GIBSON CITY -- Strength and conditioning workouts made up of functional movements performed at a high intensity level can sound intimidating. But four local women are teaching the public that such fitness is well within their reach.
Gibson City — Trade publication Becker’s Healthcare has released its 2020 list of leaders making a positive impact on their organizations. This year’s featured CEOs lead hospitals consistently recognized by the National Rural Health Association, American Hospital Association and HIMSS as top…
PAXTON — A local concrete supplier has put up a new batching plant on its property north of the city’s downtown.
GIBSON CITY — Exactly 104 days after Alamo Group Inc. acquired the Dixie Chopper business, its manufacturing plant in Gibson City built its first Dixie Chopper zero-turn lawn mower.
PAXTON — A popular restaurant and bar in downtown Paxton has shut its doors and been put up for sale after two-plus years in business.
SPRINGFIELD — The unemployment rate decreased in November in Ford and Iroquois counties when compared with year-ago levels.
GIBSON CITY — On the morning of Dec. 9, Gibson City’s five-member Community Development and Assistance Program (CDAP) committee voted unanimously to recommend the city council approve granting a CDAP loan to a local business to help it buy a downtown building at 301 N. Sangamon Ave.
PAXTON — Junebug Crafty Gifts, a new store at 165 S. Market St. in downtown Paxton, is holding a grand opening Dec. 4-8.
SPRINGFIELD – The unemployment rate decreased in October in Ford and Iroquois counties when compared with year-ago levels.
GIBSON CITY — The County Market in Gibson City could soon be more than just a grocery store. It could become a place for patrons to drink alcohol and play video-gambling machines.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — George and Harry Tjardes of Gibson City were inducted into the Hereford Hall of Fame during the Hereford Honorees awards ceremony at the American Hereford Association’s annual membership meeting and conference on Oct. 25 in Kansas City, Mo.
PAXTON — There will be three more meetings — at least — before the Ford County Board is ready to vote on changes to the county’s ordinance regulating wind farms.
SIBLEY — Plans are being made for Sibley to gain a new business at the site of a former gas station no later than next spring, and demolition of the current structure will begin soon.
RANKIN — A man considering opening a cannabis business in Rankin is asking village board members to decide within the next month if they will allow his business in town or if he will instead need to explore alternative locations.
CHICAGO — The unemployment rate in 101 of Illinois’ 102 counties fell from year-ago levels in August, with Ford County’s rate dropping to 4.1 percent from 5 percent a year earlier and Iroquois County’s falling to 3.6 percent from 4.2 percent.
THAWVILLE — A rural Thawville couple plan to soon begin construction of a brewery on their farm, which they hope will eventually become a destination for ag-tourism.
PAXTON — While visiting the U.S. to sign notices of intent to buy $2.1 billion in corn and soybeans from American farmers, a delegation of Taiwanese government officials and agricultural business leaders stopped by a Ford County farm to see first-hand how crops are produced here.
PAXTON — The city is inviting business owners, residents and anyone else interested to attend a public open house regarding the first phase of downtown Paxton’s streetscape improvement project.
PAXTON — A rural Rankin man planning to open a cannabis business in the area said he feels people need to be better educated about the marijuana industry before it becomes a legal reality in Illinois on Jan. 1.
GIBSON CITY — From its 20-foot bar made out of reclaimed fence panels to the high school football jersey hanging on one of its walls, the bar opening this weekend in downtown Gibson City is a tribute to the life of Jay Caviness.
BUCKLEY — Buckley finally has its own grocery store again.
GIBSON CITY — Mayor Dan Dickey expects an improved shopping experience in downtown Gibson City with the addition of a free public Wi-Fi network that business patrons can use and a speaker system that will play background music and broadcast advertisements outside businesses’ front doors.
CHAMPAIGN — At an all-staff meeting Friday, News-Gazette Media’s chief executive officer, John Reed, announced to employees that an agreement has been signed to sell substantially all of its assets to the family-owned Champaign Multimedia Group LLC, an affiliate company of Community Media Gr…
CHICAGO — The unemployment rates in Ford and Iroquois counties decreased in July when compared with year-ago levels, as Ford County’s rate stood at 4.4 percent, down from 5.1 percent a year earlier, and Iroquois County’s rate was 3.7 percent, down from 4 percent in July 2018.
RANKIN — Daiven Kayne Michael Emling fielded what he termed a “healthy mix” of both concerns and positive feedback about his plans to locate a cannabis cafe, bakery and dispensary in the Vermilion County village of Rankin during a public hearing last week.
GIBSON CITY — Robin Rose, Gibson Area Hospital & Health Services’ chief clinical officer and chief operating officer, was recently named the 2019 Illinois Rural Health Association’s administrator of the year.
GIBSON CITY — Alamo Group Inc. will be creating some new jobs at its manufacturing plant in Gibson City with the recent acquisition of the Dixie Chopper business from Textron Outdoor Power Equipment Inc., a subsidiary of Textron Inc.
PAXTON — If assisted living would have been an option in Paxton for Deane Geiken’s mother, she would not be where she is today — in the unfamiliar city of Rantoul, miles away from her family.
PAXTON — Central Lean's retail store in downtown Paxton is closing after eight years in business, but the company stressed that it will continue its home delivery and direct/route sales of locally produced pork, beef and poultry.
RANKIN — When people visit The Garden of Eatin’, they will be able to do more than just buy marijuana there.
GIBSON CITY — Ford County will soon be left with only one John Deere dealership.
PAXTON — Family nurse practitioner Melanie Thopiah has joined the staff of The Paxton Clinic.
WATSEKA — Big R Stores announced July 17 that it is changing its name to Stock+Field.
PAXTON — Paxton’s tax-increment financing (TIF) district — spanning from west of the Interstate 57 interchange to the city’s downtown — has been financially underperforming in its six-plus years in existence, despite coming close to meeting expectations in terms of development, the city’s TI…
SPRINGFIELD — Ford County residents can proudly say they still have the best small, weekly newspaper in Illinois.
GIBSON CITY — With brown paper and a “coming soon” message covering its front windows, the intrigue has been growing for weeks about the upcoming opening of Syd & Sadie’s Boutique at 102 N. Sangamon Ave. in downtown Gibson City.
PAXTON — Pizza Palace is expected to open later this month in Paxton, giving owner Eric Bull his third such restaurant along a 32-mile stretch of Interstate 57.
PAXTON — The restaurant building in Paxton that once occupied a Pizza Hut and has seen two diners open there since then, only to close months later, is getting ready to welcome a new tenant.
BAYLES LAKE — The Tin Cup Restaurant & Bar opened Tuesday in Lakeview Country Club’s clubhouse.
GIBSON CITY — When Jeanine Litwiller opened Strictly Kids Resale Shop in downtown Gibson City 25 years ago, she was a stay-at-home mom hoping to build a business that other mothers like herself could use to clothe their children with gently used, brand-name apparel at an affordable price.
GIBSON CITY — A women’s clothing boutique opened last Thursday in downtown Gibson City and held a grand opening event two days later.
PAXTON — Jordan Crose of Hoopeston-based Crose’s Plumbing, Heating & Air has joined the staff of Paxton-based Dogtown Heating & Air.
GIBSON CITY — With the imminent $12.5 million expansion of its main facility looming, the Gibson Area Hospital Foundation is embarking on a $2 million fundraising campaign to raise some of the necessary funds.
By WILL BRUMLEVE
GIBSON CITY — Members of the Gibson Area Chamber of Commerce heard Thursday about two new businesses that recently set up shop at 113 E. 9th St. in downtown Gibson City.
PAXTON — The voter turnout in Ford County for last Tuesday’s consolidated election was lower than in any other election in at least 15 years, as 886 of the county’s 9,366 registered voters — 9.46 percent — cast a ballot.
PAXTON — Before giving the go-ahead to a local restauranteur to offer outdoor dining by one of his downtown Paxton establishments, members of the Paxton City Council would like him to clearly outline his plans.
CHICAGO — The unemployment rate in Ford and Iroquois counties was 6 percent in February, up nearly a percentage point from year-ago levels, according to preliminary data released Thursday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES).
By ROSS BROWNbluehavanaross@gmail.comGIBSON CITY — A Gibson City bar is closing March 31 until it re-opens under a new name at a new and more prominent location downtown.
GIBSON CITY — Gibson City-based Alliance Grain Co. has acquired Herscher Grain Co.The transaction was effective Feb. 26.The Herscher facility, with five full-time employees, has about 1.7 million bushels of grain capacity with access to the Canadian National rail market.
GIBSON CITY — Gary Lutterbie, the winner of the Gibson Area Chamber of Commerce’s Lifetime Achievement Award, does not just talk the talk."Gary is a doer," Karen Kummerow wrote in her letter nominating him for the award.
