City of Sycamore City Council met July 19.
Here are the minutes provided by the council:
ROLL CALL
Mayor Braser called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and City Clerk Mary Kalk called the roll. Those Alderpersons present were: Josh Huseman, Virginia Sherrod, Chuck Stowe, Alan Bauer, Nancy Copple, and Jeff Fischer. Pete Paulsen and David Stouffer were absent. City Attorney Keith Foster was also present.
INVOCATION Led by Alderman Josh Huseman
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
MOTION
Alderperson Copple motioned to approve the agenda and Alderperson Fischer seconded the motion.
VOICE VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a voice vote to approve the motion. All Alderpersons voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
AUDIENCE TO VISITORS
CONSENT AGENDA
A. Approval of the Minutes for the Regular City Council Meeting of July 6, 2021.
B. Payment of the Bills for July 19, 2021 in the amount of $815,531.47.
C. Approval of the Minutes for the Regular Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting of June 14, 2021.
MOTION
Alderperson Bauer motioned to approve the Consent Agenda and Alderperson Stowe seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, and Fischer voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
APPOINTMENTS
A. Re-appointment of Peter Polarek and Eric Walker to the Fire Pension Board.
B. Re-appointment of Justin Kness and Andrew Mankivsky to the Police Pension Board.
C. Re-appointment of Scott Carlson and Rod Schairer to the Economic Development Commission.
D. Re-appointment of Jan Benson to the Library Board.
E. Re-appointment of Alan Zantout, Dave Finney, Stephen Nelson and Ted Strack to the Planning and Zoning Commission.
F. Re-appointment of Ray Dembinski to the Board of Fire and Police Commission.
MOTION
Alderperson Stowe motioned to approve the appointments and Alderperson Fischer seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, and Fischer voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
PRESENTATION OF PETITIONS, COMMUNICATIONS, AND BILLS
A. A Proclamation Declaring July 30th through August 1, 2021 as Veterans Weekend in the City of Sycamore, Illinois.
REPORT OF OFFICERS
Acting City Manager – Maggie Peck said that the auditors were here last week and that there will be some additional follow up in the coming weeks but are well on the way at this point. She reported that they had a Fire & Police Commission meeting last week where they approved two new entry-level officers who will be leaving for the academy in August.
Police Chief – Jim Winters said that they did see 12 car burglaries last week with a majority of those cars reported as being unlocked. Generally speaking, over 90% of cars burglarized, are left unlocked. He reminded residents to remember the simple cliché of “Lock It or Lose It”, which will significantly reduce their chance of being a victim of this type of crime. A review of their crime reports and calls for service for the first six months of 2021 indicate that they appear to be returning to pre COVID levels for calls for service. Their biggest jump in crime reports in the first half of the year were classified as Fraud and this was due to the rash of identity thefts that were reported through attempted scams involving unemployment benefits.
Fire Chief – Pete Polarek reserved his time for agenda items.
Director of Public Works Matt Anderson said in regards to the Wisconsin Surplus Auction, they actually exceeded the values that were initially estimated as the two dump trucks brought in considerably more. He reserved the rest of his time for agenda items.
Director of Community Development John Sauter said that they issued a full building permit for the new shell building in front of Meijer. Site work began last week and foundation excavation is expected to begin later this week. This week they received submittals for the new World Famous Pizza who will be renovating the former Stomp location located at 307 West
State Street. Work should begin in the next 4-6 weeks. They also received a permit submittal for a new duplex behind Meijer on Anjali Court. Residents should see quite a bit of activity in that area as Youssi Development recently purchased the remaining lots and plans to develop them in the coming months.
Mayor Braser added that he has been talking to the people involved and they have been very complimentary of Director John Sauter.
John Sauter said thank you and that that is good feedback.
City Engineer Mark Bushnell said in regards to the calls that Public Works has been getting about brush pick-up, he reminded residents that brush has to be less than four feet long, two feet in diameter, and bound together by rope or string.
REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES
Finance – Alan Bauer said no report.
Public Safety – Pete Paulsen absent.
Public Works – Chuck Stowe said no report.
PUBLIC HEARINGS
ORDINANCES
A. Ordinance No. 2021.10—An Ordinance Approving the City of Sycamore 2021 Comprehensive Plan Update. First Reading.
Acting City Manager Maggie Peck gave a brief background as outlined in the agenda and said that this plan represents the community’s vision and will be a basis for our future planning and community decisions. Workshops were held at the May 10th Planning & Zoning Commission (PZC) meeting and at the June 8th Economic Development Committee meeting. Revision suggestions were taken to the July 12th PZC meeting where this comes with a favorable recommendation by a vote of 8-0. She covered the following highlights:
Pg. 2: Historical Timeline
Pg. 5: Inventory & Analysis - Steady growth
Pg. 8: Industry and Commercial Trend – Steady growth
Pg. 16: Existing Land Use – Grew with expanded areas
Pg. 26: Transportation Map – includes more bike paths and proposed changes, some city and some county.
Pg. 28: Community Appearance - Buffer zones, signage, and landscaping
Pg. 29: Residential Development – Diverse housing stock
Pg. 32: Downtown Enhancement
Pg. 36: Transportation – Goals
Pg. 45: Downtown
Pg. 51: Urban Design – signage, branding
Pg. 54: Multiple Family Uses
Alderperson Copple asked to have page 14 updated with the available land.
Maggie Peck said that they are actually meeting with Mim Evans, NIU Center for Governmental Studies and staff this Thursday to go over those numbers.
Alderman Huseman said in terms of prioritizing these projects, asked who takes it from here, staff or PZC breaking it out in long and short term.
Maggie Peck said it would be her and the staff. They will look at priorities and the budget but said that a lot of this is continuation from 2014. She added that Director John Sauter and City Engineer Mark Bushnell have been actively participating in the meetings.
RESOLUTIONS
A. Resolution No. 880—A Resolution Authorizing the Acting City Manager to Sign an Agreement for Certain Improvements Related to St. Alban’s PUD Redevelopment in the City of Sycamore, Illinois.
Acting City Manager Maggie Peck said in reference to the 2019 fire at St. Albans Greens Apartment complex, Jim Mason, who is present, has received approval for a Special Use permit. There are certain improvements that are attached in the agreement including the installation of 320 linear feet of water main to be dedicated to the City for public use and repair work on the roadway disturbed by the installation, including the repaving of south Main Street from the north property line to the Lincoln Street right of-way. Following the completion of the work outlined in the agreement, dedication and acceptance by the City, and delivery of lien waivers in compliance with the City of Sycamore’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO), the City will reimburse Mr. Mason for an amount not to exceed the City’s estimate of cost for the public-dedicated portion of the project. The water main must be completed prior to the issuance of any Certificates of Occupancy for any unit to be constructed in the redevelopment of St. Alban’s. The road repairs are scheduled to be completed before November 1, 2021, unless a different date is agreed to by both parties. Mr. Mason will dedicate the water main that is installed pursuant to this agreement to be municipally-owned, but will not include any services that may be attached. The City shall not be obligated to accept the water main improvements until all material improvements are completed to the satisfaction of the City Engineer.
MOTION
Alderperson Fischer motioned to approve Resolution 880 and Alderperson Huseman seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, and Fischer voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
B. Resolution No. 881—A Resolution Authorizing Disposal of Certain City Property.
Acting City Manager Maggie Peck said that this resolution authorizes them to dispose of self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). The highest formal bid was from Dalmatian Fire Equipment, Inc. of Colorado ($9,197.50). The final price paid will be determined by the condition of the items after careful evaluation by Dalmatian. Dalmatian will also coordinate and cover the cost of shipping, which will be substantial based on the size (4 pallets) and weight of the used equipment. The equipment for disposal includes:
• (30) – Scott 4.5 AP75 SCBA harnesses
• (68) – 30- and 60-minute air cylinders
• (30) – AV3000 SCBA masks
• (12) – Scott SCBA voice amplifiers
Alderman Bauer said what happens if they inspect them and the bid comes back at $2,100 and asked if we are locked in.
Chief Polarek said that is probably not the reality but said that if it is much different, they would say no thank you and rebid it or renegotiate the price. He guesses that the adjustment would be hundreds of dollars or $1,000.
MOTION
Alderperson Copple motioned to approve Resolution 881 and Alderperson Stowe seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, and Fischer voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
CONSIDERATIONS
A. Consideration to Enter into Agreement to Sell the Property located at 258 Lucas Street, Sycamore, Illinois to the Highest Bidder.
Acting City Manager Maggie Peck said we will be opening this bid at this meeting and reminded council that this is the property that the city did all the work on and put up for sale for $18,500 to recoup their funds. Council does not have to accept any bids tonight. Bids were due by 10:00 am today and one bid was received.
Mayor Braser said the bid comes from Troy and Elizabeth Peacock, who are present, in the amount of $20,663.00 and there is an earnest check for $1,000.
MOTION
Alderperson Bauer motioned to approve the consideration for $20,663 to Troy and Elizabeth Peacock and Alderperson Copple seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, Fischer, and Mayor Braser voted aye. Motion carried 7-0.
B. Consideration of an Administration Recommendation Regarding a Change Order to Leander Construction for the Wastewater Treatment Facilities Improvements Resulting in a Reduction of $9,489.42.
Acting City Manager Maggie Peck said this is always good news when a change order is received resulting in a reduction of funds. The original construction contract provided Leander Construction with a total of $11,000 in allowances for temporary electrical service to the sequencing batch reactor and microscreen building. Actual costs for temporary electrical services were $1,510.58, resulting in a savings of $9,489.42.
MOTION
Alderperson Stowe motioned to approve the consideration and Alderperson Huseman seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, and Fischer voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
C. Consideration of an Administration Recommendation Regarding a Change Order to Leander Construction for the Wastewater Treatment Facilities Improvements in the Net Amount of $37,796.08.
Acting City Manager Maggie Peck said that although these are within their realm to do these, they continue to bring them to council for transparency on the Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP). Leander Construction has submitted five Change Order Requests (#12, #18, #21, #22, and #25) for consideration as outlined in the agenda. She gave kudos to the staff who has worked diligently with Leander Construction and McMahon Associates, Inc. to make sure we are being the most cost-effective, looking for additional savings, and fact-checking. She said that she is bringing this change order to council, based on review that staff recommends this work is to be included as part of Leander’s scope in the amount of $37,796.08.
MOTION
Alderperson Stowe motioned to approve the consideration and Alderperson Huseman seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, and Fischer voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
D. Consideration of an Administration Recommendation Regarding a Change Order to Xylem Water Solutions USA Inc. for the Wastewater Treatment Facilities Improvements Contract Reduction in the Net Amount of $8,500.00.
Acting City Manager Maggie Peck said that this is linked back to the last change order they approved. Xylem is willing to have their contract reduced by $8,500 for the city to use the funds to compensate Leander. The city received a piece of equipment that did not fit in the space it should have fit and so the parties came up with this creative solution as noted in the agenda. She added that this will be the only change order for Xylem.
MOTION
Alderperson Huseman motioned to approve the consideration and Alderperson Fischer seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, and Fischer voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
E. Consideration of a Presentation of the 2019 Fire Department Annual Report.
Chief Polarek said that instead of going through the highlights, he is going to cover the COVID pandemic and its impact. When speaking about FY21, the COVID pandemic needs to be put into perspective. The pandemic elicited a lot of responses including fear, uncertainty, and isolation to a certain degree. He said that when you take those responses and overlay on a response organization like theirs, there are first responder issues as well as the ability of the organization to provide those services within a challenged environment. Conditions were changing rapidly so this report reflects much of the impact of the pandemic and in order to understand the numbers in the report, the council needs to know that this was a significant factor. Kids learning remotely, people working from home, and bars, restaurants, and stores having restrictions all impacted vehicle traffic. They saw fewer vehicle accidents, “thank goodness”, but it was a condition of the situation that affected the operation. The reporting period of May 1, 2020 to April 30, 2021 incorporated a big bulk of the pandemic. He reported they also had fewer requests for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) based on the fear factor. They ramped up on PPE and ramped up to decontaminating of the rigs after every call. They also adjusted operational procedures in how the three-person crew worked in having only one person spend most of the time with the patient and the other two stay back. He said that the bottom line is that the Fire Department continued to provide the services with all the added challenges. Overall, the request for EMS were just down slightly and there were more structure fires, all of which were significant. The last four months, they have outpaced last year and the previous year. He’s calling the year a COVID year skewing the regular data. He reported in the last eight months, that six of them were positive so they are ahead of where they were in the previous years. Additionally, he reported:
• Received $235,000 in grant awards last year and are happy and proud of that.
• Fire loss was up compared to the average year.
• Lift Assists were up 20% so the fire service has become the default agency for folks who don’t have a backup plan. Averaging one per day has an impact taking a vehicle out of service.
He said that they are working to provide a high quality service with all the challenges. Lastly, he thanked Fire Department Secretary Becky Hepker who compiles a big part of the statistics which is a monumental task. He thanked the Mayor and Council for their support over the years for providing the means and for supporting the staff. He said he felt it was valuable to frame the presentation this way and would take any questions.
Mayor Braser said that he liked the way this was presented as it was very thoughtful and insightful. Maggie Peck added that the annual report will be on the City’s website as well as the Fire Department’s page.
F. Consideration to Approve the 2021 Microsurface Bid for Microsurfacing and Pavement Patching within the Reston Ponds Subdivision and Johnson Avenue from Illinois Route 64 to the Sycamore High School to AC Pavement Striping of Elgin, Illinois in the Amount of $307,993.80.
Acting City Manager Maggie Peck said that staff opened bids for the 2021 Microsurfacing Project which will include microsurfacing and pavement along Reston Ponds subdivision and Johnson Avenue leading from IL Rt. 64 to the high school. Concrete replacements were completed earlier this year so microsurfacing could start as early as next week and end by the end of September. They budgeted $325,000 for this so with the savings they will be able to do some additional cracksealing.
Bid results are as follows:
| 1 | AC Pavement Striping | $307,993.80 |
| 2 | Microsurfacing Contractors | $346,736.75 |
City Engineer Mark Bushnell said yes, that the city did microsurfacing in 2019 and 2020 and AC Pavement Striping did both of those.
MOTION
Alderperson Fischer motioned to approve the consideration for $307,993.80 to AC Pavement Striping and Alderperson Huseman seconded the motion.
ROLL CALL VOTE
Mayor Braser called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Huseman, Sherrod, Stowe, Bauer, Copple, and Fischer voted aye. Motion carried 6-0.
OTHER NEW BUSINESS
ADJOURNMENT
MOTION
Alderperson Stowe motioned to adjourn the meeting at 7:54 p.m. and Alderperson Bauer seconded the motion.
VOICE VOTE
https://cityofsycamore.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/cc20210719.pdf
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