Macon Reporter

Village of Bethany Board of Trustees met Nov. 9.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

The regular board meeting was called to order at 7:00 pm by Jonathan Book, President. The following Trustees were present; Dave Doty, Jeannie Ruppert, Zakary England, Greg McLain, Raven Allen and Brian Gill.

A motion was made by Trustee Doty to approve the minutes from the October 12, 2023, regular meeting, seconded by Trustee Allen. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried.

A motion was made by Trustee Doty to approve the “Statement of Income and Expenses”, seconded by Trustee Ruppert. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried.

A motion was made by Trustee Gill to approve the “Banks and Checks Journal”, seconded by Trustee McLain. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried.

Public – None

Greg Gustafson Water Improvement Project Update - Greg Gustafson was not in attendance tonight. There were two issues that needed to be addressed. There was an ordinance from the Bond company dealing with the bonds for the water project. A motion was made by Trustee McLain to authorize the issuance of bonds for the waterworks project, seconded by Trustee Doty. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried. The next item was to approve President Book to sign the water main documents, notice to proceed, and change orders. A motion was made by Trustee McLain to authorize President Book to sign the water improvement documents, change orders, and the notice to proceed, seconded by Trustee Doty. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried.

David O’Rourke Insurance Deductible Request - Mr. O’Rourke was here last month to discuss this matter. His deductible was $2500. Trustee Allen stressed that this needs a caveat that we will only do this one time and not again and to be sure that this matter is taken care of. It also happened in 2017 and he was instructed on how to fix this problem of sewer backup. No action was taken on this matter.

Replace Blower at Sewer Plant - This is the spare blower motor as this motor blows 24/7. This was taken out of service due to the bearings going out. It is in the shop for repairs. The cost will be between $88,000 to $90,000. It needs to be fixed. A new blower motor costs $96,000. There are some investments that could be used and request money from the TIF district as this is to help with infrastructure. According to the TIF Attorney half of the cost for the motor could be taken from the TIF. Motion was made by Trustee Allen to purchase a new blower for sewer $96, 460. Half from TIF half from a Sewer CD ,second by Trustee Ruppert. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried.

Annual Tax Levy - Ed Flynn the Village attorney, went over the tax levy information. He came down and met with Village Treasurer Jessica Henderson. Tort, IMRF and Social Security are the line items that are underfunded. Mr. Flynn suggested that we increase these lines over time. To levy for $15,000 it would be a 24% increase. He would encourage the Board to go over the 5% increase and spread it over these three line items. Mr. Flynn will work on the paperwork to increase the levy by 15%. It will be approved at the December meeting.

22-23 Audit Report - The Board received a copy of the 22-23 Audit report from McGuire, Yuhas, Huffman & Buckley. Trustee Gill, Finance Chair, went over and discussed the results of this audit with the Board.

Moultrie County Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan - This was brought to Treasurer Henderson by the Moultrie County Planning and Zoning Office. This is important and helpful should the Village need to get a grant or loan from FEMA. A motion was made by Trustee Allen to adopt the Moultrie County Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan, seconded by Trustee Ruppert. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried.

Police CD from OV Monies - We have received the first payment for the first quarter of $5,000. We can add the next amount to the current CD. A motion was made by Trustee Allen to move the monies received from the school from the general fund to a CD, seconded by Trustee McLain. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried.

Scheduling the December Meeting - There is a schedule conflict with next month’s regular Board meeting. A motion was made by Trustee Ruppert to move the regular monthly meeting to Tuesday, December 19th at 7pm, seconded by Trustee England. Roll call taken, all ayes, motion carried.

Reports – Manager Shannon Risley, Finance Committee, and Chief Nichols Correspondence – None

Committee Meeting Dates - None

With no other business to discuss a motion to adjourn was made by Trustee Allen and seconded by Trustee Gill. Voice vote taken, all ayes, motion carried. Meeting was adjourned.

https://www.villageofbethany.com/documents/116/MINUTES_11-09-2023.pdf