Sangamon Sun

Village of Pawnee Board of Trustees met Oct. 23.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

Call to Order: 

• President Clarke called the meeting to order at 7:00pm

Roll Call: 

• Village Clerk, Devona Martin called roll

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

• Also in attendance: Treasurer Brent Wise, Chief Barclay Harris, Gary White, Chris and Deb McWhorter, Taylor Yaeger, Marie Yaeger, David Yaeger, Andy Lee, Jay Barnes, Jeff Thomas

Visitor's Recognition/Comments: 

• Jay Barnes advised he is working the Barnes and Lloyd on the old KC Hall. He will be providing the initial plans. He will schedule a meeting with the zoning board.

• The McWhorters appeared before the Board for an update on their drain. President Clarke advised we are still awaiting the engineer's recommendations.

• Taylor Yaeger appeared before the Board. He wanted to know if there is any way they can have the haunted barn without rezoning. President Clarke advised he can apply for a conditional permit, but it has to go through the zoning board. Trustee Murphy advised he could ask for his property to be rezoned or a condition permit. It could be approved or denied. The fee is approx. $300 for the meeting and all the neighbors will be notified. It generally takes approx. 1 month to get the meeting set up. Mr. Yaeger also asked what he should do since his neighbor's fence posts are on his property. He has had the property surveyed twice. Trustee Skinner advised if the posts on are his property, wouldn't it be his fence? He also stated his neighbors still have their chickens. Trustee Murphy advised he received a text on Saturday at 8:41pm advising the chickens had been removed. Mr. Yaeger heard them before this date/time.

• Jeff Thomas appeared before the Board. He advised they have partnered with Beyond Green and that Pawnee Schools will be receiving $190,000 over the course of 3 years. He stated that out of all the schools, Tim Kratochvil with Pawnee Schools was the only school that stood with him. They have already started taste testing with the kids and are working with local farmers.

Clerk's Report: 

• Minutes of October 9, 2023 were presented for review and approval

Motion made by Trustee Murphy to approve the minutes of October 9, 2023 as presented Second made by Trustee Skinner

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

Motion Carried: (6-0)

Personnel & Finance Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Skinner 

• Trustee Skinner presented the bills payable totaling $149,093.59 for the week ending October 23, 2023

Motion made by Trustee Skinner to approve the bills payable in the amount of $149,093.59 for the week ending October 23, 2023

Second made by Trustee Murphy

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

Motion Carried: (6-0)

• Treasurer Brent Wise presented the Monthly Budget Comparison Report for the Month Ending September 30, 2023

Motion made by Trustee Skinner to approve Treasurer Brent Wise's Monthly Budget Comparison Report for the Month Ending September 30, 2023

Second made by Trustee Thompson

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

Motion Carried: (6-0)

• Treasurer Brent Wise advised that we should know by the end of this week what the new rate will be on the gas case. It has been a total of 44 months. Of those months, all but 18mos were passed onto the customer. He suggests a statement credit. A letter will go to each address to advise.

• Treasurer Brent Wise advised the Board that Petersburg has finished up Phase 1. They are requesting their 4th installment in the amount of $197,655.17. Phase 2 will start any time. Phase 1 took approximately 4 months.

Motion made by Trustee Thompson to pay Petersburg $197,655.17 which will finalize payment for Phase 1.

Second made by Trustee Whitlow

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

Motion Carried: (6-0)

Gas and Water Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Whitlow

• Andy Lee advised the Board that Trustee Skinner talked to him about a family off south Zenobia Rd. They are struggling with their well and wanted to know what it would take to run water to their house. They are approx. 1300ft from our water line. They are on the Christian County side so they technically would be Tovey's customer. Tovey is not interested in supplying their water even if the customer pays 100% of the cost. Andy Lee advised that material cost alone would be $27,936.22. They would also have to obtain permits from the railroad and that could be anywhere from $10,000 - $20,000. We would also need to get our engineer involved. The homeowner is the new HS principal. She is reaching out to multiple agencies for assistance. They are looking for grant money for them. She has also reached out to Rural Development but they would only qualify if they are low income, which they are not. Consensus was that even if she paid 100% of the cost, she would be Tovey's customer and they should service her, not the Village.

• Andy Lee advised the Board that all fiber crews are completely done with all boring. They are splicing lines. Their services should be up and running in the next few weeks.

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

• Trustee Grant advised he spoke with Jeff Schober and they have been sweeping rocks to get ready for the winter. They will also be patching from a water break and are fixing tiles.

Police Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Skinner

• Chief Barclay Harris advised they were going to send 2 people to the part-time academy and had 1 person back out. He is looking for another part-timer to get them in the academy. He is rehire Carsen Becker as part-time. He is already a certified police officer.

Sewers and Parks Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Thompson 

• No report

Zoning Committee Report: Committee Chair, Trustee Murphy 

• Trustee Murphy advised the Board we have 2 new permits. One is for the 700 block of Monroe and the other is for 600 Jefferson.

Bargaining Committee Report: Committee Chair, President Clarke

• No report

Energy Committee Report: Committee Chair, President Clarke 

• No report

Infrastructure Committee Report: Committee Chair, President Clarke

• No report

Unfinished Business: 

• None

New Business:

• Treasurer Brent Wise advised the Board that the employee's health insurance is up for renewal. Stan Travelstead was unable to be here tonight. If we stick with the same plan we have had for years, there will be a 12.41% increase. This amounts to approximately $3200/mo. He advised that Stan suggested we look at Option 6, which is Health Alliance. There would be a significant reduction to the amount paid by both the employee and the Village. Brent has talked with everyone and for the most part, everyone is in agreement. Also, they would get Springfield Clinic back. If we stay with the current play, it would be a $32,000 increase to the Village. If we change to Health Alliance, there would be a saving of $18,000 over our current plan. Since we have under 20 employees, Health Alliance is age rated.

Motion made by Trustee Murphy to switch from our current Blue Cross Blue Shield plan to Option 6 which is Health Alliance Platinum RX 514

Second made by Trustee Walters

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

Motion Carried: (6-0)

Motion to Adjourn: 

• Motion made by Trustee Murphy to adjourn

Second made by Trustee Skinner

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

Motion Carried: (6-0)

Meeting adjourned at 7:39pm on Monday, October 23, 2023. The next scheduled meeting of the Pawnee Village Board of Trustees is Monday, November 13, 2023 at the Village Hall.

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