Chambana Sun

The Office of the Village of Thomasboro Board of Trustees met April 4 to discuss the issuance of a liquor license to Trustee Anthony Grilo for his establishment at 612 N. Commercial St.

The board is the regulating municipal authority for the village.

Here are the meeting minutes as provided by the village:

Thomasboro Village Board of Trustees

Regular Board Meeting

April 4, 2016

Thomasboro Village Hall

101 W. Main Street, Thomasboro, Illinois

A Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Thomasboro was held on Monday,

April 4, 2016, President Brad Morris presiding. President Morris called the meeting to order at

7:00pm.

Roll Call

The Village Clerk called the roll, finding the following members physically present: Village

President Brad Morris; and Trustees Anthony Grilo, Kyle Henegar, Anna Martin, Dustin Rhodes

and Mickey Wilson. Trustee Jeff Robertson was absent.

Other Village officials present: Keith Willis, Chief of Police; Leon Albers, Treasurer; Tyler Martin,

Public Works Superintendent; Kara Wade, Village Attorney; and Jeremy Reale, Village Clerk.

Pledge of Allegiance

Following roll call, the Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

Discussion/Approval of Minutes of Previous Meeting

Trustee Grilo moved to approve the minutes of the March 7, 2016 regular meeting, as prepared.

Trustee Wilson seconded the motion. Motion carried, all present voting “aye”.

Presentation of Bills

Following review and discussion of the monthly bills, Trustee Grilo moved to approve the

payment of the bills listed and the regular bills yet to be received. Trustee Henegar seconded

the motion.

The Village Clerk called the roll:

YEAS: Grilo, Henegar, Martin, Rhodes, and Wilson – 5

NAYS: None – 0

ABSENT: Robertson – 1

Motion carried by roll call vote of 5 to 0, with 1 member absent.

Committee Reports

Police & Safety: Chair Martin presented the monthly activity reports. Chief Willis noted that

Kendra Ward would resume code enforcement activities in mid-April.

Personnel: No report.

Building Permit & Liquor License:

1) Class B/B Sunday Stamp License for Grilo Enterprises Inc.

President Morris reported that Trustee Grilo had applied for the liquor license for his

establishment at 612 N. Commercial Street. The matter had been reviewed by the

Village Attorney and it was determined that he would be eligible to hold a liquor

license; however, Trustee Grilo would be prohibited from any participation in

discussions concerning the licensing or regulation of alcohol that might come before

the Board in the future. The license had been issued to Grilo Enterprises and no

action was required by the Board.

2) Discuss Legal Selling Age of Alcohol for Off-Premise Consumption

President Morris reported that he had been contacted by a licensee concerning the

possibility of nineteen and twenty-year-old employees selling alcohol by package for

off-premise consumption. It was discovered that the State of Illinois leaves those

age regulations to the discretion of each local government authority. The current

Village ordinance specified that a minimum age of twenty-one was required for the

pouring or serving of alcohol in open containers for on-premise consumption;

however, there was no such regulatory language in place for off-premise package

sales. Therefore, those employees aged nineteen and older would be permitted to

conduct such sales unless the Board amended the ordinance to raise the minimum

age requirement. Following discussion, the consensus of the Board was to leave the

language of the ordinance as written.

Health, Sanitation & Public Relations: Chair Grilo reminded those in attendance that the

spring community cleanup day would be held on Saturday, May 14.

1) Request for Proposals (RFP) for Single-Hauler Refuse Collection Services

Chair Grilo distributed a draft RFP document for review. The Village would be

requesting a three-year contract with the option for a two-year extension upon

completion of the original agreement period. The contractor would provide each

residential customer with a 96-gallon container for trash and one for recyclable

materials. Regular trash collection would be provided weekly, with recycling

collected on a biweekly basis. The contract would also call for the company to

provide a trash receptacle for the park, a dumpster for Village use at the water

treatment plant, and dumpsters for village cleanup days. All billing and collections

would be processed through the Village office, with charges for garbage collection

added to each water bill. Chair Grilo noted that the Village would need to decide at

some point in the future if an administrative fee should be factored into the consumer

rate to cover the Village’s processing costs. Following discussion, the consensus

was to move forward with the request for proposals, with submitted proposals to be

reviewed at the June regular meeting.

Waterworks & Sewer: Mr. Martin reported that he had sent off one of the Michael Street lift

station pumps for inspection, with the cost to repair the pump figured at $12,600.00. He would

be getting a quote on a converter for a three-phase replacement pump. Chair Henegar

congratulated Mr. Martin on obtaining his Class D water license.

Streets & Alleys: Chair Grilo reported that Premier Cooperative would begin work on the south

elevator after school dismissed for break. These improvements would require the temporary

closure of Commercial Street at Pearl Street. The closure would last for approximately one

week beginning around June 1. He added that the Village would temporarily be without street

lighting on Commercial Street during that time period because electric service would be

suspended to allow site work to be completed.

Civil Defense & Parks: Chair Rhodes reported that monthly siren testing would be conducted

tomorrow. Ms. Zook had attended annual spotters training in March. He also reported that a

Park Committee meeting had been convened with ten volunteers in attendance, adding that he

would like to see more community involvement in the park improvement project. It was planned

to conduct a survey to determine the ages of children in the Village, as well as the interests of

both children and adults in terms of needs for the park area. He stated that the picnic tables

and rock had been vandalized last month, with Border Magic stepping in to make all necessary

repairs. The installation of security cameras would be discussed as part of the overall park

improvement plan.

Old Business

(A) Purchase of Truck for Street Department fleet

Trustee Henegar moved to approve the purchase of a new Ford F450 truck with dump

bed through the state bid process. Trustee Wilson seconded the motion. The Board

discussed whether to trade in the old 1982 dump truck as part of the purchase for

$4,200.00 or advertise for sealed bids to see if a more favorable price could be obtained.

It was decided to put out a request for sealed bids

The Village Clerk called the roll:

YEAS: Grilo, Henegar, Martin, Rhodes, and Wilson – 5

NAYS: None – 0

ABSENT: Robertson – 1

Motion carried by roll call vote of 5 to 0, with 1 member absent.

(B) Update on Abandoned Properties at 501 Fredrick and 702 Morris

Attorney Wade provided the Board with an update on the legal process of obtaining

judicial deed to the two properties. The Village was currently in the process of litigation

and had successfully gotten the properties declared legally abandoned. With this

declaration, all parties with any interest in the properties would have thirty days to get

involved in the process. If no parties were to get involved with either property, the

Village would be able to obtain the judicial deeds. She added that the Village would

looking to have the process completed within sixty to ninety days.

New Business

(A) Authorize Rental of Porta-Potty for West Side Park

Trustee Grilo moved to approve the rental of one facility for the season. Trustee Rhodes

seconded the motion.

The Village Clerk called the roll:

YEAS: Grilo, Henegar, Martin, Rhodes, and Wilson – 5

NAYS: None – 0

ABSENT: Robertson – 1

Motion carried by roll call vote of 5 to 0, with 1 member absent.

(B) Authorize Salary Adjustments for Police Chief, Treasurer, and Village Clerk

Trustee Wilson moved to authorize two percent increases in wages for Keith Willis, Leon

Albers, and Jeremy Reale, effective May 1. Trustee Henegar seconded the motion.

The Village Clerk called the roll:

YEAS: Henegar, Martin, and Wilson – 3

NAYS: Grilo and Rhodes – 2

ABSENT: Robertson – 1

Motion carried by roll call vote of 3 to 2, with 1 member absent.

(C) Adoption of Budget for FY 2016-17

Trustee Grilo moved to approve the budget for the fiscal year ending April 30, 2017, as

prepared. Trustee Henegar seconded the motion.

The Village Clerk called the roll:

YEAS: Grilo, Henegar, Martin, Rhodes, and Wilson – 5

NAYS: None – 0

ABSENT: Robertson – 1

Motion carried by roll call vote of 5 to 0, with 1 member absent.

Comments and Questions from the Audience

Bonnie McArthur, Superintendent at Thomasboro Grade School, thanked the Village for

continuing to provide police department services. She highlighted some of the collaborative

efforts between the department and the school district.

Bob Gordon discussed the Village burning ordinance and ongoing issues with a neighboring

property owner. He would like to see some type of setback requirement included in the

ordinance to prevent burning materials in close proximity to other buildings. Chief Willis

signified that he agreed with that concept. President Morris stated that he was aware of the

situation with Mr. Gordon’s property and would address it with the adjoining property owner.

Peggy Wilson asked if it would be possible to block off a portion of Phillips Street for morning

drop-offs at the school. She was concerned about the safety of children crossing the street. It

was noted that the street was made a temporary one-way route for dismissal to minimize the

hazards and the school had tried to communicate with parents to encourage dropping off

students in only the southbound lane to prevent crossing the street.

Jim Richardson asked for clarification on the administrative fee for garbage collection. He also

questioned the liquor license being issued to Grilo Enterprises. Attorney Wade clarified the

conflict of interest provisions to which Trustee Grilo would be subject as a licensee.

Ronda Scott favored allowing the trash companies to handle billing instead of the Village.

Harold Kirby asked for an update on the status of the property located behind his home. Chief

Willis responded that police officers had discussed the situation with the homeowners and had

received assurance that work would be done on the property. Ms. Ward would be following up

on this case and the Village will serve the property owners with an official letter ordering

compliance.

Albert Nelsen discussed the ongoing burning ordinance issues at the Pearl Street apartments.

He stressed the need to have setbacks figured into burning ordinance.

Treasurers Report

There were no comments regarding the Treasurer’s Report.

Adjournment

There being no further business to come before the Board, Trustee Grilo moved to adjourn the

meeting. Trustee Wilson seconded the motion. Motion carried viva voce vote.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:58pm.

Respectfully submitted,

_____________________________

Jeremy A. Reale, Village Clerk

The undersigned Village Clerk of the Village of Thomasboro, Illinois, does hereby certify that the

foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the approved minutes of the Regular Meeting

of the Board of Trustees held April 4, 2016, as the same appears on the records of the Village

now in my custody and keeping.

________________________________

Village Clerk