Chambana Sun

Village of Tolono Board of Trustees met July 5.

Here is the minutes provided by the Board:

A meeting of the Village of Tolono Board of Trustees (“Board”) was held on Tuesday, July 5, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. Trustees Vicki Buffo, Jacquie Miller, Anna Morris, Ryan Perry, and Terrence Stuber were present; Trustee Jared Ping was absent. Others present were President Rob Murphy, Clerk Dixie Phillips, Treasurer Robert Kouzmanoff, and Public Works Department (“PDW”) Supervisor Matt Craven.

President Murphy led those present in the Pledge of Allegiance and Trustee Stuber gave the Invocation.

Public Comments: Robert Weiss of 202 S Whitehead inquired as to how to get a section of the alley adjoining his property vacated and stated that all of the other people around him have the alley deeded in their name. President Murphy will speak to Attorney Marc Miller about the matter and get back to Mr. Weiss.

Richard Gallaway and Joseph Roberts of Republic Services (a waste and recycling product and service company) spoke to the Board about various contracts for services in which could then charge the residents.

Daniel Grady at 401 James St. addressed the Board about the burning ordinance saying that the wording is confusing, there’s no landscape definition, and no provision exception for starting a fire except with a liquid accelerant. He also stated that if there is a no burn it should be a no burn across the board. He also noted that the ordinance is filed under a health ordinance and that it is unfair that a small group should inconvenient a larger group. He suggested the Village scrap the current ordinance and enact one that makes sense because one thinks they’re in compliance and then finds out they are not. Mr. Grady also noted that the ordinance refers multiple times to the Chief and officers being responsible for determining whether or not a fire is a health hazard, asking if the Police Chief and officers are trained and if so, how.

Public Works Department: Mr. Cravens reported that the leak at 406 Whitehead is fixed but, that 512 W. Austin is still in a holding pattern; it’s not a major leak and that he is unsure how to resolve the problem.

Concerning the hydrants, Mr. Cravens spoke with DJ Stewart who thinks the hydrants might be rebuilt or be looped into the lines with a fire hose to see if that corrects the problem before spending all of the money to loop it properly. Mr. Cravens was asked to check with David at Illinois American Water (“IAW”) to see if they can do them cheaper to which Mr. Cravens said that if they can rebuild the hydrants, the cost will be cheaper.

Mr. Craven reported that the situation with the end-of-the-line water pipes is still in limbo but that it’s possible those lines could be tied together with a fire hose to see what happens and to see if that will keep the chlorine levels up and at a good count. President Murphy suggested that Mr. Craven join the Illinois Rural Water Association and Mr. Cravens will look into it. Mr. Craven will also speak with David at IAW to see if those hydrants can be rebuilt to save money.

Mr. Craven reported that the trees around the police station will be replaced. He also reported that the straw is so thick in some spots that the grass cannot grow through it. Trustee Perry reported that he spoke with the contractor and told him that he is not happy with the progress and that the building remains insecure. Trustee Ryan also reported that the completion date is to be July 21, 2017 and that he will do a walk through probably around the 17th or 18th with a turnover of the police station to the Village at the end of July.

Reports: No engineer reports.

Treasurer: Mr. Kouzmanoff stated that there has been a problem with Primetime when ordering supplies because they do not ship on weekends. Trustee Perry asked Mr. Kouzmanoff for a breakdown of the engineering fees for the police station because he is not pleased with their work on the police station. Discussion of searching for new engineers was discussed. Mr. Kouzmanoff will obtain a copy of the contract and the itemized engineering bill for the next Board meeting.

Trustee Perry asked Mr. Cravens if he had been contacted for the MFT project and was told yes and that Iliana was doing the work.

Trustee Buffo asked the Treasurer if the Village is paying shipping and delivery charges from Staples because items could be ordered on-line. She also mentioned that a list of items needed could be made and a weekly trip rather than several in a week to Menard’s. Trustee Perry asked about Pro Build supplying items and was told Pro Build normally doesn’t have materials on hand. Mr. Kouzmanoff said he has been encouraging the Police Department to go through other vendors to save money because Trustee Buffo noticed that there were several receipts and that perhaps grouping items would save money.

Pay bills and/or warrants: Trustee Perry made a motion with a second by Trustee Miller to pay bills. A roll call vote was taken and the following votes were cast passing the motion:

Vicki Buffo - Yes Jacquie Miller – Yes Anna Miller – Yes Jared Ping – Absent Ryan Perry – Yes Terrence Stuber - Yes

Trustee Perry stated that he wants Farnsworth’s bill to be more itemized than they currently are being submitted.

Minutes: Trustee Stuber made a motion with a second by Trustee Buffo to approve the minutes of the Special Board Meeting on June 13, 2017 and the Regular Board Meeting on July 20, 2017. Motion carried.

Old Business: Trustee Perry made a motion with a second by Trustee Stuber to accept Republic Service’s base bid of $4,180 for Clean-Up Day. A roll call vote was taken and the following votes were cast passing the motion:

Vicki Buffo - No Jacquie Miller – Yes Anna Miller – Yes Jared Ping – Absent Ryan Perry – Yes Terrence Stuber - Yes

Mr. Kouzmanoff reviewed the Appropriation Ordinance stating that the general fund has $8,400 for community programs, which includes electronic recycling.

New Business: Mark Meharry asked the Board how to go about annexing and re-zoning land to the Village because he is interested in getting his farm ground east of town subdivided it into three or four lots. President Murphy said he will check with Attorney Miller and get back to him.

Mr. Meharry also mentioned that he had heard that someone was trying to put solar wind in that area as well. Trustee Stuber and President Murphy both said that they had been e-mailed but had received no res

The Police Officers Union Contract was deferred to the next Board meeting. It will be sent to Clerk Phillips for a clean copy for approval.

Mr. Kouzmanoff reported that he did not get a chance to look at bids for electronic recycling but that if Republic Services did it, it would be over $3,000; if Com Recycling did it, the cost would be $400 per trailer if staffed by Village employees, and that 18 Recycling would be between $14,000 and $22,000.

The ordinance amending the current Liquor Ordinance was deferred to the next Board meeting. The review and approval of a liquor license for Augie Meneley was deferred to the next Board meeting.

Mr. Kouzmanoff was asked what the auditors actually did for the $18,000 and if the position had ever been put out for bids. Mr. Kouzmanoff said he did not believe so but that the current auditors are doing a good job and are familiar with the workings of the Village besides being very helpful when needed.

Mr. Kouzmanoff also mentioned that the truck had been removed from ESDA’s budget. President Murphy said he would like to see the Village get out of the ESDA business because the Fire District takes care of that now.

Trustee Buffo wants to take a look at the overtime for the PWD and that she feels the Village should take a look at comp or flex time. She suggested that at some point in the near future it needs to be put on agenda to review and get it in order. The reading of the main meter every day was discussed and suggested that it need not be read on Saturday or Sundays, which was agreed by the Board. Therefore, there will be no more meter readings on the weekends. Mr. Cravens will check with IAW to see if the meter belongs to the Village or to IAW.

Trustee Perry asked about the police vehicles and was told that Chief Raney does not want to replace anything for a long time and gave kudos to Mr. Kouzmanoff for getting the recycle on line so that it can be monitored better because it is believed that people may be throwing items over the back fence. President Murphy suggested that if someone is caught, they be given a waring the first time and clean it up but after the first time a fine be administered. The review and approval of the Annual Appropriation Ordinance for Fiscal Year 2018 was deferred to the next Board meeting.

Nuisance and Tickler files: The Nuisance Property file was updated.

Miscellaneous: Trustee Perry suggested a grand opening for the new Police Station be scheduled before all the items are moved in. Mr. Kouzmanoff will get furniture bids and have them available for the next Board meeting.

Trustee Stuber relayed a comment from Pastor Ken Young who said he’d been to a lot of Board meetings in the past and that this Board seems to have it together, are trying to move the meetings along and getting things done.

President Murphy relayed a comment from the Fire District who said they were tickled with Mike Woodworth and Jeff Adams who assisted with the fire at the Village’s office assistant’s house and that they could have even saved her house.

Executive Session: Trustee Stuber made a motion with a second by Trustee Miller to enter into Executive Session to discuss potential litigation and land acquisition. A roll call vote was taken and the following votes were cast passing the motion:

Vicki Buffo - Yes Jacquie Miller – Yes Anna Miller – Yes Jared Ping – Absent Ryan Perry – Yes Terrence Stuber – Yes

The Board entered into Executive Session at 9:06 p.m.

Trustee Stuber made a motion with a second by Trustee Buffo to adjourn the meeting; motion carried; the meeting adjourned at 10:56 p.m.

http://tolonoil.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/2017.07.05-Minutes.pdf