City of Lexington City Council met March 27.
Here are the minutes provided by the council:
The regular meeting of the Lexington City Council was called to order at 7:09 P. M. by Mayor Spencer Johansen in the City Council Chambers at City Hall.
Mayor Johansen led the council in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Roll call was taken to find the following physically present: Mayor Johansen, Alderman Mattingly, Alderman Little, Alderman Richard, Alderman Stover, and Alderman Franklin with Alderwoman Wilson absent. Members of the staff and public present were: Ken Sours, Peg Reynolds with the Lexingtonian, Tim Edmiaston, Carey Davis and Neil Finlen.
It was moved by Alderman Mattingly and seconded by Alderman Franklin to approve the minutes of the February 27, 2023 and March 13, 2023 regular sessions of the City Council meetings. Motion carried unanimously.
It was moved by Alderman Stover and seconded by Alderman Little to approve the Treasurer’s Report and paying of the bills in the amount of $33,963.52. Motion carried unanimously.
Public Input: None
At this time Alderman Richard introduced Tim Edmiaston as Lexington’s new Chief of Police. Old Business:
Discussion/Vote Kinsella Parking Lot Lease
There was some discussion on how the lease was worded as to how much the payment on the lease was and who was responsible for paying the taxes. It was decided to table this vote until such time as these items could be cleared up.
Motion was made by Alderman Franklin and seconded by Alderman Mattingly to table the vote until the next meeting on the Kinsella Parking Lot Lease. Motion carried unanimously.
New Business:
Discussion/Vote to Approve 2022 Audit
The preliminary audit was approved by the Finance Committee. This is a formality in order to file the TIF report with the State of Illinois.
Motion was made by Alderman Stover and seconded by Alderman Franklin to approve the 2022 Audit. Motion carried unanimously.
Discussion/Vote Resolution 2023-2: Opposing the Proposition to Expand the Funding Base of the Central Illinois Regional Airport Authority to Include McLean County and the City of Lexington
Mayor Johansen explained that in 2017 the airport authority wanted to tax everyone in McLean County for use of the airport. Right now only Bloomington/Normal residents pay property taxes on the airport. We passed a resolution opposing the tax and he feels it is a good idea to do so again. He will take it to the next McLean County Mayor’s Association meeting where they have invited a representative from the airport authority and a local elected official. He feels they can make up this difference in another way such as charging a fee for parking. If they do decide to tax McLean County he feels they should do the surrounding counties as well as they also benefit from the airport.
Motion was made by Alderman Richard and seconded by Alderman Mattingly to approve Resolution 2023-2: Opposing the Proposition to Expand the Funding Base of the Central Illinois Regional Airport Authority to Include McLean County and the City of Lexington. Motion carried unanimously.
Discussion/Vote Resolution 2023-3: Release of Closed Session Minutes
Alderman Franklin and Alderman Richard reviewed the closed session minutes on March 1st and released one session, January 23, 2023. All others are to remain closed.
Motion was made by Alderman Franklin and seconded by Alderman Richard to approve Resolution 2023-3: Release of Closed Session Minutes. Motion carried unanimously.
Discussion/Vote on Planning Commission Recommendations
The Planning Commission met at 6:30 P.M. on March 27, 2023 and sent their recommendations for the Century Oaks Subdivision to Mayor Johansen before this evening's meeting. They voted to approve the subdivision which sits behind Dollar General and Subway.
Carey Davis was in attendance to go over the plat and to answer any questions the council may have.
He has met with the city crew and everything, water, sewer, etc. seems to be working out well. He is planning for 64 apartment units, 30 zero lot line duplexes and 11 single family homes in the first phase of the development. Second phase will include an additional 29 single family homes and to include a sewer pump station and forcemain.
There was some question as to if the apartments would have elevators to which Neil Finlen, of Farnsworth, replied that it would be too expensive to install elevators in the apartments or duplexes. These are patterned after Bloomington/Normal subdivisions and they are not included in those subdivisions. These are ground floor apartments with a town home design or garden apartments, are two story with one and two bedroom designs. Some of the apartments will be handicap accessible.
There will be three products offered in phase one: 64 apartments, 30 duplexes and 11 single family homes. Phase two offers 29 more single family homes.
There is also a provision for a park off of Douglas Drive. Also room for expansion, there is 11 acres straight east of 55 and timber to the north of Turkey Creek. To the south is Timber Ridge. Hopefully the neighbors will allow future expansion. There will be greenspace on the west along with a pond. There will be walkways around the area.
There has already been interest in the lots.
Motion was made by Alderman Richard and seconded by Alderman Mattingly to approve the Planning Commission Recommendation to approve the Century Oaks Subdivision. Motion carried unanimously.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Mayor’s Report: Mayor Johansen reported on the following items:
Alderman Richard had introduced our new police chief. Tim Edmiaston is retiring from Normal and will be starting May 1st as our new chief of police. We had a good interview committee that included McLean County Sheriff Lane, Paul Deters, Lexington School Superintendent and Officer Carter.
Work is progressing on Josh Smith’s building in the 400 block of Main Street. Donnie B’s Popcorn hopes to be in there by mid May.
Coffee Hound has their roasting equipment in but the gas hookup isn’t sufficient to run the equipment. The gas company will need to do an upgrade to their service. We don’t know the time frame on that.
Police: Alderman Richard was pleased to introduce the new chief and also reported that there has been a new squad car ordered. It should be ready in about a week.
Building/Insurance Alderman Franklin reported that he has been working on the alley situation with the Kinsella property. It was decided that it was in the best interest of all parties to have a new professional survey for the easements. This will be done April 5-6. After that is received we can proceed with clearing this matter up.
Finance /TIF None
Water/Sewer/Sanitation Mayor Johansen reported that they will need to change the water service at the Library to accommodate the installation of the elevator.
Street/Alley None
It was noted that there are a number of flags still in residents yards from the installation of the fiber optics. Residents should be reminded to remove those flags before they begin mowing as they can cause considerable damage to a mower.
There being no further business, a motion was made by Alderman Mattingly to adjourn at 7:46 P.M. Motion carried by unanimous voice vote.
https://www.lexingtonillinois.org/images/Minutes_March_27_2023.pdf
Alerts Sign-up