DANVILLE — The mystery odor has returned to the Danville Municipal Building. Mayor Joe Mazzari called for a brief village council meeting on Monday to avoid attendees having to stay in the building for too long, even though the odor had partially cleared.
According to information shared at the meeting, the petroleum-like odor returned on Thursday and worsened by Friday. Past investigations have eliminated gas and pollution in the air filtration system as possible sources. The new working theory is ground-based oil or contaminated moisture being trapped against the building’s north wall, according to Village Administrator Freedom Desich.
Mazzari and Desich will meet with a contractor this week to put in perforated pipes along the wall’s foundation, protected by a layer of gravel. This system — also known as footer tile — will drain out ground moisture away from the building into a catch basin.
“You will be able to go back there and see what’s coming out (from underground),” said Desich.
Last December, Desich and his crew dug up an old empty gas tank under the municipal building’s sidewalk. The tank — an inheritance from when the building was a car dealership with two gas pumps at the front — was a suspected source of the irritating odor. The tank, along with the soil around it, was removed and replaced with clean soil.
Now with the odor returning, the investigation continues. Desich believed they are very close to the real source of the problem.
“We will know (today),” said Desich.
In other business, council authorized a village contract with the Mount Vernon City Law Director in 2020; an ordinance to transfer $5,000 to the park fund and $3,000 to the state highway fund; new councilmembers Deb Ridgeway was appointed as Planning Committee chair and Patrick Crow was appointed the Finance Committee chair.
