Staff writer
Tonny Del Vecchio and Pastor Jim Pohlman addressed Peabody City Council Monday night on behalf of the HUB Youth Center.
The sudden death May 31 of HUB founder Dale Hague has left the family and the HUB directors and supporters uncertain about their ability to keep the building and the youth programs going.
Del Vecchio and Pohlman asked the council for permission to use the city park to do some fundraising at the annual July Fourth Celebration.
“We have checked with July Fourth celebration organizers Preston and Lisa Hodges,” Del Vecchio said. “They are OK with the idea. Our plan is to have buckets for people to drop donations in on their way out of the gates after the fireworks. We’ll have the fireworks show announcer tell people about it as they leave.
“We hope to raise enough to at least buy some time and meet the HUB’s financial obligations while we try to decide what to do for the long term,” he said.
Council members voted to allow the fundraiser.
Del Vecchio is the brother-in-law of Hague, who founded the HUB with his wife Doe Ann. The HUB is a non-profit organization to serve the youth of Peabody, giving them a safe, supervised environment for studying and activities. Pohlman is a member of the HUB’s board of directors.
In other business:
- Marion County commissioner Randy Dallke explained the proposed countywide recycling plan to the council. Since Peabody already has mandatory single-stream recycling for a smaller fee, the council took no action on the county’s proposal.
- Council members approved a cereal malt beverage license for Lindsey Marshall at Coneburg Inn.
- The council also approved a permit for Chance English to sell fireworks on the empty lot south of Peabody Market on Second Street.
- Discussion about tree trimming and tree removal downtown was tabled until a future meeting.
- Peabody Main Street Director Shane Marler told the council that Peabody had received a grant from the state Main Street program for an architect to design the ground floor storefronts for the Baker buildings. The architect and his assistants were in town June 8 to begin work on the project.
- Marler told council members the new planters came in and were distributed downtown before Memorial Day weekend.
- APAC road crews have been working on Locust Street and will have the street improvements completed by July 1, as scheduled.
The council will meet again June 27.