Village of Oblong

February 5, 2020

The Village of Oblong Board of Trustees met in regular session on Wednesday, February 5th, 2020, in the Farley Room of the Municipal Building.

Members Present: Mayor Teresa Fielder, Clerk Ladora Boyd, Trustee Angie Fear, Trustee Jay Haines, Trustee Dave Hasty, Trustee Bill Burke, Trustee Keith Waldrop, Trustee Jeron Harris and Treasurer Jan Miller,
Others Present: Police Chief Chad Pusey, Public Works Superintendent Gary Lanter, Tom Compton (Daily News), Chris Dewitt (WTYE/WTAY), Jamie Bay and Lynus Bay.

The meeting was called to order at 7 pm by Mayor Fielder with everyone standing for the Pledge of Allegiance.

The Regular Board Meeting Minutes of January 8th, 2020, and Special Board Meeting Minutes of January 15th, 2020, were approved with a motion by Jeron and a second by Bill. All ayes, motion carried.

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

There were no Delinquent Water Bill customers at the meeting this month.

Mayor’s Comments:

Teresa mentioned that the departments need to start working on FY2021 Budgets. Jeron set a due date for budgets for March 18th at 4 pm. There will be a Finance Committee meeting at 4:30 pm on March 18th.

Reminder that the 2020 Census on-line participation is coming up for citizens. Looking into possibly setting up some computers for those who do not have access to one. Teresa stated that if you do not do the on-line then there will be Census workers coming to your home.

Teresa stated that she had given everyone a copy of some upcoming IML sponsored training sessions. If any of the Board is interested in going to ant sessions let Ladora know so she can get them registered. Keith asked if it would be alright if he paid half of the hotel room rate so that he could take his spouse when attending the upcoming IML Lobby Day in Springfield. The rest of the Board agreed.

Teresa mentioned that Gary had given everyone in the building a training session on Fire Safety.

Crawford County has a grant to be used for projects such as the Village Sewer Lagoon Dredging Project. Teresa stated that there will be a County Board meeting on February 13th at 6 pm in the Annex Building in which this topic will be on the agenda. Shannon Woodard will be presenting our project to the County Board.

Teresa stated that there is a contest sponsored by HGTV show Home Town. The deadline is February 7th. She stated that with the help of Dark Bend Aerial; she is entering Oblong in the contest. She will post the submitted video on the Mayor’s Facebook page once it has been completed.

Reports of Committees:

Police: Jay stated that he had nothing to report this month. Chad stated that he had some interviews setup with interested candidates for part-time positions. Chad also mentioned that he will be attending a Criminal Justice Conference at the end of the month. Some discussion about the “Fee Reform Act” and the lack of funding available at this time for full & part time academies.

Building & Park: Keith stated that he has received some ideas for a photo op display. He stated that he has spoken to Mr. Slover about having some of his art students make some sketches of the received ideas.

Sidewalks & Lights: Bill stated that he had nothing to report this month.

Street & Alley: Angie stated that she had nothing to report this month.

Water & Sewer: Dave stated that he had nothing new to report this month.

Finance: Jeron stated that when the transfer of funds took place from General checking account to the Sewer checking account, for the Sewer Dredging Project, it showed up as an expense. This could cause the Village to be over the appropriations for this fiscal year. He recommended to reverse the transfer and put the fund in next fiscal year’s budget. Motion by Jeron, with a second by Jay, to transfer the $200,000 back from Sewer checking account to the General checking account. All ayes, motion carried.

Development: Bill stated that the issues in the wording of the Park Meadows Covenants is being worked on. Bill mentioned that Monte Eagle Mill is wanting to be put in the TIF 2 district. Bill also mentioned that the old M&M Pump Supply property has been sold and they are beginning to do some remodeling and hope to add another building.

Ad Hoc (Dilapidated/Unsafe Buildings & Ordinances): Teresa stated that the committee met on January 29th, 2020, at 3:30 pm. Dog Park fencing should be in place around May 1st. Teresa stated that the 50th Anniversary to commemorate the death of Jack Fancil, which will be June 1st, 2020. A Ceremony is being planned for May 31st starting at 3 pm. Dave Hasty stated that the Oblong 54 Club now has a Chairperson, Darby (Miller) Dishong, and he will be the Vice-Chairperson.

Motion by Jay, with a second by Keith, 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 All ayes, motion carried.

There was one other item of business this month. Tom Compton announced that he would no longer be working for the Daily News as of February 14th. The Board stated they appreciated all his service and expertise over the years. They wished him well with his new job.

Motion by Jeron, with a second by Angie, to adjourn the meeting at 7:36 pm. Five (5) ayes, one (1) nay, motion carried.

Respectfully submitted

 

Ladora Boyd
Clerk