Coalton receives updates on EJ Water project in June meeting

June 16, 2021 75

Prior to the monthly meeting of the Coalton village board on Wednesday, June 9, members of the board stood outside the village hall where the “cake” for Montgomery County’s bicentennial celebration stood.

Once the meeting began, there was limited business for the board to discuss.

Update on EJ Water Cooperative project

Most of the meeting was dedicated to updates related to the EJ Water Cooperative project, which was having some slight procedural hiccups. There are some final business items that village president Mike Havera will have to take care of. An ordinance to allow authorize Havera to make those final approvals received a motion from trustee Tyler Wilson and seconded by Steve Kimbro. The ordinance passed without objection.

Coalton board discusses projects with available ARPA funds

Another business item with significant discussion time involved the American Rescue Plan Act, in which it was revealed that $5.5 million was to be disbursed throughout the county. To date, the county has only received $2.7 million of that amount, money that will be available for any major projects county municipalities need completion. Havera stated that he would test the waters with the “mayor’s council” regarding their intentions with the available funding.

Other business

In other business:

The board approved the Fiscal Year 2022 budget in the amount of $263,500 with a motion from Mary Speier and second from Byron McLean.
With the current liquor license for The Depot Pub expiring at the end of the month, the board approved the license renewal.
A limited report from water superintendent Tom Gonet was approved by a motion by Speier and second from Rod Eller.
During Sandy Jachino’s treasurer report, a motion needed to pass to increase their underage minimum wage to its current rate, subject to change with each rate hike. The motion and treasurer’s report would both be approved without objection.
No reports were presented from any of the committees, with the exception that Speier was to attend the upcoming ambulance board meeting.
Meeting minutes from the May 12 public meeting and May 12 board meeting were approved.

With no additional business, the meeting adjourned at 8:04 p.m. subject to resuming business on July 14. Present at the meeting were village president Mike Havera, village clerk Kay Cook, village treasurer Sandy Jachino, water superintendent Tom Gonet, and trustees Steve Kimbro, Steve Lee, Tyler Wilson, Mary Speier, Rod Eller, and Byron McLean.

This article was originally published in the June 16, 2021 issue of the Nokomis Free-Press Progress.

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Jake Leonard, a broadcast media and journalism veteran, is the editor-in-chief of Heartland Newsfeed. Leonard is also GM and program director of Heartland Newsfeed Radio Network, wrestling editor and contributing writer for Ambush Sports, a contributing writer for My Sports Vote and Midwest Sports Network, and a former contributor to Bleacher Report and Overtime Heroics. He resides at home in Nokomis, Ill. with his dog Buster.