(Mt. Vernon, IL) –The Mt. Vernon City Council met last night to discuss the bid results for the new fire pumper truck. Although it was previously discussed that the Illinois Finance Authority would issue the city a revolving loan of $350,000 for 10 years at 2.21% interest to execute this project, it was decided to finance the entire project of $608,000 with U.S. Bank for 5 years at 1.77% interest. Nathan McKenna gave an update on the Housing Program as part of the City Projects Summary. According to the Assistant City Manager, there will be an announcement on November 9 concerning the construction of new homes in Mt. Vernon. The average size of these homes will be approximately 1,400 square feet and at a price point of about $175,000. The City Manager was granted permission to negotiate with the RLCD for the installation of a valve on a 10” Main serving Continental Tire. The water meter at this location has stopped and is beyond repair. The city is working with Greg Brown of Continental Tire to find the best solution to make the needed repairs without causing a major shut down of operations at Continental. The city further approved an agreement to extend the Electrical Aggregation Agreement with Constellation to avoid four potential rate increases before December 2017. This extension will lock in rates now through December 2017 to avoid said increases. Citizens can opt-in or out of Constellation service at any time without penalty. Finally, the city approved an agreement with the Brennan Klein Field Foundation to construct a concession stand at Lincoln Park. The Concession Stand will be a 1,456 square foot building with a patio located next to the Brennan Klein Baseball Field. The City has agreed to extend water and sewer to the site and the Foundation will pay for the hook up. Once the project is complete, the Foundation is said to donate the Concession Stand to the City.