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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/10/1992 COW minutes Minutes COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE March 10, 1992 I Roll Call Mayor Gerald L. Farley called the meeting to order at 7.34 p m Trustees present were Mark Busse, George Clowes, Tim Corcoran, Leo Floros, and Irvana Wllks. A/so present were Village Manager John Fulton Dixon, Human Services Admimstrator Nancy Morgan, Assistant Human Services Administrator Jan Abernethy, 6 members of the Human Services staff, Fire Chief Ed Cavello, Deputy Fire Chiefs Del Ulreich and Lonnie Jackson, Fire Captain Steve Dumovich, Finance Director David Jepson, Assistant Finance Director Carol Widmer, 3 members of the news media and 2 residents Police Chief Ron Pavlock, Deputy Chiefs Tom Daley and Ron Richardson and Police Sergeant Dick Draffone arrived at approxtmately 9.00 p.m. II Minutes The rmnutes of the February 25, 1992 Committee of the Whole meeting were accepted and filed III Citizens To Be Heard No citizens appeared before the Committee. IV 1992 - 1993 Budget Hearing Mayor Farley stated that the budgets of the Human Serwces Division, the Fire Department and the Police Department would be reviewed at this meeting. He said that these are the departments which deliver services directly to the residents of the Village. He added that each provides a unique service to Village residents but that they work very closely on numerous occasions. Village Manager John Dixon stated that the personnel of Human Services, Fire, and Police have the most direct contact w~th residents in need of assistance. Services are provided in both proactive and preventative situations, and they all work together to complement the serwces given. These three departments represent 26% of the total Village Budget Human Services Division Human Services Adrmnistrator Nancy Morgan presented the proposed Human Services budget of $390,355 which represents an increase of 7% over the 1991-1992 budget of $364,480 Human 1 Services provides a wide range of programs for residents including health screening, annual health fair, short-term counseling, food pantry, and "Network 50" employment. Ms Morgan ~) stated that during the coming year, Human Services is expecting to receive $23,000 in grant money from Elk Grove and Wheeling Townships for the "Network 50" program and reimburse- ments of approximately $7,000 from various programs as well as donations for specific improvements. Several new programs instituted this past year include quarterly semanars to address issues of timely importance, "Ask the Doctor," a noontime medical lecture on topics of inte~:~st and STEP (Systematic Training for Effective Parenting), a rune-week parent effectiveness traimng course. In the coming year, Human Services anticipates working more closely with disabled residents, addressing the issue of gang intervention m the various areas of town, developing a STEP-teen class, implementing a drop-in blood pressure screening and prowdmg Village Employee preventative health screemng Under the Capital Improvem. ents section of the budget, it is proposed that $120,000 be expended for an addition to the Semor Center. Space for the professional staff is hrmted and several staff members share offices Currently, one social worker is housed in a converted closet and the Network 50 program is currently housed at the Public Works Building due to the lack of space. Ms Morgan explained that several alternative plans were studied including remodeling the second floor of the building It was determined that remodeling the second floor was not a viable option because it would require the installation of an elevator at an estimated cost of $150,000 and remodeling bathrooms to accommodate the handicapped Also, the space would only allow for three offices, one less than the expansion option The addition will add four .~.) offices on the first floor in the area currently used as a park area In response to questions by Mayor Farley, Ms Morgan stated that the content of the quarterly sermnars came from residents and clients of the social workers and that they were different than the programs presented by the Library. She also stated that the addition should provide adequate space for the foreseeable future. Trustee Busse said he supported the addition and that he thought the serwces were provaded in a very cost effective manner. Trustee Floros asked Ms Morgan to comment on the need for semor housing She responded that there is a great need for affordable housing. Trustee Clowes said he appreciated the good information presented and that their goals were adrmrable. He also expressed concern over the significant increase over the past few years and asked Ms Morgan if she could include some productivity measures In the future. Trustee Corcoran stated that although the Human Services Division is a relatively small part of the overall budget, the staff provades a valuable service. He said the Human Services personnel are a credit to the Village and that he fully supports the addition. Trustee Wilks sa~d that she has received many good comments regarding the work of the Human Services staff She said that she supported the addition and that she thought the salaries for Human Serwces personnel were low m relation to the rest of Village personnel. Fire Department Fire Chief Ed Cavello presented the proposed 1992-93 budget of $5,326,725 which reflects an increase of $379,960 or 7.7% over the 1991-92 budget of $4,946,765. The increase is due mainly 2 to increases in personal services and a 14% increase in medical insurance along with the costs for testing for new hire§ and a lieutenant test Chief Cavello then explained the staffing requirements of the Fire Department and how the number of personnel available affects overtime. The department maintains a minimum staffing of 16 firefighters, paramedics and officers on a 24-hour bas~s to man the three fire stations in the Village Seven men are assigned to the main station, five to Station 12 and a minimum of 4 to Station 14 which has the least activity. In order to maintain the 16 man staffing at least 20 people are needed due to scheduled days off, vacations, and duty injury or sick days Chief Cavello stated that a net increase of three firefighters were added in 1989-90 which brings the current staffing level to 21 per day. These three additional firefighters provide for less hire back and provide manpower for a fifth person at Station 14 on certain occasions Chief Cavello added that the current 16 men rmmmum shift strength ~s necessary to maintain the ISO Class II Rating Under the Capital Improvements section of the budget, $15,000 has been budgeted for an a~r removal system at Station 12. This system, which will be incorporated in the new F~re and Police Building, is designed to remove harmful diesel fumes from the apparatus area and consists of a series of fans that begin exhausting fumes after a vehicle is started and the overhead door is raised. Other capital expenditures include $12,865 for a replacement of a fire vehicle and $41,000 for an ambulance re-chassis In the Emergency Preparedness section of the Fire Department budget, $14,200 has been budgeted for replacement of one of the Tornado Early Warning Sirens. There are a total of 8 sirens in the Village and all are approximately 25 years old. The company that maintains these sirens is having difficulty securing the necessary repair parts and the Fire Department hopes to continue the replacement program until they have all been replaced. Mayor Farley stated that he thought the time had come when the Fire Department should establish a policy to not hire smokers Chief Cavello said he had recommended this to the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners but that it had not been adopted Mayor Farley said that he also thought that the Forest River F~re Protection District property owners should be paying the same tax rate for fire protection as Village residents pay. Mr. Dixon said that the homeowners association had refused to approve a referendum to increase the current rate. Trustee Busse discussed the staffing levels with Chief Cavello and why it is necessary to maintain the 16 firefighter staffing level. He also said he would like to see a higher priority placed on fire safety educauon in multi-family buildings Trustee FIoefert asked Chief Cavello for a clarification on how he determined when to replace equipment and if there were any mechamcal devices to help control fire hoses. Chief Cavello said they use age and obsolescence as the primary ways to judge equipment and that the expected life of a pumper has been reduced from 20 years to 10 years He also said no mechanical devices were available Trustee Coreoran said he also thought there should be a high priority on safety educauon for multi-farmly umts He also asked that the lease rate for pumpers be reevaluated due to the lower than expected useful hfe. 3 Trustee Floros asked about the plans for a new fire station at the North end of the Village. He also asked why it was necessary to pay overnme for fire inspectors. Chief Cavello responded that the feasibility of a new stauon would be exannned within the next two years. He also said that it ts less disruptive when off-shift personnel make presentations Trustee Clowes asked why volunteers could not be used more. He also sam he thought more discretion should be used m assigning overtime. Police Department ; ...... Police Chief Ron Pavlock presented the 1992-93 proposed budget of $5,896,550 which represents an increase of 5.9% over the 1991-92 budget of $5,570,210 The increase can primarily be attributable to increases m personal services and benefit costs Other notable items m the budget include a reduction tn the payment to the Northern Ilhnois Crime Lab from $68,000 tn 1991-92 to $35,900 in 1992-93, an addition of $2,500 for maintenance of the Pistol Range, and $4,500 which represents the 3rd of four payments for the accreditation process. Also, under capital expenditures is a request for $4,500 for a Mobile Data Terminal Chief Pavlock said that the budget for 1992-1993 is a conservative proposal w;th no requests for addiuonal personnel or major equipment purchases. However, he stated that it does pro,nde the resources needed to maintain professional and complete police services to the community. He added that the entire staff is excited about the construction of a new police facility. He said he expected the new facility to be a source of community pride and a means to promote positive and cooperative police and commumty relations. ~.) Trustee Corcoran complimented Chief Pavlock and his staff for doing a good job and bringing in a reasonable budget He also asked the Chief to discuss gang activttles in the %llage Chief Pavlock stated that an officer had been assigned to the Gang Crimes Task Force for 2-1/2 years and during that time a wealth of information has been gathered The Cook County Sheriff has now incorporated a county-wide program wath 34 police officers assigned to the group He said this will address the problem and that he thought that his staff was on top of the problem He said there is a coordinated effort through the Regional Action Planmng Program (RAPP) which includes the Village, Park Districts, Schools, the States Attorney, the Sheriff and the Court System He said the Village still works w~th the Metropolitan Enforcement Group (MEG) for incidents which are multi-jurisdictional in nature Trustee Busse commented that he appreciated the programs the Police Department were bringing to the community. He also said the recent citizen survey by the Police was a good idea and that he thought a customer survey should be incorporated throughout Village government. In response to a question on overtime, Chief Pavlock stated that 37% of all overtime was due to the time officers were in court. He also said that he hoped this time would decrease wath the new mall-in ticket that is being used. Trustee Hoefert asked the Chief to explain the School Counselor program Chief Pavlock responded that it is a cooperative effort with the schools and it provides an officer who can set up programs and who can get to the right people quickly. Trustee Clowes said he would like to have performance measures established so that ~ relationships between programs and results can be established. Trustee Floros said that he had 4 ' l no problem with the Police budget - that it was a good budget and reflected current economic circumstances. V Other Business Village Manager DLxon announced the public hearing for the Stormwater Management Program on Saturday, March 14, 1992 at 8:30 and the Cmzens Utilities Information meeting at 10 00 a.m on the same date Trustee Coreoran informed the Village Board members that the SWANCC Directors would be meeting on Wednesday, March 11, 1992 to determine if there was support to move ahead with the financing plans. He asked the other Board members for direction on how to vote as the Village had not adopted the Project Use Agreement. The consensus of the Board was that Trustee Corcoran should not vote on the question VI A~ournment The meeting adjourned at 12'00 rmdnight. Respectfully Submitted ,.7 / x Davtd C..lepson, Finance Director DO/sm 5