As 2017 comes to a close, WGIL is looking back and reviewing some of the top stories from the last year.
District 205 saw one Superintendent leave, and another come on board to usher in a new school year with new ideas and a new approach.
After over 33 years in education Ralph Grimm retired, and after a lengthy search the Board of Education announced the hiring of Dr. John Asplund to take Grimm’s place.
The 205 Board also saw some change as long-time Board Member Bob Lindstrom chose not to run for re-election, and give way for several new faces and a new Board President, with Tianna Cervantez being elected to the position.
2017 was also an election year for local politics. City Council members Wayne Allen, Corrine Anderson and Wayne Dennis as well as Mayor John Pritchard won re-election.
Allen ran against Chris King and Torry Carnes for Ward 6 while Pritchard ran against Q’s Cafe owner Walt McAllister.
2017 also saw Carl Sandburg College’s President, Dr. Lori Sundberg, interview and accept a new position with Kirkwood College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
While most citizens managed to avoid run-ins with law enforcement, some did not.
One story that made national headlines, even being mentioned on Saturday Night Live, was a D-U-I arrest where the alleged told officers his name was “Burger King”
While the story gets a laugh, the seriousness of the crime cannot be ignored. Bradley S. Galloway will be appearing in court on the charges early next month.
2017 also saw Nicholas Sheley receive life in prison without parole for killing an Arkansas couple in Missouri.
Sheley had been convicted previously in the murder of 65-year-old Ronald Randall in Galesburg, which he too received a life sentence for.
Monmouth has seen their fair share of news, with the hiring of a Joe Switzer as the new police chief, and the arrest of Drew M. Pearman in the shooting death of 27-year-old Zackery D. Talley on Christmas Eve.
Pearman will start the new year on trial, being charged with five counts of a Class X Felony of First-Degree Murder in the shooting.
Some popular eateries were lost – but the addition of others.
A local favorite was lost on Tuesday, June 13th this year when multiple area fire crews responded to a blaze at a popular eatery in Wataga.
A fire at Jimmy’s Pizza broke out before 5pm that day, and at one point, flames could be seen shooting out the top of the restaurant. Fire personnel were on the scene fighting the blaze for over three hours – resulting in a total loss.
A little over two months later, the building was demolished – but owners Jimmy and Debra McCormick have been drafting up new plans for the rebuild. The reconstruction of the local favorite is expected to be completed sometime in the spring of 2018.
Clouds of smoke poured out from Downtown Galesburg as fire crews battled a blaze in Fig’s Italian Steakhouse on Wednesday, July 5th at 51 N. Prairie St. Smoke was “chugging” out the eaves on all four sides according to Fire Chief Tom Simkins.
It appeared as though the fire started on the first floor around the kitchen area.They were able to contain the fire in a matter of a about 30 minutes, possibly aided by a little luck – fire crews were due to change shifts at the time of the fire.
The building was long ago the Galesburg YMCA and was the home of the Galesburg High School boys basketball team that won the state championship in 1913.
Just this past Thursday, the much anticipated Galesburg Burger King opened it’s doors.
The announcement of a new Burger King was made in August of 2016 – the groundbreaking occurred in August of 2017. The popular fast food chain added about 40 jobs to Galesburg.
Galesburg lost one of it’s greatest citizens this year, found a way to honor him, and made some much-needed improvements for residents. A community fixture and a true believer in people, Jon Sibley Sr. passed away on Monday, April 3rd.
Sibley, a life-long Galesburg native, was a United State Air Force Sergeant, a state trooper, served on Carl Sandburg College’s Board of Trustees, was a board member of the Carl Sandburg College Foundation, served as a minister for Full Gospel Church, was a member of the Galesburg Police and Fire Commission, and a member of the Galesburg chapter of the NAACP.
Sibley was named as the recipient of the Galesburg Chamber’s Thomas B. Herring Community Service Award in 2013.
The Jon Sibley Sr. Underpass is expected to be completed by late spring / early summer 2018.
2017 did bring good news to health-related worried residents. In early July, 409 private lead water service lines citywide on South Chambers Street, as well as on East Berrien Street and East Brooks Street began to be replaced.
The city finalized the agreement for the forgivable federal loan for the program’s first phase, totaling nearly $2 million, through the Illinois EPA’s Public Water Supply Loan Program.
Another 500 or so lead service lines are poised for replacement during the 2nd phase of the program – with the City applying for a 2nd forgivable loan from the IEPA.
