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Zion council appoints Victor Ransom as public works director; approves towing contract, firefighters MOU and bills, hears website and tax concerns
Summary
At its June 3 meeting the Zion City Council appointed Victor Ransom as public works director, approved a towing services agreement and a firefighters MOU, approved bills totaling $473,304.09, and heard public comments about the city website and property tax increases; administrators also announced roughly $1.8 million in state funding and grant opportunities.
The Zion City Council on June 3 confirmed Victor Ransom as the city’s new public works director, approved several routine contracts and agreements, and heard residents raise concerns about the city website and property tax increases.
In a unanimous vote the council appointed Victor Ransom, a city employee reported to have worked with Zion since 1992, to lead public works. Ransom reserved comments for departmental time and later summarized ongoing utility work, saying the city has inventoried service lines and identified 42 lead or galvanized services among roughly 7,100 connections; he told the council the 2023 water quality report is the most recent posted and the 2024 report is due by 07/01/2025.
On the business agenda the council approved an updated towing services agreement with Rogers Towing (motion by Commissioner McDowell, second by Commissioner Fisher) and authorized a memorandum of understanding with Firefighters Local 1999 to clarify shift-change time-off language in the collective-bargaining terms; both items passed on roll call.
The council also approved bills and vouchers that included a Huntington National Bank entry totaling $473,304.09. Clerk Spooner called the vote and the motion to approve bills carried 5–0.
During public comment, Mary Lou Hildebrandt outlined volunteer activity for May (236.5 volunteer hours valued at $6,384) and urged residents to volunteer through the fire department and city website. Resident Kathy Champine pressed the council to update the online record — she said city pages such as recent minutes, liquor commission minutes and salary/benefits records are out of date — and noted her property-assessment increase; administrators said a redesigned website is near launch to address missing documents and searchability.
City Administrator Nate told the council that state budget allocations include $500,000 from Senator Eddy Allen and $500,000 from Representative Mason for operational grants, plus a potential $800,000 funding opportunity for construction of a new fire station, amounting to roughly $1.8 million in state/grant resources for the city.
Other departmental reports covered emergency-siren testing and possible replacement costs (chief said about $20,000 each) and new lakefront rescue-swimmer training and mutual-aid planning with neighboring fire departments ahead of the busy season. The council concluded with announcements about upcoming community events and a motion to adjourn.
