Woodstock has been notified by the U.S. Census Bureau that the final 2016 Special Census tally for the community is 25,528 residents.

Crystal Lake 

Crystal Lake City Council OKs ordinance to decrease property tax rate 

Crystal Lake City Council recently adopted an ordinance that will decrease the city’s property tax rate by at least 5.21 percent. The decrease could be even greater depending on changes in the Equalized Assessed Valuation in the city, which will be finalized in March. The amount of money estimated to be raised by the proposed 2016 tax levy is $16.37 million. The proposed tax levy, which funds the Fire Rescue Department and required pension obligations, will ensure that the tax levy attributable to the city remains one of the lowest tax rates in the area. The proposed property tax also includes the Crystal Lake Public Library’s property tax levy. For more information, call (815) 459-2020 or visit www.crystallake.org.

Woodstock 

Special Census reveals increase in Woodstock population tally 

Woodstock has been notified by the U.S. Census Bureau that the final 2016 Special Census tally for the community is 25,528 residents. The total includes 171 more residents than the preliminary estimate that was reported following canvassing of the city’s newer neighborhoods in October 2016. In terms of fiscal benefits, each officially counted resident results in additional reimbursement from the State of Illinois to Woodstock, which compensates for services already being provided to new residents by the city. Since the last Census, taken in 2010, Woodstock is now confirmed to have 758 additional residents. That figure will result in the city receiving approximately $115,000 in additional annual state-shared revenues that otherwise would not have been available to Woodstock. The official count is expected to be confirmed by the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office later in January. For more information, call (815) 338-4301 or visit www.woodstockil.gov.

Harvard 

Harvard Police Dept. shifts emergency dispatch calls to NERCOMM 

The Harvard Police Department officially has begun using the McHenry County Northeastern Regional Communications Center (NERCOMM) for dispatch services, resulting in the closure of the department’s Dispatch Center. Calls made to 911 now will be answered by NERCOMM, allowing residents to continue to make direct contact for immediate emergency responses for police, fire and/or rescue services. The Police Administration line — (815) 943-4431 — will be available locally during business hours (generally 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday), and is best suited for return and routine calls, including requests for records or FOIA material, contacting the police chief, leaving a non-emergency message for an employee or checking on the status of a case. The Dispatch line — (815) 363-2130 — is designed for public safety/non-emergency calls for service, and should be used for businesses to re-route their alarms or for residents to report delayed calls for service, including overnight vandalism and minor car accidents. For more information, call (815) 943-6468 or visit www.cityofharvard.org.

Marengo 

Bounty of Marengo High seniors named Illinois State Scholars 

Marengo Community High School announced that 28 members of the Class of 2017, representing 14 percent of all seniors, recently earned the honor of being recognized as Illinois State Scholars. The honored students are Emily Atchison, Jake Barton, Cassidy Bowers, Megan Burns, Brittany Cass, Keenan Deboer, Casey Gara, Natalie Gruber, Eric Guse, Katlyn Haeflinger Ryan Kasch, Samantha Koziol, Daniel Larson, Victoria Martin, Joseph Mier, Parker Mortensen, Grace Mussell, Carter Olson, Mansi Patel, Sapna Patel, Madeline Pellegrino, Haley Spengler, Tristan Vance, Cameron Vanderlinden, Michael Volkening, Connor Wascher, Kaitlyn Wojcik and Nicholas Woodhouse. The group will officially be recognized during an award ceremony at halftime of a basketball game in February. For more information, call (815) 568-6511 or visit www.mchs154.org.

Algonquin 

Village of Algonquin earns esteemed budget award for 13th straight year 

Algonquin has received the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GOFA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for its Fiscal Year 2016-17 budget, marking the 13th year in a row the village has received the prestigious honor. In order to receive the award, budget documents must be rated “proficient” in four scoring categories, including 14 mandatory criteria within those categories. The GFOA award criteria helps effectively guide budget development for elected officials and staff. As a result of such effective financial planning, Algonquin has lowered its 2016 property tax levy by 2.3 percent. Algonquin also received special GOFA Performance Measures recognition for illustrating a clear link of operational data to financial decision making. To view Algonquin’s Fiscal Year 2016-17 budget document, visit www.algonquin.org/VillageManager. For more information, call the Village Manager’s Office at (847) 658-2700.

Lake in the Hills 

 Village of Lake in the Hills nets grant funding to upgrade lighting system 

The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus has awarded Lake in the Hills $5,880 in grant funding to upgrade interior fluorescent hanging lights at Village Hall, 600 Harvest Gate. The grant helps the village in its continued effort to replace inefficient fixtures, and will defray the cost of converting the internal components of 44 decorative fluorescent lights with LED (light emitting diode) retrofit kits. Upgrading to LED technology replaces the existing bulb fixtures with LED light strips, reducing annual wattage consumption by 9,800 watts. As cited in a recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report, municipal buildings are often able to achieve upwards of 40 percent in energy cost savings through LED lighting installations and retrofits. In addition, the superior lamp life of LED tubes results in a significant decrease in maintenance costs. The village expects to begin the project sometime this month. For more information, call (847) 960-7400 or visit www.lith.org.