Scott County Times
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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020
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WINCHESTER, IL 62694
VOLUME NO. 153 NUMBER 13
Serving our readers for more than 151 years
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Times
Winchester prepares for long shut-down
NEWS
By CARMEN ENSINGER Scott County Times In an effort to be financially proactive instead of reactive, Winchester Mayor Rex McIntire has announced that there will be changes to the city workforce, including the layoff of office personnel and reduction in hours for city workers.
Local children doing lessons at home. See page A2
WIVC anounces all-conference scholastic bowl. See page A6
SPORTS
“Since we are not sure how long we will be quarantined under state mandate, I feel we should prepare for the possibility of a long duration that could very well prevent citizens from paying their bills in a timely fashion.�
Rex Mcintire Winchester mayor
Local dancers compete in Springfield. See page A8
WEEKEND WEATHER FRIDAY, MARCH 27
57 37 High
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SATURDAY, MARCH 28
53 37 High
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SUNDAY, MARCH 29
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Scott County Times
/RFDOV $ 0DUNHWSODFH $ 1HZV $ $ 2ELWXDULHV $ 5HDO (VWDWH $ 6SRUWV $ Š 2020
Scott County Times Obituaries listed in this issue: Brockhouse All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Monday, the following information was sent by text from McIntire to city council members, city clerk, treasurer and city attorney. “Since we are not sure how long we will be quarantined under state mandate, I feel we should prepare for the possibility of a long duration that could very well prevent citizens from paying their bills in a timely fashion. “I have talked to City Public Works Director John Simmons about placing
his crew on a four day work week, staggering one day off each week without pay. Also, we will not be bringing in any new hires or part-time employees until further notice. The only exception is to bring in Jeff McIntire to work with current employees on the sidewalk grant that has a deadline. “In addition, since the work load in the clerk’s office is not justifiying two employees I have informed one of the girls in the office that she will be laid off indefinitely beginning at the close of business on Tuesday, March 24. “I really don’t want to take these measures but in this time of great uncertainly I feel they are necessary.� McIntire said the city is in good financial shape now and he wants to keep it that way. “I have been concerned about how long this shut-down is going to last, he said. “I’m concerned about us getting to the point where people won’t be able to pay their utility bills, which will put us in a financial bind.� However, since the text went out, things have changed. “One of the guys with the street department has some stuff he would like to do at home,� McIntire said. So, he has volunteered to take an unpaid leave and take the full week off. That way the other guys can still work.� Trevor Cawthon, who works at the water plant, will remain on a 40-hour work week, though he is making concessions as well. “What he is going to do is to work a half day on Friday because he has to come in two hours on Saturday and two hours on Sunday to take care of the water plant,� McIntire said. “He is going to use his comp time instead of getting paid the four hours overtime.� Last week, the city closed the lobby
of city hall. “We are trying to minimize the contact with other individuals for our office personnel,� McIntire said. “The office is still open but we ask that you put your payment in the overnight box along main street or if you have to talk to someone, call for an appointment or just call and maybe we can answer your questions over the phone.� As for now, the monthly council meeting, which will be held on April 1 at City Hall, is still scheduled to take place. “We are going to have our meeting as usual, but we are going to monitor the door and we are not going to allow more than 10 people in the building,� McIntire said. “It is possible that some of our aldermen may opt to participate via a conference call.� McIntire said he would rather be safe than sorry.
“I know a lot of people think we are overreacting, but if you look what has happened in the last two or three days you will see how serious this is,� he said. “It took 67 days to reach 100,000 cases worldwide. It took 11 days to reach 200,000 case and another four days to reach 300,000. Right now there are over 400,000 cases and the numbers are really jumping.�
%OXIIV PRYHV PHHWLQJ Bluffs Village Board has postponed their monthly meeting from April 1 at 6 p.m. to April 8. The lobby at Village Hall is closed but workers are working from home. Payments may be left in the drop-box. No cash payments, please.
&RXQW\ FRXUWKRXVH FORVHV IRU VKHOWHU LQ SODFH By BETH ZUMWALT Scott County Times The Scott County Courthouse is closed to the public at this time. Sheriff Thomas Eddinger made the announcement Monday. The closure went into affect March 24 at 8 .m. Mike Hill, Scott County State’s Attorney said office holders will try their best to accommodate anyone needing anything from a particular office. Arrangements should be made by phone before coming to the courthouse. Residents should call 217-742-3173. Extension numbers are: Commissioners office, 1; state’s attorney, 2, circuit clerk, 3, county clerk, 4, supervisior of assess-
ments, 6, probation, 7, circuit judge, 8, 911 coordinator, 9 and general assistance, 10. As far as court matters go, Hill said only necessary issues will be held for the immediate future. “Only new cases that need bond settings, or other maters that need immediate attention will be held,� Hill said. “Everything else is being pushed back.� Hill said the only persons allowed in the court room for matters with urgency will be himself, the judge, the defendant, the defendant’s attorney, the bailiff and the clerk. “No one will be allowed in the galley,� he said. “No families members, no observers.�
Great Scott Community Market keeps Winchester fed By CARMEN ENSINGER Scott County Times They might be small compared to Walmart, County Market or even Kroger, but Great Scott Community Market (GSCM) has managed to keep the shelves stocked for its customers. “Both the staff and the volunteers at GSCM have been working around the clock to continue to provide a local source of grocery for the residents,� GSCM Board of Directors President John Paul Coonrod said. “If it weren’t for our store, the people of Winchester and the surrounding area would be forced to drive to Morgan or Scott county to get a selection of grocery goods.� The pandemic panic has also been good on the finances of the store. “We have been ordering double, triple and sometimes even quadruple of some of our stock so we will have enough on hand for everyone,� Coonrod said. “Sales have tripled in the last couple of weeks. But we have been preparing for this and ordering extra so we can build up our stock on the most
essential items. That way we have been well positioned to meet the demand in a way we wouldn’t have been had we waited till the last minute to try and keep up with the demand.� Items flying off the shelves include the staples – bread, milk, flour and sugar. “Flour has been a really big seller for us, as has milk,� Coonrod said. “Milk, however, has been more problematic to keep on the shelves, which is the case in every grocery store in the area because its difficult for the milk producers to keep up enough production to meet demand right now and that is just a fact of life.� Coonrod said one or two days of the week they are probably going to be out of milk but the rest of the days they intend to have milk and continue to do everything they can to keep milk and all the other essential grocery store items on the shelf. While they don’t carry a huge stock of frozen goods, one thing that is flying off the shelf is pizzas. “The sale of frozen pizzas Submitted photo has increased disproportionateThe shelves are stocked and workers at the Great Scott Community Market are ready to ly to everything else we sell,� (See, FED, A2)
serve their customers. GSCM continues to serve lunch and have dedicated the first hour in the morning for senior citizens to shop. Left to right: Lydia Ballard and Sam Ayala.
Veteran’s Monument project close to reaching goal By CARMEN ENSINGER Scott County Times It has taken more than five years, but the Scott County Monument Committee is very close to reaching their goal of raising $50,000 to start renovating the Veteran’s Monument in Monument Park. The Fifth Annual Chicken Wing Cookoff on March 7 at the Winchester American Legion raised around $6,000 to bring the grand total of funds raised to date to $46,000. “We are so close to reaching our goal in the first phase of this multiphase project,� SCMC member Tina Brown said. “I think if more people could see what we actually want to do with this renovation, then more people would donate to it to help us reach this first goal.� Brown said she simply got tired of seeing the monument in its present condition and set about trying to see what she could do. She contacted Nicole Mason with the Legion and asked her what she could do. “We just started in and got us a group together that was interested in getting this thing going and we have been working together ever since,� (See, MONUMENT, A2)
Submitted photo
The following veterans participated and supported the March 7 Scott County Monument Committee 5th Annual Chicken Wing Cookoff. Front row, left to right: Nichole Mason, Lisa Fowler, Rebecca Barnett, Matt Barber and Richard Hembrough. Back row: Derick Kirkpatrick, Scott Mason, Mike Cockerill, Andrew Massey, Matt Lawson, Sam Ford, Rick Crews and Ryan Hembrough. Not pictured: Bob Cockerill.