Monday’s meeting of the Monroe County Board featured a dozen appointments and reappointments, a discussion of the budget for the new fiscal year, good news about county bridges and the purchase of a new ambulance.

The appointments were mostly perfunctory, with the exception of Kyle Andres replacing Floyd Floarke Jr. on the 9-1-1 Board and the appointments of Emily Bade and Whitney Wisnasky-Bettorf as trustees on the Miles Cemetery Board. 

Both  have experience with cemetery restoration, and Wisnasky-Bettorf is a member of the O’Fallon-based Cemetery Detectives, a group which has done restoration work in Monroe County.

Her son Elliot Wisnasky is also expected to be named to the cemetery board at a future meeting.

Monroe County Treasurer Kevin Koenigstein was also on hand to provide an update on the proposed county budget for Fiscal Year 2025 beginning Dec. 1.

Koenigstein reported there had been “minor changes” from the budget posted on the county website Nov. 12.

There was a $10,000 increase to the EMS budget for part-time help and a $15,000 bump in the county clerk budget for elections.

The budget also includes a 5 percent increase for courthouse employees and a 4.1 percent salary increase for elected officials.

Despite those additions, the total taxation for the county will be less than the prior fiscal year, due in part to the bond which funded construction of the new Oak Hill facility in 2005 to be paid in full next year.

The nursing home bond line will decrease from $750,000, which is what it has been for the past 20 years, to $350,000 in FY25.

Commissioner Vicki Koerber had questions about pulling $900,000 from the county reserves to finance a courthouse improvement project next year. 

Koenigstein explained the withdrawal will be more than enough to finance the project, and the remaining funds will be deposited in the county’s capital improvement fund – an account which has not received any funding in three years.

Koenigstein added the county will still have more than $6 million in reserves after the withdrawal.

Monroe County Clerk Jonathan McLean added the county may want to consider developing a capital plan, with a five-year plan being the standard recommendation.

Koerber explained she was not “sounding an alarm,” rather she wants the board to remain fiscally conservative, adding a discussion about reinstating the capital fund account should have occurred during September budget discussions.

She also asked questions about the remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds, which need to be earmarked for spending by the end of the 2024 calendar year and spent at the end of 2025.

Koenigstein said his office would only be able to provide an account of the money that had been spent. Green stepped in and said he had recently reviewed the ARPA account and the county has about $200,000 left to spend.

Koerber also noted the interest from ARPA fund investments would “dry up” as the funds are spent.

The final budget is expected to be passed during the next regular board meeting Dec. 2, although there is also a special meeting scheduled for Nov. 25 to approve final bills for the year and finalize the budget. 

Both meetings begin at 8:15 a.m. at the Monroe County Courthouse.

Koenigstein also reported his office had not been receiving tax bills sent by the United States Postal Service in a timely manner. He said he would work with taxpayers whose payments have not yet arrived, and they should not be worried about late fees if the postmark on the envelope is Nov. 15 or earlier.

In other business Monday, Monroe County Engineer Aaron Metzger provided an update about the upcoming Bluff Road bridge replacement project over Carr Creek in Columbia. 

Metzger expects a January letting for the project, with the first phase of construction to begin in mid-May.

During that phase, Valmeyer Road from D Road to Bluff Road will be closed to allow for staging of construction equipment. 

Metzger said the road could tentatively reopen in August.

Construction of the new bridge is expected to cost just over $2.6 million total, with the cost being split among federal, state and county funds.

$230,000 of the total will be a result of Gov. JB Pritzker’s 2019 Rebuild Illinois initiative.

Metzger also announced the state is changing its formula for Township Bridge Program projects, providing a “boost in the arm” with more of the cost being paid by the state, another result of the Rebuild Illinois program.

Koerber noted it was nice to see some of the money from Rebuild Illinois – which authorized an increase in local motor fuel tax rates – to come back to Monroe County.

Also during Monday’s meeting, commissioners approved the purchase of a new Monroe County EMS ambulance at a cost of $298,000.

The new ambulance will replace the first ambulance used in the department’s re-mount program.

Koerber noted that the department was able to use the same vehicle for 20 years.

“We’ve done well for our taxpayers” in regard to keeping ambulance costs down, Koerber said.