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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/11/2002 CWC minutes MINUTES VILLAGE OF MOUNT PROSPECT COFFEE WITH COUNCIL SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2002 9:00 A.M. 2na Floor Conference Room, Village Hall The meeting was convened at 9:00 ~.m. Those present were Mayor Gerald Farley, Trustees Timothy Corcoran, Paul Hoefert, Michaele Skowron and Mike Zadel. Representing staff was Assistant Village Manager Dave Strahl and Director of Finance Douglas Ellsworth. Residents in Attendance: Ray Rubio / Carol Tortorello Joanne Engstrom Barbara Van Arsdale David Schein Merrill Cotten Roger Schonenwise Cathy and Suzy Zadel 412 N. Elmhurst Rd. 223 S. Elmhurst Ave. 110 N. Kenilworth Ave. 414 Can Dota 512 S. NaWaTa 2710 S. Briarwood Drive W. 1209 W. Lincoln St. 601 Bob-O-Link Rd. Mr. Ray Rubio, 412 N. Elmhurst Road: Mr. Rubio just stopped by to visit with the Board and staff. Ms. Carol Tortorello, 223 S. Etmhurst Avenue: Ms. Tortorello had several items she wanted to discuss with the Board. Ms. Tortorello .handed out a copy 0f a letter to the editor written by resident Tom Sheridan. Mr. Sheridan expressed the view that the amount of traffic wasn't the problem in Mount Prospect, but rather it was many drivers unwilling to obey the roles. Ms. Tortorello agrees with that assessment. Ms. Tortorello inquired about the Alter property and asked if we could try to get Lowes or a Super Target at that location. Trustee Skowron said the property does have some problems with the land and that large retailers have looked at the site. Ms. Tortorello asked how many parking spaces were eliminated in the last discussion about the parking structure being designed. Trustee Corcoran informed Ms. Tortorello that only 28 spaced were eliminated. Ms. Tortorello wanted the Village to know that the Cable TV sound was bad in the taping of the last Board meeting. Trustee Skowron said that the sound on reruns occasionally goes out or lowers in volume. Trustee Zadel said that Ross Rowe recently sent an e-mail that said the problem should now be fixed. Ms. Tortorello inquired about the status of the resident asking for an oversized garage variance. Mayor Farley stated that the Board asked them to go back and look at reducing the size even more. Coffee With Council Minutes May 11, 2002 Page Two Ms. Tortorello handed out a Chichgo Tribune article about the need for senior housing. She suggested the Village build senior housing or partner with a company to provide it. She suggested the senior center could be located on the first floor of that facility, and that it could perhaps be located at the former CareMatrix site. Trustee Hoefert said the Village had worked with Catholic Charities to try and find a site. Ms. Tortorello wanted the Board to know that she is not in favor of starting a residential sidewalk inspection program. She feels that neighbors usually report material Code violations. Ms. Tortorello informed the Board that a resident near the 1000 block of oakwood is expressing concern that they have complained for over a year about the exterior condition of the home and lawn. The address was allegedly called in but nothing has been done by the Village to date. Assistant Village Manager Strahl said that he would look into the matter. Ms. Joanne Engstrom, 110 N. Kenilworth Avenue: Ms. Engstrom asked about the grading or improvements to shared driveways. She stated that her neighbor has made some changes and it has affected stormwater drainage. The Mayor explained that one neighbor cannot divert or change the grading without common engineering and the approval of the Village and other party. The Mayor asked Assistant Village Manager Strahl to research the Code and report back to Ms. Engstrom. Ms. Barbara VanArsdale, 414 CanDota: Ms. VanArsdale said she just came to visit and listen. Mr. David Schein~ 512 S. NaWaTa: Mr. Schein handed out seeds for Four O'Clock plants, and provided information about the plant. Mr. Schein informed the Board that the evening before he stopped into the Elk Grove Township Hall to get a fishing license and was told he w6uld have to provide his social security number. He checked with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and was told that there was a new federal law that requires the State to get that information as part of an effort to track down "deadbeat dads". Mr. Schein expressed concern about his right of privacy, and that the Village should be concerned about the law being expanded to require local governments to obtain social security numbers for taxes it collects. Mr. Schein suggested that the new village hall include a "senior/community center" rather than just a senior center or a senior/teen center. Mr. Schein expressed the opinion that the Mayor's response to the resident expressing an opinion about the Suburban O'Hare Noise Commission was out of character at the last meeting. The Mayor informed Mr. Schein that he has had several discussions with that individual about the matter, and that the individual was only try/ng to use the platform for getting his message across. Mr. Merrill Cotten, 2710 S. Briarwood: Mr. Cotten expressed his view that the construction on Golf and Algonquin Roads is going nicely, and is glad to see they are making progress. Coffee with Council Minutes May 11, 2002 Page Three Nh'. Cotten asked why the trustees' offices in the new village hall are so much smaller than the Mayor's. He said he believes the Mayor's office shOUld be smaller since he is only a part-time mayor, and he would have access to several conference rooms. He also stated that we should have asked the architects to start small on the village hall and parking garages and then build in options to enhance based on how much money was available. His view is that the parking garage would be considered a "Taj Mahal", and felt we could build one for $9,000 to $11,000 per stall, rather than $17,000 per stall. Trustee Hoefert said that the size of the Mayor's office is not too big considering the many meetings he holds there, the hours he puts in, and the stature of the position. Trustee Skowron said that Mr. Cotten should not personalize it to MaYOr Farley, but rather the position of mayor, whomever it may be in the years to come. Roger Schonenwise, 1209 W. Lincoln Street: Mr. Schonenwise expressed his appreciation for the effort to beautify the Village. He wondered, though, if we have deadlines in our contracts, and the oversight in place, to ensure that projects get completed in a timely manner. He cited many projects that are seeming to take forever; including the Rt. 83 street lighting, the Village sign at the train station, the brick paving by the ice cream store, our empty lot next to "Ye Olde Town Inn" and the vacant lot at Golf and Busse. He said it is frustrating to not see things moving. Mayor Farley explained that many times we are having to wait for other parties, such as IDOT or Corn Ed. Mayor Farley stated that the Board is .frustrated with the delays as well. Ms. Cathy Zadel, 601 Bob-O-Link Road: Ms. Zadel handed oi~t a copy of a plat of survey of her home and a letter she sent to Community Development Director Bill Cooney regarding the parking of her vehicles on the parkway. Her current driveway allows for the parking of one vehicle and she has four registered vehicles. For the past 25 years she has parked vehicles on a portion of the parkway that was graded with gravel. Recently, she was informed that she could no longer park vehicles on the parkway, and in fact has begun receiving police citations. Ms. Zadel expressed concern that the parking ordinance was enacted after they had begun parking on the parkway. Ms. Zadel was asking the Board to allow her to continue parking on the parkway and to direct the police to stop issuing her citations. The Mayor asked Ms. Zadel if the garage is used for the parking of cars. Ms. Zadel said that cars were not parked in the garage, that it was used for storage. Ms. Zadel did acknowledge that they could clean the garage and get one c~r inside. Both Trustee Skowron and Mayor Farley expressed concern over the precedent that would be set if the Board allowed her to park cars on the parkway. The Mayor asked Ms. Zadel if she could eXpand her driveway, making it wider and deeper. Ms. Zadel said she really did not want to spend the money. Trustee Skowron expressed that with all the one car garages in town, many residents face the same parking problems as Ms. Zadel. Mr. Brad Hale, who resides at the home, said that their situation is made worse by the fact the home sits on a comer lot and has more restrictions. Mr. Hale questioned why the Code is being enforced so tightly after alt these years. Assistant Village Manager Strahl said he did not know, but suggested that it might be due to street improvements in the area. offee with Council Minutes May 11, 2002 Page Four Trustee Hoefert expressed concern that if the Zadels were allowed to park on the parkway the Board would have to let others. Mr. Hoefert stated that the Zadels have options, subject to a review of the Code. Trustee Skowron stated she could not support allowing the Zadels to park on the parkway. Ms. Zadel asked if the Village could give her a little time to work out a solution. Dave Strahl stated that any parking arrangement could not be open-ended. A building permit would'have to be pulled in the near future for consideration of the relaxation of the parkway parking prohibition. Trustees Zadel and Hoefert suggested that Ms. Zadel submit a proposal for the staffto review. Mr. Strahl asked Ms. Zadel to submit a letter to his attention asking that she be allowed to park on the parkway without citations until the end of the month, at which time a more permanent solution on her site could be initiated. Ms. Zadel agreed to do so. Mr. Hall asked the Village to look into the left turn restrictions Rom Rand to Prospect Manor and see if they are still necessary. The meeting was adjourned at 10:45 :a.m. Respectfully submitted, I:\Correspklntlk2002\CoffeeCouncil - 5-I 1.doc Douglas R. Ellsworth, CPA Director of Finance