 Fifth Street RoadCity Alderman Buzz Busby asked that it be
added to next week's agenda that the city of Lincoln should write a
letter to our representatives, urging that the Fifth Street Road
project be added to Illinois' list of infrastructure improvements
that has been submitted to President-elect Barrack Obama.
The president-elect has said on several occasions that he intends
to put federal funding into infrastructure projects across the
nation once he takes office in January.
This week, Gov. Blagojevich announced that he had given the state
of Illinois' "wish list" to the president-elect's staff. (Related
article)
Bubsy said that the city of Lincoln needs to do the same, letting
the representatives and the president know that the Fifth Street
road project is almost "shovel-ready" and there is need of $6
million to complete the project.
Busby said that this was not at all related to the request for a
letter seeking the city's fair share of bailout funds.
Previously tabled items: Campus View Drive and enterprise zone
The Campus View sewer request from Lincoln Christian College was
tabled at the meeting Dec. 8. Details of this discussion were
available in LDN on Friday. (See
article.) The issue is expected to be voted on at the council's
next business session, on Monday.
Representatives of International Coal Group Illinois, LLC, owner
of the Viper coal mine at Elkhart, were present this week to discuss
an enterprise zone request that has been tabled since Nov. 17. The
council is expecting to vote on this on Monday as well.
For more information on the enterprise zone, visit the related
link at the end of this article.
Tax levy
Prior to the workshop meeting, there was a public hearing for the
purpose of allowing residents of the city of Lincoln to comment and
ask questions regarding the 2008 city tax levy.
No one had any comment.
The tax levy, amounting to $1,601,463 for 2008, will be added to
the agenda for final approval on Monday.
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Clinton Landfill agreement
David Kitzmiller, wastewater treatment manager for the city of
Lincoln, reported to council members that he and city attorney Bill
Bates are creating an agreement between the city of Lincoln and the
Clinton Landfill. He says that work on the agreement is still under
way and that it will be brought to the council in the near future.
The agreement in regard to the Clinton Landfill involves the city of
Lincoln taking the leachate from that landfill and processing it
through the city's waste treatment plant.
A very simple and broad definition of leachate is that it is water
extracted from the landfill that may be chemically contaminated as a
result of contact with the actual trash in the landfill.
The city of Lincoln's waste treatment facility has the ability to
safely treat landfill leachates.
Electric supplier for city
Kitzmiller reported that he and Bates have also received and
reviewed the agreement for a new electric supplier for the city.
They are not satisfied with the agreement as it is and will be
working together in the future to see what they can do about it.
They will keep the council abreast as progress is made.
Disposal of vehicle
Finally, Kitzmiller reported that there is a city truck that was
involved in an accident and consequently totaled. It is estimated
that the truck, a Ford F-250 diesel, is worth approximately $6,300
and the cost to repair it will run about $10,000.
The council discussed this and agreed that the insurance payment
should be accepted and the truck sold as is.
Money received from the insurance and the sale of the vehicle can
be placed against the cost of a replacement.
Kitzmiller told the council that he sees no reason to replace the
vehicle quickly; he says it can be added to next year's budget if
they choose to do so.
Voting on the matter has been added to the agenda for the meeting
Monday.
Patch work is nearly finished
During the council meeting, city engineer Mark Mathon told council
members that all the street patch work was now complete with one
exception. The work being done at Union and Clinton streets was
still under way.
On Friday, Mathon told LDN that the work was completed.
[By NILA SMITH]
Past related stories
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