The Salem City Council will hold a public hearing and special meeting at noon Tuesday to consider submittal of a Rebuild Illinois Downtowns and Main Streets Grant for construction of a food truck park. The total cost of the project is placed at more than $2-million.
The park would be on a vacant lot the city purchased earlier this year at the corner of West McMackin and South Maple. At the time, Economic Development Director Leah Dellicarpini was envisioning a building that would have garage type doors that could be opened in the summer but kept closed for winter events. The lot is just to the west of the city parking lot on West McMackin that stretches the rest of the block to Walnut Street.
Dellicarpini says the park could be used as the center of downtown activities since there is no place on Main Street to hold such events.
The resolution the council is being asked to approve Tuesday would commit $150,000 from the TIF fund and $369,013 from the general fund in the amount of $519,013 for use in conjunction with the state grant that could fund up to 75-percent of the project that has an estimated total project cost of $2,019,013.
Delllicarpini doesn’t expect word on if state funding is approved until at least early next year.
Public comments will be taken at the start of the meeting to be followed by possible city council action.
The meeting will be held at Salem City Hall.
