City of Byron Council met September 19.
Here is the minutes provided by the Council:
1. Call To Order – Mayor Rickard called the meeting to order at 6:32 p.m.
2. Pledge Of Allegiance – Led by Mayor Rickard
3. Roll Call – Aldermen present: *Todd Isaacs, Emily Gerdes, Mittzi Fulrath, Dan Reilly, Mayor Rickard, Michael Gyorkos, Christy Hanlin. Seven members present by Roll Call Vote. Quorum established.
* - denotes start of the roll call vote
Present: City Clerk Caryn Huber
City Attorney Kim Krahenbuhl
Treasurer Kim Gouker
Chief of Police Todd Murray
Econ. Dev. Dir. Larry Hewitt
City Engineer Jason Stoll
Dir. Public Works Aaron Vincer
Citizens Pam Kultgen
Andy Gramer, Jill Gramer, Benjamin Gramer, Nicholas Gramer, Katherine Gramer
4. Reverence Period – Mayor Rickard led the Council in prayer.
5. Approval/Amendments To Agenda – Mayor Rickard added “Approve changes to 3rd Street Project” as a. under Old Business. Motion made by Alderman Reilly to approve, as amended, the September 19, 2018, Agenda, seconded by Alderman Fulrath. Roll call vote: Gerdes, Aye; Fulrath, Aye; Reilly, Aye; Rickard, Aye; Gyorkos, Aye; Hanlin, Aye; Isaacs, Aye. Motion Passed: Aye, 7; Abs, 0; Nay 0.
6. Minutes –
a. May 2, 2018 Regular Council Minutes – Mayor Rickard noted that we are past the date where we can approve the May 2 minutes, however, he suggested that council still vote on these minutes. Motion made by Alderman Hanlin to approve, as presented, the May 2, 2018 regular council minutes, seconded by Alderman Isaacs. Roll call vote: Fulrath, Aye; Reilly, Aye; Rickard, Aye; Gyorkos, Aye; Hanlin, Aye; Isaacs, Aye; Gerdes, Abs. Motion Passed: Aye 6; Abs 1; Nay 0.
b. May 16, 2018 Regular Council Minutes – Motion made by Alderman Reilly to approve, as presented, the May 16, 2018 regular council minutes, seconded by Alderman Hanlin. Roll call vote: Reilly, Aye; Rickard, Aye; Gyorkos, Aye; Hanlin, Aye; Isaacs, Aye; Gerdes, Aye; Fulrath, Abs. Motion Passed: Aye 6; Abs 1; Nay 0.
c. June 6, 2018 Regular Council Minutes – Motion made by Alderman Hanlin to approve, as presented, the June 6, 2018 regular council minutes, seconded by Alderman Gyorkos. Roll call vote: Rickard, Aye; Gyorkos, Aye; Hanlin, Aye; Isaacs, Aye; Gerdes, Abs; Fulrath, Aye; Reilly, Abs. Motion Passed: Aye 5; Abs 2; Nay 0.
d. September 5, 2018 Regular Council Minutes - Alderman Fulrath motioned to approve, as presented, the September 5, 2018, Regular Council Meeting minutes, seconded by Alderman Hanlin. Roll call vote: Gyorkos, Aye; Hanlin, Aye; Isaacs, Aye; Gerdes, Aye; Fulrath, Aye; Reilly, Aye; Rickard, Aye. Motion Passed: Aye, 7; Abs, 0; Nay, 0.
7. Public Comment – None
8. Treasurer’s Report – Mayor Rickard asked if there were any questions regarding the Treasurer’s report that was included in council packets. There were no questions from the Aldermen.
9. List Of Bills – The tentative bills for the City of Byron were presented to the Council for discussion. Alderman Isaacs asked if the $10,000 payment made to Robert Curatola is the first or second payment made to him for work on the Public Works building. Engineer Stoll said it is the final payment owed to him. Alderman Isaacs asked if that price included material and Director Hewitt said it does not. Director Vincer said the project is approximately $14,000 over budget due to the purchasing of new garage doors, electrical work and lighting that needed to be done to update the building. Motion made by Alderman Hanlin to approve the payment of bills, dated September 19, 2018, as presented, in the amount of $119,751.28, seconded by Alderman Fulrath. Roll call vote: Hanlin, Aye; Isaacs, Aye; Gerdes, Aye; Fulrath, Aye; Reilly, Aye; Rickard, Aye; Gyorkos, Aye. Motion Passed: Aye, 7; Abs, 0; Nay, 0.
10. Mayor’s Report – Mayor Rickard announced that he has appointed Andy Gramer to fill the vacant Alderman position. Clerk Huber swore in Andy Gramer as Alderman-Ward 2. He will serve until the election in April 2019.
11. City Attorney’s Report – No Report.
12. City Engineer’s Project Status – Headworks project – the conditioner and hot water heater are online. Jason is working with the manufacturer and engineer, looking for an effective way to test the conditioner (the conditioner actually changes the chemistry of the water), as traditional tests are not appropriate to test for hardness. Tonight the committee discussed the 2018 Street Project, and more on 3rd Street will be discussed later in the agenda.
13. Report Of Director Of Economic Development – Director Hewitt reported that Hairy Cow Brewery is on schedule for an October 1 occupancy, with a possible November 1 opening. A ComEd/Exelon crew cleaned the railroad viaduct, but Larry will follow up on some brush that still remains.
There are some issues that have come up with the downtown property purchase. There is some discrepancy with what the city purchased and what China King thinks they still own (approximately 6 ft. of space). Right now, this area houses a storage unit, a generator and an air conditioning unit. He will be in touch with the owners of China King to discuss moving these items at their own expense. Alderman Isaacs asked what the approximate cost would be to move these items, and asked if TIF District Funds might be used to assist the owners in doing this. Director Hewitt said they will be taking another look at the space to determine if leaving these items in place is an option. If so, it is estimated they will lose one parking space. Right now, this area is planned to be a striped island which is needed to put space between the parking lot and the building. Engineer Stoll feels that long term it is in everybody’s best interest to move the items, as the business has room on the east side of the building to relocate them.
14. Committee Reports
a. Community Services – No report.
b. Emergency Services – The committee did not have a meeting tonight, but Chief Murray had an update to share with the council regarding an initial conversation he had with Superintendent Buster Barton about hiring a school resource officer. As a general rule, the school would pay 75% of the officer’s salary, and the city would pay 25%. The officer would be on the Byron police force during summer breaks. As these talks have just begun, there is no timeline in place, and it has not gone through the school board process. Alderman Isaacs asked how this would fit in with the union, for instance, if there was a time when the school no longer needed the position and the city could not hire the officer full time. Chief Murray replied that the contracts are usually 2-3 years long, and we would not renew the contract or rehire if the city could not absorb the cost. Chief Murray will keep the council advised as the process continues.
c. Administrative – No report.
15. Old Business –
a. Approve changes to 3rd Street project – Engineer Stoll advised council that the recommendation that came out of committee is for mainline curb and gutter replacements from Franklin to Mineral Street, adding approximately $160,000 to the 3rd Street project. Motion made by Alderman Hanlin to make these repairs to 3rd Street, seconded by Alderman Gyorkos. Isaacs, Aye; Gerdes, Aye; Fulrath, Aye; Reilly, Aye; Rickard, Aye; Gramer, Abs; Gyorkos, Aye; Hanlin, Aye. Motion Passed: Aye, 7; Abs, 1; Nay, 0.
16. New Business –
a. Hairy Cow Fence Variance – No new information at this time.
b. Norup Demo Bid – A bid from Norup was included in council packets for demolition of the covered patio and storage garages by China King, in preparation for future parking for the city. This bid includes demo and haul away costs only, it does not include extraction from the principal building (someone else would have to saw), or utility disconnections. Director Hewitt said they are still waiting for a quote on the building extraction. Engineer Stoll suggested that we not do the demolition unless we are certain that the project could be completed, and the parking lot could be paved, before the weather breaks. Alderman Isaacs ask about doing the demolition now, and the paving in spring, but Engineer Stoll said that leaving the buildings there over the winter was a better option.
c. Garbage Rate Increase – A $.50 garbage rate increase is about to go into effect, and the committee will discuss at their next meeting if they will absorb this increase, or pass along to customers. Alderman Reilly asked about bidding the garbage contract, but Alderman Isaacs said there are still several years to go on the Moring contract.
17. Executive Session
a. Section 2(c)11 – Pending, probable or imminent litigation
b. Section 2(c)1 – Personnel
c. Section 2(c)(5)(6) – Purchase/Sale of City Owned Real Property
d. Section 2(c)(21) – Review/Approval of Closed Meeting Minutes
e. Section 2(c)(2) – Collective Bargaining Negotiations
Mayor Rickard advised there was no need for an Executive Session.
18. Communication
a. Next Regular City Council Meeting – Wednesday, October 3, 2018 @ 6:30 pm.
Mayor Rickard adjourned the City Council meeting at 7:02 p.m.
https://www.cityofbyron.com/vertical/sites/%7B67304C08-5FC3-4329-8F07-4786D33EE040%7D/uploads/Minutes_-_2018-09-19_approved.pdf
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