GALESBURG Closure may finally come to one of Galesburg’s most controversial issues, as the city council prepares for a vote Monday that would remove funding from this year’s budget for the second phase Lake Storey expansion study. If approved, the budget adjustment would remove funding from the FY 2021 budget for the Lake Storey expansion feasibility study phase II , the council agenda item for Monday reads.
The lake expansion study has been possibly the most controversial issue in town since it was first nearly put up for a vote and then shelved in January. The study would be focused on evaluating public opinion and exploring other feasibility aspects regarding an expanded Lake Storey. It was budgeted for in the fiscal year 2021 city budget.
The Knox County Board approved a resolution last night siding with area farmers and landowners opposed to the City of Galesburg's Lake Storey Expansion project. The resolution expresses an overall concern for what is described as insufficient protection given to the rights of residents, homeowners, and farmers whose properties would be affected by the project. While board chair Jared Hawkinson says he supports economic development, he criticized the city's handling of the project. "I just have major problems with the way it was handled from the get-go. And if it's something that can be tried again then it needs to be addressed in a different fashion. As of the way this was handled thus far, I think I stand unified, I think, with most of the County Board that we oppose this issue." Unified they were in approving the resolution drafted by State's Attorney Jeremy Karlin, taking a stand against the project introduced late last year by the Galesburg City Counci
May 27, 2021
How to use funds that Knox County received from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 will be determined by a task force that is being put together by the Knox County Board.
Board members approved the creation of the task force at their meeting Wednesday night that’ll see the 12-member task force created feature select board members and five members of the general public.
County Board Chair Jared Hawkinson says the task force would be focused on using the funds to invest in the community. He said that the county received $4,826,724 on May 24.
He said there were 151 pages of “heavy-handed” rules for how the money is to be used and called for the task force to be created to come up with ways to use the money, investing in the community.
A resolution drafted to oppose the expansion project for Lake Storey could be approved by Knox County Board members at Wednesday's meeting. Last month, the board directed State's Attorney Jeremy Karlin to draft the resolution for them to consider approving at their May meeting. From that meeting, several board members spoke in support of area farmers who asked for assistance in opposing the City of Galesburg's project. Freshmen board member Darla Krejci agreed with their request. "It's our duty to speak for the landowners who have no voice in the city. And, they have come forward to us and spoken and we need to take that voice to the city. So, I'm in favor of a statement stating a disapproval of moving forward on this project." The City last year began a feasibility study into the lake's expansion from more than 144 acres to about 572, taking over rural farmland northwest of the city. The project would require the annexation of large amounts of H