City council approves new TIF agreement with hotel group
<span>In a short meeting on Monday, the Chester City Council approved a new Tax Increment Financing agreement with The Chester Hotel Group.</span>
<span>By a vote of 5-2, with aldermen Dan Ohlau and Robert Platt voting no and alderwoman Nancy Crossland absent, the city will reimburse The Chester Hotel Group 75 percent of TIF funds generated after the Holiday Inn Express development has been completed and the first real estate tax bill has been paid.</span>
<span>The agreement was made with the understanding that the city will not pay any money up front.</span>
<span>The council also approved an ordinance that revised the estimated date of the completion of its TIF district, which is set to terminate in July 2023.</span>
<span>"This ordinance clarifies that we will be able to collect taxes for that 23rd year, but it ends in that 23rd year," said City Attorney Jeff Kerkhover. "The TIF ends with taxes to be collected by December 31, 2023."</span>
<span>Kerkhover also explained (and the council approved) the TIF accounting for Welge-Pechacek Funeral Homes, which is located behind the proposed hotel. Kerkhover said $33,014.48 was paid in 2014, of which $24,760.86 will be reimbursed.</span>
<span>Finally, the council approved a request of the Board of Police Commissioners to appoint two sergeants from within the Chester Police Department.</span>
<span>Prior to the meeting, Chester Police Chief Ryan Coffey told the Herald Tribune that the two candidates will be formally recognized and recite the oath during the Oct. 5 meeting of the city council.</span>
<span>"(The process) went fairly well and I think the results were good," he said.</span>
<span>During committee reports, Alderman Russ Rader reported on a broken valve at one of the Menard Correctional Center pumphouses. The valve is 42 feet deep and located next to the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, making excavation unlikely.</span>
<span>"It's a significant problem," said Chester Mayor Tom Page. "We have two pumphouses down there and the other one is working and this is the deep one.</span>
<span>"Hopefully, we'll bring back something with dollar signs attached to it and go from there."</span>
<span>Rader said an idea has been presented to flood the pumphouse and have divers replace the valve.</span>
<span>In a separate comment, Page said painting and sandblasting at the Chester Water Treatment Plant is about a quarter of the way completed and encouraged the city's aldermen to see the progress.</span>
<span>"Wear old clothes," he said. "It's quite a mess down there."</span>
<span>The next meeting of the Chester City Council is scheduled for Oct. 5 at 7 p.m.</span>