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Lincoln City Council
Street closure gets council’s support; police seek additional deputy
chief
[September 25, 2025]
The Lincoln City Council’s
Committee of the Whole covered a wide slate of issues Tuesday,
September 23, from infrastructure upgrades and street use to
economic development and police staffing.
Andrew Bowns opened the discussion with a required permit renewal
project at the city’s wastewater treatment plant. The Illinois EPA
now mandates dechlorination before discharge into Salt Creek.
“We add bleach to the water for pathogen inactivation so we can
discharge it,” Bowns explained. “As part of our permit, we now have
to remove the bleach … so it’s not going into Salt Creek
chlorinated.” He said sodium bisulfite will be injected to
neutralize the chlorine.
Bowns reported Grunloh Construction was the low bidder at $437,600.
Though he and CMT had not worked with the company before, he said
their references “were very happy with their work” and the council
agreed to move the project forward.
Mayor Tracy Welch then introduced a proclamation recognizing
Constitution Week from Sept. 17-23. Reading aloud, he noted the U.S.
Constitution as “the guardian of our liberties” and urged residents
to remember “that lost rights may never be regained.” The council
placed the proclamation on the regular agenda.
Council also approved a permit request to close 10th Street between
Union and Chestnut for Halloween festivities. City Clerk Peggy
Bateman said the closure is requested annually by a resident who
“goes all out for kids and decorates for trick or treating.”
Street and Alley Superintendent Walt Landers presented updates to
city code restricting semi-truck traffic on neighborhood streets. He
said resurfacing on Union Street prompted new concerns, noting, “We
want to eliminate the truck traffic from going from Lincoln Parkway
up to Woodlawn Road. Basically, we would rather keep those trucks on
the state routes.”
He explained GPS directions often mislead drivers to the old bottle
factory, leading to trucks on inappropriate roads. Mayor Welch
supported the measure, saying, “We’re investing a lot of money and
time in our roads … if these are the type of actions we need to do
to preserve them, then it seems logical to me.”
A lengthy discussion followed on leasing 500 Broadway Street to
Lincoln Economic Advancement & Development, Inc. Welch said the
building could serve as “an incubator” and a “one-stop shop” for
businesses, calling Andrea Runge “the perfect” person to manage it.
He proposed waiving rent because “she is going to be serving the
City of Lincoln in that capacity.” Runge said she was “excited about
the opportunity”
She explained a grant will allow
her to hire an executive assistant to manage the space. The council
agreed to place a lease agreement on a future agenda.
[to top of second column] |
Discussion turned
to rental use of the historic depot on North Chicago Street.
Clerk Bateman described its success hosting a Gold Star cycling
group earlier that day, calling it “a great place for anything
like this.”
Alderman Kevin Bateman
voiced concern about fragile antiques in the space, saying he would
prefer it used for “more adult type events.” Welch said requirements
such as proof of insurance, deposits, and upgraded security systems
would help protect the building. The city attorney John Hoblit will
draft an agreement for review.
Police Chief Joe Meister requested adding a second deputy chief to
better manage administrative duties, noting the department is at 28
sworn officers for the first time in nearly five years.
“Most police departments that are above 20 employees have more than
one administrative deputy,” he said.
Meister described the workload of
training, policy management, and grant compliance, adding, “It’s
been a necessity for years…It just would have been impossible with
the staffing shortages we had.” Council members questioned funding
and timeline, and Meister said no changes would occur before January
2026.
City attorney Hoblit and Alderman Kevin Bateman updated the council
on a potential annexation tied to the Keystone solar project.
Hoblit said Keystone and landowner negotiations were ongoing and
“the new timeline on this is the latter part of October or into
early November.”
Bateman noted Ameren identified a large gas line requiring
reconfiguration but confirmed, “They did get awarded the
interconnect … now they’re just figuring out, once they reconfigure
the solar grid, then they’ll be able to tell us what parcel numbers
they’re looking at annexing into the city.”
The meeting closed with announcements of a Sept. 27 ribbon cutting
at the David W. Schroeder Memorial Garden and the city’s first fall
movie night at Eighth Street Park. Welch invited the public, saying,
“Bring your family, bring your friends … it’s a nice little
collaboration.”
[Sophia Larimore] |
