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Beardstown City Council backs bike-path grant application, approves four TIF awards and tables IAFF contract
Summary
At its Sept. 17 meeting, the Beardstown City Council authorized a resolution supporting an ITEP bike-path grant application, approved four TIF grant awards to local businesses totaling $88,998.98 in maximum amounts, approved routine minutes and consent items, and voted to table a tentative IAFF Local 3155 agreement.
Beardstown City Council on Sept. 17 voted to support a state grant application for a city bike path, approved multiple tax-increment-financing (TIF) awards to local businesses and tabled a tentative labor agreement with the fire-and-ambulance union.
Alderperson Dawn Seward moved and Alderperson Mary Davis seconded adoption of a resolution supporting an application to the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP) for construction and associated engineering of a bike path; the resolution passed by a 7-0 roll call vote with Alderpersons Lisa Buhlig, Ron Culves, Mary Davis, Eric Harbin, Keith Schramm, Dawn Seward and Shawn Taylor voting yea and Chris Baer absent. The resolution authorizes the city to pursue the ITEP grant; the transcript records approval of the resolution but does not specify the precise project budget or local match amount.
The council also approved a series of TIF applications meant to support downtown and local business improvements. The motions and approved not-to-exceed amounts recorded in the meeting minutes were:
- Beardstown E&M Electric: $10,323.98 (motion by Alderperson Eric Harbin; second Lisa Buhlig). - Mary B. Tillitt-Pratt d/b/a Beardstown Plaza, 25 Plaza Drive: $36,750.00 (motion by Alderperson Ron Culves; second Eric Harbin). - Mary B. Tillitt-Pratt d/b/a Beardstown Plaza, 21 Plaza Drive: $36,750.00 (motion by Alderperson Eric Harbin; second Shawn Taylor). - Marilyn Pilger d/b/a 4 All Seasons Flowers & Gifts: $5,175.00 (motion by Alderperson Dawn Seward; second Eric Harbin).
Each TIF award passed on a 7-0 roll call vote (Buhlig, Culves, Davis, Harbin, Schramm, Seward and Taylor voting yea; Baer absent). The minutes record the approved maximum amounts but do not provide contract terms, project timelines, or specific eligible expenditures for each award.
Labor negotiations for the city’s fire-and-ambulance personnel also advanced but did not conclude. Alderperson Dawn Seward moved and Alderperson Mary Davis seconded a motion to table the tentative agreement between the City of Beardstown and International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 3155 representing fire and ambulance employees; the motion to table passed 7-0. The minutes record the tabling action but do not summarize the terms of the tentative agreement or the reason the council chose to table it.
On routine business the council dispensed with the reading of the Sept. 3 minutes (motion by Seward; second by Davis) and approved the consent agenda (motion by Eric Harbin; second by Shawn Taylor). City Clerk Brian Ruch presented August financial figures: monthly cash receipts of $1,230,881.80 and cash disbursements of $1,375,654.25; the Treasurer reported combined checking balances including a General Fund balance of $3,180,592.49 and Special Revenue Funds of $4,197,643.63. The meeting packet also included ambulance-service statistics for August: Beardstown recorded 63 calls with $49,448.00 in charges and $23,944.17 in collections for the period; Virginia recorded 34 calls and $35,478.00 in charges for August.
With no further business, Alderperson Mary Davis moved and Alderperson Dawn Seward seconded adjournment; the council adjourned at 8:05 p.m.
Next steps recorded in the minutes: the city is authorized to proceed with an ITEP grant application for the bike-path project and staff may carry out the administrative steps needed to finalize the approved TIF awards. The minutes do not set a date for further action on the IAFF tentative agreement.
