Sangamon Sun

Village of Jerome Board of Trustees met Oct. 17.

Here is the minutes provided by the Board:

Call to Order

President Lopez called the October 17, 2019 meeting of the Village of Jerome Board of Trustees to order at 6:31 pm.

Pledge of Allegiance

President Lopez led all those present in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Roll Call

Present:

President Mike Lopez

Trustees Kathy DeHart, Leigh Irons, Ralph Irons, Dale Lael, Christina Smith, Jake Tripp Clerk Linda Wheeland

Treasurer Steve Roth

Attorney Jason Brokaw

Approval of Minutes

October 3, 2019 Regular Meeting Minutes

A motion was made by Trustee L. Irons to approve the Minutes of the October 3, 2019 Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees. The motion was seconded by Trustee DeHart.

Roll Call Vote:

Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee DeHart, Trustee R. Irons, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Smith, Trustee L. Irons

The motion carried.

September 5, 2019 Executive Session Minutes

A motion was made by Trustee L. frons to approve the Minutes of the September 5, 2019 Executive Session of the Board of Trustees. The motion was seconded by Trustee Lael.

Roll Call Vote:

Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee DeHart, Trustee R. Irons, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Smith, Trustee L. Irons

The motion carried.

Approval of Warrant List 20-12

President Lopez noted that Warrant List 20-12 dated October 17, 2019 totaled $45,603.75. Treasurer Roth added that of this amount $8,827,18 will be paid from the General Revenue Fund and $36,776.57 will be paid from the Water Fund.

A motion was made by Trustee Lael to approve Warrant List 20-12 dated October 17, 2019 for a total of $45,603.75. The motion was seconded by Trustee L. Irons.

Roll Call Vote:

Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee DeHart, Trustee R. Irons, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Smith, Trustee L. Trons

The motion carried.

Visitors Acknowledgement

President Lopez opened the Visitors Acknowledgement portion of the meeting at 6:34 pm.

There were no public comments and this portion of the meeting closed at 6:35 pm.

Reports from Village Departments

A. Public Health

Trustee L. Irons reported the following:

• Six fire permits were issued this past week.

• She is still writing letters about branch piles and furniture.

B. Public Works

Trustee Tripp reported the following:

• Matt Cassens has taken another job. Preliminary interviews to fill the Public Works laborer position are scheduled for next Tuesday.

• Dave Wilken is out this week and Joe Gragg has agreed to assist with locates and any

other issue that can't wait.

• The walk-through of West Grand Court will take place next week. Dave Wilken has noted his concerns with the project and these were forwarded to Village Engineer Kevin Kuhn.

C. Public Property

Trustee DeHart reported the following:

• She and Dave Wilken have prepared a list of projects for the fall and winter.

• She is still trying to find out who to talk to at IDOT regarding the replacement of Village signs on Wabash Avenue. President Lopez stated he will make inquiries next week. Trustee DeHart noted that she is waiting for approval from IDOT before moving forward with the rest of the signs since purchasing them all at the same time will save money.

• Halloween decorations are outside the Library and Civic Center.

D. Building and Zoning

Trustee Lael reported the following:

• He has received blueprints for The Barn restaurant. The owner of the restaurant has inquired about the process for serving liquor only for special occasions at the restaurant. Attorney Brokaw explained that a change to the Village Code of Ordinances was required to allow a special use for this activity. This would be any easy change to make. The owner would have to get a special event license from the State.

• An appraiser contacted Trustee Lael regarding the zoning of apartments at 1030 and 1040 W. lles Avenue. Trustee Lael stated that the property is zoned R-1 but the multi family use is grandfathered in.

E. Public Safety

Trustee Smith reported the following:

• Union negotiations are scheduled for tomorrow.

• Fall and winter uniforms have been ordered for the Police Department along with vests for Corporal Maybury and Officer Brewer.

• The SUV needed some repairs.

• Chief Estill is working to get more part-time officers until the Board can discuss hiring a full-time officer,

Chief Estill reported the following:

• In September a vehicle that was unlocked with the keys inside was stolen from Lincoln Avenue. It was later recovered off East Cook Street in Springfield.

• Also in September an officer responded to a domestic disturbance on Glenn Avenue which involved a man armed with a shotgun. The suspect is in the Sangamon County jail.

• In October an officer assisted an elderly resident in reporting fraud on her credit card. Chief Estill talked with Mylas Copeland at Green Toyota about the possibility of trading in the SUV on a lease for a third Toyota Tundra in the next fiscal year. The SUV has 50,000 miles and repairs are getting more costly.

F. Water Department

Trustee R. Irons reported the following:

• The new water meters have all been installed. The Village now has the capability to monitor for leaks. Initially eleven customers were notified of leaks. Some were small such as a toilet leaking, some were under the home and otherwise undetectable, and one customer had an outdoor hose running. Only one device is not reading and must still be hand-read. The average water usage being recorded has increased between 5,000 and 10,000 gallons a month.

G. Village Treasurer

Treasurer Roth reported the following:

• We have received the Sales Tax and 1 percent Tax revenue for October.

• We have received MFT tax through September. Because of the gas tax increase our MFT funds have almost doubled for August and September.

• Once other October revenue is received Treasurer Roth will send the revenue report to Board members. Revenue losses thus far this fiscal year are $57,428 in Sales Tax and $14,366 in 1 percent Tax.

• Checks for the October 3rd warrants were mailed out right after that meeting. Payroll was met for October 15th Checks will be mailed out following this meeting.

• The balances of various accounts are approximately as follows:

> Illinois Funds General Revenue Account - $305,453

> Motor Fuel Tax Fund - $32,928

> INB General Revenue Account -$18,774

> INB Water Account - $303,065

> 1 percent Account - $404,181

• The Annual Treasurer's Report was filed with the Village Clerk this week. It will be published in the Illinois Times on October 24th Board members received a copy of the report.

H. Village Clerk

Clerk Wheeland reported the following:

• Because of a shortage of office staff the office hours are now 10:00 am to 1:00 pm until further notice.

I. Village Attorney

Attorney Brokaw stated he had no report.

J. Village President

President Lopez reported the following:

• The Halloween Party will be held on Saturday, October 26th Donations and assistance during the party are needed. On Halloween night the Jerome police will be in front of the Civic Center and the Jerome United Methodist Church will hold a trunk or treat event.

• Things are going better for the village. We are working on plans to transform the Wabash Avenue/MacArthur Boulevard corridor to a vibrant business center. The reconstruction of West Grand Court is complete at an estimated cost of $300,000. Parts of other roads, including Glenn Avenue, Park Street, Maple Avenue, Fillmore Avenue, and Reed Avenue, were resurfaced. We are striving to gain political/governmental support for the reconstruction of lles Avenue. He will attend the next District 186 Board meeting to request support from them. Finances are stable now.

• The water system has been modernized with smart meters which provide more accurate readings and eliminate the need for manual meter readings by the Public Works staff.

• We recognize the importance of regional collaboration, especially with the Sangamon County Leadership Council and the MacArthur Boulevard Association, as the majority of our working residents leave the Village every day for their jobs. We have positive interaction with the governments and police departments of the City of Springfield, City of Leland Grove, Village of Southern View, and Woodside Township.

• We are working to improve communication with Village residents through a variety of web and social networks.

• We have a team of dedicated employees, elected public officials, and appointed public officials managing the daily functions of operating our Village. This team works hard and are personally committed to serving you in the best manner possible.

Old Business

A. Update on Thayer Avenue Rumble Strip Request

This item was tabled.

B. Discussion of Fines Related to Obstructions in Ditches

President Lopez reported that Patrick Hayes at the Illinois Municipal League is researching this issue for the Village.

C. Discussion and Approval of Clearing Storm Drains on lles Avenue

President Lopez noted that the Sangamon County Water Reclamation District will be assisting the Village with this project next week.

D. Discussion and Approval of Ordinance 20-08 Restricting Issuance of Licenses,

Permits, or Certificates Due to Taxes Payable or Debt Owed to the Village Attorney Brokaw explained that after the last meeting Clerk Wheeland went through documents in the office to identify items that could be included in the restrictions. The list will be circulated to Board members for review.

E. Discussion and Approval of Ordinance 20-11 Adopting an Expense Reimbursement

Policy for the Village of Jerome

Attorney Brokaw noted that this ordinance was presented at the last meeting and he has received no feedback from Board members. State law mandates an employer to reimburse employee expenses. Having an expense reimbursement policy in place avoids problems. He asked Board members to review expenses to be reimbursed under the proposed policy.

New Business

A. Discussion and Approval of Striping on lles Avenue

Trustee Tripp explained that re-painting the striping was proposed on lles Avenue including the stop lines at intersections and the crosswalk at the Franklin School path.

Trustee Lael suggested striping also be done on the side streets at the lles Avenue intersections. Trustee Tripp agreed this was a good idea.

A motion was made by Trustee Tripp to approve striping on lles Avenue and the side streets at each lles Avenue intersection and the crosswalk at the Franklin School path at a cost not to exceed $1,200. The motion was seconded by Trustee Smith,

Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee DeHart, Trustee R. Irons, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Smith, Trustee L. Irons

The motion carried.

B. Discussion and Approval of Purchasing Snow Route Signs

Trustee Tripp noted that snow route signs, tow-away signs, and posts are needed for several streets in the Village.

Attorney Brokaw asked if these were already in the Village Code of Ordinances or if any needed to be added.

Trustee Tripp will review the Code before the next meeting.

C. Discussion and Approval of Resolution 20-07 Listing the Date, Time and Place of the Village of Jerome, Illinois Board of Trustees Regular Meetings for the Year 2020 Trustee L. Irons suggested that the Board reduce the number of meetings per month to one.

President Lopez said this could be discussed at the next meeting.

D. Discussion of FY 20 Year-to-Date Expenditures in Relation to the Budget

Treasurer Roth presented the following financial outlook.

• To-date revenues from Sales Tax and the 1 percent Tax are down $71,823 from this time last year. Projecting this loss over the 12 months of this fiscal year indicates a potential total loss of $143,647.

• Telecom Tax revenue is also down this year.

• The West Grand Court bill has not been received and the first installment on the new water meters has not been paid.

• At this time last year 27 line items were over budget. Currently 31 line items are over budget.

• Last year at this time revenue in the Water Department Fund was $6,593 over expenses. Currently revenue is $61,715 under expenses. This is due to the cost of installing the new water meters. There has been an uptick in Water Department revenues over the past two months. • Local Use Tax, Income Tax, MFT, and Gaming Revenues are all higher this year. If the increases stay on trajectory we could see an additional $73,179 in these revenues.

• Village departments are currently operating at or under budget. Departments must stay on budget to maintain this trend as we are only halfway through the fiscal year.

Executive Session

A motion was made by Trustee Smith to go into Executive Session to discuss the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of a specific employee or legal counsel for the public body (5 ILCS 120/2(C)(1)); collective negotiating matters between the public body and its employees or their representatives, or deliberations concerning salary schedules for one or more classes of employees (5 ILCS 120/2(c)(2)); minutes of meetings lawfully closed under the Open Meetings Act for purposes of approval by the Body (5 ILCS 120/2(C)(21)); meetings between internal or external auditors and governmental audit committees, finance committees, and their equivalents (5 ILC$ 120/2(c)(29)); and the establishment of reserves or settlement of claims as provided in the Local Governmental and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act, if otherwise the disposition of a claim or potential claim might be prejudiced, or the review or discussion of claims, loss or risk management information, records, data, advice or communications from or with respect to any insurer of the public body or any intergovernmental risk management association or self insurance pool of which the public body is a member (5 ILCS 120/2(c) (12)); Trustee R. Irons seconded the motion.

Roll Call Vote:

Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee DeHart, Trustee R. Irons, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Smith, Trustee L. Irons

The motion carried.

The Board went into Executive Session at 7:26 pm.

The Board returned from Executive Session at 8:54 pm.

Clerk Wheeland called the roll.

Present: President Mike Lopez Trustees Kathy DeHart, Leigh Irons, Ralph Irons, Dale Lael, Christina Smith, Jake Tripp Clerk Linda Wheeland Attorney Jason Brokaw

Adjournment

A motion was made by Trustee Lael to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Trustee L. Irons.

Roll Call Vote:

Ayes: Trustee Lael, Trustee DeHart, Trustee Ralph Irons, Trustee Tripp, Trustee Smith, Trustee L. Irons

The motion carried and the meeting adjourned at 8:55 pm.

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