DeKalb Times

City of Sycamore City Council met Aug. 19.

Here is the minutes provided by the council:

ROLL CALL

Mayor Lang called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and City Clerk Mary Kalk called the roll. Those Alderpersons present were: Steve Braser, Nancy Copple, Josh Huseman, Pete Paulsen, Virginia Sherrod, and Chuck Stowe. Alan Bauer, and Rick Kramer were absent. City Attorney Keith Foster was also present.

INVOCATION – Bishop Sol Jensen, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, gave the invocation. 

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

APPROVAL OF AGENDA

MOTION

Alderperson Braser moved to approve the agenda and Alderperson Sherrod seconded the motion.

VOICE VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a voice vote to approve the motion. All Alderpersons voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

APPOINTMENTS- None

AUDIENCE TO VISITORS

Paul Callighan, 1512 Crayton Circle, DeKalb and Dawn Littlefield, 136 Oak Drive, DeKalb, both of United Way, showed a Power Point and gave a handout as they updated about the Illinois 2-1-1 system. They gave the websites www.pathcrisis.org and www.findhelp211.org and encouraged everyone to look them up.

CONSENT AGENDA

A. Approval of the Minutes for the Regular City Council Meeting of August 5, 2019.

B. Plan Commission Meeting Minutes from July 8, 2019.

C. Payment of the Bills for August 19, 2019.

D. Downtown Façade Improvement Grant Close-out for Morningstar Media at 220 S. California Street. E. Downtown Façade Improvement Grant Close-out for Coroco Coffee at 224 S. California Street.

F. Gateway Improvement Grant Close-out for Chelsea McGhee Studios at 942 W. State Street.

MOTION

Alderperson Stowe moved to approve the Consent Agenda and Alderperson Paulsen seconded the motion.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Braser, Copple, Huseman, Paulsen, Sherrod, and Stowe voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

PRESENTATION OF PETITIONS, COMMUNICATIONS, AND BILLS

REPORT OF OFFICERS

City Manager – Brian Gregory thanked Ryan and Karen Weckerly of Morningstar Media and Coroco Coffee for the tour tonight and more importantly for their continued investment in Sycamore. He was impressed with all they have done in taking an older building in the downtown and making it new, modern, and useful for many years to come. In September, the Planning and Zoning Commission (PZC) will hear a Special Use request for an office use in residential zoning. That would be allowed, if the potential Special Use provided there was one prior. This is for the former Morningstar Media building, so publication will be made in the newspaper, on the property, and by mailer. September’s PZC recommendation, favorable or unfavorable, will go to the second Council meeting in September. He said the Mayor’s Ad Hoc Committee on growth management met on 8-7-19 for the first time in three years. The committee discusses growth and development related topics and the last time it met, the impact and connections fee formulas were reviewed, recommendations were made to City Council, and ultimately, the fee structures and ordinances were passed. One of the variables was an appraised land value. The Ad Hoc committee made a commitment three years ago to refresh that variable for the current land value. The kickoff meeting was held to discuss the appraisal and is now in the process of obtaining that appraisal for one acre of land. This will go back to the Ad Hoc Committee and he anticipates bringing back recommendations from the committee to the City Council in fall or winter.

Police Chief – Jim Winters pointed out guest, Sergeant Joe Meeks, as they always encourage their officers and supervisors to attend City Council meetings to see what’s happening beyond their department. The Police Department received a grant for $11,536 for the next fiscal year, from the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) S.T.E. P (Sustained Traffic Enforcement Program) for extra patrols to focus on safety violations that deal with impaired and distracted driving.

Mayor Lang asked about the video they put out.

Chief Winters said Sergeant Meeks and his team are tech savvy and put a recruitment video on social media. They are accepting applications until August 23rd. He said kudos to Joe and Luke Kampmeier.

Fire Chief – Pete Polarek – left on a call

Director of Public Works – Fred Busse said they did a water main repair on North Main Street, where during an inspection of an IDOT crew, they discovered a sink hole on East State Street between Walnut and Governor Streets. They excavated at midnight and discovered a hole in the sanitary and storm sewer with more storm water going into the sanitary line. He said that water meters are being replaced as fast as they. He can’t stress enough regarding the new technology of these meters. He explained how a concerned resident with an extremely high water bill for his new home questioned the responsibility of the builder. The new meters were able to show the exact time from when the resident moved in was when the water usage began. It was the resident using the water to establish the new lawn. This technology takes away the question of who’s responsible for the usage.

Treasurer/Asst. to the City Manager – Adam Orton said the July Treasurer’s Report, on a cash-basis, has a benchmark of 25%. They received the third installment of property taxes for 54% of the total for FY20. The State and Home Rule Sales Taxes are at 24% and 22% respectively. The Restaurant and Bar Tax is at 25%. The Service Charges are higher in percentage and is because they reflect an annexation fee received for the new R-4, Rural Residential annexation. Overall Revenues are at 31% but drop to 27% when weighted. General Fund Expenditures are at 25%. Pension funds had small gains for July. Police pension is at $14.8 million and the Fire pension is at $15.7 million.

Building & Engineering Director – John Sauter said they issued a mass grading permit for the new Old Mill Park Subdivision and work started last week. They’re also working toward a permit for the new Fowler Farms Subdivision and work is expected to begin there this fall. The Meijer project is moving along and the foundation work for the main store is almost complete. They are scheduled to start tipping walls up later this week so you should be able to get an idea of the size and location of the store sometime next week.

Director of Human and Administrative Resources (DHAR) – Maggie Peck said the Safety Committee met recently to determine how to spend the grant money they received from the Illinois Public Risk Fund of which will be presented to the Council in September. It’s Open Enrollment until August 23rd. She added it is Tal Hickey’s 30 year anniversary with the City of Sycamore and said kudos to him.

City Engineer – Mark Bushnell said they are continuing to work on the Water System Master Plan. The main goals are to provide recommendations for radium removal and Well 7 in order to bring it back online and also ways to improve the distribution system. They are still on pace for a December completion date which will allow them to incorporate these recommendations into next budget year.

REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES

Finance – Alan Bauer - no report

Public Safety – Pete Paulsen - no report 

Public Works – Chuck Stowe - no report

PUBLIC HEARINGS - None

ORDINANCES

A. Ordinance 2019.17—An Ordinance Approving a Resubdivision Plat for the Engh Farmstead Property on North Main Street (Parcel Identification Number 06-27-300-052) in the City of Sycamore, Illinois. First and Second Reading.

City Manager Brian Gregory said this comes to the Council from the Planning and Zoning Commission with a favorable recommendation by a vote of 10-0-1. This is a resubdivision of the Engh Farm property that the City owns and this plat subdivides lot 1 into two lots; lot 101 and lot 102 (the property the County will acquire as part of the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA)). The City will retain lot 101 which houses the DeKalb County History Center. Lot 102 houses the machine shed and includes an access easement and a utility easement that has been added since publication.

MOTION

Alderperson Huseman moved to waive First Reading on Ordinance on 2019.17and Alderperson Paulsen seconded the motion.

VOICE VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a voice vote to approve the motion. All Alderpersons voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

MOTION

Alderperson Paulsen moved to approve Ordinance 2019.17 and Alderperson Huseman seconded the motion.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Braser, Copple, Huseman, Paulsen, Sherrod, and Stowe voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

B. Ordinance 2019.18—An Ordinance Approving a Plat for the Water Department Subdivision at 220 E. Page Street (Parcel Identification Numbers 06-32-230-010 and 06-32-227-027) in the City of Sycamore, Illinois. First and Second Reading.

City Manager Brian Gregory said this also comes from the Planning and Zoning Commission with a favorable recommendation by a vote of 10-0-1. This is a similar subdivision where lot 1 is divided into two lots; lot 1 and lot 2 related to the IGA in the next ordinance. The County will acquire lot 1 which houses the water office building and the orange storage building. The City would retain lot 102 and as part of a clean-up, this formally dedicates right-of-way for the portion of N. Walnut Street and E. Page Street that currently run through the property.

MOTION

Alderperson Stowe moved to waive First Reading on Ordinance 2019.18 and Alderperson Huseman seconded the motion.

VOICE VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a voice vote to approve the motion. All Alderpersons voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

MOTION

Alderperson Huseman moved to approve Ordinance 2019.18 and Alderperson Stowe seconded the motion.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Braser, Copple, Huseman, Paulsen, Sherrod, and Stowe voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

C. Ordinance 2019.19—An Ordinance Authorizing the Mayor to Execute an Intergovernmental Agreement with the County of DeKalb Regarding the Sale of Certain Properties, Peace Road Improvements Compensatory Storage, and Relocation of Material at the Wastewater Treatment Plant in the City of Sycamore, Illinois. First and Second Reading.

City Manager Brian Gregory said he’s excited to talk about this ordinance as it includes an IGA between the City and the County and really provides a “win-win” solution to objectives that both organizations have. He said this is a culmination of several months of discussions and demonstrates what units of government can do when working together. He said, flashback to the beginning of the year in December 2018, the City’s Water Division Manager announced his retirement, which provided an opportunity to restructure the Public Works Department with the goal of bringing operations into one location on North Cross Street. At that time, they had a longer-term goal of trying to consolidate all the storage and equipment in to the Public Works campus, however, he said, at the time, it didn’t see feasible within the resources available. About that same time, the City and County were having casual conversations about upcoming projects. We learned from those conversations that the County went to bid on a storage building which came in significantly above what their resources were and also learned that they were working on Peace Road safety improvements. He said they had discussed that the City was in the early stages of the Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) project. These conversations led to separate discussions between the respective Administration and Engineering Departments, ultimately resulting in the framework of the mutually beneficial IGA.

He said for the buildings framework, as part of the IGA, the City would sell Lot 102 on Engh Farm (6,320 square foot storage building) and Lot 101 (Water Office Building and 3,460 square foot storage building) which were appraised separately by an MIA (Member Appraisal Institute) Certified appraiser for Fair Market Value of $475,000 and is the consideration to transfer those properties in the IGA. He said the timing is that the water buildings would be transferred by September 20, 2019 and the storage building by March 1, 2020. He said there is an understanding that the City would be allowed to operate the SCADA water system until it is all transferred. Initially, $390,000 would be paid at the time of closing with the remaining $85,000 being paid when the City vacates the Engh Farm building. He said that the use of the Engh farm building will be consistent with its current use and the appearance will be consistent with the farm setting as is spelled out in the IGA. The City does have first right of refusal at Fair Market Value if the County ever looks to sell the storage building in the future. He said the proceeds will be used to construct a new 12,000 square foot storage building on the Public Works Campus on North Cross Street. The plan is that the building will go to bid this fall or winter and construction is expected to start in early 2020. A gravel pad has been installed to allow for outdoor parking and storage during the transition.

He continued that the second piece is the Compensatory Storage framework, which is equally important. The County was planning Peace Road Safety Improvements and needed 8,500 cubic yards of compensatory storage, to compensate for the pavement they put in. Rather than purchase land for the storage and dig it out, the City agreed to provide the storage as part of the adjacent WWTP project and in turn, the County agreed to haul out the mountain of dirt from the site of which they can use. In the end, he said, this is a “win –win” solution in that both organizations are able to achieve their goals within the available resources and improve operational efficiencies. He said in looking at the big picture, the City and the County both serve the same residents, so the real winners are the residents. He said to consider what it would cost just for the compensatory storage side, to buy land, dig it up, haul it out, go out to bid, replicate buildings, and have remote sites, would mean the efficiencies aren’t there. He reiterated that this started with casual conversations and goes back to working relationships, and serving the same residents.

For the work on the IGA and the buildings transfer, he thanked County Administrator Gary Hanson, Director of Human and Administrative Resources Maggie Peck, and the City’s Consulting Engineer John Brady. For the Compensatory Storage side, he thanked County Engineer Nathan Schwartz and City Engineer Mark Bushnell. Next, he thanked Fred Busse, Jake Keck, Matt Anderson, and their team for working through the ideas and thanked them, in advance, for their patience during the transition.

Mayor Lang said there has been a tremendous amount of effort and time that all these folks have spent working together on this and said this is one time that government worked. He congratulated them all.

MOTION

Alderperson Huseman moved to waive First Reading of Ordinance 2019.19 and Alderperson Braser seconded the motion.

VOICE VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a voice vote to approve the motion. All Alderpersons voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

MOTION

Alderperson Stowe moved to approve Ordinance 2019.19 and Alderperson Paulsen seconded the motion.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Braser, Copple, Huseman, Paulsen, Sherrod, and Stowe voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

City Manager Brian Gregory said that the County Board will take this up formally on Wednesday, August 21st.

RESOLUTIONS - None

CONSIDERATIONS

A. Consideration of a Public Works Department Recommendation to Award the Bid for a Dump Truck Body and Equipment to Monroe Truck Equipment of Monroe, Wisconsin in the Amount of $61,319.00.

City Manager Brian Gregory said this is another good news piece as the FY20 budget allocated $180,000 for a chassis, dump body, and plow. The chassis was awarded back in July. Monroe Truck was the low bidder at $61,319 which is below the estimate anticipated when combined for the entire package. The total cost of the outfitted truck will be $159,787.05.

Director of Public Works Fred Busse said he is glad that bids came in the way they did and that by taking the plow out of the package, they picked up a new bidder.

MOTION

Alderperson Huseman moved to award the bid to Monroe Truck Equipment for $61,319.00 and Alderperson Sherrod seconded the motion.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Braser, Copple, Huseman, Paulsen, Sherrod, and Stowe voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

B. Consideration of a Recommendation from the Liquor Commissioner to Refund a Portion of a Liquor License Application Fee to Lucy A. Akkathara.

City Manager Brian Gregory explained that the purchase venture did not materialize after Lucy A. Akkathara applied for a liquor license. Mayor Lang, who serves as Liquor Commissioner, is recommending that the fees paid for the application and license be refunded, less any costs incurred by the City. The total fees paid were $2,500 with approximately $200 in fees incurred making the suggested refund $2,300. He added that the City Code does allow the Liquor Commissioner to make that refund provided that it is done in concurrence with the City Council.

Mayor Lang said it is the right thing to do in giving back the portion of the fee paid that the City did not use.

MOTION

Alderperson Paulsen moved to approve the Consideration to refund $2,300 and Alderperson Huseman seconded the motion.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Braser, Copple, Huseman, Paulsen, Sherrod, and Stowe voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.

OTHER NEW BUSINESS

ADJOURNMENT

MOTION

Alderperson Stowe moved to adjourn the meeting at 7:45 p.m. and Alderperson Paulsen seconded the motion. VOICE VOTE

Mayor Lang called for a voice vote to approve the motion. All Alderpersons voted aye. Motion carried 6-0

https://cityofsycamore.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/cc20190819mins.pdf