City OKs $125,000 office renovation

Construction will begin March 28 and take 6 weeks.

To pay for the work, $50,000 will be taken from the garbage fund reserves and up to $75,000 borrowed from electric reserves, which will be paid back over 3 years, officials said.

The work is intended to make the office "more employee friendly and a little bit safer," Electric Department Director Dick Simon said.

Bulletproof glass and security cameras will be installed, and a 6-foot opening will be created to replace the door, so employees can see who is coming in and what is going on, Simon said.

A new scanner will be used to computerize documents, eventually eliminating the space taken up by filing cabinets, he said.

The drive-through bill paying window will be closed during renovations. Walk-up payments still will be taken, but the office will move to the other side of the building while the work is being done.

Also Tuesday night, the council postponed voting on an annexation agreement with businessman Brent Porter, who wants to build an RV park on 17 acres of land at 600 E. 17th St. The city has not yet received a signed copy of the annexation agreement from Porter.

The council also agreed to allow the Rev. Brian Tribley, pastor of Firehouse of God Ministries, to take on the beautification of the parking lot on West First.

Tribley has applied for a Modern Woodmen grant to fund the project, so the work won't cost the city anything.

Rock Falls documentary now online

ROCK FALLS – The city's promotional documentary now can be watched online.

In 2012, the city agreed to pay $20,000 for the rights to a segment of “Today in America with Terry Bradshaw” that was intended to focus on education, recreation, tourism and other quality-of-life aspects of Rock Falls.

Crews filmed in spots throughout the city in July. The video is posted at www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QGP_JKtVkw&sns=em on YouTube.

It will air on TV later this year, Mayor David Blanton said.