Troup applauded by aldermen during last meeting as mayor

QUINCY — Mike Troup added humor to his final meeting as mayor Wednesday night, as he did throughout his four-year term.

“You’re going to keep the three-minute time for public speaking?” asked Troup after Alderwoman Kelly Mays (R-3) invited his future opinions during the brief sine die meeting to officially close out the city’s 2024-2025 fiscal year.

Before the meeting, Troup handed out commemorative gemstones to City Attorney Lonnie Dunn and Ken Hultz (R-3), who were at their last meeting in their respective positions. Mayor-elect Linda Moore then approached the front of the room.

“There’s one more who will be leaving us soon, and Mayor Mike, we wanted to recognize you with your own gem,” she said.

Brad Cole from the Illinois Municipal League came to the meeting to thank Troup for his work.

“I want to say on behalf of the Illinois municipal league that we appreciate your service … it’s a pleasure to be able to come over tonight and thank you personally,” he said.

In return, Troup acknowledged that help from people like Cole and Comptroller Sheri Ray have been “phenomenal” resources for the city. Later, he thanked the department heads and the City Council.

“I feel good about where the city is today, especially from where it came four years ago,” he said.

In terms of official business, the council voted to raise the salaries of all non-union employees by five percent, effective immediately. Aldermen Jeff Bergman (R-2), Mike Rein (R-5), Jake Reed (R-6), Ben Uzelac (D-7) and Glenn Ebbing (R-5) were absent.

When the mayor asked the aldermen for any new business, each thanked the mayor, Dunn and Hultz for their service.

“It’s no secret, we’ve had our ups and downs,” Greg Fletcher (R-1) said. “We’ve made some good TV drama, but at the end of the day, sir, I’m proud that you were mayor, and I’m proud of the accomplishments you got done.”

After the meeting, the mayor reflected about his term.

“Four years ago … we had a lot empty big box stores. Coming out of COVID, we weren’t sure … how the economy was,” Troup said. “We’ve had four years with over $50 million in revenues, the highest the city has seen in any year. We’ve set those records for four years in a row … I think we moved the city in the right direction.”

Troup was supportive of Moore.

“Linda’s a competent person,” he said. “You’ve got a different personality, different style on some things, but the city’s going to continue to do well.”

Annie C. Reller is a Seattle native and a recent Stanford graduate serving as an intern for Muddy River News this spring.