McLean County Times

City of Pontiac Committee of the Whole met Aug. 28.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

The Committee of the Whole meeting of the Pontiac City Council was held on August 28, 2024 at City Hall.

Mayor Alvey called to order the meeting at 5:30 P.M.

The City Clerk was directed to call roll, and the following members of the Council were present: Barr, Giovanini, Eckhoff, Lee, Causer, Cranford, Howard and Wille.

Also attending: Mayor Alvey, City Administrator, and Department Heads

Housing Study - Committee Formation

Discussion on the Housing Study Committee Formation. There will be monthly or more meetings if needed to get the information ready to meet with the Illinois Housing Association. Kelly Eckhoff will chair and Scott Cranford will Co-Chair. Others on the committee are as follows: Mike Barr, Mark Donovan, Terry Sullivan, and Lori Lee. Lisa Martin will serve as ambassador. Motion by Eckhoff, second by Howard to approve the formation of the committee and to formalize with a vote at the next City Council meeting.

Centennial Plaza

Discussion on the plans for the Centennial Plaza, the costs, etc. Staff will try to get some project costs together so Council can vote on priorties and a budget at the next Council meeting.

Block 59 and Streetscates

Discussion on the downtown area streetscape and Council wanting a list of priorities for the area, along with budget figures so plans can be put in motion. A large portion of the TIF Funds would be used for the downtown streetscape. It was decided by Council that a timeline/deadline is needed to get the plans in the works.

The ice rink was discussed with the thoughts of using synthetic ice and building a pavilion over the rink. Weather would not be a factor for use if done. Voting at the September meeting to get the plan in motion.

Regarding the City's Christmas Tree. It is getting harder to find a real tree and also takes extra manpower to get the tree. Suggestions of a syndetic tree at a cost of $18,2000 to $20,000. But noted the tree could get damaged year to year after storage. Last years live tree had a cost of $3,000.00 plus manpower. Voting on the ice rink for 2025 could be at the September Council meeting.

Public

Ed and JonE Lipinski presented to Council the idea of instead of using a live Christmas Tree, or a synthetic tree, to maybe having the PTHS welding class construct a tree that would be permanent and the residents and area artists, etc could decorate the tree with personal objects, collections, and art pieces. The tree could then be seen all year and lite for the Christmas holiday.

Adjournment

With no further business to come before this session, the meeting was adjourned to the regular Council meeting.

https://www.pontiac.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_08282024-1076