Hamilton man charged with attempted murder
A 72-year old Hamilton man is accused of threatening to shoot people at a home in the community.
James Carel is charged with Attempted First Degree Murder, Home Invasion, Aggravated Discharge of a Firearm, and Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon.
His bond was set at $3 million.
Police said they were called to a home on North 7th Street shortly after midnight on Saturday, March 12, and found evidence that confirmed a gun had been fired.
They said an occupant was able to disarm Carel after the gun was fired.
No one was injured.
WIU employees get raises
Non-union employees at Western Illinois University will receive a 2% pay raise, retroactive to July 1, 2021.
The raises affect 467 workers. Union-represented landscape workers will get the same deal. WIU also approved wage reopeners with building service workers and clerical workers. The administration and the union representing faculty and Pro-Tech workers are in talks about pay raises for next fiscal year.
Downtown Burlington mural in the works
Participants in the Greater Burlington Leadership program chose downtown art as their project for this year.
They’re raising money for a “Welcome to Burlington” mural that will be painted on an exterior wall of the Jennison Building.
It will be highly visible as visitors cross the bridge from Illinois into Burlington.
“This has already been positive in bringing forward other business owners that want murals and other art in the downtown,” said Amy Moyner, executive director of Burlington’s Downtown Partners.
Artist Scott Jacoba is painting the mural, which is expected to be unveiled in mid-May.
“It’s going to be very impactful and have a lot of our history there,” Moyner said.
Galesburg’s city manager headed to Rock Island
After a decade as Galesburg’s city manager, Todd Thompson is headed to Rock Island.
Like Galesburg, Rock Island has a council-manager form of government, which is one of the reasons city leaders there thought Thompson would be a good fit.
The Rock Island city council voted unanimously this week to offer Thompson a contract as their new city manager.
He’ll begin the position in 60 days, giving Galesburg some time to start their search for a new city manager.
Los Charros opening second Macomb location
The Macomb City Council approved a liquor license for Los Charros East.
The restaurant will be located in the building that formerly housed Los Tapatios, 1319 E. Jackson St.
Management at Los Charros says they expect to open the new location in the next couple weeks. The same owners already operate Los Charros at 1514 W. Jackson St.
Southwest Iowa airport to get ARPA funding
Southeast Iowa Regional Airport in Burlington and Iowa’s seven other commercial airports will share in $100 million of federal American Rescue Plan Act funding.
Gov. Kim Reynolds said 90% of the money will be granted based on passenger numbers from 2019. The remaining 10% will be split equally among the eight airports. Eligible projects will include terminal construction and upgrades, and construction of parking structures and hangars.