The Fairfield City Council will meet tomorrow at 6 at City Hall. Action will begin with a presentation of a blight analysis and business development district plan, and aldermen are also scheduled to discuss an ordinance setting a public hearing date for the establishment of a business district. In other action, the council is set to hear a request to use recreation funds for a holiday event and to appoint a Zoning Officer, as Flo Simpson submitted her resignation last month.
21-year-old Fairfield resident Brady M. Thomason was arrested Friday morning by Wayne County deputies. He was wanted on a Wayne County failure to appear warrant for two counts of possession of a controlled substance, two counts of possession with intent to deliver cannabis, possession of contraband in a penal institution, possession of methamphetamine, possession of ammunition without a FOID card, and criminal damage to property. Thomason was taken to the Wayne County Jail and held, pending the posting of $1,595 bond.
Wayne City EMS responded to a two-vehicle accident between Sims and Boyleston Friday afternoon. According to county deputies, at approximately 3:30, 40-year-old Bridgeport resident Dennis M. Wright, Jr., was eastbound on Highway 15 in a 2010 Nissan Versa. He swerved to avoid a 2016 Chevy Silverado, driven by 79-year-old Sims resident Larry R. White, backing out of a residence, and Wright struck a ditch. Both drivers were uninjured, but a passenger with Wright was taken to Fairfield Memorial Hospital. A tow truck was called to the scene, and the vehicles sustained over $1,500 damage.
Wayne County Crime Stoppers says it will pay a $100 reward on the tip received on the return of a copper statue of Jesus. The individual who called in the tip should call Crime Stoppers at 842-9777 with their tip number to receive the money. The life-size statue was reported stolen in July 2021 from the Orchardville-Poplar Creek Cemetery. It was found in January in Rinard.
The Wayne County Soil and Water District Spring Fish Sale is set up for delivery on March 17th. The deadline for grass carp is March 3rd, and all other fish orders are due by noon on the 10th. The Spring Tree Sale will accept orders until March 25th or while supplies last, with delivery the week of April 4th. People can call 842-7602, extension 3, to order or for more information. Office hours are weekdays from 8 to 4:30.
The Western Illinois University School of Agriculture has been recognized as a top nationwide program. Andy Baker, Director of the school, says the honor is from the National Association of Ag Educators. NAAE specifically cited WIU for its Summer Experience in Ag Education, where students are interviewed for student-teacher placement.
Fairfield Community High School, Edwards County schools, and Fairfield District 112 say masking for students and teachers in their schools will be optional, starting today, in light of a temporary restraining order against the school mask mandate passed down Friday in Sangamon County Court. FCHS spoke with legal counsel and drew up an amended set of COVID guidelines last night, which also include optional quarantine or isolation for close contacts with no symptoms and optional testing for unvaccinated staff. District 112 says, though it will not mandate mask compliance, it does encourage all individuals to wear masks nonetheless. No changes were made for masking on buses or at IHSA events, so masking is still required in those arenas.
Temperatures crept above freezing at times yesterday, allowing more melting of ice and snow from last week’s winter weather. Wayne and Edwards county schools are again back in session this week after a break Thursday and Friday, but some schools in White County and south are again closed today. Carmi-White County and NCOE are again closed today, as are Eldorado and Gallatin County. Again, all schools in Wayne and Edwards counties are back in person today.
The City of Fairfield Board of Fire and Police Commission will test to establish eligibility rosters for the Fire and Police departments in the coming days. A mandatory orientation is scheduled for February 25th at City Hall. Physical testing will take place at Fairfield Community High School on the 26th, and successful applicants will take a written exam the same day. Additional information and applications may be picked up at City Hall between 7 and 4 on weekdays. They will not be mailed, and completed applications must be returned with all required documents by 4 p.m. on the 18th.
The Albion City Council will meet tonight at 7 at City Hall. It is scheduled to hear a sewer grant update from Heather Nueman with the Greater Wabash Regional Planning Commission and discuss the status of legal action to demolish the burned house at 23 South Third Street as matters of old business. 20220207-City-Council-Agenda
According to the CDC over the weekend, 6,288 people in Wayne County were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, or 38.8 percent of its population, including 47.9 percent of people over 18 and 68.3 percent of people over 65. 43.2 percent of fully vaccinated people had been boosted. 39.5 percent of Edwards County residents were fully vaccinated, including 49.1 percent of those over 18 and 74.8 percent of those over 65. 42.2 percent of vaccinated people had been boosted.
Input costs and supply chain disruptions continue to weigh on farmers, according to Purdue Ag Economist Jim Mintert, who oversees the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer. After a strong income year in 2021, he says 57 percent of respondents expect their income costs to increase by at least 20 percent, and over 30 percent expected a 30 percent increase. The barometer is released each month and is based on the responses of 400 U.S. ag producers
Governor J.B. Pritzker has announced an initiative designed to get students ready for a job in the construction trades. The governor announced a nearly $10 million investment last month in the “Illinois Works Pre-Apprenticeship Program,” and 23 organizations around the state have received grants to recruit and prepare about 1,000 students for the industry.
River stages as of this morning: the Little Wabash east of Fairfield stands at 14.25 feet, below the 17 ft. flood stage. Meanwhile, the Skillet Fork at Wayne City has a reading of 5.99 feet (flood stage is 15 ft.). The Little Wabash below Clay City is at 9.91 feet (flood stage is 18 ft.). Bonpas Creek at Browns reads 3.37 feet, and the Little Wabash at Main Street in Carmi reads 12.15 feet. The Wabash River at Mt. Carmel sits at 10.28 feet.
Today’s crude oil price is $85.25, up $2.00 from Friday. The March crude oil price is $90.82, down $0.80 from Friday morning.