County Board cool to property sale proposal

County Board members gave a cool reception to a proposal by Western Fuels to allow sale of some property.

Western Fuels owns the old Liberty Coal Company mine in western Saline County. The company wants to sell about 30 acres in Williamson County, but the county holds a lien against that property and 700 acres in Saline County. Liberty Coal defaulted on a $480,000 loan made by the county several years ago -- the company still owes $105,000 in principal, plus late charges and interest.

Western Fuels asked board members essentially to step aside and let the sale commence.

Julie Patera of Southeastern Illinois Regional Planning and Development Commission relayed the news to the County Board.

Gary Siebert said Western Fuels should pay what Liberty Coal owes before the board considers releasing any liens. In any case, the board should receive the sale proceeds if they are less than what is owed, he said.

Bruce Tolley said the company should tell board members if someone is contemplating a project with the 30 acres.

"If there is something that could help us down the road, then we need to know that," Tolley said.

The heavily-subsidized Liberty Coal Mine ceased operations a few years ago and left a string of debts to the county, state, Fifth Third Bank and perhaps other creditors. The closure threw many county residents out of work. Bruce Allen was blunt in his assessment of the company, saying they put people out of work and snuck away from their responsibilities.

"And now they come to us for this? Ain't no way in hell," Allen said.

The matter was referred to the Farm and Land Use Committee, but as it stands now, the answer appears to be a resounding "no," unless the county stands to benefit from the sale.

Peak Road

Jimi Williams, owner of Williams Hill Pass ATV recreation area, asked board members to consider taking over Peak Road from Independence Township and making it a county road. The road is the access road to her park and is well-traveled, she said. The additional traffic is causing problems in the road and Independence Township does not have adequate money for upkeep.

Some time back, Highway Engineer Jeff Jones said, a preliminary estimate of $400,000 was arrived at for bringing the road up to specifications. Jones cautioned it is complicated to add a road as a county highway, especially one that is not a main thoroughfare between two towns. The state may reject the proposal since the road is a dead-end soon after passing by Williams' property.

But there are other ways to improve the road if the board is interested, Jones said. The county may be able to use county Motor Fuel Tax or Harco Road settlement money for the road even if it stays in township hands, he said.
The board seemed receptive to finding a way to improve the road.

Budget

Without some shifting, the county would end the month with a $55,674 negative balance in the General Fund. Treasurer Danny Ragan said the temporary cash flow problem can be averted by juggling some bills and getting money for Highway Department employee health insurance now from the department instead of later. Also, the state has issued vouchers for $47,000 owed to the county, so it could actually arrive soon.

The shortfall stems from $391,000 owed to the county, Tolley said.

There is good news for the county budget. The county is taking in more money than anticipated, even with the state shortfall, and officeholders are spending less than anticipated.