The Sterling City Council met in session Monday night and Fire Chief David Northcutt spoke highly of Firefighter Cody Simmons who completed his probationary period and was officially welcome to the department with his pinning.
The council passed an ordinance to implement a hotel tax. City Manager Scott Shumard spoke of the advantages of this new tax while also mentioning that most surrounding communities have already implemented this tax.
Shumard went on to say that 10 years ago, there weren’t any Air BnB’s or Vrbo. This new tax will go a long way with revenue for tourism.
In other news, there was a rather lengthy discussion about an ordinance relating to public camping that really is about homeless individuals that have nowhere to go. Council members recognize that something needs to be done to help these individuals especially during the cold winter months.
The problem arises that most shelters are full and just a few problematic people that start fires indoors and are disruptive really need medical attention among other things.
The council authorized a letter to IDOT to proceed with the 2nd street reconstruction project.
