City council approves bid for culvert
By Matt Courter
Olney City Council accepted a bid for Walnut Street culvert improvements during its meeting Monday.
During its Sept. 13 meeting, the city council accepted a $6,200 bid for demolition of a vacant apartment building a 732-738 N. Walnut St.
The city had been working for about two and a half years to acquire the property so it can replace a culvert underneath the building in an effort to reduce flooding during heavy rains.
The building was razed last week.
At its Monday meeting, Berry said the lowest bid the city received for the culvert replacement project was $26,041.15 from Kieffer Bros. of Mt. Carmel.
There was a $63,000 bid received from Illini Builders.
The council budgeted between $70,000 and $80,000 for the culvert replacement, so Berry said they were pleased with the low bid.
Berry said the city council could choose to pay for the project by taking money out of reserves or it could create a new line item and see where the budget stands at the end of the fiscal year, leaving the option of then taking money from reserves if necessary.
Mayor Tom Fehrenbacher asked if Motor Fuel Tax money could be used to pay for the project.
City Engineer Roger Charleston said the work was never bid as an MFT project.
He said that is a more involved process that would mean more paperwork.
Councilman Bob Ferguson asked why Fehrenbacher was wanting to use MFT funds. He said there are other projects, such as the Mack Avenue resurfacing, that will need these funds.
Fehrenbacher said he was just looking at all the options.
Charleston said the culvert work will consist of replacing the existing culvert, rip rapping the ditch and covering the area.
City Treasurer Brad Yockey recommended that the city establish a new line item for the project.
The council accepted the low bid and approved Yockey's recommendation.
Berry said that if the weather remains favorable, the work should be completed by around Oct. 20.
In other business:
The council approved the feasibility study for a TIF district on the south side of the city during its meeting on Monday.
The action is the latest step in the city's efforts to establish a Tax Increment Financing District.
At the council's last meeting on Sept. 13, Eugene Norbert, President of Economic Development Resources, the company which is studying areas that would qualify for a TIF district, presented the council with a feasibility study.
The area discussed comprises approximately 100 acres at the U.S. 50 and Ill. 130 intersection, most of the area being vacant land west of Ill. 130 and running north and south of U.S. 50.
Norbert said this area would be eligible as an industrial park conservation area. It is one of the three kinds of TIF areas.
Going through a detailed presentation on the company's study, Norbert said the condition of the land's commercial properties, the land and the decline in the area's Estimated Assessed Valuation statistics made it eligible as an area that could benefit from this kind of TIF.
He said the developed land is eligible as a conservation area because four of the eight structures are more than 35 years old and there are other factors, such as deterioration, inadequate utilities, and the presence of structures below minimum code that impact half of the structures or parcels within the developed area.
He said the vacant land contiguous to the proposed conservation area would be suitable for use as an industrial park.
The council delayed taking action until it could meet with affected property owners within the proposed area.
Taylor said Monday that there was one property owner on the extreme west side of the proposed TIF area who did not want undeveloped farm ground zoned for industrial use. This area is approximately 17 acres.
He said one of the taxing bodies he talked to was concerned about the tax implications of joining a TIF.
There were three property owners he could not contact and one, an Illinois Department of Transportation office, that he has not tried to contact.
Councilman Greg Erwin asked what the additional cost to the city would be to continue the TIF development process.
Berry said it would bring the total cost to around $33,000.
Taylor said the next step is the creation of a TIF plan, which will be presented to the council at its next meeting on Oct. 11.
Erwin wondered if there had been any recent opposition from the other taxing bodies.
Berry said he recently talked with County Board Chairman Mark Kapper. He said that several board members who initially were against the plan are now speaking more favorably of it.
He said he and Taylor were meeting with county officials today and they would touch base with them on the issue.
Councilman George Rumsey made a motion to accept the planned area outlined in the feasibility study and to continue with the process and stay in contact with other taxing agencies so no one is left out. Also, the 17 acres of farm ground will be left out of the process.
The motion passed unanimously.
The council heard from Drue Elliott, who lives on Morgan Street at the corner of Cherry Street, who said overlay work done on Morgan Street has not been successful.
He said the new polymer oil the city placed on the street has hardened like plastic, leaving excess gravel that has not settled into the surface.
He said it is creating a lot of dust and the excess gravel is being thrown into people's yards by traffic.
Elliott said a street sweeper came by once and raised so much dust that he could not see nearby homes.
"It's just getting worse and worse," he said.
He said that when water hits the polymer oil, it smells bad.
Street Department Supervisor Tom Totten explained the new method the city used on several streets, including Morgan, that have given the city problems in the past.
He said that if it rains, the city could broom the area and then windrow the gravel. He said the city does not have the manpower to wet streets.
Elliott said the normal oil and chipping did just as well as this new method.
He said this will not fix the potholes that are in the street.
The council deferred action on a low bid received for primary digester cover work at the sewer plant until the city finds out whether it will receive state money to match its expenses for the work.
The low bid was from Kieffer Brothers, of Mt. Carmel, for $529,080.
Berry said this will fall below what was budgeted, provided state money is received.
The bids are good for 90 days. Berry said the city should hear about grant money within a week or two.
The council passed a new Equal Employment Opportunity policy to replace its current one, which Taylor said had become antiquated.
The council, after executive session, passed a one-year contract with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
The collective bargaining agreement was passed on a 3-2 vote with Fehrenbacher and Erwin voting no.
The contract gives a three and a half percent salary increase for city workers in the union. It affects employees in Public Works, the Street Department, the Parks Department, the city mechanic and the water and sewer plants and collection workers.
The council had been negotiating the contract since around March, Taylor said.
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