DeKalb Times

City of Sycamore City Council met Aug. 2.

Here is the agenda provided by the council:

1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL

2. INVOCATION

3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA

5. AUDIENCE TO VISITORS

In accordance with previously adopted Rules, Public Comments shall be limited to a maximum of thirty minutes per meeting and the public may participate only during the “Public Comment” portion of the meeting. Comments shall not exceed three minutes per speaker unless limited to a shorter duration if numerous people wish to speak. All participants will be required to provide their name and address for the record. No speaker may speak more than once during any meeting unless specifically permitted to do so by the presiding officer. The City encourages that a spokesperson be chosen for individuals wishing to speak about the same subject matter to avoid repetitive presentations. All remarks should be addressed to the City Council as a whole and not to any individual member or employee. In the event speakers pose questions the Council or City staff, they should be aware that those individuals may decline to answer. Each speaker shall maintain civility and decorum. The Presiding Officer retains the right to stop or remove any speaker who becomes disruptive to the meeting.

6. CONSENT AGENDA

A. Approval of the Minutes for the Regular City Council Meeting of July 19, 2021.

B. Payment of the Bills for August 2, 2021.

7. PRESENTATION OF PETITIONS, COMMUNICATIONS, AND BILLS

8. REPORTS OF OFFICERS

9. REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES

10. PUBLIC HEARINGS—None

11. ORDINANCES

A. Ordinance No. 2021.10—An Ordinance Approving the City of Sycamore 2021 Comprehensive Plan Update. Second Reading.

Acting City Manager Maggie Peck will present the City of Sycamore’s 2021 Comprehensive Plan. The Comprehensive Plan will be available on the City’s website at www.cityofsycamore.com.

The City of Sycamore, in cooperation with NIU, coordinated several surveys designed to gather input of local residents and city stakeholders as part of the City’s comprehensive planning process. These surveys from residents and business owners marked the first step in gathering input used in the process of updating the City’s Comprehensive Plan and Land Use Map from 2014. Participants were asked to complete an analysis outlining specific strengths, weaknesses, issues, and opportunities currently facing the City and downtown.

NIU compiled the information from these various groups into four specific categories: patterns for the City of Sycamore’s Real Estate Market and Economic Development strategies; Land Use and Zoning; Access and Circulation; and Signage and Way Finding. The overarching theme that came from the sessions was to preserve the established identity of the City of Sycamore.

A general synopsis of the more common themes related to land use is as follows:

· No significant changes were noted on the land use maps.

· Ensure housing stock appeals to multiple segments; focus on home-ownership as opposed to rental housing.

· Identify specific redevelopment areas.

· Attract new stores, activities, and forms of recreation.

· Establish an interconnected network of walks and trails.

· Emphasize traffic management.

· Ensure an established identity via the use of buffer zones, signage and gateway features.

· Targeted landscape improvements at gateways and downtown.

General comments regarding the downtown included:

· Work closely with DeKalb County to ensure active communication of future plans.

· Preserve home-grown businesses.

· Attract more unique independent small businesses and restaurants; consider incentive programs.

· Add more residential components downtown, notably the upper floors of buildings.

· Look to expand footprint after all downtown spaces are occupied.

· Add more landscaping, green space, and park land.

· Preserve the diagonal parking and penny parking meters.

· Look for ways to expand parking.

· Make downtown more bicycle-friendly.

· Expand elements of streetscapes and signage to define the downtown area.

A public workshop was held in May to discuss where emphasis should be placed on the Future Land Use Map and downtown. Residents were encouraged to identify specific changes to the document that they would like to see implemented in the updated version. In addition to land use adjustments and redevelopment opportunities, participants were specifically asked to note potential infrastructure improvements, possible preservation areas, streetscape enhancements, community gateways, and any other thoughts regarding land use in the City of Sycamore.

Workshops were held on May 10, 2021 at the Planning and Zoning Commission and on June 8, 2021 at the City’s Economic Development Committee meeting.

The comments provided in the survey and public workshops were used to help guide staff in identifying revisions and objectives for the 2021 Comprehensive Plan update. These revisions along with minor revisions to the City’s Land Use maps were presented to the Planning and Zoning Commission on July 12th. A public hearing was held for this item at the meeting. The Planning and Zoning Commission forwarded a favorable recommendation of a vote of 8 to 0.

City Council approval is recommended.

B. Ordinance 2021.11—An Ordinance Amending Title 1, “Administration,” Chapter 10, “Personnel Rules,” of the City Code of the City of Sycamore to Authorize Non-Elective Positions for the City of Sycamore, Illinois. First and Second Reading.

In April, the City Council approved an Ordinance for FY2022 that outlined the positions included in the budget that was prepared in early 2021. Since that time, the City has experienced personnel changes in a number of key positions. This ordinance will update the authorized positions to provide flexibility within the organizational structure to include the positions of Asst. City Manager, Finance Director and Human Resources Generalist.

City Council approval is recommended.

C. Ordinance 2021.12—An Ordinance Establishing Offices and Fixing the Compensation of Certain Appointed Officers of the City of Sycamore, Illinois, County of DeKalb, State of Illinois for the Fiscal Year Commencing on the First Day of May 2021 and Ending on the Thirtieth Day of April, 2022. First and Second Reading.

This ordinance defines the salary range for positions outlined in Ordinance 2021.11 and moves the range for Staff Engineer to offer a more competitive salary.

City Council approval is recommended.

12. RESOLUTIONS-None

13. CONSIDERATIONS

A. Consideration of an Administration Recommendation Regarding Health Insurance Coverage for Active and Retired City Employees.

The City’s new plan year for group insurance policies begins on September 1, 2021. By category, the renewal rates and recommendations are as follows:

Basic Health Insurance:

The City’s insurance broker solicited health insurance quotes from our current provider, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and Humana. Humana’s quote does not align with plan provisions outlined in collective bargaining agreements, so they have been ruled out. Typically, the City reviews the Grandfathered Plan, with other options from Blue Cross/Blue Shield and other carriers. After reviewing and negotiating grandfathered rates, Blue Cross/Blue Shield was willing to provide a renewal of approximately 9.25% with an additional credit that would make the effective rate 4.83%.

The City offers three medical plan types: HSA, HMO and PPO:

HSA, or Health Savings Account, is an account that reimburses employees for specific health care expenses. HSAs can be funded by the employee, an employer, or anyone else. The money contributed to an HSA belongs to the account owner and can be used to cover eligible current or future medical expenses. The HSA currently has 50 participants.

HMO, or Health Maintenance Organization, is a type of health benefits plan in which members are required to receive health care only from providers that are part of the HMO network. A primary care physician coordinates each member’s health care. Services (except emergency care) performed by out-of-network providers are not covered except under specific circumstances. Currently, there are four participants in the HMO plan.

PPO, or Preferred Provider Organization, is a plan that allows members to choose any provider but offers higher levels of coverage if members receive services from health care providers in the plan’s PPO network. This year there are 51 employees plus their dependents who have elected to participate in the PPO.

The effective monthly renewal rate is calculated based on the number of participants in each plan.

In terms of actual cost, the HSA plan continues to be more economical than the traditional PPO plan. For this reason, staff proposes that the City continue to fund 100% of the deductible for HSA participants, which is $1,500 for a single participant and $3,000 for a family. Of the 50 employees participating in the HSA, 35 have family coverage, 6 single coverage, 4 employee and spouse, and 5 employee and children. Even with 100% funding, savings of approximately $48,770 will be achieved with the HSA vs. PPO option based on the current census.

The most economical of all of the plans for both the City and the employee is the HMO plan. In recent years, the City provided the same incentive as the HSA plan to encourage employees to utilize this plan. The City intends to provide that incentive once again, given that we realize a savings of nearly $10,000 with just four employees on this plan alone.

The renewals were based upon the following:

ü The City had eleven large claims over $50,000.

ü Generic prescription utilization is steady at 79%.

ü Mail order prescriptions have increased in utilization to 92.6%.

ü Health care reform continues to bring about changes that may affect our future insurance coverage and premium rates. The City’s Human and Administrative Resources Director will continue to monitor this and keep the City informed.

The proposed premiums include an administrative fee dictated by the federal government as a result of the Affordable Care Act. The City’s Health Insurance Committee was provided updates by the Acting City Manager and met via on July 26, 2021 to review proposals and recommended continuing the same coverage with the Blue Cross/Blue Shield plan for health coverage.

Retirees 65 and over:

Coverage is provided through Hartford Insurance, and does not renew until January 1, 2022. The current monthly rate is $545.48 per person per month. The retiree group is a combination of employees hired prior to 1982 and 1986 who have varying benefit levels based on the terms of employment when they were hired. Per state law, employees may elect continued coverage after retirement, however the retiree must pay the full cost of the coverage.

Dental, Vision, Life, AD&D (Accident, Dismemberment & Disability):

Currently Blue Cross/Blue Shield is our current dental coverage carrier. After negotiating, we received a rate increase of 7%. This rate is a direct result of increased utilization for major dental services the past several years.

Dearborn National, a subsidiary of Blue Cross/Blue Shield, is the City’s visions carrier. We are in our fourth year of a four-year flat rate guarantee.

With respect to Life, Dismemberment and Disability, coverage is with Dearborn National as well, and we have received a flat rate renewal for this coming year.

IRS Section 125/Flexible Spending:

The City utilizes Diversified Benefit Services to administer the flexible spending account. They have offered a flat rate renewal of $95 a month to administer the plan. The Insurance Committee has made a recommendation to continue with Diversified Benefit Services at this time.

Short Term Disability:

Short Term Disability will continue to be administered in-house. By not outsourcing this benefit over the past several years, the City has seen a significant savings on administrative fees.

The Acting City Manager concurs with the Insurance Committee and recommends the proposals submitted by Blue Cross Blue Shield and Dearborn Life. It is also recommended that the Council continue to fund 100% of the deductible amount as an incentive for employees to continue to choose the HSA plan and the same incentive for the HMO plan, as it will result in a savings for both the City and employee.

City Council approval is recommended.

B. Consideration for Approval and Adoption of the City of Sycamore Stormwater Management Program Plan.

The City of Sycamore receives a permit from the Illinois Environmental Agency for the discharge of stormwater from our City-owned stormwater and storm sewer systems. This Permit is commonly referred to as a MS4 Permit (Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System). In order to receive and maintain this permit, the City is required to take proactive steps to reduce pollutants, set targets for monitoring, and establish protocols in the event of an illicit discharge.

To reduce pollutants, Public Works staff completes field work including street sweeping and catch basin cleaning. The Community Development department performs soil and erosion control inspections on all new construction sites. Inspectors provide the necessary documentation, and the Director heads enforcement as outlined in the City’s municipal code. Public Works staff regularly inspects stormwater outfalls, detention basins, and adjacent waterways. This information is then compiled for all activities into a report furnished to the IEPA every June. Copies of these reports are posted on the City’s website.

Another part of this process to maintain IEPA compliance is City Council approval and adoption of a Stormwater Management Program Plan (SMMP). This plan sets standards and future goals for each of the required activities using a template provided by the IEPA and the Lake County Stormwater Management Commission. Staff tailored the plan to the City of Sycamore’s current storm sewer system, staffing levels, and activities. In the interim, a draft version of this report has been posted to the website to maintain IEPA compliance.

City Council approval is recommended.

C. Consideration of an Administration Request for a Closed Session to Discuss the Appointment, Employment, Compensation, Discipline, Performance, or Dismissal of a Specific Employee or Legal Counsel for the Public Body.

14. OTHER NEW BUSINESS

15. APPOINTMENTS

16. ADJOURNMENT

https://cityofsycamore.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/20210802CC-Final.pdf