Shaw Local

News   •   Sports   •   eNewspapers   •   The Scene
Photo Galleries

Editorial Roundtable: What new would you like to see?

What fun or exciting addition would you like to see in your community?

By Shaw Media

J. Tom Shaw, Chief Product Officer We’ve made our home in Plainfield for the last four years, and we’ve got plenty to be proud of in our community. The schools are top notch, and we’ve got a fantastic selection of local restaurants and patio dining downtown. We’ve got bike trails, river recreation, forest preserves, and easy highway access to the city. While I haven’t taken advantage of public transportation in recent months, one thing that I would welcome to our village is a Metra line. Our closest stop is Aurora, but having our own stop from downtown Plainfield, going right past Midway, and ending in Union Station would be a dramatic improvement. Actually, while we are at it, how about a train route connecting the North and South suburbs? Maybe Oswego to Lake Geneva? We could have stops along Randall Road at I-88 and I-90 and any stop along the way that makes sense.

Jennifer Heintzelman General Manager, Sauk Valley Media I would love to see a community center built in Dixon. A community center would benefit all age groups of Dixon residents. It could be a place where seniors could go to in the cold months to walk on an indoor track or meet up with friends. A place that adults could get a workout in or gather with friends for a game of pickleball. A place where teens could go to shoot some hoops, splash in a pool or rehearse for a play. They could receive after school tutoring or jump on a computer if needed. The center could become a much needed hub for sporting tournaments which would also bring in tax dollars for our community. A place where businesses could hold meetings or a family could host a birthday party. A center such as this, would truly be beneficial to all and would help move Dixon forward.

Jon Styf, Senior News Editor McHenry County has seen a growing number of live concerts, from Jeff Tweedy coming to play at the McHenry Outdoor Theater to the bands at Gavers Barndance to the hush-hush Steven Tyler concert at Bunker Hill Farms to the Fiesta Days concerts in McHenry to Wayne Jett and his Rise Up Foundation's booking of Brantley Gilbert, Hunter Hayes, Eli Young Band, Third Eye Blind and Local H for the planned and now postponed Rise Up Music Fest. But what I wish we had now is a permanent outdoor music venue, something like Alpine Valley, that would draw in larger bands and be in one set spot permanently. The area next to McCullom Lake where the stage gets set up at McHenry's Petersen Park seems like a great spot for something like that but I don't really care where it goes, I just would like to see suburbanites trekking out to McHenry County on the regular to see summer concerts with large acts across genres. It only makes sense, we've got the space and it's beautiful out here.

Tammie Sloup, Regional Editor Anyone who’s traveled through Ottawa, even on a limited basis, has likely experienced being stopped at a rail crossing for 10 minutes or more. As you throw your car into park, let out a sigh, you see the train cars grind to a stop. Then, to top it off, the train cars start moving in the opposite direction as the cars are switched out. We even have a name for it – the “Ottawa pause.” And it usually happens when you’re running late, at least to me. A couple years ago, about 100 residents met to compile a list of top 12 priorities for the city. Building underpasses and overpasses for the city’s multiple railroad crossings ranked No. 9. Another item on the list, at No. 4, was increasing passenger rail, which I’m also onboard with. But reducing the “Ottawa pause” is tops for me, not just for convenience but public safety.