Village of Camargo
Board Meeting Minutes
Regular Session
Monday, September 14, 2020
7:00 pm
The Village Board of the Village of Camargo met in regular session on Monday, September 14, 2020 at the Camargo Community Building. The meeting was called to order at 7:01 pm by Village President Bart Dann. Roll call found the following trustees present: Nancy George, Jim Lansford, Jeane Brieland, and Gary Gilpin. Village Superintendent Doug Raymer, Water Superintendent Kyle Raymer, and Treasurer Shirley Badman were all in attendance.
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
Pam Sigler: Pam was present to advise the Board that she washed all the silverware and sterilized all the wash clothes, dish towels, and hot pads from the basement kitchen. She stated the community building needs to purchase a new can opener and a new bottle opener for that kitchen. The Board thanked Pam for her work.
Pam also relayed that Heidi McFarland had several complaints, but she could not be present at the meeting. Heidi is having issues with Victory Church parking on her property. She is also having problems with people walking their dogs and allowing them to defecate in their yard. Village President Bart Dann stated he would talk to Victory Church about the parking. However, he can’t do anything about the dogs unless she has proof and can tell who the pet owners are.
Pam would also like to know why the Verizon tower isn’t up yet. With all the students having to do remote learning for school, the area really needs the coverage. Bart explained that everything is ready for install. However, with COVID striking, our project has been placed on hold again. He suggested that the customers in Camargo that use Verizon and have poor service start calling customer service and filing complaints. The more complaints Camargo receives, the quicker our install project will move to the top of the list. He also stated he would call Bill at Verizon and see what else could be done. Jim Lansford suggested she could call *611 if she is a Verizon customer. This would take her directly to customer service.
Pam wanted the Board to know that the Methodist Church is going to continue their tradition of Truck or Treat at the church on Halloween. Bart advised her that Victory Church is doing the same thing. He stated the Village was going to allow people to hand out candy if they wish. If a home does not wish to participate in Trick or Treat, they can leave their porch light off.
Pam also wanted to know if the Village was going to do anything to replace the WWF. Bart stated he already had a discussion with Village Clerk Salisa Dann and Board Trustee Jeane Brieland regarding this matter. He is completely okay with moving forward with the Glow Cart Parade; however, he does NOT want to host a movie. It might be difficult to socially distance. It was decided that the Glow Card parade will line up at Opal Thompson Park at 6:30 pm on Saturday, October 10th. We will practice social distancing: masks optional. If you wish to throw candy, it must be individually wrapped and you must wear food grade serving gloves.
Pam wanted to know if anything was being done with the property on Vine Street. Bart explained to her that the house was recently sold to Doug Jackson. However, he would reach out to Doug and explain to him that the Village needs to see some improvements being made.
Brenda Lumpe: Brenda was present regarding her yard. She stated there was some draining issues several years back and pipe leak. The Village employees came into her yard to fix the issues and left her yard a mess. She stated there are ruts all over the back yard where they fixed the pipe, but never levelled out the dirt. She said she still has severe drainage issues and would like the Village to fix them. Another issue she had was that a snow plow hit her landscaping and broke her sidewalk. She said there was a sink hole in front of her house. The Village employees filled the hole but never investigated why the sink hole happened or attempted to fix what caused the issue.
Brenda stated the drainage is so bad there are ruts in her yard where the water runs through it. The water runs down from Thompson’s Grocery and into her garage. This has caused the dirt to erode and now her garage needs repair as it has collapsed on one side. Again, the yard timbers are broken from a snow plow, and no one fixed it. They tore a bush out and no one replaced that either.
There is still chunks of clay in her yard from the broken tile/pipe, and it was never removed. The fence was falling down because of the drainage issues. There is a tile that runs from Main Street to the RR tracks.
Village Superintendent Doug Raymer offered to place some dirt in her yard and attempt to level it out. Brenda said that would not be enough, and that would not help the issue. Jim Lansford asked Brenda exactly what she wanted. She stated he would like the yard leveled out, and she would like the Village to help cover the cost to repair her garage.
Bart Dann suggested we call Koeberlein’s and get a professional opinion on what needs to be done before we start doing any work. Board Trustee Nancy George recommended we get an expert to evaluate this situation, and we will revisit it at next month’s meeting.
MINUTES:
Nancy George made a motion to accept the minutes with the corrections she pointed out. Jim Lansford seconded the motion, and the motion passed unanimously.
TREASURER’S REPORT:
Laura Miller made a motion to accept the minutes, and Nancy seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
EXECUTIVE SESSION:
N/A
NEW BUSINESS:
- Plants and Weed Ordinance
Nancy made a motion to accept the revised Plants and Weeds Ordinance. Laura seconded the motion, and the motion passed unanimously.
- Junk Ordinance
Nancy made a motion to accept the revised Junk Ordinance, and Gary Gilpin seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
- Water Bill Increase
Bart discussed again there will be a $3 increase on the base rate for everyone’s water bill. A $2 increase will go into effect on the January 01 billing. The following year a $1 increase will go into effect. The increase is due to rising costs of labor, chemicals, and parts. The Village has not had a rate increase in five (5) years. In town and out of town residents will all see the same increase. Businesses and residential billing will all receive the same increase.
- Christmas in Camargo
Due to COVID, Christmas in Camargo will be cancelled this year. However, we will still participate in the tree lighting. We can social distance outside. We can have hot cocoa will pre-packaged cocoa that each person will stir in themselves.
- ERBA Washer and Dryer
Bart was approached by Kim Johnson of ERBA. They would be interested in installing a stackable washer and dryer in the building for their use. The Board had several concerns:
Why do they need it?
What are they washing?
How are they doing their laundry now?
Who will pay for the electrical and plumbing for installation?
They don’t have access to the basement (other than in emergency storm situations) according to their current contract.
Concerns regarding the basement becoming messy like the current situation of the office and board room.
The Board suggested they (ERBA) look at the space in the basement. It is tentative, and they need to get a plan together and then bring their proposal to the Board. Shirley has serious concerns regarding the office and the use of Village space in that room. Her desk items are constantly being moved. The Board agreed with the concerns on how the building was being left. Bart said he would call ERBA and have a discussion with Kim regarding these concerns and the washer and dryer.
- Tile down Route 130
Jim Lansford had a question regarding the tile that runs ground water from Hancock subdivision to the creek. He wondered if he could have someone look into how he could re-run the drainage into his pond. It would be a win-win for both he and Nancy George. There would be less water running onto her property, and more fresh water into his pond. This would refresh the water. The Board agreed for him to go ahead and look into the matter.
OLD BUSINESS
N/A
VILLAGE SUPERINTENDENT REPORT
Village Superintendent Doug Raymer reported the following:
- Flushed hydrants
- DBP samples
- Mulch at Opal Thompson Park – It took 2 truck loads
- Riprap delivered for George property
- Street Lights out on Main Street
- Ameren fixed the lights and tilted the light on Main in front of the Methodist Church.
- Painted hydrants and valves
- Helped prep the siren for install (this Friday)
- Got prices for new tires for ½ ton truck from 3C’s
- Laura Miller made motion to purchase the tires from 3C’s and to dispose of old tires totaling $748 plus the cost of disposal. Nancy seconded the motion, and the motion passed unanimously.
- Water bill returned for 411 John St. The residents do not have their address registered with the post office. Therefore, the mail will not be delivered until this happens. Bart advised Doug he can deliver the water bill this time. But make sure they understand that we will NOT be hand delivering their water bill again. They need to go to the post office and get this issue resolved.
- He would like the Board to meet at Lumpe’s residence on Sunday. He would like for them to see the property in person before any decisions are made. The Board decided to meet at 4pm at Brenda’s residence.
- With the help of Kevin Billingsly, Doug and Kyle, the entrance to Taylor Haines Park has been spruced up. Kevin removed the previous edging and replaced it with concrete edging block, they added new mulch, and he planted some new flowers.
WATER SUPERINTENDENT REPORT
Water Superintendent Kyle Raymer reported the following:
- DBT samples came back. These were the best samples in the past three years. Congratulations, Kyle!
- Kyle looked into new chlorine pumps. We have to have two. One to use and one as backup in case the other one quits. The cost is $980 for each and this includes installation and training. He called a new chlorine supplier, and it would save the Village approximately $600 / year. These pumps will not dilute the chlorine; our current pumps do.
Nancy made the motion to purchase two new chlorine pumps that included the training and installation at a cost of $980 each. Jim Lansford seconded the motion, and the motion passed unanimously.
PRESIDENT REPORT
Village President Bart Dann reported the following:
- There is a XC meet in Camargo this Wednesday (September 17). Coach Kestner is having the runners begin and end on Main Street in front of Thompson’s Grocery. They will run west down Main to River Road and turn around at the end of River Road and double back. They are scheduled for a 4pm start time.
- This next year marks Camargo’s 185th birthday! Bart would like to consolidate a celebration for Camargo and the WWF. He would like the Board’s approval to look into fireworks (cost, location, insurance). He would love to get every town in the County involved, as Camargo is the oldest town in Douglas County. One thing we need to keep in consideration with fireworks, is the dryness of the fields during harvest.
- Michelle Smith contacted Salisa regarding the rental of the tables and chairs in November. She agreed to pay $200 which equals the cost of renting both the upstairs and downstairs. The Board agreed that the tables and chairs do not leave the community building.
- Blake Swan is remodeling his house. His kitchen has the same handles as the upstairs kitchen of the community building. He wanted to know if he could purchase the Village new handles in exchange for the old ones. The current ones are no longer made, and he can’t find the same pattern anywhere. The Board agreed, as long the new handles also have a back plate in case the cabinet doors and drawers are discolored behinds the handles.
With no further business to come before the Board, Village President Bart Dann called for adjournment at 8:47 pm.
Salisa Dann
Village Clerk