The battle for Peoria City Council’s 3rd District involves the incumbent, a former seat-holder and a political newcomer.
The field includes Tim Riggenbach, who has won the last three elections to represent the district; Gale Thetford, who held the seat for two terms; and activist and writer Lawrence Maushard.
Gale Thetford
Thetford, 68, served 21 years as general counsel for the Illinois Department on Aging. She served two terms as the representative of the district, from 1997 to 2005, before losing the spot to Bob Manning.
Thetford touts advocating for Heartland Health Services, for which she sits on the board of directors. Two recent actions by the agency the purchase of the Wisconsin Plaza and its presence alongside OSF HealthCare at the former Cub Foods site not only have boosted medical care of the East Bluff but helped stabilize the 3rd District, she said.
The Cactus League will come back to Mesa and the rest of Arizona within weeks â but fans will find it hardly recognizable.
Donât expect the usual capacity crowd of more than 15,000 loyal Chicago Cubs fans at Mesaâs Sloan Park or kids clamoring for autographs as players take a leisurely stroll across the parking lot between the practice fields and Tempe Diablo Stadium.
These, and many other familiar scenes from Cactus League seasons past, will not be possible this year as officials try to strike a delicate balance between the return of spring training and preventing another disastrous spike in COVID-19.
Mayor Jim Ardis and Darin LaHood endorse Ruckriegel for mayor
Ruckriegel addresses a potential conflict of interest involving the county
PEORIA – For mayoral candidate Sid Ruckriegel, it all begins with a good paying job.
Concerned about income disparity in the community? Economic opportunity and growth will help cure that, Ruckriegel said.
Unhappy about the lack of young people settling in Peoria? Give them a good job and they will stay, Ruckriegel said.
Upset about the loss of shopping in Peoria? Grow more jobs, and the shops and restaurants will follow, Ruckriegel said.
Even societal issues like recidivism can be addressed by providing people newly released from prison with a decent job that pays the bills. For a number of years Ruckriegel has supported a local not-for-profit called Helping Hand Resource Center, which helps people re-build their lives after prison.
PEORIA As one of few Hispanics in his suburban-Rockford neighborhood, Jim Montelongo just wanted to fit in when he was a child.
“I liked to watch football. I liked to play baseball. I wanted to do all the things young kids do, without being in a certain box,” the Peoria City Council member and mayoral candidate said. “I just wanted to be an all-American kid growing up.”
Of course, not every kid not even the all-American ones grows up to graduate from college, own his own business and be elected to public office three times.
Those experiences appear to have taught the 53-year-old Montelongo a valuable lesson, perhaps more than what he learned when he studied manufacturing at Bradley University.
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PEORIA, Ill. The Peoria City Council Tuesday night approved the special-use of an adult-use cannabis dispensary at 5001 N. University St.
According to building plans, the dispensary will be located in the University Square Shopping Center, next to Familia Dental.
Council Member Elizabeth Jensen voiced concerns about too many dispensaries popping up in a concentrated area of Peoria.
“I do have concerns about having too many of these facilities and having too many in one area of our city,” said Jensen.
She said she wants the council in the future to discuss having distance limitations on how close two dispensaries can be to each other.