Village of Jerome Village Board met October 5.
Here is the minutes provided by the Board:
Administering of the Oath of Office to New Trustee:
Brian Hendricks was sworn in as a Trustee by Judge Don Flack.
Call to Order:
President Lopez called the October 5, 2017 meeting of the Village of Jerome Board of Trustees to order at 7:04 pm.
Pledge of Allegiance:
President Lopez led all those present in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Roll Call:
Clerk Wheeland called the roll.
Present:
President Mike Lopez
Trustees Brian Hendricks, Shirley Johnson, Dale Lael, Beth Monnat, Jake Tripp
Clerk Linda Wheeland
Treasurer Steve Roth
Attorney Jason Brokaw
Absent: Rob Winchester
Approval of Minutes
A.September 21, 2017 Regular Meeting Minutes
A motion was made by Trustee Monnat to approve the Minutes of the September 21, 2017 Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees. The motion was seconded by Trustee Hendricks,
Roll Call Vote:
Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee Hendricks, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Johnson, Trustee Monnat
The motion carried.
B. August 17, 2017 Executive Session Minutes
A motion was made by Trustee Lael to approve the Minutes of the August 17, 2017 Executive Session Meeting of the Board of Trustees. The motion was seconded by Trustee Tripp.
Roll Call Vote:
Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee Hendricks, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Johnson, Trustee Monnat
The motion carried.
Approval of Warrant List 18-11:
President Lopez noted that Warrant List 18-11 dated October 5, 2017 totaled $20,358.26. Treasurer Roth added that of this amount $15,904.81 would be paid from the Water Fund and the remaining $4,453.45 would be paid from the General Revenue Fund.
A motion was made by Trustee Johnson to approve Warrant List 18-11 dated October 5, 2017 for a total of $20,358.26. The motion was seconded by Trustee Monnat.
Roll Call Vote:
Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee Hendricks, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Johnson, Trustee Monnat
The motion carried.
Visitors Acknowledgement:
President Lopez opened the Visitors Acknowledgement portion of the meeting at 7:08 pm.
Resident Virginia Bayless thanked the Board on behalf of the people residing in the 1700 and 1800 blocks of Reed Avenue for the recentre-pavement of that street. She has lived there since 1987 and this is the first work that has been done on the road. She recognized it was a collaborative effort of the Board and encouraged infrastructure maintenance to be the number one priority. She reminded the Board that when the 1% sales tax increase was approved by Jerome residents it was with the understanding that the revenue would be used for road improvements. One third of the sales tax has recently been consistently set aside for the roads, although none of that money was used on the Reed Avenue project. She suggested that the Reed Avenue project be extended to Leonard Street so there would be a nice route to the Library and Civic Center,
President Lopez stated that he would like to see that project included next year.
This portion of the meeting closed at 7:12 pm.
Reports from Village Departments
A.Public Health
Trustee Johnson reported the following:
•Around 25 people attended the Public Health Fair the past Saturday. The Osco staff did a phenomenal job in administering flu shots. Trustee Lael assisted with the event as did the Public Works staff. The event was held on a Saturday in hopes that more young families would attend but that didn't work out this year.
•Several letters addressing complaints received were sent out this week.
•Fire permit applications continue to be submitted.
•Trustee Johnson will meet with Trustee Lael next week to finalize changes to the Public Health Ordinances.
•The Public Health Permit for the Halloween Party will be submitted on Friday.
B. Public Works
Trustee Tripp reported the following:
•Residents have been excited about the road projects recently undertaken in the Village.
•Public Works staff has been changing some water meters.
•The title still hasn't been received on the new Public Works van so it is not being used yet.
•New employee Matt Smith continues to do a great job.
C. Public Property
There was no Public Property report.
D. Building & Zoning
Trustee Lael reported the following:
•The Wing Stop restaurant is not open yet. No recent communication has been received from the Owners.
•Work at the Jerome Mini-Mall is going strong with recent installation of a concrete parking lot.
•Trustee Lael has talked with Jose Andrade, the Ameren Inspector for the gas line replacement project, about the mess left in most yards by KS Energy, the contractor on the project. He specifically cited the bricks, concrete, and rocks at the corner of Reed and Chatham. Ameren had asked the Willage to provide a map of all the problems left behind. Trustee Lael told Mr. Andrade that this was too big of a request since there were issues everywhere, KS Energy had hired landscapers but let them go and had simply thrown down grass seed with no lawn restoration. The Illinois Commerce Commission has received complaints regarding the work. Ameren has agreed to identify problem areas and have them fixed by KS Energy, Trustee Lael stated that Mr. Andrade is super to work with.
•Water samples recently sent by Joe Gragg to be tested were mishandled by the lab so he took new samples and drove them to Peoria to meet the testing deadline. Trustee Lael felt Mr. Gragg should be reimbursed for travel costs.
E. Public Safety
Trustee Monnat reported the following:
•The Police Department is running smoothly and things are safe and sound in the Village.
•One Police vehicle is out of commission with fumes coming out of it. The cost of repair has not yet been determined.
F. Water Department
President Lopez reported the following:
•Things are running smoothly in the Water Department.
•Merry did a great job in the office during the week Debbie was gone.
•For some reason the lab removed the labels on the water samples sent by Joe Gragg. Mr. Gragg said he would not charge the Village for his trip to Peoria.
•President Lopez will meet with Trustee Hendricks to go over the Water Department.
G. Village Treasurer
Treasurer Roth reported the following:
•Income Tax revenues for August and September have been received.
•Checks for the September 21st warrants were mailed out right after that meeting and the Village met payroll for September 30. Checks for this meeting's warrants will be mailed following the meeting.
•With all obligations before paying this week's warrants and IMRF, there is approximately $161,000 in the Illinois National Bank (INB) General Revenue Funds (GRF) account. There is approximately $494 in the Illinois Fund Account.
•GRF obligations for the October 5th warrants total $4,453.45. Water obligations are $15,904.81
•The transfer from the Water Fund to the GRF for worked performed by the Public Works staff for the Water Department in the month of September was $2,019.99.
•A transfer of $2,000 from the Police Equipment Donation Fund was made to pay for the Taser costs from the last warrants. Once more donations are received the remaining balance will be paid. There is currently $50 in the Fund.
•The Financial Report had been provided to Board members prior to the meeting.
H. Village Clerk
Clerk Wheeland reported that the Board meeting agendas are now being posted online prior to the meetings.
I. Village Attorney
Attorney Brokaw stated he had no report.
J. Village President
President Lopez reported the following:
•He met with Sara WojcickiJiminez regarding infrastructure needs of the Village and told her we need $10-12 million to rebuildles Avenue and Park Street. She replied that there was no money and asked what was near les Avenue. President Lopez answered Franklin Middle School. That same day a child was injured near Woodland and MacArthur which caught the attention of Representative Jiminez. Subsequently there was a meeting of local and state officials regarding improvements to the path to Franklin Middle School to address safety concerns. Earlier today there was a bomb threat at the School and teachers led students away down this path to Iles Avenue. There are no sidewalks on Iles and the 600 plus people took up most of the roadway getting over to the east side of MacArthur Boulevard. The 9-1-1 Dispatch Center did not contact the Jerome Police Department so there was no police present to assist. President Lopez is working with the Dispatch Center to change the protocol in this type of situation. The safety concerns along this section and needed improvements related to the pathway were highlighted by this incident. Further discussions are anticipated on this matter.
•President Lopez is concerned about the Village finances and has asked Treasurer Roth to provide a financial recap for the year and moving forward over the next few weeks. Through September, 33 line items have exceeded 40% of year-to-dates expenditures versus the budget as follows: Board of Trustees -8, Building and Zoning - 1, Police - 12, Property - 1, Public Health - 1, and Streets-10. Almost every revenue category is going down. Adjustments will have to be made.
•The Halloween Party is on October 28th and candy is still needed. Donations can be dropped off at the Village office. Shop'n'Save is helping out with the hot dogs and buns and Trustee Lael is coordinating the drinks. Lineup is at 10:00 with the parade at 10:30, There will not be trophies this year to avoid the disappointing kids not selected.
Old Business
A.Discussion and Consideration of Public Health Ordinance Updates
This item was tabled until the next meeting.
B. Discussion and Approval of Sangamon County E-Citation Program Digi-Ticket
Trustee Monnat stated that the paperwork on this project had recently been received from Sangamon County and forwarded to Attorney Brokaw for review,
This item was tabled until the next meeting,
C. Update on Phone Equipment Replacement
Treasurer Roth stated that he had typed up his notes and provided proposals he had received last year when researching phone equipment replacement. These were given to Trustee Winchester and President Lopez. President Lopez said he would meet with Trustee Winchester the following week to get the ball rolling on this project. Treasurer Roth noted that the last bill under the current Windstream contract will come in January. Notification of an intent not to renew the contract must be submitted to Windstream one month prior to the last bill. Treasurer Roth strongly encouraged the Board to find a new provider and notify Windstream by November since the contract will automatically renew if not cancelled.
D. Halloween Party on Saturday, October 28, 2017
This item was covered earlier in the meeting.
New Business
A.Discussion and Adoption of Ordinance 18-07 Related to the Secretary and Water Clerk Hours Worked
Attorney Brokaw explained that there has been cross-training of the Secretary and Water Clerk and from time to time they have each worked more than the 25 hours per week the Village Ordinance currently permits. Ordinance 18-07 will provide some flexibility when needed by allowing the President to authorize additional hours above and beyond the 25 hours.
Trustee Hendricks made a motion to adopt Ordinance 18-07 Related to the Secretary and Water Clerk Hours Worked. The motion was seconded by Trustee Johnson.
Roll Call Vote:
Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee Hendricks, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Johnson, Trustee Monnat
The motion carried.
B. Hiring of Temporary Public Works Laborer for Help with Limb Pickup
Trustee Tripp stated that temporary help would be needed for the fall limb pickup. Previously the Board had voted to hire a temporary laborer to assist with the Village Cleanup for a total of 14 days. Paul Bell had worked only about 50 hours and additional help is now needed for the Limb Pickup. It is anticipated that 30 hours of temporary help would be sufficient and a resident of the Village who previously worked for Woodside Township is available to help.
Trustee Tripp made a motion to hire a temporary Public Works laborer for the Limb Pickup limited to 30 hours. The motion was seconded by Trustee Monnat.
Roll Call Vote:
Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee Hendricks, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Johnson, Trustee Monnat
The motion carried.
Trustee Lael asked for an update on the road projects from the Village Engineer. Micky Mann stated that the work on Reed Avenue was complete. Work on Park Street stopped because of the rain. One more lift is needed and that should be done next week. One driveway needs to be fixed.
President Lopez said that he will discuss road projects for next year with Mr. Mann and Trustee Tripp. Mr. Mann recommended getting the bids out sooner rather than later while the prices are favorable.
Mr. Mann suggested he would talk with James Foster about some shoulder work that could be done on Park Street.
President Lopez stated that he will be discussing with Trustee Tripp the possibility of using Water Department funds for some road projects as suggested by former Trustee Chilton and approved by the Board earlier this year.
Executive Session:
The Board did not go into Executive Session.
Adjournment:
A motion was made by Trustee Johnson to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Trustee Monnat.
Roll Call Vote:
Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee Hendricks, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Johnson, Trustee Monnat
The motion carried and the meeting adjourned at 7:41 pm.
https://www.villageofjerome.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/10.05.17-MINUTES.pdf
Alerts Sign-up