Nokomis council discusses meter replacements

NOKOMIS — Following a public meeting on the city’s budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year and a brief recess, the Nokomis City Council convened its regular meeting at 7:07 p.m. on Tuesday, May 27. Mayor Dylan Goldsmith, Deputy City Clerk Karri Smith, and Commissioners Michael Glenn, Charlie O’Malley, and Scott Arkebauer recorded as present. Commissioner Tisha Morris was absent.

No members of the public or visitors were on the docket to speak. Minutes for the special meeting, regular meeting, and closed session for the May 12 meeting were approved.

Adam Fox from Benton & Associates provided an update on the construction project. The contractors working on the site are attempting to increase the worker count so that the project can meet its planned deadline in late August, with the facility reaching full operational capacity by October. There has been little activity on the construction site lately, which may be a result of recent wet weather conditions.

Two items were discussed: an IEPA funding request #14 for $52,880.20 for ongoing wastewater system improvements and a pay request from NRAW #1 for $75,973.00. Following those discussions, those requests were approved.

There were some complaints about road conditions on Spruce Street, which have since been resolved.

Commissioner Glenn brought forth two permit requests: a building permit for a fence being constructed at Shane Cole Memorial Park for a dog park, and another fence permit requested for 600 Miller St. Both requests were approved.

Commissioner Arkebauer brought up the water meter replacements. A project that has been years in the making, the meters they currently have in inventory are not being installed. Many of the meters are approaching their factory-set limits, which include maximums of 500,000 gallons for some meters and even 1 million gallons for others.

The overall cost of replacing all of the meters would be roughly $500,000, with an estimated annual maintenance cost of $17,000 per year.

It was noted that the sonar technology in the newer meters could detect leaks that may not have been detected otherwise. It was brought up that the city has lost about $250,000 in lost water revenue, but it was uncertain if that was per year or over a set number of years to date.

That price does not account for the prevailing wage, which at current rates could run roughly $126,000. It was also noted that the current $500,000 price tag might not be renewed at that price, which could be impacted by factors such as the tariffs on imports being threatened by President Donald Trump and ever-increasing inflation.

If they were to start the meter replacements reasonably, the project could be completed within five years.

Commissioner O’Malley reported $107,387.70 in revenue (Illinois Department of Revenue: State use tax $1,054.16, video gaming tax $6,223.94, cannabis use tax $263.96, telecommunications tax $1,670.21, income tax $67,029.21; Illinois Department of Transportation: repair and maintenance reimbursement $1,173.60; other revenues: $29,972.62) and pending bills of $101,834.21.

In old business, the council discussed a quote for removing and replacing an existing ridge cap to install a new vented closure for the mighty rib metal roof. There has been an issue with condensation due to a lack of ventilation during the winter months, hence the need to resolve the issue. The contractor who worked on the project previously stated that whatever he might do might not fix the problem. They will reach out to David Hadley for potential solutions.

In new business, the council approved a special event liquor license to Knights of Columbus #2189 at the Nokomis Memorial Park. The dates they will be operating will be for July 11-13, 2025, which is the weekend of Nokomis Homecoming.

The city will be applying for a share of grant funds recently made available by the Illinois Department of Transportation, which is releasing $400 million in funds for this grant program.

They would also greenlight the use of city-owned property located at 425 S. Maple for a community garden, a collaborative effort of Newkomis and the Nokomis Farmers Market.

The council entered executive session at 7:57 p.m. to discuss matters relating to collective bargaining (per 5 ILCS 120/2 (c)(2)) and the discussion of minutes lawfully closed under the Open Meetings Act, specifically targeted as a semi-annual review of closed (or executive) session minutes as mandated in the Open Meetings Act (per 5 ILCS 120/2 (c)(21))

The council reconvened at 8:28 p.m. with no action taken during the executive session and would adjourn seconds later.

The next Nokomis City Council meeting is Monday, June 9.

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