When someone asks you about your favorite local businesses and/or ideas about things to do or places to eat, who or what do you typically recommend?

Now is your chance to represent the Tri-Cities area and help those folks get recognized by voting in West Suburban Living's Best of the West competition.

The regional magazine asks residents each year to report what they like best about where they live in the following categories:

From restaurants and breweries to farmers’ markets, parks and stores, the survey covers a wide range of businesses and activities. It’s a good chance to generate some positive publicity for our favorite spots.

Community is a key part of the ethos of this newsletter — supporting local businesses, spreading awareness for local organizations and helping readers cultivate a sense of connection to the place in which they live.

In my experience, that connection can help lead to community pride. And while every place has its problems, there’s a lot to be proud of around here.

So let’s show some local love for the Tri-Cities! As a bonus, completing the survey gives you a chance to win a gift certificate to a nearby restaurant.

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☑️ Getting warmer: Don’t let the January cold snap fool you — our area is experiencing one of the warmest winters in recorded history.

☑️ Shots fired: A 35-year-old Batavia man was charged after unintentionally discharging a firearm in an apartment on Valentine’s Day.

🔒 Monthlong closure: Starting today through March 21, the southbound lane of South Riverside Avenue/Route 25 will be closed from 7AM-3PM to accommodate work on the St. Charles Riverside Lift Station.

☑️ Shutdown round 2: The Route 31 underpass in Geneva will be closed for four months starting March 4, forcing motorists to take detours.

🔒 Alert Batavia: The City of Batavia launched an emergency notification system that will provide urgent community updates via telephone, mobile, text and email.

☑️ Criminal charges: A Campton Hills chiropractor accused of sexually assaulting a patient is being detained at Kane County Jail while the case is pending.

☑️ Final stage: Before Batavia officially adopts its new Downtown Plan, it’s holding another public open house on Wednesday — your last chance to provide input.

☑️ Leap day baby: Being born on a day that comes around once every four years is odd enough, but for it to happen in the backseat of a Ford Pinto? A Batavia schoolteacher shares her memorable story.

☑️ Candidate Q&A: On Tuesday and Thursday, the League of Women Voters will be holding in-person forums at Batavia City Hall featuring General Primary candidates from key local races.

☑️ Riverfront development: Geneva will gather comments on the proposed 128-unit residential development at 302 N. River Lane during a public meeting at City Hall at 7PM on Wednesday.

🔒 Vehicle replacement: St. Charles voted to allocate nearly $2M to purchasing a new fleet of buses and minivans.

*Below are “listed” start/end times — actual play times tend to vary. The 🎟️ symbol indicates an admission fee. Links to band/event info are provided where available.

✔️ Ryan Worthy: Firewater BBQ | Geneva | 5-7PM | Musician info

✔️ Rich Sawyer: Flagship on the Fox | St. Charles | 6-9PM | Musician info

✔️ Pete Jive: Firewater BBQ | Geneva | 5-7PM | Musician info

✔️ Nicole Devine: Flagship on the Fox | St. Charles | 5-8PM | Musician info

🎟️ Ben Crooch & Magoo: House Pub | St. Charles | 9PM-12AM | Event info

☑️ Now open: From hands-on creative activities to basic technology and connecting to nature, Seeds of Early Learning Academy in St. Charles offers a variety of interesting programs for young students.

☑️ One last hurrah: The Cottage Geneva is throwing a Moving Party on Thursday with discounted prices, pizzas and a chance to say final goodbyes.

☑️ Community pillars: The Batavia Chamber has selected the local businesses that will receive 2023 Ole Awards — they’ll be honored during a special celebration in April.

☑️ Local relocation: Family-owned Great Western Flooring will move from St. Charles to The Roosevelt on State Street in Geneva with an anticipated opening in early 2025.

☑️ Batavia City Hall Unveiling | Tonight, 6PM | City officials will cut the ribbon on the newly remodeled Batavia City Hall, offering tours to the public.

🎟️ STC Women’s Club 100-Year Anniversary Celebration with St. Charles Comedy Posse | Thursday, 7-9PM | Moonlight Theatre | Celebrate a St. Charles institution with a night of comedy.

🎟️ Ignite the Courage Comedy | Friday, 4:30-11PM | Pollyanna Brewing, STC | Headliner Rodney Norman and a handful of talented standup comics will bring the laughs; Matt Keen and The King of Mars will supply the tunes.

☑️ Winter Tree Identification | Saturday, 9:30-11AM | Creek Bend Nature Center, STC | Learn how to identify trees without leaves and gain insights into our local ecology from forest preserve experts.

☑️ Batavia: The agenda for tonight’s meeting includes approving the Wind Point Shopping Center project on Randall Road, a decision on tree preservation/removal for the Carriage Crest Detention project, and a Fermilab year in review presentation.

☑️ Geneva: The agenda for tomorrow’s meeting includes consideration of a project for replacing about 900 lead/galvanized water lines plus the authorization of contracts/agreements with several service companies.

☑️ St. Charles: The agenda for tomorrow’s meeting includes the appointment of several members to the new Dam Task Force plus reports from the Government Operations and Planning & Development Committees.

☑️ Local home sales: Residential property sales for the week ending Feb. 10 included ten in Batavia, four in Geneva and four in St. Charles.

☑️ Green education: The Geneva Garden Club is offering scholarships to students looking to study horticulture, landscaping, environmental sustainability and related fields.

🌤️ Today: High 46F | Low 25F | Sunny + mild

🌤️ Tuesday: High 50F | Low 32F | Trending spring-ish

🌤️ Wednesday: High 56F | Low 37F | Pushing 60!

🌤️ Thursday: High 54F | Low 30F | Small chance of rain

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