The second virtual City Council meeting in Danville’s history, with Council members and City staff logging in remotely, was held Thursday evening and lasted more than three hours.
Citizens were able to view the meeting on River City TV, the city’s government access channel. River City TV aired both the business and work sessions on cable and streaming on the River City TV Facebook page.
Those citizens who wanted to submit a general public comment or a comment for a specific agenda item could do so prior to the meeting using an online form or by calling a public line set up for the meeting. No comments were received.
The city is under a local state of emergency due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Earlier this month, City Council ratified the emergency declaration and adopted a resolution that allows for temporary changes to how public meetings are conducted to continue operations.
The changes enable meetings to proceed virtually during this local state of emergency.
During the meeting, the City Council voted to:
- Deny a special use permit at 401 South Ridge Street for indoor commercial recreation. The applicant is proposing to have an indoor gaming facility.
- Deny a special use permit at 2980 West Main Street for indoor commercial recreation. The applicant is proposing to have an indoor gaming facility.
- Grant a special use permit to allow a waiver of yard requirements at the Biscuitville restaurant at 1041 Piney Forest Road. The applicants plan to remodel the interior of the store, as well as add an addition to the front. This addition will allow for internal access to bathrooms as well as reconfigure the dining area.
- Approve a moral obligation with American National Bank for Litehouse Foods.
- Cancel the Tuesday, May 19, meeting of City Council and schedule a special meeting of City Council for Thursday, May 21. The change in dates will avoid a conflict with the elections for City Council and the School Board, which are scheduled for Tuesday, May 19.
Also, the City Council held three first readings, including one on the fiscal year 2020 proposed budget for the Danville School Board. The proposed budget may be examined on the Danville Public School’s website.
A first reading is an introductory step required by City Code before some issues can be voted upon by City Council. This step serves to provide public notice of pending action. City Council is expected to vote on the school budget at its May 21 meeting.
The other two votes involved grants for the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office. One grant is for the victim/witness program. The second grant is to be used to hire an attorney or victim’s advocate to work in the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court dealing with victims of domestic violence.
Mayor Alonzo Jones issued a proclamation in celebration of National Hospital Week, which will be May 10-16. The mayor encourages all Danville residents to recognize our healthcare workers for their commitment to serving our healthcare needs.
These matters took place took place during the Council’s business session. Following the business session, the Council met in a work session. In work sessions, Council reviews non-routine matters that will be voted upon in future business meetings.
In last night’s work session, Council discussed discuss selling the Pinnacles hydroelectric complex to Northbrook Energy. The matter will be placed on the agenda for the City Council’s next business session on May 21.
Also, the City Council held a closed meeting as allowed by state law to discuss a prospective business or industry related to economic development and to discuss the acquisition of real property or disposition of publicly held real property.