Five Guys heading to Crystal Lake

How nice that Five Guys Burgers and Fries is heading to Crystal Lake for its first McHenry County restaurant. My grandson has been after me to take him there. It won't be in Crystal Lake, though.

After reading of the involvement this morning of the Crystal Lake Economic and Planning Development Department, I wondered what's cooking (no pun intended) with Woodstock. Was Woodstock in the running for that restaurant? Or any other?

There was a rumor floating around a while back of a Kohl's over by Menard's and of a new restaurant coming to town. Think there is anything to either rumor? Guess I'll have to drive by Menard's today and see if any ground is disturbed.

The City of Woodstock has a slot in its employee roster for a department director for economic development. I think that slot has been vacant for a couple of years. The director left and there was a deputy director who filled in, until he too left.

Without economic development, there is one very likely direction for a town. And it's not "up".

Where is the Chamber of Commerce in the planning for Woodstock's future? The business community should be all over City Hall and demanding to know just exactly what is being done to bring new business to Woodstock. The business community and the residents had better not sit back and wait for City Hall to do it. City Hall is in a preservation mode, struggling to meet budget, just like everybody else.

What is the real plan for the old courthouse building that the City now owns? Will this be converted to more government offices; let's hope not. Should the City be "in business" and in competition with local business? No. Absolutely not.

I did enjoy a good laugh at this week's article about the auction of the courthouse. Attorney in the deal Ryan Farrell was attributed with the comment that "the city didn't actually expend $110,000 on the (courthouse) property because it already was owed that money."

So now the City owns a building that will cost it (us) thousands of dollars (hundreds of thousands of dollars?).

Was anyone else confused about the gyrations of ownership? In the space of a few words, the reporter explained that current tenants bought the courthouse in the 1970s, "but Centralia (Investors) holds the title." Isn't the titleholder the owner?

And then the article states that the current tenants have 30 days to redeem their rights. What rights?

Wouldn't you think that the City would be telling residents exactly what its plan is for the courthouse? Is there a plan?