A new finance commissioner, a mayor’s race heating up, and a new position in the city were the highlights of Monday’s Grayville Council meeting. Following a 13 minute executive session, Grayville is looking to ramp up economic development and provide some assistance to city police.
So based upon the discussion in executive session as city attorney I would request the council to make a motion to authorize me to prepare an ordinance establishing a position of economic development coordinator and police department administrative assistant and in conjunction with that motion I would suggest that you move to begin the process of posting the job availability and my expectation would be the ordinance would we’d of course have to have the two readings and while the posting is going on there wouldn’t be any hiring but you could start the process of investigating the interest in the job and then by the time that we’ve approved that ordinance if the council chooses to move that way then you’d be in a position to go forward with the hiring as well.
No details on the position were discussed beyond the title or the proposed pay.
Also Monday night, Grayville seated a new finance commissioner following Andi Ford’s resignation at the end of August. Connor Neeley was selected to finish Ford’s term. Ford made headlines for her resignation and then again just days ago turning lemons into lemonade after she received a hateful handwritten note in the mail. She turned the words into a t-shirt she’ll make at her business and has to date sold more than $2,200 worth of merchandise which she says she intends to donate to Hometown Heroes which provides Christmas shopping for at-need children with the Grayville Police Department and Little Wabash Fire Protection District officers.
At the tail end of the meeting, resident Cindy Elliott, the mother of a Grayville Police Officer, also made a statement directed at Commissioner Scott Browning who has announced his intentions to run for mayor.
I’m here today to ask this council to address a concern I have. Unfortunately, it is my understanding from people in the community that Commissioner Browning made comments that were not true about Officer Elliott and myself attending the Grayville Days pageant. I am not a person who makes scenes or is in the habit of dragging police officers around as you have led others to believe. Officer Elliott had permission to attend his five-year-old’s pageant for the brief time she was on stage. His attending a popular Grayville function received nice comments and is an important part of the officer’s job to be seen. As a commissioner of this town, these condemning comments will be taken seriously by the public and spread quickly as truth. These negative comments caused a firestorm of wise and gossip that ruined a weekend out for my family. In my opinion, The proper action Commissioner Browning should have taken would have been to take his questions to the Chief of Police or Mayor Thompson, where he would have been given the answers before taking his comments to the public. I believe Commissioner Browning’s misguided inaccurate comments were unprofessional, disrespectful, and worthy of an immature high school act meant to cause trouble.
Browning issued a response and then it turned into a back and forth until city attorney Jay Walden said council needed to move on.
Browning: I want to respectfully clear up any misunderstanding. I’ve never been concerned about Officer Logan’s whereabouts. I’m unclear of your source and I have no idea where that came from. I had questions when I saw him going between the stage and the building and being rushed in the front door. I called Mr. Kendrick to see if an accident had happened at the show. Mr. Kendrick assured me it had not and nothing else was ever said. I respect all of our law enforcement officers and I don’t want my words misinterpreted. I’m sorry this is the only way you feel like you could come up and talk about it. I have never heard nothing about just from anybody else.
Elliott: You I have and you I’m sorry. No community that dressed you down for it for making these comments. I’m not going to say their name.
Browning: I’m sorry to hear.
Elliott: But you know, no.
Browning: I do not.
Elliott: Okay. I expected you to answer in that way.
Audience: You can’t accuse him without him knowing who’s… I’m looking involved… Accusing him without him knowing who’s doing the accusing.
Elliott: He made these comments in public. That’s why I’m here publicly tonight. I understand. And he knows who he said them to.
Browning: Of course I talked to David Kendrick about it and I know David is coming.
Elliott: And I will not say their name out of respect because they asked. But I saw what you wrote.
Browning: I didn’t write nothing. Where did I write something? Where did I write?
Elliott: Why have so many people come up to me and said, you gotta remember this is a small town and your friends are my friends too. And they’re gonna stand.
Browning: I don’t know you so apparently we’re not have the same friends. But I have never said nothing about Officer Logan. I think he does a great job.
Elliott: Okay, this is the answer I expected from you and this is why I feel like you don’t need to hold office.
Browning: You have the right to your opinion but I’m sorry but I’ve never to my knowledge I’ve never disrespected Officer Logan ever.
Outside of that, commissioner Baldwin said the Veterans Memorial new addition is halfway complete and citizens can now get in touch with them to secure more memorial bricks.
Mayor Travis Thompson gave an end of season report on the pool saying attendance was up and the city closed the gap on the financial loss affording the amenity to the community incurs.
We were up 600 people in the total admission from last year. We had 79 days of operation both years. We did have 3 closed completely. The big difference was the concession stand receipts. We gained 4,000 on that. Total admissions we had, we gained approximately 9,000. So we did have 1,200 more hours with lifeguards when you are busier. You have to have more lifeguards. So we did have 1,200 more hours from them making the net a negative $25,486.65 which is better than last year which was negative $28,568.90. So overall You’re not going to make money at the pool. That’s not what it’s designed to do, but we did close the gap and hopefully next year it’s utilized again and able to close the gap a little bit more with some fine tuning.
Trick or Treat hours have been set for the city with Grayville hosting two days of candy collecting. October 30th and 31st have been designated trick or treat days with 5pm – 8pm nightly hours.
The city also agreed to end their current brush dump contract and the site will be moved to a location south of the sewer lagoon despite there being some Native American artifacts found at that site. Attorney Walden said he thought the city would be ok saying he interprets it as long as there’s no digging, the site is still useable.
Leaders also approved an agreement with Bob and June Pearce for property at 822 North Second Street. Guisewhite Excavating will demo that property at a cost of $3,600.
Three new historical markers will be purchased for The Gray Opera House, Gray Stables, and the Agricultural Fair site where the Dairy Queen used to stand. Another commemorating the light poles with drill bits on top on the main drag is coveted. The three markers will cost the city $4,755.
Finally, commissioners agreed to purchase a gazebo shelter for the campground. Elite Bins is donating the materials and taxpayers will only be on the hook for the labor which is amounting to $4,000 coming out of the Revolving Loan Fund.
Council adjourned at 7:45pm and will reconvene at 7pm on September 28th.