Supervisor, DAVID F. NELSON |
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Fall 2004 |
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Cuba News |
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Township board meetings are held the second Thursday of each month at 7:00 pm at the Township office, 28000 W. Cuba Road, Barrington. All meetings are open to the public |
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Come one, come all to the 4th annual Fall Festival! WHAT: CUBA TOWNSHIP FALL FESTIVAL Fun, games, food, pony rides, petting zoo (next to the Cuba Township Road District) Last year's event was a great success and plans are underway for a repeat performance. Kids of all ages are invited to come enjoy the petting zoo and pony rides. Hot dogs and drinks are available for all. A special attraction is, Sparky, the Barrington Fire Department’s mascot. The aerial ladder truck will be available for rides courtesy of the Wauconda Fire Department.
Please call the Cuba Township office at (847) 381-1924 for more information. See you there! |
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As the seasons are changing, so are things at Cuba Township. Fred Foersterling, Township Assessor for the past 11 years, has tendered his resignation effective August 1, 2004. Fred served the Township well, since beginning his term January 1, 1994. We thank him for his service to the Township and wish him well in his retirement. He will remain available to the Township for consultation.
Appointed to fill the remainder of the Assessor’s term, is Rebecca M. Tonigan. Becci has served as Town Clerk since 1990. Required by every Illinois Assessor, is the completion of the Certified Illinois Assessing Officer (C.I.A.O.) course. Becci has completed this course work and is working with the Township’s deputy assessors for a smooth transition. Please see the Assessor’s column on page 2 for more information.
The Clerk’s position vacated by Tonigan has been filled by Priscilla H. Rose. Priscilla has served as the Township’s General Assistance Coordinator since 1996. She looks forward to fulfilling new responsibilities as the Town Clerk. Please see the Clerk’s column on the back page of this newsletter for more information. |
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A new addition to the Cuba News follows on page 2. Long time Barrington resident and historian, Barbara Benson, has penned a few words about Cuba Township’s heritage. We thank Barbara for the contribution of this piece and for all that she does for Cuba Township.
An event not to be missed is the Fourth Annual Cuba Township Fall Festival. The afternoon of fun, food and games will take place on Saturday, October 9th, 1– 5 pm at 28160 W. Cuba Road, The Grove. This property sits next to the Cuba Township garage.
Of special interest, is the enclosed Cuba Township survey. This has been compiled by the Township elected officials and is provided to give our residents an opportunity to communicate with us. Please complete the survey and return to us at 28000 W. Cuba Road, Barrington, IL 60010 by mail or in person. You’re also welcome to bring it by at the Fall Festival., October 9, 2004, 1-5pm.
As always, our doors are open and phones are available for you to talk and meet with us. We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity!
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I am pleased to be serving you as Cuba Township’s newly appointed Assessor. Please feel free to stop by the office or call (847)381-1120. My staff and myself are here to answer your questions and assist you however possible. THE ILLINOIS HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION PROGRAM Illinois taxpayers are provided with four homestead exemptions that will lower individual property taxes. The Homestead Limited Exemption: This exemption will lower the equalized assessed value of your property by $5000 and may be prorated in the year of purchase. To qualify, you must own the property and must have lived in it before January 1 of the tax year; the property must be used as your primary residence. There is no application to complete or renew. Rental properties are not eligible for the Homestead Limited Exemption. It is the responsibility of the individual taxpayer to confirm that the Homestead Exemption has been given and applied to their tax bill for any tax year. If this exemption does not appear on your tax bill, please call our office. The Homestead Improvement Exemption: If improvements or an addition to your home is made, up to $25,000 of the assessment increase caused by the improvement will be kept off the tax rolls for four years. This exemption is limited to a maximum of $25,000 assessed or $75,000 market value for the four years of the exemption. The exemption will be initiated by my office, if the necessary permit was applied for and granted. This exemption only applies to improvements that add to the assessed value of your home. Home maintenance, such as a new roof, repaving a driveway or window replacement, does not apply. Rental properties do not qualify for a Homestead Improvement Exemption. Only owner occupied homes qualify. The Senior Homestead Exemption: The owner and occupier of a residential property, occupied on or before January 1 of the tax year, who turns 65 during the tax year, can apply for this exemption. The equalized assessed value will be lowered by $3000.00 upon completion of the application for this exemption. Beginning in 2003, exemptions for seniors purchasing a new property will be prorated. Application for the Senior Homestead Exemption must be made in the Cuba Township Assessor’s office. Proof of age and a copy of your deed are required. If the property is in a trust, a copy of the trust, as well as the trust agreement is needed. The trust agreement must state the beneficiary’s name. The Senior Freeze: Seniors with a total household income of $45,000 or less per year are eligible for this exemption. A form is mailed yearly to each senior. This form must be notarized and returned to the Chief County Assessment Office in Waukegan in order to retain this exemption.
For all Lake County residents, the Chief Assessment Office of Lake County is conducting a free seminar for residential property owners. The purpose of the seminar is to answer questions about the assessment process. The date of the seminar is October 26, 2004, 7:00 pm., at the College of Lake County. A question and answer period will follow. For more information, please call the Lake County Chief County Assessment Office at (847) 377-2050 or visit their website at www.co.lake.il/assessor. College of Lake County– October 26, 2004 |
Assessor, REBECCA M. TONIGAN |
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Page 2 |
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The fall of the year brings many new residents into our Township, and of course, its name is always the subject of curiosity. And so for those of you who are “newly arrived in this territory” as used to be said in the pioneer days, and indeed, for many of you already settled here, a brief explanation for the name comes from local historical records, and from “Past and Present of Lake County, Illinois”, first published in 1877 by Wm. LeBaron & Company.
From the latter book, the account is as follows:
“The original name given to this town by the Commissioners having in charge the matter of dividing the county into towns (townships) was Troy; but on report to the State Auditor, it being found that there was another town in the State of that name– the law not allowing two towns in the State of the same name– the Board of Supervisors of the county were requested to give the town the name of Cuba. At their meeting, in 1851, the Board gave to the town the name of Cuba.” |
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“This was about the time of an insurrection in the Island of Cuba which attracted much attention in the United States, partly from the fact that many prominent persons engaged in it proved to be citizens of this country, which contributed to inspire quite general sympathy here in favor of the insurgents. The name of Cuba was on everybody’s lips. This suggested the name of this town”
Further in the account is this:
The first town meeting was held on the first Tuesday in April, 1850 at the home of Noble R. Hayes. John H. Bullock was chosen Moderator and Noble R. Hayes, Clerk. The first set of officers was as follows: Supervisor, Philetus Beverly; Town Clerk, Nobel R. Hayes; Assessor, Jacob McGilvra; Collector, Rob Conmee; Overseer of the Poor, Francis Kelsey; Commissioner of Highways, James Jones, Lewis H. Bute, Harvey Lambert; Constables, Chester Bennett and Wallace Bennett, Justices of the Peace, Innis Hollister and Robert Bennett.”
The Noble R. Hayes house stood in those days, on the south side of Cuba Road, where it meets the present day Northwest Highway. It was later moved, and now stands, on Cuba Road west of the Township garage. It is now owned by the Township and is known as The Grove. It is the site of the fourth annual Fall Festival, Saturday, October 9, 2004, 1—5 pm. |
Highway Commissioner, THOMAS W. GOOCH |
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Page 3 |
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CUBA ROAD PHASE I
Yes it’s true! The first portion of the Cuba Road project is complete. This is a project I feel a great sense of accomplishment over and I sure hope you are as pleased as I am. Phase I has been a complete rehabilitation of the road way, shoulders and drainage between Route 14 and just east of Old Barrington Road. All metal culverts were replaced with sewer pipe, a lot of storm drainage was installed and shoulders were regraded and seeded. In many areas where lawns didn’t reach the road we reseeded with WILDFLOWER MIX! When that takes in a couple of years it should be real pretty. THE BEST NEWS OF ALL? While final numbers are still being reviewed it looks like we came in about $50,000.00 UNDER budget and three weeks early. Next year Phase 2 will commence from Old Barrington East to Route 59. I hope you have had an opportunity to drive this road and see what we have accomplished. We have finally, after years of asking and data collection convinced the County Engineer to approve our stop sign warrant on Cuba Road at Hart Road. The signs are in place and they are having the desired effect.
The widened and paved shoulders on Cuba are being well used by pedestrians, bicyclists and joggers; it worked out well for everyone.
THE REAL LEGEND OF CUBA ROAD
Recently I have heard this term used in connection with a supposed insane asylum which was to have existed around the turn of the century and with spirits supposedly at the local cemetery. You heard it here first- the insane asylum story is pure nonsense folks—it never existed, there is not one historical document in existence supporting this fable. It was just an old farm house which is long gone through natural causes. As for the spirits people see, headlights reflect off the fence at the cemetery! However I think you will agree with me that if there are in fact spirits there, they are troubled entities from another dimension and should be left in peace to find what ever peace they seek. Besides, trespassers and others are regularly arrested if found in the cemetery after sunset.
BUT, here’s a real legend or two—while digging out a few soft spots on Cuba Road we reached the 1900 era level of hard packed clay in a few places. You could still see the ruts from wagons which used the road back then. From the depth of the ruts and wheel marks the road was regularly used back then. We also found a couple of workhorse size horse shoes and probably not too surprising, a few whiskey bottles from the prohibition era and earlier. This leads to a lot of conclusions—first the road did connect farms to the old whistle train stop at Cuba Road and the railroad tracks. Secondly, even then, horse shoes did fall off of horses and most interestingly prohibition was in fact not taken seriously around Cuba Township! Can you imagine—drunken farmers piloting shoeless and stumbling horses down Cuba Road????
Another real legend of Cuba Road—did you know there was a train wreck on the EJ&E on the tracks along Cuba Road east of Lake Zurich Road? The old locomotive was left to settle into the marsh there. It happened many years ago, we hope to verify the details of this and include the story on our web page shortly.
WWW.CUBAROADS.COM
Check it out—it’s our new web page designed by one of our college laborers who is a computer whiz. Mike Prassel a Purdue University junior joined our summer workforce and mentioned he “knew a little’ about computers- he knows a lot and saved the taxpayers a lot of money by helping us out. It’s still a work in progress which Mike is managing from his dorm room. It has links to many other Barrington area sites, roadway conditions during winter months, current weather, Road District Information, etc. You can even order mulch online! Shortly we are going to have an online survey and would appreciate you responding to it online as it will help us provide more and better service to you. During winter months we expect to have a “snowline” built into this web site for immediate concerns from you regarding snow removal while we are conducting snow removal operations.
Technology is really something—when I was a child in Barrington in the 1950’s our phone number was “Dunkirk 526” and we shared the line with four other families on Signal Hill Road. By 1960 it was our own line and known as DU1 (0r 381) 0526 now we have, in less then 50 years high speed cable access and cell phones.
We’ll talk about other completed and upcoming projects next time-have a good autumn!
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The Township board of trustees is the legislative branch of township government. The trustees are responsible for establishing township policy, adoption of the annual town budget, as well as departmental budgets, certification of tax levies and approval of all legally incurred expenses. We are proud of the contributions that the Cuba Township trustees make to their community in addition to serving the township as trustees.
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Roberta Svacha has served as a township trustee for 27 years. Bobbie’s other activities include: The League of Women Voters, American Association of Women, Village of North Barrington treasurer and Lake County Deputy Registrar. Bobbie is a 2002 Senior Citizen Hall of Fame honoree.
Arthur L. Rice has served as township trustee for 8 years. Art’s other activities include: chairing the Cuba Township Plan Commission, serving on the Cuba Township Budget Review Committee, past board member and past president of the North Barrington Area |
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arterial disease, which is linked to heart disease. A third test for aneurysms in the aortic vessel in the abdomen will also be available. Life Line will provide bone density screening for men (new screening) and women to test for osteoporosis. This is a prevention program, and with early detection, these problems can be treated. The |
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For interested members of the Barrington community, the Village of North Barrington will host a health screening on Friday, July 16, 2004. On that day, Life Line Screening will scan the carotid artery in the neck for plaque build-up, which can lead to stroke (75% of all strokes are linked to carotid artery blockage) and the arteries in the legs for peripheral |
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results are sent directly to you and referred back to your own doctor. These tests, which are non-invasive, completely painless and take only about 10 minutes each, are offered for $45 per test. Purchase the 3 vascular screenings for $99– a savings of $36. Pre-registration is required. Call 1-800-407-4557 for your appointment and for more information. |
Trustees’ corner |
COMMUNITY HEALTH SCREENING |
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SAVE THE DATE Saturday, October 9, 2004
Cuba Township’s Annual Fall Festival More details in our fall newsletter |
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Fall Festival 2003 |
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Association, past Board member of Citizens for Conservation, past member of the CUSD 220 Ad Hoc Finance Committee and past member of the CUSD 220 Co-curricular Review Committee. Art was a founding member of the BHS Boys’ Lacrosse Club. Presently, Art is serving on the Barrington Area Historical Society board.
Richard J. Kosner has served as township trustee for 7 1/2 years. Dick is responsible for organizing the annual “Have a Heart Food Drive” and overseeing the Cuba Township newsletter publication. He also serves on the 52nd District General |
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Assembly Scholarship Board. He is a past director of the Timberlake Civic Association (2 terms) and currently co-chairs the Civic Affairs Committee. Dick has coordinated Deputy Registrar training for southwest Lake County and actively supports voter registration throughout Lake County as a Deputy Registrar. Dick is a 2004 Senior Citizens Hall of Fame honoree.
Donald F. Griffith has served as an appointed trustee for 2 years. Don is chairman of the Salem United Methodist Church Preschool, past president and current member of the Barrington Lions and a Lake County Deputy Registrar. |
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Memorial Day, May 31, 2004, services at the Township’s White Memorial Cemetery. VFW Post #7706 and American Legion Post #158 begin every Memorial Day at this historic cemetery on Cuba Road. |
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The “Mosquito Hotline” is the citizen response system installed by Clarke to help residents report standing water, answer questions about mosquito control and obtain information regarding the West Nile Virus. The “Mosquito Hotline” can be reached toll-free at 800.942.2555. |
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Cuba Township’s integrated approach to mosquito control is designed to greatly reduce the population of both nuisance mosquitoes and mosquitoes that are active carriers of diseases like West Nile Virus. This effort will help foster a healthy and comfortable atmosphere for community residents.
The Township’s multi-step program emphasizes control of the mosquito larvae in their breeding sites to prevent the development of the adult mosquito. Larval control begins early in the season with an aerial survey of the Township to map potential breeding sites – retention ponds, drainage ditches, wetlands or low areas that tend to hold water.
Our mosquito control contracting company, Clarke Environmental Mosquito Management of Roselle, then inspects these breeding sites for the presence of larvae – pre-flight mosquitoes that hatch from eggs in standing water. Areas found to have breeding mosquitoes are then treated with larvicides either on the ground or via helicopter. This will prevent a large percentage of mosquito larva from maturing.
Even with this early response program, Cuba Township needs homeowners to be vigilant about draining standing water in their yards. As much as 10 percent of a community’s mosquitoes may come from backyard breeding areas. Bird baths and children’s pools should have water changed on a weekly basis. Gutters, flowerpots and even garbage cans, all of which can be breeding grounds for mosquitoes, should be emptied of all water. Chlorinated backyard pools should be working properly, checked at all times, and tended by a neighbor when the resident is on vacation. Standing water that is not reabsorbed into your yard after 7 days should be reported to the “Mosquito Hotline”. |
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diseases, such as diabetes. Occasional screenings and annual flu shot clinics are held in the early fall, as well as the popular AARP Driver’s Safety Course. Good Shepherd Hospital can also assist by providing information on resources for seniors in the community. A transportation service operates Monday– Friday, 8:00 am t0 4:00 pm, for a nominal fee. For more information on any of these services, please call (847) 842-7277. |
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Good Shepherd Hospital has much to offer area seniors. The Senior Advocate program has a menu of services to assist seniors in many ways. Medicare Counseling is conducted by appointment and allows one on one conversation to assist making sense of medical bills. Additionally, health education programs are available to improve lifestyle choices and manage chronic |
Mosquito Abatement |
Good Shepherd Hospital Senior Advocate Program |
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Page 5 |
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Officials David F. Nelson, Supervisor Priscilla H. Rose, Clerk Rebecca M. Tonigan, Assessor Thomas W. Gooch, Hwy. Commissioner Donald F. Griffith, Trustee Richard J. Kosner, Trustee Arthur L. Rice III, Trustee Roberta A. Svacha, Trustee |
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Clerk, PRISCILLA H. ROSE As your newly appointed Township clerk, I look forward to serving you. Please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have. Of particular interest is the upcoming election. November 2, 2004 is the date of the next election. Voter registration closes October 5, 2004. To register to vote you must: 1. be 18 on or before the next election 2. provide 2 forms of identification.– one must have your current address 3. have resided at your address at least 30 days prior to the election If you have moved within, or into Lake County, or have changed your name, you will need to register to vote. Voter registration is available at the Township office Monday—Friday, 9—3:30 pm. The office will also be open for voter registration on Saturday, October 2, 2004, 9—noon. In person absentee voting will be available in the Township office beginning October 12, 2004 and continues through November 1, 2004, Monday through Friday 9:00 am to 3:30 pm. You must be a Cuba Township resident to vote absentee at the Township. The office will also be open for absentee voting on Saturday, October 30, 2004 from 9:00 am to noon. Temporarily absent student forms are available at the Township office for anyone away at school. Please stop in the office to pick up the form. Snowbird Enrollment cards are available at the office for persons traveling to the same destination every winter. Election judges are needed for every election. If you are interested in assisting with election duties, please contact the Lake Co. Clerk’s office at (847) 377-2408. For further information, or if you have any questions, please contact the Cuba Township office at (847) 381-1924. |