North Egypt News

City of Benton City Council met April 24.

Here are the minutes provided by the council:

Minutes Of The Regularly Scheduled Benton City Council Meeting Held Tuesday, April 22, 2024 At 5 P.M. In The Benton Municipal Building Located At 1403 South Main Street Benton, Illinois.

Mayor Messersmith Called The Meeting To Order. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Cockrum, Commissioner Cockrum, Commissioner Storey And Mayor Messersmith Were Present For Roll Call.

Commissioner Kays Made A Motion To Approve The Minutes Of The Regularly Scheduled Council Meeting Held On Tuesday, April 9, 2024 At 5 P.M. In The Benton Municipal Building Located At 1403 South Main Street Benton, Illinois. Seconded By Commissioner Cockrum. Vote Was Taken.

Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

Commissioner Garavalia Stated That She Had No Purchase Orders For Approval. She Stated That She Had Completed Spraying For Ants At Twin Oaks.

Commissioner Garavalia Stated That She Has Had A Discussion With Public Works Director Craig Regarding Capital Park Restroom Renovation. Commissioner Garavalia Stated That The Renovations Can Be Done For Around $2,000.00. Commissioner Garavalia Made A Motion To Approve Renovations To Capital Park For $2,000.00. Second By Commissioner Storey. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

Commissioner Cockrum Stated That He Had No Purchase Orders For This Meeting.

Commissioner Cockrum Made A Motion To Approve The Swimming Pool Sewer Adjustment For Lacey Smothers Of 1103 South Lickliter Street. Second By Commissioner Storey. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

Commissioner Cockrum Stated That He Had No Lake Lot Lease Transfers For This Meeting.

Commissioner Storey Stated That He Had No Purchase Orders Or Department Reports For This Meeting. As An Update, Commissioner Storey Stated That Engine 803 Is Being Towed To Belleville. Commissioner Storey Also Stated That Zackary Andrews Has Passed All His Testing And Will Be Going To The Police Training Institute On May 5, 2024. Commissioner Storey Also Stated That He Has 2 Retiring In The Next Month, Jeff Coleman From The Fire Department And Brent Erthall From The Police Department.

Commissioner Kays Made A Motion To Approve Payroll For April 12, 2024 From The General Fund In The Amount Of $86,967.71 And Water And Sewer Fund In The Amount Of $26,606.53 For A Total Payroll Of $113,574.24. Commissioner Cockrum Seconded This Motion. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

Commissioner Kays Stated That He Had No Purchase Orders Or Monthly Bills For This Meeting.

Commissioner Kays Stated That There Was No Information From Anyone This Evening Requiring Illinois Municipal League Conference Updates From 2023.

Commissioner Kays Stated That As A Note, He Wanted To Let The Council Know The Amount Of Bad Debt That Was Written Off After The Last Council Meeting Was $3,454.46.

Commissioner Kays Made A Motion To Approve Fiscal Year 2024/2025 Budget With An Ordinance Number Of #24-06. Second By Commissioner Storey. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

Commissioner Kays Stated That After The Hiring Committee Had Met, A Candidate Was Chosen For The Treasurer’s Position. Mayor Messersmith Stated That He Would Like To Appoint John Daugherty To The Treasurer’s Position. Commissioner Kays Made This Motion. Second By Commissioner Storey. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

Commissioner Kays Stated That We Are Having To Raise Water Rates At This Time To Help Keep The Fund Solvent After A Raise From Rend Lake. Commissioner Kays Stated That This Is A 5% Raise And Will Make The Minimum Bill An Even $59.00 Including Water, Sewer, Trash, And Surcharge. Commissioner Kays Made A Motion To Approve Ordinance 24-07 Raising Water Rates 5%. Second By Commissioner Cockrum. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

City Attorney Malkovich Had No Updates. Attorney Malkovich Stated That He Would Like To Thank The City And The Employees That Put On The City Employee Picnic.

Mayor Messersmith Stated That He Had No Updates Or Purchase Orders For This Meeting.

Mayor Messersmith Asked For A Motion To Approve The Bidding Process For Demolition Of Malkovich Park. Commissioner Storey Made This Motion. Second By Commissioner Garavalia. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

Mayor Messersmith Asked For A Motion To Allow The Researching Of Workflow Platforms To Streamline Work Within The City. Commissioner Cockrum Made This Motion. Second By Commissioner Storey. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

Mayor Messersmith Asked For A Motion To Approve Edc Participation At The $2,500.00 Level. Mayor Messersmith Stated This Is The Same Level Of Participation The City Approved In 2019 And He Stated That The Amount Is Currently In The Budget In The Municipal Utility Tax Fund. Commissioner Cockrum Made This Motion. Second By Commissioner Storey. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

No Miscellaneous Business. No Old Business.

In New Business, Attorney Malkovich Stated That The Public Works And Police Department Negotiations Are Underway.

In Matters From The Public Audience, Tom Carter Asked What The Plans For Malkovich Park Are. He Stated That There Will Need To Be Updates And Upgrades To The Wastewater Treatment Plant. Mr. Carter Asked Commissioner Garavalia If She Has Inspected All The Buildings And He Suggested That She Should Maybe Be Doing This On A Monthly Basis And Bring A Report To The Council On These Inspections. Mr. Carter Also Told Commissioner Garavalia That The Lagoon Needs Weed Eated And Sprayed. Mr. Carter Asked If Bids Were Taken On The New Building At The Fire Department. He Stated That Not Taking Bids Does Not Look Good And Commissioner Storey Agreed. Commissioner Storey Stated That Fire Chief Shane Cockrum Got A Good Deal On The Building Though. Mr. Carter Stated That The Company They Used Does Not Pay Taxes And Wants To Know Why We Didn’t Use A Union Company. Mr. Carter Stated That He Was Very Happy That Sewer Rates Were Not Raised. Mr. Carter Asked The Mayor If His Home Had Been Robbed And If He Was Hurt In The Incident. Mayor Messersmith Stated That This Was Not Council Business And Not Appropriate.

Commissioner Storey Made A Motion To Adjourn. Second By Commissioner Cockrum. Vote Was Taken. Yeas: 5. Commissioner Kays, Commissioner Garavalia, Commissioner Storey, Commissioner Cockrum, And Mayor Messersmith. Nays: 0.

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