Illinois Valley Times

Village of Ladd Village Board met Oct. 14

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

The Ladd Village Board met in regular session on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, in the Ladd Village Hall at 121 N. Main Avenue. Village President Frank Cattani called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. and led the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag.

Roll Call: Present: Trustees Patrick Flanagan, Jan Martin, Dan Nelson, Brad Nicholson, Molly Thrasher, and Bernie Victor (6)

In Attendance: Engineer, Adam Ossola; Atty. Pat Barry, Deputy Clerk, Julie Koch, and Clerk, Rhonda Bezely.

Thrasher motioned/Nelson seconded to accept the September 23, 2025, public meeting minutes and the September 23, 2025, regular meeting minutes as presented.

Ayes: Flanagan, Martin, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor - Motion carried

Nelson motioned/Victor seconded to authorize payment of the bills of $46,612.18

Ayes: Flanagan, Martin, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor - Motion carried

Correspondence: A thank-you card was read from the Dempsey family

Public Comment: None

Committee Reports: Halloween Thrasher reported that the Halloween Parade will be on Sunday, October 26th, and the line-up is at North Central Bank. Hocus Pocus Hags will perform at 1 pm.

Tree Nelson & Victor spoke on the need to address sidewalks that are dangerous due to tree roots lifting the sidewalk. Victor reported that he stopped to discuss the situation with Mrs. Grivetti because there is a conflict in what she would like done. It is agreed by the council that the sidewalk cannot be fixed unless the trees are removed. They are so huge that this would need to be hired out.

New Business: Information from IMLRMA on Dangerous Sidewalks & Trees: An email thread between Clerk Bezely and IMLRMA representative Julia Reynolds was reviewed by the council, along with some sample forms to help the Village track dangerous sidewalks. Discussion ensued. Nelson and Victor spoke about the dangerous sidewalk, due to tree roots lifting them at two locations. (1) 419 E. Locust on the Hennepin Ave. side of the property and (2) 300 S. Brush Ave. Both of these locations have large trees where their roots have pushed up the sidewalk to cause a trip hazard.

Thrasher asked if the resident would be responsible for forming and finishing sidewalks. President Cattani stated that where the sidewalk is dangerous, the Village needs to take care of all costs to fix this issue. The council feels that money needs to be allocated to dangerous sidewalks every year. Engineer Ossola stated that whenever a sidewalk is replaced, it must comply with ADA rules.

Discussion ensued.

Victor motioned/Martin seconded to allocate up to $10,000.00 for the Village of Ladd to repair faulty existing sidewalks in 2025.

Ayes: Flanagan, Martin, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor – Motion carried

Bezely asked if we would be moving forward using this allocated money to take care of the two areas we’ve discussed tonight. Discussion ensued about what the $10,000.00 should pay for. It does not pay for the removal of the tree(s), it does not pay for removal as our public works will remove the old, but the forming, concrete, and finishing would be part of the $10,000.00. Approximate cost per square foot is $15.00. Thrasher asked if we’ve made residents aware of how the Village is willing to pay for the concrete; they just need to pay to have it formed and finished. The sidewalk application was mailed a couple of years ago with a letter explaining the process in all utility bills. Atty. Barry suggested marking the sidewalks with fluorescent paint to show there is concern about the sidewalk.

Village Engineer: New Business: Approve Change Order for Water Treatment Plant Roof: Ossola reported that the water treatment plant roof was completed. Documentation was provided to the council that showed a change order due to unexpected work needed with the parapet wall and the insulation up at the top to hide some anchor bolts. They replaced the insulation with treated lumber.

Victor motioned/Nicholson seconded to approve Change Order #1 from Top Roofing for the Water Treatment Roof Replacement requested an increase of $960, making the project total $27,960.00.

Ayes: Flanagan, Martin, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor – Motion carried

Ossola told the council that the grant we applied for to blacktop repavement for East Cleveland Street, instead of the tar and chip we applied for back in April, did not get funded. 1900 applications and only funded 223 projects for 400 million. $200,000.00 total STU Funds will go toward spot curb repair, and then tar and chip will be done. We will get this ready for a spring bid letting.

Superintendent’s Report: Not in Attendance

Police Chief: Not in Attendance

Building Inspector: Not in Attendance

Village Attorney: Nothing to Report, but wanted to make sure the council was happy with Attorney Herb Klein. The council unanimously stated he was a wealth of knowledge.

New Business: Bids for Grass Cutting: The current contract for grass cutting expires after the season this year. The council directed Bezely to publish a request for bids.

New Business: Approval of Agreement for Application Services for Illinois Safe Routes to School 2025: No Action was Taken

New Business: Pass Resolution 1199: A resolution to request closure of Route 89 for the Christmas Walk on Saturday, December 13, 2025, was presented to the council. The resolution is required by IDOT to request closure of Route 89 for the Ladd Christmas Walk.

Martin motioned/Nicholson seconded Passing Resolution 1199, 2025 Ladd Christmas Walk in the Village of Ladd and the Temporary Closure of Illinois Route 89 on December 13, 2025.

Ayes: Flanagan, Martin, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor – Motion carried. 

New Business: Donation Request, Ladd Christmas Walk: The 2025 Christmas Walk will be on Saturday, December 13, 2025. Lots of entertainment is planned. The Christmas Walk Committee asked for a donation from the Village to help pay for some of the new decorations & entertainment.

Thrasher motioned/Nelson seconded, donating $1,000.00 to the Ladd Christmas Walk Committee.

Ayes: Flanagan, Martin, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor – Motion carried

New Business: Proposal to Obtain EDA Grant and Management from Chamlin & Associates:

Grant Manager, Stephanie Peters, will look for grants to help the Village find grants to bring utilities out to Route 80 properties and management of these grants if awarded until they are complete. There are a lot of rules to follow in grant agreements; this cost would cover all aspects of the application of grants and any documentation necessary to abide by the grant rules.

Victor motioned/Martin seconded to approve the proposed EDA Grant Preparation and Management

Fees as presented.

Ayes: Flanagan, Martin, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor – Motion carried

New Business: Donation Request from Project Success for Thanksgiving & Christmas Food Baskets for Ladd Families: Martin explained that approximately 52 families in Ladd are helped every week. She also told the council that the government has cut funding by 85% so there is a huge burden on the pantry to fund almost all purchases of groceries for people who need help.

Nicholson motioned/Flanagan seconded the Donation of $500.00 for Thanksgiving and Christmas Food Baskets to Project Success.

Ayes: Flanagan, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor – Motion carried

Abstain: Martin, Thrasher (due to their positions at Project Success)

Announcement: Floor at Community Center:Bezely told the council that the floor at the Community Center was last burnished in 2016 for $350.00. Therefore, she did not move forward with pricing to have this done. She told the council that Sam Sarosinski and her friend, Paul, stated they could lay vinyl flooring that would really improve the look of the Community Center. She also said that she would be happy to paint the ceiling grids and ceiling tiles to make it look much better. SRTS 2025 Applications, both the infrastructure and the non-infrastructure grant applications, were submitted last week to NCICG. SURF Internet, there has been no contact made by SURF Internet as promised.

MCI Institute & Academy Training, Bezely stated that she completed a 6-day conference she will bring new ideas to the council when she gets time to write up her suggestions.

President Cattani gave an animated and heartfelt description of his recent trip to Italy. He was celebrated for being from a family with ties to the Village of Fanano, Italy. He was welcomed like a celebrity. A parade was held in his honor. He gave a speech about the Cherry Mine Disaster and his grandfather, who was trapped in the mine for 8 days but survived the disaster. Cattani was treated to a wonderful meal with many locals attending. They dedicated a plaque to the Village of Fanano with their logo and to the Village of Ladd with their logo. Cattani was taken up into the mountain where his grandmother was born. She was a Muzzarelli, and the Muzzarelli family members were still living in this house. It was a great experience for Cattani and his family. 

Nicholson motioned/Thrasher seconded to adjourn.

Ayes: Flanagan, Martin, Nelson, Nicholson, Thrasher, Victor - Motion carried

The meeting adjourned at 7:20 pm.

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