LINCOLN - Lincoln Ward 1 Alderman Benny Huskins has announced his retirement from the City Council. Huskins sent a letter to Mayor Beth Davis-Kavelman, which she read at Monday night's City Council meeting.

When reached at home, Huskins said he had no comment on his retirement. He has missed the last few council meetings for undisclosed reasons.

"As of July 15, I am retiring from the city due to personal reasons," statement said. "I thank the mayor and past mayor as well as the Lincoln city councils for all they have done and also the people of Ward 1 for electing me alderman the last four terms."

Davis-Kavelman said she will begin the process of looking for applicants to fill Huskins' term, which expires April 30, 2009.

"If anyone is interested in the job, I would like to hear from you," she said.

In other business, the council endorsed the extension of the Lincoln-Logan County Enterprise Zone to take in Monsanto seed plants in Farmer City and Illiopolis.

In exchange for the extension, the city will receive $20,000 per year through the life of the zone, which will expire June 30, 2017.

City attorney William Bates reminded the council the agreement is contingent on approval from the Department of Commerce and Economic Development.

"If for some reason, the agreement is terminated by any of the parties involved, then the city would not receive that money," Bates said. "Those funds can only be used for matters pertaining to the zone."

The Logan County Board and DeWitt County Board have already approved the project.

The extension would give tax breaks to St. Louis-based Monsanto, which is expanding plants at Farmer City and Illiopolis. The company is spending more than $500 million to upgrade production plants in Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois, including a $100 million expansion at Farmer City.