by Ron Deabenderfer
Hillsboro’s second city council meeting of October was shorter than most as the group met on Tuesday, Oct. 26; beginning at 7 p.m., the motion to adjourn came at 7:31 p.m. All council members were present, though Public Safety Commissioner Michael Murphy participated by phone.
Greg M. Cowell asked permission to use city-owned land adjoining his lake front property so his family and neighbors can use equipment to correct a drainage problem; a gully has grown deeper because of heavy rains. Cowell told the council he wants permission to move equipment across the land to reach the site. Once the work is done, that particular part of the lake suffering from siltation will be protected.
Public Properties Commissioner Daniel Robbins asked Department Superintendent Jim May for his opinion. May said, “Any private citizen who wants to minimize siltation into the lake should be helped.” The council unanimously passed the motion to allow Cowell to use the land.
Retired firefighter/dispatcher/operating engineer Charlie Goad will rejoin the fire department on a limited-time (because of pension concerns) basis. The council agreed to ask him to return because one of the people holding that position is ill, and Goad can step in without more training because of his experience. His pay will be $15 per hour.
The only other vote was to approve amendments to the city code; those changes were discussed at the Oct. 12 meeting but not voted upon then because they weren’t on the agenda. The changes in wording were finalized by City Attorney Kit Hantla.
The meeting began with commissioners’ reports, and even they were shorter than usual.
Robbins said mowing continues (we have had ample rain and no frost yet) in parks and public properties. The dog park entrance needed work. A broken pipe which was causing sink holes at the South Marina was unearthed for repairs; the Harkey House rental property was power-washed before volunteers painted it, and repairs were done to a flat roof at the Challacombe House.
Robbins said volunteer help would be needed this Saturday, Oct. 30, to help plant the 37 trees that were acquired for the “Recover, Replant, and Restore” grant the city received.
The Street Department, also under Robbins, finished sidewalk work on Summer Street; Mayor Don Downs said that though the general public thought that work took too long, he was aware of the many interruptions the workers had to deal with; he also complimented them for the quality of the finished product.
Routine work involved running the street sweeper, keeping the street waste water drains clear when heavy rains were forecast, and picking up paper-bagged leaves and brush from residents’ yards. The body of the unfortunate feline that didn’t make it across Main Street also was removed.
Murphy referenced his report by mentioning neighboring city Litchfield and its problems with undriveable cars and dilapidated buildings as detailed in their last council meeting. He offered Hillsboro’s methodology to them as a way of dealing with their problem, saying those were Hillsboro’s problems six or seven years ago.
He also asked Hillsboro’s citizens to continue picking up trash and to call dispatch 217-532-6129 to report suspicious activity. He commented, “Facebook is not an outlet.”
Finance Commissioner Katie Duncan had no report; Utilities Commissioner Kendra Wright had good news. The parts needed to repair High Service Pump #1 have arrived. The parts and the disassembled pump will be taken to Illinois Electric Works; it is a pump that will have to be laser-aligned to be re-aligned at the water plant.
Progress continues to update the water meters serving neighboring communities. The meters that now have to be self-read and reports will be replaced by meters that make usage electronically read with billing by software. Schram City is now online, with Taylor Springs to be connected next. It uses a Beacon Badger platform.
More good news, at least temporarily, is a resolution of the sock problem with the Hickory Street Sewer pump. A catch basket has been installed to catch fabric products before they reach and damage the pump.
Superintendent Tim Ferguson has met with Hurst-Rosche about the possibility of rehabbing the pump station behind Paris Frozen Foods. Perhaps it can be included in plans for the Helston Street Project.
Ameren, who began the remediation of an old coal oil problem behind the ice plant (now the home of Marcolini Construction) with entrance off Seward Street this summer, has received analysis of testing done after the first work phase. Results are within normal range except for magnesium and barium, which were elevated. To this point in time, no agreement has been reached which would allow Ameren to discharge waste water from the site into the city’s sewer system.
Mayor Downs reminded attendees that Hillsboro’s city-wide cleanup starts next Tuesday, Nov. 2, and ends on Saturday, Nov. 8. Residents can take unwanted items to the dumpster available (and labeled) at the shed on City Lake Road. He asks citizens to show their appreciation for the no-charge-to-them service by placing the refuse in the proper dumpster. The Jr. Hospital Board’s Rake and Run is set for next Saturday, Nov. 9, too.
City Engineer Jeremy Connor said he made a presentation to the Hillsboro Planning Commission about the Seward Street Bridge project; that presentation was reported in the Thursday, Oct. 21, Journal-News. He expects the bidding process for sidewalk ADA compliance work to begin soon.
Community Planner Jonathan Weyer said the Mental Health Summit for community leaders is planned for November 8. He said the Coop shared workspace will be open (and taking new members) on Monday, Nov. 1.
The Economic Development director from Pana will visit Hillsboro today, Oct. 28, to exchange ideas. Weyer says that’s 1) a compliment to Hillsboro for the progress the city has made; and 2) an indication that the region has started to see value in working together.
Weyer said that he and Valerie Belusko, CEO of the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (Weyer is a member of the board), recently met with representatives of the Center of Rural Innovation, who said digital information that was available to them since the county was accepted into their program showed the county is in “...dire straights.” The population is shrinking; good-paying jobs are disappearing; and students who obtain computer science degrees after high school don’t return to the county to work because jobs requiring their expertise aren’t available here.
Weyer suggested the county needs a county economic development strategy with that digital study as a catalyst.
The next city council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m. in city hall. The public is welcome to attend.
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City Agrees To Let Lake Resident Correct Drainage - thejournal-news.net
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