City of Byron City Council met July 17.
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: Mittzi Fulrath, Dan Reilly, Zeke Hobbie, Amber Dach, Michael Gyorkos, Christy Hanlin, Todd Isaacs, Emily Gerdes. Eight members present by roll call vote. Quorum established. Absent: None
* - denotes start of the roll call vote
PRESENT: Mayor John Rickard
City Clerk Caryn Huber
City Attorney Kim Krahenbuhl
Dir. Of Public WorksAaron Vincer
Chief of Police Todd Murray
Dir. of Econ. Dev. Larry Hewitt
City Engineer Jason Stoll
Citizens Pam Kultgen, Bill Pirnat, Rylie Meyer, Tom
Przytulski (ComEd)
4. REVERENCE PERIOD – Mayor Rickard led the Council in prayer.
5. APPROVAL/AMENDMENTS TO AGENDA – Motion by Alderman Hanlin to approve, as amended, the July 17, 2019, Agenda, seconded by Alderman Reilly. Roll call vote: Reilly, AYE; Hobbie, AYE; Dach, AYE; Gyorkos, AYE; Hanlin, AYE; Isaacs, AYE; Gerdes, AYE; Fulrath, AYE;. Motion passed: AYE, 8; NAY, 0; ABS 0.
6. MINUTES –
a. July 3, 2019, Regular Council Meeting Minutes – Motion made by Alderman Hanlin to approve, as presented, the July 3, 2019, Regular Council minutes, seconded by Alderman Fulrath. Roll call vote: Hobbie, ABSTAIN; Dach, AYE; Gyorkos, AYE; Hanlin, AYE; Isaacs, AYE; Gerdes, AYE. Fulrath, AYE; Reilly, AYE;
Motion passed: AYE 7; NAY 0; ABSTAIN 1.
7. PUBLIC COMMENT – None
8. TREASURER’S REPORT – None
9. LIST OF BILLS - The tentative bills for the City of Byron were presented to the Council for discussion Motion made by Alderman Hanlin to approve the payment of bills dated July 17, 2019, in the amount of $277,803.15. Motion seconded by Alderman Isaacs. Roll call vote: Dach, AYE; Gyorkos, AYE; Hanlin, AYE; Isaacs, AYE; Gerdes, AYE; Fulrath, AYE; Reilly, AYE; Hobbie, AYE. Motion passed: AYE, 8; NAY, 0; ABSTAIN, 0.
10. MAYOR’S REPORT –No report.
11. CITY ATTORNEY’S REPORT – No report.
12. CITY ENGINEER’S PROJECT STATUS – There was a pre-construction meeting with N- Trak to discuss the upcoming work on Walnut St., which should begin by the end of the month. Storm sewer work will begin first. There will be a posted detour and traffic will be rerouted to 7th St. and 3rd St. A map will be available at city hall, and notifications will be given to the newspaper and the post office. ComEd is relocating a pole as part of the project.
13. REPORT OF DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT – A meeting was held today with IDOT representatives. A federal infrastructure grant might be a way to get funding for the Route 2 project from Byron to Rockford. The project is not currently in the six year plan, but it is hoped it may appear on next year’s plan, meaning the project is at least 7-8 years away. • They discussed a flashing light at the entrance to Hairy Cow Brewery to warn drivers of the left hand turn they are approaching. • They discussed the shoulder fall off at the sewer plant – IDOT maintenance will look at it. • Excavation has begun at the golf facility at PrairieView Golf Course – they hope to be open by November. • There is a soft re-opening/ribbon cutting scheduled at Edward Jones from 4:30-6:30PM tomorrow. • Director Hewitt has a meeting scheduled with Hairy Cow Brewery in the morning to discuss road patching, final surfacing of the parking lot and property clean up and seeding. Alderman Isaacs suggested giving him deadlines. Mayor Rickard suggested having him begin the work before the next council meeting and reporting progress to Council. Director Hewitt said he will give him a list and ask for start and estimated completion dates. Alderman Gerdes asked about the patio that is not fenced, but Director Hewitt said there is no requirement to fence it. Variances were granted because of the remote location. Alderman Fulrath asked if we have methods to enforce the deadlines we set – Mayor Rickard said we have both occupancy permits and liquor licenses that can be revoked. Alderman Isaacs pointed out that it took him a long time after laying the foundation before beginning work on the building, and feels deadlines are necessary in this case. He also suggested that the owner attend the next city council meeting.
14. COMMITTEE REPORTS
a. Community Services – No report.
b. Public Safety – The committee met tonight. The Rush property at 116 N. Peru
was discussed. We are waiting for documents from the bank so Attorney Krahenbuhl can do a title search and we can obtain the property for demolition. • The committee received a ByronFest report from Chief Murray. There was a DUI arrest in the McDonald’s parking lot. The Mayor can expect a report of liquor violations at The Cave. • They discussed the SRO and hiring an additional police officer. The Sheriff’s Department will provide the SRO for this school year. The committee is discussing hiring another officer, but the decision will be made at the next meeting after further examination of the budget.
c. Administrative – No report.
15. CONTINUING BUSINESS –
a. School Resource Officer/School agreement – Discussed in committee reports.
The item will be removed from the Council agenda for the time being.
b. Intergovernmental Agreement with Byron Township – Nothing new to report.
c. 2019-2020 Budget – The proposed budget, budget summary and appropriations ordinance are included in Dropbox. Alderman Isaacs said he has not made changes to the documents since the last meeting, and they are ready to be voted on. The revenue from the school for the SRO is still in the budget, and we will have to be aware of this revenue not coming in. Alderman Fulrath asked if it is possible to move funds from one account to another in the event we want to hire another police officer. Attorney Krahenbuhl said we can loan money from one account to another, but it needs to be paid back within that year. The committee recommends passage of the 2019-2020 budget. Roll call vote: Gyorkos, AYE; Hanlin, AYE; Isaacs, AYE; Gerdes, AYE; Fulrath, AYE; Reilly, AYE; Hobbie, AYE; Dach, AYE. Motion passed: AYE, 8; NAY, 0; ABSTAIN, 0.
d. Appropriations Ordinance – Alderman Isaacs explained that the appropriations represent 125% of the budget amount. The committee recommends passage of Appropriations Ordinance 2019-1. Roll call vote: Hanlin, AYE; Isaacs, AYE; Gerdes, AYE; Fulrath, AYE; Reilly, AYE; Hobbie, AYE; Dach, AYE; Gyorkos, AYE. Motion passed: AYE, 8; NAY, 0; ABSTAIN, 0.
e. Rush Property – Discussed in committee report.
16. NEW BUSINESS
a. Certification of Revenues – Alderman Isaacs explained that the Certification of Revenues has to be filed within 30 days of filing the Appropriations Ordinance. We will vote on it at the next Council meeting.
17. COUNCIL TALK – Mayor Rickard introduced Tom Przytulski, ComEd External Affairs Manager. He addressed electricity scams, and reminded aldermen that ComEd will never call or go door to door selling electricity. Residents may call 1-800-EDISON1 if they have questions. ComEd personnel will always have an ID. ComEd has modified staffing levels in anticipation of the coming heat wave. • Mayor Rickard reported that the Community Room will be available as a cooling center during the anticipated heat wave. County Market donated eight cases of water. If after hours, residents should call the non-emergency police number and an officer will let them in. • Alderman Reilly reported that the Ogle County Health Department has identified two pools that tested positive for West Nile virus.
18. 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.
b. COMMUNICATION
a. Next Regular City Council Meeting – Wednesday, August 7, 2019 @ 6:30 pm.
Mayor Rickard adjourned the City Council meeting at 7:02pm.
https://www.cityofbyron.com/vertical/sites/%7B67304C08-5FC3-4329-8F07-4786D33EE040%7D/uploads/Minutes_-_2019-07-17-Approved.pdf
Alerts Sign-up