The Christian County Board met on Tuesday evening for over three hours to discuss business, ordinances, and review committee reports. The board held a moment of silence for Charles DeClerck, longtime board member, who passed away earlier this week at the age of 93. Some of the community spoke out about the CO2 project being promoted in Christian County. Steve Brockelesby, with the group Christian County Citizens to protect the Aquifer says that over 80% of the community that he spoke to are against this.
Steve Sipes, with the Zoning Board of Appeals, announced Mark Dozier, another member’s resignation. He said that the Zoning Board feels like the Christian County Board is trying to use them as a scapegoat.
The meeting continued with statements about the courthouse floor, animal control issues, and even more statements on the CO2 project including eminent domain and more projects that may be coming in. Clint Epley was sworn into District 4, after the resignation of Gene Price. Ron Brown was appointed Maintenance Supervisor and Denny Stiner was approved for the Owaneco Fire Protection District.
After much discussion, a suggestion was made for a six-month moratorium on the CO2 project to get further information on it. The board pushed forward a motion to table the motion for the six-month moratorium and send it back to the personnel committee. The motion passed and it is being sent back to the personnel committee. Lan Richart, an ecologist with the Eco-Justice Collaborative out of Champaign, Illinois, spoke out about concerns about carbon pipelines. Richart asked the board and farmers before they make a decision on this project to be informed.
The board discussed low-income housing and tabled it sending it back to the personnel committee, the board reviewed ZBA meeting pay and some recommendations, and they talked about ARPA and the labor for the floor support project. The board also talked about survey records, and county board rules and went into a closed session. The next county board meeting is set for May 17th.
