Tagged: Carthage

Carthage residents will see a significant increase in water pressure by October. It's the result of a number of upgrades to the water system. They cost about $1 million.

Second-ward Alderman Gary Smith is recommending residents who are concerned about their pipes and water heaters to have them checked.

He said, “It'd give you a little time to save a couple of bucks. Maybe have a plumber come check things out if you're worried.”

The city currently has two water towers. The newer and taller tower is used only for storage. Over the summer, the city will slowly switch its water supply over entirely to the new tower. That will raise pressure from about 40 to 65 pounds per square inch.
 

Carthage will receive a $252,000 federal Community Development Block Grant to rehabilitate up to six homes.

Mayor Jim Nightingale said, ”It's a good program if the house is not in too bad a shape. You
just can't take a really old run-down house. There's not enough funds to fix those up.”  

The repairs can be fairly extensive. They can include electrical upgrades, plumbing, and weatherization.

The homes have not been selected.

The Western Illinois Regional Council will supervise the process.

The homes have not been selected.

Nighingale said WIRC is conducting surveys to gauge interest in the progra. He expects  a public informational  meeting will be held in late June or July.

Carthage is hopeful a switch of contractors will lead to the end of its responsibility for the old municipal landfill.

Indianapolis-based American Environment will take over monitoring the site. The company was the low bidder at $43,000 per year. It will also try to find a way to bring groundwater pollution levels into compliance with federal EPA regulations

Mayor Jim Nightingale hopes the firm brings " some new ideas out there that down the road we can present them to the EPA and get us out of the landfill business.”

Once groundwater contamination reaches legal levels  the city should be able to stop monitoring the site.

Carthage Mayor Jim Nightingale said budget projections for the general fund next fiscal year are lower than he would like.

He said, “That's something that we will have to address and present to the council. I think there's some items we're going to have to reduce the expenditures.”

Nightingale likes to see between $250,000 and $300,000 in the general fund. The projections are closer to $260,000.

He said the overall budget will be $1.2 million.

Nightingale said the city is not planning any large capital projects and the city will have plenty of money in the capital improvements fund. He also said projections for the water and sewer budget and motor fuel tax revenue are on target.

Carthage residents might soon depend on a high-tech warning system during emergencies.

Fire Chief Gary Smith is proposing the city purchase a phone messaging system, primarily for use during emergencies. He says it would come at a “nominal cost.”

He said, “It would allow us to make one phone call that would go out to all the residents of Carthage, up to three different phone numbers for each residence.”

Smith says the phone system is very flexible. While he sees the role of the system as providing plenty of warning of severe weather such as tornadoes, it could also provide a wide variety of information. Smith says the phone system is very flexible and target specific areas such as homes affected by a boil order.

Carthage will raise the fees it charges for fire response calls outside the city limits.

The city currently charges $450 per hour for the first hour and $400 for each additional hour.

The new fee will be a straight $600 per hour.

Mayor Jim Nightingale calls the increase “justifiable” and will help the city pay for upkeep on the fire department's vehicles.

He said, “The problem is they (trucks) set. They don't run them a lot and we have to keep them up.” He called that cost “unbelievable.”

The city will spend $58,000 to refurbish one truck.

The trucks also have to run their engines to power equipment. They can easily burn $300 worth of diesel fuel on a single call.

Carthage will celebrate its 175th birthday in conjunction with the annual Fourth of July celebration. The celebration will last the entire week.

Community Development Director Bob Livingston said the community has enthusiastically embraced the celebration. Dozens of volunteer committees are shaping the event. The committees are looking to the past to find a symbol for the celebration.

He said, “We've had such things as plates show up from the 125th and the 150th (celebrations). And there's also some other mementos. And we can't duplicate those things but we can use them as a guide.”

He said the hard work is getting underway as a budget and fund-raising plans are being made.

The roof at Carthage City Hall began leaking last year. Water ran into the building and around several windows on the upper floor.

Mayor Jim Nightingale contacted the contractor, Five Star Commercial Roofing of Indiana, to get the repairs under warranty.

The contractor promised to send someone to look at the situation last November. No one came.

He said the company gave him "the runaround. " He explained the company failed to return phone calls. It ignored faxes. Nightingale also said the company repeatedly claimed the city failed to file the proper paperwork. Paperwork he said the city produced each time the company requested it.

The city attorney threatened legal action.

Finally, the mayor enlisted a higher power.