The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
By: Shirley Linder, Quill Editor
At their regular meeting held on Monday, November 3rd, the Stronghurst village board members voted to give Steven Haring of MSA Professional Services the go ahead to begin planning and designing a new water tower.
The old water tower is almost 100 years old, is undersized according to EPA standards, and is very costly in upkeep.
According to Haring the new water tower will cost an estimated $750,000 to a million dollars, when all is said and done.
A possible location for the new water tower would be on the northeast corner of the property owned by the Bank of Stronghurst.
This location would be ideal according to Ronnie Gittings since the largest water main runs down Main Street in front of it.
Haring said soil borings would need to be taken to make sure the soil is suitable for this type of structure.
MSA will come up with an actual design, get some preliminary cost estimates and get the board to a point where they can get their permits from IEPA in preparation for them to go out for bids.
The design and planning will take approximately 4-6 months at a cost of $48,500.
POLICE REPORT
Police report for the month of October included:
174 hours worked; 1321 miles on squad car; 4 traffic stops; 2 verbal warnings; 2 written warnings; 2 uniform traffic tickets; 1 notice to appear; 6 service calls; 4 agency assists; 2 arrests; 20 business courtesy checks.
NEW PARK HOURS
On a motion by Mike Bohnenkamp, seconded by Tony Anderson, members voted to adopt a new ordinance closing the village park at 9:00 p.m. until 6:00 a.m.
The signs in the park will be changed to note the new hours. The hours will not go into affect until ten days after the Amended Ordinance is published in the newspaper, the attorney said.
NEW SQUAD CAR DISCUSSED
Mike Bohnenkamp, chairman of the police committee, asked the board's approval to purchase a new squad car, a Ford SUV.
The Dodge is now costing them a lot of money in repairs.
The new vehicle would be basic with no bells and whistles, no decals, and no top lights, at an approximate cost of $26,289.
David Vancil made a motion to purchase the vehicle but Attorney Bill Rasmussen intervened saying he did not think that they should be spending $26,000 on something that was not on the agenda.
Therefore, no action was taken until next month when it can be an agenda item.
Deb Hale made a motion to approve the minutes and Mike Bohnenkamp seconded it, but no vote was taken.
Mike Bohnenkamp made a motion for the payment of the bills, seconded by Betty Waterman, again no vote was taken.
In other business:
The board entered executive session at 8:35 p.m. for possible ligation. Came out of closed at 9:04 p.m. with no decision and no action taken
Present were:
Mayor Gary Root;
Trustees, Mike Bohnenkamp, Deb Hale, Betty Waterman, Tony Anderson, David Vancil, Brendan Schaley;
Employees, Ronnie Gittings, Mike Nelson, Samantha Swisher,
Attorney Bill Rasmussen, Arbry Vancil;
Guests, Diana Taylor, Jade Parker, Steven Haring, and Shirley Linder.
The next meeting will be held on Monday, December 1st at 7:00 p.m.