October 19, 2022 Ameren hosted their Annual Business Symposium in Springfield, IL. The symposium draws nearly 5oo attendees throughout the state. Representatives from several municipalities, school districts, small and large businesses, and energy sector vendors came together for a day of collaboration. Village Collector and Clerk, Amy Benwell attended on behalf of the Village. While there, Amy attended several lectures on custom incentive application writing, renewable energy, and innovative energy efficient technology. Through the Ameren Efficiency Program, the Village has already upgraded all lighting in village owned properties to LED, yielding a ten year savings of roughly $30,000. Amy Benwell and Chris Remick worked together to write a custom incentive application that was recently awarded to upgrade and replace the bioluminescent dissolved oxygen sensors in the sequencing batch reactor tanks at the Waste Water Treatment Plant. With rising energy costs, every attempt is being made by the teams in place at the Village of New Athens to utilize the most efficient technology available at the lowest cost.
The New Athens kindergarten classes were hard at work the last week of October drawing pictures to thank Lt. Tim Buehler for his twenty years of service to the Village of New Athens. When presented with the array of colorful drawings, Lt. Buehler was rather moved. The children submitted drawings of their time spent with Lt. Tim, along with messages thanking him for the time he dedicates to them. The students love when Lt. Buehler takes the time to read to them, stop in during lunch, and simply ask how they are doing. The relationship fostered between the youth and police is outstanding. Later that evening, Lt. Tim could be seen handing out candy to young trick-or-treaters, while keeping the streets safe with Officer Lydia Simburger. Parents throughout town snapped photos of Lt. Tim letting the little trick-or-treaters try on his very special lieutenant's hat. Once again, the Village of New Athens thanks Lt. Buehler for being a pillar of the community.
At the Regular Board Meeting on October 17, 2022, Lt. Tim Buehler was honored with a photo plaque for his twenty years of service on the New Athens Police Department. Chief Leo Simburger commended Lt. Buehler for his commitment to the community. Among many community driven efforts, Lt. Buehler can often be seen directing traffic during school drop off and pickup as well as reading to grade school students and leading the DARE program. Not many weeks go by without Lt. Buehler being seen doing a good deed. In addition to performing his duties as lieutenant, he has been known to go above and beyond helping residents with overgrown brush, assisting the school with programs, serving in the church, and coming to the aid of local business owners, all while being a devoted husband and father. His heart is truly in it for the community and we are forever grateful for his service.
The New Athens Department of Public Works team will be back in action again collecting leaves throughout the Village this Fall. We thank Superintendent of Public Works, Chris Remick and his dedicated team for all of their hard work keeping the town tidy as we enjoy the crisp Autumn air. Please check the map to see what day your residence is scheduled for collection. Leaves should be raked into a tidy pile near the street prior to 7am on the scheduled day of collection. The program will tentatively last until the first snowfall. If you have any questions about the program, please contact Village Hall or check back here for updates.
The Village of New Athens is pleased to announce Mrs. Martha Laumbattus as the first recipient of the Yard of the Month award.
Mrs. Laumbattus's lawn is always so beautifully manicured.
It is hard to miss the show stopper hanging baskets adorning her property, as well as a variety of shrubs and bright seasonal blooms.
Nancy Ritter nominated Mrs. Laumbattus. Congratulations!
Beginning October 03, 2022 Regular and Special Board meetings will begin at 6:30 p.m.
This is the launch of a periodic publication, "From the Desk of Mayor Joe", which will be a forum for me to chat with the community about issues and happenings in the Village. Direct communication between myself and the community is vital for the Village to be able to govern in an effective manner.
Municipalities have a common issue: the demand for municipal services always exceeds the supply. This is especially true with smaller communities in Southern Illinois. Poet John Lydgate said it best, "You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can't please all the people all the time." President Lincoln wisely later adapted the same prose.
Please share this publication with your friends on social media. Feel free to contact me at any time if you have questions or concerns at (618) 604-3262. My email address is joebehnken@gmail.com. We may not always agree, but we can always communicate.
Mayor Joe
