DeKalb Times

City of Sycamore City Council met June 15.

Here is the agenda provided by the council:

1. CALL TO ORDER

2. INVOCATION

3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA

5. AUDIENCE TO VISITORS

6. CONSENT AGENDA

A. Approval of the Minutes for the Regular City Council Meeting of June 1, 2020.

B. Approval of the Minutes for the Special City Council Meeting of June 8, 2020.

C. Payment of the Bills for June 15, 2020.

7. PRESENTATION OF PETITIONS, COMMUNICATIONS, AND BILLS

8. REPORTS OF OFFICERS

9. REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES

10. PUBLIC HEARINGS—None

11. ORDINANCES

A. Ordinance 2020.04—An Ordinance Amending Title 1, “Administration,” Chapter 6, “City Council,” to Create a New Section 10 Entitled, “Electronic Attendance,” in the City Code of the City of Sycamore, Illinois. First and Second Reading.

During the COVID-19 crisis, the Illinois Open Meetings Act has temporarily allowed for electronic meetings to reduce gatherings and the potential spread of the virus. The City has taken steps to accommodate the use of technology for meetings utilizing “Zoom” a platform for the Council and visitors to participate in public meetings.

Illinois law allows for electronic attendance at Council meetings if certain criteria is met; most notably that a physical quorum is present at the normal meeting place. Having proven success with a reliable and cost-effective electronic platform over the past couple of months, staff recommends that an ordinance be passed to allow Council members to participate through electronic attendance under certain circumstances.

Highlights of this ordinance include:

• This ordinance applies to all committees, boards, and commissions established by authority of the City of Sycamore.

• Members can participate electronically if one of the following three reasons prevents him/her from being physically attend the meeting:

a. The member cannot attend because of personal illness or disability;

b. The member cannot attend because of employment purposes or the business of the City of Sycamore; or

c. The member cannot attend because of a family or other emergency.

• Following roll call to establish that a quorum is physically present at the meeting site, a motion shall be made and considered as to whether to allow the member to remotely attend the meeting via electronic means. The motion must be approved by a vote of a majority of the members of Council present.

• The member participating electronically, and other members of the City of Sycamore Council, must be able to communicate effectively, and members of the audience must be able to hear all communications at the meeting site. Before allowing electronic attendance at any meeting, the City of Sycamore shall provide equipment adequate to accomplish this objective at the meeting site.

• Any member attending electronically shall be considered an off-site attendee and counted as present electronically for that meeting. The meeting minutes shall also reflect and state specifically whether each member is physically present or present by electronic means.

• A member permitted to attend electronically will be able to express his or her comments during the meeting and participate in the same capacity as those members physically present, subject to all general meeting guidelines and procedures previously adopted and adhered to. The member attending electronically shall be heard, considered, and counted as to any vote taken. Accordingly, the name of any member attending electronically shall be called during any vote taken, and his/her vote counted and recorded by the City Clerk and placed in the minutes for the corresponding meeting.

• A quorum of the City Council must be physically present at any closed meeting. Members participating remotely shall otherwise be entitled to participate in closed meetings by video or audio conference, in the same manner as at an open meeting.

At this point, no decision has been made as to whether July meetings will be held via Zoom or will begin to be held in person with certain distancing and personal protection requirements.

This ordinance should provide options for elected and appointed Council and Board members to participate when circumstances do not allow for physical attendance.

City Council approval is recommended.

12. RESOLUTIONS

A. Resolution 836—A Resolution Approving and Accepting Certain Public Improvements in the Townsend Woods Development, Unit 1, Phase V.

Solid Construction and their subcontractors have completed the paving of public roads and the repair of existing concrete curb and sidewalk within the Townsend Woods Unit 1, Phase V. These obligations were outlined in the previously approved Old Mill Park Development Agreement. These improvements are identified on the attached page of the plat. According to section 4.7.11 of the City’s UDO, the City Engineer shall forward a recommendation to the City Council if the improvements are acceptable.

City Engineer Mark Bushnell and members of Public Works were present during the installation of these improvements. The City Engineer recommends the City Council accept the roadway improvements as shown in this resolution. Once the improvements are accepted, the City will reduce the letter of credit requirement, as appropriate, for this portion of the project.

As part of the development agreement, the developer is required to guarantee the improvements for two years. This resolution does not apply to any other public improvements or phases.

City Council approval is recommended.

13. CONSIDERATIONS

A. Consideration of the FY21 City of Sycamore Employee Handbook.

Periodically, the City’s Employee Handbook is revised to ensure compliance with state and federal laws and regulations and alignment with evolving operational requirements. The purpose of the Handbook is to give employees a general description and information regarding the City’s employment policies, procedures, and practices aimed at promoting organizational values including honesty, fairness and consistency. With input from Department Heads, Director of Human and Administrative Resources Maggie Peck has reviewed and modified the document and will present highlights.

City Council approval is recommended.

B. Consideration of an Administration Recommendation Regarding Change Order #2 for the Wastewater Treatment Facilities Improvements in the Net Amount of $883.92.

The City of Sycamore’s Wastewater Treatment Plant project was awarded to Leander Construction Inc. on January 7, 2019 in the amount of $19,908,967.00. A separate contract for equipment was awarded to Xylem Inc. Construction is ongoing and scheduled to be completed in late 2020. During construction, the City’s consulting engineer, McMahon Engineers, has received two change order requests from Leander Construction and one from the City of Sycamore.

These include the following.

1. Additional structural support for Rooftop Exhaust fans. This information was not included within the original design and therefore not included in the original bid. This results in an increase of $2,959.02.

2. Wood blocking on Sequencing Batch Reactor Building. The detail in the engineering plans did not include a layer of wood blocking required to secure the edge of the roof. This work was completed on a time and material basis to cut costs and resulted in a change of $42,924.90.

3. The City of Sycamore elected to pay the ComEd connection fee directly at a cost of $24,905.00. This change order removes the $45,000 allowance provided to the contractor for the same item in the original contract.

Tim Bronn of McMahon Engineers has reviewed and recommends approval of the Change Order Requests comprising Change Order #2 netting a total of $883.92. If approved, the City will submit Change Order #2 to the IEPA for Final Approval. To date the total change orders are $55,265.02. This represents 0.256% of the project cost and 8.52% of the allowable change orders anticipated in the budget estimates.

City Council approval is recommended.

C. Consideration of an Administration Recommendation to Approve a Change Order to Leander Construction for the Sycamore Wastewater Treatment Plant for Concrete Finishing on a Time and Material Price Not to Exceed $19,561.98.

During bid evaluation and award process, McMahon Engineers recommended and the City of Sycamore exercised a deductive alternate for concrete finishing of above grade concrete surfaces. This resulted in a savings of $296,000. It primarily included the exterior walls of the sequencing batch reactor tanks. The walls of this structure face outward and are only visible from a distance as they are bordered by agricultural land and the Kishwaukee River.

Also included in this scope of excluded work was the exterior of the grit removal building. After completion of the concrete work at the grit removal building, it became more evident that it is not consistent with other visible exposed concrete surfaces in the site. Since this is a highly visible and prominent building, staff was concerned about the appearance of the building in comparison to the savings of 0.094% of the construction contract. Completing this work will also eliminate or significantly reduce future patching of the concrete surface.

Therefore, staff recommends that concrete rubbing/finishing at the grit removal be included as part of Leander Construction’s scope of work. Work will be completed on an hourly rate not to exceed basis for a total of no more than $19,561.98.

City Council approval is recommended.

D. Consideration of a Community Development Department Recommendation to approve a Plat of Vacation and Dedication of Storm Water Easement for Ignatius Press.

Ignatius Press, located at 1915 Aster Road and situated within the Sycamore Prairie Business Park, is currently constructing a 56,000 square foot addition to their existing building. As part of the project, the storm water detention area is being increased to accommodate the additional building footprint. As part of the modification, a very small portion of the previously approved detention area must be vacated to create a symmetrical building site for the new addition and detention is being added at the south end of the property to accommodate the new construction.

In order to memorialize the vacation, dedications and associated easements to allow for emergency maintenance by City personnel, a Plat of Vacation and dedication of storm water easement was created and, as part of the recording process, the Mayor is required to sign the proposed plat. The proposed plat has been reviewed and is recommended by City staff.

City Council approval is recommended.

E. Consideration of a Request by the Police Department to Discuss a Local Massage Therapy License.

Over the past seven years, the Police Department has received numerous complaints and opened six cases related to suspected criminal activity at a local massage business. Several arrests have been made and building codes violations have led to temporary business closures. While the State requires massage therapists to be licensed through the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), regulatory enforcement at the state level is rare and pursuing criminal charges is limited in efficiency and effectiveness.

Staff has researched potential ordinances that require local businesses engaged in massages to have a city license, in addition to being licensed through the IDFPR. Critical to proposed action is that any local ordinance not be unduly burdensome on legitimate businesses that offer massage therapy to enhance the medical health of their clients or those engaged in physical therapy and therapeutic measures.

The Police Department is proposing that a City License be established for any business performing massage therapy in Sycamore. Businesses that perform massage therapy for the sole purpose of bona fide medical care would be exempted.

City Council direction is requested.

F. Consideration of an Extension to the Contract Between the City of Sycamore and the Sycamore Chamber of Commerce for Visitor Attraction and Economic Development.

The three-year contract between the City of Sycamore and the Sycamore Chamber of Commerce for tourism and community development services expired at the end of fiscal year 2020. Given the COIVD-19 crisis and the financial uncertainty associated with it, the City and Chamber decided to wait to better assess the impact before negotiating an extension.

Typically, the partnership agreements have been for three years and are funded from hotel and motel tax receipts. At the end of the most recent agreement, the City provided $55,000 in support to the Chamber, which amounted to roughly 25% of the receipts for the three previously audited years (FY17-19).

With economic uncertainty and the impacts of COVID-19 to be continue for many months and possibly years the City and Chamber have come together on a one-year partnership agreement as follows:

The Chamber has been committed to the following services:

1) Maintaining a professional staff including a full-time Executive Director and Discover Sycamore/Tourism Director to maintain a visitor attraction program and to assist the City in its business attraction efforts.

2) Providing periodic oral presentations to the City Council regarding ongoing tourism and community development activities of the Chamber.

3) Providing periodic reports to the City Manager identifying (a) efforts to market Sycamore to visitors; (b) the impact of sponsored events in drawing day trippers or overnight guests to Sycamore; and (c) the number and nature of inquiries concerning available Sycamore retail space.

4) Maintaining a current database concerning downtown Sycamore office and retail space including available space, rent per square foot, associated utility costs, and contact persons.

5) Providing advice and assistance to the City on business and industry retention matters. This means informing the City Manager of any confirmed intentions of local businesses to expand or relocate as soon as they are learned.

The City’s obligations have included the following:

1) Providing the Chamber a grant of Forty-Two Thousand Dollars ($42,000) to partially offset the cost of the Discover Sycamore/Tourism Director and to help finance a variety of marketing and advertising aimed at attracting visitors and supporting local businesses. This amount represents approximately 25% of the most recent unaudited hotel and motel tax receipts. The City will share 25% in any hotel and motel tax receipts for FY21 that exceed $168,000 with the Chamber of Commerce.

2) The referral of retail prospects to the Chamber for further information about vacant downtown storefronts and other retail locations.

3) Informing the Chamber as soon as practicable about any likely changes in the City’s tax policy, retention policy, incentive policy, and any other policies that may be critical to the Chamber’s business attraction and retention efforts. Toward this end, regular contact is maintained between the City Manager and the Chamber staff, and the City Manager sits as an ex- officio member of the Chamber Board of Directors (the School District and Park District also have ex-officio representatives on the Chamber board).

4) Work cooperatively with the Chamber to help expand its funding base through public grant sources. This assistance typically takes the form of information regarding the City’s demographics and its attractions.

The Chamber will continue to provide the same services as outlined above while recognizing the City as a sponsor. This valuable partnership has been beneficial for the City, the Chamber and our businesses. Both organizations will continue to work together to support our businesses as we move forward and navigate the impacts of COVID-19.

The City Manager recommends the Council’s support for continuing this partnership.

14. OTHER NEW BUSINESS

15. APPOINTMENTS

16. ADJOURNMENT

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