Village of Oblong

May 1, 2013 Minutes


May 1st, 2013

The Village of Oblong Board of Trustees met in regular session on Wednesday, May 1st, 2013, in the Farley Room of the Municipal Building.

Members Present: Mayor Randy Rich, Clerk Ladora Boyd, Trustee Rick Catt, Trustee Joe Campanella, Trustee Ken Russell, Trustee Tony Madlem, Trustee Debi Wilson and Treasurer Jan Miller.

Others Present: Police Chief Chad Pusey, Public Works Superintendent Gary Lanter, Tom Compton (Daily News), Chris Forde (WTYE/WTAY), Bill Cox, Will Cox, Harley Richmond, Dakota Littlejohn and TJ Littlejohn.

The Village Clerk swore in Randy Rich, Mayor; Rick Catt, Trustee; and Ken Russell, Trustee before the Board Meeting was called to order. Randy asked that everyone stand and face the flag. Then he led the group in the pledge of allegiance to the American Flag.

The meeting was called to order at 7:03 pm by Mayor Rich. Randy wanted to welcome the Boy Scout Troup #219 to the Board Meeting. Randy stated that they were here to observe how the Village meeting is handled.

The Regular Board Meeting minutes of April 10th, 2013 were approved with a motion by Joe and a second by Tony. Five (5) ayes, motion carried.

4. There were no additions or deletions to the agenda this month.

5. There were no water bill customers at the meeting this month.

6. Ben Bomer did not show up at the meeting this month.

7. David Connor, from Connor & Connor, came to the meeting to give the bids amounts for the North Range Street project from the April 23rd Bid Letting. He stated that the Engineer Estimate Cost was $936,435. There were three bids turned in. They are as follows: Kieffer Bros. ($987,081.60), A.J. Walker Construction Co. ($876,582.76) and Feutz Contractors ($961,706.40). David stated that A.J. Walker was around 6% least than estimate. Motion by Rick, with a second by Tony, to award the North Range Street Project contract to A.J. Walker Construction Co. for the amount of $876,582.76. Five (5) ayes, motion carried. David stated that Connor & Connor would get the contract drawn-up and ready for signatures in a few days. Ken stated that the last easement for the North Range Street Project is in the process.

8. Motion by Joe, with a second by Tony, to adopt Ordinance #2013-O-551 “An Ordinance to Amend Division VI – Village Clerk, Section 1-2-56 Appointed, if the Revised Code of Ordinance of the Village of Oblong, Illinois”. Vote: Rick-aye, Joe-aye, Ken-aye, Tony-aye, Debi- abstained. Motion carried.

9. Motion by Joe, with a second by Tony, to adopt Ordinance #2013-O-552 “An
Ordinance to Amend Division VII – Village Treasurer, Section 1-2-73 Treasurer Appointed; Vacancy, of the Revised Code of Ordinances of the Village of Oblong, Illinois”. Vote: Rick-aye, Joe-aye, Ken-aye, Tony-aye, Debi- abstained. Motion carried.

10. There was some discussion before the vote was taken on this ordinance. Motion by Tony, with a second by Rick, to adopt Ordinance #2013-O-553 “An Ordinance Renewing an Existing Franchise and Granting for a Period of 20 Years to Ameren Illinois, a Corporation, Its Successors and Assigns, The Franchise, Right, Permission and Authority to Construct, Reconstruct, Excavate for, Place, Remove, Extend, Maintain, and Operate an Electric Utility System in the Village of Oblong, County of Crawford, and the State of Illinois”. Five ayes, motion carried.

11. Tony stated that he had talked with Brad Harmon and they are going to proceed with the drive-up window and awning over the window, so that they can put a light over the window. Randy stated that he had contacted the Village attorney to see what he suggested was and the attorney said that the Village either make the alley all one-way or leave as is. The Board decided to leave the direction of the alley as is.

12. Mayor’s Comments:

Randy reappointed Ladora Boyd as Village Clerk and Jan Miller as Village Treasurer for a one year term each.

Randy stated that the Village has received a letter from MediaCom (April 26, 2013) stating that on or about May 29, 2013, they will no longer carry Channels 135 and 210.

Randy stated that the Village had received a Thank You card from Diane Houdasheldt, Hanna Houdasheldt, Bethany and DJ Davis for the beautiful stone sent in memory of Rick’s service.

Randy stated that he had talked with John Provines to see when Mr. Provines would be coming to install the new speakers for the sound system. Mr. Provines said he would be up here around May 13th.

Randy stated that the Village did not receive any other electric bids for the Village’s accounts. Motion by Joe, with a second by Debi, to accept the electric supply rate of $0.040009/kWh form Homefield Energy. Five (5) ayes, motion carried.

Randy read the Proclamation for National Police Week 2013.

13. Reports of Committees:

Police: Joe read the monthly report for April, 2013. Joe stated that there will be some training for this month. Joe stated that Chad’s name was drawn for a free handheld radar gun (Click or Ticket Campaign).

Building and Park: Debi stated that the Park is looking real nice now. She stated that she would need to get with Randy and Rick.

Sidewalks and Lights: Gary stated that there had been a couple of small projects taken care of last month.

Street and Alley: Tony stated that he had nothing to report this month. Randy asked if there was a project up on West Wisconsin Street. Gary stated that Kintner’s had project and are going to fix the street when finished.

Water and Sewer: Ken stated that there was nothing to report for this month. Gary stated that when Rick White went to check the charts for the water system Sunday morning; the water tower was almost empty. Rick called Gary to let him know. They went out looking for a water leak. They found that a hydrant, located near Mike Dart’s place, had been knocked over sometime Saturday night or early Sunday morning; the Village had lost a lot of water due to the hit-n-run. There is an ongoing investigation into who has damage the hydrant.

Finance: Rick stated that the year-end figures for last Fiscal Year were under the FY2013 Working Budget figures. Auditor will be here May 20-24.

G. Development: Tony stated that there was nothing new to report.

14. Motion by Debi, with a second by Ken, to pay the bills that were on the warranty list and any utility bills, bills that will incur a late charge or reimbursements to employees. Five (5) ayes, motion carried.

15. There was one other item of business this month. Randy stated that he had received several complaints about the house in the 300 block of North Range that is being torn down. He stated that it is either to be boarded up or completely torn down because it is now a safety issue.

16. Motion by Rick C., with a second by Tony, to adjourn the meeting at 7:28 pm. Five (5) ayes, motion carried.

Respectfully submitted

 

Ladora C. Boyd