SYCAMORE CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING MINUTES OF January 2, 2018 ROLL CALL Mayor Curt Lang called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and City Clerk Mary Kalk called the roll. Those Alderpersons present were: Alan Bauer, Steve Braser, Nancy Copple, Rick Kramer, Pete Paulsen, Virginia Sherrod, David Stouffer, and Chuck Stowe. INVOCATION Pastor Steve Persson of First Baptist Church, gave the invocation. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Lead by West Elementary School Students Evan Davis, Spencer Malloy, and Laney Block. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Alderperson Braser moved to approve the agenda and Alderperson Kramer seconded the motion. APPOINTMENTS - None AUDIENCE TO VISITORS- None CONSENT AGENDA A. Approval of the Minutes for the Regular City Council Meeting of December 18, 2017. B. Payment of the Bills for January 2, 2018 in the amount of $500,640.71. Alderperson Bauer moved to approve the Consent Agenda and Alderperson Stowe seconded the motion. ROLL CALL VOTE Mayor Lang called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Bauer, Braser, Copple, Kramer, Paulsen, Sherrod, Stouffer and Stowe voted aye. Motion carried 8-0. PRESENTATION OF PETITIONS, COMMUNICATIONS, AND BILLS. A. A Proclamation Recognizing Kishwaukee College s 50 th Anniversary and Contributions to the Sycamore Community. Mayor Lang said the City is recognizing Kishwaukee College for celebrating 50 years of service to our community. They started in 1968 and they service 5,000 students annually. Kayte Hamel, Kishwaukee College Executive Director, Marketing and Public Relations thanked the City of Sycamore on behalf of President Borowicz, and the entire staff and faculty. She said that Sycamore has been a great partner with the college for the entire 50 years and they look forward to continuing it in the future. They will celebrate all year and officially kick off the celebration with the Official Opening Ceremony on Feb 20 th at 4 p.m. in the Student Center. They have several other activities planned throughout the year including Wine in the Gardens in July and a community open house in September. B. Swearing-In of Police Sergeant Joe Meeks. Chief Jim Winters said the Police and Fire Commission approved the promotion of Detective Joe Meeks to Sergeant. He has been with the Sycamore Police Department for 10 years and was raised here through the Sycamore School District.
Sergeant Meeks introduced his wife Crystal, daughters Anna and Izzy, his mother, Carol Meeks, and Dale Becker. He thanked everyone and said he is honored and hopes to do well by all and earn the support everyone has shown him tonight. C. Introduction of Employees that have joined the City in the past year: City Manager Brian Gregory said these employees bring experience and new ideas to the City and makes us better. He welcomed them and introduced each of the following: Cindy Henderson, Executive Secretary Scott Allspaugh, Police Officer Jim Gagalski, Custodian Rob Cyr, Electrical Inspector Jake Keck, Superintendent of Streets Nate Monney, Ordinance Officer Beverly Fox, Accounts Payable Clerk Matt Anderson, Superintendent of Waste Water Treatment Plant REPORT OF OFFICERS City Manager Brian Gregory reminded everyone that Monday, January 15 th, the City offices will be closed to commemorate Martin Luther King s birthday. The City Council meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 16 th, where we will start the budget discussions. We will walk through some preliminary assumptions, with respect to the General Fund. This will be laid out over the next several meetings. Police Chief Jim Winters said the warming center at the Police Department is open and being used. He said they also swore in a new Police Officer, Shaquille Perez this morning and he will attend the Police Academy, at Macon County Law Enforcement Training Center, in Decatur for 14 weeks. He also said that he commends the Officers, especially, Detective Ryan Goodman, Detective John Keacher, and Commander Mike Anderson who responded to the armed robbery in town and brought it to a conclusion, safely. He thanked the Sheriff s Department and the DeKalb Police Department for their efforts and cooperation. Fire Chief Pete Polarek said that the Red Wreath Program concluded this morning. They had one white bulb, which represents a holiday-related fire incident, however, during that 40 day period, he reported that they had 262 requests for service; 184 of which were for emergency medical services, 13 for motor vehicle accident responses, and 64 non-fire type responses. They did a press release today for preventative actions for cold weather conditions. He reported that one of the Firefighters was injured today at a fire in Genoa and he is happy to report that he was treated and released and at home recuperating. Director of Public Works Fred Busse said Public Works has been busy with a couple of snow events. Within the Water Division, there have been four water main breaks since Christmas and even one this morning. He said there are always those periods in the fall and winter when the ground starts to move and then again in the spring. He said that everyone is safe and taken care of due to the exposure to the cold. Treasurer/Asst. to the City Manager Adam Orton said that with the start of the calendar year, the Finance Department is busy with year-end reports, W-2, and 1099 tax forms. They will have these completed and mailed out by the end of January. Building & Engineering Director John Sauter absent City Engineer Mark Bushnell absent REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES Finance Alan Bauer - no report Public Safety Pete Paulsen - no report Public Works Chuck Stowe no report PUBLIC HEARING None
ORDINANCES - A. Ordinance 2017.20 An Ordinance Authorizing the City of Sycamore, DeKalb County, Illinois, to Borrow Funds from the Water Pollution Control Loan Program. First and Second Reading. City Manager Brian Gregory said construction of a phased expansion of the waste water treatment plant began in 2009. The majority of the infrastructure at the existing plant was constructed in the 1970 s. The first phase started construction in 2009 and the second phase started in 2014, which included the addition of a centrifuge and the installation of a disinfection system for the excess flow clarifier. The third and final phase of the treatment plant project addresses the actual expansion from a plant rated to treat 2.97 million gallons per day (MGD) to 4.99 MGD. In 2015, anticipating the third and final phase, the City Council and the Public Works Committee reviewed options and recommended to proceed, with the Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR) system voted on back in 2005. The project has been permitted by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the City plans to advertise for bids in late winter/early spring of 2018. He said based on an estimated cost of $26 million, the project will require borrowing through a low interest loan from the Illinois EPA revolving loan program. Current IEPA revolving loan funds are available at 1.76% for 20 years. Between the City s Sewer Fund reserve and the Sewer Impact Fee Fund, roughly seven million dollars are available to put toward this project to reduce the overall borrowing. He said this ordinance authorizes borrowing up to $20,853,989.03, which includes contingency in the event that there is unforeseen costs associated with the project. We anticipate the life expectancy of this project to be 30 years and this loan and this loan is a period of 20 years with a debt service payment of about $1,127,676 per year. Back in 2015, the IEPA rate was at 2.21% so the rate has ticked down slightly, so we were anticipating about $50,000 more in debt service, so those numbers look good. The State s fiscal year starts in June, however, funding could be available, prior to that date, through the use of bypass funds that were not allocated in the current fiscal year. Alderperson Stowe moved to waive First Reading for Ordinance 2017.20 and Alderperson Kramer seconded the motion Alderperson Stowe moved to adopt Ordinance 2017.20 and Alderperson Kramer seconded the motion. Mayor Lang said we are increasing our expansion from 2.97 million gallons per day (MGD) to 4.99 MGD. He asked Director of Public Works, Fred Busse, how many gallons we currently run. Director of Public Works Fred Busse said we are pushing right at that 3 MGD average flow rate so we have been right at capacity for a while. Not only hydraulically, as far as gallons per day, but organically or how many pounds of organic matter we receive. We have actually already been exceeding that capacity. ROLL CALL VOTE Mayor Lang called for a roll call vote to approve the motion. Alderpersons Bauer, Braser, Copple, Kramer, Paulsen, Sherrod, Stouffer and Stowe voted aye. Motion carried 8-0. RESOLUTIONS A. Resolution No. 735 A Resolution Adopting a Policy Prohibiting Sexual Harassment in the City of Sycamore, Illinois. City Manager Brian Gregory said that the City of Sycamore currently has a policy that prohibits sexual harassment and outlines how allegations of sexual harassment are addressed. Last fall, the State of Illinois passed Public Act 100-0554 to amend the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act, including Section 70-5, which pertains to government entities. Public Act 100-0554 mandates all governmental units formally adopt, within 60 days after the effective date of November 16, 2017, which is January 15, 2018, an ordinance or resolution establishing a policy prohibiting sexual harassment. Resolution 735 includes a policy that incorporates the City s current policy with the requirements of the newly passed legislation.
Alderperson Kramer moved to approve Resolution 735 and Alderperson Copple seconded the motion. B. Resolution No. 736 A Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Designate 2018 Freedom of Information Act Officers and the Open Meetings Act Officer Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and Open Meetings Act of the State of Illinois. City Manager Brian Gregory said that we do this annually for transparency. Illinois law requires municipalities and other governmental agencies to designate at least one individual to handle Freedom of Information Act ( FOIA) requests. FOIA officers are required to complete electronic training on an annual basis through the Illinois Attorney General s office. The names of the FOIA and Open Meetings Act officers must be displayed on the City s web site. The City Manager recommends the designation of the following officers for 2018: Mary Kalk, City-wide FOIA Officer; Adam Orton, City-wide FOIA Officer; Megan Petit, Police Department FOIA Officer; Kevin Buick, Open Meetings Act Officer. Alderperson Paulsen moved to adopt Resolution 736 and Alderperson Sherrod seconded the motion. C. Resolution No. 737 A Resolution Requesting a Permit from the Illinois Department of Transportation to Allow for the Construction of an Upgraded Water Service at 327 W State Street (Illinois Route 64). City Manager Brian Gregory said that this resolution is required by the State of Illinois Department of Transportation to allow the BLP Construction Company, on behalf of JD Heinrich, to install an upgraded water service to serve the new Forge Restaurant. The City is responsible for guaranteeing that all work performed be in compliance with conditions of the permit. IDOT requires the developer to post a permit bond. Alderperson Stowe moved to adopt Resolution 737 and Alderperson Stouffer seconded the motion. D. Resolution No. 738 A Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Sign IEPA Loan Documents. City Manager Brian Gregory said that this resolution corresponds with the action in Ordinance 2017.20 to borrow funds through the IEPA Low Interest Loan Program. The IEPA requires that a resolution be passed to authorize an official signer of the loan documents and related information. This resolution meets the requirement and authorizes the City Manager to execute IEPA loan related documents on behalf of the City. Alderperson Kramer moved to approve Resolution 738 and Alderperson Sherrod seconded the motion. CONSIDERATIONS A. Consideration of a Presentation by Kluber Architects Regarding the Deferred Maintenance Study for Fire Station #1.
City Manager Brian Gregory said as a brief background, some funds were set aside in the FY18 Capital Fund, for a review of Fire Station #1, which was built in the 1950 s. Cosmetic improvements have been done but capital improvements were needed. After a Request for Qualifications, we brought in Kluber Architects who was selected and qualified to do a comprehensive review. Chris Hanson is here tonight to present a comprehensive set of findings and outline of improvements for the short term and long term. He said this plan will be used as a budgeting tool for future capital improvements as funds are available. Chris Hanson said he will run over a high-level overview of the findings for the facility as the full binder was in excess of 400 pages. He explained that the team that reviewed the facility is all licensed professionals that are practicing within their disciplines. He is a licensed architect and Mike Kluber is a licensed electrical engineer. He explained the physical condition ratings from Excellent to Unsatisfactory and the priority review ratings as Priority 1 to Priority 3, ranging in from work being done as soon as possible within one year to 1-5 years, to, at the owner s discretion, but within the next 10 years. He covered a variety of maintenance needs with the following Deferred Maintenance Summary. Alderperson Copple said she is concerned about the boiler and piping and asked why it isn t being done first. Chris Hanson said you always want to protect the asset from weather. The burner portion of the boiler was recently upgraded, but they see the units on the roof to be a higher priority than a boiler that was recently updated. They chose to get the rooftop units, the roofing, and curtain wall to get the building more energy efficient. Plus, this allows us to see how the building performs with the new curtain wall system and roofing system with more insulation. This will allow them to custom tailor the boiler unit and potentially reduce the size of it. He did say that the bones of this building is extremely stable. It was built well. Alderperson Chuck Stowe asked if this building was truly designed and built to have 2 additional floors, as was originally claimed. Chris Hanson said they would have to do an analysis on that, but it does appear that we could build up on this building. Alderperson Steve Braser said that is one of his main questions before we spend $1.6 million. How adequate is the building and for future use, how adequate is it?
Fire Chief Pete Polarek said it provides some challenges. The big challenge is the apparatus space, specifically the fire truck. We have to buy vehicles that can fit in the building. The other real challenge, as he sees it, is the safety of where that facility sits. He said that it s on DeKalb Avenue, it s a busy street, and it s close to the street. He said, the real question is, at what point do you put money into this structure versus new and somewhere else. He said his opinion is that there are things we need to do regardless if this is a working fire station ten years from now. He said that we should complete some of the priorities that Mr. Hanson suggested, for the short term. For the long term, he said, as has been mentioned in 2015, we looked at if the facility is in the spot we would want it in today s world. He would say no and would want to relocate it out of downtown. Alderperson Steve Braser said after we get done with this project, it will be a 70 year old building and where will the fire technology and the rest of the technology be. He asked if we would actually be spending our money wisely. It takes a bit more time to decide what we want to do with this as he was shocked to see this quote at $1.6 million. He said that he doesn t remember what we paid for the new fire station out on Peace Road, but would we be better off with two smaller stations instead of one central station. He said that these are all things we need to look at especially as the town is growing. Fire Chief Pete Polarek said that this is the first step to push that discussion along now that we have some hard numbers to go on. Alderperson Steve Braser said he remembers the discussion for getting equipment that fits the building and he thought that was ridiculous then. He doesn t want to leave debt for the next generation and have them make this decision because we put Band- Aids on it for 20 more years use. He said it may be underestimated once we get into the building and we may find more wrong. The County tried putting Band-Aids on the jail and expanding it until they got down to the real solution and that may have been 20 years too late. This is something we need to consider before approving this. Alderperson Rick Kramer asked the Chief does it cost more to custom build that fire engine to fit the building versus buying a standard size Fire Chief Pete Polarek said that last fire engine they bought a year ago was $30,000. Alderperson Steve Braser asked if that was $30,000 in customization. Fire Chief Pete Polarek said we had to make it low enough by lengthening the body so that it will fit in the bay. He said we are overdue on this study, but this is a good study and we can be confident in the information. Alderperson Rick Kramer said this is really good information and it gives a good insight on what really needs to be done versus building something new. City Manager Brian Gregory thanked Chris Hanson for a very comprehensive review and Chief Polarek and the Assistant Chiefs for working with Chris and his team through this process. He said that Chief Polarek made a very good point in that, what is in Priority One and most of what is in Priority Two is essential to make it a functional building. Those improvements need to be made to ensure that. So moving ahead with Priority One items as we look at our FY 19 Capital budget, we aren t losing anything by making those investments, as they are minor and very essential improvements and would be needed and well served for whatever the building is used for. As we get into Priority Two, as we look at future fiscal years, he said we can use these numbers to make a stronger analysis and look at the very big picture, if we are looking at a thirty year solution. He said we have a plan and numbers that we can use so that we are not making uneducated guesses, so this was a good investment and he appreciates everyone s efforts. Alderperson Chuck Stowe said, is there any way of taking the floor down four inches and getting higher doors? Fire Chief Pete Polarek said with the level of the street and Fire Station, he thinks there would be a problem with the drainage Chris Hanson said it would not be possible, but that they actually asked that question at the beginning of the process. He asked, at what point, do you stop doing maintenance. He said that the City Manager hit it on the head that if you want to maintain the asset, you need to get through Priority One and Priority Two. From there, you make some harder decisions if you want to continue investing in that building or consider an alternative project site. He said this building could be recreated for about $3
million. So, when you look at $1.6 million, he asks, could it be done? He says, sure, but the issue is always where the property is and are the utilities added or not. That s where the expenses are. OTHER NEW BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS - None ADJOURNMENT Alderperson Stowe moved to adjourn the meeting at 8:15 p.m. and Alderperson Paulsen seconded the motion. Mayor Lang called for a voice vote to approve the motion. All Alderpersons voted aye Motion carried 8-0. Approve: Mayor Curt Lang Attest: City Clerk Mary Kalk