Village of Grant Park residents will soon have more to look at than just brick on the side of the village hall building, after the board unanimously approved a mural to be painted by Paul Niemeyer.
Trustee Gerry Morgan reviewed the components of the mural, which celebrate prominent historical figures and representative imagery from the town’s history, along with a welcome greeting.
Included in the mural is a depiction of C.C. Campbell, who founded the village, Chief Yellowhead of the Potawatami Tribe, for whom Yellowhead Township is named. It also includes a steam locomotive, a 1950s farm with a mid-twentieth-century tractor, and an image depicting the April 21, 1912, tornado taking out a church.
The school district’s mascot, the Dragons, is incorporated into a farm field, and a Grant Park sign, held up by train station figures, will camouflage the downspout on the building. To the right of that, an image of Ulysses S. Grant, will be painted, along with the tent enactment depicting Grant’s capabilities as a general in the Civil War. Next is Harry Frahm’s civil aviation plane, Grant Park World War II Ace Richard Alexander, the co-op grainery, while the right side ends with corn, which is a significant part of the town.
There was some discussion about adding a year of incorporation, a butterfly, and the artist’s signature, which may be added. The board unanimously approved the mural.
Village Finances
Before the board approved the bills to be paid, Trustee Steve Brower inquired about the line item for spray patching and what that was for, as well as whether damage to property at Lynn Road and Greenwood Court had been repaired.
Trustee Julie Quinn advised Brower that the spray patching was for patching holes in the roads within the village. Trustee Morgan Whorrall explained the small patch had not been included in the spray patching, as other areas were a higher priority. However, Whorrall made note it needed to be addressed.
Bills were approved to be paid, including: $31,729.57 from the corporate fund; two from the FEST account, $2425.00 and $2925.54; TIF account $20,500; and payroll $18,869.
Police Chief Carl Frey advised that the police department’s budget might look askew due to the purchase of tasers for $18,000. However, he wanted to point out they received a grant for them and $15,686 was reimbursed.
Anonymous Residents Demand Code Enforcement Action
The anonymous code-enforcement letter-writer has struck again, citing additional addresses where there are code violations. The letter-writer explained they remained anonymous for fear of retaliation by the police chief, while Detloff took umbrage with that reasoning.
“I’ve known our chief of police since he came into the village. I have never heard of any incident of retaliation by any of the police officers or if anybody said anything bad about the chief,” Detloff said before adding that it didn’t serve the village and that line of reasoning was harmful.
Frey advised he visited every location on the anonymous letter’s list and noted the majority were underway, with some requiring citations. Many of the items pertained to paint, siding, and roofs.
“I have to ask the board how detailed do we want to be on this? It talked about green mold on the north side of houses. That’s about every house in town. It just happens,” Frey said, expressing concerns about being too “petty” regarding citing violations.
“I think we need to be particular when we cite people for violations. They have to be egregious, in my opinion, so I’ll leave it at that. I need direction from you,” Frey added.
Detloff said if there are areas of neglect, they need to be addressed, but agreed and said he wasn’t going to go driving around town looking for violations.
Whorrall said the chief could use his discretion. Quinn added that she sits on an HOA board, and they are not as particular as the anonymous letter writer.
“You have to draw the line somewhere,” Detloff added, and said people should go with the rules and do what they can, noting everyone’s home is a work in progress. Detloff also said there are ordinances, and they would be enforced, but in most cases, he’d like to see a request made to comply before taking them to the adjudication court after issuing a fine.
Detloff also advised that the village received another letter, this one mentioning the school district has experienced buses being scratched by tree branches, windows being broken, and the potential for harm.
Detloff said he had not heard of any windows being broken by trees. He also advised that homeowners need to take care of the trees on their property, and if not, the village would have to trim them and bill the homeowner.
He planned to attend the next school board meeting to be available in case they had any questions, noting the letter indicated the information had been previously presented to the school board.
Project Updates
Village President Ben Detloff reported that he met with RNR construction and finalized contracts for the Hilgert Park renovation, which will be ADA-compliant. The slide and swingset were removed and stored for potential use elsewhere in the village. Detloff said they hoped to get the park started this year, but it would be completed in the spring.
Whorrall inquired if the pickleball courts would stay, to which Detloff advised that they would.
Detloff also reported Surf Internet recently received the IDOT permit for the transport path to bring the internet through. They estimate the work should be completed before the end of September.
Other Village News
The local Girl Scout Troop was unanimously approved to sell cookies door-to-door.
Grant Park officially decided to reinstate the 1 percent grocery tax the state previously collected and distributed to villages. To continue collecting that revenue, villages had to establish their own 1 percent tax. Trustee Gerry Morgan explained that it’s not a new tax, as it previously had been collected through the state. Now, the village will be the one directly handling it.
Morgan advised there were seven showings and three offers on the Pepin property, 12393 East State IL 1-17 that was listed for sale. He recommended the board approve the full price officer for $150,000 to Jerry Lloyd Trust. All voted in favor except for Whorral, though she did not offer a reason why she voted against the sale.
Stephanie Irvine is a freelance reporter.