Blue Goose Adds Chocolates to Lineup; Improvements Made to Bistro One and Kimmer's

New machinery, special meals, and new product lines coming to Fox Island Square storefronts — Kimmer’s Ice Cream, Bistro One West, and Blue Goose Market.

The Downtown St. Charles Partnership says several businesses in Fox Island Square have made improvements, announced special offers and new product lines for their customers. According to a release, the businesses include Kimmer’s Ice Cream, Bistro One West, and Blue Goose Market. The Fox Island Square Center is along 1st Street between Illinois and Indiana streets. The Blue Goose Market recently announced that it will carry a new line of gourmet chocolates and sweet sauces according to its website. Kevin Roblee, a Riverside, Ill., resident, who is founder and chief chocolatier of KOKKU Distinctive Gourmet, has created this new line of gourmet chocolates. The new line of chocolates and sweet sauces includes Gourmet Chocolate Blend, White …

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Readers' Choice 2012: Where's Your Favorite Pub in the Tri-Cities?

Where do you go for a pint, a sandwich and a conversation in Geneva, Batavia or St. Charles? Nominate your favorite for our Readers' Choice 2012 Award.

Reader's Choice: What's Your Favorite Place for Mother's Day Brunch?

Mother's Day is Sunday, May 13. Where's the best place to take your mom for brunch?

We're going to do this week's Reader's Choice a little like Ike and Tina Turner used to perform Proud Mary: We'll start nice and easy, and we'll end nice and rough. "Rough" because this week's topic is your favorite place to go for Mother's Day brunch. And there are so many great places to eat in the Tri-Cities, making a selection is never, ever easy. Mother's Day is May 13 this year, so we'll start collecting your nominations today (Monday, April 30), present the nominations in a poll on Wednesday and complete the Reader's Choice voting on Friday. The deadline for making a nomination is noon Tuesday, May 1. To make a nomination, name your favorite place for Mother's Day brunch in the comments field below. We'll offer a few suggestions (…

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Last Chance: Tax Time and Early Bird Registration for Citywide Garage Sale

We don't need to remind you of April 15 for tax season, but there's also that early bird deadline for the city garage sale. Let us know of other deadlines this week or next!

Obviously, the tax deadline every year is April 15, right? Well, yes and no. This season, the deadline for postmarking or e-filing your federal tax return is actually April 17, believe it or not. That's because April 15 falls on a Sunday this year, and April 16, 2012, falls on Emancipation Day in the District of Columbia. Here's a link to the IRS e-filing website. Need a good tax-prep person from the Tri-Cities? Check out our Patch Directory or our "Readers' Choice" story with links to local tax experts. The winner, by the way, was Loberg, Miki & O'Brien   Citywide Garage Sale The Early Bird deadline for the very cool, first ever Citywide Garage Sale is coming up fast. In order to have your Geneva location listed on the map, a registration…

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5 Things To Do This Weekend: Home Show at Fairgrounds and Much More

Did we miss any biggies? Let us know in the comments section.

Please post your events on Geneva Patch! That's the best way for us to make sure we don't miss any news about what's going on in town. It's also the first place we look for "5 Things," so if you want to give your event some extra publicity, post your event on Patch and send an e-mail torickn@patch.com or give a call to Rick Nagel at 630-886-0792. (Note: Not during spring break, though. I'll be on vacation. :) Here are five items going on this weekend that YOU posted on Patch! The Home Show—Kane County Event: Everything for the home and for office and commercial properties: HVAC, custom carpentry, design and build services, doors and windows, roofing, gutters, siding, kitchens, stone countertops, bathrooms, concrete resurfacing, cooking …

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Readers' Choice: McNally's Is the Place to Be on St. Patrick's Day!

Other top places to go: Claddagh, Cabooses and Dam Bar & Grill in Geneva, and O'Brien's in Batavia!

It was kind of nice, the Readers' Choice voting for favorite place for a pint on St. Patrick's Day. Nice because each of the Tri-Cities were well represented, and because the places with the clearly Irish names rose to the top. The No. 1-2-3 vote-getters in the poll alone were McNally's in St. Charles, Claddagh in Geneva and O'Brien's in Batavia. When you think "Irish" in St. Charles, you think "McNally's," and that's the place that takes the official moniker of "2012 Readers' Choice" winner. Some comments: "McNally's Irish Pub on Main Street in STC is the real deal!" — Rich Hamilton "McNally's has the best outdoor seating area and the food is Great!!" — Jack Martin "Go to McNally's, and then tell me, which is the 'authentic' Irish pub, in…

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Tri-City Transmission Claims Its Geneva Patch Listing!

When a business claims its listing, you can upload photos and add information that gives you a powerful marketing tool!

We're happy announce that Tri-City Transmission has claimed its Patch listing. By claiming its listing, Tri-City Transmission is now able to upload and feature photos for its listing, provide additional information about goods and services, link to its own website and Facebook page via Patch and more. Here's a video on how to claim your business listing

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Geneva Aldermen Call Special Meeting to Listen to Downtown Business Owners

Four Geneva aldermen will hold a special meeting March 14 at the Urban Grille to listen to concerns of the downtown retail business community.

Four Geneva aldermen are trying something new in an effort to reach out to and help downtown businesses. The city of Geneva sent notice Thursday of a special meeting of the City Council, set for 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 14, at the Urban Grille, 514 W. State St. The meeting is described as "a listening session with members of the downtown retail business community on behalf of Aldermen Chuck Brown, Sam Hill, Ralph Dantino, and Craig Maladra, who represent the downtown wards." Dantino and Maladra represent the 5th Ward, Brown and Hill the 1st Ward. Hill said the idea was born, appropriately, in a local business. "A couple of us were having a discussion over a brew at a local pub—just two of us, so it was a legal meeting—and we were talking …

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Marty Kane

5:04 am on Saturday, February 25, 2012

I am thankful that the alderman are having this meeting, I will attend. Unless you live this everyday you cannot really understand what is going on here. Lots of dollars are being spent elsewhere, there needs to be a reason to shop downtown Geneva.   more ›

How to Claim Your Business Listing on Geneva Patch!

It's free! It's easy! And it's a very effective business marketing tool. Here's a quick how-to video!

Since Geneva Patch came along about a year-and-a-half ago, we've developed listings for hundreds and hundreds of Geneva businesses. You can see or search the list by clicking on the "Places" tab above. If you don't have a listing, contact me at rickn@patch.com, and I'll set you up. The YouTube video here shows the five E-Z steps for claiming your listing—and taking advantage of all the free bells and whistles Geneva Patch has to offer.  By claiming your listing, you can have control and access to what is basically your own page on Patch. That translates to free marketing and sales options that reach our growing Geneva audience. And, it means your business can shamelessly exploit one of the best search-engine optimizers in the world. (If …

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Mill Creek Water Rates Will Go Up 32%

Mill Creek Water Reclamation District President DJ Tegeler says the board voted for a lower rate hike than the proposed 38 percent but will have to revisit the rate structure again soon.

On Tuesday, the Mill Creek Water Reclamation District board decided to take a big lump now and, perhaps, a smaller one or two later. The board had proposed a 38 percent rate hike for water and sewer service for the massive golf-course community west of Geneva and Batavia. At its Tuesday meeting, the board voted for a 32 percent hike, Reclamation District President Donald "DJ" Tegeler said by phone Wednesday. For the average user in Mill Creek, that water-and-sewer-rate bill would go up from about $61.80 to $81.57 per month. The lower rate hike is relative good news for Mill Creek residents, some of whom were more than a little surprised to find out their rates would be skyrocketing this year. But it also means that the three-member board …

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