108th District Representative Wayne Rosenthal says that momentum is growing around the area to help revitalize the New Salem Historic Site outside of Petersburg.
Three bills proposed by Rosenthal and co-authored by Senator Steve McClure hope to secure funding in the upcoming state budget to restore and make repairs to the site.
Rosenthal, the former Director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources under the Rauner Administration, recently toured the facility. He says that several of the buildings are falling in or falling over: “The village is in advanced stages of disrepair. A lot of it is deferred maintenance at one time, and now, it’s just deteriorating. They need some resources to help fix it financially but with manpower also.”
Rosenthal says that if the State of Illinois had maintained the site properly with proper funding over the years, it would be costing taxpayers less to fix it.
He says since the joint press conference at the Capitol he held with Senator McClure just two weeks ago, interest in getting the site restored has continued to ramp up. Their legislation is seeking $5 million to help with restoration efforts for the former home of President Lincoln.