Illinois

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IMADreamer
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Re: Illinois

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tlombard wrote:One of these days I'm going to trust my boat enough to put my boat in out in St. Charles and cruise on over to the Alton/Grafton area and grab lunch, etc. Then maybe I'll cruise on up the Illinois river a bit. 18 feet isn't the best size for the river but as long as I'm not stupid, it should be fine. I've only finished the day without a tow two out of three times so far though thanks to a bad wire/connection so not ready to trust the boat on the river yet!

I passed a barge the other day going up river. It was a little scary. I've always been told to try and stay in the channel between the buoys that way there is less trash to snag on. So I was trying to stay in the channel and pass this barge. Those things are so huge once you get close to them and I was trying to stay about 50 yards away at least.

tlombard
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Re: Illinois

Post by tlombard »

When I end up on the river, I will definitely staying as far as possible from barges and when I have to pass one, it will be with utmost caution. I have a feeling that next spring I'll end up on the river though.

For the rest of this summer the boat will stay down at the lake where I can store it right inside the gate for $30/month. This winter I'll hopefully be able to bring it back to the indoor storage I used after buying it which will make the river much more convenient for a few trips.

Freed Roger
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Re: Illinois

Post by Freed Roger »

tlombard wrote:When I end up on the river, I will definitely staying as far as possible from barges and when I have to pass one, it will be with utmost caution. I have a feeling that next spring I'll end up on the river though.

For the rest of this summer the boat will stay down at the lake where I can store it right inside the gate for $30/month. This winter I'll hopefully be able to bring it back to the indoor storage I used after buying it which will make the river much more convenient for a few trips.
Barges would scare the crap out of me. And losing power and being sucked into a river dam.

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pioneer98
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Re: Illinois

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The dynamic in the Quad Cities is so weird right now. The Illinois side is shrinking but the Iowa side is growing, albeit slowly. The Iowa side of QC is doing about as good as a mid-size, rust belt, non-university, non-state capital town can do. So on the one hand, I think Illinois' state policies are definitely hurting this area. But there is another funny dynamic at play. People who move to the Quad Cities from other Illinois cities tend to settle on the Illinois side, and people who move here from other Iowa cities tend to settle on the Iowa side. They just stick with what they are familiar with. Well, hardly anyone moves from Chicago to a smaller town in Illinois. There just aren't many people that move here and settle on that side of the river. On the other side, Davenort is considered a "big city" for Iowa. In the last 10 years, downtown Davenport has been transformed with hundreds of millions of dollars in development. Hundreds of loft apartments have gone up. Downtown Davenport is the fastest growing census tract in the area, faster than even the hot suburban areas. It's so funny to me just how the attitude or mindset of people can make such a huge difference. Just across the river from downtown Davenport is downtown Rock Island, and it is a shell of what it once was.

Back in the early 90s the entire area was totally depressed. It didn't start to recover from the farm crisis of the 80s until the mid-90s. And back then, the Illinois side led the way. They started the slow recovery first, and they did it with downtown revitalization, too. But since then they've taken a step back.

Anyway, the Illinois politicians are playing chicken with Exelon. They think they still have time. Exelon has said it's not impossible to reverse their decision, but the longer they wait, the more expensive it will be to reverse the process.

http://www.wjbc.com/2016/06/06/sen-brad ... m-closing/
BLOOMINGTON – He’s not exactly calling their bluff, but State Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, said he believes Exelon will keep the Clinton power plant open if lawmakers come up with a plan to aid nuclear energy.

“I think some people have tried to complication this whole issue and we need to simplify it,” Brady said. “I’m optimistic the fight to keep it open will win.”

Brady told WJBC’s Scott Laughlin what’s complicating the issue are claims that the legislation Exelon was pushing for would be a bailout. Brady said while providing help for unclear energy could lead to higher utility rates in the short term, he says it would have a long-term benefit in the state’s energy portfolio.

“Exelon need to do what it did, and that is lay down the threat,” Brady said. “I think they want to keep it open, but they had to lay this card out because it is real.”

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IMADreamer
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Re: Illinois

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pioneer98 wrote:The dynamic in the Quad Cities is so weird right now. The Illinois side is shrinking but the Iowa side is growing, albeit slowly. The Iowa side of QC is doing about as good as a mid-size, rust belt, non-university, non-state capital town can do. So on the one hand, I think Illinois' state policies are definitely hurting this area. But there is another funny dynamic at play. People who move to the Quad Cities from other Illinois cities tend to settle on the Illinois side, and people who move here from other Iowa cities tend to settle on the Iowa side. They just stick with what they are familiar with. Well, hardly anyone moves from Chicago to a smaller town in Illinois. There just aren't many people that move here and settle on that side of the river. On the other side, Davenort is considered a "big city" for Iowa. In the last 10 years, downtown Davenport has been transformed with hundreds of millions of dollars in development. Hundreds of loft apartments have gone up. Downtown Davenport is the fastest growing census tract in the area, faster than even the hot suburban areas. It's so funny to me just how the attitude or mindset of people can make such a huge difference. Just across the river from downtown Davenport is downtown Rock Island, and it is a shell of what it once was.

Back in the early 90s the entire area was totally depressed. It didn't start to recover from the farm crisis of the 80s until the mid-90s. And back then, the Illinois side led the way. They started the slow recovery first, and they did it with downtown revitalization, too. But since then they've taken a step back.

Anyway, the Illinois politicians are playing chicken with Exelon. They think they still have time. Exelon has said it's not impossible to reverse their decision, but the longer they wait, the more expensive it will be to reverse the process.

http://www.wjbc.com/2016/06/06/sen-brad ... m-closing/
BLOOMINGTON – He’s not exactly calling their bluff, but State Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, said he believes Exelon will keep the Clinton power plant open if lawmakers come up with a plan to aid nuclear energy.

“I think some people have tried to complication this whole issue and we need to simplify it,” Brady said. “I’m optimistic the fight to keep it open will win.”

Brady told WJBC’s Scott Laughlin what’s complicating the issue are claims that the legislation Exelon was pushing for would be a bailout. Brady said while providing help for unclear energy could lead to higher utility rates in the short term, he says it would have a long-term benefit in the state’s energy portfolio.

“Exelon need to do what it did, and that is lay down the threat,” Brady said. “I think they want to keep it open, but they had to lay this card out because it is real.”

I remember going to Moline probably 10 years ago to see all the John Deere things. There was the big pavilion and all these little shops down there and I thought that it was a pretty happening place. We went back maybe three or four years ago and most of that is gone. The Deere Pavilion was still there but a lot of the other shops were closed. It was sad because I thought it would be a pretty cool thing to have a little tourist spot based on farming. I think part of the problem there though is it's kind of tricky to navigate that area to some extent.

Oh, Excelon wants some corporate welfare? [expletive] them, let em go.

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lukethedrifter
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Re: Illinois

Post by lukethedrifter »

I've only seen bodies pulled under barges but I've listened on the radio as fishing boats and barge workers have.

The river ain't nothing to [expletive] with.

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Re: Illinois

Post by tlombard »

A couple of years ago I was out on the river with some friends of the family and we ran out of gas. That was a bit scary since it was right as we were getting back to the public dock in Alton... which is basically right under the bridge and you can see the dam just ahead.

Thankfully they had a gas can with a few gallons in it in case we ran out or found somebody else who ran out but it wasn't easy and was a bit nerve racking trying to pour that gas into the tank while floating straight a bridge pier. I knew that he'd get the gas in there before we got near the dam but I wasn't so sure about that pier!

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pioneer98
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Re: Illinois

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I'm taking a deep breath to try to stop myself from punching the wall

From schools to roads, fallout of Illinois budget feud grows
CHICAGO (AP) - The consequences of Illinois lawmakers' epic failure to approve a state budget continue to pile up, with new warnings about unfunded 911 call centers and schools, thousands of road construction jobs in jeopardy and the long-term cost to taxpayers growing by the billions.

Yet, the political sniping between Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democrats who run the Legislature hasn't changed: Each side blames the other, and neither appears willing to budge. The only state without a budget for the fiscal year that ends this month, Illinois is on the brink of entering a record second year without a plan if lawmakers can't reach a deal by July 1.
Plus, two major credit rating agencies downgraded Illinois' already worst-in-the-nation rating, citing the ongoing "political gridlock" and financial "mismanagement" by state leaders. The downgrades increase taxpayers' share of future state borrowing, and comes one week before Rauner's administration is set to sell $550 million in bonds.

Moody's Investors Service set the rating two levels above "junk" status with a negative outlook, noting Illinois' bill backlog is likely to exceed a previous high of $10 billion in coming months. S&P Global Ratings said Illinois' ability to repay its debt "is becoming increasingly challenged the longer the political gridlock in Springfield plays out."
The Republican governor insists that any long-term spending plan, which is likely to include a Rauner-sanctioned tax increase, must be accompanied by business-friendly legislation that he believes will improve Illinois' economy. Democrats argue his priorities, which include weakening labor unions and cutting the cost of workers' compensation insurance, will hurt the middle class.

And even as bipartisan groups of rank-and-file lawmakers, with the blessing of legislative leaders and Rauner, have been meeting to try to craft a solution, the governor and Madigan indicated Thursday peace is far from imminent.

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pioneer98
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Re: Illinois

Post by pioneer98 »

IMADreamer wrote:I remember going to Moline probably 10 years ago to see all the John Deere things. There was the big pavilion and all these little shops down there and I thought that it was a pretty happening place. We went back maybe three or four years ago and most of that is gone. The Deere Pavilion was still there but a lot of the other shops were closed. It was sad because I thought it would be a pretty cool thing to have a little tourist spot based on farming. I think part of the problem there though is it's kind of tricky to navigate that area to some extent.
Yeah, it is confusing getting around when you first move here. Downtown Moline is still doing *OK* because there are still a lot of office jobs down there. The shops and restaurants have kind of migrated around to a different section of downtown though in the last 10 years. Downtown Rock Island is the one that has been hurt the most. Davenport has poached several of their decent-sized businesses.

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Swirls
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Re: Illinois

Post by Swirls »

Good news for Illinois - the Quad Cities and Clinton nuclear plants aren't shutting down after all:

http://qctimes.com/news/local/bill-to-s ... 1d84a.html
SPRINGFIELD — The holidays will be much happier for families of 1,500 workers at Exelon Corp.’s Clinton and Quad-Cities nuclear power plants after the Illinois General Assembly voted Thursday to approve an energy policy overhaul that will keep the plants open for another decade.

On the final day of the fall veto session, the House voted 63-38 and the Senate voted 32-18 in favor of a massive package that will funnel $235 million in annual ratepayer subsidies to the unprofitable nuclear power plants and increase investments in renewable power and energy efficiency. Gov. Bruce Rauner said he will sign the bill when it reaches his desk.

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