DeKalb Times

City of Genoa City Council met June 18.

Here is the minutes provided by the council:

Mayor Vicary called the regular meeting of the City Council to order at 7:00 p.m. Roll call was taken. Aldermen Wesner, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Brust and Lang were present. Aldermen Carroll and Cravatta were absent.

Mayor Vicary led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Guest Speaker –None

Motion made by Alderman Brust to approve the minutes of the June 4, 2019 regular City Council meeting, seconded by Alderman Lang. Voice vote was taken. All voted yes. Motion carried.

Motion made by Alderman Lang to approve the minutes of the June 4, 2019 Committee of the Whole meeting, seconded by Alderman Brust. Voice vote was taken. All voted yes. Motion carried.

Motion made by Alderman Stevenson to approve payment of the accounts payables for the first half of June 2019 in the amount of $62,118.76, seconded by Alderman Brust. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Stevenson, Winter, Brust, Lang, Wesner and Di Guido voted yes. Motion carried.

ITEMS FROM INDIVIDUALS IN ATTENDANCE – None

OLD BUSINESS – None

NEW BUSINESS

CONSIDER A RESOLUTION TO BE SENT TO IDOT SEEKING APPROVAL TO CLOSE ROUTE 72 FOR THE HOMECOMING PARADE:

 Motion made by Alderman Wesner to approve a Resolution authorizing a temporary road closure for the Genoa-Kingston High School Homecoming Parade on September 20,2019, seconded by Alderman Lang. Alderman Wesner asked if it will be a different route this year. Chief Smith responded yes, the parade will not be going down West Main Street anymore. The parade will now go North at the Mobil gas station and then West on Second Street, to end at the Middle School. This will make for less congestion with traffic and the parade won’t have to cross the railroad tracks. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Wesner, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Brust and Lang voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER RESOLUTIONS RELEASING LETTERS OF CREDIT FOR PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS AND THE PROPERTY AT 101 KEARNEY DRIVE:

 Motion made by Alderman Winter to approve a Resolution authorizing the City Clerk to release the Letter of Credit for construction and installation of a public street and water and sewer improvements and the City’s acceptance of said public improvements, seconded by Alderman Lang. There was some discussion regarding the lights at Dollar General that were creating a nuisance to residents in the surrounding area. City Administrator, Art Osten Jr. responded that Public Works Director, Rich Gentile spoke with the Owner of Dollar General and he has agreed to tilt them down. Mr. Gentile also stated that he went to the property with a light sensor and it indicated that the lights are within code. He stated that the glare is the main issue. It was brought up that the Unified Development Order may need to be updated with stricter lighting codes to avoid future issues. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Winter, Brust, Di Guido and Stevenson voted yes. Aldermen Lang and Wesner voted no. Motion carried.

 Motion made by Alderman Stevenson to approve a Resolution authorizing the City Clerk to release the Letter of Credit for the property at 101 Kearney Drive and the City’s acceptance of said public improvements. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Stevenson, Winter, Brust, Lang, Wesner and Di Guido voted yes. Motion carried.

OTHER BUSINESS: (ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION):

Personnel Policy Changes – City Administrator, Art Osten Jr. began by stating that there were 2 remaining items from the last meeting regarding personnel policy changes that need to be discussed:

1. 2.03 - CASHING OUT OF COMPENSATORY TIME FOR SUPERVISORS AND SERGEANTS: City Administrator, Art Osten Jr., indicated that due to the key roles that these 4 employees have with the City, sometimes they are unable to use their compensation time, therefore; it is beneficial to the City to allow them to cash out 40 hours, instead of taking the time off. He also stated that we have budgeted for this; if all 4 employees cashed out 40 hours of compensation time at the same time, the funds would be available. The question was asked if there was any consideration of opening this benefit up to all full time staff instead of just Supervisors and Sergeants. Director Gentile responded possibly in the future, but not at this time.

After the above discussion, a motion was made by Alderman Di Guido to approve the changes to 2.03 of the Personnel Policy to allow Supervisors and Sergeants to cash out 40 hours of compensatory time, per anniversary year, seconded by Alderman Lang. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Brust, Lang and Wesner voted yes. Motion carried.

2. 8.01 - PURCHASING POLICY LIMITS: City Administrator, Art Osten Jr., stated that after the discussion at the previous meeting, there are new proposed purchasing limits to the personnel policy. Mayor Vicary stated that he wanted to voice his opinion regarding this policy. He stated that he believes the purchasing limits should remain as they are instead of lowering them. He stated that we have great staff in place and should not tie their hands. They have the capability of making knowledgeable decisions, but it is up to Council to decide. He also stated that as the City Administrator, Mr. Osten is a permanent part-time employee and has the capability of overseeing some of these purchases and making decisions, as opposed to Joe Misurelli and Bill Ganek who were Consultants. After some discussion amongst Council, it was determined that staff would tweak some of the verbiage and present it again at a future meeting.

FUTURE BUSINESS - None 

DEPARTMENT REPORTS

Administrative Report – City Administrator, Art Osten Jr. reported that he received new handbooks for newly elected officials and they are in the Aldermen office. We are moving forward with Riverbend and IBEW. He then indicated that Assistant City Administrator, Alyssa Seguss is in the process of sending letters out to the businesses in town regarding the Façade Program. Alderman Lang asked about the progress of IBEW. Alyssa Seguss responded that their final plats have been recorded; they are working on turning in their demolition permits to take down a couple buildings and then will apply for a remodeling permit for the barn. Alderman Winter asked how many façade improvements are allotted for this year. Alyssa Seguss responded that we budgeted $30,000 and the Food Pantry is applying for $15,000, so there would be an additional $15,000 still available.

Public Works – Public Works Director, Rich Gentile, reported that the City will receive 75% loan forgiveness from the IEPA for the water tower repainting and repairs project, Well 4 rehab project and the Genoa Street project. He stated he would be meeting with Verizon Wireless in the upcoming week regarding the temporary tower. They need to remove their equipment before we can begin the water tower project. He then reported that the City has received a grant for $10,000 from ComEd, which will be used to pave the access road to the canoe launch and for a paved trail at Citizen’s Park. Lastly he reported that he received an email from IDOT regarding the Route 72 resurfacing project. They received 3 bids, but if the lowest bid is higher than IDOT’s estimate, they will not do the project.

Police Department – Chief Smith reported they Genoa Days went pretty well. It generated about 15 extra calls. He thanked the library for allowing the Officers to use their event room during Genoa Days. He stated that Sergeant Edwards graduated from Staff & Command, which prepares him for the next step. It includes budgeting and scheduling. He then reported that part time officer Bob Barnett graduated from the part time Academy, so he will begin working for us part time. Alderman Brust asked if we reached out to any dispatch companies since we received the new radios. Mr. Osten replied that he had met with the County Administrator earlier in the day and received some information that he will be discussing with Chief Smith and other staff. He also stated that they are in the process of re-evaluating their fee structure.

Mayor’s Report – None

ANNOUNCEMENTS – Open Door Coffee opened this week and had a great turnout. A bakery will be opening up soon next to Genoa Gaming.

Motion to adjourn the regular meeting of the City Council was made by Alderman Wesner, seconded by Alderman Di Guido. Voice vote was taken. All voted yes. Motion carried. Meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m.

https://www.genoa-il.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/CCMinutes20190618.pdf