Despite the pleas of Minonk resident Terri Pratt the Minonk City Council voted against putting
a 4 way stop sign at the corner of 7th and Walnut Streets. Pratt, who lives on that corner, said
that the corner is an accident waiting to happen. She said the hill preceding the intersection
is used as a launching pad for speeding teenagers who become airborne when crossing the intersection
at high speed. Pratt said that a teenager lost control of his car last December when speeding across the
hill preceding the intersection causing the car to become airborne and ended up in a neighbor's front yard.
The speed of the vehicle was estimated at 60 to 80 mph. Pratt said that motorists approaching the intersection
from the north can not see over the top of the intersection until they are in the intersection itself. She
said there are many children and older people in the area who will not be able to escape a speeding vehicle.
She presented a petition signed by 35 residents urging the council to put in a stop sign.
Alderman Ron Redenius said that if the city put a stop sign at the corner, then everyone in town will want
a stop sign at their corner. He said the problem is that people speed everywhere in town, not just at
7th and Walnut. Redenius said that the city did attempt to flatten out the hill preceding the interesection
last week.
Alderman Steve Mattox made a motion to amend ordinance 2004-2 to include a 4 way stop sign at the corner of
7th and Walnut and was seconded by Alderman Matt Fink but was voted down by the rest of the council.
Zoning ordinance change
The council voted to approve an ordinance that limits the size of an accessory structure on a residential lot.
The ordinance limits the size of an attached structure not to be greater than 50% in size from the main residence and
the size of an unattached structure to be not greater than 60% of the primary unit.
According to City Manager Trent Smith, "the amended ordinance actually expands what we had before.
The percentages still remain as they were but the old ordinance specified a percentage of the
"footprint" of the primary structure. The amended ordinance specifies a percentage of the above
ground square footage. Thus a two story house may build a larger garage. The reasoning is that a
two story house looks larger and therefore a larger garage would not look out of place.
It is all a matter of aestetics."
Trash talk
The council debated the terminology to be used in defining the different definitions for garbage in deciding
whether to place dumpsters at various places in the city for residents to dump their junk. City Administrator
Trent Smith said this procedure could possibly replace the Spring cleanup every year which costs the city $5000.
Smith said having 2 dumpsters each month would cost around $4000 per year. City Treasurer Steve O'Riley said that this was tried
years ago and people would put their recyclables in the dumpsters instead of just trash. Resident Dave Uphoff said
that if the city puts out public dumpsters, people would most likely put their recyclables in the dumpsters instead
of in the red recyclable containers that is placed with the garabage each week on the curb. He said after fighting
off a landfill ten years ago, we don't want to discourage people from recycling.
Alderman Bill Koos said the problem with the junk in the city is that our litter laws have no teeth in them.
He said some people have junk laying in their yard that would be taken by the garbage truck if they would
just drag it to the curb. But they don't. He said the city needs to define items that cannot be left laying
around the yard and then enforce that law if a resident doesn't comply.
Westside Park pavilion
Westside Park pavilion committee member Dave Uphoff told the council that construction of the pavilion is
proceeding with the soffits being built and the electrical work being completed by Brian Kirkton. He said the
old bandstand plaque has been restored and a new plaque is being ordered listing the names of major donors
and recognizing the volunteers who helped build the pavilion. Uphoff said that every attempt will be made to
finish the pavilion by June 13 when it will be dedicated. He appealed to local residents to pitch in and help
in order to finish it on time.
