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Sesquicentennial
Mayor Beth Davis said that a couple of
bands that were rained out of the sesquicentennial celebration would
still like the opportunity to perform. She has looked into the
possibility of setting up the stages again on Saturday, Sept. 27.
The current suggested location is on Sangamon Street from Broadway
to Pulaski streets, just past Old Joe's tavern.
The businesses that have been contacted
in that area have agreed to the event.
The police have agreed to provide
security. Plans still need approval by the fire chief. Again,
alcohol would be permitted on the street and regulated by
wristbands.
Mayor Davis also said that she has
heard favorable comments from people who really enjoyed the
festivity in the downtown streets. It brought a lot of people
downtown, and there really weren't any problems. She said maybe we
could do this one or two times a year in the future.
Alderman Derrick Crane said that his
only concern was about how the businesses affected by street
closings might feel about it.
With only two weeks to prepare for the
event, the mayor said she would like to hear from any businesses
that might be affected. The planning committee meets today
(Wednesday) at 5 p.m. in her office. Anyone is welcome to attend.
The city will vote Monday on approving the event.
Four-way
stop
Neighbors near the corner of the 300
block of South McLean and Decatur streets have signed a petition
requesting a four-way stop sign. One hundred people say that they
are concerned for children crossing at the corner to gain access to
Scully Park.
The corner has a yield sign on Decatur
Street at present. However, councilwoman Jonie Tibbs said that she
has seen cars go tearing through that corner, and she herself has
had to brake for them (cars that were supposed to yield).
Assistant Police Chief Harley Mullins
was requested to get an opinion from Chief Rich Montcalm and request
that a survey be done to consider if a four-way stop sign would
provide more safety at that location.
Historical preservation
Lincoln will soon be taking a second
look at becoming involved in supporting local historical properties.
A request was presented at last night's meeting to endorse a
property as a local landmark. Mayor Davis said, "It is important to
preserve some of these structures."
Owners of properties that receive the
city's endorsement as historically significant are more likely to
receive state grants to restore or maintain the property.
City Attorney Bill Bates said the city
has no basis, ordinance or otherwise, upon which to declare
something as historical in value. If the city is going to approve
properties as historically valuable, there will need to be some
standards set.
The city passed up an opportunity
offered by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency soon after
Mayor Davis took office. At that time the council was overwhelmed by
the volume of information that had to be sifted through to make use
of the information. It was seen as too cumbersome to be of practical
use.
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Mayor Davis said that she is willing to
go through that information and look for what is applicable and what
will make it more manageable. She also said she will look up the
proposed ordinance that they had prepared and laid aside.
Scooters
A local businessman came before the
council to make a request. Paul Smith, who owns TNT Truck Repair,
has also begun another business. He is a dealer and distributor for
what he says are high-quality scooters. There are several types of
scooters that he sells, and he has had customers come from Peoria
and Springfield to buy them.
Scooters are available as both electric
and gas. The electric ones go about 20 mph and get about 22 miles
per charge.
Smith says sales have been good. A
scooter he put on the car showroom floor recently at Jim Xamis sold
right away. He's sold about 150 in two months so far. For every
scooter he sells there's about $35 tax, and that's good for the
city, he pointed out.
The problem comes in that, according to
the state, Illinois law does not regulate scooters. They say it is
up to local control.
According to Bates, city ordinance does
not allow for unlicensed scooters on city streets.
To get a license requires:
1. The operator have a driver's
license.
2. The vehicle be licensed by the
state.
Smith says the scooters come with VIN
numbers and suggests that the city print up licenses and charge a
registration fee for them.
Steve Fuhrer suggested that the city
should look at this a little closer. There could be problems such as
the speed of the scooters. If they are only going 5 mph on streets
with a speed limit of 30 mph, they could create a hazard.
Smith's response was that you have kids
riding bicycles who break the law.
Mayor Beth Davis thanked Smith for
presenting his request and said that they would take this matter
under consideration and get back to him.
EMC: Move
berm, don't move money
In other business, Grant Eaton of EMC
said that they have a suggestion for a project that will provide
long-term savings. The railroad is requesting that the city supply
liability insurance because a berm at the wastewater treatment plant
comes close to their property. The insurance costs $10,000-$15,000 a
year. Eaton says that the engineering firm has noted a manner of
moving the berm so that it no longer comes in proximity to the
railroad property, and then it will not need insuring. Moving the
berm will cost a one-time fee of about $30,000.
Eaton also
apprised the city that it has gone into the $230,000 contingency
fund about $107,000, so far. At the advice of the wastewater
treatment plant project supervisors, Benny Huskins and Tom Thomas, he
thinks that the full contingency fund should be kept in place. There
could still be other costs, such as those requested recently by the
Femley-Dickerson Company.
[Jan
Youngquist] |
