Don't believe rumors you hear about Wheeling senior center
Acting Wheeling Village President Judy Abruscato said recent rumors of the Pavilion Senior Center's demise are unfounded.
"There has been no discussion of closing the senior center," she said. "The senior center has been and will continue to be there for the seniors."
What has been discussed, she said, was moving some recreational programs to the park district for the public's convenience.
Tiff over a TIF?: Bill Hein, who plans to build an 18-unit condominium building for seniors at 267 Northgate Parkway, said he wants to be included in one of the village's tax increment financing areas so that he can salvage his project.
Hein's project was approved last year by the village. The plan called for a tornado-proof 100 percent concrete building with an extensive roof garden.
But when Hein went out to bid, he found that his expectations were well beneath actual costs. The project was supposed to cost $2.9 million, and he had secured $3 million in financing.
"We thought we were home safe. All of a sudden, the bids started flying in, and we were way off," he said.
He talked lenders into loaning him another $300,000, but the project was already running close to $4 million.
Hope was revived when the village annexed property across the street, making Hein's property contiguous to the TIF. In a TIF, additional tax revenue generated by property improvements can be used to cover some development costs.
Unfortunately for Hein, there is no guarantee that the property will get the go-ahead from the village.
A letter from Tom Bayer, of the law firm Klein, Thorpe & Jenkins, to the village states, "Just because a parcel would meet eligibility standards, and is either adjacent to the existing TIF district or the proposed expansion area, does not mean that it must be included."
Getting to know you: Wheeling High School's new principal, Lazaro Lopez, introduced himself personally to the Wheeling village board this week.
Lopez spoke about his background with the U.S. Army, which included one year in Korea with the Second Infantry Division. He also mentioned receiving corporate training with American Airlines.
Lopez's educational background includes teaching English at Hersey High School and a stint as assistant principal for instruction at Jacobs High School in Algonquin.
He spoke of the wide variety of educational opportunities available for students at Wheeling High School. Students, he said, can take advantage of a pre-engineering program, work toward automotive certification, perform in the school's nationally recognized band or dance in programs with world renowned choreographers.
Happy anniversary: Congratulations to Trustee Michael Horcher on his 47th wedding anniversary, which happened to coincide with the village board's Monday meeting. For the record, Horcher did attend the meeting.
Westin dining room: The village board has approved the conversion of Gale's Coffee Shop into a private dining room for Osteria di Tramonto at the Westin Hotel, 601 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Fresh entertainment: There will be live entertainment at Liza Restaurant, 1772-1780 W. Hintz Road, in the Garden Fresh Plaza. Owner Natalia Ivanov said the entertainment will bring more business and make people happy.
Quick hello; quick goodbye: Just last week I made my debut as a Wheeling columnist. This week, I am announcing my exit from the Wheeling beat. I will be moving to Sunday reporting duties. Thanks to everyone for their help during my short stint.