South West Illinois News

City of Waterloo Utility Committee met Oct. 10.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

Mayor – Tom Smith

Alderman Ward I Steve Notheisen & Matt Buettner

Aldermen Ward II Jim Trantham & Jim Hopkins

Aldermen Ward III Stan Darter & Kyle Buettner

Aldermen Ward IV Clyde Heller & Russ Row

Shawn Kennedy – Collector / Finance, Tim Birk – Director of Public Works, Nathan Krebel – Subdivision / Zoning Administrator, Brad Yearian – Building Inspector / Code Administrator, Jeffrey Prosise – Chief of Police, Sarah Deutch – Community Relations Coordinator, Natalie Steppig – City Attorney.

Petitions by Citizens on Non-Agenda Items. None.

City Clerk – Mechelle Childers

Motion to approve the Utility Minutes dated September 12, 2022 was made by Alderman Darter and seconded by Alderman Heller.

Items for Correction:

Chief of Police – Jeff Prosise

∙ Under Item b – Wal-Mart Grand Re-Opening – change the date from November 01, 2022 to November 11, 2022.

Motion passed to approve the Utility Minutes dated September 12, 2022 as amended with Aldermen Darter, Kyle Buettner, Row, Heller, Notheisen, Matt Buettner, Hopkins and Trantham voting ‘yea’.

Resolution No. 22-13

Resolution No. 22-13 will appoint Shawn Kennedy as the authorized agent for the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund. All aldermen agreed to the resolution as long as the appointment was only temporary.

Director of Public Works – Tim Birk

a. Project Updates:

∙ Moore Street – The intersection of Moore and Columbia has been reopened for traffic.

∙ Veterans Drive – Final numbers are in on the Veterans Drive project, and the project was completed under budget with a $11,000 savings.

∙ Morrison Avenue – Final numbers still need to be complied.

∙ Mill Street Sidewalks – This project has been started and businesses have been informed about the project. The Waterloo Chamber of Commerce has expressed concerns regarding access to business for the Witches Night Out.

b. Lead Service Lines Update – Survey letters were sent out to customers whose homes were built before 1985. Currently, only 99 of the 1,600 surveys are still outstanding. We will start calling the homeowners for the requested information.

c. Water Plant Design – The paperwork for the IEPA load has been resubmitted. d. Military Statues – The four new Military Statues will be installed on October 11, 2022 at the Veterans Memorial in Lakeview Park.

e. Christmas Decorations – We will start putting up the Christmas decorations next month.

Subdivision & Zoning Administrator – Nathan Krebel

a. Monthly Report – The September monthly zoning report was distributed.

b. Monthly Building Permits – The September monthly permit report was provided.

c. HTC Accessory Building – HTC would like to erect an accessory building on their property at 1st and Church Street. HTC is proposing a 21’x22’metal shed. The property is zoned B-3 but has an I 1 use. The aldermen were agreeable to a metal shed but suggested that HTC also consider adding chain link privacy slats.

d. Subdivision/Development:

∙ Natalie Estates Phase 2 – The sanitary sewers are being installed and pictures were shown of the progress the contractor is making.

∙ Remlok Phase 5 Creek Crossing – No progress has been made regarding the construction of a bridge to access the 7 acres on the other side of the creek.

e. Planning Commission – meeting tonight (October 10, 2022) to review:

∙ Bill Ebeler’s request for access off Route 3 – the commission will review and comment on this request. Their recommendation will then go to the Planning Committee.

∙ Residential Greenhouses – This is a text amendment to modify the ordinance regarding residential greenhouses.

f. Zoning Board of Appeals – Meeting scheduled for October 20, 2022 to review:

∙ Special Use Permit from Quality Collision (Chris Kalbfleisch) for the addition of two storage buildings on the property. This petition was tabled at the September ZBA meeting, as Mr. Kalbfleisch was unable to attend.

∙ Residential Greenhouses – This is a text amendment to modify the ordinance regarding residential greenhouses.

City Building Inspector –Brad Yearian

a. Monthly Report – The September monthly report was distributed.

b. Gibault Catholic High School – Gibault is remodeling its library. The above ceiling inspection was completed today.

c. Moore Street Residence – A residential property is very overgrown and the fence is in poor condition. The owner is slowly cleaning up the overgrowth.

d. Natalie Estates – Performing numerous site inspections at Natalie Estates as the development continues to progress at a fast pace.

Community Relations Coordinator – Sarah Deutch

a. Pumpkinfest 2022 – Pumpkinfest went very smoothly and there was a large crowd. Thank you to everyone who assisted with this event. A special shout out to Alderman Notheisen for being the MC for many years and to Chief of Police Jeff Prosise for driving the Pumpkin Train all day. The Waterloo High School students also did a great job in helping out. Second Chance Ministries assisted with trash pickup and their help was very appreciated.

b. Heritage Wall – The Heritage Wall has begun on the side of Federico’s. We still need to supply the graphic designer with the finished content.

c. Military Statues – The four new Military Statues will be installed on October 11, 2022 at the Veterans Memorial in Lakeview Park.

d. Witches Night Out - Witches Night Out will be held on October 20, 2022. Music will be played over the loudspeakers.

e. Trunk or Treat – Trunk or Treat is scheduled for October 31, 2022. There will be no registration, people can just come and set up. The time of the event has been changed to 5:30 to 7:30 PM.

f. Upcoming Events:

∙ Veteran Day Program will be November 10, 2022 at Waterloo High School starting at 6:30 PM.

∙ Veterans Day Wreath-Laying Ceremony will be November 11, 2022 at Lakeview Park.

∙ GLOW Lighted Holiday Parade is scheduled for November 26, 2022.

g. Lifetime Tables – Three of the Lifetime picnic tables broke during the Pumpkinfest. Claims have been filed with the company.

Collector/Finance Officer – Shawn Kennedy

a. IMLRMA Insurance Renewal – Our liability and workmen’s comp insurance renewal is due. There is no increase in the insurance rate, however, we are checking to see if the quote includes our cyber liability insurance policy. We also need to check to see if the cyber liability insurance will pay out before we secure MFA and clean data set (backup) from REGIS.

b. CBIZ – Working on the renewal of medical, dental and life insurance. CBIZ is obtaining quotes from the Medical Markets to compare costs and rates.

c. Enterprise Zone – At the September 2022 Utility Meeting there was a discussion regarding the offering of property tax abatements within the Enterprise Zone. A meeting is scheduled with Edie Koch on October 27, 2022 to discuss amending the enterprise zone agreement to allow property tax abatement. The biggest questions will be if the local governmental entities want to participate in the abatement and how the abatement incentives would be implemented. The schools will not lose any funding if an abatement is implemented, however, we still need to consider other entities that receive our tax dollars and how they will be affected. There are still several unknowns that need to be determined to make an informed decision. It was suggested that the Economic Development Committee meet to determine how the City feels about the proposed abatement and to gather more information.

d. Farm/Acreage Leases – two farm leases expire in December and it is recommended to renew the leases with the same terms under a two-year agreement. All aldermen agreed to renew the leases.

Chief of Police – Jeff Prosise

a. Body Cameras – A video was shown to demonstrate the benefits of body cameras versus just writing a report. The Chief stated he could give numerous examples where the body cameras have been a valuable asset.

b. New Cars – The four new patrol cars on order were canceled by Ford Motor Company. We will need to reorder in 2023.

c. YMCA Request – YMCA requested our participation in their Trunk or Treat event.

d. Motorcycle Fatality – There was a motorcycle fatality on Illinois Route 3 at Columbia Avenue. The cyclist was not a local person but from the state of Texas.

City Attorney – Natalie Steppig

No report.

Mayor’s Report

The Mayor thanked Sarah Deutch for all the work she did coordinating the Pumpkinfest, and for anyone who assisted with the event. The vendors were happy with their sales and the event was very successful.

Committee Reports and Minutes Approval

a. 09-06-22 Planning Cmte Mtg. Minutes. Minutes were not available.

b. 09-19-22 Personnel Cmte Mtg. Minutes. Heller -1st, Darter -2nd. Passed.

c. 10-03-22 Street Cmte Mtg. Minutes. Notheisen-1st, Kyle Buettner -2nd. Passed.

d. 10-03-22 Ordinance Cmte Mtg. Minutes. Hopkins -1st, Heller -2nd. Passed.

e. 10-03-22 Planning Cmte Mtg. Minutes. Notheisen-1st, Matt Buettner -2nd. Passed.

Comments

Alderman Heller mentioned that there will be a Finance Committee Meeting on October 12, 2022 at 5:30 to discuss Splash Pad Funding

Adjournment – Motion to adjourn made by Alderman Kyle Buettner and seconded by Alderman Notheisen. Motion passed by unanimous voice vote. Mayor Smith adjourned the meeting at 7:55 p.m.