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New law allows event surveillance, building inspections, search and rescue

Next time you attend a parade, there might be an eye in the sky.

A new law signed by Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday expands local police departments’ authority to use drones to surveil certain events, respond to certain 911 calls, inspect buildings and participate in public relations events.

House Bill 3902 passed 56-1 in the Senate and 84-7 in the House with three members voting “present,” The law drew some concerns from civil liberties groups which ultimately led to added privacy protections and disclosure requirements.

The push to expand when police drone authority originated after a 2019 mass shooting at the Henry Pratt Company in Aurora, according to the bill’s House sponsor, Rep. Barbara Hernandez, D-Aurora. She and others received renewed calls after a 2022 shooting at a July 4th parade in Highland Park last year.

“I hope people are safe and that this can prevent anything else from happening,” Hernandez said.

Kenny Winslow, executive director of the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police, supported the measure and is already planning to offer training on the new law to police departments. He said drone technology could save lives and expects more departments to use them moving forward.

But he added that the protections contained in the bill – including requirements that police post notices if they are surveilling an event and keep a record of flight paths – were an important part of the final product.

“We’re trying to be as transparent with the public as we can,” Winslow said.

More here.

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VBH Bikes

The Summer of 2014…

From the Village of Barrington:

“May is National Bike Month, promoted by the League of American Bicyclists and celebrated in communities from coast to coast Established in 1956, National Bike Month is a chance to showcase the many benefits of bicycling — and encourage more folks to give biking a try!

Bike Month 2023 will focus on individual and community well-being. Whether you’re riding for fun, fitness, or with family, or taking essential trips to work or shop, you are part of a movement for safer streets, connected communities, a healthier planet, and happier people.

SAVE THE DATE Bike to Work Week 2023 will take place May 15-21, 2023, and Bike to Work Day is on Friday, May 19!

PLUS, did you know that you can easily locate bike racks and bike trails by using our Interactive Map at barrington-il.gov/i_want_to/view_interactive_map.php. Click on the “Bike Racks” and “Bikeways” layers to view.”

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The Barrington Hills Park District Board will hold a, “Park Board & Decennial Committee on Local Government Efficiency,” meeting this evening in person and via Zoom at 7:00 PM. Topics on their agenda include:

  • Horizon Farm Track Proposal
  • Local Government Efficiency Act Meeting
  • Review of Agreements with RCBH, FRVPC, FRVH

A copy of their agenda can be viewed here. Instructions for accessing the meeting remotely can be found here.

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FPDCC

The Barrington Hills Park District will be hosting a special meeting tonight with the Cook County Forest Preserve District to discuss the Master Plan for the Horizon Farm property. The meeting begins at 7:00 PM at the Riding Center located at 361 Bateman Rd, and will also be available for participation via Webex remotely.

The meeting agenda for the Forest Preserve District portion of the discussion includes:

  • Open trails
  • Ongoing improvements

Then, the 2023 Horizon Farm master planning priorities follows including:

  • Track
  • Barn 11
  • Other amenities (parking lots, comfort stations, signage, etc.)
  • Maintenance of future Horizon trail system
  • Spring Creek trail system

Conspicuously absent from the agenda are topics such as hiking and walking, bicycling, cross-country skiing and birding.

After this portion of the meeting, Park District Commissioners will vote on the proposed (and clearly confidential), “Combined Budget & Appropriations Ordinance 2-08-2023-01.”

A copy of the agenda can be viewed here, and instructions for accessing the meeting remotely can be found here.

Related: “Park District hosting February 8th Cook County Forest Preserve District discussion,” “Grazing livestock can provide habitats for disappearing grassland birds

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Barrington Hillbillies

“TV families are a lot like real families. They always come together for Thanksgiving. For the ultimate TV Thanksgiving, look no further than the 1968 episode of The (Barrington) Hillbillies, The Thanksgiving Spirit.”

The crossover episode not only features the Clampetts, it features the cast members of Green Acres and Petticoat Junction. The episode culminates with a shared dinner that includes characters from the three shows.” (Source)

Editorial note: Many preferred to use the phrase, “Barrington Hillbillies,” when referring to the political antics of some in our “oasis of another time” Village, but that subsided until recently when the Cecola Administration took office. Now the popularity of that phrase is experiencing a resurgence.

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TDF

Schaumburg cyclist Neil Holdway summits the Col des Tentes in the Pyrenees in July. (Courtesy of Manuel Pizarro)

By Ralph Banasiak
Along For the Ride

A dedicated Schaumburg cyclist lived my Tour de France fantasy, cycling five days in the Pyrenees, viewing a mountain stage finish and cheering racers along Paris’s Champs-Élysées on the final day.

Daily Herald Deputy Managing Editor Neil Holdway finally claimed his 50th birthday gift from his wife — a 2020 trip deferred twice by COVID-related issues. Besides compiling autumn biking guides, night editing and serving on the Herald’s editorial board, Holdway takes his cycling seriously.

In this edited exchange, Holdway recounts his TdF immersion in Lourdes and Paris, France, this past July.

Banasiak: Any Chicago area thigh-burner hills to prep for the Pyrenees?

Holdway: This was tough. It put me at a real disadvantage compared to most of my tour mates living near and training on U.S. mountains. I rode through Barrington Hills a lot — Ridge and Spring Creek Roads my favoritesotherwise in the Barrington area, good workouts over long rides.

I rode through Campton Hills some. Those rollers are no Pyrenees. Each year I bike in Wisconsin, this year purposely choosing hillier routes surrounding Madison. That helped some. I still wasn’t ready for Tourmalet’s relentless ascent, especially on only my second day. Its largely 8% grade over the final 11 km, follows 5 km at 7%.

Read the full interview here.

Related:5 colorful suburban bike trail systems to ride this fall, plus pretty roads for the more daring

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Big Red 6

The Barrington Hills Chronicle (a Riding Club of Barrington Hills splinter group), posted what follows on Wednesday:

“The Riding Club of Barrington Hills is inviting all volunteers this Saturday, May 14th, to a roadside clean-up campaign on Route 62 (Algonquin Road). A meeting at the the Riding Center on Bateman Road will start at 8:30am (this Saturday, May 14th), or feel free to join whenever it is convenient for you. Every Saturday in May is the clean-up plan.”

In addition, three additional events are taking place tomorrow:

These activities are occurring at the same time tomorrow morning, primarily along Bateman, Algonquin, Brinker, and County Line Roads.

Readers are encouraged to exercise extreme caution when driving in these areas. On any given day, the Village has two patrol people covering the entire Village, and even with additional resources allocated, they hopefully will not be overwhelmed.

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Lately, there have been too many stories about bicycle-related accidents and deaths. These stories are often followed by comments from riders, drivers and pedestrians alike regarding who is really to blame. The reality is that it’s everyone. We have all seen far too many cyclists who ignore the rules of the road, far too many reckless drivers who are heedless of those around them, far too many careless pedestrians. And most of us have probably been one of them at some time.

Two years ago this week, my brother died from massive injuries after he was hit by a car on his nightly walk home from the train station. The driver committed no quantifiable errors. Was she distracted? Was he? We’ll never know. And I’m not sure how much it would matter to have someone to blame; he is still lost to those who loved him.

Our moving among each other in this busy, crowded world is serious business, requiring constant attention and respect for the rules of safety, as well as for ourselves and those with whom we share our space.

Without it, precious lives will continue to be lost or forever altered.

— Louise Nelson, Barrington Hills

Source

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The Environmental Committee meets this afternoon after nearly a year of inactivity.  This will only be the fourth meeting Trustee Paula Jacobsen has scheduled since she took office in 2017, and the first three were called to discuss a single topic of  “Bee City USA.” 

Since Jacobsen is running for reelection, she must think she needs to have another meeting about bees to put on her “qualifications” for running. She has, however, added the topic of the “Blue Star Memorial” to the agenda, but that is for obvious reasons.  

You see, her property is adjacent to the Christ The Rock Church, which was granted a special use permit last night to operate a religious institution at 195 South Sutton Road, where the memorial is located. Not very subtle timing, is it?

And while we’re at it, aren’t there other topics that could be addressed by her committee?  Apparently Jacobsen doesn’t see the need or is not inclined to put forth the effort.   

A copy of her agenda can be viewed here. To listen in on the meeting remotely, dial 508-924-1464.

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A great way to see the fall colors is to ride your bike, which allows you to be outside and travel a good distance to catch a lot of scenery. So where should you go? Options abound in the suburbs.

Poplar Creek Trail link to Elgin: The Poplar Creek Trail between Hoffman Estates and Streamwood, and between Barrington Road and the west side of Route 59, will show some fall colors in spots, and now the trail links to Elgin via a new connection down forested Shoe Factory Road. That extends from Route 59 to the CN railroad tracks, at which point you could ride west through Elgin to the Fox River Trail (below).

Moraine Hills State Park: In this forested state park along River Road just east of the Fox River in McHenry and west of Island Lake, you’ll find a collection of trails, and the paved bike trail seen just off River Road is being extended to connect to Lily Lake Road. Ride this trail or the roads within the park surrounded by trees and their fall colors.

Raceway Woods: The Chicago Area Mountain Bikers organization has developed mountain biking trails in Kane County’s portion of this forest preserve by the old Meadowsdale Speedway in Carpentersville. In 2019, the group reached an agreement with Dundee Township to expand the trails. Now there are about 5 miles in this pretty preserve between the Fox River and Route 31. More at cambr.org.

Barrington Hills: A tree and biking-road paradise. Check out Spring Creek Road. Getting there is wonderful, too, but residents ask that you stay single file, please.

Read more here.

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