No more dumpster diving Carmi…not at the dump anyway. A new ordinance passed Tuesday night at the Carmi City Council meeting prohibits anyone from digging through others trash they’re dumping. Leaders say it happens more than you’d think and Mayor Bill Stendeback the practice has further consequences.
And then we’re having to ticket people because they’re taking it home and putting it in their yard.
We also expect the ordinance pertains to and will prevent scrappers from sorting through metal that gets dumped. Alderman Greg Knight questioned what happens to metal that gets loaded onto a separate trailer. Any metal that gets dumped and has value gets taken by city workers to Lewis Scrap Metals and then any money that comes from that goes into city coffers.
Outside of that, council was able to breeze through a 12-minute final meeting of 2025 passing a resolution doing away with petty cash for the city and the Light and Water office. Additionally, leaders agreed to pay an engineering bill for the Sycamore Street watermain project. More than $78,000 goes to Brown and Roberts and will be paid out of the IEPA loan. Ordinances abating the 2025 tax levy were passed and finally an ordinance passing the annual property tax levy was approved. The city will be taxing at a 4.9% increase, just under the amount that would’ve triggered a truth in taxation hearing.
There were no reports of note from the board, nor were there any comments from the handful of residents that were in attendance. There was also no closed session and the meeting adjourned without fanfare at 5:41pm. Aldermen Jack Bradshaw and Tracy Nelson were absent.