Elgin Watchman

Send us Fan Mail Season One of The Elgin Watchman podcast is almost over, but there are still a few loose ends to tie-up. Loose ends such as the December 2022 Elgin Sustainability Commission meeting. So, this episode is unlike any other 2022 episode. Tia is on sabbatical. Erik was out-of-state and couldn't attend the December meeting. So, Franklin Ramirez did The Elgin Watchman a "solid...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to episode 29 of Season One, which is a special edition podcast following up on the city of Batavia's efforts to pass a Single Use Bag Fee ordinance ( which is something the city of Elgin has been trying to do for more than three-years ). In episode 23, Erik floated down the mighty Fox River and facilitated a panel discussion with two Batavia Environmental Commission...

Send us Fan Mail Where oh where oh where is Erik's podcast partner, Tia Aagesen?   Tia mysteriously announced a few months ago she would be taking a 7-month sabbatical from podcast. Tia comes back to share her BIG announcement with Elgin Watchman podcast listeners. You won't want to miss this interview.   After dealing with Tia's dramatic announcement, Erik uses the rest of the podc...

Send us Fan Mail In most previous city budget construction cycles, November would have been a little late in the game for the Elgin Sustainability Commission to start constructing its next fiscal year budget. This is why the commission used to host a budget retreat in late July to iron out these details. However, with federal ARPA funds sloshing around many city halls around the country -- as is t...

Send us Fan Mail As always, the November 2022 meeting of the Elgin Sustainability Commission was long. There were lots of topics discussed ranging from purchasing seeds for native plants seeds to the upcoming budget retreat ( which was covered by The Watchman and will be the next podcast episode dropped ). However, the fireworks for the evening were produced in an exchange between Commissioner Dav...

Send us Fan Mail While driving down Interstate 90 into the city of Chicago, Erik noticed a billboard advertising a specialty branded public service announcement webpage -- leadsafechicago.org -- where people could easily access information about lead service lines, replacement projects, and lead in drink water risks. Since The Elgin Watchman has been focused on Elgin's lead service water line...

Send us Fan Mail Throughout all the coverage of the Elgin Sustainability Commission's . . . attempts to create a draft Single Use Bag Fee ordinance, and  recommend both city staff and city council take up the issue . . . there was always someone on the commission ( or city staff ) saying something like this: " What are other communities doing? How are they dealing with _________ as it pe...

Send us Fan Mail Trying to produce THREE podcast episodes in a 24-hour period was exhausting.  And this third and final podcast in that marathon was coverage of the October 2022 Elgin Sustainability Commission meeting, and it might have been the proverbial " straw that broke the camel's back. " It also likely explains why this episode is a compact 20-minutes in length.   However, do...

Send us Fan Mail During our podcast coverage of the September 2022 Elgin Sustainability Commission meeting, Erik questioned whether commissioners had violated the Illinois Open Meetings Act. He made a promise to The Elgin Watchman's listening audience to roll up his sleeves and get to the bottom of things.   In this podcast episode, Erik . . .  Interviewed former Elgin Township Supervisor Fra...

Send us Fan Mail Starting in May 2022, The Elgin Watchman podcast has been doing a deep dive on the topic of lead service lines and the possibility of high lead levels in some Elgin residents drinking water.   Today's episode is a departure from the last few months of interviewing the city of Elgin's former and current Water Department Directors in addition to our discussion with a pedia...

Send us Fan Mail The September 2022 Elgin Sustainability Commission meeting was the opposite of the August meeting. However, it certainly was almost as long. In a nutshell, the following topics were discussed: Bike paths Sustey Awards ( giving responsibility to Elgin Image Awards committee ) Native Plant Giveaway Eastside Community Garden Event  Sustainability Marketing Materials Reusable Shopping...

Send us Fan Mail Tia & Erik have been following the story of elevated levels of lead in Elgin's water supply based on a recent notice and brochure sent to Elgin residents earlier in 2022. click here for Spanish language version of notice click here for Spanish language version of brochure " Lead in Elgin's Drinking Water " coverage is a once a special podcast that start in...

Send us Fan Mail Hooray . . . Hooza . . . Take a victory lap! The Elgin Sustainability Commission unanimously passed the Single Use Bag Fee draft ordinance at its August 2022 meeting.   Right? So, where is the ticker-tape parade? Shouldn't there be a balloon drop? Or am I not seeing all that celebratory stuff because it's not environmentally sustainable?   Commissioner Jeff Biss comes on...

Send us Fan Mail The August 2022 Elgin Sustainability Commission meeting was the longest one of the year -- and perhaps the longest ever in the commission's 10-year history -- clocking in at three-and-one-half to four hours in length. Needless to say, commission chairperson Tom Armstrong is back in Tia's doghouse. Members of the Elgin Area Climate Change Now , Elgin City of Peace , and E...

Send us Fan Mail * * * SPECIAL EDITION PODCAST * * * The proposed Single Use Plastic Bag Fee ordinance appears to be picking up steam in Elgin , Illinois.  Two members of the city council contacted Tia & Erik after The Elgin Watchman launched its anonymous straw poll of those elected officials. Both agreed to interviews! The executive director of the Environmental Defenders of McHenry County (...

Send us Fan Mail * * * SPECIAL EDITION PODCAST * * * The proposed Single Use Plastic Bag Fee ordinance appears to be picking up steam in Elgin , Illinois.  Two members of the city council contacted Tia & Erik after The Elgin Watchman launched its anonymous straw poll of those elected officials. Both agreed to interviews! The executive director of the Environmental Defenders of McHenry County (...

Send us Fan Mail * * * SPECIAL EDITION PODCAST * * * The proposed Single Use Plastic Bag Fee ordinance appears to be picking up steam in Elgin , Illinois.  Two members of the city council contacted Tia & Erik after The Elgin Watchman launched its anonymous straw poll of those elected officials. Both agreed to interviews! The executive director of the Environmental Defenders of McHenry County (...

Send us Fan Mail * * * SPECIAL EDITION PODCAST * * * The proposed Single Use Plastic Bag Fee ordinance appears to be picking up steam in Elgin , Illinois.  Two members of the city council contacted Tia & Erik after The Elgin Watchman launched its anonymous straw poll of those elected officials. Both agreed to interviews! The executive director of the Environmental Defenders of McHenry County (...

Send us Fan Mail Erik and Tia continue exploring the issue of lead in Elgin's drinking water and the city's Lead Service Line Replacement program.  In this episode, Tia and Erik interview the City of Elgin's current Water Director, Eric Weiss. This interview went so long that Erik & Tia decided to break it into two parts. The second part of the interview will drop towards the en...

Send us Fan Mail The July 2022 Elgin Sustainability Commission meeting was longer than the super efficient June meeting that Tia covered, but commission chairperson Tom Armstrong still managed to adjourn the public meeting after 90-minutes.  Unfortunately, Erik wasn't feeling well the day of this podcast recording. His second COVID booster was kicking his butt. So,  in an attempt to shorten a...

Send us Fan Mail The City of Elgin recently released its Annual Water Quality Report for the period of time between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021. When it comes to lead in Elgin's drinking water, here's some of the facts: Approximately 100-ish Elgin homes with lead service pipes got tested There is no safe level of lead that humans should be ingesting, which is why it is the EPA&...

Send us Fan Mail The June 2022 Elgin Sustainability Commission meeting was the shortest and best managed by Commission Chair Tom Armstrong so far in 2022. The agenda was short, and Tia picked three of the main topics to summarize:  Open Meetings Act as it pertains to rejuvenating the commission's workgroups Elgin's Tree Planting Program Green House Gas Inventory However, Erik & Tia s...

Send us Fan Mail Erik and Tia continue exploring the issue of lead in Elgin's drinking water after the city mailed residents notification a few months ago about elevated levels.  In this episode, Tia interviews the City of Elgin's former Interim Public Services Director, Kyla Jacobsen, who retired in 2017.  Jacobsen offers an interesting, unique, and educated perspective on this topic. H...

Send us Fan Mail The May 2022 Elgin Sustainability Commission meeting was the best one so far in 2022 with many different governance motions put on the table and even more topics for discussion.  Single Use Plastic Bag Fee Waste Management Recycling Pilot Project Native Plants/East Side Community Garden No Mow May Solar, Solare, & More Solar And so much more! Honestly, this meeting can only be...

Send us Fan Mail A few weeks ago, the City of Elgin mailed a brochure in accordance with the EPA's Lead & Copper Rule to some Elgin residents because elevated lead levels were found in a handful of homes. Unfortunately, Tia was one of the residents who received this city's mailing, and it has her freaked out. Tia & Erik talk about lead in drinking water, and dial-in former Elgin...