Sangamon Sun

Village of Pawnee Board of Trustees met May 22.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

Call to Order: 

• President Clarke called the meeting to order to 7:04pm.

Roll Call: 

• Village Clerk, Devona Martin called roll

• Trustees in attendance: Dale Walters, Troy Grant, Patrick Murphy, David Skinner, Brian Whitlow 

• Trustees Absent: Phillip Thompson

• Also in attendance: Treasurer Brent Wise, Candy Kramer with the Pawnee Post, Chief Barclay Harris, Andy Lee

Visitor's Recognition/Comments: 

• none

Clerk's Report: 

• Minutes of May 8, 2023 were presented for review and approval

Motion made by Trustee Murphy to approve the minutes of May 8, 2023 as presented Second made by Trustee Skinner

Roll Call Vote Taken: Walters-yes, Grant-yes, Murphy-yes, Skinner-yes, Whitlow-yes Motion Carried: (5-0)

Personnel & Finance Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Skinner 

• Trustee Skinner presented the bills payable for the week ending May 22, 2023 in the amount of $140,107.04

Motion made by Trustee Skinner to approve the bills payable for the week ending May 22, 2023 in the amount of $140,107.04

Second made by Trustee Murphy

Roll Call Vote Taken: Walters-yes, Grant-yes, Murphy-yes, Skinner-yes, Whitlow-yes

Motion Carried: (5-0)

• Treasurer Brent Wise presented the Monthly Budget Comparison Report for our fiscal year ending April 30, 2023

Motion made by Trustee Skinner to approve Treasurer Brent Wise's presented the Monthly Budget Comparison Report for our fiscal year ending April 30, 2023

Second made by Trustee Murphy

Roll Call Vote Taken: Walters-yes, Grant-yes, Murphy-yes, Skinner-yes, Whitlow-yes Motion Carried: (5-0)

Gas and Water Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Whitlow 

• Trustee Whitlow advised 45 red letters were sent out

• Andy Lee advised Petersburg is planning to start Tuesday. They are starting on 4th Street. President Clarke asked if this would interfere with the Prairie Days Parade. Andy will call Prairie Days President Dan Cobb to discuss. Candy Kramer will put something in the paper about the 4th Street repairs and to avoid this area this summer. Andy Lee has been working with Superintendent Tim Kratchovil regarding the areas that will be under construction.

• Andy Lee advised he has been in communication with CTI. They were supposed to start May 8th but they are still finishing up Kincaid. He expects them to start soon. We are only allowing them to have 2 crews. They will start in Horse Creek and on Cotton Hill and 104.

• Andy Lee advised they have received a lot of complaints and Metro is no longer answering the phone. President Clarke advised that residents should wait until CTI is done as there will be damage in the same spot. We have $25,000 bonds from both companies. President Clarke wanted to know how many weeks we are giving them. Andy Lee stated CTI is staying away from Metro so by the time we are done, the entire town will be messed up. He estimates 60% of the town still has damage from Metro. Consensus was we should have a $100,000 bond. Andy Lee will reach out to Attorney Cravens tomorrow and see if we can get a $100,000 bond from CTI. We will also go after Metro for the damage.

Streets, Alley and Sidewalk Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Grant

• Trustee Grant advised Jeff indicated they started clean up of the square for Prairie Days. They have also been patching streets and picking up limbs. He is also requesting 2 summer help employees. Consensus was to allow.

Police Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Skinner 

• Chief Harris advised he and Brent met with the applicants for the part-time officer positions. They went through the interview and he is moving forward with Charles Barber and Lucas Kruger. The part-time academy is $2,000/officer. Their starting salary will be $18/hr and once they are out of training, they will go to $24/hr.

• Chief Harris advised that Officer David Peddycoart is interested in the full-time position. He is currently a part-time officer. He would like to start 2 weeks after Prairie Days. Trustee Skinner advised he already works here so we don't need a vote. He will also have to go through the two week part-time academy transition.

Motion made by Trustee Murphy to hire 2 part-timers Charles Barber and Lucas Kruger and Officer Peddycoart to go from part-time to full-time.

Second made by Trustee Walters

Roll Call Vote Taken: Walters-yes, Grant-yes, Murphy-yes, Skinner-yes, Whitlow-yes

Motion Carried: (5-0)

• Chief Harris advised he received the information on the cameras from Axon. A discussion took place. Should we purchase now or wait? We do not need them for another 2 years. If we wait, will we get a better discount? Version 3 is currently out and Version 4 is coming out in the fall. If we wait, will the cost of Version 3 decrease? Trustee Murphy advised that there is currently no secondary market for the items. Treasurer Wise advised we don't have to participate in their 5 year contract. The main cost is the cost of the storage. Trustee Walters asked if we don't participate in the contract, will they still service? He also feels like there may be some duplicates on their estimate. How will they provide connectivity for the squad cars? Trustee Skinner asked if there was anyway to try them out first. Axon is supposed to be the premium product and they are dependable. Trustee Murphy advised that on January 1, 2025, this goes into effect. Once it does, we cannot put an officer on the street without this. Trustee Murphy also believes we should have a camera on the officer and in the car both. Trustee Walters agreed. Chief Harris will obtain additional information and try to determine if we should purchase or lease. There will be some state reimbursement on a purchase.

Sewers and Parks: Committee Chair, Trustee Thompson 

• Trustee Walters advised he received an estimate for cleaning and resealing the walking path at North Park. We do this every 2 years, however, we have now gone 4 years on the original path and the new path is 2 years old. The estimate is from Illinois Paving at a cost of $14,200. It is for cleaning, filling of the large cracks and sealing.

Motion made by Trustee Murphy to initiate repairs in the amount of $14,200 by Illinois Paving Second made by Trustee Grant

Roll Call Vote Taken: Walters-yes, Grant-yes, Murphy-yes, Skinner-yes, Whitlow-yes Motion Carried: (5-0)

Zoning Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Murphy

• Trustee Murphy advised there are a few new building permits for decks.

• Trustee Murphy advised there is a request regarding an "unmerger" of 4 lots in San Terra Trailer Park. They are lots 15, 16, 17 and 18. It was done at the then property owner Jeff Tuxhorn. It has now been sold to Jessica Leach and she would like to have them broken back apart to the original lots. Trustee Skinner asked if you can have a garage without a resident. Trustee Murphy advised yes. Trustee Skinner doesn't see any reason why we wouldn't allow them to be separated back out. Andy Lee advised there are still water pits on each lot. Consensus was to allow. Trustee Murphy will seek legal counsel on how to proceed.

Bargaining Committee: Committee Chair, President Clarke

• No Report

Energy: Committee Chair, President Clarke

• No Report

Infrastructure: Committee Chair, President Clarke 

• No Report

Unfinished Business: 

• None

New Business: 

• Resolution 23-03- This is to amend the motor fuel tax for the fiscal year 2022. This is a $40,000 refund or give back.

Motion made by Trustee Grant to pass Resolution 23-03 - Amendment of our motor fuel tax for fiscal year 2022 and to get reimbursed for $40,000

Second made by Trustee Skinner

Roll Call Vote Taken: Walters-yes, Grant-yes, Murphy-yes, Skinner-yes, Whitlow-yes

Motion Carried: (5-0)

• Resolution 23-04 - This is for the rock and chip program.

Motion made by Trustee Grant to approve Resolution 23-04 - Rock and Chip program for $77,000

Second made by Trustee Murphy

Roll Call Vote Taken: Walters-yes, Grant-yes, Murphy-yes, Skinner-yes, Whitlow-yes Motion Carried: (5-0)

• President Clarke reminded everyone that the Memorial Day ceremony is at 10am on Monday.

• President Clarke advised that Prairie Days begins June 1, 2, 3. They will begin Tuesday May 30th on set up. They will close the east side of the square on Tuesday and the remainder beginning at noon on Wednesday.

Motion to Adjourn:

• Motion made by Trustee Skinner to adjourn

Second made by Trustee Murphy

Roll Call Vote Taken: Walters-yes, Grant-yes, Murphy-yes, Skinner-yes, Whitlow-yes Motion Carried: (5-0)

Meeting adjourned at 7:56pm on Monday, May 22, 2023. The next scheduled meeting of the Pawnee Village Board of Trustees is Monday, June 12, 2023 at 7:00pm at the Village Hall.

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