By KIP CHEEK

Staff writer

MENDOTA – Mayor David Boelk announced the lifting of the state of emergency in Mendota due to the pandemic crisis at the June 1 meeting of the Mendota City Council.

Mayor Boelk said: “I would like to announce that the City of Mendota State of Emergency ended at 12:01 a.m. on May 31. This means that the limits imposed under the emergency have ended. I want to thank the citizens of Mendota for doing their part. Without your cooperation, I am certain that the City of Mendota would not be holding steady with 17 known cases. With that, I strongly caution residents that we must still abide by the rules set forth by the State of Illinois. Please know that just because the rule prohibiting people under the age of 18 and one person per shopping cart rule in retail establishments has been lifted, this is not a green light to go and hang out in retail establishments. Remember, crowds larger than 10 are still prohibited at this time. We are all fatigued, and, because we haven’t seen a severe outbreak, we may feel that we are OK to go about our normal daily lives. This is simply not true. We must stay vigilant and we must understand that how we define ‘normal’ today is not the same as it was four months ago.

“For now, the City will continue to monitor the situation. If the facts warrant, another State of Emergency will be declared. Obviously, this is something we want to avoid. We want to go forward. You can do your part to help by following the guidelines set by the State of Illinois. And together, we can move forward to Phase IV.

“As of today (June 1), the city offices are open with the following rules being strictly enforced: only one person is allowed in the office at a time and masks must be worn. If you come into the clerk’s office without a mask, you will be asked to leave.”

In other action from the mayor, he presented his FY21 mayoral appointments.

ALDERMANIC REPORTS

Alderman Leo Hochstatter presented an ordinance amending the starting time of city council meetings. The council voted to adopt the ordinance, which now makes the starting time of regular city council meetings at 5:30 p.m. instead of 6:30 p.m., effective June 15, 2020.

Alderman Kyle Kim presented an ordinance amending ambulance billing rates for 2020-21, which was approved by the council. New rates are:

Mendota and rural residents: basic life support non-emergency, $550; basic life support emergency, $600; advanced life support non-emergency, $600; advanced life support 1 emergency, $750; advanced life support 2 emergency, $850; specialty care transport, $950.

Non-residents: basic life support non-emergency, $800; basic life support emergency, $850; advanced life support non-emergency, $850; advanced life support 1 emergency, $1,000; advanced life support 2 emergency, $1,100; specialty care transport, $1,200.

Alderman Jay Miller gave a list of license additions to fellow council members. All were approved. They include Mendota Moose, El Zarape, Waterfalls Casual Dining and Pizzas by Marchelloni, liquor licenses; Republic Services, scavenger license.

The next regular meeting of the Mendota City Council will be Monday, June 15 at 5:30 p.m.