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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/24/2001 COW minutes MINUTES COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE APRIL 24, 2001 I. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7:32 p.m. by Mayor Gerald Farley. Present at the meeting were: Trustees Timothy Corcoran, Paul Hoefert, Dennis Prikkel, Michaele Skowron and Irvana Wilks. Absent from the meeting was: Trustee Richard Lohrstorfer. Trustee-Elect Michael Zadel was also present. Staff members present included Village Manager Michael Janonis, Assistant Village Manager David Strahl, Community Development Director William Cooney, Deputy Community Development Director Michael Blue, Senior Planner Judy Connolly, Project Engineer Chuck Lindelof and Finance Director Doug Ellsworth. II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Approval of Minutes from April 10, 2001. Motion made by Trustee Hoefert and Seconded by Trustee Skowron to approve the Minutes. Minutes were approved. III. CITIZENS TO BE HEARD None. IV. DEVELOPMENT CODE UPDATE Community Development Director Bill Cooney provided a general technical summary of the focus of the update. He stated they are looking at the policy applications of the Code by dividing it into three tiers for application purposes. The three tiers are Development, Site improvement and Maintenance Code application or requirements. He provided an outline of the clarification of the Code requirements and the need to streamline the process to encourage improvements. He felt that by developing these three tiers, there would be encouragement for improvement depending on the level of activity contemplated by the property owner. General comments from the Village Board members included the following items: It was suggested that the process be tested out to see if it works before full implementation. There was also a question regarding the definition of expansion of development compared with site improvements and the need to clarify definitions. It was also pointed out that if there is an opportunity to streamline the timeframe for approval, such improvement should be considered. Community Director Bill Cooney stated that the proposal has been reviewed with ZBA and Plan Commission and would consider a test mode for the process. General consensus of the Village Board was to consider the Development Code modifications as presented in the near future. V. MULTIPLE BOND RATINGS Finance Director Doug EIIsworth outlined the options that the Village could undertake to obtain an additional Bond rating beyond the current rating that it enjoys at this time. Benefits include a second review and provides a second look at the finances, however, the cost of the second rating is based on the size of the Bond issue and the Bond consultant the Village uses feels that the additional cost which would be incurred by obtaining a second rating would not likely outweigh any possible savings from a more favorable rating. He also pointed out that the typical objective of lenders is to review the ability to repay the loan and they formally look at such things as fund balance against the ability to repay the loan. He also stated that the Bond consultant does not recommend alternating between agencies due to local acceptance in the Bond market for a specific Bond rater. He stated it may be worth it to review finances at the time of the potential Bond sale to determine whether the Village would be in the process of requesting a review to get an approved rating. Consensus of the Village Board was to retain the current rating and not consider a second Bond rating at this time. VI. ACCEPTANCE OF CREDIT CARDS FOR MUNICIPAL PAYMENTS Finance Director EIIsworth brought this forward because this is a policy question as to whether the Village should accept credit cards or debit cards for payment of Village bills. He stated the Village would pay a fee based on the volume which could range anywhere from 2-3% fee per credit card transaction. He stated therefore the Village would only receive 97-98% of the actual payment. He stated that this is a convenience to the customers and would cause the cash customers to underwrite the convenience provided to the credit card customers. He stated a recent survey by the Northwest Municipal Conference showed that 48% of the communities accept credit cards. He stated that it would cost the Village approximately $5,000 as a one-time set-up fee to begin accepting credit cards. General comments from the Village Board members included the following items: A question was raised regarding a user convenience fee to help recover the portion of the credit card payment that the Village would lose for the convenience. There was also a concern regarding the loss of revenue and security of the use of credit cards. Finance Director EIIsworth responded by stating that it would require a third party to collect payments to cover additional costs which is typically referred to as a user convenience fee. He suggested that he monitor the use of credit and debit cards and report back to the Village Board in a couple of years to see if the fee level has changed. General consensus of the Village Board was to continue the current process of only accepting a check or cash for payment of Village bills and not accept credit cards or debit cards at this time, VII. First Quarter Financial Re_~ort Finance Director EIIsworth provided a summary of the Budget for the first three months of 2001. He stated that there are some trends which may be beginning to show regarding revenue flow during the first several months of the year. He also pointed out any substantial changes that he has noticed in revenue and expenditures during the first three months. He pointed out that the Infrastructure Maintenance Fee revenue will be an issue in the very near future since the ruling by the Illinois Supreme Court. The Village has the potential of losing revenue which has previously been paid by wireless companies. He also stated that the health insurance costs to the Village are going to increase 15% as of July 1 and the Police pension enhancements that were required by State law have impacted the expenditures for 2001. He also stated that there will be an increase to the Northwest Central Dispatch for the cost of services which was not built into the Budget. This information was provided for general information purposes only and required no Board action at this time, VIII. VILLAGE MANAGER'S REPORT Village Manager Janonis reminded everyone that Arbor Day is coming up on April 27 and the Welcome New Resident is scheduled for April 28. He also stated that May 1 would be the swear-in for the new Board member and swear-in for the m-elected Board members and the Mayor which will include a reception that will start at 6:15 p.m. IX. ANY OTHER BUSINESS Trustee Prikkel asked that the Village Board look at doing something about the southeast corner of Busse and Golf to improve the appearance of the site. Trustee Skowron suggested a discussion in the near future regarding the Village Disclosure Statement required by the Village. X. AIZ~ZUJ~LME~ Since there was no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 9:14 p.m. Respectfully submitted, ~. r /3 DAVID STRAHL DS/mc Assistant Village Manager H:\GEN\Cow~vlinutes\031301 COW Minutes.doc