Monday, November 23, 2009 East Central Illinois
The Answer Book 2005
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Getting by Your C-U survival guide BY The News-Gazette © 2009 THE NEWS-GAZETTE Rental agents arelisted in the telephone directory's Yellow Pages under ApartmentFinding & Rental Service, Real Estate Management and Real EstateRental Service. If you want to buy a house, real estate firms canhelp.You can find rentals and property for sale in classifiedadvertisements in local publications. Listings for both home sales andrentals also are found in The News-Gazette (three editions on weekdaysand a morning paper on Saturdays and Sundays) and on its Web site. If you have a complaint about a landlord,you can find out your rights by talking to the Champaign-Urbana TenantUnion, 44 E. Main St., Room 208, C, 352-6220. University of Illinoisstudents should contact the tenant union office at Room 326 of theIllini Union, 333-0112. Starting utilities AmerenIPis the electric and gas provider. Its 24-hour number is 800-755-5000.You need to call AmerenIP; this is something a friend or a parent can'tdo for you. There is an $18 activation fee for electric and gas serviceand another $15 fee if you'd like someone to relight your pilot light.More information is available by calling up IP's home page on the Web. Water service can be started by callingIllinois American Water Co. at 352-1420. Telephone service is availablefrom several companies, including SBC at 800-244-4444 and McLeod USA at800-593-1177. You can also take your pick of cellphone companies; mostof the national firms have more than one local office. Cable television service is provided by: Insight Communications, 303 E.Fairlawn Drive, U, 384-2500. Several local companies offer Internetaccess, and most national Internet service providers have local dial-upnumbers, too. In addition, DSL, cable Internet and wireless Netservices are available in some or all of Champaign-Urbana. Starting maiI Ifyou live in the city, have mail addressed to your home. If you're on arural route, let the carrier know you've moved in. If you live in anapartment, put your name on the mailbox. Most mail posted inChampaign-Urbana leaves town at 10 p.m. daily. The latest you can maila letter and get it out the same day is 8 p.m. at the main post office,2001 N. Mattis Ave., C. Champaign substations and contract stations areat 600 N. Neil St.; Third and Green streets; and the Round Barnshopping area at Mattis and Springfield avenues. In Urbana, thepost office is at 3104 E. Tatman Court in east Urbana. Substations areat 202 S. Broadway Ave., adjacent to Lincoln Square Mall; and in theUniversity of Illinois Altgeld Hall, 700 S. Wright St. If you leavetown for more than 10 days, the post office will hold your mail if younotify it in writing. Subscribing to newspapers CallThe News-Gazette circulation department at 351-5266. If you don't getyour paper, call your carrier or the circulation department before 7p.m. weekdays or 10 a.m. weekends. The Daily Illini, the campusnewspaper, is distributed free Monday through Friday and is alsoavailable by mail for a fee by calling 337-8300. For out-of-town newspapers, check with the Champaign-Urbana News Agency, 351-7047. The Champaign and Urbana public libraries have some newspapersubscriptions, and the University of Illinois newspaper library, in themain library building at the south end of Wright Street, has papersfrom Illinois cities and many national and international papers, too. Hunting for a job Checknewspapers' classified advertisements. Check job postings at theIllinois Department of Employment Security's Job Service office at 1008W. University Ave., U. Web sites also list jobs available aroundIllinois or nationwide. To check on jobs at the area's largest employer<> the University of Illinois <> call 333-6747 aboutacademic level jobs; 333-3101 about staff jobs or extra help/clerical.The UI also has a Web site for job listings:http://www.uihr.uillinois.edu/panda-cf/employment/ index.cfm. You also can call private employment agencies listed in the telephone directory; some charge fees. Driving legally Forboth a driver's license and license plates, go to the Driver's LicenseExamination Station at 2401 W. Bradley Ave., C (just across from themain entrance to Parkland College). Some drivers can renew either overthe Internet; the Illinois secretary of state's office will tell you ifyou're eligible. If you intend to become an Illinois resident, you needan Illinois license. University students from out of state aren'trequired to transfer their licenses. The office is open from 8a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday; 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays;and 8 a.m. to noon Saturdays. The office is closed on Sundays andMondays. Call the examination station at 278-3344 for thethings you need to take with you. The list includes birth certificateor passport, proof of address and Social Security number. Alicense costs $10 and is good for four years. If you're under 21, it's$5 but expires three months after your 21st birthday. Licenses cost $5for those from ages 69-80, $2 for those 81 to 86, and are free foranyone older than that. For license plates, bring your vehicle'stitle or a copy of your loan agreement and current registration. Itcosts $78 to license a car for a year. Personalized, vanity and specialplates are available for extra fees. License plate renewal stickersalso can be bought at most financial institutions and at privatelicensing and title shops. It's a little faster but costs slightly more. Registering a bicycle NeitherChampaign nor Urbana requires bicycle registration, but both offer itas a service. It helps with recovery if your bike is stolen. Youprovide the serial number, make, model and a description. InChampaign, register your bike at any of the five fire stations for 50cents. In Urbana, do it at the Finance Department in the City Building,400 S. Vine St. There is no charge. The UI strongly urges students toregister bikes at the Public Safety Building at the corner ofSpringfield and Goodwin avenues. There is no charge. Finding day care Call the UI Child Care Resource Service at 333-3252. Or check the phone book and newspaper advertisements. Enrolling in schools Forpublic schools in Champaign, call the administrative office at351-3800. In Urbana, call 384-3600. For private, parochial and specialschools, check your telephone directory. If your child is severelymentally and/or physically disabled, call the Swann Special CareCenter, 356-5164. Being a citizen Toregister to vote, visit the Champaign County clerk's office, 1776 E.Washington St., U. Bring two forms of identification with you,including one showing your permanent address. That's where you go, too,to get a marriage license or a copy of a birth certificate. Call384-3720 for vital records or election information. You can alsoregister to vote at the driver's license station, 2401 W. Bradley Ave.,C; Champaign Public Library, 505 S. Randolph St., C; or the Urbana FreeLibrary, 201 S. Race St., U. You can protest a property tax assessmentby visiting the Champaign County Board of Review, 1776 E. WashingtonSt., U, or by calling that office at 384-3758. Applying for a passport Goto the main post office, 2001 N. Mattis Ave., C, or to the ChampaignCounty circuit clerk's office on the first floor of the courthouse, 101E. Main St., U. Bring proof of citizenship (certified copy of birthcertificate or old passport); two full-face pictures (they must be 2 by2 inches); and a picture identification such as a driver's license. Apassport costs $97 for ages 16 and over and is good for 10 years. Ifyou're under 16, the fee is $82, and the passport is good for fiveyears. Children 13 and older have to come with a parent and sign theirown applications. You'll normally receive a passport within four to sixweeks of applying. The process can be expedited for a fee. Checking out a business The Champaign County Chamber of Commerce, 1817 S. Neil St., C, 359-1791, has information about chamber members. Complaining about a business Complaintsmay be lodged with the Illinois attorney general's Consumer ProtectionDivision (800-243-0618) and the Better Business Bureau in Peoria, whichserves this area (800-500-3780). If you have a complaint about a localrestaurant, contact the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, 710 N.Neil St., C, 373-7900. Checking on a charity Callthe Illinois attorney general's office at (312) 814-2595 to see if agroup is OK. Beyond that, ask solicitors questions like these: Exactlyhow will the money be used? How much of each contribution goes foroverhead? (State law requires telephone solicitors to tell you. Morethan 40 percent is considered excessive.) Is a donation tax-deductible?Ask for written information. If the organization is tax-exempt, ask tosee its Internal Revenue Service Form 990, which shows how the charityspends money. The Form 990 is a public record. Federal law saysthe charity has to show you the form and give you a copy if you ask;the charity may charge you for the copy. Contribute by check so youhave a record of your donation. A valuable Web site for learning aboutcharities is guidestar.org. Adopting a pet Call or visit the Champaign County Humane Society, 1911 E. Main St., U, 344-7297. Hunting and fishing Anyoneover age 16 needs a license to hunt or fish in Illinois. If you'reolder than 65 and a resident of Illinois, your license is discounted.You can buy licenses at sporting goods shops and at the Department ofNatural Resources office, 1556 State Route 54, Clinton, IL 61727. TheNatural Resources office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondaythrough Friday. The phone number is 935-6860. Fishing licensescost $13, hunting licenses $7.50; a combined license is $19.25. A $5.50habitat stamp also is required for hunting, in addition to a license,and applications are required and a $15 fee necessary to receivepermits to hunt deer and turkey in season. For seniors, fishinglicenses are $6.75, and hunting licenses are $4. Combined licenses are$10. Safety classes are required for boating, hunting, snowmobiling andtrapping; class information is available at the Natural Resourcesoffice. Joining others Ifyou have a hobby, want information about an illness, are looking for asupport group or want to join a civic organization, chances are there'sa group in Champaign-Urbana that shares your interest. There is nocentral list of such organizations, but the Champaign Public Library'sWeb site comes close. Go tohttp://www.champaign.org/reference/community_info.html. Getting help in a pinch If you don't know where to start, try Family Service of Champaign County's "First Call for Help" line at 352-6300. Localtownship offices sometimes provide general assistance. In Champaign,call 352-4500. In rural Champaign, call 352-9433. In Urbana (CunninghamTownship), call 384-4144. You also may call the state Department ofPublic Aid about longer-term aid. Its information number is800-843-6154. Food stamps are available through the state Department ofHuman Services. To apply, go to 801 N. Walnut St., C. Call 278-5605with questions. Shelters available include the Salvation Army,119 E. University Ave., C, 373-7830; the Center for Women inTransition, 506 and 508 E. Church St., C, 352-7151; A Woman's Place,1304 E. Main St., U, 384-4390; TIMES Center, 70 E. Washington St., C,398-7785; and the St. Jude Catholic Worker House, 317 S. Randolph St.,C, 355-9774. The Roundhouse, 311 W. White, C, 359-5276, providestemporary shelter for adolescents between the ages of 13 and 17. TheCrisis Nursery of Champaign County, 1309 W. Hill St., U, 337-2731,provides emergency services for families and children 5 and younger.They're gathered in an online resource called "The Help Book,"available at the Web site of Prairienet, the community Internetservice, at http://www.prairienet.org/helpbook/. Calling in emergencies Call911 for police, fire or medical help. If you need assistance, but it'snot an emergency, call Champaign police at 351-4545; Urbana police at384-2320; University of Illinois police at 333-1216; or the ChampaignCounty sheriff's office at 333-8911. |
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