Dreyer Medical Clinic officials teamed up to cut a ribbon to unveil Dreyer’s Sequoia outpatient clinic in Aurora last week. From left are Donna Cooper, Dreyer president and Advocate Medical Group chief operating officer; Dr. Chintan Mistry, chief medical officer; Michelle Mathews, operations director; and Rick Guzman, assistant chief of staff, City of Aurora. The two-story, 175,000 square foot clinic at 2285 Sequoia Drive in Aurora opened to patients last Monday. (Al Benson photo)

AURORA

Police charge man with concealment of death

Aurora Police have charged a 21-year-old Aurora man with the concealment of the death in May of a 20-year-old Yorkville woman.

After nearly a two month investigation Bruno Muro of the 300 block of Beach Street, was charged last week with concealment of death.

The charge stems from a May 11 incident where the body of Marisa MacDuff was discovered around 10:30 a.m. in a wooded area in the 900 block of N. Lake Street.

The complaint alleged that Bruno drove MacDuff around the near east side of Aurora as she ingested illegal narcotics and  passed away due to an overdose.  Bruno then drove her to the Lake Street location and put her body in a wooded area behind an abandoned business. 

Aurora Police Investigators credit the break in the investigation to a tip received by the Aurora Area Crime Stoppers.

Muro was taken into custody at his home without incident and is being held in lieu of $20,000. He is currently being held in the Kane County Correction Center in Geneva. 

Habitat for Humanity leases Aurora space

Fox Valley Habitat for Humanity has leased a 4,200-square-foot warehouse and office at 250 S. Highland Ave. in Aurora.

The nonprofit, ecumenical housing ministry had been at Genesis Community Church in Montgomery since 2011.

Founded in 1989, Fox Valley Habitat is among more than 1,400 local affiliates of Habitat for Humanity International in the United States and more than 70 national organizations around the world.

Rev. Jeff Barrett, Habitat executive director and Genesis pastor, said the warehouse is expected to be more than double size of Habitat’s current storage space donated by Great Lakes Kwik Space, 1560 Aurora Ave. in Aurora.

“The significance of this warehouse project is a game-changer for our organization,” Rev. Barrett said. “Companies often offer the affiliate large donations of product. In the past, we have had to turn down such donations due to lack of storage space.

“The more items we have readily available, the fewer in-kind donations we have to seek during a build. Instead, we can focus on house-specific needs and cash donations.

AU students to attend Dem, GOP conventions

Two Aurora University students will have an extraordinary opportunity to indulge their fascination for politics this month. 

Erica Brown, a criminal justice major, will be attend the Republican National  Convention in Philadelphia while Christine Williams, a double major in political science and business administration, will travel  to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia.

Both will participate in the Washington Center’s National Political Convention Academic Seminar.

The Washington Center is an independent, nonprofit organization that provides students opportunities to work and learn in Washington, D.C., for academic credit. 

The 12-day experience combines traditional academic instruction with hands-on fieldwork that takes participants to the convention floor and behind the scenes in a variety of roles.

Alicia Cosky, dean of faculty development, said sending AU students to the conventions not only provides the students with a once-in-a-lifetime academic experience, it also builds the university’s presence on the national stage and strengthens its reputation as an institution that provides meaningful opportunities for its students.

ELBURN

County Board okays MA Center’s expansion

The Kane County Board last week gave the OK for a special use amendment that will allow the Mata Amritanandamayi Center in Elburn to add residential units, campus buildings, a farm stand and Montessori school to its 140-acre campus.

The board voted 22-1 with one abstention to approve the special-use change with several stipulations.

Over time, the MA Center plans to add 72 single-family homes constructed in groups of two to six attached units and 192 temporary residential units within three existing buildings at 41W501 Keslinger Road near Elburn. Additionally, the MA Center intends to build and operate a non-denominational Montessori School that initially would be inside of one of the homes and ultimately moved to a new school building if demand is warranted.

Some neighboring residents opposed the zoning change because of concerns about density, increased traffic and that the improvements would not substantially improve the tax base, because the MA Center is a religious institution.

The M.A. Center agreed to establish an internal policy that will discourage stays beyond six months and ask that parents do not place children in Kaneland School District 302.

The center conducts regular spiritual activities, including spiritual discourses and retreats, guided meditation yoga, and selfless service.

GENEVA

Vote for favorite garden flower garden

People who love Geneva’s downtown flowers can now cast votes for their favorite garden as part of the Geneva Beautification Committee’s Tour des Fleurs contest.

Seven gardens are featured in the second annual contest/fundraiser that will run through Wednesday, Aug. 31. Garden photographs, a map and more information can be found online at www.plantgeneva.com. Participating downtown gardens also are marked with signage.

People can vote for their favorite Tour des Fleurs garden in the form of a donation; each dollar donated counts as one vote. Votes can be made online via the contest web site, drop off ballots at Geneva’s City Hall or mail a donation check and ballot to the Geneva Beautification Committee, Attn: Sherri Weitl, Geneva City Hall, 22 S. First St., Geneva, IL 60134.

The Geneva Beautification Committee consists of organizations, businesses, families and volunteers that adopt and maintain planting beds and flower boxes throughout the City’s central business district.

Call (630) 232-7494 for more information.

–Kane County News Briefs–