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McHenry County Blog

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Cal Skinner

This is a journal of news and opinion designed to bring to light matters of public interest and to encourage public participation in the governmental process. Emphasis will be on McHenry County, but Illinois state news will be covered. Articles and photos are copyrighted and may not be reproduced without explicit written permission.

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About Cal Skinner

About Cal Skinner
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Recent Posts

  • Lake in the Hills Reveals Annual Enhanced Enforcement Results October 31, 2025
  • Cheaper Phone Calls for Prisoners October 31, 2025
  • Running after a Traffic Stop October 31, 2025
  • What Is the Tribune Missing in This Headline about the Middle of the Night Passage of a Mass Transit Bailout? October 31, 2025
  • Robb Tadelman Holds Petition Party at McHenry Golf Club October 31, 2025
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Bruce Johnson Proposes County Efficiency Task Force Committee for McHenry County To Avoid 13% Tax Levy Hike

Cal SkinnerOctober 24, 2025October 24, 2025

Also opposing the imposition of the so-called “lookback budget” ar the McHenry County Board meeting was Trout Valley’s Bruce Johnson. Johnson is the Algonquin Township Republican Party Chairman and the leader of We the People, McHenry County. Here is what he said:

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Child Porn Arrest in Huntley

Cal SkinnerOctober 24, 2025October 24, 2025

From the Huntley Police: Child Pornography Arrest The Huntley Police Department announces the arrest of Alexander Grant (45 years old) of Ramsdell Street, Huntley, IL, for 13 counts of Child Pornography. In July 2025, the Batavia Police Department provided the Huntley Police […]

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Randi Freese Holds Fundraiser

Cal SkinnerOctober 24, 2025October 29, 2025

At Crystal Creek Farm, a venue I had not previously visited close to Burton’s Bridge, McHenry County State’s Attorney Randi Freese held a fundraiser two weeks ago. It was a double-dipper for many as McHenry County GOPAC was holding a petition party […]

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Fundraising Results in Democrat’s Bradley Schneider’s 10th Congressional District

Cal SkinnerOctober 24, 2025October 22, 2025

Incumber Member of Congress Bill Schneider has drawn a Democratic Party primary opponent, but Morgan Coghill hasn’t raised much money. Candidate financial totals Incumbent  Candidate Party Total receipts Total disbursements Cash on hand Source reports SCHNEIDER, BRADLEY S. DEMOCRATIC PARTY $1,587,464.88 $1,048,676.96 […]

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State’s Attorney Managers to Keep Man Accused of Burning Car in Jail

Cal SkinnerOctober 23, 2025October 24, 2025

From the State’s Attorney: COURT GRANTS STATE’S ATTORNEY’S OFFICE’S PETITION TO DETAIN MAN ACCUSED OF INTENTIONALLY SETTING FIRE TO CAR IN HARVARD McHenry County State’s Attorney Randi Freese announced today that the Honorable Judge Cynthia Lamb granted the State’s motion to deny […]

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Jill Zwick, R.I.P.

Cal SkinnerOctober 23, 2025October 23, 2025

Former State Rep. Jill Zwick has passed away. When I decided to run against Bob McClory in 1980, Jill and Dick Klemm were the Republicans who won in the three-member district. Jill came in well ahead of Klemm in the Republican primary. […]

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Darren and Cindy Bailey’s Son’s Family Dies in Helicopter Crash

Cal SkinnerOctober 23, 2025October 23, 2025

From Darren Bailey: Louisville, IL — The Darren Bailey/Aaron Del Mar campaign is issuing the following statement following the horrific death of Zach Bailey, his wife and two of his three children in a helicopter accident in Montana. Statement from the Darren […]

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Pickup Truck Hits Home in Algonquin

Cal SkinnerOctober 23, 2025October 23, 2025

From the Algonquin Police: Personal Injury Accident Compton and Mahogany Drive Algonquin, Illinois – October 22, 2025 – At approximately 5:07 p.m., Algonquin Police Officers, along with personnel from the Algonquin–Lake in the Hills Fire Protection District, responded to a report of […]

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Who Has Raised How Much in Bill Foster’s Congressional District

Cal SkinnerOctober 23, 2025October 22, 2025

Here are the results of campaign finance reporting for the third quarter of 2025: Candidate financial totals Incumbent  Candidate Party Total receipts Total disbursements Cash on hand Source reports FOSTER, G. WILLIAM (BILL) DEMOCRATIC PARTY $1,018,741.38 $519,426.13 $2,049,879.91 Coverage ending: 09/30/2025View all […]

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Johnsburg’s Kirk Donald Pleads with County Board Not to Hike Taxes

Cal SkinnerOctober 23, 2025October 22, 2025

Below is a YouTube presentation of Kirk Donald’s comments to the McHenry County Board on Tuesday night. I was posted by John Pletz. The McHenry County Board voted on Tuesday night to put on public view a tax levy that is 13% […]

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Talk about Unsafe Blacktop Sealing Afternoon of Oct. 24th Features Cook County Commissioner Maggie Trevor

Cal SkinnerOctober 22, 2025June 18, 2025

From the Defenders of McHenry County: Keeping Children Safe from Toxic Pavement Sealants A BMP* Talk & Tour of 2025 will be held on October 24th from 1-3 pm at the Crystal Lake School District 47 CORE Building, 300 Commerce Dr, Crystal Lake. […]

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Biss Leading Kat in Race to Replace Jan Schakowski

Cal SkinnerOctober 22, 2025October 22, 2025

From the Evanston Roundtable comes these poll results for the 9th Congressional District Democratic Party Primary: The weighted text message poll of 917 likely Democratic voters was conducted from Oct. 14 to Oct. 16 by MDW Communications, a Florida-based political advertising firm that ran […]

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18-Year Old Skateboarder Hit by Vehicle That Didn’t Stop, Driver Arrested

Cal SkinnerOctober 22, 2025October 23, 2025

From the Sheriff: Sheriff’s Office Investigates Hit-and-Run Crash near Huntley An 18-year-old Marengo man was seriously injured after he was struck by a vehicle in the 14900 block of Harmony Road, west of Briar Hill Road near Huntley. On Saturday, October 18, […]

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County Issues Press Release on Proposed Tax Levy & Budget (with Related Articles)

Cal SkinnerOctober 22, 2025October 22, 2025

From McHenry County: County Submits Balanced FY2026 Budget for Review WOODSTOCK, Ill. – The McHenry County Board has submitted a balanced 2026 budget for public review. The $288.8 million budget and the $73.8 million tax levy were put on 30-day review at […]

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Rollover Vehicle Burns, Threatening Nearby McHenry Home

Cal SkinnerOctober 22, 2025October 22, 2025

From the McHenry Township Fire Protection District: At approximately 2:20 a.m. today, the McHenry Township Fire Protection District (MTFPD) responded to a report of a vehicle that had crashed and rolled over, with a person trapped, in the 900 Block of Center […]

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Resident Calls Out McHenry County Board for Proposing 13% Higher Tax Levy

Cal SkinnerOctober 22, 2025October 22, 2025

Terra Nielson’s comments can be heard and viewed below in a YouTube video created by John Pletz: It seems to me in her excellent call for a flat levy that she has underestimated the levy increase, however. For background, you might want […]

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Finally, Crystal Lake Park Board Reveals Publicly of No Interest in Purchasing Healthbridge

Cal SkinnerOctober 22, 2025October 22, 2025

The Northwest Herald’s lead story on its email feed today is that the Crystal Lake Park Board is not interested in buying Healthbridge. This is the facility that apparently could not break even after Northwestern Medical bought Centegra. This is not new […]

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State Rep. Hopeful of Replacing Jan Schakowsky Hassled by ICE

Cal SkinnerOctober 22, 2025October 22, 2025

That’s what 9th Congressional District Democratic Party candidate Hoan Huynh, a State Representative, is saying. He even got free advertising on ABC: Hoan Huynh on Channel 7. The Chicago Sun-Times story is here.

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County Board Proposes 13% Tax Levy Increase

Cal SkinnerOctober 21, 2025October 21, 2025

The McHenry County Board placed on public view its proposed tax levy for the year starting on December 1st. $73,802,726 is the amount requested. Compare that to last year’s levy: $65,208,205.21 That’s a 13.2% increase. Truly remarkable, considering the Board promised to […]

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Vehicle Crashes into Lakemoor Business

Cal SkinnerOctober 21, 2025October 21, 2025

From the Fire Protection District: At approximately 2:40 p.m. today, the McHenry Township Fire Protection District (MTFPD) responded to areport of a vehicle that had crashed into a building in the 400 block of Scotland Road in the Village ofLakemoor. Crews arrived […]

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Dems Threaten to Eliminate Darin LaHood’s District Through New Gerrymandering

Cal SkinnerOctober 21, 2025October 21, 2025

From Republican U.S. Senate candidate Don Tracy: Don Tracy Denounces House Democrats’ Gerrymandering Scheme Targeting Rep. Darin LaHood SPRINGFIELD –  With less than two weeks until the candidate filing deadline, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Washington Democrats are pushing a mid-decade redraw of Illinois’ […]

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Alcohol May Have Contributed to Cars Hitting Farm Equipment

Cal SkinnerOctober 21, 2025October 21, 2025

From the Sheriff’s Office: Sheriff’s Office Investigates Crash Involving Farm Equipment A 36-year-old Hebron man was seriously injured following a vehicle crash involving farm equipment on Thayer Road west of Illinois Route 47 in unincorporated McHenry County. On Monday, October 20, 2025, […]

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Lake in the Hills Summarizes Enhanced Enforcement Grant Results

Cal SkinnerOctober 21, 2025October 20, 2025

From the Lake in the Hills Police Department: Lake in the Hills Police Department awarded IDOT traffic enforcement grant We are proud to announce the Lake in the Hills Police Department has been awarded a federal fiscal year 2026 Sustained Traffic Enforcement […]

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DeWitte Summarizes Pritzker Budget Shortfall

Cal SkinnerOctober 21, 2025October 20, 2025

From State Senator Don DeWitte: Illinois Faces New $267 Million Deficit Illinois is confronting a growing fiscal challenge as newly released projections reveal a $267 million shortfall in the fiscal 2026 budget. The Governor’s Office of Management and Budget’s (GOMB) report warns […]

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“He’s Trying to Take Our Kid”

Cal SkinnerOctober 21, 2025October 20, 2025

From the Marengo Police Department comes this report of an Indian Oaks Park incident that led parents to leave tricycle, food and sippy cup at picnic table to flee in their vehicle: Wade through the charges made against Brandon Kanehl to the […]

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Dabrowski Leads Bailey by Twenty Percentage Points in Cook County GOP Dinner Straw Poll, Tracy Ahead of Goodman by Thirty Points

Cal SkinnerOctober 20, 2025October 21, 2025

From a Friend of McHenry County Blog comes these straw poll results: At the Cook County GOP Republican Dinner in Palatine at The Cotillion tonight, the straw poll results for  Governor U.S. Senate:

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Crystal Lake Park Board Votes to Tax to the Max

Cal SkinnerOctober 20, 2025October 21, 2025

It was almost ten as I arrived home after Monday night’s Crystal Lake Park Board meeting. The big news is that by a 6-1 vote, with only Board President Fred Tiesenga voting in opposition, the Board approved increasing its levy by the […]

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Vaping at Marlowe Middle School

Cal SkinnerOctober 20, 2025October 20, 2025

From the Lake in the Hills Police;

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A Critic of No Kings Demonstrations

Cal SkinnerOctober 20, 2025October 20, 2025

Posted by “Catturd” and picked up by the Daily Signal:

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DeWitte Reports on What Dems Are Up To in Springfield Veto Session

Cal SkinnerOctober 20, 2025October 20, 2025

From State Senator Don DeWitte: State lawmakers were back in Springfield last week for the first two days of the annual fall Veto Session. During the 2025 spring session, 436 bills passed through both chambers of the General Assembly and were sent […]

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Recent Comments

  • Crystal Lake Park District Advised Public of Tax Hike Far Higher That Increase in the Cost of Living - McHenry County Blog on Crystal Lake Park Board Votes to Tax to the Max
  • Randi Freese Holds Fundraiser - McHenry County Blog on McHenry County GOPAC’s Kirk Remembrance and Petition Party Where Two Gubernatorial Candidates Spoke
  • Bruce Johnson Comes Presents Plan to Avoid McHenry County’s Having a 13% Budget Hike - McHenry County Blog on Bruce Johnson Proposes County Efficiency Task Force Committee for McHenry County To Avoid 13% Tax Levy Hike
  • Does the McHenry County Republican Party Have a Death Wish? - McHenry County Blog on Resident Calls Out McHenry County Board for Proposing 13% Higher Tax Levy
  • Does the McHenry County Republican Party Have a Death Wish? - McHenry County Blog on We The People, McHenry County, Urges Contact with County Board Members to Remind Them of the Promise to Cut Property Tax Levy in Exchange for Voting for Mental Health Sales Tax
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