By Steven Stilt
At its meeting Monday evening, the Centralia City Council approved the implementation of a half-cent sales tax for the city, which will replace the one-cent sales tax that the state of Illinois will no longer levy on behalf of local governments.
City Manager Kory Smith explained how the tax would affect sales tax figures in various sections of Centralia.
“If passed, this will bring the city’s total sales rate to 6.75 (percent) in both Clinton and Washington counties, with it still being 7.25 within the Jolliff Bridge Business District within Clinton County. The rate in Jefferson County will be 7.25, as it includes a half-percent county public safety tax. In Marion County the rate will be 8 percent, as it includes 1 percent for a county schools facility tax and a quarter percent for a county public safety tax.”
Smith told the council that even with the half-cent tax factored in, Centralia’s sales tax rate would compare favorably with most other local communities, including Central City, Carlyle, Salem, and Mount Vernon.
Smith notes that the tax will enable Centralia to maintain its current property tax levy and not increase it in the near future, and will also help the city address significant expenditures such as police and fire pensions and other public safety-related costs.
The council on Monday also voted in favor of a resolution to supply the city’s share of funds for a railroad crossing elimination grant. Centralia is currently applying for the grant, which would involve federal funds totaling $1.12 million, along with a local match of just over $280,000.
Smith says the grant would only pertain to engineering work for the possible construction of overpasses over the crossings on South Poplar and South Elm streets, but would mark a key step forward on a project that had been dormant for several years.
“Anything that would actually amount to a shovel in the ground is, I would say, years away, easily, but this puts a project that started in 2018 on a shelf, and then we took it off and dusted it off, and we’ll see what kind of feasibility that we can to help with some of the traffic issues, some of the emergency vehicle issues, and just taking the guessing away whenever fire or police or EMS of some sort has to make their way down there to the industrial park or a southern portion of our city.”
City officials say the overpasses would be beneficial for traffic flow and would cut down on response times in emergency situations. A public meeting took place last Friday seeking community input on the project and the grant.
The council also approved the closure and use of streets and sidewalks for the “Celebrate Centralia” event which runs from 2 to 8 p.m. Saturday, October 12. The portion of East Broadway from Oak to Poplar Street and the portion of South Locust Street from Second Street to Broadway will be closed beginning at noon that day to accommodate event setup.
