East Peoria is looking to crack down on hotel and motel operators that aren’t up to date in paying city taxes.
During Tuesday’s meeting, the city council approved the first reading of ordinance amendments that would enable East Peoria to strengthen its enforcement powers.
“We’ve had repeated issues in this space, which has driven — at least in part — to give us a little bit stronger of a collection wording here,” said commissioner Mark Hill. “Our current code allows for our city attorney to take action, but it doesn’t give us other means, and the change here is doing just that.”
East Peoria requires all hotels and motels to obtain a city license and pay a 6% hotel-motel tax. Hill said it’s concerning that repeated issues around late and unpaid taxes have necessitated the tougher rules.
“In this case, we’re extending our abilities, or improving our abilities, to collect on said hotel-motel tax, and that additional mechanism here is that we’re able to put liens on a property that’s not paying, or not current or past due,” said Hill.
The council unanimously approved the first reading, with commissioner Seth Mingus absent. A final vote is expected at the next regular meeting.
Other council actions
The council also unanimously approved allocating $1.5 million in motor fuel tax funds toward the 2026 street maintenance and engineering program, with an existing engineering agreement with Patrick Meyer & Associates already in place.
“We tried to get [bidding] out early so we can get the best rate, and with the contractors hungry, we get their best rate,” said commissioner Dan Decker, who welcomed the city’s increased spending for road upgrades.
“We’ve really made some big, big, huge improvements, especially over the last couple of years, and we’re happy to continue to do that.”
Additional items approved Tuesday included:
- A zoning amendment to allow for multi-family developments as a special use in districts zoned for senior living facilities;
- Giving the East Peoria Police Department permission to access lock box systems near the entrances to commercial buildings within the city;
- Renewing an intergovernmental agreement with Tazewell County for animal and rabies control services;
- Payment of invoices totaling almost $40,400 to retrofit certain streetlights with the Gridsmart camera system; and
- A one-year extension for cleaning services at city buildings.
