Village approves a flag design for the Arthur Sesquicentennial

Board reminds residents of the burn and golf cart ordinances

By ARIANA R. CHERRY
Staff Writer
On April 4, 2022, the Arthur Village Board opened their meeting reporting $25,504.29 with nothing much out of the ordinary in expenses.

Trustee Matt Bernius wanted to remind residents of the village’s burn ordinance as well as those for golf carts. “We are adhering to the same rules as always,” he commented. “Stickers for golf cart renewals are available at the village office if they are needed,” Bernius added. Trustee Jim Fleming commented that it was good to see Oyes moving into the old “Quality Auto” building.

After no comments from the other trustees and no unfinished business to cover, the board moved onto new business. Ordinance 04-04A-2022 authorizing the sale of certain real property formerly known as Penn Central Railroad was approved. The property was sold to Larry Herschberger at $1.25 per square foot for a total of $9,800 (approximately 7,480 feet / 0.01 acres).

An amendment to the consulting services agreement with SIMEC to continue working for the village at no cost in the administration of its municipal electric aggregation program was approved. Mayor Rod Randall noted that there was no problem with the agreement and that everyone would go back to just having Ameren, but residents were still able to go with a third party if they chose to do so. The program will go on hiatus for a year and is due to take effect in June.

During a period of time board members went into a closed executive session to discuss employee compensation and salaries for FY 2022-2023.

Afterward, they returned to the board room to continue the public portion of their meeting and began to discuss the new flag design for the Arthur Sesquicentennial. The village has already budgeted money for the celebration. Randall received a quote on a custom design flag design at 4 ft. x 6 ft. for $170. Flags that are 3 ft. x 5 ft are $140 each. The village will need to order four of the 4 x 6 flags. Two of the flags will be displayed at the Welcome Center and the Community Building. Randall showed the design to the board where it was then approved.

Before the meeting ended, there were a few topics put on the floor for general discussion. Randall informed the board that he was still working on getting another bid for flooring in the community building. A local contractor had mentioned that the community building is getting close to being needed to be replaced. Someone suggested that the village look into getting a metal roof. They will get estimates for both a metal roof and a regular one.

There was also some discussion and concern about possible nearby wind farms. Attorney Crossman noted that the village won’t have to concern themselves with any windmills within the corporate limits, as there is no place in town where you would have that kind of set-back but there also is no jurisdiction for a mile and half around.

Randall reported that the Arthur Rotary Club will be having an electronic recycling day in May. He asked the board if they might want to supply an amount to help for the costs and beyond if it becomes more than the Rotary can handle. He said he would talk more with them for more information. No date has been set for a specific day in May yet.

While on the topic of recycling, Randall also suggested that perhaps there be a “Freecycle Weekend,” in town and if any of the members were interested in pursuing such a thing? Residents would be responsible for putting items on the boulevard as well as responsible for removing them. There may be more discussion about it in the future.