Peoria City Council discussed disconnection of property — which was annexed to the city in 1993 with the Charter Oak development — at its Dec. 14 meeting.

Michael Fleming, attorney for property owners, requested undeveloped parcels without access to roads be disconnected from the City of Peoria and fall under Peoria County authority. City staff recommended denial. After discussion, Council members deferred the vote.

The council also discussed amending city code regarding automated traffic violations. An increase in motorists driving around stopped school buses prompted a request from Peoria Public Schools. Buses have cameras, so photos can be shared with police and tickets issued.

Councilors voted 9-2 to remove the 4 a.m. liquor license zone in the Warehouse District, except for Status Nightclub. First District Councilor Denise Jackson cited Status’ past incidents with fights and shooting and requested information from legal counsel.

Noted: $4,038,664 for funding pension obligations and $500,000 for potential water due diligence in 2022 and 2023 was assigned from the General Fund.

Under new business, Third District Councilor Tim Riggenbach commended Mayor Rita Ali for reaching out to state representatives about the public safety pension system in Illinois.

The Dec. 28 meeting was canceled. Minutes and video of meetings are available at www.peoriagov.org.

Housing Authority

The Peoria Housing Authority Board of Commissioners met electronically on Dec. 6. All commissioners were present.

Three residents graduated from the PHA Family Self-Sufficiency program. They completed educational and financial goals, and became home owners. This program can take up to five years for an individual to complete.

Minutes of November’s regular meeting and special meeting were approved. Reports were approved by consent agenda. Resolutions were approved to submit FY2022 budgets to U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Board also appointed more members to the CEO search committee and approved a three-year contract with AFSCME.

The PHA Board of Commissioners meets the first Monday of each month. Information is available at http://www.peoriahousing.org/.

County business

Peoria County Board held a special meeting Nov. 30 to approve the redistricting map.

All members were present except Kate Pastucha, District 9, and Matt Windish, District 16. Rachel Reliford, District 12, participated via phone.

The draft redistricting map, based on the 2020 census which will be in place for the next decade, was the sole item on the agenda.

Former board members Allen Mayer and Stephen Morris worked with the county staff to determine population gain/loss in each census tract. The resulting map reflected these changes, but also retained similar populations — the 18 districts vary in size by no more than 124 people. In general, heritage neighborhoods within the City of Peoria lost population while the Route 6 Corridor saw significant growth compared to the 2010 census.

All 18 members will be elected in 2022.

Mayer and Morris were thanked for bipartisanship and generosity in volunteering their time and expertise.

The map was approved 16-0. An interactive map is available on the Peoria County website under Departments/GIS tab.

During citizen’s remarks, Sheriff Brian Asbell surprised the board by announcing he would not stand for election in 2022, citing unspecified policy disagreements.

League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria observers attend and report on local government meetings. Check https://www.lwvgp.org/news/category/observer-reports-logo.