The Effingham City Council had a chance to meet Trey Dasenbrock, a newly hired Effingham Police Officer, at Tuesday’s meeting. Dasenbrock served in the Air Force after high school, and attended Lake Land College before being hired on with the Effingham Police Department.
The City Council also approved a public hearing on the 294 acre Triangle Business District set to take place on Tuesday, September 20th at 5:30 pm prior to the regular city council meeting. The new business district will cover Henrietta Street, W. Fayette Avenue, and a portion of I-57/I-70. Businesses within the district will have the option impose a 1% sales tax on certain transactions that will towards improvement and development of the district. Revenues generated from the district can be used towards commercial development and expansion, or infrastructure improvements. However all funds generated in the district must be used in the district. According to City Administrator Jim Arndt, preparations for the district are on schedule. After the public hearing next month, the council could vote to establish the district which would go into effect on January 1st.
Also voted on at Tuesday’s meeting was the acceptance of the needs assessment study for the new Effingham Police Station. According to Arndt, now that basic size of 26,000 square feet and the general layout of the new building has been presented, the city will enter a design agreement with FGM Architects. Once the design is complete and approved construction of the new facility will take 12-14 months. Benefits of the new station will include a clearer entrance, more parking, and better organization. The project is expected to cost the city between $8-9.8 million.
In other action, the City Council also approved a resolution that allows the city to contract Police Chief Mike Schutzbach, after he retires on August 30th, to return as iterim until a new Police Chief can be found. The agreement will work on a month-to-month basis and will have a cap of six months.