FAYETTE COUNTY BOARD MEETING HELD

DEBORAH SIMCOX
Correspondent
In the Public Comment portion of the April 11 Fayette County Board Meeting, a group of three land owners at Vandalia Lake was represented by Darryl Tjaden. Their concern was water drainage problems, which has created a ditch. This ditch has grown, leading to excessive water siltation problems. The group was not asking for financial assistance from the County Board, but rather a “sponsorship” so they could apply for a grant to resolve the quandary. This would include filling in the ditch and cleaning the water of the siltation. As the deadline for applying for the grant is May 15, 2024, the Board agreed to hold a special meeting on May 7 at 6:30 p.m. for approval for sponsorship support.
The Administrator and Committee Reports included a report that a grant for $400,000 was awarded for solar. Sheriff Ronnie Stevens spoke of the phone system back-up for call-ins and offered some solutions to improve the flow of rollover calls. Animal Use Committee Chair Merrell Collins relayed that a Vandalia Elementary School event for the benefit of Fayette County Animal Control is being planned for the week of April 15-April 19. Vandalia Elementary School Students will be offering a community service by collecting supplies and food for the Fayette County Animal Control Center. This is to celebrate Animal Control Appreciation Week. Students will participate in activities such as a Penny War and pictures to hang on the school-wide bulletin board. Students can donate dog, cat, puppy, or kitten food (wet or dry), litter, treats & toys for cats or dogs, cleaning supplies (bleach – gallons or wipes), 40-gallon trash bags, Dawn dish soap, laundry soap, and OdoBan (gallon). Donations will also be accepted, and all money collected will go to Fayette County Animal Control.
All four of the Consent Agenda items were approved:
• Change of polling place location for Bear Grove,
• Renewal of Fayette County Fair Association Liquor License,
• Changing the County Building Electricity provider to Good Energy, and
• Resolution 2024-4-2-A, which would appropriate Motor Fuel Tax fund to pay the County Engineer’s salary and expenses from May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2025.
These three items, continued from the Finance Committee Consent Agenda, were passed:
• Text amendment to the solar ordinance application fee structure (In a comparison study of the fee structure for solar permits in other counties, Fayette County’s fees were excessively low.),
• Roof repairs on Washington School, and
• Purchase of a new generator for the Sheriff’s Office.
In New Business, the transfer of a county road to the city of St. Elmo for the development of a fuel station was approved.