Pinckneyville votes to sell 27.7 acres east of city to Farm Service

The City of Pinckneyville will sell 27.7 acres of a land tract it purchased years ago as part of an east end development to Pinckneyville FS (Farm Service). The vote came during Monday's city council meeting.

The purchase price is $6,000 an acre for a total purchase of $166,200 with an eye toward relocating to the larger tract of property. FS has not shared some of the details.

The lone dissenting vote was cast by council member Kevin Hicks. The vote was not against the development plan, but he would like for the city to have the right of first refusal on the present site because of its close proximity to the fairgrounds. The newspaper will detail the plan as soon as it becomes available.

Pinckneyville acquired the acreage about the time things like the Pinckneyville prison were being developed.

The Pinckneyville City Council placed on file its 2015-2016 spending plan. The budget shows a projected deficit of $941,973,l but the city's fiscal picture is much better than the budget indicates. City Clerk Fran Thomas said the city currently has $5,313.954 "in the bank," a combination of discretionary reserves and reserves that are tied to obligations. Thomas said part of the reason for the deficit are the necessary expenses of the police department without a large revenue stream to support such a department. Like Du Quoin and other communities in Southern Illinois, pension payouts make up a larger share of Pinckneyville expenses. The city is also faced with things like water tower and swimming pool maintenance and the ongoing issue of how best to deal with the need for more wastewater treatment capacity.

The council tabled the discussion of purchasing a Model T650 Bobcat excavator at a cost of $52,320.22.

The council discussed a resolution for the fair board to renew the lease of the fairgrounds. The work on that document is nearing completion.

The council approved a resolution which marks the 150th anniversary of the First Baptist Church in Pinckneyville.

The council also filled the vacancy of Bob Stotlar on the Pinckneyville-Du Quoin Airport board by the appointment of Nathan Meager to that board.

There will be a public hearing at 7 p.m. on May 11 on zoning ordinance amendments. The hearing will share time with the appointment of the town's new mayor and council.

The council heard a request from the Perry County Fair Board for $3,000 from the town's motel tax fund. There is a $2,500 limit to those disbursements, the amount ultimately approved by the council.

The council restyled the names on the assignment of a loan to Kuhnert Electric.

Adjournment came at 8:10 p.m.