Village of Kirkland Board of Trustees met Dec. 29.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
I. Call to Order – Trustee Sarah Ziegler called the meeting to order with a roll call at 7:02 P.M.
II. Roll call – Members answering present as follows: Trustee Michener, Trustee Benes, Trustee Ziegler, Trustee Marshall, and Trustee Fruit. Trust Chamber was absent. Also, in attendance were: Leslie Scidmore, Village Clerk, James Stark, Public Works Supervisor and Adam Davenport, Kirkland Chief of Police. Dan Chambers arrived at 7:04 P.M.
III. Pledge of Allegiance – Trustee Sarah Ziegler led the Board of Trustees in the Pledge of Allegiance.
IV. Comments from the Audience – None
V. New Business-
a. Discussion of Village of Kirkland Finances – Trustee Fruit began with an overview of a phone conversation on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, at 10:00 A.M. between herself, Village Clerk Leslie Scidmore, Village Accountant William Newkirk, and Village Attorney Matthew Walters.
• Discussed having Village Clerk Scidmore apply for a Line of Credit (LOC) with at least three banks and that she started with Resource Bank.
• Discussed paying current and future bills in partial payments.
• Discussed reducing legal fees by slowing down on some of the legal matters the Village is involved in, and that Village Attorney Walters will look further into the matter.
• Discussed the importance of making it a priority to pay salaries.
• Discussed that Water & Sewer fees are not covering operating cost and the need to increase fees as soon as possible. Trustee Fruit suggest staggering the increase going forward and not doing it all at once.
• Discussed increase the Gaming License fee, because the Gaming Companies pay half of the fee for the business.
• Discussed adding a Vehicle sticker fee, but this is not something that Trustee Fruit wants to pursue.
• Village Attorney, Walters asked if the Village was current receiving any Franchise fees. Village Clerk, Scidmore stated that we are receiving these fees from various vendors. Trustee Fruit will follow up with JULIE to see if what vendors are in the Village.
• Discussed a Sales Tax increase that would need to go to voters via a referendum.
• Discussed about Motor Fuel Tax (MFT) Increase that would need to go to the voters via a referendum.
• Discussed the Police Department full-time vs part-time officers. Trustee Fruit said she then spoke with Police Chief Adam Davenport about his team staffing priorities. Police Chief Davenport stated that he has reduced over-time for all employees and has made adjustments to his staff by eliminating the hours of the part-time CSO officer, while also training the part-time Judication officer to do duties done by other officers. She also requested that all overtime have an explanation for the overtime.
• Discussed about an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with the School for Audits performed by the Police Department. Trustee Fruit said Police Chief, Davenport indicated that these audits are not required by the school therefore the Village cannot charge them for this service. Fruit said we can slow down the process and not do it as frequently.
• Discussed about an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with the DeKalb County Police Department as a whole or a specific number of hours, or specific duties. Village Clerk Scidmore received information from the Malta Village Clerk about their IGA with the DeKalb County Police Department which they entered into when they disband their police department a few years ago. Trustee Fruit asked Police Chief Davenport for a list of specific duties that can be outsources by the next general board meeting.
• Discussed about an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) for Public Works with other local municipalities. This could encompass the Water & Sewer functions, whether as a whole or specific duties, eliminating Public Works water license issues. Also, for plowing and road maintenance, enter into an IGA with a Township to do this work and pay them a flat fee. Trustee Fruit asked Public Works Supervisor Stark for a list of specific duties that can be outsources and a list of all incoming calls sorted in categories by urgency for the next general board meeting. Discussed about Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) contacting Village Clerk Scidmore stressing to her the need for the Village of Kirkland to follow through with the necessary steps to be in compliance with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) by the beginning of January 2026. Village Attorney Walters was going to investigate the matter further and the deadline. Discussed that Legal and Engineering fees are excessive.
• Discussed what steps can be taken to receive a higher percentage of Property Taxes. There are no independent steps the Village can take, except at the polls where voters decide.
• Discussed about Public Works staffing and employees interested in retiring or resigning with a severance and what that may encompass. Trustee Fruit stressed to Public Works Supervisor Stark that other employees need to be cross-trained to do the duties of the retiree. The trustees asked Stark to provide the board a list of the duties done by the potential retiree, a list done by other employees and a list of tasks only performed by Joe Caveny at the next board meeting. Trustee Fruit asked that the Public Works schedule employee’s hours to eliminate overtime, as much as possible.
• Discussed about applying for Grants and the cost entailed to apply. Trustee Ziegler offered to reach out to Northern Illinois University (NIU) to utilize students and offer them an internship writing grants on behalf of the Village.
b. Police Chief Davenport, suggested increasing the current towing fee of $500 to $750 for the first offence. $1,000 for a 2nd offence by a Kirkland police officer. The trustees agreed to add this to the next Board Meeting agenda.
c. Village Clerk Scidmore explained to the Board in detail how the current water and sewer billing structure is not covering the operating expenses for that department. There was open discussion about the need to make changes to the billing structure, the Capital fees and what expenses those fees are allocated to pay. Trustee Fruit stressed the need to educate the residents on reason for any changes to the utility billing structure.
d. All the Trustees discussed the loss of Sales Tax over the years.
e. Trustee Fruit asked to add to agenda at the next board meeting that the board pre- approve all expenditures over an agreed upon amount before purchased.
f. Trustee Ziegler stated that she reached out to Village Attorney Walters regarding Municipal Bonds to inquire how they work and if the Village would qualify. She will provide the Board feedback when she has more to share.
g. Trustee Benes suggested implementing a Vacancy Tax to all owners with a commercial building that is vacant and not doing business, and to residents with a home that is vacant. Trustee Benes stated that he would look further into this option and present his findings at the next board meeting.
h. Trustees discussed the pro and cons of the current Water Leak Adjustment program.
Trustee Ziegler suggested moving from a bi-monthly billing cycle to monthly in an effort to catch high water usage in homes early.
i. Chief Police Davenport suggested a Village consignment shop and shared details on how to open and operate a shop of this kind, and the benefits to the Village and residents.
Adjournment – At 8:08 P.M., Trustee Ziegler as for a Motion to Adjourn. Trustee Benes made a Motion to adjourn with a 2nd by Trustee Fruit. All in favor. Meeting Adjourned.
2025 Minutes
