The development of a fire services contract between the City of Peoria and the Village of Peoria Heights is on pause, after a close vote at Tuesday night’s meeting of the village board of trustees.
Trustee Brandon Wisenburg made a motion to rescind a previous vote in favor of a contract, held on July 18, after nearly an hour of critical public comment.
“In light of that, during the meeting, I was just sitting there trying to think how this obviously is not something that the public had been supporting,” Wisenburg said. “It's my job to support or work for the public. So you know, what can I do?”
He said he did not intend to make the motion when the meeting started.
Wisenburg’s motion to reverse the previous decision passed with a vote from trustee Mark Gauf, who previously supported a contract with the Peoria Fire Department.
However, it’s unclear whether the motion is actually valid. Wisenburg said the village’s legal counsel was absent from the meeting.
“From my understanding, I don't think procedurally, that was something that should have been done last night,” Wisenburg said.
Wisenburg has requested to add the motion to the board’s agenda for its next meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 15.
Peoria Heights Mayor Mike Phelan was not immediately available for comment.
WCBU will update this story as we learn more. You can find more information about the origins of the contract discussions and the July 18 vote here.
