Washington City Council

Washington joined the grocery sales tax crowd Monday. The City Council voted 6-2 for the city to impose a 1% sales tax on groceries starting Jan. 1 to replace the state's 1% grocery sales tax.

Two Washington businesses were given the go-ahead Monday to have video gaming terminals in their establishments. They are The Peak on Summit, 201 S. Summit Drive, and Blue Ox, 120 N. Wilmor Road.

Officials from the Washington Chamber of Commerce and Discover Peoria each made a pitch Monday to the Washington City Council for continued city funding.

Washington City Council began its discussion about possibly adopting a 1% local grocery tax Monday. An ordinance must be approved and a certified copy of the ordinance sent to the Illinois Department of Revenue by Oct. 1 for a local grocery tax to go into effect Jan. 1.

A legal opinion regarding a possible conflict of interest involving Washington Mayor Gary Manier and the foundation that's proposing to build a $12 million amphitheater in the city will not be released to the public.

The race to see who will be Washington's next mayor has grabbed most of the attention in the city in the runup to the April 1 election, but voters will be making several other decisions.

The Washington City Council on Monday unanimously adopted the Illinois Municipal League’s Civility Pledge. The action came in the aftermath of a sometimes contentious council committee of the whole meeting last week, during which there were heated discussions about a proposed $12 million amphitheater project.

Many Washington residents have strong opinions about the project and more than 100 filled a banquet room at Five Points Washington on Monday for a Washington City Council committee of the whole meeting.

A proposed 5,000-seat amphitheater that would be built on city property wasn't on the Washington City Council's meeting agenda Monday, but it was on the agenda of audience members who came to the meeting to express their opposition to the project.

Advocates for the construction of a $12 million, 5,000-seat amphitheater on Washington city property will hold an open house Wednesday so members of the public can get answers to their questions.