Galesburg Council on Tuesday learned that there was a surprisingly high utility bill for the former Churchill Junior Building for part of November and December. Ward 7's Larry Cox pointed out the designated site of a community center has a bill close to $11,000 for the month. Parks and Recreation Director Elizabeth Varner called it a "shocker". Varner says she's contacted District 205 to find out why that bill is so high compared to last year when it was under District 205's care. 205 said there are storm trap doors that are a part of the problem. 205 also said they would have staff turn the heat on and off frequently. Since this expenditure wasn't anticipated Council Member Bradley Hix asked where near $11,000 funds would come from or what would need to be cut. City Manager Gerald Smith said he would work with Finance Director Gloria Osborn to address the shortage. Mayor Peter Schwartzman agrees that the high utility bill was "surprising". Schwa
Galesburg City Council on Monday unanimously approved a few big ticket items with little conversation. One of those was a conditional pledge of $1 million to the National Railroad Hall of Fame if their project to build a facility goes forward. Aldermen held no comment on the matter before promptly unanimously voting yes. Mayor Peter Schwartzman said that he hoped the Hall of Fame Board would be able to use this pledge to bring this project to fruition. There was also a prompt yes vote on hiring an engineer for Phase 2 of the work to complete the multi-use path at Lake Storey. Tom Simkins with Galesburg on Track announced the Community Blue Ribbon Award for the month of October. In a bit of a twist, the group wanted to tip their hat to the city for an empty lot on Chambers St. the city recently demolished. The Community Blue Ribbon sign will be placed on the lot in recognition of the city's efforts to revitalize the community housing stock. A company named Avazar will perform an a