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The Milk Moustache in downtown Princeton is for sale. The business will remain open while a buyer is sought. (Shaw Local News Network)
The Milk Moustache in downtown Princeton is for sale.
About 11 years ago, Mindy Fritz opened juniper & mae and about a year later opened The Milk Moustache. The women’s clothing store has since closed, but the children’s store remains and Fritz is looking for someone to carry on the business.
“I have put a lot of love, sweat and tears into these buildings and running a small business, but it’s time for me to move on to my next chapter,” Fritz posted to the business’ social media Monday. “This is a decision I have contemplated for a couple of years and I look forward to seeing someone else utilize this space for their dreams.
“I loved creating these shops and being a part of Princeton’s Main Street community. The flexibility it has offered my family and I has been priceless. I was able to bring my children to work when needed, close early for sporting events, have the freedom to travel, obtain financial flexibility and set hours that work for my family.”
Fritz said ideally the buyer would be interested in the business and the two buildings the business is located at 944 N. Main St. The pair are connected inside by an opening, but could be separated back into two retail units. An apartment unit is above each building.
The buildings are listed for $350,000.
The Milk Moustache will remain open while a buyer is sought.
The Times / NewsTribune / Bureau County Republican is committed to keeping readers up to date with business happenings in the area. Much of our reporting relies on what we see and hear, but we’re also reaching out to readers for tips on business items. If you have a tip to share for Eyes on Enterprise, email newsroom@mywebtimes.com.
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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Maximilian Claahsen, of Marseilles, smiles as he collects cans of tuna for his birthday drive on Sunday, April 27, 2025. The cans will be donated to the Marseilles Food Pantry, which is also operated by Max’s mother Carolyn Claahsen, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, 200 Broadway St. (Maribeth Wilson)
It’s the simple things in life that bring the most joy — for Maximilian Claahsen, of Marseilles, it’s stacking tuna cans.
Stacking cans has become more than a fun activity for him, it’s also a way to help people in his community.
In celebration of his seventh birthday, Max asked his family, friends and community members to donate cans of tuna, that he could stack prior to handing them over to the Marseilles Food Pantry to be given to patrons.
This isn’t the first time, he’s utilized his birthday as a donation drive. For his fourth birthday, the first drive, he received 76 cans and last year drew a record number with a total of 1,144 cans.
This year, the drive received 553 cans of tuna on Sunday at the Marseilles Food Pantry, which also is operated by Max’s mother Carolyn Claahsen, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, 200 Broadway St.
Claahsen said Max has been stacking since he was 2 years old. They began the drive on his fourth birthday and last year he asked if they could do the tuna drive again — marking this year the third year they have collected for the pantry.
“We do the tuna for the drive because it’s what [Max] has always stacked,” she said. “He used to even make houses and stuff.”
Prior to the drive, cans of tuna was an item the pantry was purchasing every week. Now, the drive stocks up the pantry for a while.
The largest donation was brought in by Marseilles Mayor Jim Hollenbeck, who dropped off 100 cans.
Max said collecting cans of tuna makes him happy and he enjoys being able to help the people in his community.
“It’s so that we have enough tuna that we don’t run out,” he said. “It’s nice to help people.”
The Marseilles Food Pantry is open from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. the first and third Tuesday’s of the month at 200 Broadway St. in Marseilles.
Tami Perryman, pastor of Community of Christ Church, drops off cans of tuna to Maximilian Claahsen on Sunday, April 27, 2025, in Marseilles. (Maribeth Wilson)
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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Don Saletzki (Photo provided by Don Saletzki)
Name: Don Saletzki
What office are you seeking?: Princeton City Council
Age: 62
Occupation and employer: Research and development manager, Flight Manufacturing Corp.
Education: Princeton High School, IVCC
Community Involvement: Organizer of the Homestead Festival car show since 2001
Family: Married with two adult children
I was born and raised in Princeton. As a native I have gained a great knowledge of our town and its rich history. My grandfather was a downtown Spurgeons manager. Our families roots and devotion to the town run deep, I want to be a part of Princeton’s continued success.
I would like to focus on several blighted properties, look at all aspects for a possible resolution and ideally have a positive outcome for one that is historic. With a good understanding of the ADA I have a desire to ensure we are meeting the needs of these individuals with future projects.
Our location and proximity to the interstate yield us an advantage as does a municipal power plant. We need to give consideration to the feasibility of future development in the interstate area. Short term we need to heavily promote city owned lots that are shovel ready with utilities in the Tech park. We need to identify available buildings and businesses that would be attractive for Immedient occupancy, and promote based on what is uniquely different in Princeton that sets us apart from other locations.
We are fortunate for a town this size we have a municipal power plant, a city staffed line crew that in any weather can usually get you power back on line in under 30 minutes. Well staffed and equipped police, fire, ambulance, street crews and an up-to-date water plant.
I applaud the volunteers of the warming center. It is complex, the solution is to get to the heart of the root cause of homelessness, be it mental instability or addictions the nonprofits as well as Arukah have staff and resources to get help to those individuals that truly want positive change. The city should not be involved in some type of low barrier housing solution that would only enable continuing behavior.
Many nonprofits have grant writers on staff that secure state and federal funding this of course is dependent on the type of nonprofit we are referring to. The city should not play a large role, it would be case by case, but keep in mind this is money that comes at the expense of city services. We are elected as representatives of the taxpayers, we should be good stewards of their money
Tourism and chamber have both done well at promoting Princeton favorably. Many of us go to a town for the first time and our first impression is what sticks with us. We must always be sure we are conveying a positive look, we have aspects after daylight that could be improved with lighting to look more inviting, this is easily rectified. We must look at things as if it was our first time as this is how new visitors see it.
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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A wall of a garage at 149 Gooding St. in downtown La Salle collapsed Sunday afternoon. (Scott Anderson)
A wall of a garage at 149 Gooding St. in downtown La Salle collapsed Sunday afternoon.
La Salle Fire Chief Jeff Janick said no one was injured, but there was some vehicular damage from the collapse.
The area, which is behind the building, is cordoned. The building still has its three other walls in place. It’s unclear what led to the building’s collapse, Janick said.
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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ROCK ISLAND, Ill. — A man was seriously injured Monday evening while performing vehicle maintenance when a second vehicle crashed into the rear of his vehicle, according to a Davenport Police Department news release.
Around 4:49 p.m., Davenport Police and Fire, Rock Island Police and Fire and Rock Island Arsenal Ambulance responded to the Centennial Bridge to a report of a personal injury crash.
The early investigations revealed that a vehicle had become disabled on the bridge due to mechanical issues while traveling on the Illinois-bound lanes. The male driver was attempting to perform maintenance in front of his vehicle when it was struck from behind by another vehicle.
The man was transported to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries. The driver of the second vehicle, an adult male, sustained minor injuries.
The Centennial Bridge was closed for around an hour and has since reopened. The incident remains under investigation.
An accident on the Centennial Bridge, connecting Davenport and Rock Island, led to a complete closure of both lanes of traffic and the pedestrian bridge, according to Quad City Fire Wire. 
The closure started around 5:30 p.m. Monday night. News 8 was informed by a viewer around 6:16 p.m. that the entrance to the bridge was closed on the Rock Island side. 
News 8 has reached out to the Davenport and Rock Island police departments for more information but has yet to hear back. 
Around the same time as the closure Monday evening, the Illinois-bound side of the I-74 bridge was backed up almost all the way to the Locust Street ramp as people tried to exit onto River Drive in Moline, according to a News 8 employee. A photo of that backup can be found below from News 8’s BridgePointe camera. 
News 8 will update this news story as more information is made available. Download our app and subscribe to our YouTube channel for updates.  
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Princeton senior all-stater Noah LaPorte had a memorable senior season, breaking the school’s all-time scoring record and leading the Tigers to a sectional final for the third straight year. He is the NewsTribune Player of the Year for 2024-25. (Mike Vaughn)
A conversation on a youth soccer pitch led Noah LaPorte to great heights on the basketball court.
He had just played a Princeton Youth Soccer game against Jordan Reinhardt and was approached by him and his dad, John, about playing on their travel basketball team.
“I played basketball when I was younger at the Met, but it wasn’t anything too serious. Jordan and John asked me after a soccer game about playing basketball, and I said, ‘Yeah, I’ll try it.’
“Haven’t looked back since,” LaPorte said.
LaPorte was destined for stardom in basketball the moment he picked it up. He went from a bit of an understudy role as a sophomore starter on Princeton’s 2022-23 No. 1-ranked sectional finalist to the leading role on two more Sweet 16 teams.
This season, LaPorte averaged 20.3 points, 12 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocks and about a dunk a game.
Along the way, he became Princeton’s all-time scoring leader, garnering all-conference and all-state honors.
For all of his accomplishments, LaPorte is the 2024-25 NewsTribune Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
“What more could you ask for of a kid?” Tigers coach Jason Smith said. “He was a leadership-by-example kid and would speak up when needed to. He took pride in being the guy that would outwork you.
“When you have talent to go with that, that’s a perfect combination. He’s so humble and kind. You just don’t find too many Noahs at his age that has the talent that he does with the attitude and humility he has. It’s pretty special.”
Princeton senior all-stater Noah LaPorte had a memorable senior season, breaking the school’s all-time scoring record and leading the Tigers to the sectional finals for the third straight year. He repeats as the BCR Player of the Year in 2024-25. (Mike Vaughn)
Smith said LaPorte’s absence missing five games – all losses – with an early-season ankle injury showed his importance in many ways.
“He meant so much to our team in just his presence and leadership alone,” Smith said. “He took a lot of pressure off of so many others because of the attention he would get. He was a starter on three straight regional championships and played a significant role in all three. He will definitely go down as one of PHS’ all-time greats.”
LaPorte said it was a great senior season, although it didn’t end the way he wanted it to.
“So many great memories, and I had a great time playing with the kids I grew up with and winning a lot of games and playing for my coaches,” he said. “Just a great experience overall. One of the best seasons I’ve ever been involved with.”
One shining moment LaPorte will never forget is when he broke Grady Thompson’s two-year-old school all-time scoring record with the game-winning, last-second shot to lift the Tigers to a 53-51 win over Byron. He needed 27 points to tie the record and got 29.
“That was unreal. Kind of crazy how it drew up to be that exact moment because I missed five games,” he said. “I could have broken it earlier, or I could have broken it later, but it happened at that exact bucket, at that exact time, which is crazy. It was like a movie.”
He went on to score 145 more points over the final eight games, bringing his school record to 1,616 career points.
LaPorte said he learned how to “be a basketball player and control the pace of the game” playing with Thompson and Teegan Davis, both 1,000-point scorers from the Class of 2023 during his sophomore year when the Tigers were ranked No. 1 in Class 2A for much of the season.
“Every year I’m just trying to get better and learn from my mistakes,” he said. “Last year, I kind of let things get under my skin a little bit. This year, I tried to let things go. Think I did a better job, but there’s always room for improvement. It’s not going to get any easier from here on out.”
Princeton senior all-stater Noah LaPorte had a memorable senior season, breaking the school’s all-time scoring record and leading the Tigers to the sectional finals for the third straight year. He repeats as the BCR Player of the Year in 2024-25. (Mike Vaughn)
Princeton fans will remember LaPorte for many things on the basketball court, especially his dunks. He aimed to please.
“I know the crowd and my teammates fed off those,” he said.
After he takes his final swings for the Princeton baseball team this spring, LaPorte will continue his athletic endeavors playing in Big Ten football stadiums for Northwestern University. While he will miss playing basketball, he knows there are bigger things ahead for him.
“There’s always certain ways to look at things. I may never play basketball again, but I’m going to play college football. I’m going to go have fun,” he said. “It’s just how you look at things. If you think of it in a negative way, it’s going to be negative. But if you think about it in a positive way, it’s going to be positive. That’s kind of how I think about it.
“I don’t regret anything when it comes to basketball. I’ve loved every moment with my friends.”
LaPorte said his parents always thank John Reinhardt for asking him to play on their basketball team.
Coach Smith often thanks the Reinhardts, too.
Princeton’s Noah LaPorte aimed to please fans and teammates with his patented slam dunks. (Mike Vaughn)
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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Michael McCall (Photo provided by Michael McCall)
Name: Michael McCall
What office are you seeking: Princeton City Council
Age: 51
What elected positions, if any, have you had previously: City councilman for the past 4 years
Education: 1991 Princeton High School graduate/1994 graduate with associates degree from IVCC
Family: Married with three grown children and two grandchildren
I am seeking reelection for City Council, that I have been a part of for the past four years. When I originally ran for office back in 2021, my main reason was to help support small businesses. I work for a food service distributor, and I could see the toll that COVID was taking on restaurants at the time. I wanted to be part of the bigger picture to help and support the city and its residents. My goal is to continue positively grow the city of Princeton and help navigate the challenges that we may have in the future.
My goal is to continue on the positive things that we have accomplished in the past four years. My vision would be adding an economic director at some point to help us grow and bring more jobs to our community. We have added Ollie’s, which has been a great addition to our community. We are on the I-80 corridor which opens up a lot of opportunities for future growth. We need to advertise ourselves a little better and be on the forefront of bringing more business to our city.
We have top notch safety services with our fire and police departments. We are fully staffed in our police department and the need will always be there to add more to our EMS/Fire department. Our Street, Cemetery, Water and Wastewater and Electric departments do a fantastic job. We’ve also recently added a planning and zoning department head with the retirement of Pete Nelson.
I would like to see continued improvements with our streets and water/wastewater projects. All of this takes money and includes good budget planning to be able to continue these projects. The more we grow, the more tax dollars we receive, which helps create these projects. The city has a lot of great employees that help make these things happen.
The city has worked with these nonprofit organizations, to help create ideas with our homeless situation. We do have less of a homeless population than we did last year, which means we are moving in the right direction. Chief Kammerer and Mayor Mabry have done a fantastic job being part of the warming center. We have had many conversations as a council the past year to brainstorm how to help in these situations. I believe the nonprofit organizations have done a fantastic job and we will continue to support them as best we can.
I think each situation is unique. It is tough with our budget being so tight to monetarily help each and every nonprofit organization. Giving them a platform at our City Council meetings over the past two years, I think has helped spread the word on the needs they may have and helped everyone have open conversations on how the community or city can help.
We have a historical Main Street, which is always kept in top notch shape. Supporting our local festivals, such as Homestead Festival, helps us show off our great city. We have so much more to offer, such as Beef Days, Fourth of July, street concerts ,Christmas parade, etc. The list goes on and on. The city works side by side with the Chamber of Commerce for their events as well and have a shared vision of how we can continue to grow the number of people who come to Princeton. I think working hand in hand between the city and the Chamber of Commerce, and other organizations, such as the Lions club, for example, is a good working relationship that will continue for years to come. We have a great City Council and Mayor that works together to openly communicate with each other for new ideas and help preserve the reputation of the City of Princeton.
I will continue to do the same as I have in the past four years. You can always contact me via phone, email or text. All my information is posted on the city’s website. I always follow up with anyone that has contacted me during the past four years and try to come up with a resolution on any issues they may have had.

Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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A 71-year-old Fulton man died following a multi-vehicle crash Friday on Interstate 80, Bureau County Coroner Kurt Workman said.
A 71-year-old Fulton man died following a multi-vehicle crash Friday on Interstate 80, Bureau County Coroner Kurt Workman said.
The coroner’s office responded to a crash at about 3 p.m. involving an overturned cement truck, in the construction zone near mile marker 41, Workman said in a news release. Vincent Stuart was pronounced dead at the scene.
Workman said an autopsy has been scheduled, and the crash remains under investigation by the Bureau County Coroner’s Office and the Illinois State Police.
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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A La Salle County grand jury convened Tuesday and returned the following indictments.
A La Salle County grand jury convened Tuesday and returned the following indictments:
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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DePue and Spring Valley firefighters responded to their second structure fire in a 24-hour span Monday afternoon in DePue.
DePue and Spring Valley firefighters responded to their second structure fire in a 24-hour span Monday afternoon in DePue.
Firefighters were able to knock down a fully-involved fire to a garage on the 1400 block of Marquette Street before any movement to neighboring residences, DePue Fire Chief Josef Vasquez said.
Firefighters were called to the fire at 2:24 p.m. Monday.
The wind was a major factor in fighting this fire, Vasquez said.
Along with Spring Valley and DePue, Peru, Ladd, Bureau, Cherry, Princeton, Granville/Hennepin and Standard firefighters responded. The Bureau County Emergency Management Agency, 10/33 ambulance, DePue Police, Bureau County Sheriff’s Office, and BueComm and Valcomm also assisted in the response.
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network

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