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City takes measures to bolster economy
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WOODSTOCK BROWN PRINTING CLOSURE
Woodstock seeks enterprise zone By STEPHEN Di BENEDETTO sdibenedetto@shawmedia.com WOODSTOCK – Seeing opportunity and also job loss, Woodstock city officials will try and apply for statewide economic incentives that could help bolster the local economy and attract new business. During a regular meeting Tuesday, the Woodstock City Council directed city staff to apply about four total square miles of industrial and retail areas for an enterprise zone. The special economic designation with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity would entitle Woodstock to various state and local incentives. If successful, Woodstock could start using the economic sweeteners in 2016 to recruit new businesses and redevelop vacant land for commercial use. “We are looking at the need for the city,” said Cort Carlson, community and economic development director. “We would like to see our current vacancy rates fixed, other buildings occupied and benefits to our existing industrial areas.” In a memo outlining the enterprise zone application, the city economic development staff noted that Woodstock’s manufacturing sector continues to lag behind retail and housing development. Nearly 550 employees at the local Brown Printing facility lost their jobs earlier this year after Quad/ Graphics finalized a $100 million sale to acquire the manufacturer and announced it would close the plant. The city also has seen manufacturers like D.B. Hess and Precision Quincy close operations in Woodstock in recent years. The proposed enterprise zone would cover outlining industrial areas to the north, south and west, bypassing the majority of the city’s residential areas. It also could cover additional retail along Route 47 and older industrial areas near Judd Street and the downtown, according to economic development staff. “We can bring in more of our manufacturing and industrial areas into the city,” Carlson said. “We want to get as much of those areas in as possible.” Commending staff for wanting to
See ZONE, page A4
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Kirk Achenbach of Poplar Grove has his hair cut Monday by Laura Gitzinger at Joe’s Barber Shop in Crystal Lake. After 32 years at Brown Printing, Achenbach lost his job when the facility closed.
‘What do I do now?’ Former employees share how they are adjusting after initial shock BY ALLISON GOODRICH • AGOODRICH@SHAWMEDIA.COM
“ONCE THE DUST SETTLED, AND YOU KIND OF THINK ABOUT IT, IT’S A BUSINESS. IT HAPPENS, AND YOU JUST GOTTA GET OVER IT AND MOVE ON.” Kirk Achenbach of Poplar Grove
“What do I do now?” That’s what Kirk Achenbach of Poplar Grove asked himself in June after hearing that Brown Printing facility, 11595 McConnell Road in Woodstock, was closing. One of some 550 people who lost their jobs, Achenbach worked the night shift and didn’t hear the announcement firsthand. The news, instead, came through Facebook. “I started texting people right away, asking ‘Is it true. Is it true?’ ” he said. “Then you get scared and start thinking, what do I do now?” Weeks later, Achenbach sat at the Woodstock Starbucks thinking back to when he first started at Graftek Press, which was acquired by Brown Printing Company in 1997. “We did a tour of the facility through a high school work program,” Achenbach recalled. “I thought it looked pretty neat so I applied when I graduated and got a job right away. I was 18.” The announcement of the clo-
sure came after Wisconsin-based Quad/Graphics acquired Brown Printing Company in May for $100 million. Given his lengthy tenure, Achenbach’s world was shaken by the news. “It came as a shock,” he said. “After we got bought by Quad/ Graphics we didn’t know if it would be good or bad. We kind of talked ourselves out of the possibility that they were going to close, so we were all surprised when we heard.” The initial shock was shared with another former employee, Arron Bullock of unincorporated Crystal Lake. Bullock, who worked on the management level, said his immediate concern was the well-being of his employees. “As a manager of 15 people, the thing I’m concerned with is making sure they have the tools and encouragement they need to face the change that they and their
See CLOSURE, page A4
J’burg officer charged with lying about military record eral police departments about his military record. Vicenzo LaMontagna, 30, was indicted by a Cook County grand jury on 16 counts of forgery, three counts By EMILY K. COLEMAN of mail fraud and three counts of ecoleman@shawmedia.com wire fraud, all Class 3 felonies, acJOHNSBURG – A Johnsburg cording to a spokeswoman for the police officer has been indicted on Illinois Attorney General’s Office. multiple felonies that he lied to sevLaMontagna submitted falsified
LaMontagna reassigned and not performing patrol duties
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documents to the Johnsburg Police Department as well as departments in Glenview and Darien and the Illinois State Police for hiring purposes, spokeswoman Maura Possley said. The documents inaccurately say LaMontagna was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army, that he held the rank of sergeant when dis-
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charged, and that he had received combat-related medals, she said. LaMontagna was discharged less than honorably instead of a court-martial, Possley said, adding that because the case still is in its initial stages, these are all the details that are public at this point.
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