Kewanee City Council convened on September 22nd, and approved the prior minutes, payroll, and received staff and Bock reports before moving to public comments. Tyler Harker was officially sworn in as a fireman during the session. New business focused on appropriations, including a public hearing and first reading of Bill 25-87, setting the city’s fiscal year budget for 2025-2026. The council approved Bill 25-88, which will add a half-percent to the Non-Home Rule Municipal Retailers’ Occupation Tax and a Non-Home Rule Municipal Service Occupation Tax for the City of Kewanee. Council member Adam Cernovich voted no on the tax increase due to the lack of a final plan for spending the potential $800,000 in additional taxes. Mayor Moore and council members indicated the additional taxes would go towards road work. A reconsideration of Bill 25-83 was added to the agenda to reconsider the special use permit for Larry Neels for property located at 324 East Second Street. The request was not approved at the September 8th meeting with a 2-2 vote by the council, with council member Colomer being absent. Council member Adam Cernovich requested a reconsideration of the permit to allow Mr. Neels to park his vehicles on the property, but he was still opposed to allowing scrap to be collected on a trailer on the property. The special use permit was granted after a vote of 4-1. Find the September 8th council meeting video here.
The meeting concluded with a closed session to discuss personnel, real estate matters, and ongoing litigation, before final adjournment.
