Arthur Area Association of Commerce, Simply Arthur and Illinois Amish Heritage Center recipients of this year’s local tourism grant

By ARIANA R. CHERRY
Staff Writer

Ed Coller, Simply Arthur Director of Economic Development, made a brief appearance at the most recent meeting of the Arthur Village Board. He handed out invitations to an upcoming dinner that is focusing on the businesses in Arthur. “I want to make sure that Arthur continues to be prosperous. It is a unique and beautiful place. We want to keep it that way,” he stated.

Moving forward, Trustee Matt Bernius reported the expenditures as $24,008.59. He stated that there was nothing out of the ordinary except for $4,750 which was spent for landscaping by The Great Pumpkin Patch.

Village President Rod Randall made a short statement during his report. “We just ended a fiscal year and I thought it was a successful one for the village. I am looking forward to another year and hoping it is just as successful,” he said. Randall thanked the members of the board for the great job that they do and appreciated all the work that they did. “Everybody seems to be very happy with the way things are going,” Randall concluded.

Trustee Christy Miller reminded everyone to be thinking about the seniors who had recently left for their senior trip and that graduation will be this month. The senior graduation is May 27 and the eighth graders will be promoted on the Thursday night before that.

Police Chief Michel Goodman informed the board that the 2021 Police Ford Interceptor is at Tuscola right now. Some wiring underneath had been chewed by some type of animal and the transmission and AC are also having issues. It is currently under warranty.

D.A.R.E. Graduation is scheduled for May 12 at 7:00 pm for the Arthur Grade School. There are about 40 kids in the fifth grade. The winning D.A.R.E. posters have been posted on the fence at the grade school. This year’s winners were Kyndrie Carter and Jase Kingery.

Board members discussed and took action on the local tourism grant recommendations. Last year money was not distributed due to COVID. Applications were received from the Arthur Area Association of Commerce, Simply Arthur and Illinois Amish Heritage Center which were all approved. A total of $19,768.81 was awarded for this year’s grant recipients.

New summer staff was hired to help the village with a pay of $13/hour. Those hired were Brayden Borntreger, Caleb Corum and Kody Kornewald. This will be their first year working for the village.

A bid of $2,224.97 from APTechnologies was approved to purchase a laptop computer for use by the Village Clerk for the board room.

A request was made and approved to designate a handicap parking space in the 100 block of East Illinois Street and it was approved.