DeKalb Times

City of Genoa City Council met Oct. 15.

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, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta and Lang were present. Alderman Brust was absent.

Mayor Vicary led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Guest Speaker: None

Motion made by Alderman Carroll to approve the minutes of the October 1, 2019 City Council meeting, seconded by Alderman Cravatta. Voice vote was taken. All voted yes, except Alderman Wesner, who abstained. Motion carried.

Motion made by Alderman Wesner to approve payment of the accounts payables for the first half of October 2019 in the amount of $68,882.02, seconded by Alderman Winter. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Wesner, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta and Lang voted yes. Motion carried.

ITEMS FROM INDIVIDUALS IN ATTENDANCE – Resident Gordon Jones stated that tonight there will be a vote to approve another Façade Grant. He indicated that although he personally isn’t opposed to it, some tax payers may have an issue with using tax dollars for improvements for personal projects.

NEW BUSINESS

CONSIDER HEALTH INSURANCE RENEWAL EFFECTIVE 12/1/19: Motion made by Alderman Di Guido to approve health insurance renewal effective 12/1/2019 through 11/30/2020, seconded by Alderman Lang. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta, Lang, Wesner and Carroll voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER A DOWNTOWN FAÇADE IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM APPLICATION FROM LYNN TUCKER FOR THE BUILDING LOCATED AT 113 WEST MAIN STREET FOR $13,750: Motion made by Alderman Cravatta to approve a downtown façade improvement program grant and authorize the execution of a downtown façade improvement grant agreement for the building located at 113 West Main Street for $13,750, seconded by Alderman Carroll. Randy Jennings, representative for property owner Lynn Tucker, indicated that he has some concern regarding B&F Construction Code Services. He indicated that when they come for an inspection, they find additional things that need to be brought up to code. Randy stated that the building is old and he is making every effort to update it as much as possible, but if the inspectors continue to find additional issues, it will create too much of a financial hardship. Mayor Vicary responded that we are aware of some of the issues and are working diligently to rectify them. He stated that we are trying to assist the businesses with beautifying Genoa, not hinder them. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Cravatta, Lang, Wesner, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson and Winter voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER RENEWING AN INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT WITH THE NORTHERN ILLINOIS PURCHASING COOPERATIVE: Motion made by Alderman Wesner to approve an Ordinance authorizing execution of the Northern Illinois Purchasing Cooperative (NIPC) 2020 Intergovernmental Agreement for the purchase of power supplies and other goods and services; waiving

local bidding requirements for purchases made through NIPC; and authorizing purchase agreements made through NIPC, seconded by Alderman Lang. City Administrator, Art Osten explained that some municipalities band together in order to receive lower electricity rates. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Wesner, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta and Lang voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER AN AMENDMENT TO THE DEKALB COUNTY ENTERPRISE ZONE: Motion made by Alderman Stevenson to approve an Ordinance amending the property tax abatement qualifying criteria and definitions in the DeKalb County Enterprise Zone, seconded by Alderman Winter. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta, Lang, Wesner, Carroll and Di Guido voted yes. Motion carried.

OTHER BUSINESS

DEPARTMENT REPORTS

Administrative Report – Assistant City Administrator, Alyssa Seguss reported that letters went out to the South Genoa Street residents regarding reconstruction of the street. We received an email from Ron Sheahan thanking the City for that communication. Also, a letter was sent to the downtown area businesses regarding the Revolving Loan Program, which has been readopted with new guidelines. Lastly, she reported that there is an app that allows the City to share its calendar with other community agencies.

Public Works – Public Works Director, Rich Gentile, reported that in the packet, there was information regarding street and alley repairs, which included a list of locations that will be focused on. He then indicated that there were a few issues with the water when refilling the water tower after it was repainted, but the issues have been resolved. He also stated that Public Works will be doing some hydrant flushing, which will stir up sediment in the water. Mr. Gentile then stated that we now have a large portable emergency generator. It will supply power to any facility we have in the City. He then reported that the bump outs that are being put in downtown are rated high for pedestrian safety. Lastly, Mr. Gentile stated that he is working with Randy Jennings to help rectify the water flow issue with Remax.

Police Department – Chief Smith reported that there will be extra patrol on duty on Halloween, due to recent events where Halloween decorations have been vandalized. The old golf course area received quite a bit of damage. He then reported that the new police truck was in the parking lot for everyone to take a look at. Lastly, he reported that the GK football team has a big game coming up against Byron and they look good to be in the playoffs.

Mayor’s Report – Mayor Vicary thanked Cortney Strohacker, Executive Director of the Genoa Area Chamber for her tremendous work in promoting Genoa over the last 6 years. He stated that she has raised the bar in every event that Genoa has had. Cortney thanked Mayor Vicary and stated that all of Genoa’s entities working together make Genoa unique and that is why she is so passionate about it. She stated that she will still be promoting Genoa, but from the County level. Lastly, she indicated that Genoa will still be in great hands with Krissy Johnson, the new Executive Director of the Chamber.

ANNOUNCEMENTS – None

Motion to adjourn the regular meeting of the City Council was made by Alderman Wesner, seconded by Alderman Winter. Voice vote was taken. All voted yes. Motion carried. Meeting was adjourned at 7:35 pm.

https://www.genoa-il.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/CCMinutes20191015.pdf