West Central Reporter

Village of Franklin Board of Trustees met May 5.

Here is the minutes provided by the board:

Mayor Paul Turpin called the regular monthly meeting of the Village of Franklin Board of Trustees to order at 7:02 pm, in the town hall. Trustees present via Zoom were Wyatt Smith, Lincoln Hill, Tami Thompson, Nicole Fromme, and Amanda Ahlers. Trustee Abby Flynn was present in the Village Hall.

Trustee Lincoln Hill presented in honor of a non-attending guest, Jason Fuchs. He is interested in purchasing the Quonset Huts from the Village and reached out to Lincoln to let him know. The board discussed it briefly and mentioned they would have to be publicized for bids.

Treasurer Susan Smith presented the Treasurer's Report for April. She informed the board where each business stood and how the bank balances were for the month. Wyatt Smith made a motion to accept the Treasurer's Report for April. Amanda Ahlers seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Wyatt Smith-yes, Lincoln Hill-yes, Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes and Abby Flynn-yes. The motion was carried. Susan Smith presented the Bills Paid and to Be Paid for April. Tami Thompson made a motion to accept the Bills Paid and to be Paid for April. Abby Flynn seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Lincoln Hill-yes, Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, Abby Flynn-yes, and Wyatt Smith-yes. The motion was carried.

Clerk, Ashley Turpin presented the Trustees with minutes from April. Tami Thompson made a motion to approve the minutes from April. Wyatt Smith seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, Abby Flynn-yes, Wyatt Smith-yes, and Lincoln Hill-yes. The motion was carried.

Andy Fairless presented his Utility Supervisor report. Andy is currently working on a water loss report. He may have Eden Brother's come back and do another survey to get a more accurate reading after the significant water loss the Village had last spring. Andy also received bids for the basketball court sealing. He explained the bids to the trustees.

Buildings, Roads, and Drainage - There is juvenile riding an ATV on the roadways and sidewalks around the village. He's even been seen pulling off of Highway 104. He's been asked multiple times to stop. The attorney wrote a letter and it simply states that the village will have the authority to write a citation if he is caught again. The trustees agree the letter should be sent and citations made if necessary. Secondly, Mayor Turpin found an area to make in the new village maintenance building for the guys to use.

Finance/Payroll - There is nothing new to report from this committee.

Insurance - Tami Thompson received a quote from Diamond Brothers. She talked with each of the three village employees and they are happy with their current policies. The deductibles stayed the same and the policy only went up $82.22 from the previous year. The present trustees agreed to continue with the same policy. Tami Thompson made a motion to keep the employee health insurance the same. Amanda Ahlers seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Abby Flynn-yes, Wyatt Smith-yes, Lincoln Hill-yes, Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, and Amanda Ahlers-yes. The motion was carried.

Personnel - There is nothing new to report from this committee.

Utility Reconnect - There is nothing new to report from this committee.

Utilities - Mayor Turpin explained that Andy Fairless is working on his report for water loss and is finding an 18% loss. There are currently three possibilities with the situation: there is a bad meter, another bad leak, or all of the meters are bad. The loss last year was more than 18%. Andy said it will be easier to find out once the first 4 months of this year are complete and their reports are in.

Abandoned Property is put on hold due to the pandemic. The Panhandle Municipal Defense update has no changes.

The village received an agreement for the cell towers. Mayor Turpin sent it the attorney for review. He sent the company a letter asking for a few questions to be answered and changes to be made to the contract. Mayor Turpin reviewed some of the stipulations agreed to by both parties: cement will be 4 feet deep, if the company leaves then they will take everything, and if they go bankrupt they must tear their equipment down. The village will receive a one time payment for the village of $1000. Then once it is built the village received $500 per month for five years and then it will increase by 10 percent for 30 years. Tami Thompson made a motion to agree to the contract that the attorney approves, with the stipulation that the terms remain as stated in the meeting. Lincoln Hill seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Wyatt Smith-yes, Lincoln Hill-yes, Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, and Abby Flynn-yes. The motion was carried.

The abandoned vehicle action is being placed on hold due to the pandemic.

The basketball court in the park needs to be sealed as discussed in April. Mayor Turpin recently sent a copy of the bids to the trustees and Andy reviewed them earlier in the meeting. Mayor Turpin suggested holding off on completing the work until it is known if the 4th of July events will occur. The village could wait until next year if it is cancelled. Tami Thompson made a motion to approve the bid from Midwest for resealing the basketball court in the park, as long as the 4th of July events are still occurring. Abby Flynn seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Lincoln Hill-yes, Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, Abby Flynn-yes, and Wyatt Smith-yes. The motion was carried.

Mayor Turpin suggested the village maintenance employees paint the pavilion. Nicole Fromme asked if the bathroom doors in the park could be repainted too.

The Village board discussed the Village entrance signs. Andy Fairless reviewed the pricing for the signs with the options the company offered. The trustees agree to hold off until July due to the state of the economy.

The trustees reviewed the Christmas lights and all year banners. They decided to hold off until next month in hopes they can reach someone at the company.

Mayor Turpin explained they village received a bid for work to be done on the village office. The current bid came in at $1000. Wyatt Smith made a motion to approve $2000 to have work done around the village building by Chris Ulm. Lincoln Hill seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, Abby Flynn-yes, Wyatt Smith-yes, and Lincoln Hill-yes. The motion was carried.

Mayor Turpin said there are 27 policies in the employee handbook. At the next monthly meeting we will approve all 27 and also approve the ordinance then. Some of the policies include leave of absence for sexual and domestic violence, prohibiting of firearms in the workplace, and drug testing.

On July 16th of 2019 the original alcohol ordinance was approved by the board, written as Ordinance 2019-01. The board needs to approve an update to the ordinance for a daily fee for special events in the village. It is currently $1000 for 1 year package liquor sales and $1300 for a combo license. The trustees agree on a $50 daily fee. Tami Thompson made a motion to amend Ordinance 2019-01 of the Village of Franklin regulating the sale, possession and consumption of alcoholic liquor in the Village of Franklin, Morgan County, Illinois. Lincoln Hill seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, Abby Flynn-yes, Wyatt Smith-yes, Lincoln Hill-yes, and Tami Thompson-yes. The motion was carried.

Mayor Turpin wanted to bring the idea of hiring summer help up to the board. All agree there is no need for summer help at this time.

A call was made to Mayor Turpin asking if the park could be reopened since the Governor is lifting some restrictions. Mayor Turpin sat in on a meeting and they discussed the reasoning for opening some of the larger state parks versus the smaller town parks. Wyatt Smith made a motion to open the park. No one seconded the motion. The board agreed to revisit the idea in two weeks.

Wyatt Smith made a motion to adjourn. Tami Thompson seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, Abby Flynn-yes, Wyatt Smith-yes, and Lincoln Hill-yes. The meeting adjourned at 8:21 pm.

Mayor Paul Turpin called the special meeting of the Village of Franklin Board of Trustees to order at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, May 19, 2020 in the town hall. Trustees present via Zoom were Abby Flynn, Wyatt Smith, Lincoln Hill, Tami Thompson, Nicole Fromme, and Amanda Ahlers.

Mayor Turpin sent an email to village trustees in regard to the insurance policy for reopening the park. In the email the insurance company states that reopening the park is going against the governors orders and if the village reopens the park the insurance becomes void. Mayor Turpin reached out to the insurance company's attorney regarding the issue and the attorney also said it is conflicting with the current orders and the village should be concerned about insurance and liability if they choose to reopen. A few board members were in question as to why the municipality had the authority and choice to close the park but will not be in compliance for choosing to reopen. Mayor Turpin stated that unfortunately we did have the choice to close or not. The board chose to close it because people were not following social distancing guidelines and Franklin was called out in a county health meeting for not abiding by the Governors orders. However now if the board chooses to reopen, the village will lose their insurance. Mayor Turpin said it was explained to him that state parks were opened due to the large amount of acreage for people to roam and keep apart. Small village parks such as Franklins, are an easier source for group congregation and socializing. A few trustees expressed their frustration with the idea of not having a choice without losing insurance. Mayor Turpin stated the Governor may release some new guidelines at the end of the month and things could start to open again. It can be revisited during the June meeting. No one made a motion to reopen due to the liability.

Nicole Fromme shared the designs for banners and the pricing options. Trustees discussed their opinions and choices. Mayor Turpin suggested purchasing a few this year and more in 6 to 12 months so they didn't all need replaced at the same time in the future. Nicole Fromme made a motion to purchase 4 big banners including: 1 thank you for your service banner and 3 Village of Franklin banners. Tami Thompson seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Lincoln Hill-yes, Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, Abby Flynn-yes, and Wyatt Smith-yes. The motion was carried.

Nicole Fromme added that she sent out a list of prices and options for additional Christmas lights to be purchased. She asked that each trustee review the options so a decision could be made on purchasing more or not.

Mayor Turpin informed the board that the awnings on the village building were removed by Chris Ulm with the help of the village employees. During removal they noticed the awnings were barely attached and hazardous.

A letter was sent to the juvenile riding his ATV around town.

Mayor Turpin explained the state needs additional paperwork in regards to the agreement between the Village of Franklin and Waverly for the water. The contract cannot be found, as it was originally agreed upon in 1930. Waverly Mayor is looking for it also. If need be, the board will vote to agree to a new one so it can be filed and sent to the state for the proposed grant money.

Wyatt Smith made a motion to adjourn. Tami Thompson seconded the motion. The voting was as follows: Tami Thompson-yes, Nicole Fromme-yes, Amanda Ahlers-yes, Abby Flynn-yes, Wyatt Smith-yes, and Lincoln Hill-yes. The motion was carried. The meeting adjourned at 7:29 pm.

http://www.franklinillinois.net/assets/20-5%20Minutes%20May%2020.pdf