City Council Approves Street Vacations, Rezoning

The Effingham City Council Tuesday agreed to vacate a portion of Kentucky Avenue from Mulberry to Maple Streets and a portion of Linden Street from Kentucky to Temple Avenues.

The vacations will allow St. Anthony's Memorial Hospital to proceed with construction of additional parking north of the hospital as another phase in the hospital's Master Plan.  The hospital owns the properties surrounding the affected area.

The Council also rezoned properties at 400 and 402 East Washington Avenue from general commercial district to multiple dwelling district.  A Midland States Bank trust plans to tear down the homes on the properties and construct a six-unit apartment complex.

City Administrator Jim Arndt explained during his second quarter financial report that the City has remaining debt of $16.5 million after recent refinancings, but a debt limit of $24 million, meaning there is some wiggle room should the need to incur additional debt arise.

The Council approved the purchase of a vehicle for the Industrial Commission Department; awarded a bid for sanitary sewer work along Kreke Avenue; gave informal approval to building a sidewalk from the Effingham Performance Center parking lot to a sidewalk on the south side of Evergreen Avenue to provide safer access to the TREC Trail; and agreed to move ahead with renewing the City's property/casualty and workers compensation insurance coverage for an 8.7% increase.