The Pekin City Council gave the go-ahead Monday for a 34-unit duplex development that will be built on five acres of vacant land in the northern part of the city.
Pekin-based Hornecker Properties will build the development at the southwest corner of Parkway and Velde roads.
The project includes sidewalks along Parkway and Velde as required by city code. Developer Jeff Hornecker said there will be curbs on the private roads inside the complex.
A church and funeral home across Velde from the site of the duplex development don't have sidewalks on their properties.
City Engineer Josie Esker said she didn't know why that was the case.
"I wasn't here when those places were built," she said. "I would have required them to have sidewalks."
Also Monday, the council approved a TIF agreement with Hornecker Properties that will provide a 50% rebate on the incremental property tax generated by the development through the life of the Court Street TIF (it ends in 2044), or until the cumulative rebate reaches the total eligible TIF project cost of $1.67 million
The council's votes to approve the development's site plan and the TIF agreement were unanimous.
Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce will apply for a state grant on behalf of the city
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity is offering grants that can help downtown revitalization.
But Pekin can't apply, The city is on the state agency's "stop payments" list, mainly because it fell behind on annual mandatory audits of the city budget, interim finance director Bob Grogan said Monday.
Audits of the 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22 fiscal year city budgets have been completed since Grogan arrived in Pekin last year.
"We hope to get caught up by the fall," said City Manager John Dossey, who also was hired last year.
The council gave its approval Monday for the Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce to apply for a DCEO grant, which would provide 50% of a project's funding, on behalf of the city.
The city will pay the chamber $2,000 to submit the grant application, $10,000 for administrative work if the grant is awarded, and as much as $20,000 if an audit of grant activities is required.
Esker said Pekin's proposed project will include sewer, water line, facade, lighting and Americans with Disabilities Act improvements, and the addition of planters. It's possible the city won't receive receive grant money for each part of the project.
"I'm so glad the project includes sewer work so we can get rid of the sewer smell downtown," said Mayor Pro-Tem Karen Hohimer.
The vote for the chamber stepping in for the city on the grant application process was 6-1, with Rick Hilst voting no. He said he didn't think it was ethical for the chamber to represent the city in the grant request.
"There's nothing shady about it," Esker said. "Everything is above board and transparent."
Tina Hauk, the city's Community Development Block Grant manager, said, "without this relationship with the chamber, the city wouldn't have been able to take advantage of this state funding for downtown."
Interim finance director Bob Grogan is staying in Pekin while the city searches for a full-time finance director
Grogan will remain Pekin's interim finance director until at least Dec. 31.
He was originally hired for the position through GovTemps USA. He's submitted his resignation to GovTemps, and GovTemps has terminated its agreement with the city.
The council voted unanimously Monday to keep Grogan on board through his Middle America Government Consulting Services firm. He'll continue to be paid $98 per hour and time and a half for overtime, and be reimbursed for hotel expenses and mileage.
Grogan has two decades of experience in government accounting. The Downers Grove resident was the auditor for DuPage County from 2012-20.
Pekin is looking for a full-time finance director. Ninety-seven applications were received, said Human Resources Director Shelly Costa, and five candidates have been interviewed with a sixth interview scheduled Tuesday.
Council opts to buy a more expensive truck so the city won't need to wait months for delivery
Pekin needs a new one-ton truck.
Council members had to decide Monday between two offers: a higher-priced truck from Uftring Truck Center of East Peoria that is available immediately, or a lower-priced truck from Morrow Brothers Ford in Taylorville that wouldn't be delivered for an estimated four to six months.
The council chose the $139,708 truck from Uftring by a 4-2-1 vote. Lloyd Orrick and Hilst and cast the no votes and Dave Nutter abstained because a family member is a part of Pekin's Street Department.
"I'm abstaining on the vote, but I will say that buying the truck from Uftring is a much better idea," Nutter said.
"We could be waiting longer than six months for the truck (from Morrow Brothers)," said John Abel, who voted to purchase the truck from Uftring.
Council members voted 5-1-1 against purchasing the $134,362 truck from Morrow Brothers. Orrick voted no and Nutter abstained.
Orrick voted no twice because Uftring isn't a Pekin dealership. No Pekin dealership sells the truck the city needs.
Drivers need to get ready for a new-look Court and Parkway intersection
During a discussion about the progress of the road work on Court Street, Esker said a redesign of the busy Court and Parkway intersection is part of the project.
"That intersection has been a safety concern for a long time," she said. "Once work on the intersection is done, drivers will need to learn a new traffic pattern. We'll let people know on social media posts the reasons behind the redesign."
Illinois American Water buys city land so it can build a water tower
Illinois American Water will build a 1-million-gallon water tower on 1.9 acres of land south of the AMC Classic movie theater at the eastern end of Brenkman Drive following the council's unanimous approval Monday of the sale of city-owned land to IAW.
The purchase price for the land was $37,104, equal to its appraised value. City staff estimates the water tower will generate about $100,000 in new property tax revenue annually.
The water tower will be similar to IAW's water tower south of Koch Street in Pekin. The new tower will be built by a general contractor "who regularly constructs these facilities," according to an IAW spokesman.
Ex-council member Fred Massaglia is remembered
Former council member Fred Massaglia, who served for six years, was remembered by the current council Monday. Massaglia died June 18 at age 73.
Mayor Mary Burress said Massaglia was appointed to the council in 2011 by former Mayor Laura Barra, the city's first female mayor (Burress is the second female mayor). Massaglia previously was elected to a four-year term, serving under former mayors Dave Tebben and Lyn Howard.
Orrick, who was on the council with Massaglia but said he knew him longer than that, said Massaglia was a "giver."
"He gave to his friends, his family and the community," Orrick said. "And he was a good businessman."
After being employed by Caterpillar for 18 years, Massaglia started the Pekin Rootermatic drain cleaning service in 1978 and owned National Rental in Pekin for 28 years starting in 1996.
