City of Lexington City Council met June 26.
Here are the minutes provided by the council:
The regular meeting of the Lexington City Council was called to order at 7:00 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 Richard, Alderman Stover, Alderwoman Wilson, Alderman Franklin and Alderman Little. Members of the staff and public present were: Peg Reynolds with the Lexingtonian, Chief Edmiaston, Ken Sours, Debbie Johnson, Bruce Johnson, Carrie Kinsella, Christine Doll, David Fitzh, Kevin Quinn and Camille Quinn.
It was moved by Alderwoman Wilson and seconded by Alderman Mattingly to approve the minutes of the June 12, 2023 regular session City Council meeting. Motion carried unanimously with 5 yes and Alderman Franklin voting in absentia.
It was moved by Alderman Stover and seconded by Alderman Franklin to approve the Treasurer’s Report and paying of the bills in the amount of $24,618.38. Motion carried unanimously.
Public Input: Bruce Johnson wanted to voice his opposition and concern for Timber Ridge residents concerning the proposed addition to the BP station. They are concerned about the traffic that the additional noise will create and would like to know what the city is gaining by the addition.
Mayor Johansen explained that the council had first brought this up in December of 2021. There were two phases to this project with phase one being expanding the diesel lanes and the truck parking and phase two a hotel and a fast food restaurant. That property was annexed as an open land district. The planning commission met. That was a posted meeting, as are all our meetings, to change it to highway business district, and there was no opposition at that time and the council passed it. The new subdivision was not brought up at that time. The new subdivision was not brought up until April of 2022.
The last thing we want is 53 truck parking spots, but we will be working with them to try and reduce this number and put up a block wall to keep the noise down as well as with the owners of the subdivision. There have been no plans submitted by anyone. He has tried to discourage them by pointing out that Love’s Truck Stop is just down the road.
The ordinance on the agenda tonight, when it passed, the council should have followed through and did not. He realizes this is a sensitive topic and he does not take it lightly and will do what he can to prevent the noise. When you live in a community right off 55 you will hear some traffic noises.
Alderwoman Wilson remarked that it was a business option for BP that they have taken to expand. We will not allow 53 parking spots, but they have bought the land and it is legal and that eliminates our options.
Alderman Stover commented that we had other projects in the works that required the zoning change. BP is not willing to eliminate the project. There are all kinds of issues but they are pretty set on going ahead with it. Get the containment and move to the north, not a lot of effect on the townhouses behind it and especially not on Timber Ridge. The activities that we don’t want associated with that, we can have somebody out there just about all the time.
Mayor Johansen says there are still a lot of hurdles for them to overcome with IDOT; it is not going to be easy for them. Like any business we need to work with them. Any letters that anyone wants to write in opposition to it, Mayor Johansen will pass them along to them. Address the letter to the truck stop.
They are working on the height of the wall. The parking lot will be monitored 24/7 and there will be a charge for parking there. He has seen no plans yet.
It was stated that the residents enjoyed living in Lexington and hoped that the city would not allow a cheap hotel or a cheap parking lot to come into the city. They have a letter of intent from Holiday Inn Express.
The question was asked what was the worst that they could do under the current proposal, what are they allowed to do?
Mayor Johansen answered that several businesses are allowed and most are already in town. Already on the table were the BP expansion, 60,000-80,000 square foot indoor sports dome complex, Holiday Inn Express and a fast food restaurant and a retail spot. Then they are out of room.
The question was asked what kind of income would the city see?
Mayor Johansen did not know what kind of volume we would see but did not think we would see much of an increase. He felt that the trucks that pulled in there would have gone to Casey’s and into the parking spots might fuel up. Property tax won’t go up as everything will be run out of the current building.
This is a work in progress and we will keep you updated. You are welcome to come to any meeting.
Mrs. Quinn wanted to know if it was necessary for the trucks to run all night? Alderman Mattingly said the trucks now would not tolerate running all night.
Debbie Johnson asked about lighting.
Alderman Little thought the lighting would be similar to a car dealership using direct lighting, but the city has seen no plans yet.
A question was asked about rest rooms.
They are going to remodel the station and rest rooms would probably be in the building.
Mayor Johansen discussed that we are in a discussion about the retention basin and we want to see the whole plan and not just pieces at a time. We cannot prevent them from building this. We are negotiating to work out an agreement where everyone is happy. Our attorney suggested trying to work out a solution.
While we appreciate Casey’s, the truckers all pull in there and dump all their trash and don’t clean it up. This should eliminate some of this.
No plans have been submitted, there are a lot of hurdles to pass. The developers knew it when they bought the property and they are talking about putting up a berm.
Old Business:
Discussion/Vote Sewer Superintendent Position
Motion was made by Alderwoman Wilson and seconded by Alderman Little to table this vote. Motion carried unanimously.
Discussion/Vote Kinsella Property
Motion was made by Alderman Franklin and seconded by Alderman Little to table this vote. Motion carried unanimously.
Discussion/Vote Budget
Alderman Stover still has a few more changes to make to the budget but wanted to bring the main points to the council tonight.
The General Fund shows a negative balance due to the capital replacement we are paying for the dump truck, mower, squad car and loan payments that were carried over from last year. Take the one time expenses out, we are in the positive. We will also be replacing the computer at the Water Plant, that will be around $30,000 for the system, training and software. The Water and Sewer Funds show negative but we are moving some TIF funds around for the new subdivision.
We are in a good place with cash on hand.
We will have $750,000 left in 2032 to pay for the Water Plant with the Sewer being paid in 2031. We have been able to move some money back into investments at a decent rate.
At some point we may want to look at healthcare adjustments and may want to adjust the budget. He also has figurned in 1 ½% raises to present.
Motion was made by Alderman Stover and seconded by Alderman Mattingly to table this vote. Motion carried unanimously.
Discussion/Vote Ordinance 2023-3: Changing the Zoning Classification of Certain Property in the City of Lexington, McLean County, Illinois
This should have been done in December of 2021 or early 2022.
Motion was made by Alderman Franklin and seconded by Alderwoman Wilson to approve Ordinance 2023-3: Changing the Zoning Classification of Certain Property in the City of Lexington, McLean County, Illinois. Motion carried unanimously.
New Business: None
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Mayor’s Report: Mayor Johansen reported on the following items:
The hardware store is moving forward and forming an LLC. They did some measurements this week on the proposed lot and hope to start construction next spring.
The subdivision has EPA permits approved and all fees paid. They are working on a contractor for sewer install and then we will start cutting the streets.
The dome proposal is still moving forward. He is still working with Dr. Khokhar on the grant and they were reviewing it this week. Congressman LaHood has signed on to it.
The Garden Walk sold 73 tickets and he heard a lot of comments about how good the city looked.
The Route 66 lettering that we got the grant for that will go down by Uncle Vait’s will be installed Friday. We poured the pad and the state reimbursed us for the labor, etc. Stinde Electric is going to run electric to it so we can have some lighting on it at night.
He is in the process of working with the county to get a grant to get two electric car charging stations for the city. The proposal is to put them next to City Hall.
On Thursday 35 kids from the Library toured City Hall. They had all the equipment in the parking lot. Very nice, polite young kids.
Police: Chief Edmiaston reported that he had been on the job almost two months and was beginning to get the feel of Lexington and his fellow officers. If anyone sees things or wants them to do or not do, come talk to him. He will get a better feel of Lexington and what the council expects. He wants to have a conversation about that.
Building/Insurance None
Finance /TIF Alderman Stover continues to work on the budget. He has gotten some updated information on expected revenues and will update those numbers.
Water/Sewer/Sanitation Alderwoman Wison reported that they will have another interview for the sewer superintendent position this week.
Street/Alley Alderman Mattingly reported that he is getting quotes for the sidewalk repair on Main Street in front of Christian Farmers.
Mayor Johansen reported that they have been working at the park putting some patio areas in on all four corners so picnic tables can sit there. There have not been many improvements done there for quite some time.
The Mayors Association has done everything they could on the airport tax. It is on the governor's desk to sign. He sent a couple of emails today trying to get someone in Springfield to arrange to get three mayors 15 minutes with the governor before he signs the bill to try to convince him not to sign it. It has fallen on deaf ears so far. If they do not succeed you will see a new tax for Central Illinois Regional Airport on your real estate tax bill. We have done everything we can. It was the democrats who supported it and controlled the house.
There being no further business, a motion was made by Alderman Mattingly to adjourn at 7:42 P.M. Motion carried by unanimous voice vote.
https://www.lexingtonillinois.org/images/Minutes_June_26_2023.pdf
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