The Week Ahead: 7 Illinois Valley mayors to give State of the Cities addresses

Here is a look ahead at some of the events or meetings coming up in the next week in the Illinois Valley.

State of the Cities Luncheon: The Illinois Valley Area Chamber of Commerce will host seven Illinois Valley mayors on Wednesday, March 26, to deliver addresses about the state of their cities. The mayors are Ken Kolowski of Peru, Jeff Grove of La Salle, Robert Hasty of Ottawa, Melanie Malooley-Thompson of Spring Valley, Jason Curran of Oglesby, David Stewart of Utica and David Boelk of Mendota. Community leaders share thoughts on the local, social and economic climate, along with visions for future growth and quality of life. The event is held at the Grand Bear Lodge in Utica.

L-P Coffee Talk: The community is invited to attend an La Salle-Peru High School Board and Administrator Coffee Talk from 5 to 6 p.m. on Monday, March 24, in the community room of the Utica Village Hall, 248 W. Canal St. This informal meeting will feature L-P Board President Greg Sarver, Board Vice President Sally Taliani and Superintendent Steven Wrobleski sharing information on the recently begun Replanting L-P Ag Program, in particular the planning of a new agriculture building and the planned capital campaign to fund the project. The board members and superintendent also will be able to answer questions and discuss any other L-P related topics of interest to community members.

Ag Night 2025: The Putnam County Rotary Club will host Ag Night 2025 at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 27, at the Putnam County High School in Granville. Continuing a tradition dating back five decades, Putnam County Rotary hosts the event in conjunction with National Agriculture Week to honor local farmers and those whose support of agriculture strengthens the local and regional economy and provides food to the population. This year’s featured speaker will be Robert Sinkler, sharing his perspective on the importance of the Illinois River ports in the marketing of locally harvested corn and soybeans. The Illinois Waterway Ports Commission, a consortium of five port districts, including 10 counties along the Illinois River, was created in 2023 under the leadership of Sinkler, dedicated to the protection and preservation of the river for commerce and recreation. That Commission is one of four Midwest ports, collectively referred to as the Corn Belt Ports of which Sinkler now serves as executive coordinating director.