New officer to join Percy Police Department

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ The Village of Percy recently had to discharge one of its part-time police officers. At the regular Village Board meeting on Monday, Jan. 12, Chief Ray Wilson announced George Crouch will no longer be with the Percy Police Department. Officer Crouch is also a full-time police officer with the Sparta Police Department and due to schedule conflicts, decided to leave his part-time position at the Percy PD. He has been working with the Percy PD for six-months. "He didn't do anything wrong," said Chief Wilson. "He just had to go where the money is." However, the Village Board approved the application and hiring of another officer to fill the vacancy. Officer Rod Queen from the Willisville Police Department will fill in for the Percy PD, a few days a week. He is a full-time officer for Willisville where he also resides. He is a certified code inspector and has an extensive history in law enforcement. He has worked for the Randolph County Sheriffs Department and the Baldwin Police Department. He was also an officer for the Illinois Department of Corrections, where he worked alongside Chief Wilson.

Lollies Cafe will be serving spirits in the near future. The Village Board approved their application for a liquor license. The license stipulates that they will only be allowed to serve beer. With a $500 price tag at the state level and a $250 fee at the village level which needs to be renewed twice a year, it is an expensive venture to delve into. The Village Board hope this will bring more revenue into the area.

Fifteen photographs from Melanie Miller's Documentary were chosen to keep at the Village Hall. Miller documented the life of Percy in a project for Southern Illinois University. She held a showing on Dec. 18, 2008 at Village Hall and donated approximately 30-40 photographs to the city. The rest of the donated photographs will be sold by the Neighborhood Watch, headed by Suzi Kraus.

In other Percy news:

-Two new doors will be purchased: one for the old school gym and for the Village Hall meeting room.

-The Percy PD has purchased a new onboard computer for their patrol cars and will have them installed in the near future.

-The Board voted to put a $2,300 cap on village employee insurance.

-The Board approved the contract from Ken Miller to undertake the mowing of the cemetery for the summer months.

-The Board is looking into procuring some grants for Percy in the next year.

-A new Village Board will be seated in May, due to the election that will take place in April.