AMBOY – The March 18 Amboy City Council Meeting was full of positivity and optimism since it addressed fun and exciting city projects.

During his depot commission report, Alderman Dave Shaw said the Sauk Valley Community College horticulture class is interested in doing a beautification, clean-up project around the Amboy Depot Museum.

For the city, it would be free of cost and work that would take man hours from the city would be done by students. In exchange, the horticulture class students would receive real-life education and training on how planting and landscaping.

Shaw, as the rest of the Amboy council, thought it was a good idea. Shaw planned to bring it up and approve the Sauk Valley class project at the March 26 depot commission meeting.

Alderman Bill Bontz brought soon-to-be changes to the Amboy City Park during his park report as the backstop on the Amboy High School baseball diamond is going to be moved in closer to home plate.

Amboy Mayor Frank Stenzel chimed in and said when the ballpark was built, there were intentions of an MLB farm system team, Single A, manning the field. With the field being built for professionals, the dimensions of it were built larger than a normal high school ballpark.

Along with the backstop being moved closer, the fence surrounding the field is going to be moved to a better location to protect fans in the bleachers.

The project is going to be funded by AHS.

Also at the city park, the Amboy Lion’s Club is making plans to install a nine-hole frisbee golf course on the eastside of the park. There will be four holes on the eastside of the eastside, two behind the baseball field’s outfield fence and three on the north end.

Also, for entertainment and athletic activity, two pickle ball courts are in the works by the tennis courts.

The city is going to provide labor to install the pickle ball courts and make them functionable.

The council voted all in favor of a few projects outside of the park as all approved $69,250.80 being spent on resealing Robbins Road, Willie Harney being hire as a part-time city mower for $15 an hour, the resolution of the paperwork through the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) for $100,000 worth of cape seal on the westside of Amboy, the authority certificate for Jeramey Wittenauer to be the only one to purchase salt for the roads (to prevent problems of double buying and bookkeeping), and the addition of Dominique Willahan on the Pankhurst Memorial Library Board of Directors.

In acting to further beautify the city, Wittenauer, the Amboy building inspector, plans to connect with a construction consulting firm in Elgin to help provide action toward residential and commercial buildings which are not adhering to city ordinances.

The end of the meeting featured Stenzel seeking city handbook revisions after Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker amended vacation time for part-time workers. Amboy needs to add for every 40 hours of work, a part-time employee receives one hour of vacation time.

The Amboy Spring Clean-Up is set for 8 a.m.-3 p.m. April 10-17 at the Amboy Depot. It is for Amboy residents only and no electronics are included since they can be taken to the Lee County building.

The tire disposal is 7 a.m.-noon Saturday, April 13. The City of Amboy is picking up half of the fee and those dropping off tires will pay for the other half ($2) of passenger tires, nothing bigger than 20 inches.

Tires must be off of the rim and there is a limit of six tires for disposal.