About Stephenson County, IL

Did you know that there is paradise is a local place? Drive down Hwy 73 heading south and you will see this unassuming sign on the side of the road:

Green County sits on the Wisconsin-Illinois border, so there are sites in Illinois that we consider our area attractions. One of these sits about 15 minutes south of Monroe in the small community of Winslow, Illinois. D

The gravel drive looks like it goes into an old commercial building, but turn in and drive anyways. As you drive back there, things open up and you will see a lovely green space with a waterfall, small pool, and small creek meandering through.

Be sure to park the car and wander around. There is a quaint covered pedestrian bridge overlooking Indian creek, the perfect spot to snap some photos of the water tumbling over the rocks below.

There is a man-made waterfall next to a small pool of water a little further back in the park. The bench positioned here is a great place to sit and relax for a while as you reflect on life.

Enjoy a picnic lunch in the gazebo area, another great spot for photo ops as it nestles there into the rocks and greenery. There are walking trails in Paradise Cove as well, so hike on back through the woods to enjoy the peace and quiet.

Geocachers, be sure to bring the GPS. There are a geocache and an earthcache hidden within Paradise Cove.

Be sure to bring some containers to hold water if you go to Paradise Cove. The site is famous for the artesian well where thousands of gallons of water have bubbled out of the earth every day since 1927. The city uses this as their water source, and the public is welcome to come fill their person water containers from the spigot next to the pump house.

The water is sweet and clear, flowing cold from the earth. There is also a decorative water wheel turned by the water as it flows, which kids always enjoy looking at from the overlook platform.

Come enjoy a little bit of our local paradise.

Every spring, fiber arts enthusiasts have reason to celebrate as the Stephenson County Fiber Arts Fair takes place right in our own back yard.

This fun fair has something for everyone. There is workshops offered in a variety of fiber arts every year. This year's line up will teach participants how to spin with beads, needle tat or paint yarn and the basics of Entralac knitting, Kumihimo weaving, and felting (wet and dry). There is also a spinning wheel workshop to help people learn to "get the most out of your wheel" (bring your own spinning wheel).

There are always vendors on hand to feed any fiber arts enthusiasts stash. I will be on the prowl for some nice sock yarns and another set of bamboo double pointed needles, but I know from previous years experience that there array of choices will be stunning and include a huge variety of yarns and rovings, lots of needles for knitting and crochet, accessories, and supplies galore for any fiber art from needle felting to weaving and everything in between.

Join in the fun and enter the drop spindle spinning competition. Watch this ancient art, and perhaps you will see why I am so tempted every year to give a go myself.

The fair happens on April 18 from 9 am until 5 pm at the Jane Addams Community Center in Cedarville, IL, about halfway between Monroe and Freeport.

Sangamon Co. tax hike for schools in limbo

Eight counties reject similar referendums By PETE SHERMAN GateHouse News Service

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Voters in Cass County Tuesday approved a proposal to increase sales taxes to fund local schools, but similar referendums in eight other Illinois counties were beaten, most by wide margins.

That's left organizers of a sales-tax-for-schools plan in Sangamon County with some thinking to do.

Under a new state law, Illinois counties can ask voters to increase their sales taxes by up to 1 percent to pay for school construction. But the law first requires school boards representing at least 51 percent of all county students to vote to put the referendum on the ballot.

Most school boards in Sangamon County are for the plan, but the Springfield School Board has been reluctant to back the idea.

Springfield has about half of all public school students in the county, so a sales tax referendum won't happen unless the Springfield School Board supports it.

Tuesday's results seemed to confirm the Springfield board's reluctance.

"I can tell you, I still think it's a really neat idea," board president Erin Conley said Thursday. "I'm not opposed to it in theory. But I'm not sure now is the time to do this. I understand other districts have urgent building needs. I certainly appreciate that. But asking to increase taxes is a difficult thing to ask somebody right now."

The board has until January to decide whether to back a referendum, if it is to go on the ballot in the spring. So far, board members are nowhere near reaching a consensus. Springfield could net $10 million a year in extra building funds if such a plan was adopted.

The sales tax question was soundly defeated in most counties Tuesday.

The only close call was in Champaign County, where a school sales tax lost by 300 votes out of more than 76,000 cast.

By contrast, in Cass County, the tax plan passed by a margin of nearly 58 percent.

Cass County officials were not surprised, Beardstown School Superintendent Robert Bagby said.

Officials had promised to abate property taxes if sales taxes were increased, he noted. Also, a super Wal-Mart is on the way in the county, and Cass County has a history of voter-approved school-funding increases.

"We sold it as ‘everyone pays their fair share,'" Bagby said. "Those consumers outside Cass just began contributing to lowering our property taxes and helping our schools."

Bagby said the Beardstown district plans to use the new revenue, which will start coming in next fall, to pay off bond debt from the new middle and high school.

Also benefiting will be the Virginia and A-C Central school districts.

In Sangamon County, a steering committee made up of representatives from county school boards, including Springfield's, met Thursday night at the Sangamo Club to continue studying the issue - and Tuesday's votes.

"I think that will be one of the topics on the agenda," Ball-Chatham School Superintendent Robert Gillum, a member of the steering committee, said before the meeting. "The state of the current economy probably played a significant role."