Park bridge in limbo as state reviews project after complaint

Plans for the walking bridge in Gilman, between the campground and Park Ridge Road, are in limbo.

“We can thank an anonymous person again, in our village, for calling somebody and stopping progress,” said village clerk Candice Grunseth at the July 9 Gilman Village Board meeting.

The village had intended to resurface the bridge, as it is in dire need of repair, and had the selected marine plywood lumber ordered and ready for pick-up. Now, however, the DNR is looking into whether or not they will allow the village to go ahead with the repairs.

Because the bridge is considered a proposed development in a floodway, the village will have to reach out to the DNR, to get a permit or a hydraulic analysis of the development. Grunseth admitted she has no idea of what the cost would be for an engineer or if a special engineer is needed.

There’s also the possibility that once the bridge is inspected, the DNR might say it has to be completely replaced. Since the village cannot afford to do so, they would have to close the bridge.

“So, I’m not sure what you guys want to do with the bridge,” said Grunseth.

It was decided to have Grunseth contact the DNR, to see where to go from here.

Village president Jane DeStaercke also praised Butch Podolak for his help with the bridge project.

“He has really gone above and beyond,” she said.

Someone else who is trying to be helpful to the Gilman community, is Gina Holt, district manager of Schultz Communities. Holt was present before the board, to address why work has been halted at the mobile home court in the village, although there are three new homes sitting there, it has been too wet to safely set them.

Holt also feels that the grass at the court is not an acceptable length and was informed there is debris from where they removed the old trailers. All this came as news to Holt, who took over for the previous district manager of the company, but promised that she will check in frequently with the court and welcomes anyone to contact her, if something is not correct.

“I’m working on getting an on-site manager to help keep that on a regular pace,” said Holt.

The board questioned if Holt can remove fencing around one mobile home, but Holt says that depends on if the prior owner of the court allowed it, so she will not insist it be removed, as it is grandfathered in. It was agreed the village will look for documentation on whether they gave permission to install the fence while they were in possession of the court.

Holt shared that she has a lot of improvements planned, but that it will take time to complete, since the court was neglected before her management.

“It’s almost like building it up from scratch,” said Holt.

Another item that could be deemed a public nuisance, is property belonging to Mike Slaughter, who, after talking with Gilman Police Chief Tom Tallier, conceded there could be an issue, but does not want to discard any of his old cars. The matter is now up to the board, to determine if a public nuisance violation is occurring, which they felt it was.

Tallier was directed to send Slaughter a letter, giving him 30 days to comply with village ordinance and to also invite him to the next board meeting. If nothing comes of that action, the village will then take the matter further, meaning citations, court orders and abatement.

“I do feel that he is willing to cooperate to what extent you give him,” said Tallier. “You kind of have to hold the foot to the fire.”

As a way to try to beautify Gilman, the board approved a Chapter 151 Building Ordinance, dealing with storage containers. The board had previously discussed the ordinance, but it was sent back to the Planning & Development Committee, for reconsideration.

The committee felt that it was more than acceptable for a residential district property to have a container for 60 days, then build a shed, if storage was still needed at that time. There is allowance in other districts, by obtaining a Conditional Use Permit. Four storage containers currently in the village, are grandfathered in.

“I just don’t think that we should be able to tell them they can’t have some kind of storage,” said board trustee Ericka Motte.

A vote was taken and the ordinance passed, with in four favor (Russell Baker, Dee Bornheimer, Karen James, Mark Person) and two opposed (Motte, Cheryl Rosemeyer).

“It’s less restrictive than the Medford one, that we all saw in the paper a few weeks ago,” said DeStaercke.

Members also agreed to replace the sidewalk curb in front of the school and to split the cost with the school district, with the village’s cost of $1,000. They also approved spending $5,245, with Taylor County, for removal of old blacktop and an old culvert, and installing a new culvert and replacing the pavement, on Railroad Avenue.

There was some good news, as well, that the chip seal estimate for Gilman Drive, came in at around $16,000, instead of the $18,000, as previously thought. That amount is what the village pays, as they are in partnership with the Town of Aurora, to chip seal the road.

“So, it’s a little bit less,” said Baker. The board approved paying Scott Construction the amount. Members also approved spending $7,990, to redo the existing courts in the park for pickleball. Tallier found a gentleman from Holcombe, Al Harp, who is an expert on the matter, and who did Cornell’s courts and Gilman’s track. The village lucked out with the timing of their inquiry, because the company would be in the area, doing the track in Prentice.

“Therefore, that price is cheaper, just because they’re in the area,” said Tallier.

The estimate included making three courts, running east and west, as well as rubberizing the entire space. Tallier thinks by enhancing the area, it will only draw in more use of the park, as pickleball is quite popular.

“It is a really taking-off type of thing,” he said.