Thursday, July 18, 2013
 
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COUNTY BRIEFS

Bridges, cemeteries and economic development

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[July 18, 2013]  The Logan County Board met on Thursday for the scheduled board of whole meeting. There were short discussions on a number of topics brought to the board's attention.

The meeting began with a moment of silence in memory of Art Neitzel.

Bridge construction

County engineer Bret Aukamp provided some announcements concerning a few roads in the county:

  • The rail crossing at Bell Station will be closed next week for replacement. This is about four miles north of Lincoln on old Route 121 to Hartsburg. The closing will last through Friday.

  • The Deer Creek bridge on Primm Road, south of the high school, should be open soon. The concrete was still curing as of Friday. Aukamp said he is still receiving information from the Illinois Department of Transportation as to new weight restrictions, if any.

  • IDOT has plans to replace a bridge on Lincoln Parkway. Work should begin in the fall, with closure occurring from March through November in 2014.

Concerns over Logan cemeteries

Larry Howen and Ron Ritchhart of the Logan County Cemetery District were present at the meeting to address some concerns that have been brought to the board's attention. Multiple board members said they have heard complaints from county citizens over the maintenance of county cemeteries.

The county board does not have complete authority over the cemetery district, other than appointing members to the district board. The cemetery district has five full-time employees and two part-time employees to maintain 44 cemeteries.

Board member Chuck Ruben asked Howen about the conditions of the Hartsburg and Bethel cemeteries, as those two have been mentioned to him several times. Howen said the cemetery district recently heard the opposite from people in the county, and that he had received a letter of thanks from Bethel Cemetery.

Board member Kevin Bateman asked Howen about the state of the Mount Pulaski Cemetery. Bateman said he has seen tombstones in the cemetery that are covered with grass after the mowing is finished. Howen said the employees are instructed to clean the tombstones after mowing, but he has also seen the same problem.

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Terry Carlton said the complaint he has heard concerns those who are mowing the grass in the cemeteries. Carlton said that when people bring these issues to the attention of the mowers, they are met with disrespectful replies.

Howen agreed with the board members on their concerns and said that these issues will be discussed at future meetings of the cemetery district personnel. Howen also said he would be willing to speak with board members again at future county meetings.

"My goal when I joined the board was to make the cemeteries better, and we're listening to what you are saying," said Howen.

Economic development considerations

On the subject of economic development, Bateman brought up a piece of information. Bateman said he had heard that the city of Lincoln is looking to hire a consultant to determine how to bring businesses to Lincoln. Bateman said he was under the impression that the Lincoln & Logan Development Partnership had someone for that job already, and it seems like an unnecessary expenditure.

Ruben said he imagines the city of Lincoln is looking for someone who will help Lincoln and not the whole of Logan County. Ruben also said he agreed that such a move seems redundant.

Hepler said that future meetings of the Executive and Economic Development Committee may explore this development.

Board members present for the meeting were vice chairman David Hepler, chairman Robert Farmer, Rick Aylesworth, Bill Martin, Andy Anderson, Kevin Bateman, Pat O'Neill, Gene Rohlfs, Chuck Ruben, Terry Carlton and Jan Schumacher. Larry Howen, Ron Ritchhart, Bret Aukamp and Mark Hilliard were present as guests.

[By DEREK HURLEY]

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