Carbondale Reporter

Village of Makanda Board of Trustees met Sept. 5.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

CALL TO ORDER: Regular meeting of the Board of Trustees was called to order at 7:00p.m. by President Tina Shingleton.

ROLL CALL: Clerk called the roll of the Village Board: Trustees Hilliard, Allen, Dalton, and Wolff, were present. Trustee Pitcher and Ross were absent.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES: President asked for a motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting. Trustee Wolff made a motion to accept the minutes from the last meeting. It was seconded by Trustee Dalton. Voice vote. All members present at roll call voted yes. Motion carried.

CITIZEN’S HEARING: Debbie Dunn came to address the Board regarding the broken sidewalk over the cement drainage culvert on Baptist Hill next to the Renaissance House. For Vulture Fest, she has planned to have the Porta Potties located in the adjacent parking lot and is concerned for the public’s safety. It was explained that the sidewalk had been used as an entrance to the parking lot and was not designed to support vehicle traffic and had broken down. Board briefly discussed types of barriers that could be put in that spot to protect the public. Debbie Dunn advised the Board that she was concerned Bud Barnett was cutting down trees on his property which could weaken the hillside and cause the hill to slide during heavy rain.

PETITIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS: President received correspondence from The American Business Association to list the Village in their directory. The membership fee is $275. Trustees were asked if they were interested. All felt it was not necessary.

CLERK:

TRUSTEES: Trustee Hilliard reported that the Village roads selected to be oiled and chipped in 2023, were completed on September 23rd. Trustee Hilliard reported that he inspected the work when the job was done, and it appears that they did a good job. Trustee Hilliard reported that there was no electrical power at the Pavilion. Trustee Hilliard and Ed tested the breakers. They will fix the main board next week and then will consider how best to fix the 110 and possibly the 220 outlets at the Pavilion. They will put an extra 4 plug on the box, so that the bands at Vulture Fest can have power. Trustee Hilliard inquired if the Board had sent the Masonic Lodge a thank you note for the donation of the deep freezer for the Community Center, President Shingleton replied one had not yet been sent to them but would do so. Trustee Wolff reported that the Street and Road crew had done a good job preparing the McGuire Road extension for the new oil and chip. Trustee Allen advised that rolling the roads after oil and chipping really makes a difference. Trustee Allen recommended continuing to have the annual oil and chip work done in August when the weather is warm. Trustee Dalton inquired if the Veterans Memorial would be painted before Memorial Day. Trustee Hilliard reported that to have the Memorial professionally cleaned and painted would cost $3,000. The Memorial Committee did not want to spend that kind of money, so he will be painting it by hand.

FISCAL MATTERS:

A. Treasurer’s Report: Treasurer presented the Treasurer’s Report to the Board. B. Bills Payable: Treasurer presented the Bills Payable.

President asked for a motion to accept the Treasurer’s Report and pay the bills. Trustee Wolff made a motion to accept the Treasurer’s Report and pay the bills. It was seconded by Trustee Dalton. Voice vote. All present at roll call voted yes. Motion carried.

REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES:

A. Finance Committee:

B. Ordinance Committee:

C. Street & Road Committee: A road entrance has been made on the west side of lower Cobden Road. The Village has an Ordinance regarding construction of a new roadway entrance along a Village Road. A permit is required to be completed by the property owner and submitted for review and approval from the Village Board. The entrance is eroding the oil and chip at the edge of road and is dangerous to those driving on Lower Cobden Road and those pulling out on the road from this entrance. Since there is confusion as to who the property owner is, it has been recommended by Village legal to send letters and a copy of the Ordinance to each party. Trustees approved of moving forward with letters.

Trustee Wolff reported that he has run into a dead end with all the options he had pursued in an effort to get the road work on Baptist Hill Rd. done in a timely manner and at a reasonable cost. Trustee Wolff reported that at this point he thinks the Village has 3 options: 1) leave the road in its current condition and continue to look for grants. 2) level the road with fill and then tar and chip it, roll it, and put on additional tar, without having to put it out for bid or involving engineers. 3) go back to Mark O’Brien and tell him we only want to do half of Baptist Hill Rd. and find out what that would cost. Board discussed options. Because 2 Board Members were absent, no action was taken.

D. Subdivision Committee:

E. Insurance Committee:

F. Playground Committee:

REPORTS OF SPECIAL COMMITTEES:

A. Emergency Disaster Committee:

B. Special Events Committee:

ORDINANCES & RESOLUTIONS:

EXECUTIVE SESSION:

UNFINISHED/OLD BUSINESS: President reported that sealing and striping of Village Hall parking lot was completed on September 2.

President provided an update regarding purchase of property from Bud Barnett and John Newsome. The survey has been done. Village legal counsel and real estate agent are doing research regarding the title search on Barnett property. Paperwork is being worked on for purchase of Newsome property.

NEW BUSINESS: President has been contacted by 4H group to use the B.C. Ross Community Center again this year for their monthly meetings from October 2023 through May 2024. President asked the Board for their comments. All approved of 4H group continuing to use the Community Center for their monthly meetings as long as they abide by rules set for use.

President has received an e-mail from Jordan Haarmann with AGE regarding the new municipal aggregation contracts that will begin in December. They are monitoring energy commodity pricing and expect new agreements to be executed within the next two months. Right now, the aggregation renewal rates they are seeing are pretty even with Ameren’s rates for residents in the short-term. As with the current contract they will lock some components of the energy price in the short-term (possibly the first 12-18 months as in the past) based on current market conditions and leave other components unlocked until they determine the market is favorable. As a reminder all Municipalities were asked to approve a Limited Power of Attorney back in February so AGE can move forward quickly with the best rate.

GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS:

ADJOURNMENT: President asked for a motion to adjourn the meeting. Motion was made by Trustee Wolff and seconded by Trustee Allen. Voice vote. All present at roll call voted yes. Motion carried. Meeting was adjourned at 8:52 p.m.

https://villageofmakanda.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/September-5-2023-Board-Minutes.pdf