New otter pups will be on exhibit at Miller Park Zoo beginning in April. (Photo courtesy of Miller Park Zoo)

McLean County

ISU’s Music Festival reaches milestone

The Red Note New Music Festival, Illinois State University’s annual arts-themed extravaganza, is holding a series of special programs this week. Sydney Hodkinson, a Florida-based musician, is serving as guest composer of this year’s festival.

Upcoming events amid the festival include a performance by the Del Sol String Quartet at 8 p.m. Wednesday, March 29, and a contemporary concert at 8 p.m. Thursday, March 30. The performances will be held at ISU’s Kemp Recital Hall, 353 S. School St., Normal.

For information on the festival, visit www.finearts.illinoisstate.edu/red-note/.        

Advocate BroMenn offering free heart screenings

Medical experts and volunteers within Advocate BroMenn’s medical center in Normal will soon venture to Lexington and offer free heart screenings to students attending Lexington High School. The screenings will be offered Friday, April 21, through the Advocate Charitable Foundation.

The goal of the screenings, according to hospital staffers, is to detect genetic heart abnormalities, which are present in every one in 500 persons.

Experts will especially keep an eye on a condition known as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which enlarges the left ventricle of the heart and can cause death during times of exertion. Students under age 18 will need a parent or guardian’s permission to take part in the screening.

For information on the screening and volunteer opportunities, visit www.advocatehealth.com/bromenn-YH4L or call (309) 268-2437.  

Bloomington

Bloomington receives ‘clean’ audit; Coliseum omitted   

Outside audit firm Baker Tilly has given Bloomington a “clean audit” on the city’s financial statements from May 1, 2015 to April 30, 2016. As with all Illinois municipalities, Bloomington is required to have its books reviewed by an outside firm annually under state statutes.

But there is a glaring caveat to Baker Tilly’s otherwise upbeat report: The U.S. Cellular Coliseum, which has been the subject of fraudulent activity, was not put under the microscope because some documents are under the lock and key of law enforcement amid an ongoing investigation.

IDOT to begin Veterans Parkway work April 3   

Illinois Department of Transportation crews will begin road resurfacing work on Veterans Parkway, or Interstate 55 Business, in Bloomington on Monday, April 3.

The impacted, three-mile area along Veterans Parkway, stretches from the intersections of Hamilton Road/Fox Creek Drive to Bunn Street. The work includes patching, milling, resurfacing and safety upgrades. The work is slated for completion by late October.

For information and specific updates on the project, visit IDOT’s website at www.idot.illinois.gov.

Two otter pups born recently at MPZ    

Tallulah and Ozzie, Miller Park Zoo’s North American River otters, are the proud parents of two female pups, who were born in late February. According to animal experts, North American River otters rarely reproduce in zoos and aquariums, making the recent MPZ event notable.

“We’re very excited to announce the birth of these otter pups,” MPZ Director Jay Tetzloff said in a statement. “We’re all looking forward to watching them grow up.” The otter pups are expected to go on exhibit in April.

For now, the pups will be nameless. Plans call for MPZ holding a fundraising auction in September, with top bidders partaking in the naming process.

The Den recognized as Top 10 Arnold Palmer course    

The Den at Fox Creek golf course in Bloomington was recently voted as a top 10 Arnold Palmer Signature Golf Course, according to a rating system established by Golf Advisor. More than 300 golf courses across the globe feature the Palmer design, which is noted for offering players of all skill levels a challenging game.

“We are honored to be in the top 10,” Jason Wingate, Bloomington golf superintendent, said in a statement.

Last year, visitors played 20,600 rounds of golf at The Den at Fox Creek. The course opened to the public for the season this past weekend.

Normal

Automotive startup receiving state grant funding

Rivian Automotive, the Detroit-based automotive startup that is assuming Mitsubishi’s former manufacturing plant in Normal, has received a $49.5 million grant from Gov. Bruce Rauner.

The grant will come in the form of Economic Development for a Growing Economy, or EDGE, tax credits. State law permits companies operating in Illinois to receive employee state income tax revenue through EDGE in specific circumstances.

Rivian’s executives have largely remained mum about their young company, though plans are in motion to begin production operations in Normal by 2020.

Town resumes landscape waste collection program

With the spring season in bloom, Normal public works crews will resume picking up landscape waste on a regular basis during residents’ regularly assigned refuse collection days.

All items subject to collection should be placed curbside no later than 6 a.m. the day of collection. Landscape waste includes weeds, leaves and other easily compostable vegetation.

For information, call the town’s public works department at (309) 454-9571.

–McLean County News Briefs–