Ottawa Council proclaims Sept. 16 as ‘Fox River Day’

In his report during Tuesday’s City Council meeting, Ottawa Mayor Robert Hasty read a proclamation declaring Saturday, Sept. 16, to be “Fox River Day” in Ottawa.

The proclamation alluded to how the Fox River was instrumental in the settling of the Ottawa area, how it fell into an unpleasant state because of chemical and factory waste dumping along its length and how efforts to alleviate those problems were successful in returning the river to an asset to the community.

Hasty added that the the Daughters of the Fox River, which has been a driving force in keeping the river in its current positive state, is organizing a cleaning effort along the shores and encourages people to come out and help with their work.

“I know that since I’ve been elected,” Hasty said, “I’ve had many conversations with Brooke McDonald, director of the conservation foundation, and she spoke very highly of [the Daughters]. That they were very supportive of their efforts to keep the river clean. The river is noticeably cleaner now than when I was growing up here. It’s like night and day.”

Information on the Daughters of the Fox River’s cleanup event will soon be available on the city’s social media websites.