Du Quoin Pledges Loan Match for $700,000 In Potential Economic Development Funding
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ The Du Quoin City Council Monday pledged a local $33,334 match for a potential $700,000 in new money available for business development in the City of Du Quoin.
The commitment was required to land the $700,000 from the Southern Illinois Coal Belt Champion Communities program, where city water commissioner Rex Duncan sits as board chairman. Duncan abstained from the vote to avoid a conflict of interest, but the measure passed unanimously otherwise.
The money can be loaned for both industrial and retail development with a greater latitude on how and to whom the money is loaned. However, all connected with the program, will entertain only high quality applicants who have a chance to succeed.
Details of the program will be made available as it evolves.
Du Quoin's Revolving Loan Fund has a current balance of about $85,000 after the city rewrote a $100,000 loan last year to MPP, Inc., an electro-plating company that has operated for many years in the Du Quoin Industrial Park. That company has been very disciplined in repaying its loan.
In other action, the council voted to abandon the idea of reopening an alley between South Ballentine and South Blackburn on the city's east side. A handful of residents had asked about the possibility of reopening a partially closed right of way. Between the waning interest among residents and the cost, the council voted a unanimous "no" to end the discussions.
Chief of Police Michael Ward gave a well-placed appeal to residents to support the upcoming "Du Quoin Family Night Out" on August 4 in Keyes City Park.
Ward addressed the council on several topics, but he keyed on the commitment has officers and staff have to make Du Quoin a better place to live.
The home grown version of the national night out program will offer a number of family events including a police officer dunk tank and a doughnut eating competition. While doughnut-eating police officers is a cliche from New York television series that needs to go away, local police plan to capitalize on this bit of American television pop culture.
It's a high quality four-hour night out for Du Quoin families that will run from 5:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m.
Ward said starting the program was a hope of his good friend and the late Chief of Police James Booker.
Chief Ward also displayed letters from the communities of Marion, Herrin, Hurst and Energy which received mutual aid assistance from Du Quoin officers who volunteered their time in security roles after the May 8 storm.
He also pointed to the fact that the only Du Quoin officer to be killed in the line of duty--John Kelly--has been added to the national police wall of honor. Kelly was shot and killed while trying to resolve a domestic dispute years ago. His induction and a new police department memorial will be the subject of an upcoming newspaper feature.
The council approved the reappointment of Pam Pereira to the Historic Preservation Commission and inked the final agreements for construction of $900,000 new hangars at the Pinckneyville-Du Quoin Airport.