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Lincoln City Council hears solar
setbacks and utility frustrations
[July 07, 2025]
The Lincoln City Council
will hold its first voting session for the month of July tonight
(Monday, July 7th). This is one of those rare occasions when the
first Monday of the month and the second Tuesday of the month
(typically a committee of the whole night) come back-to-back. In
order to spread out the meetings appropriately, the Tuesday night
meetings will be held on July 15th and 29th.
The council held its Committee of the Whole meeting for June on the
24th. All eight alderpersons were on hand to set the agenda for the
tonight’s voting session.
Topics included a long-delayed solar project, sidewalk reimbursement
changes, infrastructure repairs, and discussion regarding Ameren
Anthony Fotopoulos of Keystone Power Holdings joined the meeting via
Zoom to discuss a proposed amendment to the city’s solar system
lease agreement. The amendment would allow additional construction
time and require a $1,500 payment to the city.
Fotopoulos also gave background on Keystone’s efforts to construct a
new solar array east of the current one at the city’s wastewater
treatment plant. “You pay four cent power for the solar power versus
right now, it's like 12 cents or so for Ameren,” he said, adding
that the new project would expand savings through a state-supported
community solar program.
Despite Keystone’s readiness to
begin, Fotopoulos said they’ve been unable to move forward due to
utility delays. “Ameren made us pay almost $200,000 for [a piece of
equipment], and it doesn’t work, and they don’t want anything to do
[with] it,” he told the council. “It’s their equipment. It’s not our
equipment. We had to pay for it, and it’s been a bit of a
nightmare.”
Alderman Kevin Bateman echoed the frustration, stating, “Ameren has
been the big stickler here the entire time.” He said the city had
been generating reduced solar power for months due to a faulty
tracking system. Although the system is now functioning, Ameren has
informed Keystone they won’t fix it again. As a result, Keystone is
paying to replace it themselves.
Looking ahead to the next solar array, Fotopoulos warned that
connection to the Ameren grid may not happen until “late 2026,”
despite the city already paying over a million dollars in upgrades.
“We can’t turn them on until Ameren approves it,” he said.
The council also discussed a repair to Pump 1 at the Lincolnwood
Lift Station. Andrew Bounds proposed a “not to exceed” price of
$19,383.76. He estimated the repair would add another 10 to 15 years
of life to the pump.
Bateman asked if the city should consider purchasing a spare pump in
case of future failure. “With our aged infrastructure, we're going
to have a major downtime at one point,” he said. Bounds agreed and
said he would begin preparing a proposal for a backup system.
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In other business,
the council considered raising the sidewalk reimbursement rate
from $2 to $6 per square foot. Walt Landers explained the move
was long overdue. “We've had a rate of $2 per square foot
reimbursement for, ever since I’ve been here. Which is over 11
years. It's past time to get this increased.”
The new reimbursement
rate would cover roughly half the cost of replacement. Landers
outlined the pre- and post-inspection process: “ADA and construction
standards have to be met according to city code... and if it
doesn’t... they don’t get the reimbursement.”
Other agenda items included an amendment to the general sewer
engineering work order, an increase in labor funding for the city’s
LED lighting project, and the introduction of a new ordinance
establishing a code of conduct and corresponding commission. City
Attorney John Hoblit explained the new code would apply to all
elected officials and formalize expected standards of behavior.
Alderwoman Robin McClallen praised Hoblit and added “It’s really
about respect.”
The council also heard a road closure request for a car show
scheduled for July 19, as well as final details about the city’s
purchase of a former bank building. Mayor Tracy Welch clarified that
tourism and economic development were the only intended uses for the
space.
During announcements, Alderman Kevin Bateman clarified power
requirements for vendors participating in the city’s Third Friday
events. He explained that the application form’s “power” checkbox
refers specifically to standard 110-volt outlets, not high-capacity
hookups. “You can’t run three gigantic roasters off a 14-gage
extension cord, 100 feet long, and not expect it to be so hot you
can’t grab it,” he said. Bateman emphasized that no water service is
available and advised vendors to plan accordingly. “If you have
questions, contact the Third Friday committee,” he added. “They will
be more than gracious to give you my phone number.”
The next regular city council meeting is scheduled for Monday, July
7.
[Sophia Larimore]
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