Hey, this is Villa Park calling. I’m just wondering about the dogs barking early in the morning at 1:15. I wonder if there’s an ordinance about the dogs barking, or who’s responsible for that. Talk to you later, bye, bye.

While the Village of Villa Park Code of Ordinances covers “nuisance noises,” it did not appear to include barking dogs. However, Chapter 5 (Animals and Fowl), Article II (Dogs), Sec. 5-212 (Miscellaneous Offenses) item No. 4 addresses “barking, whining or howling excessively.” For more information, contact the Village of Villa Park at 630-834-8500.—JAC

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Hi Lombard, Villa Park. Regarding the past week's caller who wants proof Democrats are communist. In a perfect communist society everybody gets paid the same for moving the state forward.  Kind of like wanting fast food workers to get paid more than they're worth (you're only worth what it takes to replace you) and wanting CEOs to be paid less than what the market will bear. To the person who doesn't know what to do about the skeet shooting. Why not be thankful you live in a society where private arms ownership is allowed to keep the government from becoming totalitarian? Why not be thankful that a portion of the arms and ammunition sales and licensing fees are used to manage wildlife? Why not be tolerant of their choices, which just happen to be legal, moral and doesn't cost you a dime? Why not be careful of where you move to? Why not just turn up the TV? Why not be thankful that somebody is keeping the skeet population in check and is probably roasting them over a perfectly legal outdoor fire? To the person who did a great job of pointing out where to find info on getting rid of raccoons.  Your intended recipient called a newspaper to get rid of the critters.  They obviously have no intention of doing any work for themselves; they want all of it done for them.  Democrats. You can tell from a mile away. To the person who urged us to,. “Impeach Gov. Rauner.” You should sell used license plates. You are that convincing. Last, putting a TV on in the backyard with “Keeping Up With The Kardashians” on is not going to scare away raccoons. They will just congregate and laugh their ringed tails off just like any reasonable person would.  

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This is Lombard calling. I just received the Lombardian and I'm reading about the village board approving a tax levy increase. My question is, we the people of Lombard should not be responsible to pay for the pension funds. The police pension fund as it says, the pension fund for non-police and fire employees. Pension funds are outdated. 401Ks are where the employees themselves should be contributing, not us as village taxpayers. I think it's totally ridiculous. It's destroyed Illinois, Chicago, now it's hitting the suburbs. Pension funds should be abolished and 401K plans should be instituted. Thank you.

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The apparent trouble between Cronin and Zaruba over the budget at the county level seems to parallel what’s going on in the state. I have been proud of the way Cronin has handled things, reducing the size of government, etc., but now he has this to contend with. Unlike Rauner—who I voted for—I have faith Cronin will get the job done.

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Thank you to all those who made the Veterans Day program at the rock. The young women who sang so beautifully and the young men who played taps are a real credit to Lombard. The area around the rock is so nice, thanks to some of our fine Eagle Scouts. Of course, our biggest thank you is to our service men and women, past and present. We must always remember to say thank you for their gifts.

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Good evening, northwest Lombard calling. Number one, thank you all you veterans. My son's at Camp Lejeune right now. God bless him. Thank you, sir, for your service. Thank you veterans. No thanks to our president who's reducing our military forces when we need them the most. Vladimir Putin was the Man of the Year again. Even the liberal Time Magazine recognizes this guy's got more courage than our president. My son’s out there fighting. Happy Veterans Day everyone.

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This is Villa Park calling. It was refreshing to read a report in SPEAK OUT where a resident talked about teachers complaining about being stressed out. Seriously? A tenured high school teacher in our district gets an average salary of $120,000 with an 80 percent pension, not including the extras, which are pensionable also. They get time off during the school year and the summer off. A law needs to be passed prohibiting teachers from going on strike during the school year, placing our children out of the classroom solely for their monetary gain. They need to strike on their own time. Parents who show support for teachers going on strike need to think about that. Our children are being placed out of the classroom. They are not going on strike for your children. Look at your tax bill; 73 percent goes to schools and they continue to want tax referendums. It's about the money, not the children.

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Tax levy increase and water rate increase reported in last week’s paper. Who’s going to be the first to get a whopping $3,000 bill like that guy in Lisle?

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Hello, Lombard calling. To the caller who said we should get rid of Rep. Madigan, unless you're a voter in the 22nd Congressional District in Illinois, which is on the southwest side of Chicago, you can't get rid of him. Only the residents of that district can rid of him and that's not likely to happen. Also, once new legislators take place every year, legislators vote to see who will be speaker of the house for that term. And, surprise, surprise, it's always Michael Madigan who is elected speaker. Why is that? Maybe we should be asking our elected representatives why they keep re-electing him as speaker. Thank you.

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To the person who called about people letting their leaves blow into other people’s yards or in the street, I am a senior citizen who gets the yard raked when I can get the help. Besides, many of the leaves in my yard—I’ve counted at least three or four types of trees that I don’t have—that blew into yours aren’t mine, either. It’s like a domino effect, but please don’t be so quick to judge. Not everyone is lazy or thoughtless.

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Hi, Villa Park calling. I read the SPEAK OUT where a resident called about an issue in the person's neighborhood with the village parkway trees, where the residents are starting to cut the trees themselves. I filled out a request two years ago to have the parkway tree trimmed in front of my house. Well, I'm still waiting. The tree is leaning, branches are hanging. I guess I will be doing the same come this spring. The village loves to plant them but apparently can't maintain them. Drive down South Ardmore at night. It's like driving into a cave. It's very dark due to trees that have grown into each other, covering the roadway and the streetlights, making it difficult to see. Addressing this issue may also help our emergency responders at night. If the village cannot maintain them, then stop planting them. Thank you.

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The Glen Ellyn skeet shooting needs to be moved to a non-residential area. I support guns, I shoot guns, but I don't want to listen to guns continuously from Friday through Sunday. My dogs won't go outside. It annoys my company when I have people over. Even in my house with my windows closed, I still hear the gunshots all day long. I don't know how people who live even closer to it can stand it, because I'm in Lombard, not even in Glen Ellyn. I don't know any gun ranges that have outdoor shooting in residential areas anywhere around. Even at other gun ranges you cannot hear the gunfire in your homes when your windows are closed. Please, somebody, put a petition together, or something has to be done. After 15 years and scaring my animals, it's ridiculous. Thank you.