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04/08/09: Mintues - April 8, 2009 - Regular Monthly Meeting
The Hillcrest Village Board of Trustees met in regular monthly session
Wednesday, April 8, 2009 at the Hillcrest Village Hall. President Rich Hicks
called the meeting to order at 7:01 P.M. Answering the roll call were Trustees
Jim Mecklenburg, Rich Elliott, Michele Hardcastle, Orrie Samp and Vicki Stewart.
President Hicks asked for a motion to approve the minutes. The minutes
of the March 11, 2009 regular meeting and the minutes of the March 25, 2009
budget workshop were approved upon a motion made by Trustee Samp; Trustee
Elliott seconded the motion. Vote as follows: Mecklenburg ¡V yes, Elliott ¡V
yes, Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp - yes and Stewart - yes. The motion passed
unanimously.
Attorney Schumacher questioned the way the motion for
approval of the minutes was made. President Hicks stated the motion was made to
approve all the minutes from the month of March. Attorney Schumacher stated that
the dates of the individual meetings should be mentioned for the record.
Attorney Schumacher stated at the very least the motion should state the minutes
of the March 11, 2009 regular monthly meeting and the minutes of the March 25,
2009 budget workshop so, the record will be clear.
Treasurer, Sarah
Kilmer, gave the treasurer¡¦s report, as of the end of March 31, 2009 the
general fund had a balance of $285,325.20; motor fuel fund had a balance of
$110,180.53; and the water fund had a balance of $94,574.62. A motion to approve
the treasurer¡¦s report was made by Trustee Mecklenburg; Trustee Elliott
seconded the motion. Vote as follows: Mecklenburg ¡V yes, Elliott ¡V yes,
Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp - yes and Stewart - yes. The motion passed
unanimously.
Treasurer Kilmer presented the Board of Trustees with the
claim sheet. A motion to approve the bills as submitted was made by Trustee
Samp; Trustee Mecklenburg seconded the motion. Vote as follows: Mecklenburg ¡V
yes, Elliott ¡V yes, Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp - yes and Stewart - yes. The motion
passed unanimously.
President Hicks stated that he would like to hold the
next budget workshop on April 15, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. at the Village Hall. All
Trustees were in agreement.
DEPARTMENT UPDATES
FINANCE: Trustee
Mecklenburg stated that the fiscal audit for 2007 ¡V 2008 is finally finished,
it is in your packets and we can discuss it later under the appropriate agenda
item. Trustee Mecklenburg stated that one of the things that he is considering
doing is combining the garbage pickup with the water service to make a utilities
department instead of a water department. Trustee Mecklenburg stated from an
accounting stand point the garbage fund is a proprietary fund just like the
water fund; this change has been recommended by our auditor. Trustee Mecklenburg
stated this correction should be made at the beginning of our next fiscal year,
July 1, 2009.
WATER: Trustee Elliott reported there was no new business
to report.
HEALTH & WELFARE: Trustee Hardcastle reported that Fulton
Technologies had installed the new storm warning siren however; the utility
company still has to hook up the electricity before the siren will be
operational. Trustee Hardcastle stated that clean-up days are scheduled for May
16th and September 19th. Trustee Hardcastle stated that she needed to submit the
paperwork for the grant money for the clean-up projects now.
ORDINANCES:
No report was available.
STREETS: Trustee Samp reported that he was
looking at purchasing a compactor for the street department so that pothole
repairs can be made. Trustee Samp stated that he was also looking into
purchasing cold patch by the ton because it was a better price than purchasing
cold patch by the bag.
BUILDINGS & GROUNDS: Trustee Stewart reported
that there was no new business to report.
POLICE DEPARTMENT: No report
was available.
BUILDING DEPARTMENT: No new business to report.
ATTORNEY COMMENTS: No attorney comments at this time.
VISITORS:
No visitor comments at this time.
OLD BUSINESS
There was no old
business to conduct.
NEW BUSINES
President Hicks introduced William
Cussen and Douglas Nataluk of Cussen Engineering, LLC and asked them to give the
Board of Trustees an update on the comprehensive plan. Mr. Nataluk stated that a
comprehensive plan has three principle components: 1) it is a statement of
goals, a listing of objectives and a vision of what could be; 2) it is an
educational tool which helps us to understand the conditions, problems and
opportunities of the community by providing factual information and 3) it serves
as a guide to public and private decision-making.
Mr. Nataluk stated that
a comprehensive master plan communicates the basic policies necessary to shape
the future of the community; it is usually general in nature, with a long-range
outlook, it considers both separately and collectively, all factors affecting
growth, development, social issues and economic prosperity. Mr. Nataluk stated a
comprehensive master plan also focuses attention on the major issues and
concerns of a community and establishes a basis for discussion and resolution;
the real value comes from the process of preparing the plan and its eventual
implementation. Mr. Nataluk stated a comprehensive master plan should never be
regarded as a finished project but, as a continuous community-based
process.
Mr. Nataluk outlined the elements of a comprehensive plan as
being:
„« Agricultural, natural resources and cultural resources
elements
o Groundwater, forests, agricultural areas, environmentally
sensitive areas, streams, floodplains, wetlands, mineral areas, wildlife areas,
cultural resource areas, recreational areas, etc.
„« Transportation
Elements
o Highways, arterials, locals, mass transit, bicycles, walking,
railroads, trucking, et cetera.
„« Utilities Element
o Sanitary sewer,
storm water, gas, electrical transmission. Telecommunications, solid waste
disposal, recycling facilities, et cetera.
„« Economic Development
Element
o Commercial areas, business areas, industrial areas, downtown, et
cetera.
„« Housing Element
o Differing densities, styles and housing
choices to meet the needs of all residents
„« Intergovernmental Element
o
School districts, adjacent governmental units, public facilities, et cetera.
„« Community/Public Facilities Element
o Police, fire, rescue, libraries,
schools, health, childcare, et cetera.
„« Land Use Element
o Relationships
between designated land uses: residential, commercial, industrial, natural
downtown, et cetera.
Mr. Nataluk stated that the map is color coded and
each color relates to a specific element in the comprehensive plan. Mr. Nataluk
stated that the map shows the current corporate boundaries of the Village and
the current planning area which typically is one and a half miles in all
directions. Mr. Nataluk stated that he spent some time on the Village website
gathering information and what he found was that the Village is already
marketing some important identifiers such as the Village¡¦s proximity to Highway
US 251 and Interstate 39, the Village¡¦s proximity to Chicago and Rockford, the
Village¡¦s close proximity to the rail port and the fact that the Village is
interested in aggressive growth in the residential, commercial and industrial
markets.
Mr. Nataluk stated it is good that the Village has identified
the transportation infrastructure because any business that is looking to locate
in the area will be interested in traffic counts along Interstate 39 which is to
the Village¡¦s east, Highway 251 which runs North and South through the Village,
Highway 64 which runs to the North of the Village and Highway 38 which is to the
South of the Village. Mr. Nataluk stated one of the biggest opportunities for
the Village is the next interchange which would be located at Highway 64 and
Interstate 39 which would require some aggressive growth and an area of that
nature would lend itself nicely to some to the smaller big box stores. Mr.
Nataluk stated that the rail spur that is to the west of the Village out by
Center Road would lend itself nicely to the development an industrial area. Mr.
Nataluk stated that two watershed corridors had been identified as areas that
need to be protected and this can be done in the form of easements; these two
watersheds can be made into natural areas with walking paths.
Mr. Nataluk
stated the residential area of the Village is centrally located in the Village
and lends itself nicely to carrying the residential area over to the east side
of Highway 251 to create more of a main street location. Mr. Nataluk stated that
the Village¡¦s current commercial and industrial areas are fine as they are but,
they could be developed farther; it just depends on what the Village would like
to develop into. Mr. Nataluk stated that there are a lot of opportunities with
the transportation corridors that are available to the Village.
Mr.
Nataluk stated the utilities element of the comprehensive plan will go hand in
hand with the transportation element due to the fact that utilities are usually
laid in adjacent to your roads so, this will be affected by the placement of
commercial, industrial and residential areas. Mr. Nataluk stated that he wanted
to get some feedback from the Board of Trustees.
Attorney Schumacher
asked President Hicks if he could ask some questions and make some suggestions.
Attorney Schumacher stated that as Cussen Engineering, LLC is looking at
property use issues they should contact the county zoning office and see what
guidelines they have in place to make sure the Village is not going against any
of those guidelines. Attorney Schumacher also suggested that Cussen Engineering,
LLC take Rochelle and their plans into consideration. Mr. Nataluk stated one of
the elements of the comprehensive plan is the intergovernmental area; while the
Village is planning for its own growth it is important to look at the area as a
whole. Mr. Nataluk stated that in looking at the Village¡¦s in the four
adjoining townships most of the land is agricultural which presents
opportunities and constraints.
Attorney Schumacher asked if the first
decision the Board of Trustees is going to have to consider is the type of
growth they are interested in such as residential, industrial or commercial and
what type of growth they are interested in first. Mr. Nataluk stated that the
type of growth is important however; it is important to remember that a
comprehensive should have a good balance of all of these elements. Mr. Nataluk
stated that it is important to remember if you are predominately residential
your tax base will suffer that is why a balance is extremely
important.
Attorney Schumacher stated that the Board of Trustees could
enter into pre-annexation conditions for zoning and land use issues for
potential growth within that one and a half miles radius so that in the future
the Village doesn¡¦t find that it is locked into a situation that would prevent
fluid growth of the Village. Mr. Cussen stated that is correct but, at the same
time just because an area on the map is mark for future development as
commercial it doesn¡¦t mean that is set in stone because it may make more sense
down the road for that area to be industrial. Mr. Nataluk stated that a
comprehensive plan is a living document that is constantly evolving, it is meant
to be fluid; it is essentially a general planning guide. Trustee Stewart stated
that we have to start somewhere; we have to establish a base. Attorney
Schumacher stated Kings for example is an unincorporated area and if the Village
would like for that area to eventually become a part of the Village the Board of
Trustees could enter into a pre-annexation agreement with those residents for
that area to be residential.
Mr. Nataluk stated there are a lot of good
opportunities for the Village certainly an interchange at Interstate 39 and
Highway 64 offers traffic that would flow into the Village and the rail spur
offers potential as well. Mr. Nataluk stated that a comprehensive plan is meant
to integrate the existing Village with future growth to create a balance of all
of the elements of the plan so that you have a good mixture of land uses and a
good tax base to support the needs of your community as well as serve as a guide
for future growth. President Hicks stated the next step is for the Board of
Trustees to look the plan over and get our ideas together and set up a meeting
to go over those ideas and concerns. Mr. Nataluk stated that the Board of
Trustees could use the top sheet of the comprehensive plan to prioritize the
elements in order of importance and if something is not on the list add it. Mr.
Nataluk stated that the Board of Trustees could also use the map to create
bubble diagrams by taking sections of the map and listing their ideas for
individual areas. Trustee Mecklenburg stated that he was just a little ill at
ease about drawing bubble diagrams because the adjacent property owners that are
not annexed into the Village could use that information as a way to drive up the
price of their property. Trustee Mecklenburg stated he was afraid that by making
this information public the Village would be hampering the plans of our current
developer. Mr. Nataluk stated that the comprehensive plan is meant to be fluid
and should be re-evaluated every six months or so, in a sense it could hamper
you but, due to the fact that the plan is constantly evolving it really
shouldn¡¦t be a big issue. Mr. Nataluk suggested that the Board of Trustees
e-mail him with any questions or concerns that they may have that way when we
come before you at the June meeting we will have had the opportunity to
incorporate that information into the plan.
President Hicks introduced
Jerry Bever from Baxter & Woodman Consulting Engineers and asked him to
explain the water and sewer rate study. Mr. Bever stated that the Board of
Trustees had a copy of a work order authorizing Baxter & Woodman Consulting
Engineers to do a water and sewer rate study for the Village. Mr. Bever stated
that the work order was comprised of eight different tasks: data collection, a
ten-year financial plan, minimum base charge analysis, a rate structure design,
rate impacts, other fees, a draft report and a final report. Mr. Bever stated
that this is necessary to meet the criteria set forth by the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency in order to apply for the grants and the loans
that are necessary to complete the sewer project. Trustee Samp asked what the
time frame would be to complete all of those tasks. Mr. Bever stated a lot of
that depends on the size of the Village; the record and the historical data; we
are looking for a very fast turnaround due to time constraints concerning the
stimulus money. President Hicks asked for a motion to approve the water and
sewer rate study. Trustee Elliott made a motion to approve the engineering,
planning and administrative services work order for engineering project number
090379.30; Trustee Mecklenburg seconded the motion. Vote as follows: Mecklenburg
¡V yes, Elliott ¡V yes, Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp ¡V yes, and Stewart ¡V yes. The
motion passed unanimously.
President Hicks introduced Carl Fisher of
Baxter & Woodman Consulting Engineers. Mr. Fischer stated the next order of
business is the resolution authorizing a representative of the Village to sign
loan documents; this has to do with the sewer budget system. Mr. Fischer stated
that he thought it was a good time to give the Board of Trustees an update on
where the sewer project stands at this point in time. Mr. Fischer stated that
surveyors have been working in the Village which has been broken down into
sections, the first section has been completed and we have started on the
preliminary design based on some contours we acquired through the Ogle County
GIS. Mr. Fischer stated that the design concept shows the sewers in the streets;
that is the best place for them in Hillcrest which means that when we have
finished putting the sewer in the streets we will have to reconstruct the
streets and that will be part of the project cost. Mr. Fischer stated also as
part of this project the house services will be put in by the Village and the
Village will pay for that as well. Mr. Fischer stated that each service will run
from the main to the lateral and will connect between the house and the septic
tank; it will not be made inside the house. Mr. Fischer stated the septic tank
will be abandoned and the new pipe will connect with the existing pipe outside
of the house and again this will be paid for by the Village as part of the
entire project. Mr. Fischer stated that you can expect the property values to
increase because you are improving the value of the lot because you are offering
the new service of sewer.
Mr. Fischer stated that after going through the
preliminary concept plan it has been determined that there are no lift stations
in the Village everything in town is gravity flow so the Village will have to
hook into the nearest lift station which is located by the High School. Mr.
Fischer stated that Baxter & Woodman Consulting Engineers has looked beyond
the existing Village to see how the Village would need to provide sewer to areas
within its facilitating planning area as they are developed one approach would
be to make the sewer big enough to take whatever growth you have in the future
however; you have to be able to balance that off and ask if the Village can
afford that at this time. Mr. Fischer stated so that is what we did, we
determined what is reasonable to assume, we looked at some commercial growth
down Highway US 251 and we looked at some residential growth and decided what
size pipe we would need. In the future for areas outside that we envision a
sewer east and west of town that would go into Rochelle so, you would actually
have three connections into Rochelle¡¦s sewer but, for right now it is just one
connection for the very foreseeable future.
Mr. Fischer stated as we have
been telling you all along that Baxter & Woodman Consulting Engineers has
been pursuing a couple of grants, one is the unsewered community grant and the
other is through the stimulus funding which is being called a loan with debt
forgiveness. Mr. Fischer stated that in essence the Village is pursuing six
million dollars in grant funds, free money so; obviously this project will be no
less expensive than it is today because of these potential funding
opportunities. Mr. Fischer stated that the unsewered community grant is going
away in a couple of years so; the Village is getting into this right at the tail
end of this opportunity. Mr. Fischer stated that as far as the stimulus money is
concerned we have heard some talk about a second package however; at this time
this is the only package that is available to us.
Mr. Fischer stated as
Mr. Bever stated before you have to establish a sewer rate ordinance and a sewer
use ordinance, you have to pass an ordinance that says what can and can¡¦t be
discharged into the sewer; this is not a big deal for residential dischargers
but, it can be a big issue for industrial and commercial dischargers because it
can harm the waste water treatment plant and it can harm the environment because
that water is discharged into the river. Mr. Fischer stated so you have to have
that sewer use ordinance and you have to have the sewer rate ordinance so, that
you can demonstrate to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency that you
have the ability to pay back the loan and that the sewer system can be self
sufficient; both the water fund and the sewer fund are enterprise systems and
they are suppose to be self sufficient, they are not to be supported by the
general fund. Mr. Fischer stated with all of that being said the resolution that
you have before you tonight is authorizing someone to sign loan documents, which
is a requirement of the loan program. President Hicks asked for a motion to
approve the resolution authorizing a representative to sign loan documents.
President Hicks asked Mr. Fischer to review the construction schedule
for the sewer project. Mr. Fischer stated that he had put together the most
optimistic schedule that he could and he wanted the Board of Trustees to
understand that the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will actually
control this process through the bidding process. Mr. Fischer stated that when
the design is complete and the loan process is complete the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency will issue you a commitment letter stating now
the Village has completed all of the requirements now you can go out to bid. Mr.
Fischer stated the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will commit the
funds to the Village of Hillcrest sewer project as long as the bidding process
proceeds without any problems, if there are problems in the bidding process all
bets are off. Mr. Fischer stated that the letter of commitment means that the
Village will know before it has to bid the project that it will have these funds
available and that is extremely significant. Mr. Fischer stated that he is
trying to pin point the time when the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
will give the Village authorization to go to bid. Mr. Fischer stated that he is
not sure and it has been said to him that a construction permit will be
required, Baxter & Woodman Consulting Engineers is planning to finish the
design by the end of May and submit it to Illinois Environmental Protection
Agency if they take sixty days to review and issue the permit that takes us to
the end of July before we can even go out for bids. Mr. Fischer stated that he
is thinking that Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will issue the permit
faster or go ahead and give the Village permission to go ahead and start the
bidding process. Mr. Fischer stated with that in mind I set the schedule so we
would go out for bids in June and open bid at the end of July. Mr. Fischer
stated that in August and September the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
will review the bids and if the bidding process goes smooth the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency will issue the Village the letter of commitment;
that is the letter that basically says here is the money, now you can build your
project. Mr. Fischer stated once you have that letter the Village can issue the
notice of award; that is usually a process that takes anywhere from two to four
weeks to put together all paperwork; the contractor has put together all the
bonds, the insurance, signs the documents, returns the documents to the Village
and then the Village issues a notice to proceed. Mr. Fischer stated that he had
allowed a window of August through September for this process so, the notice to
proceed would be issued in October of this year and the main thing we will start
will be the main lines of the sewer. Mr. Fischer stated before any house can be
serviced, before any service can be installed the main lines of the sewer system
must be built so, that when the residents are ready to use the sewer, the system
will be able to convey that flow to the pump station and on to the treatment
plant in Rochelle. Mr. Fischer stated that it will take approximately six months
to install the main line sewers and then we will start on the house services
which will take approximately six months; there will be a two month gap between
the time the main line sewers are started and the time the house services are
started. Mr. Fischer stated after the main line sewers and the house services
have been installed then the restoration will start; the rebuilding of the roads
and restoring of the lawns and that will start in July of 2010 and then there is
a float month which is there in case we should experience a lot of bad weather,
et cetera. Mr. Fischer stated based on the construction schedule the sewer will
be started in October of 2009 and completed in September of 2010.
Trustee
Stewart asked how the house services going from the street into the homes is
going to be paid for; is that going to be paid by the residents with tax
dollars. Mr. Fischer stated that the cost of the house services will be part of
the project costs. President Hicks stated that the house services are actually
covered under the unsewered community grant. Mr. Fischer stated that the
stimulus loan is zero percent interest and that basically amounts to another
twenty-five percent grant on top of what the Village has already received so,
the Village is looking at six million dollars in free money and the Village has
the zero percent interest loan which really is equivalent to another twenty-five
percent grant so, this is really a very good deal and the Village will benefit
greatly. President Hicks stated that this is all at no charge to the residents.
Mr. Fischer stated the plan is to make no special assessments; the costs will be
part of their monthly bill.
Trustee Stewart asked if there were going to
be any connection fees. President Hicks asked Mr. Fischer if he had heard if the
connection fees will be included in the costs of the project. Mr. Fischer stated
that Baxter & Woodman Consulting Engineers still had not received a
definitive answer to that question. Mr. Fischer stated that President Hicks
maybe right that costs may be covered under the unsewered community grant.
President Hicks stated and it won¡¦t cost six or seven thousand dollars like our
neighbors paid; if the residents end up paying a hookup fee it will be seven
hundred dollars. Mr. Fischer stated that the Board of Trustees will have to
decide as part of the water and sewer rate study if the hookup fee will be paid
now or at a later date; that is up to the Board of Trustees how you want to
structure that rate for now and for the future.
Trustee Mecklenburg
stated if I understand correctly that anything that is destroyed will be fixed
or replaced at no cost to the homeowner. Mr. Fischer stated absolutely. Mr.
Fischer stated that the way this will be handled the contractor will be meeting
with each individual homeowner as they go to install their service as to how
that will be laid out on the property. Mr. Fischer stated that Baxter &
Woodman Consulting Engineers will give the contract certain specifications that
they must follow but, the contractor will be designing the individual
services.
Trustee Hardcastle asked what would happen to all of the septic
tanks in the Village. Mr. Fischer stated that the septic tanks would be
abandoned and filled with sand as part of the project. President Hicks stated
that the tanks are pumped; a hole is made in the bottom of the tank so that it
won¡¦t hold water and then the tank is filled with sand or pea gravel, the top
is knocked in and then it is back filled with black dirt, once again this is
part of the project cost.
President Hicks asked for a motion to approve
resolution number 040809-A a resolution authoring a representative of the
Village to sign loan documents. Trustee Mecklenburg made a motion to approve
resolution number 040809-A a resolution of the Village authorizing a
representative to sign loan documents, that person being President Rich Hicks;
Trustee Elliott seconded the motion. Vote as follows: Mecklenburg ¡V yes,
Elliott ¡V yes, Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp ¡V yes, and Stewart ¡V yes. The motion
passed unanimously.
President Hicks stated the next order of business is
the Community Water Supply Testing Program. President Hicks explained that this
program if offered to the Village by the Illinois Environmental Protection
Agency and the advantage of belonging to this program is that the cost of
testing the Village¡¦s water supply is at a reduced rate. Trustee Elliott made a
motion to approve the Village¡¦s continued and full participation in the
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency¡¦s Community Water Supply Testing
Program for the period of July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010, at a cost of
$2,090.50 which covers the cost of all required testing during this contract
period, and to authorize the Village President to sign the Community Water
Supply Testing Program Analytical Testing Fee Agreement that is before us
tonight; Trustee Stewart seconded the motion. Vote as follows: Mecklenburg ¡V
yes, Elliott ¡V yes, Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp ¡V yes, and Stewart ¡V yes. The
motion passed unanimously.
President Hicks stated the next order of
business is the furnace. Trustee Stewart stated that the Village has been
experiencing a number of problems with the original furnace with rooms being too
hot or too cold. Trustee Stewart stated in working with Anderson Plumbing in
trying to resolve this problem it was determined that the best solution is to
replace the furnace it is over thirty years old, two new vents will be added and
the furnace will lay on its side so the hot air will blow directly down into the
offices. Trustee Stewart stated this project will cost a total of $6,350 and
that will include the material and the labor. Trustee Stewart stated that
Anderson Plumbing has agreed to defer the payment until the next fiscal budget
starts in July. Trustee Stewart asked the Board of Trustees for permission to
purchase a new furnace and make the necessary changes to make it as efficient as
possible. Trustee Stewart stated the furnace is a Lennox with an efficiency rate
of 92.1%. Trustee Stewart made a motion to approve the proposal submitted by
Anderson Plumbing for the furnace and the diffuser for a cost of $6,350, to
start at their earliest convenience; Trustee Samp seconded the motion. Vote as
follows: Mecklenburg ¡V yes, Elliott ¡V yes, Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp ¡V yes, and
Stewart ¡V yes. The motion passed unanimously.
President Hicks stated the
next item on the agenda is the audit for fiscal year 2007 -2008. President Hicks
stated that he, Trustee Mecklenburg and Treasurer Kilmer had met with Winebaugh
and Associates on two separate occasions to discuss the audit. President Hicks
asked for a motion to approve the audit for fiscal year 2007 ¡V 2008. Trustee
Mecklenburg made a motion to approve the audit for fiscal year 2007 ¡V 2008;
Trustee Stewart seconded the motion. Vote as follows: Mecklenburg ¡V yes,
Elliott ¡V yes, Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp ¡V yes, and Stewart ¡V yes. The motion
passed unanimously.
PUBLIC COMMENT Leonard Cradduck, 202 Roy Avenue asked
the Board of Trustees if he had a tax freeze on his house how could the value of
his house go up just because you put the sewer in. Trustee Mecklenburg stated
that the value that will increase is the value of the home. President Hicks
stated that is the selling value of your home. Trustee Stewart stated that is
not the taxing value that is going up.
Jason Fore, 421 Linda Avenue
addressed the Board of Trustees and thanked the Trustees that are retiring for
their service. Mr. Fore stated that he expected good things from the new
Trustees. Mr. Fore stated that one of the things that he felt was not addressed
in the comprehensive plan was the quality of life. Mr. Fore stated one of the
things that he thinks the Board of Trustees should look at is existing
commercial and industrial that is mixed in with residential and considering
moving that outside of the Village into its own area.
Mr. Fore stated
that he likes the fact that the Board of Trustees is seeking community
involvement. Mr. Fore stated that there are approximately 453 households in the
Village and a larger percentage of those households are on a fixed income and
$700 can be a big deal to those people so, I am concerned about the connection
fee. President Hicks stated that when he spoke with the Illinois Environmental
Protection Agency his biggest concern was at that time probably sixty-five
percent of the community was retired and most of them are in their seventies and
eighties. President Hicks stated the way to get this costs rolled into the
program is to grant the Village an easement then, that becomes Village property
and if at any time something goes wrong with that service the Village pays for
the repairs, it will not come out of the homeowners pocket. President Hicks
stated it is no different than the water main that runs out in front of your
house if something goes wrong with it the Village pays for the repairs. Mr. Fore
stated that with 453 households out here at a cost of $700 a piece that is
$350,000 the City of Rochelle is getting and Creston did not have to pay this
connection fee.
Mr. Fore stated that he did not want the sewer
connection to come into the back of his home because he has plans for an
addition; he would like that service to come into the house through the front
yard. Mr. Fore stated that it was a good idea to have the contractor work with
the homeowners on this issue and he thanked the Board of Trustees for having the
forethought to include this in the project. Mr. Fore stated other than the few
concerns that he has mentioned he thinks that everything is going
great.
Marvin Sweger, 145 Wayne Road expressed his concern because he had
heard that a lien would be applied to his house for the cost of the hookup fee.
President Hicks stated that hopefully the Village gets all the funding it has
applied for won¡¦t have to pay that costs. Mr. Sweger stated that he had heard
that the costs could run anywhere from $500 to $3,000. President Hicks stated
that the Village is trying to get the hook up fee covered under the unsewered
community grant but, if it does cost you anything it will be $700. President
Hicks told Mr. Sweger if he had questions he should ask them at a meeting so, he
could get the facts and asked him to stop listening to the rumors that are
circulating.
Jason Fore, 421 Linda Avenue stated that Mr. Sweger brought
up a good point and asked the Board of Trustees to look into the possibility of
seeking a grant or some other type of funding to help those on fixed incomes who
meet certain criteria pay for all or a portion of the hook up fee. Mr. Fore
asked the Board of Trustees if the connection to Rochelle¡¦s sewer had an
outflow meter on it. President Hicks stated that there would be one meter where
the Village¡¦s main line connects into Rochelle¡¦s pump station. Mr. Fore stated
so, no matter how much water I put out at my house as opposed to someone else we
are all going to pay the same rate. President Hicks stated no, what you pay will
be determined by the number of gallons of water that you use, that is what the
water and sewer rate study is for. Mr. Fore stated that he would like to see the
residents have a separate meter for water that would not go into the sewer;
water for watering the lawn or the garden and water used for filling pools, et
cetera. Mr. Fore asked how much that would costs the residents. Clerk Adams
stated that the residents would have to pay the cost of the meter at the time it
is purchased. Mr. Fore stated that the Village of Creston is looking at
installing output meters on the home at the Village¡¦s expense and he feels that
the Village of Hillcrest should look into the cost of outflow
meters.
Randall Salsbury, 201 Leeward Lane stated that one of the reasons
that he moved to Hillcrest from Rochelle is because the sewer bill was three
times higher than the water bill. Mr. Salsbury stated that the Board of Trustees
should let the residents of the Village know what happened here tonight in the
form of a newsletter because it would answer a lot of the questions that he is
being asked by the residents. Mr. Salsbury stated that this will be another bill
that the residents will have to pay and ten years ago he was paying $60 a month
just for water and sewer, this is something that you people need to realize. Mr.
Salsbury stated another question is this something that is going to happen or is
it going to come up for a vote. President Hicks stated that the Board of
Trustees had made that decision months ago and the project had already been
started. Trustee Stewart stated as far as letting people know this information
will be in the minutes and the minutes are posted after the Board approves them,
you can also request a copy from the Village Clerk.
There being no
further business to transact a motion to adjourn was made by Trustee Stewart;
Trustee Elliott seconded the motion. Vote as follows: Mecklenburg ¡V yes,
Elliott ¡V yes, Hardcastle ¡V yes, Samp - yes and Stewart ¡V yes. The motion
passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 8:23 p.m. The next regular monthly
meeting will be held May 13, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. at the Hillcrest Village
Hall.
Respectfully submitted,
Teresa J. Adams,
Village Clerk
Posted: 4/8/2009 |
Updated: 4/8/2009