Engineers Begin Dialogue With Pinckneyville on Panther Drive
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Pinckneyville Mayor Joe Holder said it will take a few more meetings to hammer out an agreement, but he expects to sign a TIF agreement with Pinckneyville Community High School for work on Panther Drive to coincide with the construction of a new high school.
Jeff Taylor of the engineering, surveying and planning firm Thouvenot, Wade and Moercher (TWM) said the plans for Panther Drive include widening the road to 30 feet, adding a bus loading area, adding curbs, gutters and an underground storm sewer system and adding curb cuts to the parking lots along Panther Drive to control traffic flow.
Panther Drive varies between 28 and 30 feet in width. The resurfaced road will be 30 feet from curb to curb.
Mayor Holder is estimating the cost of the work at $500,000 to $750,000 and expects TIF funds to meet three-fourths of the city's obligations on the project. He said that figure is an educated wild guess by an engineer.
Construction on the new school will begin in late February of this year and continue through October of 2012. PCHS Superintendent Jon Green said the district will begin using the new facility in the fall of 2012.
Panther Drive will be under construction for much of the 20-month project. Resurfacing the street will be one of the last phases of the project and is set for the summer of 2012, architect Dave Mevert said.
Residents of Panther Drive will have access to their homes during the construction phase and the widening of the road in some spots will be done solely on property owned by the school. No easements will be necessary and the neighboring yards will not be affected, Green said.
"We want the new facility to look nice. It will be the first thing you see when you enter Pinckneyville from the east," Green said. "We also want to treat our neighbors well."
Mayor Holder called the project "vital."
In other business, the council:
passed an ordinance approving the real estate tax levy for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. The levy asks for $490,326 which is less than 105 percent of the previous year's levy; no truth in taxation hearing was necessary. The city received $467,036 in real estate tax revenue last year.
passed an ordinance authorizing the Fire Chief to issue 'No Burn' orders at his discretion. Violators will be fined no more than $750.
approved a pay raise for volunteer firefighters to $10 per hour, retroactive to Nov. 1, 2010. Commissioner Marty Beltz said the firefighters had not had a raise in seven or eight years. They are paid only for the time fighting fires. He estimated that the pay raise should cost the city less than $2,000 annually. Volunteer firefighters are not paid for the time they spend in training and on equipment maintenance.
authorized payment of $104,765 to Fager McGee Commercial Construction Inc. for work on the t-hangar building at the Pinckneyville-Du Quoin Airport. Commissioner Beltz said he problems with the hangar have been corrected. There is one final payment of $37,988 which has not yet been approved. The city pays the contractor then submits the bill for reimbursement through grant funds.
heard from Treasurer Rick Reese that the city has $970,891 in unrestricted funds. Mayor Holder said the city can expect to see the balance decrease between now and February due to gas purchases. Reese said the current gas bill is $110,322 and is due Dec. 20. Commissioner Augie Kellerman said the city received two payments totalling just under $200,000 from the state for utilities at the Pinckneyville Correctional Center. The state still owes $325,661 on utility bills for the prison, as well as $572,111 that was under-billed.
heard from Economic Development Coordinator Carrie Ford that she continues to work with Higman LLC on the former TUMS building. Higman has made interior improvements, including a drive-in door on the north side of the building. Ford has met with several small businesses that have expressed interest in leasing a portion of the building. She also reported that the construction of a new Kellerman's Purina Feed Store on the south edge of town is moving forward. Ford expects to have pre-construction meetings beginning in January.
placed on file for public inspection a contract with Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services for insurance. Mayor Holder said the current provider Illinois Municipal League Risk Management Association's (IMLRMA) responsiveness has been disappointing. The city's policy expires on Dec. 31. Arthur J. Gallagher is offering a flat fee of $95,017 for coverage similar to what the city has now. There is an additional $2,500 deductible on law enforcement and elected officials. IMLRMA will charge between $98,282 and $133,000.