Wednesday, July 10

City wants railway wait station kept open

[JULY 10, 2002]  Rob Orr, owner of The Depot Restaurant, recently contacted the city to try to negotiate some recompense for hosting the Amtrak railway passenger building that sits on his property. Various agreements have existed in the past with numerous other owners of the property.

Orr has not had success in attempting to get Amtrak to assume some responsibility for the use and maintenance of the property. At present Orr is requesting that the city provide recompense via abatement of sewer payment, mowing the grass in the area of the building, and snow and ice removal of all walks from the front door to Broadway Street and around the area. The city already performs basic cleaning, repairs and maintenance of the building. The only objection raised was about liability issues and that was only over the snow and ice removal.

Orr is also looking for $5,400 back rent from someone for the use of the property. It was clearly agreed that the city would not consider paying this.

Alderman Melton pointed out that it is very important that we maintain that depot, with as much use as it gets with the colleges and other members of the community and area. He added, "We’d hate to give Amtrak a reason to stop stopping here."

Bud Miller from the Logan County Regional Planning Commission came before the council representing two requests, one made by a local business and the other by an organization. Logan Lanes and Mike Tackett from the American Legion have approached the planning commission about being included in the enterprise zone. The bowling alley sits between two properties, Wombacher and Behrends, already deemed enterprise zone. The American Legion sits directly behind Behrends and the bowling alley. It is proposed to include all of the northwest corner of NE ¼, NE ¼.

 


[Click on map to enlarge]

Miller said the commission talked it over and thought the whole quarter should be re-designated. The area proposed is bordered by the nursing home to the west, Fifth Street Road to the south, Hickox Drive to the east, including the motel property to the north. Miller stated that the commission voted unanimously for approval. It is on the agenda for discussion at the next city council meeting.

Robin Benz came before the council to apprise the city of a possible opportunity to improve living standards for area people with disabilities. Benz’s work with Home Ownership Coalition gave her an awareness of the needs in the community. She came as a concerned individual to explain that there are grants available. The grants are used for housing rehabilitation or economic development. CDAP/MARS grants can be attained for an area in a city or for individuals needing to modify their homes because of disabilities. The homeowner grants are targeted to assist low- to moderate-income individuals. The city would administrate such grants. The grants usually have a June deadline for submission. Benz suggests keeping this in mind for next year.

 

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There was considerable discussion over a request to remove a large tree at 1014 N. Logan. The tree in question is mostly on private property. The complainant suggested that it is a hazard, that large limbs could fall out of it. It was decided that the street superintendent, Donnie Osborne, will speak to the owner to get his opinion before any more discussion takes place.

Another citizen complaint lodged at last night’s meeting came from a Park Place resident. In her letter she said that the boulevard is being used by many pet owners as a "dumping place for animal waste." She stated that there are a lot of dog owners walking the boulevard and not cleaning up after their pets. "It is overbearing and often unpleasant," she said. She requests that the council educate the public about their responsibility to clean up after their animals.

Everyone present agreed completely that it is a serious matter and something needs to be done. Bill Bates, the city attorney, said, yes, the city does have an ordinance about this, and owners are expected to clean up after their dogs. There is a $25 fine for violating the ordinance.

Posting signs, assigning police to patrol the area, going to court for citations could all be done but would draw on valuable city resources. It is hoped that the residents of the area will recognize their responsibility, be good neighbors and comply with the ordinance via this reminder without further action.

Bates suggests that owners "start thinking about carrying baggies or a pooper-scooper." He added, "Park Place is the only place since I’ve been doing this job that we’ve had a complaint."

[Jan Youngquist]


City receives award for water treatment plant

[JULY 10, 2002]  Last year Lincoln won the George W. Burke Safety Award for its water treatment program. A plaque to commemorate the honor was given to city officials this spring at the Illinois Water Environment Association Conference.

"This is truly an honor. Only one city in Illinois receives this award each year," Grant Eaton, sewer plant manager, said recently. The award is presented to acknowledge and recognize facilities that demonstrate continued efforts to create a safe working environment.

In the announcement of the award last fall, the IWEA said: "Your current safety manuals and operating procedures are comprehensive and consolidated to meet the specific needs of your facility."

The award is given only after a lengthy process that begins with an application and includes inspections of the entire sewer plant.

Mayor Beth Davis congratulated Eaton on winning the award. Eaton said this wasn’t really his award but belonged to the entire city of Lincoln.

[Joan Crabb]

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