A potentially dangerous intersection in downtown Pekin soon will be converted into a four-way stop to make it safer.
The Pekin City Council this week approved placing two stop signs on South Fourth Street at the St. Mary Street crossing.
Pekin Police Chief Seth Ranney said the move stems from concerns raised by a public speaker at a recent traffic safety committee meeting. The resident said the two-story Tazewell County Resource Centers building on the northwest corner sometimes makes it difficult for eastbound traffic on St. Mary to see the southbound traffic on South Fourth.
"The speaker had witnessed several near misses of vehicle/pedestrian and vehicle/vehicle accidents at the intersection," Ranney said.
After inspecting the intersection and seeing the large volume of vehicular and pedestrian traffic, Ranney said, committee members recommended the addition of the two stop signs.
City manager contract
Pekin City Manager John Dossey has a new four-year contract after council members approved the agreement following a nearly three-hour executive session. Rick Hilst was the lone dissenter in a 5-1 council vote.
"There's some language clean-up in the new contract, but no substantial changes," Dossey said.
He'll receive the same 3% cost-of-living increase given in May to the city's other non-union employees, raising his salary for current fiscal year to nearly $190,500.
Dossey's initial three-year contract will expire Aug. 28. He previously served as the city's police chief for more than eight years and was the interim city manager for seven months.
TIF grants approved
Six businesses and building owners were approved by the council for tax increment financing [TIF] grants in the city's commercial building improvement program:
- Mary Teresa Lohman, 343 Court Street [former Asher's Bar & Grill]: Up to $100,000 for renovations, of which $50,000 must be spent on a sprinkler system installation.
- Pekin Alignment & Autobody, 716 Court Street: Up to $50,000 for renovations.
- Yesterday's Bar & Grill, 363 Court Street: Up to $32,000 for a new roof.
- Gambetti Girls, 437 Court Street [former Instant Replay Sports Bar]: Up to $9,000 for a new roof.
- Frank Hoffman Law Office, 423 Court Street: Up to $4,000 for a new roof.
- Blitz Laundry, 312 Derby Street: Up to $1,000 for a water service line repair.
The council reinstated a TIF agreement with Pekin Alignment & Autobody that will provide up to $30,000 in real estate tax rebates over a maximum 10-year period to help cover $125,500 in TIF-eligible renovation expenses.
"I know we're setting a precedent by [approving both TIF requests], but the work that's been done at Pekin Autobody is unbelievable," said council member Dave Nutter. "They have spent a ton of money and their place looks great."
Contract violation fine
A Jacksonville company has been fined by the city of Pekin for contract violations and barred from bidding on city projects for a year.
Littleton Storm & Timber Services was the low bidder on four demolition projects.
The company was supposed to treat the demolition materials as if they had asbestos regardless of testing, but failed to do so, according to city staff.
A memo from staff to the council states that no environmental protection or other laws were broken, but "the city would still like a formal agreement whereby Littleton takes all responsibility and liability should an issue arise."
The agreement also assesses a $1,000 fine per project.
The city council approved the agreement, and also agreed to disqualify Littleton from bidding for city work for a year.
Audit backlog nears finish
Finance Director Eric Dubrowski said work on the city's 2024-25 fiscal year audit is ahead of schedule and the audit should be brought to the council in September.
"Our finances were in shambles when I was elected mayor [in 2023]," said Mayor Mary Burress. "We were behind by four years in our audits when I took office.
"Now we're looking at being caught up with seven years of audits next April. That's amazing work by our staff."
Other actions
In other business, the the council:
- Approved a $32,300 contract with Hoerr Construction of Goodfield to do an emergency repair of the sanitary sewer main between 1608 and 1610 Willow Street. Five local construction companies were asked by city staff for quotes to do the repair. Hoerr submitted the low quote.
- Approved the city's annual contract with Texas-based Lexipol for policy manual and daily training bulletins for the Pekin Police Department. The cost is nearly $18,600.
