Sangamon Sun

Village of Divernon Board of Trustees met May 27.

Here is the minutes provided by the board:

The regular meeting of the Village of Divernon Board of Trustees was held electronically. Village President Jim Copelin called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. Clerk Rod Molnar called roll: Jim Copelin “Here”, Craig Busch “Here”, Melissa Layton “Here”, Wayne Jones “Here”, Gail Hedges “Here”, Tyler Bramley “Here”, Larry Baer “Here”. Also, in attendance were Police Chief Jason Martin, Treasurer Amanda Kessler and Superintendent Jeremy Rhodes.

A motion was made by Hedges and seconded by Layton to approve the minutes of May 13, 2020. The motion passed 6-0.

Baer presented the Village bills with a motion they be approved. Hedges seconded and the motion carried 6-0.

Visitors:

Ben Spreen, engineer with Benton and Associates was in attendance. He recently met with Rhodes, Hedges and Baer in regards to a water main project. The State of Illinois has recently made some grant money available for infrastructure projects. To be eligible for the grants, a community has to be “shovel ready” when making the application. Spreen said if he started design engineering tomorrow, to have all of the permits required for a project it would be six months. He and Rhodes have put together a project which would replace the water main from Route 104 as well as the existing old mains within the Village. The estimated cost of the project would be $1,300,000.00 if all of the work was contracted. Rhodes said he could do some of the mains in the Village. The engineering design would be around $130,000.00. Rhodes said that the Village has experienced large amounts of water loss the last five years from leaking old mains and water breaks. Baer and Hedges recommended that the Village move forward with the project. Kessler said the Village’s cash position is in good shape to make the move. A motion was made by Baer to have Spreen begin work on a bid ready design for the project as well as research on easements. Hedges seconded and the motion carried 6-0.

Supervisor Reports: 

Public Works:

Superintendent Rhodes reported the Village held up pretty well during the recent flooding. A couple turtles had clogged the flow between the ponds at the sewage treatment plant. The new emergency pumps did a great job to keep the plant running. He has received a bid from Arbor Tech to have two trees removed. The Board will wait for another bid before making a decision. He has a meeting with the Smart Energy Design Systems Center on June 9th to see if they have any recommendations on reducing electric costs at the sewer plant. Hedges reported that if Toni’s restaurant applies for the small business grant, the Village will have to begin work on a public hearing as well as other requirements for the grant. The application deadline is June 1st. Kessler said that former treasurer Christine Nichols had everything in place for the Grant Portal. The only outstanding item is the latest audit. Once the audit is complete, the audit will be uploaded. The only question she could not answer was whether employees had to take ethics and standard of conduct training per the fraud manual. She was told they do. Molnar will check with Illinois Risk Management to see if training is available through IML.

Police:

Chief Martin reported the F150 being repaired for warranty work will be completed by May 28th. The Village has been without the vehicle for four months. Attorney Moredock has drafted a letter asking the dealer for compensation for time the Village has been without the car. The property at Lincoln and Dodd streets has removed the old boats and RV. The property owner’s daughter will see that the property is mowed until it is sold. The house with the hole in the roof in the 300 block of Lincoln street has been repaired. The entire roof will be replaced at a later date. The flooded vehicles on Third Street will be removed. Maddy’s and the Corner Bar will reopen this weekend as the state moves into Phase 3 of the Covid-19 crisis. Only outdoor seating will be allowed. People may go inside to use the restrooms.

Committee Reports: 

Zoning, TIF, Building Permits:

New zoning maps have been posted in the Village Hall.

Public Utilities, Water, Sewer and Gas:

Nothing to report.

Finance, Personnel, GIS:

Molnar reported he has been informed the Village is no longer required to pass an annual Prevailing Wage Ordinance. Prevailing wages are still required to be paid when contracting out work.

Public Safety, Health and Safety:

Lois Golden of 28 N. 1st street notified the Board that a neighboring residence is directing storm water from their property onto hers. She is asking the Board for direction. Mayor Copelin will visit her to look into the issue. Layton said she was contacted by a someone that was dumping yard waste at the sewer plant who said an employee was aggressive towards him asking if he was a resident of Divernon. Rhodes said he was the employee and said yes, he asked about his residence. The gentleman lives in Commanche Village. He should not be dumping at the sewer plant as it is only for Village residents. Rhodes said he didn’t ask him to remove his yard waste, only that it was for residents only. Chief Martin recently had someone from Auburn return and remove their waste. Rhodes said he doesn’t want to lock up the plant, but too many people from out of town are dumping. The Village will look into a new camera system to monitor the plant. Layton said that the Legion Auxiliary is putting new edging, rock and flowers around the Veterans Memorial in the park.

Public Works, Streets, Alleys and Sidewalks:

Nothing to report.

Village Communication/Building Grounds and Lights, Parks:

Busch reported the new playground equipment will be installed beginning on Friday. The swing set and merry go round will be painted in early July. Busch asked about beginning a series of Village sponsored events at the park. He suggested maybe every other month. Some ideas included band, ice cream socials and movies in the park. Possibly getting churches, businesses, and groups involved. Layton said there is $200.00 left over in the Christmas in the Park that could be used. Copelin suggested that one be held late this summer and expand it next year. All would be dependent on the status of the Covid-19 pandemic. Busch will begin research on the project. Layton will work on getting Kona Ice to come to the Village to set up for the opening of the new playground equipment.

Old Business:

Molnar contacted Illinois Risk Management in regards to the Village’s employee drug testing program. The Village is in compliance with IML’s requirements.

New Business:

Copelin informed the Board that David Adcock, who retired from the Village after many years of employment recently passed away. The family asked that any donations be made to the Prairie Temple Assembly of God Church. A motion was made by Hedges and seconded by Layton to make a donation to the church in the amount of $100.00 in David’s name. The motion passed 6- 0. Motion by Hedges to adjourn at 8:16 p.m.

https://divernonil.com/assets/uploads/sites/219/2020/06/Minutes-5-27-2020.pdf