City Council, mayor recognize ‘year-long effort and a lot of work’ by Fishing for Freedom organizers

QUINCY — Quincy Mayor Linda Moore read a proclamation during Monday’s meeting of the Quincy City Council declaring Monday as Fishing for Freedom Appreciation Day.

Holly Cain, executive director with the Quincy Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, said that recognition was a first for her.

“In the 27 years I’ve done tourism events, I don’t think we’ve been publicly thanked by the City Council,” said Cain, who also is the treasurer for Fishing for Freedom. “It’s just quite an honor.”

Nathan Moore (no relation to the mayor), president of the Fishing for Freedom board, told aldermen that 173 boaters and 252 veterans (referred to during the event as “warriors”) participated in this year’s event, with 51 veterans also helping as boaters. Boaters came from 11 states, and veterans came from 24 states.

Alderman Jeff Bergman (R-2) took a moment at the end of Monday’s meeting to thank the volunteers and sponsors of the event. 

“This is a year-long effort and a lot of work,” he said. “People have no clue (about) the amount of time, effort, money and energy involved in this process. Quincy is very fortunate to have this event here to be able to honor the warriors, current military personnel and retired veterans. Thank you for everything you do. … I’ve done a very small part for the last nine years, and I do thank you and your organization for having this event to give me the ability to give back to our veterans.”

In other action, aldermen:

• Watched Fire Chief Steve Salrin swear in three firefighters who received promotions on June 1. Shawn Henson was promoted from captain to assistant chief, Deon Baker was promoted from lieutenant to captain and Bryan Meyer was promoted from firefighter to lieutenant. Henson has been with the fire department since October 2003. Baker was hired in July 2007, and Meyer was hired in August 2018.
• Learned from Moore that appointments for the Quincy Sports Commission and a strategic task force on housing, which she planned to have on this week’s agenda for approval by the City Council, were pushed to the June 16 meeting. “The good news is we’ve had more than 50 volunteers who came forth wanting to be on each of those committees,” Moore said. “It’s taking us a little bit longer, because we actually want to reach back out to every person who volunteered to let them know whether or not they would be on our appointment list or not.”
• Paused momentarily during Monday’s meeting to recognize Glen Ebbing (R-5). His son-in-law, Brian Kelty, died a few days ago in an accident. 
• Approved an intergovernmental agreement between the City of Quincy and the Township of Quincy for video surveillance camera system cost sharing. The township will reimburse the city $13,651.75 for construction materials and labor, training, a five-year license and a five-year maintenance agreement.
• Approved a request for the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics to be held June 17. 
• Approved a request by the Quincy Police Department to close Cedar from Fourth to Fifth for the Junior Police Academy from 1-2 p.m. daily on June 23-26.
• Referred to the Plan Commission a request from Lenard Miller for a special permit for a planned development to use 906 Lind as a counseling center, a request by Hope House of Quincy for a special permit planned development to allow 2122 Jefferson to be used as a maternity house for pregnant mothers at risk of homelessness, and a request by Dan Pflibsen for a special permit for a planned development to allow for the construction of a building at 1002 N. 24^th that will be used to warehouse/store personal vehicles.
• Approved the purchase of three sets of fire equipment gear for $11,798.00 from Dinges Fire Company.
• Approved buying three 2025 Dodge Durango Police Pursuit Utility Vehicles from Bob Ridings in Taylorville for $115,789, and approved paying $31,238.01 to Federal Signal of University Park for equipment, electronics, and prisoner transport systems needed for the three vehicles.
• Approved a quote from SHI International Corp. for $12,200.41 for an annual maintenance renewal contract for the primary HPE Nimble storage array, which houses the city’s entire virtual server environment, as well as a significant portion of the city’s virtual desktop environment.
• Approved an ordinance granting a special use permit for a planned development at 1400 Sycamore to allow for the operation of a small-engine repair shop in an accessory building (garage).