South Central Reporter

City of Kinmundy City Council met April 11.

Here are the minutes provided by the council:

Call to order-The regular meeting of the Kinmundy City Council was called to order by Mayor Angela Diss with the leading of the Pledge of Allegiance. Council members present were Gary Cooper. Amy Davis, Emily Hassebrock, Donna Smith, and Corey Thompson. Curt Jones was absent.

Approval of Bills and Minutes-The motion was made by Amy Davis and seconded by Donna Smith to approve the minutes from February. Yays-Gary Cooper, Amy Davis, Emily Hassebrock, Donna Smith, and Corey Thompson. Nays-none. Motion passed.

The motion was made by Amy Davis and seconded by Emily Hassebrock to approve the bills and minutes from March. Yays-Gary Cooper, Amy Davis, Emily Hassebrock, Donna Smith, and Corey Thompson. Nays-none. Motion passed.

Public Recognition-Clayton Keen-Mr. Keen brought four items to the council for discussion.

The intersection of Third St. and East St.-He had visited with the council about this at a previous meeting and had asked for their consideration of a 15-foot culvert and a load of rock. Gary Cooper and Mayor Diss informed him that the council had discussed this and decided not to undertake this project.

Masonic Lodge Sidewalk-The sidewalk in front of the Masonic Lodge has fallen into worsening disrepair and he considers it a safety hazard. Gary Cooper assured him it would be brought up in the discussion of the Street/Sidewalk Committee.

Batting cages at Lions Field-He would like to see individual lighting for the batting cages at the diamond so the large lights that illuminate the entire diamond are not necessary. Mayor Diss explained that the City is not responsible for anything at the ballpark except the electric bill and suggested that he discuss it with Curt Jones.

He received a $50 ticket for trash and an additional one for high weeds. He is unsure of what he needs to move and states that he can be found around town on most days to speak about these issues. Officer Duffy is going to visit him soon for clarification.

Rex Growler-Sewer Update-Rex Growler from Milano and Grunloh Engineers of Effingham updated the council with detailed maps and the City of Kinmundy Lagoon Renovations Engineering Report. He offered the council two proposals that are briefly explained below but the report in its entirety are attached.

Proposal A-To deepen Lagoon 1 to a depth of 5 feet, and Lagoon 2 to a depth of 12 feet; with the addition of fine bubble aeration in Lagoon 2.

Proposal 8-To deepen the depth of both lagoons to 12 feet of operating depth with aeration added to Lagoon 2.

He informed the council that the farmer next to the lagoon has agreed to take the sludge for his field. The motion was made by Amy Davis and seconded by Donna Smith to approve $500 for sludge testing from the lagoon. Yays-Gary Cooper, Amy Davis, Emily Hassebrock, Donna Smith, and Corey Thompson. Nays-none. Motion passed. Regarding the lagoons, Mayor Diss informed the council that the aerator that we had purchased for the lagoon would not work as the water is too shallow. It has been returned and we are awaiting reimbursement from that company.

Library Report-Katrina Duffy-none

Police Report-Chief Joe Duffy reports that he did a security check at 3:00 am Thursday morning at the downtown businesses and all were ok. He also reports the following.

2 damage to property

2 thefts

1 felony arrest

14 abatement notices

8 traffic citations

7 service calls

He has spent 42 hours in Alma from March 14-April 11 as per the new agreement between our towns.

He reports he will be offering an ID system for children 17 years of age and younger that utilizes DNA and fingerprinting. He will offer it to parents and give them the option of keeping it at home or returning it to the police station to keep it.

He is satisfied with the new shotgun the council approved and thanked them for their cooperation in that matter.

Water Report-Travis Potter reported that he has received 10 meters that had been ordered by Jake Brimberry last fall, so he is calculating the best placement to save him on the manual readings in the country. He currently has approximately 100 meters he must read so he must spend considerable time in this effort. Mayor Diss discussed utilizing the remaining ARPA funds to get additional meters replaced in the country to assist him. If we don't use these funds, we lose them. This issue will be investigated and discussed in the May meeting.

Street Report-Luke Smith reported that the oil dates are to be on July 16th with the rain-date July 25th Roads to be oiled are Lowe, Monroe, Washington, and West 4th St. He had to repair the road on 2nd Street after the trash truck broke through it while turning around. The dumpsters on North Madison are close to the road and have caused traffic to drive out and around them. The council will look at options to remedy this issue.

Committee Reports

Water/sewer-none

Personnel-none

Library/Police-none

Mayor's Report

Schedule Clean up Days-The motion was made by Emily Hassebrock and seconded by Corey Thompson to set the City-Wide Garage Sales for June 1, 2024 and the City Wide Clean-up for June 8, 2024. Yays-Gary Cooper, Amy Davis, Emily Hassebrock, Donna Smith, and Corey Thompson. Nays-none. Motion passed.

The motion was made by Gary Cooper and seconded by Donna Smith to approve 3 dumpsters for clean-up days up to $2000. Yays-Gary Cooper, Amy Davis, Emily Hassebrock, Donna Smith, and Corey Thompson. Nays-none. Motion passed.

It was decided to require all citizens who bring items to the clean up to show proof of city residency through a water bill with the sewer charge. It was also discussed to assist citizens who are disabled or elderly in participating in the clean-up.

Illinois Commerce Commission, 4th Street Crossing-The city is required to pay certain costs to replace the railroad crossing on 4th St upfront. The amount that the City will be responsible for paying at the beginning of the project is $68,000.00. These funds will be reimbursed to the City by the Commerce Commission within 90 days. The council discussed the cheapest method for interest (savings or bank loan). The motion was made by Gary Cooper and seconded by Amy Davis to give Mayor Diss permission to sign the agreement for the Illinois Commerce Commission for the 4th St. Railroad crossing and to pay the $68,000.00 initial outlay. Yays-Gary Cooper, Amy Davis, Emily Hassebrock, Donna Smith, and Corey Thompson. Nays-none. Motion passed.

Adjourn-The motion was made by Emily Hassebrock and seconded by Amy Davis to adjourn. Yays-Gary Cooper, Amy Davis, Emily Hassebrock, Donna Smith, and Corey Thompson. Nays-none. Motion passed. Meeting adjourned at 8:41 pm.

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