The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
-Joy Swearingen, Quill Correspondent
Keara Weber of Carthage was sworn in as Hancock County Circuit Clerk on Wednesday morning, May 18, by Judge Rodney Clark
Weber was appointed as circuit clerk at the Hancock County Board meeting May 17. She was nominated by the Hancock County Republican Central Committee chairman, Kathy Sparrow, to replace retiring circuit clerk, John Neally. The board had received a letter of resignation from Neally, and accepted the resignation at the same meeting.
The board also approved a transitional audit of the circuit clerk’s office, a procedural audit that takes place at the change of an officeholder.
Weber has been in the Hancock County Circuit Clerk’s office since September 2020. She was previously employed at Memorial Hospital. She is a graduate of Carthage High School and Carl Sandburg College with an associate of arts certificate in medical assisting.
Sparrow said that Weber will serve until a new circuit clerk is elected in the November 2022 election. She announced that the Republican Central Committee has filed paperwork for Weber to be their candidate for circuit clerk in that election.
The board received a request to increase the number of liquor licenses that the county issues. The county currently can issue five Class A liquor licenses in unincorporated areas of the county. Those five are in use by Wye Knot Tavern in Niota, Lake Hill Winery and Dirty Bird Grill near Carthage, Smokin’ Gun Club in Sonora Township, and Koechle’s Press House near Nauvoo.
Tanner Freiberg, president of Maxamillion, Inc., of Quincy, said his family has purchased the Country Companies building in Niota to establish a video gaming parlor. His family owns 11 Maxamillions gaming parlors in central Illinois, including three in Quincy. Video gaming parlors require a liquor license to operate.
“The tax dollars this would generate for the county would be significant,” Tanner said.
Brenda Young spoke on behalf of John and Grant Rea, who recently purchased the Wye Knot Tavern in Niota which offers gaming, and is in the lot next to the proposed parlor.
“I am not opposed to business expansion in the county. I can see the addition of two or three more liquor licenses throughout the county,” Young said.
“The general opinion of the people who have signed these petitions is that we think there needs to be some type of a distance between applications.” She recommended five miles.
Bobi James, assistant state’s attorney, had prepared a review of liquor licenses in the state. She said only one license law had a distance restriction, which was 400 feet in Chicago.
Freiberg said he was told in March, when they were contracting to buy the building, that there were liquor licenses available. He noted that their gaming parlors sell very little alcohol, and he believes the clientel for their gaming establishment would be different than the Wye Knot.
The board voted to refer the issue to a committee to give a recommendation at the next meeting. Board President Delbert Kreps stated he would be the committee.
The board passed a resolution to set the salary of the county sheriff at 80 percent of the state’s attorney salary, based on the new state budget requirement. The amount was not named, because the state’s attorney salary will be set by July1, when the state budget takes effect. A portion of the anticipated increase will be reimbursed by state funds. The sheriff salary was originally set at $71,995 by the county board in March, when other salaries were approved to be effective at the start of the fiscal year on Dec. 1.
The board approved a $50 per month payment for an EMS narcotics tracking system, payable to Adams County.
“The largest liability for medical services is accountability with record keeping of controlled substances,” said John Simon, EMS chief of Adams County. Every single vial of narcotic must be tracked.
With Adams County currently overseeing Hancock County EMS, Simon said that for $50 Adams county can add Hancock County as another “virtual safe” in their system. If Hancock County were to set up a narcotic tracking system, it would be very expensive.
“This puts a validating process in place,” Simon said. Paper tracking creates the possibility of inaccuracies.