DeKalb Times

City of Genoa City Council met Oct. 6.

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, Brust and Lang were present. Quorum present.

Mayor Vicary led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Guest Speaker – Kyle Ziemba, new part time Police Officer was introduced by Chief Smith.

Motion made by Alderman Di Guido to approve the minutes of the September 15, 2020 City Council meeting, seconded by Alderman Winter. Voice vote was taken. All voted yes. Motion carried.

Motion made by Alderman Wesner to approve payment of the accounts payables for the second half of September 2020 in the amount of $257,721.18, seconded by Alderman Carroll. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Wesner, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta, Brust and Lang voted yes. Motion carried.

ITEMS FROM INDIVIDUALS IN ATTENDANCE - None OLD BUSINESS – None

NEW BUSINESS

PRESENTATION OF THE CITY OF GENOA FISCAL YEAR 2019-2020 AUDIT: Brian LeFevre from Sikich presented an overview of the 2019-2020 Fiscal Year Audit. He explained that there are phases of the audit throughout the year and over all, the audit confirms checks and balances. He stated that the City of Genoa has received the Excellence in Financial Reporting Reward for the 14th consecutive year from the GFOA. He stated that Treasurer Tures is very professional and organized and she and staff are great to work with.

Motion made by Alderman Wesner to accept the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the Fiscal Year ended April 30,2020, seconded by Alderman Lang. There was no discussion. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Wesner, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta, Brust and Lang voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER THE USE OF CITY STREETS FOR A CELEBRATE THE SEASON PARADE: Motion made by Alderman Cravatta to approve the use of City streets for the purpose of allowing the Genoa Area Chamber of Commerce to hold a Celebrate the Season parade on Friday, December 4, 2020, seconded by Alderman Di Guido. Krissy Johnson, the Executive Director of the Genoa Area Chamber addressed Council to explained how they would like to do the Celebrate the Season event this year due the mandated social distancing order. She indicated that the tree lighting will be virtual through Facebook Live and there will be an electric type parade that will encompass a 5-mile radius. She stated that after the parade, people will disburse, as there will not be any additional activities that evening. The Santa House will be in town and there will be scheduled times for kids to visit Santa, but not the evening of the parade and tree lighting. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Cravatta, Brust, Lang, Wesner, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson and Winter voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER A FAÇADE GRANT AGREEMENT WITH MARENGO PROPERTIES, LLC AT 313 WEST MAIN STREET: Motion made by Alderman Wesner to approve a Façade Grant Agreement with Marengo Properties, LLC for 313 West Main Street, not to exceed $15,000, seconded by Alderman Lang. Alderman Brust questioned the benches that will be in front of the business, as to whether or not they would meet the criteria for the Façade Grant. There was some discussion as to the benches being permanent or moveable fixtures. Another concern was if the depth of the benches would interfere with snow removal. Public Works Director, Rich Gentile indicated that there would need to be 3 feet of space for snow removal and if it becomes an issue, it will be addressed with the business owner. There was also a question raised about the roof being eligible for reimbursement, but it was determined that it is an overhang on the front of the building, not a roof. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Wesner, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson, Cravatta, Brust and Lang voted yes. Alderman Winter abstained. Motion carried.

CONSIDER THE DONATION OF CITY PROPERTY: Motion made by Alderman Lang to approve an Ordinance authorizing the donation of items of personal property owned by the City of Genoa, seconded by Alderman Di Guido. Chief Smith indicated that the bicycles will be donated to the high school cross country team. Roll call vote was taken. Alderman Lang, Wesner, Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta and Brust voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER SIDEWALK REPAIRS: Motion made by Alderman Stevenson to approve a proposal from Unitrim Cement & Landscaping for sidewalk repairs, not to exceed $19,351.71, seconded by Alderman Wesner. There was no discussion. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta, Brust, Lang, Wesner, Carroll and Di Guido voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER PAVING THE CANOE LAUNCH ACCESS ROAD: Motion made by Alderman Di Guido to approve a proposal from Meyer Paving Inc. for asphalt pavement of the City’s canoe launch access road, not to exceed $15,246.00, seconded by Alderman Brust. Public Works Director, Rich Gentile was asked about the longevity of the paving due to flooding issues. He responded that it should hold up fairly well, as it will be thicker and the water should drain off quicker than the current trail. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta, Brust, Lang, Wesner and Carroll voted yes. Motion carried.

CONSIDER THE PURCHASE OF WATER METERS: Motion made by Alderman Carroll to approve the purchase of 30 water meters from Mueller, not to exceed $6,650.00, seconded by Alderman Cravatta. There was no discussion. Roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Carroll, Di Guido, Stevenson, Winter, Cravatta, Brust, Lang and Wesner voted yes. Motion carried.

DEPARTMENT REPORTS

Administrative Report – Finance Office Manager & Treasurer, Jan Tures reported that Administrative Director, Alyssa Seguss will be returning from maternity leave on October 12th and City Attorney Slingerland is looking into the statutes for the election day closure for municipalities put into place by Governor Pritzker.

Finance Report – Finance Office Manager & Treasurer, Jan Tures reported that the City received its credit rating from S&P; AA-, which means the City will receive a better interest rate on the bond. She indicated that Wednesday, October 7th would be private placement bond day and there is already an offer that looks promising. She indicated that it could potentially be an approximate savings of $80,000 over 15 years. The money should be received by the end of October and will be invested until the City is ready to use it. Treasurer Tures was asked for a status update regarding the businesses that were in forbearance on their loan payments due to Covid19. She responded that the businesses are caught up and the City is in good shape financially.

Public Works – Director Gentile reported that the primary tank at the treatment plant is being worked on and the downtown area is looking good with the scarecrow contest going on. Lastly, he indicated that he will be assisting the Genoa Area Chamber by making a sleigh for Santa to ride in at the Celebrate the Season parade.

Police Department – Chief Smith reported that 9 Golf Carts/UTV’s permits have been issued and so far there hasn’t been any problems. There have been some disturbing Facebook posts that he intervened on to de-escalate the situations. There have been about 40 cars hit with eggs; 5 kids have been caught and will be issued tickets for damage. Lastly, the police were called to a disturbance on Second Street by Chamberlain Apartments; car was stolen, along with 2 firearms. One of the firearms was stolen and involved in a shooting in Rockford the night before.

Mayor’s Report – Mayor Vicary reported that he spoke at the Celebration of Life for Don Anderson and presented his wife with a proclamation and a flag box in appreciation of Don’s service to our Country, City and Community. He also requested that all flags in town be at half- staff for Mr. Anderson on Wednesday, October 7th. Mayor Vicary also reported that he attended a zoom meeting with other surrounding area Mayor’s, State Representative Kiecher and Senator Severson to discuss the recent mitigation guidelines that the County Health Department has set on behalf of Governor Pritzker. Consensus amongst them all was that small businesses are struggling and will possibly be forced out of business if they continue to be strapped by all the restrictions. Mayor Vicary explained in his zoom meeting that there is an electro-static sanitizing machine that can be sprayed and will dry within 5 minutes. He stated that a letter was drawn up and sent to Governor Pritzker’s Office regarding this sanitizing equipment & technique, and requested that funds be allocated to businesses for the purchase of them, instead of forcing the businesses to shut down due to the strict mitigations.

ANNOUNCEMENTS – None

Motion to adjourn the regular meeting of the City Council was made by Alderman Wesner, seconded by Alderman Carroll. Voice vote was taken. All voted yes. Motion carried. Meeting was adjourned at 8:05 p.m.

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