Councils & Committees

Each Council/Committee participant is required, either on a business or individual level, to have an active membership with Vermilion Advantage. This is a membership benefit and available for all types of businesses - large and small.

Agri-Business Council
The purpose of the Agri-Business Council is to support the agri-business activities in the county and promote public awareness of the industry’s overall impact of the Vermilion County economy. This Council meets on a regular basis to discuss issues affecting the agricultural community, including legislation, the markets, agricultural financing, education, and relative programs/seminars. Participants include government officials, accountants, farmers and bankers—those involved in agriculture production and supply and institutions of higher education meet on a quarterly basis or as needed to prepare for special Ag related events.  Contact Linda Bolton for more information.
 

Intergovernmental Planning Council

The Intergovernmental Planning Council was formed in 1997 to plan, coordinate and prioritize the major infrastructure components needed to propel our county forward.  The main objectives are:   (1) To annually coordinate and plan among the key public-sector bodies regarding capital improvement needs and plans for road and utility improvements; (2) To determine which projects require outside state or federal assistance to proceed; (3) To prioritize those projects needing additional capital and provide a signed, agreed upon cost and prioritized list to our state and federal legislators prior to the commencement of their budgeting processes; (4) To align capital improvement plans to prevent duplication of effort (e.g. a road being repaved or improved, only to be torn up months or a year later to install new water line, etc.).  The Council meets quarterly on the 1^st Thursday of the month.  Contact Linda Bolton for more information.

Intergovernmental Planning Council Members:  Please click here for further (password protected) information.

Mayors' Council

Created in the early 1990s, the purpose of this group is to facilitate the understanding of and participation in the economic development process among all city, village and municipal leaders within Vermilion County. The Mayors' Council meets on a quarterly basis.  Contact Linda Bolton for more information.

Please click here for further information.

Personnel Council
In an effort to meet the needs of all business people in the personnel field, the Personnel Council has tailored their programs to meet the needs of business personnel situations. The traditional forum for this Council includes tours of other local businesses, discussion relating to human resource issues, sharing of forms and policies, and colleague networking.  The Council also brings in speakers who make presentations on timely topics or topics of concern to the profession such as worker’s compensation, FMLA, employee benefits, workplace violence, drug testing policies, etc. Some of the meetings are held jointly with the Safety Council if the topic is of interest to both groups.  Please see our tentative schedule here.

The group generally meets every other month.  Contact Machelle Dykes or call 217-442-6201 for more information.
 

Safety Council
The Safety Council strives to enhance the overall safety and health of the people who live and labor in our community by sharing and applying collective knowledge, skills and experiences for the purpose of promoting and facilitating continuous safety improvements.  Some of the meetings are held jointly with the Personnel Council if the topic is of interest to both groups.  Please see our tentative schedule here.

Participants are comprised of safety, maintenance and human resource personnel who handle company/business/plant safety issues like OSHA requirements, ergonomics, environmental safety, and emergency disaster plans. The group generally meets every other month.  Contact Machelle Dykes or call 217-442-6201 for more information.
 

Vermilion County CEO/Business Leaders Forum

The County’s largest employers meet regularly to benchmark against each other’s best practices and to implement strategies for broader community improvement.  Contact Vicki Haugen for more information.