•Septe

Photo by Crystal Reed
From left to right: Lee R. Mitchell, Environmental Stewardship Lead with the Army Corps of Engineers, Chip Christensen and Colonel Kevin Golinghorst with a Shelbyville cube. The cubes are placed in Lake Shelbyville by the Lake Shelbyville Fish Alliance.

mber 2, 2020•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Members of the Lake Shelbyville Fish Habitat Alliance received a visit from Colonel Kevin Golinghorst last week at Chip’s Marine in Sullivan. Golinghorst is the new commander in charge of the St. Louis District Army Corps of Engineers.
While in the area he toured the Bo Woods Campground, Lake Shelbyville Water Trail and other areas around Lake Shelbyville. While at Chip’s Marine, owner Chip Christensen talked to Colonel Golinghurst about the Lake Shelbyville Fish Habitat Alliance and showed examples of the Lake Shelbyville cubes which are structures placed in the lake to help develop fish populations.
The goal of the Alliance is to place several thousand of the habitat promoting structures in the lake to help restore sport fishing habitat.The cubes are 4 feet square and 5 feet tall and give small fish cover in the lake. Read More

•August 19, 2020•
By Crystal Reed
NP Reporter

The Moultrie County Board voted to rescind a motion and action from the June 9, 2020 county board meeting which consolidated Sullivan Precincts 1 and 6 into Sullivan 1 and Sullivan 2 and 5 into Sullivan 2, placing them back to their original precincts and polling locations during their meeting last Thursday.
State statutes limit the size of precincts to a maximum 800 voters but there are a number of precincts throughout the state of Illinois that exceed that. “Consolidation would have saved the county several thousands of dollars and its actually costing us some money to put it back as it was,” Dave McCabe said.
The board heard from Derek Righter about the Final FY2019 audit by West and Co. prior to approving the audit. The fund balance increased by about $200,000 said Ryder. “Dispersements and depreciation increased by $840,000 over the previous year because the county highway had a resurfacing project that had $180,000 more this year over the previous year,” he noted “the special bridge had two projects with Dora township and Jonathan Creek township and that increased expenses by $130,000. Also, the general fund was up by $260,000 which is mainly attributable to health insurance, there was an increase in claims. Read More

20 in a Long Term Care Facility
•August 12, 2020•

The Moultrie County Health Department (MCHD) has confirmed 27 positive cases of the novel coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19). Of this total, 20 individuals are associated with the Sullivan Rehabilitation and Health Care Center (SRHCC), located in Sullivan, Illinois. These individuals who reside in Moultrie County include one staff member and 19 residents of the facility. They range in age from 20-80 years, and five are currently hospitalized.

The other seven individuals are unrelated to the long term care facility and range in age from one to 60 years. All are isolated at home. Public health officials are notifying all close contacts.

To date, 2,470 Moultrie County residents have been tested for COVID-19. Of those tests, 99 have been confirmed positive for COVID-19. Of the community cases, 12 are still in isolation.

The SRHCC has notified all residents, family members, staff and contacts. Per CDC requirements, all residents and staff have completed COVID-19 testing. All individuals who tested positive or were exposed have been isolated and quarantined for safety concerns. The facility continues to closely monitor all residents and staff. Visitation is currently restricted for the continued protection of all residents, friends, family members and staff.

The SHRCC continues to work closely with the Moultrie County Health Department and the Illinois Department of Public Health. Updates to this situation will be provided as they become available.

“On behalf of all involved, we at the Moultrie County Health Department understand that this is very stressful for everyone,” said Moultrie County Health Department Administer Angela Hogan, RN, MSPH. “We ask for your patience, understanding and support for the Sullivan Rehabilitation and Health Care Center and these special members of our community during this difficult time.”

The Moultrie County Health Department is asking all individuals and businesses to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in our communities by using the three basic Ws:
Watch physical distance and keep six feet from others.
Wear a mask when in public places.
Wash hands routinely.
The CDC recommends that individuals who are experiencing COVID-19-like symptoms stay at home and away from other people until:
At least 10 days have elapsed since symptoms first appeared and
In the last 24 hours the individual has been fever-free without fever-reducing medication and
Symptoms have improved.
People with weakened immune systems may need to self-isolate longer than 10 days.

Information on area testing sites can be found at https://dph.illinois.gov/testing.

For more information on the Moultrie County Health Department’s news, events and services, please visit www.moultriehealth.org and follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/moultriecountyhealth.

•August 5, 2020•
by Crystal Reed

At last week’s Sullivan City Council meeting the council approved the moving of personnel from City Hall to 304 S. Hamilton Street.
The motion that was proposed by Abbey Sherwood was for the mayor to enter into a four month lease with the owner of the property Don Frevert at $1,400 a month. According to Dan Flannell, City Administrator there is an option to renew for two month increments for the total of one year. Read More

•July 22, 2020•
A recent law passed by Legislators and signed by the Governor on June 16 states, in part, that an Application for a Vote by Mail Ballot must be mailed to all voters who voted in 2018, 2019, 2020.
Vote by Mail applications to residents will allow more people to exercise their right to vote from the safety of their own homes and help reduce the spread of COVID-19.
Official Vote-By-Mail Applications will be mailed to all registered voters in Moultrie County on July 28, 2020
The Vote by Mail Application has caused quite a bit of confusion. Hopefully, the following Questions and Answers will explain:
Q: Do I have to Vote by Mail?
A: NO. All Moultrie County registered voters will receive an Official Vote by Mail Application. However, it is up the voter to decide if they wish Vote by Mail rather than in-person. If they do not want to apply for a Vote by Mail ballot, they can simply dispose of the Application, and Early Vote in the County Clerk’s office beginning September 24 or go to the Polls on November 3. Read More