KCC-11-27-2012

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Kane County

CHRONICLEtuesday, November 27, 2012 | 50 CeNts | kCCHroNiCle.Com

sOnG & dance

BatavIa HIGH scHOOL sHOW cHOIr prepares fOr sprInG perfOrmances. paGe 4

In neWs

top d-303 offiCial’s CoNtraCt approvedpage 6

Sandy Bressner – [email protected]

michael luetkens and Glynis Gilio rehearse with the batavia High school swingsingers coed show choir.

east’s kendall stephens

By ASHLEY RHODEBECK [email protected]

BATAVIA – Santa Claus was in demand Sunday in downtown Batavia.

Families began lining up to see Father Christmas at least 45 minutes before Mayor Jeff Schielke officially welcomed him on the Peg Bond Center stage during the city’s annual Celebration of Lights Festi-val.

Per tradition, Santa was in Batavia to help Schielke light the community Christmas tree, the mayor said. Together, Schielke and residents count-ed down to the big moment.

“Merry Christmas,” Schiel-ke said once the tree was aglow.

Hundreds of people attend-ed the mainly outdoor event, which included a community sing-a-long, tractor-pulled wagon rides and visits with Santa.

Benton Pahlka of Batavia stood beside his 10-month-

old son, Harlan, while his 2½-year-old daughter, Lilia, and wife, Rebecca, were on the nearby playground.

This was the family’s sec-ond year at the festival, he said, and they planned to go on the wagon ride and see Santa.

“The line is already out the door,” he said before the

event’s start at 5:30 p.m.Chris Ciappa of Batavia

and his daughters, 10-year-old Samantha and 4-year-old Miranda, also planned to see Santa – if the line wasn’t too long.

He brought his daughters to their first Celebration of Lights Festival so they could

be involved in community happenings, he said.

Other families, such as the Carters of Batavia, took turns waiting in line. While her hus-band stood in line, Katie Cart-er and daughter Ellie, 5, found the girl’s ornament on one of the several trees decorated by organizations.

Ellie stood by her orna-ment, which hung on a low branch, and her mother snapped a photo.

The girl said she was ex-cited to see Santa. She hopes he will bring her an American Girl doll and a toy walking dog for Christmas.

Santa greeted children in the Peg Bond Center’s warm-ing house, which also hosted the Batavia Fire Department’s bake sale.

Megan Loebbaka waited in the warmth with her son, 4-year-old Sawyer, and daugh-ter, 6-month-old Charlotte. Her husband, Cale, was a fire-fighter working the event, she said.

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A crowd gathers as the Christmas tree is lit during Sunday’s Celebra-tion of Lights on the Batavia Riverwalk.

Santa’s stop in Batavia draws crowd

By BRENDA SCHORY [email protected]

GENEVA – Three resi-dents implored the Geneva School District 304 board to approve a zero percent levy increase in its operating fund next month for 2012, instead of the 1.5 percent increase board members tentatively approved.

Taxing bodies in Illinois make their levy requests to the county based on the equalized assessed value of property within the district. Final action will be taken in December.

Sandra Ellis, Bob McQuil-lan and Jay Moffat, all of the taxpayer watchdog group TaxFACTS, said Monday the district still would get more money than last year with a zero levy request in the dis-trict’s operating fund.

A 1.5 percent levy increase would hike property taxes on a home with an equalized assessed value of $315,000 by

$340, officials said. The tax rate would increase by .34 to 6.06 per $100 EAV, officials said.

The total levy for all the district’s funds is just less than $81 million. Last year’s levy was $78 million.

With a zero request, Ellis said, the district would get $62.5 million, which is $1.2 million more than the $61.3 million it received in that fund in the 2011 levy.

When the school board vot-ed to accept a 1.5 percent levy increase, officials said they would have to cut more than $900,000 from the budget. A 2 percent recommended levy request would have required a $600,000 cut, officials said.

Resident John Rice said he was comfortable with a 1.5 percent levy increase.

“I know there is a push for zero, but 1.5 percent is a compromise,” Rice said. “I don’t want to be taxed out of the community, but I am an adamant supporter of educa-

tion. … If you can make zero percent work, by all means look at that, but for me right now 1.5 percent seems rea-sonable.”

But Moffat countered the $900,000 in cuts is not a de-crease in the budget, but rath-er a decrease in what the dis-trict could expect to receive in tax dollars from the levy request.

“I don’t think we truly need that when we’re sitting on … a $57 million fund balance that shrinks to $53 million,” Mof-fat said. “I personally think we can easily survive with a flat dollar amount levy.”

McQuillan said school boards request the maximum allowed levy “not because they needed it, but because they were afraid not to. The process resulted in over-tax-ing residents and creating a reserve fund that was way too high.”

“The taxpayers deserve a break,” McQuillan said.

After the meeting, school

board president Mark Gros-so would not comment on whether the board would con-sider changing its tentative levy request to zero from 1.5 percent.

Residents lobby for zero percent levy hikeD-304

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GETTING STARTED | Kane County Chronicle / KCChronicle.com • Tuesday, Novem

ber 27, 2012 3

Snowflake Shufflein Mill Creek

WHAT: TriCity Family Services, BMO Harris Bank and Exelon Generation will sponsor the fourth annual Snowflake Shuffle 5K Run/Walk. Holiday costume and spirit are appreci-ated. All proceeds will benefit TriCity Family Services. WHEN: Check in will begin at 7 a.m. Saturday with the youth mile event at 8:30 a.m. and the 5K race at 9 a.m WHERE: The clubhouse in the Mill Creek sub-division, 39W525 Herrington Drive, Geneva INFO: For information, a course map, or to register, visit www.tricityfamilyservices.org or call 630-232-1070.

Martini Madness in Batavia on Saturday

WHAT: Martini Madness, a shopping/din-ner event hosted by the Zellmer Childhood Disease Foundation to benefit University of Chicago Kovler Diabetes Center. Martini Mad-ness promises an evening of Italian cuisine paired with holiday cocktails and shopping, featuring the Olive Mill, The Latest Crave, Gigi Hill, Serendipity Bags and Vault Jeans. The cost is $35 a person, which includes dinner and one martini. WHEN: Martinis will be served at 8 p.m. Saturday, and shopping and a buffet dinner will start at 8:30 p.m. WHERE: Aliano’s Restaurant, 90 N. Island

Ave., Batavia INFO: For information, call 630-479-8116 or visit www.zcdf.org.

Living Nativity at Geneva church

WHAT: A Living Nativity will be presented by the youth of Geneva Lutheran Church during Geneva’s Christmas Walk. The costumed young actors will be accompanied by live ani-mals, background music, props and narration on the front lawn of the church, which is in the midst of Geneva’s Third Street Christmas Walk festivities. Members of the church will be serving complimentary cookies and hot cocoa. Donations will be accepted for the St. Peter Food Pantry. WHEN: The 30-minute tableau-style scenes will be staged Dec. 7 at 6:30 p.m., 7:15 p.m. and 8 p.m. WHERE: Geneva Lutheran Church is at the corner of Third and Franklin streets in down-town Geneva. INFO: For information, call 630-232-0165.

Holiday care packages in Batavia

WHAT: The 2012 Fox Valley Troop Support Holiday Care Package Event is set. Fox Valley Troop Support Inc. is partnered with the Batavia Veterans of Foreign Wars. Families of deployed service members are invited to contact the group and attend the event.

WHEN: 5 to 8 p.m. Dec. 7 and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 8 WHERE: Batavia VFW, 645 S. River St. (Route 25), Batavia INFO: Service organizations that would like to collect items for care packages, organize a fund drive to help defray the postal costs or have an idea about how to help, can contact FVTS co-chairs Sarah Giachino (630-587-3789 or [email protected]) or Kathy Tobusch (630-937-4181 or [email protected]). For information, visit www.fvts.org.

Breakfast with Santa in Batavia on Saturday

WHAT: Share breakfast with Santa. Enter-tainment includes a performance by the Batavia Showstoppers and “A Dickens Kind of Christmas” variety show. Cost is $13 for residents, $15 for Batavia nonresidents and $17 for nonresidents. Register as a family of four to receive a discount. WHEN: 8:30 to 10 a.m. Saturday. Enter-tainment begins at 9:15 a.m. after Santa’s departure. WHERE: Eastside Community Center, 14 N. Van Buren St., Batavia INFO: For information or to register, call 630-879-5235 or visit www.bataviaparks.org.

Kane County Chronicle staffers pick the best of what to do in your free timeandAboutOut

FACE TIME WITH CORINNE WISOWATySt. Charles resident Corinne Wiso-

waty, 28, was at the St. Charles Chi-cago Pet Show when she answered 10 questions for the Kane County Chronicle’s Brenda Schory.

Where did you grow up? NapervillePets? Two Australian shepherds,

Cinema and Max, and I foster another one, Rolo

Who would play you in the movie of your life? Sandra Bullock

First job? A pet sitterAs a kid, what did you want to be

when you grew up? I wanted to be a professional in marketing, and I was

for five years until I went back to pet sitting.

A book you’d recommend? “Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies” by Jared Diamond

Favorite charity? A Dog’s Day Rescue in Chicago

Hobbies? I paint, and I’m a photog-rapher and a dog rescuer.

Why are you here today? To promote Grahamville Rescue and Sanctuary. They are out of Joliet, but they have foster homes throughout.

What is an interesting factoid about yourself? I’m a sky diver. I’ve jumped out of a plane about 10 or 11 times.

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KCC-11-27-2012

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