The 2050 transportation plan needs your input….. and other important news around the County!
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ResumeMcHenry County Update!
Through our collaboration with McHenry County, we will continue to share important information on stimulus programs, COVID-19 updates, and where the county is opening up through ResumeMcHenry County Updates.
Please take a moment to scroll down to see new advancements this week as more and more are opening up in McHenry County. If MCEDC can be of any help, please call. Forward this email to your friends and family to help get the word out!
Small Business Saturday a resounding (and important!) success
It was nice to have a Small Business Saturday without capacity restrictions like last year – and if the nice writeup in the Northwest Herald was any indicator, it was a great Saturday for McHenry County’s small retailers!
(Yes, the story is behind a paywall, but our newspaper of record is a small business, too!)
The annual shopping day, which one owner in the story called their “bread and butter,” generated $19.8 billion last year for the nation’s 32 million small businesses. In fact, 96 percent of McHenry County’s businesses employ 50 or fewer people.
Even though another Small Business Saturday is behind us, you can make it a year-round observance by shopping small throughout the holiday season, and throughout the year – our friends at Visit McHenry County have compiled a great list at visitmchenrycounty.com/Shop, and their website is full of great lists for places to find great food, drink, entertainment and more!
Workforce Network hosting young adult career program
The McHenry County Workforce Network is looking for a few good young adults searching for paths to meaningful and profitable careers!
The agency is hosting a recruitment event for its Young Adult Workforce Program, which seeks to help young adults discover career pathways, and provide the necessary training to break into their desired fields – especially young adults not wishing to pursue a four-year college degree.
Through the program, the Workforce Network offers paid internships, training grants for certificate and associate degree programs, a GED course, and more.
The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 15 at the Workforce Network office at 500 Russel Court, Woodstock. Walk-ins are allowed, but attendees for the free event are encouraged to preregister by emailing Adult and Youth Lead Career Planner Jake Rohn at
County Board hosts our Springfield representatives
McHenry County’s representatives in the General Assembly met last week with the County Board Law and Government Committee to review the county’s legislative priorities when lawmakers reconvene in January for the start of spring session.
The county’s entire delegation in Springfield – Reps. Dan Ugaste, Tom Weber, Suzanne Ness, Martin McLaughlin and Steve Reick, and Sens. Craig Wilcox and Don DeWitte were in attendance, and Senate Minority Leader Dan McConchie was represented by staff.
Attendees had a productive discussion on the county’s priorities, as well as on some of the items that lawmakers expect will come up in 2022.
The 2050 transportation plan needs your input!
If you drive, bike or walk in McHenry County – if you live, work or own a business here – your input is needed to make the McHenry County Moves 2050 plan the best it can be!
McHenry County Moves 2050 is a countywide, long-range transportation plan being crafted by the McHenry County Division of Transportation to examine all the ways people and goods move in our region. The plan’s goal is to create an enhanced vision for transportation in our area, and identify new solutions that will provide a wide range of safe, equitable, sustainable, and convenient travel choices in and across the county.
Please visit their website at www.mchenrycountymoves2050.com and take the brief engagement survey to show how you move around, and how the system can be improved. The survey is open through the end of the month.
McHenry County farmers eligible for May freeze relief
McHenry County farmers who lost crops or revenue because of May 2021 freezes are are eligible for federal disaster relief.
USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack issued a disaster declaration last week for McHenry, Boone and Lake counties, as well as seven Wisconsin counties. The disaster period covers freeze losses between May 5 and May 30.
The declaration allows the USDA Farm Service Agency to provide emergency loans to producers recovering from the disaster event. Local farmers looking to file a notice of loss can do so through the USDA Service Center in Woodstock, located at 1648 S. Eastwood Drive, by calling 815-338-0444.
Voting is open for the Light Up McHenry County contest!
With the lifting of COVID-19 capacity restrictions earlier this year, ResumeMcHenry County is featuring the return of its iconic and traditional attractions, and the founding of new ones.
Voting is open for Visit McHenry County’s second annual Light Up McHenry County contest!
There are 40 homes and businesses competing this year! Click here for photos of the entrants and a map if you wish to see them for yourself! And when you’re ready, you can vote for your favorites!
Besides voting for your overall favorite, fun special awards for residential displays include White Christmas (all-white lights), The Griswold (so many lights that you’re not sure how they didn’t trip the circuit breaker), Disco Fever (best light and music display), and Blow it Up (most inflatables).
Oh, one more thing – if you have Visit McHenry County’s awesome app installed on your smart phone, you can check in at every entrant you visit yourself, and be eligible to win a gift basket of local products certified as McHenry County Made! You can download it from Google Play here, and from the Apple App Store here.
We hope we got your attention. We need your help reaching more McHenry County residents and businesses to share this important information about the COVID-19 response and connect them with vital resources.
Please take these four steps:
1. Share/forward to your email/newsletter contacts.
2. Post information to your website.
3. Follow us on social media (see below); share our posts with your followers.
4. If you are not on the McHenry County Constant Contact list, please subscribe here
Follow McHenry County Government On Social Media
Staying connected and informed is more important now than ever! Follow McHenry County on social media for regular updates on COVID-19 in our region, resources to help you navigate the pandemic, safety tips and more!
ResumeMcHenry County is a collaborative initiative being implemented by McHenry County and the McHenry County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) in partnership with the McHenry County community, including cities and villages, businesses and residents. The goal is to ensure a successful reopening of our economy so that we can return to our lifestyles safely and responsibly.
