Sangamon Sun

Village Board of Pleasant Plains met April 10.

Here is the minutes provided by the Board:

The Village Board of Pleasant Plains met in a regular session on Monday, April 10, 2017, at 7:00 p.m., at the Village Hall. President Jim Verkuilen called the meeting to order and roll was recorded:

Mike Huber present Elizabeth Rollins absent

William Riggins, Jr present Darrell “Duey” Blair present

Tim Robinson present Wayne Heideman present

President Verkuilen declared a quorum present.

Staff Present:Jim Verkuilen, Mayor

Judy Reiser, Village Clerk

Brett Keyes, Treasurer

Kevin Kesselring, Chief of Police

Dave Stewart, Water Superintendent

Neil McCafferty, Assistant Water Superintendent

Greg Miles, Streets Superintendent

Visitor(s):Greta Myers, Bill Mowder, Jeremy Mizuer, Nancy Oliver, Jonathan Meckstroth, Master Meter and Moe Smederovac, Ferguson Waterworks

Agenda for the Village Board Meeting was reviewed. No changes were made.

Village Clerk, Judy Reiser, presented an engraved clock on behalf of the Village of Pleasant Plains to Mayor Verkuilen for the 16 years of dedication and leadership he provided this community as a Village Trustee and President.

Minutes were reviewed for the regular board meeting of March 13, 2017. A motion was made by Trustee Darrell “Duey” Blair to approve the minutes as presented. Trustee Wayne Heideman seconded this motion. President Verkuilen declared the motion carried by a unanimous aye vote.

Treasurer’s Report: Brett Keyes presented the treasurer’s report. Treasure Keyes indicates we are at in the last month of the year. Brett states he will be cleaning out the due to, due from accounts. Trustee Mike Huber made a motion to accept the treasurer’s report to include correction to the balance sheet. Trustee Bill Riggins, Jr. seconded that motion. President Verkuilen called for a roll call vote.

Ayes: Tim Robinson, Bill Riggins, Jr., Mike Huber, Darrell

“Duey” Blair, Wayne Heideman

Nays: n/a

Abstain: n/a

Absent: Elizabeth Rollins

President Verkuilen declared the motion carried by a roll call vote.

Payment of Bills: Payment of the bills was reviewed. Trustee Darrell “Duey” Blair made a motion to accept the bills as presented. Trustee Tim Robinson seconded this motion.

Ayes: Wayne Heideman, Darrell “Duey” Blair, Mike Huber,

Bill Riggins, Jr., Tim Robinson

Nays: n/a

Abstain: n/a

Absent: Elizabeth Rollins

President Verkuilen declared the motion carried by a roll call vote.

Police Department: Chief Kesselring stated he is continuing to conduct interviews for part time officers.

Nancy Oliver was present to make a request to the Board for forgiveness or reduction in fine with regard to an inoperable motor vehicle parked along the side of Jefferson Street. When asked about the several letters the village had mailed requesting the vehicle be removed prior to the fine, Ms. Oliver indicated she did not feel the letters from the village looked urgent, therefore she did not open them. When an officer personally notified her of the violation she moved the vehicle to her side yard immediately; which was still not in compliance. When she finally did open the letters she misread them, not realizing she was being fined $200 per day. The Board will discuss further in executive session and will defer their decision until next month’s meeting.

Water Department/Issues: Water Superintendent Dave Stewart questioned the Board as to what procedure they want him to follow when a customer disputes their meter readings. Trustee Bill Riggins, Jr., suggested a fee be set for the customer (only if the meter test results show it to be accurate) that would cover the cost of having the meter switched, mailed to be tested in a flat rate box from the post office, charges for the certification and report, and the return postage of the meter. Trustee Darrell “Duey” Blair agreed with the suggestion however feels due to the inconvenience to the village and the costs involved the charge should be at least $100.

Dave stressed the fact that the village has never had a meter tested that the results came back as it being inaccurate. Attorney Draper states the homeowner needs to know the cost would be their responsibility paid in advance. Individual cases should be handled at the homeowners’ expense until the Board approves an ordinance.

Jonathan Meckstroth of Master Meter and Moe Smederovac from Ferguson Waterworks did brief refresher presentation on wireless water meters which comes with built in data logging, has a leak alarm and hourly readings to show the hi and low peaks during the day; which can detect as little as 1/8 gallon of usage. A full meter is approximately $200 per meter or a retrofit, which could be used with our existing setup, would run approximately $160 each. Their meters run from 5/8” up to 12” meters. The data can be collected monthly on a smartphone, tablet or laptop within 50 feet of the meter. The software needed to process this data is approximately $20,000 plus an annual support charge. The warranty on electronics is 10 year at 100% and 10 year prorated, and 24 years on accuracy. The Board was advised competitors have a similar product that uses cellular technology however we need to be aware there is a cellular charge of $.65 to over a dollar per meter, per data collected, per month. There are approximately 581 water customers at this time. Water Superintendent Dave Stewart showed his interest in these meters which could eliminate the meter discrepancy complaints as the meter data report would be readily available to the customer. Mr. Smederovac indicated they have a more sophisticated system available however he felt it would be “overkill” for our water district. Mr. Smederovac states service call availability would not be a problem.

Issue: Request was received from a landlord of a water customer asking that a penalty fee be removed from a tenant’s bill and that the board waive the charge completely because the landlord did not realize their bill was due on the 15th of the month and that a letter sent to them did not indicate such. Due to the fact that the penalty date is on the water bill and the landlord was a previous water customer knowing when the bills are due the board denied the request.

Village Clerk asked for clarification on how a complaint should be presented to the board. Attorney Draper indicated overall if a citizen wants something addressed and action taken by the board their request or complaint should be in writing so it is clear what action they want taken. They can also be put on the agenda and appear in person. A trustee can also bring an issue/complaint from a constituent to the board.

In the Trustee packets, President Verkuilen supplied supporting information on water costs and revenue per 1000 gallons processed and sold for 2015 and 2016 and an estimate for 2017 for their review. A spread sheet pertaining to various village revenues and expenses from 2000-2016 was also included in the packet. Trustees indicated they had no questions regarding this information.

Request to Extend Business Hours:

Newly established “Linda’s” proprietor, Jeremy Mizeur asked the board to consider a request to extend his business hours in the mornings from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. Monday- Saturday and his evening hours on Friday and Saturday from 9:30 p.m.to 11:00 p.m. He states he would like to have free coffee and donuts in the morning hours. He states his business model is really not for the sale of alcohol and they sell very little, unfortunately the State ties the video gaming and alcohol license together so your video gaming parlor cannot be open unless you are able to serve alcohol. The ordinance for a Class E license does not correspond with the requested hours. Mr. Mizeur is asking the business hours of our Class E license be changed to:

Operating hours Monday-Thursday 8:00 a.m. -9:30 p.m.

Friday & Saturday 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Sunday 1:00 p.m-9:30 p.m.

Attorney Draper states the hours were set when our ordinance was created for the new classification of liquor license for a retailing type of operation with a lot more emphasize on other kinds of retail other than food and liquor. The history of the Class E license is because that was what was being requested and it was unusual to begin with and so that was the cautious approach. Trustee Bill Riggins, Jr. states, “The 9:30 p.m. before, there was a little concern because of a residential area around next it. There are no residential around this one. The trouble is if we change the ordinance it will allow someone to come in to open something later on.”

Carl states, “You can always can change the number of liquor license up and down,” and you can always review zone classifications and be ok within distances from residential areas. Trustee Darrell ‘Duey” Blair states he has no objection in amending the times of the Class E. Carl has asked that the Trustees review the liquor ordinance for the Class E license. Trustee Darrell “Duey” Blair asked that at the May meeting we have Carl bring a revised ordinance changing the hours of a Class E liquor license from Monday-Thursday 8:00 a.m. -9:30 p.m.

Friday & Saturday 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Sunday 1:00 p.m-9:30 p.m.

Carl will send a draft ordinance with some different times. The board can move to adopt it with whatever hours. Mr. Mizeur will need to follow the currently established hours until the ordinance has been amended.

Street Department: Greg Miles, Superintendent of Streets, report he has received all signage and posts that meets the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices that will put us within compliance of the new federal highway regulations. These will be installed over the next few months. He is waiting to hear from IDOT regarding the exact placement of the 15 minute parking signed on Route 125 across from Casey’s. A partial order pertaining to the signage Chief Kesselring has ordered that will be installed on East and West Main Street is in. As soon as JULIE markings are complete the signs can be installed. Superintendent Miles gave a preliminary report of his projections for MFT and his Road and Bridge funds. He feels he will be able to get by with not oiling the streets this year and adding this year’s MFT funds with next year’s allocation which will enable him to cover a wider territory in the spring of 2018. Road and Bridge money has to be used annually or we lose it, MFT funds can roll over.

Greg would like to get started on the Jefferson Street storm sewer issue. He will need to get the engineers involved and possibly get the area surveyed. Trustee Tim Robinson indicated he could get an estimate from a licensed surveyor. Benton will also provide an estimate on the surveying and the project costs. There is a tree that also needs to be removed from this area. Project will definitely need to be surveyed however we need to speak with the property owners before getting started.

A resolution for participating in the State of Illinois Federal Surplus Property Program was presented for review and approval. Trustee Darrell “Duey” Blair made a motion to approve the Village’s participation in this program. Trustee Tim Robinson seconded this motion. President Verkuilen declared the motion carried by a unanimous aye vote on Resolution 17-002.

Trustee Wayne Heideman announced the community club has scheduled someone to meet with them from Berlin Park group regarding their public park area on Tuesday, April 18th at 6:00 p.m. at the community club building. The Community Club is interested in renovating our park and has extended an invitation to Greg and the board to attend.

Property that was going to be donated to the Village for a new park area was discussed. It was decided that the location of this property would not be a viable option due to safety reasons as well as cost for maintenance and upkeep. No action taken.

Trustee Darrell “Duey” Blair made a motion to go into executive session for the purpose of discussing litigation. Trustee Bill Riggins, Jr., seconded this motion. President Verkuilen declared the motion carried by a unanimous aye vote.

Trustee Mike Huber made a motion to reconvene to open session. Trustee Darrell “Duey” Blair seconded that motion. President declared the motion carried by a unanimous aye vote at 9:50 p.m.

Announcement: n/a

There being no further business, Trustee Mike Huber made a motion to adjourn the meeting. The motion was second by Trustee Darrell “Duey” Blair. The motion was passed by voice vote. President Verkuilen declared the meeting adjourned by a unanimous vote at 9:51 p.m.

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