City drops hammer on District 300

The Du Quoin City Council voted Monday night to park a $42,411 September sales tax payment to Dist. 300 schools until Supt. Gary Kelly and his board come clean as to how the money is being applied to the remainder of the $3 million debt on the new high school.

According to Carbondale attorney Rhett Barki a pre-emptive look at the half-cent sales tax audit shows that only $115,000 was paid toward the principle of $3 million in the early going of the agreement. Not only that, but the district in 2011 refinanced bonds from the original intergovernmental agreement in 2006 and the amended agreement in 2008 that may render the entire agreement null and void.

Barki hinted it is obvious the school district loaded paying off the principle on the back end of the bonds. Using the surplus revenue from the monthly payments which at times reach in excess of $50,000 could have been used to retire the bonds early.

Moreover, when City Clerk Blaine Bastien and mayors John Rednour and Rex Duncan tried to be good stewards of the agreement they included the provision that the district would repay $585,000 to the city for costs that were incurred on street work, drainage, etc. when the school was built.

None of that money--from which the city wants $125,000 to contribute to the repairs at the Du Quoin swimming pool--has yet been paid to the city.

Opening the can of worms Monday night goes far beyond the original request for $125,000. Mayor Guy Alongi said a new agreement may have to be drafted to restore integrity to the city's intent to help the district pay off its bonds. But, as the Monday meeting evolved there was a clear picture painted that "the hand is quicker than the eye" on how the funds have been spent. To date, the city has forwarded to the schools $2.8 million, far more than the requirements of the bond schedule. The vote was designed to get all parties to the table to talk about the bond schedule and repaying th city its $585,000.

Each of the following will receive more attention this week.

The council voted to spend $8,675 next spring on a new mosquito abatement sprayer from Mug-a-Bug, Inc.

The council accepted a bid of $2,777,68 from Ronald Kujawa for property at 537 S. Jefferson.

The street department is trying to navigate through $7,100 in repairs to the hydraulics on its bucket truck.

Park board member Joe Stephens updated the council on tracking the off season issues with the swimming pool.

Water commissioner Gerry Whitley asked the community to help find any water leaks that may still exist in the system.