Current disabled parking permits expire Jan. 31. Technology is making it easier for people with disabilities to renew their parking placards while visiting their doctor. Physicians can renew their patient’s disability placards online via the Illinois Secretary of State’s website

STATE

New divorce law decides who gets the family pet

Divorce proceedings have so many assets to divvy up. And, the decision of one question can raise a lot of concern: Who gets the dog? 

Under SB 1261, which Gov. Bruce Rauner signed in August and took effect in Illinois Jan. 1, the judge will now answer that question. In deciding the fate of any family pet, a judge may take into consideration important pet parent details concerning who takes care of the animal on a day-to-day basis, and who spends more money on necessities such as food and vaccinations.

Two other new laws that took effect Jan. 1 also affect animals.

SB 1884 requires laboratories to make a reasonable effort to find homes for dogs or cats used in their research.

And, staple circus character is now a part of history. To protect elephants from harmful training conditions and abuses, SB 1342 prohibits circuses or traveling animal acts in Illinois from using African and Asian elephants.

Doctors can renew patients’ disabled parking permits

Technology is making it easier for people with disabilities to renew their parking placards while visiting their doctor. Physicians can renew their patient’s disability placards online via the Illinois Secretary of State’s website, making Illinois the second state in the nation to provide this service.

Persons with disabilities are required to renew their permanent disability parking placards every four years. With the upgraded renewal system, the Secretary of State’s office sends a renewal certification form to the authorized holder of permanent disability placard approximately three months prior to their parking placard’s expiration date. The renewal certification form contains the information of the authorized holders including their current parking placard number and authorized pin number. The authorized holders then take the form to their physician, who submits the patient’s information online at cyberdriveillionis.com.

Then, the certification form is submitted instantly to the Secretary of State’s office. If the authorized holders provided an email address, they will receive an email confirmation that their application has been received. Following approval, their updated placard will be mailed. The new system reduces the amount of time it takes for individuals to receive their new parking placard.

The next expiration date for parking placards is Jan. 31.

PEORIA

Sculptor explores use of light in his work

“Luminous Objects,” the work of sculptor Gary Justis, opens Jan. 12 at the Contemporary Art Center of Peoria, 305 SW Water St. Continuing his 40-year exploration into light and motion through sculptural and video works, Justis explores light and mechanical metaphors of the natural and post-industrial world in this exhibition.

The opening reception for both “Luminous Objects” and “The Shape of Air,” an exhibit featuring the work of six Chicago Sculpture International members, will be held 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Jan. 13. Admission is free, but a donation is requested.

”Luminous Objects” will run through Feb. 23. Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

Justis earned his master of fine arts degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1979. He lives in Bloomington, where he continues his work in sculpture, printmaking, experimental photography and writing, and holds a professorship at Illinois State University. He has exhibited his work at major museums and private galleries around the country. Justis’ work has been reviewed in major art journals.

Kits, instructions distributed to handle opioid overdoses

Free opioid overdose kits will again be distributed from 1 to 3 p.m. Jan. 10 at the Central Fire House, 505 NE Monroe St., Peoria.

Sue Tisdale, a community educator with the Human Service Center (HSC) of Peoria, said she had steady traffic during a recent two-hour giveaway. She has been at area firehouses every week for the last several months, and it appears that word has gotten out.

The effort is being funded with a $687,000 federal grant HSC received in August. The kits are being distributed to 38 counties in central and northwestern Illinois through the grant. The first distribution push was aimed at getting kits to area law enforcement and EMTs. Now the HSC is working to get them out to the general public. Each person who takes a kit is taught how to administer the drug.

Opioid addiction, and the accompanying overdoses, is at crisis level in the country, including Peoria.

Kroger plans on hold as two stores close

Plans to overhaul one Kroger store and expand another are on hold, and possibly will be scrapped, given the company’s economic woes.

A long-planned overhaul of the Kroger store in Central Peoria and the building expansion and possible addition of a fuel center to the Kroger in East Peoria are stalled, and were mentioned as part of a company announcement that store locations on Wisconsin Avenue and Harmon Highway will close by the end of the month.

Kroger officials had planned more than two years ago to construct a Kroger Marketplace store at Evergreen Square, a replacement for its current facility in

Sale of former Kmart goods to aid Friendship House

Some forward thinking will benefit a faith-based organization. Peoria Friendship House purchased merchandise from Kmart before local outlets closed, and is selling it, packaged with the original tags, at 80 percent off the original price. The sale is being held at Friendship House, 616 NE Madison Ave., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays.

Clothing, toys, purses and other items are being sold. Friendship House staff thinks it has enough merchandise to sell all year.

–Peoria County News Briefs–