The Salem City Council has approved the sale of six acres of property east of Hotze Road and north of the railroad tracks in the Industrial Park to MGI Ready Mix of Effingham.
Mayor Nic Farley says the company plans to build a ready-mix facility on the site. MGI will pay $5,000 an acre for the approximate six acres of land. The city is also asking MGI to pay closing costs.
The board made a counteroffer on the sale of another property at 404 West Schwartz. Chiropractor Richard Smith bid $1,000 for the lot with a house that needs to be torn down. He plans to use the lot for parking. The city’s counteroffer is that Smith pay the $814 the city paid for the property, plus title and closing costs that are expected to be around $1,800.
The Salem City Council has sworn in Marion County Sheriff’s Deputy Isaac Hays as a new city patrolman. Hays is a Salem native, a 2019 SCHS graduate, and has worked as a deputy for the past two years. He is making a lateral transfer between the two departments. Salem now has a full roster of patrolmen.
Deputy Police Chief Tyler Rose announced the appointment of Mike Anderson as lead telecommunicator, replacing Justin Draper, who recently retired to lead the 911 system in Marion County. Anderson has been a Salem telecommunicator for 11 years and held a similar position at the Marion County Sheriff’s Department before that.
The council approved a $300,000 payment of motor fuel tax money to IDOT for an engineering study of needed pavement and drainage improvements. The city has obtained a grant to recoup the motor fuel tax dollars.
Mayor Nic Farley reappointed Royce Bringwald as Mayor Pro Tem for another year.
Salem’s new lead telecommunicator Mike Anderson (left) with Deputy Police Chief Tyler Rose (right).
