City of Galena City Council met Nov. 8.
Here are the minutes provided by the council:
21C-0444 – CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Renner called the regular meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. in the Board Chambers at 101 Green Street on 08 November 2021.
21C-0445 – ROLL CALL
Upon roll call, the following members were present: Bernstein, Kieffer, McCoy, Westemeier, Wienen, Renner
Absent: Hahn
21C-0446 – ESTABLISHMENT OF QUORUM
Mayor Renner announced a quorum of Board members present to conduct City business.
21C-0447 – PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
The Pledge was recited.
21C-0448 - REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEE
No reports.
21C-0449 – CITIZENS COMMENTS
Ilisa Farrell – 505 S. Bench Street – Farrell presented statistics to the city council on the effects of closing Main Street and its ramifications on parking on Bench Street and Dewey Avenue. Farrell stated, while she is not opposed to closing Main Street, the city must do something to allow residents parking. Farrell recommended shuttling people from the school lots during the summer and from Rec Park when school is in session. Farrell feels it is important for the community to work together to thrive economically while being respectful to the people who live here.
Bob Conley, Fire Chief – Conley voiced concern with outdoor dining. He advised many of the areas on North Main Street were to narrow for the fire department to operate in should there be an alarm. He voiced concern that the use of concrete barriers would make things even more difficult as they could not be moved easily. The eliminated parking in those areas has caused more of a parking problem in loading zones and next to fire hydrants. Conley advised he saw unattended vehicles parked in front of the barricades at both ends which eliminates access in case of an alarm. Conley noted delivery trucks were parked on Hill Street and both sides of Main Street which also makes it very difficult to respond and is a safety issue.
Lisa Bastian, 302 S. Main Street – Bastian raised the following questions to be considered:
∙ Could the parking lot next to City Hall be designated for merchant and tenant parking to get those cars off Main Street? She recommended the city issue window stickers for merchants or tenants at a minimal charge.
∙ Is it legal for private business entities to use city streets for personal gain?
∙ Who is liable if someone falls or becomes injured when using public property for private purposes?
Bastian stated she feels Main Street needs to remain open so ambulance, fire and traffic can easily flow.
Regular Board Meeting 08 November 2021
Rose Noble, Galena Country Tourism – Noble stated she worked on the tourism application coming up later on the agenda. Since the application was sent out, Noble has received two letters of support. One from Northwest Economic Development and the other from the Galena Chamber of Commerce. She urged the council to approve the application.
Noble shared the 2020 impact numbers:
∙ $251 million dollars in visitor spending.
∙ $13.8 million in state tax.
∙ $9.6 million in local taxes.
∙ 2,484 tourism related jobs with $6 million dollars in payroll.
Noble stated, in terms of outdoor dining, there is a lot of support from businesses. She urged the council to try to be creative and find a nice balance between visitors and residents as revenues help Galena progress and grow.
CONSENT AGENDA CA21-20
21C-0450 – APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF OCTOBER 25, 2021
21C-0451 – APPROVAL OF A CONTRACT WITH LAI, LTD. TO REBUILD THE STEP SCREEN/SCREW WASH PRESS AT THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT
21C-0452 – APPROVAL OF BUDGET AMENDMENT BA22-04 FOR REBUILDING THE STEP SCREEN/SCREW WASH PRESS AT THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT
21C-0453 – APPROVAL OF A CONTRACT WITH ORIGIN DESIGN FOR DAVIS CREEK BRIDGE REPLACEMENT CONSULTING SERVICES
21C-0454 – APPROVAL OF A REQUEST BY THE GALENA PUBLIC LIBRARY FOR USE OF THE GRANT PARK PAVILION ON MAY 22, 2022, FOR A LIVE PERFORMANCE AS PART OF LITFEST
Motion: Bernstein moved, seconded by Kieffer, to approve Consent Agenda, CA21-20. Discussion: None.
Roll Call: AYES: Kieffer, McCoy, Westemeier, Wienen, Bernstein, Renner
NAYS: None
ABSENT: Hahn
The motion carried.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
21C-0429 – DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON OUTDOOR SEATING PLAN FOR 2022
Motion: McCoy moved, seconded by Bernstein, to discontinue outdoor seating for 2022.
Discussion: McCoy stated he agrees outdoor dining was a wonderful thing and something he enjoyed participating in; however, it has come to the city’s attention that it is not legal for the city to go forward with it.
Regular Board Meeting 08 November 2021
Nack advised outdoor dining came about due to COVID restrictions by the State of Illinois. Outdoor dining was done to help the restaurants at that time. Nack advised the law clearly states you cannot use public property for private gain. At the time outdoor dining was done, the city felt comfortable doing it based on the restrictions handed down by the State of Illinois. While COVID is still here, the restrictions on restaurants have been lifted. Since that restriction no longer exists, Nack feels it would be hard to withstand judicial scrutiny if it were challenged.
Roll Call: AYES: Kieffer, McCoy, Westemeier, Wienen, Bernstein, Renner
NAYS: None
ABSENT: Hahn
The motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS
21C-0455 – FIRST READING OF THE 2021 TAX LEVY ORDINANCE FOR TAXES TO BE COLLECTED IN 2022
Motion: Kieffer moved, seconded by McCoy to approve the first reading of the 2021 Tax Levy Ordinance for taxes to be collected in 2022, 21C-0455.
Discussion: None.
Roll Call: AYES: McCoy, Westemeier, Bernstein, Kieffer, Renner
NAYS: Wienen
ABSENT: Hahn
The motion carried.
21C-0456 – DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON TOURISM ATTRACTIONS AND FESTIVALS GRANT APPLICATION
Motion: Westemeier moved, seconded by Wienen, to approve the Tourism Attractions and Festivals Grant Application, 21C-0456.
Discussion: Council agreed anything to improve lighting is great. Westemeier feels it will also improve the parking situation as people will be more willing to park in those lots.
Roll Call: AYES: Westemeier, Wienen, Bernstein, Kieffer, McCoy, Renner
NAYS: None
ABSENT: Hahn
The motion carried.
21C-0457 – WARRANTS
Motion: Kieffer moved, seconded by Wienen, to approve the Warrants as presented, 21C-0457.
Discussion: Bernstein questioned what the invoices from Electrical Engineers were for. Moran advised it was for scheduled testing and maintenance on the generators throughout town.
Roll Call: AYES: Wienen, Bernstein, Kieffer, McCoy, Westemeier, Renner
NAYS: None
ABSENT: Hahn
The motion carried.
Regular Board Meeting 08 November 2021
21C-0458 – ALDERPERSONS’ COMMENTS
Halloween Parade – McCoy praised everyone for their work in pulling off a fantastic event. Kieffer agreed.
Outdoor Dining – Wienen advised the city is doing what is in our authority to do. Tourism is alive and well and will continue.
October – Westemeier stated October has been great for Galena with the Oktoberfest, Country Fair and the Halloween parade.
Outdoor Dining – Westemeier stated he was torn on outdoor dining. He stated he was in favor until Nack brought up the liability issues. He hopes the city can continue to look into it and come up with something different down the road. He recommended finding out how other towns are doing it and see what they do. Westemeier agreed the street should be kept open all the way.
Old Grant Home – Bernstein commended the owners of the Old Grant Home on High Street for doing a wonderful job restoring it. She stated it is nice to see that home being worked on and taking shape. It is an asset to the community.
21C-0459 – CITY ADMINISTRATOR’S COMMENTS
Capital Improvement Plan – The Capital Improvement Plan update is under way. It will be presented at the first meeting in December.
Annexation – Moran advised the city has received a petition from the owners of the former Galena Chrysler body shop at the corner of Gear and Highway 20 for annexation and rezoning. The Zoning Board will hear it in December. It will come before the council the second meeting in December.
21C-0460 – MAYOR’S REPORT
Mayor Renner thanked everyone for coming, especially the boy scouts. Renner thanked the volunteers, and all involved with the parade. It went very well.
21C-0461 – ADJOURNMENT
Motion: McCoy moved, seconded by Westemeier, to adjourn.
Discussion: None.
Roll Call: AYES: Bernstein, Hahn, Kieffer, McCoy, Westemeier, Wienen, Renner
NAYS: None
The motion carried.
The meeting adjourned at 6:52 p.m.
http://www.cityofgalena.org/documents/filelibrary/side_tabs/agendas__minutes/city_council_minutes/2021/cc110821_C2B1FE9818A62.pdf
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