Girl Scouts Tigers introduce SWC’s new program top cat AREA •A3 SPORTS • B1 Vol. 160, No. 57 Breaking news at theintelligencer.com Monday, March 15, 2021 $1 Community leaders tackle safety Residential meeting leads to license plate camera exploration By Charles Bolinger meeting. There were about to say if they will buy the [email protected] “Utilitra has been making sales pitches 30 attendees, many of whom to local HOAs to say if they will buy the cameras, the DEA (Drug are concerned about the vehi- Enforcement Administration) cameras, the DEA will allow those EDWARDSVILLE — On cle burglaries and thefts that will allow those cameras to Wednesday, at Sunset Hills occurred over the past two or cameras to be tied into the law be tied into the law enforce- Country Club, city police con- three weeks. The meeting last- enforcement network if the camera ment network if the camera vened a forum for residents ed three hours. belongs to the Edwardsville Police belongs to the Edwardsville and others to discuss commu- “Alderman Art Risavy was Department.” Police Department,” Keeven nity safety measures. there as was [Yolanda Cro- — Jay Keeven, Police Chief explained. “I wasn’t able to attend chrell, who is running for the A HOA that wanted this, but Major [Michael] Fillback Ward 2 aldermanic seat], Troy Keeven said Utilitra has (HOAs) can purchase camera would buy it, have it installed attended for me,” Police Chief Police Chief Brad Parsons, and been doing some license plate and license plate reader sys- and then give it, via a legal Jay Keeven told the public a representative from Utilitra, camera installations and they tems. document, to the department safety committee Thursday which is J.F. Electric’s technol- discussed ways subdivision “Utilitra has been making during its regularly scheduled ogy arm.” homeowners’ associations sales pitches to local HOAs See “SAFETY” on Page A3 Library embarks on ‘Next Chapter’ with renovation The Intelligencer The Edwardsville Public Library announced the renovation and modernization of the interior of the historic library, “EPL – The Next Chapter.” The library building was originally dedicated in 1906, with additions in 1953 and 1991. The focus of the renovation is to provide the Edwardsville com- munity with updated library spaces and improved Scott Cousins | Hearst Illinois access to library resources. The improvements Becca Chausse of the Madison County Health Department talks about information and online resources planned have been considered carefully and will during a press briefing at the Madison County Health Department’s vaccination center at Gateway not damage the historical architecture of our Carn- Convention Center in Collinsville on March 10. egie library. The approved renovation plan includes the fol- lowing: Pandemic hits one-year mark • A complete renovation of all restrooms and the addition of a gender-neutral/family restroom on ment only, but it’s six days the lower level. County health official says return a week in Collinsville • The adult circulation area and bookstore (every day but Wednes- will have complete makeovers, which will give day) and twice a week at patrons flexible seating space with laptop bars, a to ‘normal’ will be slow process Lewis and Clark. We’re self-service area with a self-checkout machine, and By Scott Marion County as of Sunday, not forward to helping us preparing to do three self-serve holds pickup. Our circulation desks will [email protected] to mention the economic move through this pan- mobile clinics a week in still be fully staffed in case you prefer our friendly repercussions, Yeager demic, but it’s not going the county and we have staff to assist you. These changes will also have the EDWARDSVILLE — understands that ‘COVID to solve everything. the capacity to do six if we added benefit of improving sightlines (for safety) When the COVID-19 pan- fatigue’ may be higher “We still need to moni- have enough staff avail- and easing some staff crowding. demic started in the U.S. than ever as the pandemic tor the vaccine and deter- able.” • Four quiet study rooms will be added to the in March 2020, many peo- hits the one-year mark. mine how long it will be While vaccination still north wall of the adult library. ple expected it to be over But she notes that effective, and what point may be months away for • The adult computer lab will be re-organized sometime in the spring, or COVID-19 is a brand- we will reach herd immu- many Madison Coun- with staff desks on the north wall and a rectangu- by summer at the latest. new virus and we are still nity. The CDC has said ty residents, Yeager is lar 8-person station with 18-inch privacy screens But public health learning about it. that 70 to 80 percent of our impressed by the response between users. officials, including the “We know a lot more society needs to be vacci- of the global medical com- • The youth computer lab and the storage room Madison County Health about this virus than we nated before herd immu- munity to the coronavirus. next door will become our new Teen Room. The Department, knew better. did in early March of last nity starts to kick in, and “The virus was iden- new room will house our teen collection and mod- And even with year, when Illinois that’s not going to happen tified to have shown up ular furniture so kids can study and interact with good news in the had not yet issued overnight. However, hav- in humans in December each other. This will free up collection space in form of vaccines, a stay-at-home ing the vaccine brings a of 2019 in China, and the the youth library that will give us more room for lower case positiv- order,” Yeager said, lot of hope in this step.” fact that we had vaccine materials and/or creative play areas in the youth ity rates and fewer “It could easily be In a prime-time address developed and approved library. deaths, they know decades before we Thursday night, President through emergency use • The youth circulation desk will be remodeled that the effects of learn everything Joe Biden said he will authorization and we and a small workroom for staff will be added. the coronavirus Yeager about this virus. direct U.S. states to open were starting to vaccinate • Our patio will be redone and fenced in to give could last for years “I anticipate vaccine eligibility to all people in Madison Coun- to come. that through the adults beginning May 1. ty by December of 2020, See “LIBRARY” on Page A3 “We absolutely knew end of my career that It remains to be seen that was lightning fast,” that this would be at least this COVID-19 virus will whether that goal can be Yeager said. a two-year stretch,” said continue to be part of my achieved, but the news on “That’s what happens Amy Yeager, director of profession and my career. the vaccine front contin- when you can put most A NEWS community health and We will continue to learn ues to be encouraging. of the world’s research Our Neighborhood: A2 public information officer more about and see the “It will still take months from major manufactur- Obituaries: A3 for the Madison Coun- ramifications of it from the to get to some of these ers all together in one Entertainment: A7 Local: A8 ty Health Department. health standpoint of indi- future phases, but in the major effort. That again “Whenever you talk about viduals as well from the last month in Madison shows the scope of global B SPORTS something reaching a public health standpoint.” County we’ve gone from impact and the number Sports: B1-B4, B6 global pandemic level, it’s Yeager cautions that a 900 to 1,110 doses a day of resources that were put Comics: B5 Classifieds: B6-B7 usually a two- to five-year return to the “good old and having vaccine by toward developing and Weather: B8 time span. days” – or at least the appointment only a few distributing the vaccine.” “When you add on pre-COVID days of 2019 – days a week to having While things seem to Facebook “f” Logo CMYK / .eps Facebook “f” Logo CMYK / .eps the fact that it was a new will be more of a gradual 2,300 to 3,000 a day,” be trending in a positive virus, that’s a one-two process. Yeager said. “On Tues- direction, the pandemic is JOIN THE punch for us in public “We fully anticipate that day, we had the Lewis not over. CONVERSATION health. The speed at even once people are vac- and Clark (Community Yeager urges people to What’s your take on today’s news? Go to which it was moving cinated and are somewhat College) clinic and the not let their guard down, theintelligencer.com and growing was also an back to more of a socializ- mass vaccination clinic in especially when it comes and visit us on Facebook indicator of the potential ing kind of lifestyle, we’re Collinsville (at Gateway to COVID safety precau- to share your thoughts. severity of it.” still going to be deep in Convention Center) and tions that have proved to With COVID-related this for quite a while,” we set a single-day high be effective. Contact us at 618-656-4700 deaths at 530,000 nation- Yeager said. “The vaccine with 3,246 doses. wide and 466 in Madison is another advancing step “It’s still by appoint- See “VIRUS” on Page A3 Page A2 Monday, March 15, 2021 — www.theintelligencer.com LOOKING BACK Edwardsville Intelligencer The Edwardsville Intelligencer, a Hearst newspaper, is published Today is Monday, March Woodrow Wilson met sachusetts.