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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/13/1996 CWC minutesMINUTES FLOATING COFFEE WITH COUNCIL SATURDAY, JULY 13, 1996 9:00 a.m. LOCATION 1 - 2nd FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM, VILLAGE HALL The meeting was called to order by Mayor Gerald Farley. Trustees present were Timothy Corcoran and Michaele Skowron. Representing staff were Village Manager Michael E. Janonis and Public Works Director Glen R. Andler. Village residents were: Walter F. Beck, 300 S. Main St. Nancy Bobikewicz, 1114 N. Meadow Ln. Louis Caviani, 210 S. Mt. Prospect Rd. Jim Bornhoeft, 308 S. Mt. Prospect Rd. Nanette Turetgen, 930 N. Wheeling Rd. Pete & Sally McNamara, 1813 E. Hopi Ln. David Schein, 512 S. NaWaTa Ave. Lill Perham, 501 W. Dempster St. Mayor Farley began by explaining this is the first meeting of the new Floating Coffee with Council. This morning's meeting here will be adjourned between 10:00 a.m. and 10:15 a.m. and then reconvened at the Mount Prospect Park District Rec Plex at 10:30 a.m. Walter Beck, 300 S. Main, distributed a letter explaining his position on a violation notice he received from the Village's Building Division. Mr. Beck has a July 24th court date concerning this violation and is requesting a meeting with staff to get clarification of the violation. Mayor Farley instructed the Village Manager to contact Mr. Beck and set up a meeting between himself and the Deputy Community Development Director David Hulseberg prior to the July 24th court date. Nancy Bobikewicz, 1114 N. Meadow Ln., as a representatives of the homeowners in her subdivision wanted to make the mayor and trustees aware of several situations, the first being the Rand Road Corridor Study and the issue of low-density residential housing. When is this scheduled for discussion by the Village Board? Ms. Bobikewicz was informed that this item is not a scheduled topic for any of the upcoming Committee of the Whole meetings and that, when it is, staff will make sure she is notified. The next item concerned the Mount Prospect Park District. Because her subdivision is within the Prospect Heights Park District boundaries, they have to pay out -of -district fees to the Mount Prospect District. Has the Village done anything to try and get the two park districts to agree to a reciprocity agreement? Mayor Farley informed Ms. Bobikewicz that he has sent several letters to a number of the park districts requesting reciprocity agreements and as of yet he has heard back from none of them. He suggested that Ms. Bobikewicz go to the two Park Districts' Board meetings and make them aware of her homeowners association's request. She should contact Wally Cook of the Mount Prospect District at 255-5340 to get details concerning meeting dates and how she could possibly get on the agenda. The next item concerned the Mount Prospect Post Office. According to Mrs. Bobikewicz, her subdivision now has been classified as an auxiliary route, rather than a regular route and, as a result, their mail carrier changes from day to day. Because of this, there are numerous errors in receiving other people's mail and/or having her mail going to other people. Mrs. Bobikewicz was informed there isn't anything the Village could do but she should contact the Postmaster, Mrs. Patricia Wehrs, regarding their grievance procedures. She may also want to contact the local postal inspector and/or Congressman Porter and make them also aware of her problems and concerns. The next item of concern was the scheduled date for the flood control improvements within the Wedgewood Subdivision. Mrs. Bobikewicz requested that a representative from the Village be present at their next meeting scheduled for 7:30 p.m. July 25th at the Gary Morava Recreational Center at 110 W. Camp McDonald Road in Prospect Heights to explain why their flood control improvements will not be constructed until the year 2001. Village Manager Janonis said he would get back to Mrs. Bobikewicz and let her know who from the Village could be present at that meeting. The last item of concern was the ditch in front of 1004 Meadow. According to Mrs. Bobikewicz, the homeowner there, who has a tree service, has dumped a lot of debris in the ditch which is obstructing the natural flow of the ditch. Public Works Director Andler said that he would contact the homeowner and see that the ditch is cleaned out. Louis Caviani, 210 S. Mt. Prospect Road and Jim Bornhoeft, 308 S. Mt. Prospect Road were the next residents to speak. Both wanted to let the Village know about problems with Mt. Prospect Road. There is no curb installed on the west side of the street and, as a result, they are constantly having problems with people driving off the pavement and tearing up their parkways. They claim that, according to former Public Works Director Weeks, when the County resurfaced the street several years ago there was to have been a rumble strip installed along the shoulder of the road, but this was never done. They also expressed their concern about speeding along that section of Mt. Prospect Road. Village Manager Janonis explained to Mr. Caviani and Mr. Bornhoeft that this is a Cook County highway and that, several years ago, the County asked the Village if they would like to see Mt. Prospect Road improved. Those improvements would have included not only complete resurfacing, but also widening Mt. Prospect Road on the west side to include curb and a parking lane. The residents, at that time, were not in favor of this and, as a result, the County did nothing but resurface the existing pavement width. Both Mr. Caviani and Mr. Bornhoeft stated they do not want to see the road widened, but they do want curb installed. Trustee Corcoran pointed out that, again, the County would not install just curb; the only way they would do that is if the road is widened to accommodate the parking lane. Trustee Corcoran suggested that Mr. Caviani and Mr. Bornhoeft contact all the homeowners along Mt. Prospect Road and with a unified approach, contact Cook County and Commissioner Hansen, who lives in Mount Prospect, with their request for curbing. In the meantime, Village Manager Janonis said he would contact our Police Department and have them do selective speed enforcement along that stretch of Mt. Prospect Road Also, staff would contact Cook County and see if it is possible for them to install "Do Not Drive on Parkway" signs or possibly even "No Passing on Right" signs along the west side of Mt. Prospect Road between Central and Northwest Highway. Page 2 Nanette Turetgen, 930 N. Wheeling Rd. was there as a resident of the Randview Townhomes Association. Ms. Turetgen's concern is the proposal for permit parking along the streets within her area of the Village. According to the information she has received, if you have more than two cars, you may have to sell them because you will not be able to get any additional permits. Ms. Turetgen wants to know how public streets can be turned over for private use. Village Manager Janonis stated there is a significant parking problem within that area of the Village and that, for over a year, the Village has been working with representatives of a number of the associations on trying to come up with a parking solution. It was his understanding that those people who have been meeting with the Village have been keeping all the residents appraised of what is being proposed. According to Ms. Turetgen, she spoke with Sheldon Tabas and according to him what they decide is final and the residents have no say in the matter. Ms. Turetgen will be notified of the next meeting. Pete and Sally McNamara, 1813 E. Hopi Ln. wanted the mayor and trustees to be aware of the problem they are having with securing a fence permit from the Village for their back yard. They have a small child and have requested a permit from the Village to fence in their back yard but, according to Christine VanDornick, a fence would not be allowed because their rear yard runs along McDonald Creek and is in the flood plain. As a result, a chain link fence is not a permitted structure. Village Engineer Jeff Wulbecker talked to the McNamaras explaining this and their only recourse of contacting Mr. Jereb of the Illinois Department Natural Resources. He is the only one who could permit the fence. If he approved it, the Village would also and issue a permit for the construction of a chain link fence. David Schein, who works for FEMA, confirmed that this is the procedure the McNamaras need to follow in order to get permission to put a fence within a flood plain area. One last item that Mr. McNamara wanted to bring to the Village's attention is a shopping cart in the creek near his property that needs to be removed. Public Works Director Andler said he would contact the MWRD, who maintains this creek, and see that it is removed. The meeting at Location 1 was adjourned at 10:25 a.m. LOCATION 2 - 2nd FLOOR MEETING ROOM, MOUNT PROSPECT PARK DISTRICT REC PLEX The Floating Coffee with Council meeting was reconvened by Mayor Farley at 10:35 a.m. Trustees present were Timothy Corcoran, George Clews, and Michaele Skowron. Representing staff were Village Manager Michael E. Jannis, Assistant Village Manager David Strahl, Police Chief Ronald Pavlock, Crime Prevention Officer John Wagner, Fire Chief Edward Cavello, Human Services Director Nancy Morgan, Finance Director Brian Caputo, Deputy Director of Community Development David Hulseberg, and Public Works Director Glen R. Andler. Village residents present were: Page 3 Ms. Traczyk, 1427 Chestnut Dr. Ernest Lasse, 805 S. Elm St. Mary L. Schweger, 5 S. Pine St. #201 Irma Andros, 5 S. Pine St. #201 June Richards, 1412 S. Hickory Dr. Mike Collins, 1103 W. Ash Dr. David Schein, 512 S. NaWaTa Ave. Peter Gogolewski, 508 N. Main St. Joe Piombino, 1111 W. Ash Dr. Ray E. Fritz, 804 Edgewood Ln. Florence Dudley, 15 S. Pine St., #505 Richard P. Bialek, 312 S. Haden Ave. Ms. Traczyk, 1427 Chestnut Dr., asked the Village why the residents within her area were not contacted about the approval of Section 8 Housing. Doesn't the Village have a say on whether or not this is allowed? Trustee Corcoran explained the Village does not have that authority; it is a federal project. Section 8 is the replacement for the original federally funded low income housing program. It is strictly up to the landlord or owner of the property to accept Section 8 Housing requests. Trustees Clowes informed Ms. Traczyk that, if she wants to file a complaint, she should do this to the federal government through her local representative. Mary L. Schweger, and Irma Andros, 5 S. Pine St., #201, requested the Village's assistance in securing cable TV for the condominium building that Pontarelli Builders built on Pine Street. According to Ms. Schweger, she has talked to T.C.I. and they have not been able to come to terms with Pontarelli on getting cable installed into their condominium building. They have also contacted Cheryl Pasalic, the Village Communications Administrator, and told her that, according to Pontarelli, the Village has been telling them that T.C.I. will be installing a new pole to accommodate the cable for over two years. Ms. Schweger said that if she does get cable by July 31st. it is her intent to install their own dish. As of August 7th new federal regulations allow residents to install these dishes without the need for a local permit. Mayor Farley told Ms. Schweger that the Village's Communications Administrator, Cheryl Pasalic, will be informed of the situation and she will contact her and get the matter resolved. Mr. & Mrs. Gogolewski, 508 N. Main St. attended the April 13, 1996 Committee of the Whole meeting, at which time Mr. Gogolewski made the mayor and trustees aware of the condition of the pavement in front of his home. At that time he was told that something would be done to repair the pavement. Public Works Director Andler informed Mr. & Mrs. Gogolewski that the state was contacted and they have, in fact, installed patches in the one and two hundred blocks of N. Main St. and they have also committed to install the patches in the 500 block of N. Main St. Another problem Mr. & Mrs. Gogolewski wanted to make the mayor and trustees aware of is the ongoing speeding problem along that stretch of N. Main. Police Chief Pavlock informed the Gogolewskis that the Police Department has increased patrolling of N. Main and, in fact, their ticket issuance has increased 47% over last year's. They will continue to monitor the situation. Page 4 Joe Piombino, 1111 W. Ash Dr., was the next resident to speak. Mr. Piombino had sent a letter requesting information about the Village' shopping cart ordinance and wanted to know the status of his request. Public Works Director Andler informed Mr. Piombino that a response has been sent and he should receive it shortly. The current shopping cart ordinance requires the Village to pick up shopping carts only within public rights-of-way, not on private property. The Village's current policy is to inform the property owner of any complaints it receives regarding shopping carts on their premises and it is up to the private property owner to contact the store owners and get the carts removed. With carts picked off of public right-of-way, there is an initial $15 fine. Then, if the owner of the carts doesn't pick the shopping carts up within three days, the carts are destroyed and an additional $50 fine per cart is billed to the property owner. To date, there have been over $200 in fines collected from various shopping cart owners. It was the consensus of the Village Board members present that the Village would continue to monitor the shopping cart situation and that staff will work with the local cart owners and see if, collectively, they could come up with other possible means of controlling the problem with abandoned shopping carts. Mike Collins, 1103 W. Ash Dr. wanted to make a statement about the discussion that took place earlier regarding Section 8. Mr. Collins feels that the Village should take more of a lead position on this type of issue. The Village can surely make more of an impact on the federal government than an individual resident. Ms. Traczyk, 1427 Chestnut asked the Police Chief about the gang situation in her area. She has been told that the gangs are being cleared out, but she still sees gang members and wants to inquire as to how many gangs have been removed or how many gangs are still in the area. She also asked why the Village couldn't hold the landlords accountable for allowing gangs to move into their properties. The City of Chicago has such a law. Chief Pavlock said he was not aware of this new law, but he would check into it. He also stated that the police and residents need to continue to work together on the issue of controlling gangs. Residents must learn how to recognize gang members and then keep the police informed of any activities they may observe. Mr. & Mrs. Richard Bialek, 312 S. Hatlen asked the Village if a license or a permit was required for a resident to run a nursery out of their home. Deputy Director of Community Development Hulseberg said that it depends on the number of children involved. Mr. Bialek also wanted to make the Village aware of a problem with manholes rattling in the 300 block of South Hatlen. According to Mr. Bialek, ever since the new sewer was installed down Hatlen, these manhole covers have been making noise. Public Works Director Andler said he would check into the situation. If they were found to be defective, they would either be replaced or secured with a mastic material. Page 55 Ernest Lasse, 805 S. Elm, was under the impression that the reason why the Coffee with Council meeting was moved down to the south side area of the community was to address south side issues. It was his opinion that too much time was spent today on north side issues and that the meeting should have been devoted strictly to this area. Mayor Farley, as well as all trustees present, informed Mr. Lasse that was not the intent of moving Coffee with Council. Coffee with Council is open to residents of the entire community and not just specific to the area where the Coffee with Council meeting will be held. If there is a need to address something specific to a certain area of the community, then a special meeting is held in that area just for that purpose. The meeting at Location 2 was adjourned at 12:00 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Glen R. Andler Director of Public Works Page 6