Mold Remediation in Rockford, IL

In October 2024, former Rockford Day Nursery executive director Jim Peterson went on local TV to promote a new fundraiser.

“We're looking to expand our operations," he said to WIFR. "Currently, we serve about 75 kids, but we’re renovating some rooms, and we're going to expand up to close to 150 kids, so almost double our size.”

But, within a month, the Rockford Day Nursery had abruptly closed down. Those 75 families lost their childcare overnight.

A report from Birth to Five Illinois found that Winnebago & Boone County have over 24,000 kids under 6 years old, but just 10,000 childcare slots to serve them.

So, if there’s such a dire need for childcare, how does a center like Rockford Day shutter out of nowhere? And how has Illinois lost one-third of its childcare providers in the past decade?

Jim Peterson took over at Rockford Day about a year ago. That’s when he says he found out that the center’s finances were in much worse shape than he imagined.

“Pretty early on," he said, "I was like, ‘Tell the board, we're going to run out of money. We're going to run out of money, and we need to start fundraising!’”

That’s why he was on TV. They desperately needed more students to generate more revenue. Rockford Day had been around over 100 years. They had an old building in need of hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of repairs and a contract with a tenant had fallen through.

“Teachers would come and say, ‘This kid is a problem,’" said Peterson, "and I'm like, ‘We cannot afford to let children go!’”

He says they tried to increase enrollment to cut their deficits, and they did, but they just ran out of money and ran out of time. Unfortunately, Peterson says parents got almost zero notice that the center was closing and that they’d have to find new childcare immediately.

“It was," he said, "a horrible mess."

But Peterson says there are bigger issues with the childcare system that make running centers difficult. Many of Rockford Day’s families relied on Illinois’ Child Care Assistance Program. It's where the state helps low-income families qualify for childcare and reimburses the centers.

Peterson says cuts to that program a decade ago made their business model less sustainable, and it was never fixed.

“The funding reimbursement rates haven't gone up in years," he said, "where staff salaries and costs of food and everything else has risen."

And because they weren’t part of a church, city, or school, they were pretty much solely reliant on those state reimbursements. Those reimbursements can also take weeks to go through, which made operating even more challenging when you're already running on a deficit.

“Right before the end of the year," said Peterson, "we had some money come in, so I was able to get everybody everything that we owed [the staff]. Their paid time off and their W-2s and stuff like that. I'm happy about that."

Meanwhile, Shannon Scheffel walks through brand-new classrooms as construction crews put finishing touches on the building. She’s CEO of the Harlem Community Center.

They just opened up a brand-new childcare center in Machesney Park less than 10 miles from Rockford Day. It's their second center. And, unlike the Rockford Day Nursery, they partner with Head Start, Early Head Start, and a school district.

“We’re opening five classrooms here. That will mean that we'll be caring for a little over 300 children," she said. "I currently have about 45 staff members working at the childcare centers and we will be hiring about 20-25 more staff members.”

But she says it can be hard to hire those high-quality teachers. Scheffel says one reason there’s been an increase in the need for early childcare is because people have recognized how much brain development happens in the first few years of a child's life.

“So," said Scheffel, "that has increased the demand for high quality care for our youngest learners, which increases the education, the skill level, the demands on the workforce that was already existing."

But higher levels of education don’t always equate with much higher pay.

“Even though the state is doing a really good job of trying to increase pay for our teachers," she said, "it still isn't comparable to working in a school district."

Scheffel says they have a lot of staff who leave for school districts to be paraprofessionals and teachers. It’s hard to compete with summers off and union wages when, until recently, they had a tough time competing with McDonald’s salaries.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker's administration has said it wants Illinois to be the No. 1 state in the country for child care. And, despite these issues, she says the state is on the right track towards that goal.

For one, this new center is only possible thanks to an early childhood construction grant through the state’s Rebuild Illinois capital plan.

The state’s Smart Start program has also invested millions in preschool, childcare, and increased scholarship opportunities for early childhood. But, again, Scheffel says, there are still plenty of problems.

"I'm thinking back to the Rockford Day Nursery. While the Rockford Day Nursery thing was a very sudden thing, it was not a very sudden thing," said Scheffel. "When you see problems like that happening at other centers, and you can't help them, that's scary and sad. A lot of us could see that there were problems, and we couldn't really help them."

She says some of the other major issues families face include the availability of childcare for families without transportation or if you don’t work 9-5 weekdays.

“I don't think anybody's open later than 5:45 p.m. in our county, so evening care is really hard to find," she said. "Weekend care is really hard to find [too], and so parents who are kind of working those odd hours, they have difficulty finding childcare to meet their needs.”

Starkeshia Rogers has felt that before. She’s a Rockford parent with four kids, and she’s worked "those odd hours."

“I had to really lean on family and pay them and then, even at times, that was hard because family isn't always reliable," said Rogers. "So. it's like, ‘okay, well, I want to put them in an actual daycare, but a lot of the actual daycares don't cover second shift.’”

She’s dealt with transportation issues too, like trying to coordinate work, school, and childcare with the city bus schedules. It can be really hard, and that’s if you find a center you trust and aren’t put on a waitlist for months. Now with her youngest daughter, she's going in a different direction.

“I just don't feel comfortable putting her in daycares," she said, "because there's so many different aspects of trying to get her transported there in the wintertime, trusting the people and having good communication, and it being accessible, all in one. So, it might be two good things and then there's five bad things that outweigh it."

So, now, she’s leaning on family and helping out with childcare on her own while going to school full time. Rogers says she can’t imagine what it must have been like for those Rockford Day Nursery families who lost their childcare overnight.

“I feel like that was literally a make-or-break moment," said Rogers. "Because not everybody has those support systems, those backup plans. So, I just feel like it was devastating.”

She says those families deserve quality care for their kids. But that can only happen if childcare centers are financially sustainable enough to stay open.

Are you fascinated by old, abandoned buildings?

I love looking at pictures and watching videos taken inside old abandoned buildings, especially when I know exactly where they're located and drive by them all the time.

I think my fascination with abandoned buildings basically stems from the stories I imagine they could tell and all of the WEIRD stuff that is usually left behind in them.

Old, abandoned buildings are definitely dangerous and illegal to explore without permission, but what if I told you we can take an in-depth tour of some without having to leave your comfy couch, bed, or desk chair?

Recently I wrote an article about the rumored abandoned tunnels that lie beneath the streets of Downtown Rockford that included a video taken by Decayingmidwest.

After seeing the article, a City of Rockford employee named Rob Wilhelmi reached out to us to explain how Decayingmidwest's video is extremely misleading, and then shared the truth about Rockford's underground tunnels...

During our conversation with Rob he also mentioned that we can take a virtual tour of some of Rockford's most famous abandoned buildings, so I decided to check that out. (and boy am I glad I did!)

It's no secret that there are a lot of abandoned buildings in Downtown Rockford that need to come down, but they also sit on valuable pieces of property that the City is working hard to redevelop.

As part of their efforts to find redevelopment partners for these abandoned properties, the City of Rockford has created virtual tours to show potential investors (and curious residents). Here are three of them...

Rockford Watch Company Factory at 325 S Madison St. (click here for the virtual tour)

Historic Walgreen's/Trek Media Building at 134 N Main St. (click here for the virtual tour)

Chick House Hotel at 121 S Main St. (click here for the virtual tour)

If you want to learn more about redevelopment possibilities in Rockford, check out this link for more cool pics and info.

(WIFR) - Dozens of Illinois communities are alerting residents after “forever chemicals” were detected in their water systems.

In the stateline, notices about the detection of one or more Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances or PFAS have gone out to residents in Machesney Park, Freeport and Rockton.

The Environmental Protection Agency explains PFAS are widely used, long-lasting chemicals which break down slowly over time. Studies have shown exposure to some PFAS in the environment may be linked to harmful health effects in humans and animals.

According to the Illinois EPA, PFAS have been found in:

The Illinois EPA explains residents are receiving the notifications because of newly enacted groundwater quality standards.

For North Park Water District customers, the current level of PFAS in the drinking water is below the level of concern, making the water safe to drink.

North Park Water CEO Kelly Saunders says they are taking steps to correct the PFAS issue by shutting down well number two, which is on Victory Lane.

Construction has started on a new well and treatment plant behind Machesney Elementary to ensure the water remains safe.

“Generally, they’re considered bio-accumulative. So, this is over, you know, a lifetime of exposure. So, elevated levels aren’t necessarily a cause for immediate concern, but it is something that you need to pay attention to, to address as quickly as practicable because the important part is to eliminate the exposure so that it doesn’t continue to accumulate,” explained Saunders.

Saunders says the district’s long-term approach to combating the PFAS issue will be the $61 million treatment plant. She adds, North Park Water has also been awarded nearly $20.3 million in grant funding towards the treatment plant, another step forward in ensuring the safety of the water.

A notice posted on the city of Freeport’s website also says the city’s water is safe to drink and that all water delivered to homes and businesses come from PFAS-free wells.

The Village of Rockton posted on social media saying it is working with the IEPA to to meet or exceed the new standards. It says it will post the latest Consumer Confidence Report May 1 on the village’s website.

To monitor the notices sent to Community Water Systems in Illinois by the IEPA, click here.

Copyright 2025 WIFR. All rights reserved.

April 23, 2025|By Kevin Haas|In Business/development, Top Stories, Featured, News, 815 News, Local, Rock River Current, Rockford, Business

By Kevin Haas Rock River Current Get our free e-newsletter

ROCKFORD — Village Green Home & Garden, a locally owned company celebrating 60 years in the community, has put its Riverside Boulevard property and business up for sale.

The 6.3-acre site at 6101 E. Riverside Blvd. is the longstanding flagship location for Village Green’s nursery, greenhouse, garden center and patio and home furnishing sales. The asking price is $4.6 million for both the business and the property, and it’s listed through Jennifer Berry of Gambino Realtors.

Village Green’s other property, at 2640 N. Main St., was previously put on the market after closing at the end of September. The Riverside location was first listed in November as part of the owners’ long-term exit strategy.

Sisters Cynthia E. Smith and Dr. Carolyn S. Smith inherited Village Green after the death of their father, Laurence P. Smith, in April 2020. They had set an internal target to operate the company for three to five years before looking to turn it over to new owners.

“We’re in year five and our 60th year and we thought it was time to start exploring those possibilities,” Cynthia Smith told the Rock River Current. “Selling anything these days takes time, and we just felt it was prudent to start down that path as we get to that timeline that we had set internally.”

Village Green was founded in 1965 with its first location on Center Terrace, and the Riverside Boulevard store has been in business since the 1980s, Cynthia Smith said. Development in that stretch of Riverside has blossomed over the past 40 years, and the Smiths understand that a future buyer may want the land for something other than a home and garden center.

More business: New Indian and Pakistani grocery and restaurant coming to space near Valli Produce in Rockford

“It might be challenging, given the economics, for it to continue to run as this business,” Cynthia Smith said. “We hope it does, but recognize there may be other development opportunities that are suited for this location because the landscape around us has changed dramatically.”

For now, Village Green will continue to operate as usual with a focus on its busy spring season and its upcoming 60th anniversary celebrations.

“Our father was a visionary,” Cynthia Smith said . “To build a business that can endure for 60 years is quite a feat in light of constant competition from the big box chain stores and on-line marketplaces.”

Village Green earned several retail industry awards over the years, including the Apollo Award from the International Casual Furnishing Association to recognize retail excellence in the sales and marketing of outdoor furnishings in 2016, 2019 and 2023. It was also one of 10 retailers nationwide to receive the 2023 Lawn and Garden Retailer Innovator Award for “excelling in customer education, social media innovation, providing a memorable customer experience, commitment to their local community and offering new and exciting plant offerings.”

“The business wouldn’t still be here if it weren’t for our loyal Village Green employees – some of whom have been here for decades – and for our faithful customers who continue to see the value of buying local and supporting this family business,” Carolyn Smith said.

The 60th anniversary party on Saturday includes special sales on some of Larry Smith’s favorite annuals, including rex begonias, and other select perennials and nursery items. There is also a special Larry Lager made in honor of the business’s longtime owner that was created by Urban Forest Craft Brewing. That dark Czech lager will be served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, and the Disco Chicken food truck will serve from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. A surprise musical guest, the name of which has not been announced, is planned for 1 p.m. Saturday.

“Our focus right now continues to be business as usual,” Cynthia Smith said. “We want to get through the spring and our 60th year, see what comes of any offers and see what the next steps are.”

This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WIFR) - The future of a Rockford abortion clinic is in limbo after Illinois’ Fourth District appellate court upholds a zoning challenge.

On April 10, Justice DeArmond delivered the following judgement of the court regarding the clinic at 611 Auburn Street.

The clinic, operated by the Rockford Family Planning Center, opened in December 2022.

In June 2022, the building, previously used as a chiropractic office by a Dr. Sam K. Chin, was purchased by Dr. Dennis Christiansen. Christiansen, an obstetrician and gynecologist based in Wisconsin, said he made the decision to open a clinic in Rockford following a ruling from the Supreme Court which put abortion rights in the hands of states.

Following news of Christiansen’s plans, an appeal was filed by the Rockford Family Initiative and neighbors, claiming the operation of the clinic under a special use permit violated several ordinances and caused detriment to the surrounding neighborhood.

In December 2022, the Rockford Zoning Board of Appeals affirmed the determination of Rockford Zoning Officer Scott Capovilla, allowing the clinic to open its doors.

In January 2023, another challenge regarding the clinic’s zoning was filed in Winnebago County Court against the City of Rockford, its Zoning Board, Dr. Christiansen and the Rockford Family Planning Center. Lawyers for the Thomas More Society, a nonprofit which represents clients against abortion across the nation, represented the plaintiffs, Shawn and Lisa Rylatt, Janet Savaiano and Amie Lotzer in the suit.

According to Winnebago County Court records, the court affirmed the Zoning Board on judicial review in December 2023 and dismissed a remaining count. An appeal was filed in March 2024 and sent to an Illinois appeals court.

On Friday, the Rockford Family Initiative called the ruling “a victory for justice and life.”

The City of Rockford shared the following statement in response to the ruling:

Midwest Reproductive Health, a second abortion clinic also owned by Dr. Christiansen, opened in November 2024 at 4236 Maray Drive in Rockford.

Copyright 2025 WIFR. All rights reserved.