Woodridge's wild week, St. Charles' sticky problem
Talk about an up-and-down week for Woodridge.
First came news that Sam's Club employees were told the store will be closing by the end of the month, with about 140 losing their jobs. As for local club members, they'll have to go to the Naperville or Hodgkins store.
On the heels of that came news that Kellogg Co. was closing its distribution center in Woodridge this summer, cutting 258 jobs in the area, including 42 positions at the distribution center. The company said it would help the village find a tenant for the building, at 9020 Murphy Road, which Kellogg had leased.
They weren't kidding.
At the same time came news that Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurant will move its headquarters from Countryside to Woodridge, occupying the very space Kellogg's is vacating. There, the company - 35th in the nation in wine production - will be able to produce more wine for its restaurants and tasting rooms. The chain, only 12 years old, runs 28 restaurants, including ones in Arlington Heights, Naperville, St. Charles, South Barrington and Wheeling. Nice recovery, Woodridge.
50 percent brick rule
We sure do find some interesting things to argue about.
Naperville building code, it seems, requires that exterior walls of all multifamily dwellings be constructed with at least 50 percent brick or masonry material. But the city council approved plans for 32 duplexes on its far south side featuring panels of an engineered wood and vinyl siding, much of them white. The homes will sell in the $400,000 range, with the developer's land acquisition director saying, "We used downtown custom home development of the last 10 years as inspiration." Other supporters noted the land has remained undeveloped for some time.
Yet three council members weren't ready to depart with tradition, with Paul Hinterlong lamenting, "As soon as you get into Naperville, here's what you're going to see."
I've included an artist's rendition of the duplexes. Decide for yourselves if masonry rules were made to be broken.
Sap in St. Charles
Here's my favorite nature story of the week.
Columnist Valerie Blaine says virtually anything sitting outside on the west side of St. Charles can become coated with a substance she describes as a by-product of sap. Insects called scales suck sap from the woody plants they've infested, then excrete a sticky material called honeydew.
That's not all. Honeydew attracts wasps and ants. Also a sooty-appearing mold that makes "patios look dirty, wildflowers wilt, garden plants wither, and the autumn woods loses its glow," says Blaine, nature programs manager for the Kane County Forest Preserve District.
She points out that insecticides kill the predators that can wipe out scales, so the best solution might be the one impatient homeowners don't want to hear: Wait 'em out. Ladybug larvae, an array of birds and some wasps are natural predators against the scales.
"There are more predator-prey interactions at work than we can shake a sticky stick at," Blaine writes. "I'm going to wait out this scale infestation, and watch the action. Biodiversity is the healthiest - and most economical - strategy all around."
jdavis@dailyherald.com