Tazewell County News Briefs

Chronicle Media

Pekin Main Street Farmers and Artists Market will return to downtown Pekin along with other events being planned to attract more people downtown. (Photo courtesy Pekin Main Street)

COUNTY

Amnesty Week will give break on collection fee

Thousands of Tazewell County residents have felt panic when they receive an ominous bill threatening prosecution from a collection agency the county uses to enforce payment of overdue court-ordered fines and costs.

However, for one week next month, the county Circuit Clerk’s Office will provide an incentive to pay those bills. The office will waive the 30-percent penalty fee for people who pay their criminal and traffic case fines and fees in full.

Circuit Clerk Linc Hobson has scheduled his office’s first Amnesty Week for March 12-16.

The fee will be waived only if all delinquent accounts are paid in full, Hobson said. Defendants can pay by cash, cashier check, personal check, money order or credit or debit card.

Payments can be made in person at the Circuit Clerk’s Office in the County Courthouse between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. during the week. Mailed payments must be postmarked by March 16. Those wishing to pay electronically can do so through judici.com, but they must first notify the clerk’s office by calling (309) 478-5699.

Additional information about Amnesty Week can be found at tazewellcountyil.com.

PEKIN

Market, special events coming to downtown

Events are being planned to attract the public downtown to see the improvements being made. The city will have four events and a farmers market, starting in May.

The city over the past few years has installed decorative tables and benches, removed the signal lights at the corners of Capitol and Court streets and Fourth and Court streets where new decorative signs were placed. Wayfinding signs have been installed, as have decorative crosswalks. Developer Todd Thompson stabilized and renovated some of the old buildings, which are now filled with new businesses.

The Pekin Farmers Market will be from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Wednesday from May 30 through Oct. 17. There will be music every week, a food truck and tables for people to eat at while shopping at the market. A community booth will give local not-for-profit and service groups a place to get the word out about their services.

In addition to farmers, will be an organic flower producer, crafters and vendors. Fruit, vegetables and baked goods will be sold. Downriver Farm will participate with traditional heirloom vegetables, as well as more exotic produce.

Four other events, for which additional information will be available at a later date, will allow patrons to drink alcohol on the block where the event is held.

The events will be:

  • The Summer Kickoff, which will be held on the evening of June 1, with live music, food vendors and more;
  • Bike Night on July 27, the night before the Cruise-In;
  • A new event to Pekin will be the bathtub race, which will be held on Aug. 17, on Court Street downtown. Participants will compete by building their own bathtubs, which can be anything that holds water — including a real bathtub. The tubs must be mounted on wheels, have a driver and someone to push it. Prizes will be awarded. The Pekin Community High School welding class will make two or three tubs for the races, which can be borrowed by competitors; and
  • Friday Night Family Fest with the Lip Sync Contest will be back this fall on Sept. 7, the night before the Marigold Festival kicks off. The Lip Sync Contest was a popular event that had been terminated in 2011.

MORTON

Bulky Items can go into trash for one week 

The village of Morton is scheduling pickup of large, bulky items as part of the regular trash collections April 30 – May 4.  Residents will have to put acceptable items at the curb by 6 a.m. on their regular garbage day.  Any large item that can fit in a can, bag or box will require an additional trash sticker.

Acceptable materials Include doors and windows, mattresses, furniture, carpet and wood scraps (bundled), construction material (must be bundled, be cut to less than 5 feet in length, and weigh less than 50 pounds per bundle).

Materials that will not be acceptable Include tires, paint, batteries, appliances (white goods), yard waste, hazardous material (oil, gas, solvents), E-waste (computers, TVs, electronics) and concrete.

For more information, call 309-266-5361.

 

–Tazewell County News Briefs–