Following complaints by South Elm Street
neighbors, the council sought to stop completion of the renovation
in order to change from chip and oil to asphalt. The negotiation
with Illinois Valley Paving was successful, and the road will be
completed in the spring in asphalt for an estimated total cost
$612,372.07. The net change to the contract would be $50,871.63.
Watch where you park
--Handicapped-parking spaces:
Illinois law jumps the minimum fine from $100 to $250 and the
maximum to $350 per violation. The new measure requires
municipalities to amend their ordinances to the new fine amount at
their discretion.
City attorney Bill Bates said that this law already probably
brings more controversy to City Hall than other laws he has
encountered in four years. That was with the fine of $100, and he
couldn't imagine what is going to happen when it goes to $250. It
has been the biggest single problem he runs into as city attorney,
and he knows the mayor gets it every day and police chief gets it
every day and city clerk gets it every day. They are all harangued
daily about this. A lot of these folks that have these handicap
placards are senior citizens and they can't remember what they did
two minutes ago, let alone if they hung a placard up, he said.
The problem occurs with people who have placards and get a
ticket. They seem to think that just having one exempts them for a
fine, whether they displayed it properly or not. That is not what
the law says, Bates said.
Handicapped people are required to display their parking placard
in clear view, either on the dashboard or hung from the rearview
mirror, to avoid being ticketed. This is their responsibility, Mayor
Beth Davis reminded. "We are trying to protect them, and if an
individual has a disability and has a disabled placard, they have to
do that," she said.
"It is not the city council of the city of Lincoln making this
law," Bates said. "This new public act mandates that we increase the
fine to $250 minimum," So it is not something this city is trying to
do with handicap placard holders. Legislature in Springfield is
telling us we have to do it, he said.
Both Bates and the mayor recommended to the council to adopt the
minimum $250. Finance chair Verl Prather agreed, saying he wouldn't
want to go above that either.
The ordinance must be passed before the Jan. 1, 2006, when the
new state statute goes into effect.
A dozen new signs will soon be going up downtown. The city will
put up six parking signs reserving spaces around the courthouse and
six signs in Shay Parking Lot for courthouse employees.
The action is the result of a renewal of a former agreement that
stood between the city and county to allow all-day parking for legal
representatives working in the courthouse.
While the signs will read "Reserved Logan County Employee No. 1
(or 2, 3…)," they are for specific individuals, including the
state's attorney, public defenders and judges.
Curve ball
Wal-Mart will be resubmitting a new final plat. The engineers
contacted city engineer Mark Mathon because they have encountered
utility issues with a sewer line. The line will relocated, and an
amendment to the final plat will be presented to the planning
commission for approval on Oct. 20.
VFW renovations planned
A request to rezone the Lincoln VFW property from R-1 to C-1
passed both Lincoln Planning Commission and the council unanimously.
VFW representative Bill Melton said that the change was needed as
insurance for the facility to remain in its location in the future.
He said that in the event of a fire, if it were to burn as much as
60 percent, they would not be able to be rebuild as a veterans home
under the current zoning.
This information was discovered when the organization went to the
bank for a loan on some extensive remodeling. Remodeling plans are
mostly interior and include an elevator, handicapped-accessible
restrooms, plumbing, wiring and paint.
Finance
City attorney Bill Bates said that the debt certificates are
moving forward.
Annual tax abatement on the debt service for the alternate
revenue source general obligation bond that financed the city's
contribution toward the Goody's and Dollar Tree shopping area was
approved 9-0.
