City of West Frankfort City Council met Feb. 28.
Here are the minutes provided by the council:
1. Mayor Jordan Called The Meeting To Order At 6:00 P.M.
Requesting A Roll Call. Commissioners Howard And Stanley Were In Attendance. Along With The City Attorney And City Clerk. Commissioner Harkins And Warren Were Absent.
2. Mayor Jordan Asked For Approval Of The Minutes From The February 14th, 2023 Regular Council Meeting. Commissioner Howard Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Stanley. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
3. The Next Item Was Approval To Pay City Bills And Payroll In The Amount Of $191,917.84. Commissioner Stanley Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Howard. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
4. The Next Item Was Approval Of A Proclamation Regarding The West Frankfort Girl Scouts. Mayor Jordan Stated March 12, 2023 Marks The 111th Anniversary Of Girl Scouts In The USA. And The Proclamation Declared The Week Of March 12-18, 2023 As Girl Scout Week. The Leaders Of The Troop Along With Some Of The Girls Were Present For The Meeting. They Stated They Are Always Accepting More Girls For Their Troops, That It Is Hard To Get Members Now That The Schools Will Not Allow Them To Hand Out Material Anymore. Commissioner Howard Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Stanley. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
5. The Next Item Was Approval To Accept Bids Regarding Surplus Property. The Mayor Stated The Property Is At 810 East St. Louis Street. We Have Received Two Bids, The First One Is From William Gass Who Submitted A Bid Of $1,250.00 The Second One Was From Castel Industries Who Bid $1,000.00. The Council Agreed To Accept The High Bid From William Gass.
Commissioner Howard Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Stanley. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
6. The Next Item Was Approval To Advertise For Bids For Demolition. The Mayor Stated These Are Properties We Acquired From The Trustee At The Tax Sale. They Are 511 North Horn 11-24-209-004, 101 1⁄2 Stewart Street 11-24-304-006, 704 South Skelton Which Has Two (2) Lots 11-24-481-007 And 11- 24-481-006, 805 West St Louis 11-24-185-025, 708 North Palmer 11- 24-130-004 That The City Now Owns And Then 2003 East Elm 12-20- 335-004 We Do Not Own But Have Acquired A Judicial Deed For Demolition. Commissioner Stanley Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Howard. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
7. The Next Item Was Approval Of A Resolution Approving The Sale Of Real Estate Deemed As Surplus. The Mayor Stated Two Weeks Ago We Signed A Letter Of Intent; This Is For The Property Out Next To Taco Bell. It Gives A Description Of The Property, We Have Had An Appraiser Come To Appraise The Property, This Will Give Us The Right To Sell It For $225,000.00. Commissioner Howard Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Stanley. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
8. The Next Item Was Discussion, With Possible Action, Regarding Approval To Accept The Recommendations Of The Planning Commission. The Mayor Stated The Planning Commission Met Last Night What We Talked About Is Limiting The Amount Of Billboard Digital Signs On Main Street. We Have Approved Two (2) Already, There Was An Application For A Third (3) One At Raubach Video Parking Lot Next To CVS. Since Several People Were Not At The Planning Commission Meeting And The Salesman For These Signs Was, I Told Him We Would Just Have To Wait To Make A Decision About The Number Of These Signs We Will Allow In Our Downtown Area. At The Next Council Meeting On March 14th, We Will Have A Recommendation From The Planning Commission. They Will Decide Whether We Limit It To Two (2) Or Three (3) Signs In The Downtown Area. There Will Be No More Than Three (3). These Signs Are 10x30 Or 10x20 And 30 Foot Off The Ground. This Item Was Tabled Until The Next Council Meeting.
9. The Next Item Was Approval Of To Purchase Ballistic Vests And Carriers For The Auxillary Police In The Amount Of $5,243.94 From Ray O'Herron. The Amount Decreased From The Original Invoice Because We Only Need Five (5) Instead Of Six (6) As Originally Quoted So The New Amount Is For $4,369.95. Commissioner Stanley Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Howard. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
10. The Next Item Was Approval To Purchase Security/Traffic
Cameras To Be Placed In Our Downtown Area In The Amount Of $25,939.51. These Will Be Purchased From Novacom There Will Be Four Camera's At Three Intersections. They Are Jefferson/Main, Emma/Main And The Hwy 149/Rt 37. The New Amount Is $26,939.51 To Purchase The Better Cameras That Can Detect License Plates On Cars As Well As Year Make And Model Of A Vehicle. These High Resolution Cameras Will Be Placed At 149 & Rt 37. Commissioner Howard Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Stanley. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
11. The Next Item Was Approval To Reimburse A Portion Of The Demolition Costs For 101 W. Main Street To John Mize In The Amount Of $25,800.00. The Mayor Stated We Were Able To Reach An Agreement With Mr. Mize That He Agreed That It Was His Responsibility To Tear That Building Down. But That He Did Not Have That Kind Of Money To Do So. Mr. Mize Had Received A Quote Of $51,600.00 From Earth Services. We Signed An Agreement With Him That Stated If He Would Demolish That Building Then We Would Reimburse Him Fifty 50% Percent Of The Cost. Mr. Mize Would Then Turn Over That Property To The City. Commissioner Howard Asked Would We Not Be Better To Pay Earth Works Directly? The Mayor Stated He Did Not Want The City To Be Involved At All Because Of The Liability, Its All On Him. There Was Asbestos In That Building That He Had To Have That Remediated, Since He Owned The Building. Mr. Mize Was Responsible During The Demolition. Commissioner Howard Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Stanley. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
12. The Next Item Was Approval Of A Proposed New Collective Bargaining Agreement Between The City And Local 2402 International Association Of Fire Fighters, AFL-CIO, CLC To Cover The Period Of March 1, 2023 Through February 28, 2026. The Mayor Stated He Was Hopeful To Have The Documents Ready To Be Signed But This Item Was Tabled Until Next Council Meeting.
13. The Next Item Was Approval Of A Proposed New Collective Bargaining Agreement Between The City And Laborers Local 773/Water Maintenance Department To Cover The Period Of March 1, 2023 Through February 28, 2026. The Mayor Stated He Was Hopeful To Have The Documents Ready To Be Signed But This Item Was Tabled Until Next Council Meeting.
14. The Next Item Was Approval Of A Proposed New Collective Bargaining Agreement Between The City And Laborers Local 773/Street Maintenance Department To Cover The Period Of March 1, 2023 Through February 28, 2026. The Mayor Stated He Was Hopeful To Have The Documents Ready To Be Signed But This Item Was Tabled Until Next Council Meeting.
15. The Next Item Was Approval Of An Invoice From D.A. Wilburn Construction, LLC In The Amount Of $1,850.00 Regarding Installation Of A Custom-Made Steel Slab Door And Closer For The WFBI. The Mayor Stated He Talked To Don Gass Today And What This Is, Is A Custom Made Door For A Building Built In 1970's With Concrete And Brick Walls So This Must Be Made. Commissioner Stanley Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Howard. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
16. The Next Item Was Approval To Pay An Invoice From Skuta Construction In The Amount Of $3,200.00 Regarding Sewer Repairs For A Collapsed Sewer Line. This Was For A Sewer Line Repair At The 1700 Block In The Alley Between Oak And Elm Street. The Tap Was 7 Feet Deep So Too Deep For Our Department To Handle. Commissioner Stanley Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Howard. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
17. The Next Item Was Approval To Pay An Invoice From K & E Technical, Inc. In The Amount Of $5,136.34 Regarding Emergency Repairs To The Ladder Truck. Chief Sailliez Stated The Main Hydraulic Cylinders Were Leaking On One Side And They Went Ahead And Repaired Both Sides. This
Controls The Raising And Lowering Of The Ladder On Our Engine. K&E Technical Stopped Everything They Were Doing To Get Us Back In Service. Commissioner Howard Made A Motion To Approve, Seconded By Commissioner Stanley. Roll Call Vote: All Commissioners And Mayor Jordan Voted To Approve. Motion Carried.
18. Building And Sign Permits -
There Were No Building Or Sign Permits.
19. Mayor's Report -
The Mayor Stated That He Has Received Word From G. David Green That Wendy's Will Be Building On Site At Main/Logan By This Fall. Which Is Earlier Than Previously Planned It Was Supposed To Be Done In The Spring Of 2024. We Have The Plans For That And It Looks Really Nice.
I Want To Thank Thad For Everything He Has Done, Also The Office Staff That Helps Out.
Commissioner Reports:
Police Chief Prudent Stated The New Trucks Are On The Road. The Reason We Bought Them Over A Car Is The Initial Cost, What We Paid For Them And What The Value Of Them Are; It's A No Brainer. We Have A Lot Of Equity In Them Already.
Fire Chief Sailliez Stated That They Had Helped The Guys At The Sewer Plant Today. It All Went Very Well And Smoothly. We Had A Couple Other Departments Come Up Here And Assist With The Dive.
The Mayor Stated That We Have Two Pumps Out Here North Of Town That Probably Pump Some Where Around 50,000 Gallons Of Water A Minute And One Of The Propellers Had Fallen Off So We Had To Go Down And Get It. Commissioner Stanley Stated They Found Four (4) Total. The Dive Team Came Up Here And Did That As A Training Exercise So It Cost Us Nothing. We Need To Send All Those Departments That Helped A Thank You Letter And Let Them Know We Appreciate It.
Commissioner Stanley Stated The Fire Department Guys Did A Great Job As Well As The Street Department Getting It All Set Up Out At The Sewer Plant. They All Worked Well Together. The Street Guys Were Out In The New Street Sweeper They Are All Liking It And Glad To Have It.
Commissioner Howard Stated That We Have Been A Little Short Handed For A Couple Of Months And People Have Stepped Up To Help. Even People From Other Departments. I Just Want Them To Know I Really Appreciate That.
Audience Questions Or Comments:
Mr. Danny Loeh Was In The Audience And Just Wanted To Say Thank You To The City Of West Frankfort For The New Roof For Their Building. B2n Will Be Back As Soon As The Weather Breaks To Put On All New Facia, Trim On Our Building Free Of Charge They Have Been Really Good To Us. We Are Still Receiving Several Items As Donations To The Museum. He Stated I Always Try To Suggest To Them To Keep These Items If They Have Any Family Members Left And To Pass Them On To Them, But Most Do Not So We Take These Items And Make Sure They Are On Display And Taken Care Of. His Family Brought It In A Long Time Ago Before I Started Helping Out Up There. It Was A Helmet From The Thomzak Family. The Helmet Showed Us A Single Bullet Had Entered One Side And Exited The Other. We Have Several Other Items Just Like This One For People To Come Visit And Check Out.
I Have One More Thing I Want To Ask You. We Had A Boy Who Was Killed In 2006 Matthew Vosbein By A Roadside Bomb. He Was Brought Back To West Frankfort And Buried. Mr. Loeh Would Like To Have That Street Renamed Matthew Vosbein Way To Honor Him. The Mayor Asked You Want Anna Street From Your Location Going South To Be Named That Correct? Mr. Loeh Said "Yes." The Mayor Said He Will Look Into Getting That Changed And Stated If Anyone Deserves To Have A Street Named After Them, He Sure Does.
Mr. Loeh Saif That They Would Also Like For The Parking Lot To Be Asphalted. Commissioner Stanley Stated He Is Already Working On That. Mr Loeh Stated We Will Start Being Open Now That The Weather Has Broke On The Weekends Starting March 5th, 2023. And If Anyone Every Wants To Visit It To Give Him A Call He Is Willing To Open It Up Day Or Night.
20. With No Further Business To Be Discussed, The Meeting Was Adjourned On A Motion By Commissioner Howard At 6:40 P.M.
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