Lincoln City Council members, who two weeks ago voted to approve Rodney White’s development only if he pays the full cost of upgrading the part of Sherman Street that fronts on it, reconsidered the matter Monday night and will be talking to White yet one more time.

White, who could not attend the council meeting, was contacted by phone by City Clerk Juanita Josserand and has agreed to another meeting.

At the June 18 council meeting, the nine members present voted unanimously to approve the plat for the 16 homes only if White agreed to pay the full cost of upgrading 1,600 to 2,000 feet of North Sherman Street. White said under those conditions it was not feasible for him to continue with the development plans and left the council chambers.

White had first asked that the city would pay the full cost of upgrading the street after he completed at least half the development and put in sewer and utility connections. On June 18 he agreed to pay for curbs and gutters on one side of the street at a cost of $25,000 to $30,000.

Josserand reported Monday night that in her telephone conversation with White, he also agreed to put money in escrow for curbs and gutters to be installed when Sherman Street is upgraded.

The change of heart occurred after council members discussed the ordinance governing developers and subdivisions and decided they had interpreted it incorrectly. Mayor Beth Davis, who is in favor of the development, also encouraged them to rethink the matter.

"We can bring it up for reconsideration," she told the council. "We need to grow. We need to send a positive message."

Several council members said they understood the ordinance to say that the developer must bring any street up to city specifications. However, according to Nick Burgrabe, sitting in for City Attorney Jonathan Wright, that applies to streets built by the developer but not necessarily to streets already owned by the city, as Sherman Street is.

Burgrabe said it is not mandatory to ask a developer to pay for upgrading an existing street, but the council does have the authority to negotiate with a developer on street work costs.

"It is our responsibility to maintain the street at the current level. If a developer puts extra demands on it, we can require him to upgrade it. At the same time, the city can make a compromise plan," Burgrabe said.

"What I understood is that it [complete upgrading] has to happen," Alderman George Mitchell said. "I don’t think I am the only one who thought it had to be done that way."

Several other council members agreed with Mitchell.

"It is hard for me to swallow the fact that we have an existing street, a developer comes in, and we say, ‘fix the street,’" Alderman Verl Prather said. "It is already ours. He is not dedicating it to us."

Alderman Michael Montcalm, chairman of the ordinance committee, who made the original motion to ask White to pay the street work costs, said he would like to split the cost of upgrading the street if the city had the money. "I can’t see 100 percent of the costs for the city on fixing that street," he said. "The most I could go is 50-50."

Grant Eaton, sewer plant manager, told the council the cost would be approximately $200,000 or about half that amount, depending upon whether the street is blacktop, the more expensive, or oil and chip, which Sherman Street is at present.

Several council members suggested rethinking the ordinance, which they believe is confusing. Alderman Patrick Madigan suggested they sit down with developers and see what their concerns are. "Are we going to play this game every time a development comes up?" he asked.

Eaton agreed that the ordinance needs to be reworked. "It does get confusing for us to understand it," he said. "It is hard to explain to the contracting industry."

Mitchell, however, stressed that the council needed to move on the East Park subdivision before tackling the ordinance.

"I watched this council struggle with a liquor ordinance. We still don’t have a liquor ordinance. If we have to change the ordinance, none of us will live long enough to see anything done.

"I think we ought to give anyone who wants to develop an area in this town an opportunity to do that," he said.

The council unanimously approved a motion to reconsider the vote of June 18, then tabled the motion until further discussion with White. No date has yet been set for that discussion.

In other business, the council recognized three newly promoted members of the fire department. Mark Miller has been named assistant chief of the B shift; Jeff Singleton is captain of the B shift, and Larry Spurling is a lieutenant on the A shift.

They also discussed raising fines for parking downtown from 2 to 5 a.m. to $25. Parked cars make it impossible to clean streets or to remove snow, according to Street Superintendent Donnie Osborne. The fine is presently only $3. The proposed raise was referred to the ordinance committee.

The council accepted the bid for a skid loader from Central Illinois Ag of Atlanta, at $16,479. A lower bid was rejected because the New Holland loader offered by Illinois Ag was the best vehicle for the job, according to Eaton.

Mayor Davis announced a proposal for a Historic District that would extend along both sides of Fifth Street from Adams to Postville Drive. She said new buildings put up in the district would conform to historic architecture, though present ones would be grandfathered in.

Alderman George Mitchell was unanimously elected mayor pro tem, to serve when Davis is not present. He was nominated by Alderman Glenn Shelton, who described Mitchell as a man who is always available and has the best interests of the city at heart.

The Plant the Tree program for 2000 included extensive plantings at the Logan County Fairgrounds and plantings in the Don Shay parking lot across from Scully Park in downtown Lincoln. In addition, a tree was planted at Memorial Park for each first grade and at two of the nursing homes. This year’s project added trees at the Lincoln sign across from Lincoln Christian College and 11 trees across from the Tropics in front of the old Courtyard restaurant, as well as more trees at the fairgrounds.

The parking lot, on Clinton Street, was renovated by Main Street Lincoln, which purchased large trees and perennials. Others who helped furnish trees were John Wilmert, who got trees at cost or donated them from his own land; Dean Bruns, who allowed the students to dig up from his land about 60 trees that went to the Logan County Fairgrounds and the Don Shay parking lot; and Eric Jenkins. About 100 trees, some with 4-inch trunks, were planted by 80 students in 2000, Dopp said.

The tree planting program has been ongoing for the past five years, Dopp said. In 2001 the group planted trees along Postville Road and at the fairgrounds.

She thanked Street Superintendent Donnie Osborne for his help in bringing mulch and getting street crews to help with the heavy work. "Donnie has just been great," she told the council. She also thanked Main Street Lincoln for all its help in purchasing trees.

"This award really goes to the entire city of Lincoln," she told the council. The motto on the Governor’s Home Town Award is "Excellence through Volunteerism."

Madigan announced last week that he was leaving the Senate to take a position as a member of the Illinois Industrial Commission, the body that hears appeals for workman’s compensation cases if either the employer or employee is not satisfied with the decision made by an arbitrator.

His resignation was effective at midnight June 30, and he begins his new duties on July 2.

Madigan said he will be serving mostly in Chicago but will also sit on panels in Springfield and hold reviews in various other parts of the state. He will have an office in his home in Lincoln, but his main office is in the state of Illinois building in Chicago. However, he said, he intends to continue to live in Lincoln.

He was appointed by Gov. George Ryan to fill an unexpired term and will serve until the term ends Jan. 17, 2005. Then, if he wishes to continue on the commission, he will have to be reappointed by whoever is governor at the time. He confirmed that his salary in the new position is $101,790. His salary as a state senator was $64,269.

"When I first ran for the legislature, I wanted to serve for 12 or 13 years, then do something else," he said. "I’ve served a little longer, 15 years. Recently the governor asked me if I would be willing to serve on the commission. It is a job I feel comfortable in."

Before serving in the legislature, Madigan was a claims specialist for State Farm Insurance. While in the senate, he was chair of the Insurance and Pension Committee and dealt with legislation in this area. "I felt the Illinois Industrial Commission job was a natural fit," he said.

His believes greatest accomplishment as a senator came in 1994, when five statewide pension systems — pensions for teachers, state employees, judges, General Assembly members and university retirees — were in deep financial trouble.

"I was the Senate sponsor of the plan to bring these systems up to a safe and sound funding level without a tax increase," he told the Lincoln Daily News. "The plan called for continuing appropriations from the general revenue fund so there would be sufficient money in each pension system."

Unfinished business in the legislature which he would like to see completed is putting the retired teachers health insurance fund on a firm financial basis. The fund is running out of money because claims were greater than expected. He said he believes the two task forces working on the problem will come up with a solution before the November veto session.

He would also like to see the legislature solve an age-old problem, finding additional funding for schools and reducing the tax burden on homeowners.

There were some hints that Madigan might be leaving his post, said John Parrett, McLean County GOP chairman.

"I kept hearing rumors that Sen. Madigan might be stepping down to take a position with a commission. I thought something might possibly transpire by August or September," Parrett said.

"Bob Madigan has been a highly respected state senator and has served us well. He will be missed by his constituents. He is well thought of and has an enormous amount of integrity," he added.

Mary Jane Jones, Mason County GOP chairman, said, "I am real sorry to lose him. He is well respected in Springfield. They listen to him, and they know he is there. He is a great loss to our district."

Madigan said he doesn’t know of anyone who has formally stepped forward to replace him.

His replacement, who must be chosen within 30 days of Madigan’s retirement, will be selected by seven Republican county chairmen, including the six who chose Lincoln attorney Jonathan Wright to replace John Turner. Turner was appointed an Appellate Court judge.

The 45th Senatorial District includes all of Logan, Mason and DeWitt counties, most of Tazewell and Woodford counties, and a part of Piatt and McLean counties. However, those boundaries may change later this year when district lines are redrawn to account for changes in the state’s population.

While Logan County GOP Chairman Ron Sparks had the heaviest weighted vote in the choice for the appointment to the 90th House district, Tazewell County Chairman Claude Stone will have the heaviest vote in the 45th Senatorial District.

Stone will have 45.2 percent of the vote, with the Woodford County chairman having 16.8 percent, the Logan County chairman 15.2 percent, DeWitt chairman 7.6 percent, Mason 6.8 percent, McLean 5.9 percent and Piatt 2.4 percent.

Stone said he has already had several people approach him about the appointment, but he referred them to the caucus chairman, Jered Hooker of DeWitt County. He said the GOP chairmen would not meet until after July 4.

The exercise, which simulates a disaster and provides training for the organizations that must cope with such a disaster, will be on Sept. 29 this year. Two simulations are planned, one in Mount Pulaski and one in Lincoln.

According to Mike Patridge, the Mount Pulaski exercise will be a simulated hostage situation and will be at the Mount Pulaski High School. Because the date is a Saturday, no students will be present, and students will not be used in the exercise, he said. The state police Tactical Unit and local fire and police departments will take part.

The second exercise, to be held in Lincoln, will simulate a chlorine leak. Chlorine is the most hazardous material usually found in a community.

Lisa Funk, member of the response and preparedness committee and an electrical energy dispatcher for CILCO, said she has applied for a $30,000 state grant to buy two Bullard thermal imagers, one for the Lincoln Fire Department and one for Lincoln Rural Fire Department. The imagers allow firefighters to see people trapped in a burning building or identify "hot spots" even through smoke and flames.

"These units are really important if a life is at stake," she said. Lincoln Fire Department does have one thermal imager, but owning another would allow an imager to be used by another fire department, she noted.

Terry Storer, secretary of LEPC, reported that he is working on the threat assessment that has been requested by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of its planning to combat terrorism. Each county in every state is to make a local assessment of its vulnerability to terrorist attacks and also of its capabilities to handle any threat that might come up. The assessment includes identifying sites and functions that might be targets for terrorist attacks, such as utilities, places where the public is gathered, and firms dealing with genetic engineering and other biotechnology.

"It lets us see where we are and what we can do, then look at what we need to do to get where we need to be," Storer said.

The Department of Justice has $2 to $3 million available in grants to help communities prepare for terrorist incidents, he added. He said he would have the assessment finished by Sept. 1.

Dan Fulscher, president of LEPC, emphasized that while Logan County is good at dealing with tornadoes and floods, it needs to be better prepared for acts of terrorism, including bio-terrorism.

Sean O’Leary, liaison to LEPC from Illinois Emergency Management Agency, said that the state of Illinois is working on creating an Illinois State Police team that can respond to terrorist acts. He also said the National Guard has a team headquartered in Peoria that can handle hazardous material and terrorism threats.

O’Leary commended the Logan County LEPC on integrating the fire and police departments, as well as many other organizations, and on having representatives of so many community organizations at its meeting.

"You may be on the cutting edge of communities in the state," he told the group.

Meeting dates of Sept. 19 and Dec. 19 were set for the rest of 2001. LEPC will also have representatives in the emergency services tent at the Logan County Fair.

The drawings will be supplied by a Colorado firm which contacted the board and offered to send them drawings if the board sent an aerial photograph of the airport property, Logan said. The "Executive Course" would be a par 3 with nine holes, would take up only 12 acres of the 28-acre site, and would not interfere with the operation of the present airport, he added. He said if the golf course were built, the board would probably lease it out or hire a management firm.

"We got a letter and had a phone conversation with the Colorado company," Logan said. "If we do build the golf course, they would hope to put in a bid, but we are under no obligation to them."

At the Lincoln City Council meeting on June 26, Police Chief Richard Montcalm announced the approval of the grant by the Illinois Violence Prevention Authority. Montcalm, formerly in the position of community police officer, created the unique program for kindergarten through fourth grades. He said most such programs do not begin until sixth grade.

The program reaches all elementary schools in District 27, West Lincoln-Broadwell, Chester-East Lincoln and Carroll Catholic schools. The department has had funding for the program for the past 3½ years, but last year was the first time fourth-grade classes were added.

Every kindergarten class gets a 3½-hour lesson that deals with good and bad feelings and having disagreements in a positive way. First-grade classes deal with conflicts and how to settle them.

Second-grade sessions emphasize the bully problem, which often surfaces at that age. Third-graders learn cooperation and working in pairs, and fourth-graders build on the cooperation process and on conflict resolution.

The police department also works with the YMCA at seven locations after school and assists with summer camp, giving two violence prevention lessons each week of camp.

Montcalm is also working on a manual that will become a model for other programs in the state, so that police departments in other cities can utilize the program.

Last year, Montcalm had an article about the program published in the Community Police and Exchange Newsletter, which reached about 70,000 police departments and schools in the state.

He said that after the article appeared he had many inquiries about the program, some from as far away as New York, California and Florida. He said he would also soon have a website for the program.

Along with his new duties as police chief, Montcalm still teaches the violence prevention classes, with the help of Officer Bob Rawlins. He also teaches classes on police and law enforcement issues at Lincoln College and is working on a master’s degree in law enforcement and justice administration at Western Illinois University in Macomb.

The Lincoln City Council granted the license to operate a taxi business to new owner Gary Donley and terminated the license of former owner Kevin Sampson at a meeting Tuesday evening. Donley has been managing the company for the last year and a half.

Noting that the company has been in operation for seven years without an increase in rates, Donley said he would like to increase fares for the four zones to $3, $3.25, $3.75 and $4. Increases would not apply to senior citizens or the handicapped. He said the rising price of gasoline and the difficulty in getting good drivers is the reason for the increase.

The council did not grant the increase, or even discuss the matter, because that request must first be heard by the city’s ordinance committee.

Bill Bates, sitting in for City Attorney Jonathan Wright, told the council that Donley has insurance coverage of $250,000 per passenger for personal injury or death and $500,000 for property damage, meeting requirements of the secretary of state’s office.

Because the city code requires that the taxi service must be needed, Donley cited the many senior citizens and children going to school who use it, as well as the deliveries of prescription drugs made from pharmacies both in and out of town to Lincoln area residents.

Alderman Joseph Stone asked Donley if the company would continue to use former state police cars and if Donley planned to improve the quality of the vehicles. Donley said he intended to continue to buy state police cars at auction because the company could not afford to purchase new ones.

Stone also asked if Donley intended to improve the appearance of his drivers. "The drivers now look extremely casual, with jeans and even cut-off jeans. They don’t present a professional appearance," Stone said.

Donley replied that he was putting a dress code into effect similar to the one used in Springfield. He described it as a "pretty standard" dress code.

Because Sampson’s license has already expired, the council, acting as the Public Vehicle Licensing Board, approved the license to take effect immediately.

The company presently operates two taxis, with hours on Sunday through Thursday from 5:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. and on Friday and Saturday from 5:30 a.m. until 3 a.m.

IDOT request

In other business, the council decided not to take any action on a request from Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) that the city take over Fifth Street, Logan Street, North Kickapoo, and service lanes of Postville Drive and Feldman Drive.

"IDOT is trying to rid themselves of unmarked routes," Street Superintendent Donnie Osborne told the council. I’m not sure it would be in the city’s interest to consider that." If the city takes over the streets, it will be responsible for all maintenance.

Alderman George Mitchell, chairman of the streets and alleys committee, noted that he had seen "little tiny stress cracks" on Fifth Street.

"If it becomes our baby, then we’re going to have to take care of it. We want to think about the obligation it lets the city in for."

Council members decided not to consider taking over the streets at this time. "The option is always going to be there if we want it," Osborne said.

Bids for a 2001 skid loader for the street department were opened. Bobcat of Springfield gave a final bid of $15,789 plus freight; Central Illinois Ag at Atlanta bid $16,479; McCann Industries of Springfield bid $22,510; Martin Equipment Corporation of Springfield bid $20,125; Cross Brothers of Mount Pulaski bid $21,000. The council will consider the bids at its next regular meeting July 2.

Complaint

The council also heard a complaint that the hours of the animal control operation are not convenient and that telephone calls go unanswered. This complaint was referred to Logan County Board member Clifford Sullivan, in charge of the animal control division.

Vehicles parked downtown overnight

Another problem brought up Tuesday evening was the inability of the street department to clean downtown streets and remove snow because of parked vehicles. In spite of signs saying no parking from 2 to 5 a.m., some cars are always parked downtown, Osborne said.

"Some cars are in the same place every night. Some spaces have not been swept for years," he told the council. "It gets worse in the winter. We have complaints about snow not removed. They [car owners] would rather pay a $3 fine and have a parking place. The only way I know is to add towing costs."

Police Chief Rich Montcalm said that some cars have been ticketed every night, but owners continue to pay the fines and park in the streets.

Alderman Verl Prather, chairman of the police committee, said the only way to solve the problem is to make the downtown parking area a tow-away zone and charge for towing. The police committee will discuss the matter.

Individual requests from public

A request for signs on Oscar Street was also discussed. The petitioner has asked for "Slow, Children Playing" signs and for speed limit signs. Osborne said he believed the "Children Playing" signs would indicate the city condones children playing the streets. He said while some such signs remain in the city, the city is not putting up any new ones. He did recommended a speed limit sign of 20 miles per hour.

Council members also heard requests for curb cuts, sidewalk repair and taking down a sweet gum tree. Those requests will go to the council at the regular meeting July 2.

Other meetings

Mayor Beth Davis announced that the ordinance and zoning committee will meet at 6 p.m. July 2 to "revisit the ordinance and see what is required for a subdivision." Davis has said she would like to continue discussions with developer Rodney White about the proposed East Park subdivision on Sherman Street.

Plans for the subdivision stalled last week when the council approved White’s plat only on condition he pay half the cost of upgrading Sherman Street. White had asked the city to upgrade the street, at city expense, sometime in the future.

Davis also announced a public hearing on the appropriations ordinance on July 10 at 7 p.m.

The council adjourned to executive session to discuss compensation for the city’s assistant fire chiefs and well as a replacement for City Attorney Wright, who has been named to fill the unexpired term of state representative vacated by John Turner.