NW Illinois News

City of East Dubuque City Council met April 14.

Here are the minutes provided by the council:

Please Stand for the Pledge of Allegiance

    1.    25-00421    Call to Order – Mayor Digman

Start Time: 6:00 pm

Alderperson Belken, Alderperson Burgmeier, Alderperson Degenhardt, Alderperson Robey, Mayor Digman and Attorney Hess    Absent – Alderperson Fluhr and Alderperson Meier

    2.    25-0422    Speakers from the Floor

No Speakers. 

Mayor’s comments on last meetings. Need to look at a different way that we handle recommendations for the Zoning Board. As it is sits now their recommendations don’t carry any weight. Maybe look at it would take two-thirds of the City Council to pass any recommendations from the Zoning Board. He challenges everyone at the table that there are better ways to do things and think we need to find them. The petition – a petition needs to be filed with the City Clerk before the meeting. If the petition was filed with the City Clerk, then that might have been a different outcome of the meeting. Would like the ordinance committee to look at how we look at recommendations.

City Manager update on last week’s meetings. The owner of the property decided to pursue switching it back to residential. He would like to reverse the commercial. We are looking at the best way of going about that. Could someone just put in an appeal. Thinking they have 45 days to appeal. Not sure and looking at it. This development is new as of that afternoon. 

NEW BUSINESS:

    3.    25-0423    Discussion and Possible Action to Approve Commercial Façade Improvement Award to Slaats Auto Repair in the City of East Dubuque, Jo Daviess County, Illinois / Mayor Digman, City Manager Seitz

Request for new signage which does meet the minimum requirements for the façade development program. In this case the minimum of $2,000.00 and we do allow signs that are permanently attached. We do not allow advertising signs that gets reimbursed through the façade program. He recommends the council to pass this façade improvement.

Motion by Alderperson Burgmeier to Approve Commercial Façade Improvement Award to Slaats Auto Repair second by Alderperson Robey    ROLL CALL: Ayes – Alderperson Belken, Alderperson Burgmeier, Alderperson Degenhardt and Alderperson Robey    Motion carried    Absent – Alderperson Fluhr and Alderperson Meier

    4.    25-0424    Discussion of FY 2026 City Budget in the City of East Dubuque, Jo Daviess County, Illinois / Mayor Digman, City Manager Seitz

As done in the past likes to break off small pieces of the budget so folks are not surprised by things. So that you can go in with an understanding of things. Tonight, I just wanted to go in with the different types of debt held by the city. See how that plays into the budget process. Basically, there are three different kinds of debt.

Low or no interest long term loan – These are the loans that generally come through IEPA for water and sewer projects. These are usually twenty-year loans. These loans have been used for the Water Tower, Sewage Plant, Water Main Replacement Project, Oxford, Hiawatha and Montgomery. 

Bank Rate Loans – These are the ones we use on vehicles. Sweeper, Vactor and Fire Truck that we purchased last year (on a three-year loan). All of our goals is to get to a position in where we can pay cash for the vehicles that are being purchased. This is a several step process that we will need to go through. 1. Stop digging or borrowing cash. 

We also have the City Hall that comes up this September in a balloon payment. Given the fact the interest rates were good when it was done when the building was bought. With the rates not as good now. 2. Is to get to a point to pay cash for the rest of this loan and be done with it. 3. Is the Bond – Emergency Services Building – Goal there is to minimize the amount that we have to borrow. We inform the company that we will be taking out bonds and how much we want. We will not borrow any more from the bonds than we have to. Full amount of the bonds is $4.5 million the goal is to get as close to $3 million as we can. This would be at the discretion of the council. 

This Wednesday the budget will be going to the paper and by Wednesday afternoon the budget will be posted in City Hall. Anyone will be able to view the budget. Next Monday we will go more in depth of the budget. So, you will have a chance to see where we are at on the budget. Then we will have another week to understand before the hearing and voting on the budget.

No motion required.

    5.    25-0425    Discussion and Possible Action to Approve Getting Estimates for Tuckpointing of the Emergency Services Building in the City of East Dubuque, Jo Daviess County, Illinois / Mayor Digman, City Manager Seitz

Talking with the architects we have the ability to move the process ahead faster with completing the building with saving money. This would be the last area of unknowns. They will need to come to us if there are any change orders when they run into things. Asbestos starts tomorrow and that is the last of the demolition of the interior of the building.

Neat fact found on one of the studs the completion of the building. Fin August 9, 1892 this stud will be taken and preserve and display it. 

Recommends this and asks anyone who knows people who can do this work to let them know to submit their estimates to City Hall. Will be putting in the Telegraph Herald and request that estimates be to City Hall by 4pm on Thursday April 24th.

Motion by Alderperson Belken to Approve Getting Estimates for Tuckpointing of the Emergency Services Building second by Alderperson Degenhardt    ROLL CALL: Ayes – Alderperson Belken, Alderperson Burgmeier, Alderperson Degenhardt and Alderperson Robey    Motion carried    Absent – Alderperson Fluhr and Alderperson Meier

    6.    25-0426    Discussion and Possible Action to Approve An Ordinance for Encouraging Replacement of Sidewalks in the City of East Dubuque, Jo Daviess County, Illinois / Mayor Digman, City Manager Seitz

Been told by a number of folks that it had been a policy with the city to pay for the concrete where sidewalk needed to be replaced and benefit to the city. The city would pay for the material with the owner paying for the labor to put it in. 

Recommend this.

Where is the money coming from to pay for this.  It can come from TIF if eligible. Otherwise, it will be funded through operations. Still is something to benefit the city to have it done. 

Is this just for the public city sidewalks. It is not the private sidewalks correct. Just for the public sidewalks.

The mayor would like to put an end date of November 1st. Make this as a yearly thing and not an open thing. 

Motion by Alderperson Robey to Approve Amending Application to be Submitted by End Date of November 1, 2025 second by Alderperson Belken    ROLL CALL: Ayes – Alderperson Belken, Alderperson Burgmeier, Alderperson Degenhardt and Alderperson Robey    Motion carried    Absent – Alderperson Fluhr and Alderperson Meier

Motion by Alderperson Belken to Approve An Ordinance for Encouraging Replacement of Sidewalks second by Alderperson Robey    ROLL CALL: Ayes – Alderperson Belken, Alderperson Burgmeier, Alderperson Degenhardt and Alderperson Robey    Motion carried    Absent – Alderperson Fluhr and Alderperson Meier

The City Manager wanted to introduce Officer Andrew Gray because the council wanted to meet them when they were available. Officer Gray came forward and introduced himself. 

    7.    25-0427    Adjourn

End Time: 6:30 pm

Motion by Alderperson Degenhardt to Adjourn second by Alderperson Burgmeier    ROLL CALL: Ayes – Alderperson Belken, Alderperson Burgmeier, Alderperson Degenhardt and Alderperson Robey    Motion carried    Absent – Alderperson Fluhr and Alderperson Meier

https://www.cityofeastdubuque.com/agenda/minutes/april-14-2025-minutes