, 2013, to assign new village administration appointments. After receiving a written resignation from the current village administrator the Mayor and Board approved hiring Russell Kraly as a Management Consultant. Kraly’s duties will be to manage the administrative operations and consult with the Board regarding the search for a replacement administrator.

Mayor Daniel MacGillis welcomes Russ Kraly as the villages new Management Consultant

The meeting only lasted about ten minutes followed by Kraly shaking hands with the Board and thanking them for their support. He is currently the building inspector for the Village of Hainesville which is a part-time position.