Members of the Benld City Council on Monday night approved an appropriation ordinance of nearly $2.4 million to govern spending for the fiscal year that began May 1, and approved final payouts to Haier Plumbing and Heating, Okawville, totaling $229,948.89 for a recently completed sewer improvement project.

The appropriation ordinance, approved unanimously without discussion on a motion by Finance Chair Ald. Jerry Saracco, is nearly double the city’s typical annual appropriation but exceeds last year’s appropriation by only about $214,000. Last year’s appropriation was inflated by the anticipated expenditure of $640,000, including grant funds, for the sewer improvement project. This year’s spending limit includes the potential expenditure of $600,000 in grant funds to develop the Benld Community Sports Complex on land once occupied by Benld Elementary School. 

Though required by law, the appropriation is not necessarily a budgetary device. The ordinance simply sets spending ceilings for various line items. 

The newly approved ordinance sets a limit of $1,018,820 for proprietary funds (funds that can be spent only for the specific purpose for which they were collected). The ordinance sets a spending limit of $382,320 for the Sewer Department, compared with last year’s appropriation of $757,420, which included anticipated expenditures for the sewer project. The new ordinance sets a spending ceiling of $501,500 for the Water Department, compared with $528,700 last year, and $135,000 for trash pick-up, compared with $128,000 last year. The appropriation for Motor Fuel Tax Funds stands at $105,000, compared with $96,342 last year.

The General Fund appropriation is $1,274,753, attributed primarily to $600,000 in grant funds for the Sports Complex project. Broken down by specific purposes, the appropriation sets a spending limit of 257,260 for Police Protection, compared with $260,895 last year; $171,075 for Maintenance, compared with $138,275 a year ago; $144,059 for City Property, compared with last year’s appropriation of $144,895; $36,300 for Administration, compared with $34,762 last year; $35,000 for Legal Fees, compared with $30,000 last year; $15,900 for the annual city audit, compared with $5,000 a year ago; $1,200 for Unemployment Insurance; and $7,859 for City Parks, $3,500 for the City Library, $1,300 for the Municipal Band and $1,400 for the City Cemetery, all of which are identical to last year.

SEWER PROJECT PAYOUT

After approving more than $35,000 in change orders, the council voted unanimously to make final payments totaling $229,948.89 to Haier Plumbing and Heating for work completed on an extensive project to improve or replace sewers on the city’s east side. Justin Vonder Haar, an engineer with HMG Engineers, Breese, told council members the change orders include more than $10,000 for additional expenses incurred when workers hit a previously unknown water leak on the south side of the city park, and nearly $20,000 for final quantity adjustments, including an additional half block of sewer line added to the project as a result of the water leak.

On a motion by Ald. John Balzraine, the council voted unanimously to approve the change orders. Council members then voted unanimously, also on a motion by Balzraine, to approve the final payments to Haier Plumbing and Heating. The amount includes a third pay request of $164,473.14 (which includes the change orders), plus a $65,475.75 final payment.

Vonder Haar told the council there will be some paperwork to complete in order to close out the grant. With the grant closeout, Vonder Haar said the council could consider applying for additional grant money to address sewer issues when the application period opens for the next round of grants.

Vonder Haar also reported briefly on the status of a project to repaint the city’s water tower. The engineer said the tower has been drained and is being prepped for painting. Once the painting is complete, he said, the finish will need to cure a minimum of seven days before the tower is refilled. In the meantime, city residents are relying on water pressure from Gillespie. 

Ald. Dustin Fletcher told Vonder Haar that the city experienced something of “a perfect storm” recently when power was interrupted during a thunderstorm. “We ran out of water,” Fletcher said. He asked about the feasibility of installing a generator to ensure such an interruption cannot happen again. 

Mayor Jim Kelly, however, said the pump was not the critical component. “EPA doesn’t even want us to have a pump down there,” he said. He explained that a valve controlling the flow of water from Gillespie to Benld automatically closed when the power failed. The city’s water operator has been advised to monitor the valve and determine how to override the closure in the event of a power failure.

MOTOR FUEL TAX PROGRAM

Following a presentation by Doug Ratermann of HMG Engineers, the council voted to accept low bids for materials to be used for this summer’s street maintenance program. 

Illiana Construction Co., Urbana, submitted low bids to provide 8,600 gallons of HFE-150 road oil at a cost of $2.87 per gallon, and 4,000 gallons of HFE-300 road oil at a cost of $2.97 per gallon. Ratermann said the HFE-300 is a higher grade of road oil that will be used on street surfaces that were disturbed during the sewer renovation project.

Beelman Logistics, LLC, of East St. Louis, provided the low bid of $25.58 per ton for 500 tons of CA15 rock. 

DeLaurent Construction, Wilsonville, narrowly won the bid to spread and roll rock on freshly oiled surfaces with a bid of $21.75 per ton. Illiana Construction provided a bid of $22.50 per ton for the same item.

The total project cost, based on accepted bids, totals $60,662, compared with the engineer’s original estimate of $72,000.

Last November, the council approved a motor fuel tax resolution appropriating $90,000 for the street maintenance program. The appropriation was up $16,000 from the previous year and included $34,547 in Rebuild Illinois grant funds which must be spent before the end of 2023.

In other action, the council voted to spend up to $3,200 to have Water Treat Technologies chemically eradicate duckweed at the sewage lagoon, and to seek applicants for a cleaning position for the Civic Center. Mayor Kelly said the current cleaning person has taken a full-time job and is no longer available for cleaning after events at the Civic Center. 

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