Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1926 [PAGE 505]

EXTRACTED TEXT FROM PAGE:

502

board of trustees

[January 11

RADIO STATION Mr. Trees made a report of progress on the negotiations with Mr. Sullivan for the new radio station. At this point, Mr. Barr took his place with the Board. MATTERS PRESENTED BY PRESIDENT K1NLEY The Board considered the following matters presented by the President of the University. PROXY FOR SOUTHERN PACIFIC STOCK (I) A proxy for voting the shares of Southern Pacific stock owned by the University. O n m o t i o n of M r . Barr, the officers of the B o a r d w e r e authorized to execute this proxy.

REPORTS ON HESSEL LAND

(2) The following letters from the University Attorneys and the Comptroller on the purchase of the Hessel land. January 7, 1926 President David Kinley, University of Illinois, Vrbana, Illinois In re: J. F. Hessel Land D e a r President Kinley: In the matter of the petition of the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois for the condemnation of the J. F. Hessel tract of land, in the County Court of Champaign County, Illinois, w e beg to report that following the execution and ratification of the written agreement entered into between J. F. Hessel and The Board of Trustees, on December 31, 1925, a hearing was had before the County Court. At that time a jury was impaneled under the provisions of the Eminent Domain Act and the testimony of several competent and reliable witnesses, as to the fair value of the property in question, was submitted to the jury. These witnesses testified that in their judgment the sum of One Hundred Twenty-five Thousand ($125,000) Dollars was a fair price for the land involved in the condemnation proceeding. The jury then returned a verdict finding that the said amount of $125,000 was fair compensation to be paid to M r . Hessel, and the County Court entered a judgment upon the verdict of the jury to the same effect. The land involved in the condemnation proceeding did not cover that portion of the Hessel tract which is included within the boundaries of the street dedicated across the tract, known as "Hessel Boulevard." The written agreement entered into between M r . Hessel and The Board required M r . Hessel, in addition to execute and deliver his Warranty Deed conveying to The Board the land involved in the condemnation proceeding, free and clear of all liens and encumbrances, and also to execute and deliver to The Board his special Warranty Deed conveying that part of the Hessel tract which is included within the boundaries of Hessel Boulevard, free and clear of all liens and encumbrances except his dedication of the same as a street, and warranting the same as to his own acts. Pursuant to the terms of the written agreement providing for settlement of the contract, a meeting was had at the Citizens State Bank of Champaign, Illinois, on the morning of January 2, 1926. M r . Hessel, however, was not ready at that time to complete the settlement and the meeting was thereupon adjourned until 1:30 o'clock p. m. of the same day, at which time there met at the Citizens State Bank M r . C. D. Thomas, the attorney for M r . Hessel, the Treasurer, Comptroller, and the Superintendent of Business Operations of the University, the Secretary of T h e Board, and the attorneys for The Board. Prior to this time the attorneys for The Board had examined the abstract of title covering the Hessel tract and found the same to comply with M r . Hessel's