CLINTON—After questions were raised about the appropriateness of the city entering a lease arrangement with a Christian-based radio station to attach a repeater transmitter to the downtown water tower, the City Council on Monday voted to table a vote.

The vote was tabled about 25 minutes after the Council went into executive session to discuss “collective bargaining,” and “the lease price of real estate,” said Mayor Ed Wollet. That clarification, actually an official statement for the record, came after David Holt, publisher of the Constitution challenged the reason for going into executive session.

After the executive session the Mayor explained the reason for tabling the issue was because “We want to do more investigation into the lease amounts to see what is fair to the public as well as the lessee, “ said Mayor Ed Wollet.

The station is at 97.1 FM, owned by Great News Radio, which also owns WGNJ (89.3 FM) and WGNN (102.5 and 103.5 FM) and broadcast from Fisher, where owner Mark Burns and his wife broadcast a show from their home.

But before the executive session, another issue bubbled to the surface when Dr. Harold Weinberg asked if the Council would allow towers for other similar interests, “Jewish? Muslim? Hindu? Wiccan?”

Weinberg, who attends virtually every City Council meeting as a civic-minded member of the audience, raised the issue during a section of the Council meeting in which the Mayor allows members of the audience if they wish to address the Council.

Weinberg told the Council that he was concerned that “you’re leaving yourself open to any other group.”

It also was noted that Clinton faced a similar issue when Matthew Hale, leader of the East Peoria-based World Church of the Creator, now known as The Creativity Movement. The church believed in separation of the races. Hale wanted to come to Clinton and use the Vespasian Warner Public Library to meet with sympathizers—and did. Hale since was sentenced to a 40-year prison term after being convicted of soliciting an undercover FBI informant to kill a federal judge.

City Attorney Steve Myers noted that the lease was not based on the station’s content, but Wollet agreed it was a “public square” issue that needed to be discussed.

The vote was tabled at the request of Commissioner Bryan Hickman, who asked that the church tower as well as a tower agreement for the school district, be voted on after the closed session.

That prompted Holt, citing the Illinois Open Meetings Act, to question the reason for the closed session. Discussing that “public square” issue is not allowable under the Act, but the rate that the City would charge for the lease is.

After the closed-door session, the Council did vote on an intergovernmental agreement with Clinton Unit 15 School District to allow the use of the new water tower for its communication needs. A tower previously had been at the “old junior high school” at 401 North Center, which will be demolished soon. The vote was split, however, with Hickman voting “no” and Wise voting “present” and the Mayor, Edmunds and Milton voting to approve.

Wollet said the agreement with the school district did not involve any charge for the use of the tower.

In other Council business, new Fire Chief Shawn Milton addressed the Council for the first time, to ask it to vote to appoint Ray James as Assistant Fire Chief. He told hem that, given the brouhaha over his own appointment as chief by his father, Commissioner Jerry Milton, he consulted the firefighters about the appointment, and found unanimous support for James in that position. The department lost seven firefighters who resigned over the controversy and another left to join the Decatur Fire Department.

The Council voted unanimously to approve James’ appointent.

The chief also said that seven new firefighters have been put on the force who are in intensive training on Saturdays and Sundays to bring them up to speed. There are 25 on the force, he said. All but three, who are paid to keep the firehouse staffed 24/7, are volunteers.

On another subject, the Council placed on file a request for an arcade license for Breakers owner Tony Gum, who has moved his restaurant from Route 10 across from Anderson Ford to 211 E. Adams, the former Imperial China Co. Gum wants the license for 20 gaming machines.

Commissioners Tom Edmunds and John Wise questioned having a large arcade in a business that also sells alcohol.

“I’m going to tell you,” Wollet hastily explained, “I’m monitoring that location. I want it to be a restaurant” that sells more food than alcohol. Sale of alcohol must be kept at no more than 40 percent to be considered a restaurant.

The mayor, as liquor commissioner, has the power to seize records in order to determine if that 40-60 ratio of alcohol to food is maintained.

Because the Council meeting ran late Monday, look for more City Council news in Friday’s Journal.