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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/25/1999 COW minutes MINUTES , COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE OCTOBER 26, 1999 CALL TO ORDER Mayor Farley called the meeting to order at 6 23 p m. Present at the meeting were Trustees Paul Hoefert, Richard Lohrstorfer, Daniel Nooch~, Michaele Skowron, and hvanna W~lks Absent from the meeting was Trustee T~mothy Comoran Staff members present ~ncluded Wllage Manager Michael Janon~s, F~nance D;rector Douglas EIIsworth, Deputy F~nance Director Carol W;dmer, MIS Coordinator Joan M;ddleton, Pubhc Information Officer Maura Jandns, Human Services D~rector Nancy Morgan, Deputy Human Services D~rector Jan Abemethy, Secretary Juice Gutlerrez, Office Manager Judy ~ , Fell, Social Worker Apnl Foley, Bi-Lingual Social Worker N~na Persmo, Village Nurse Peggy Florey II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Approval of M~nutas from October 12, 1999 Mobon made by Trustee Lohrstorfer, and ~ Seconded by Trustee Nocchi to approve the minutes Minutes were approved III. ~ CITIZENS TO BE HEARD None IV. 2000 BUDGET DISCUSSION Mayor Farley provided a general ovennew of the Budget review process that will take place ove~ the course of the next two months Village Manager Mlohael Janonls explained that the budget process is a year-long process highhght[ng the steps that had led to this meeting, and what next steps would be in the approval process. He stated that th~s year, ~n an effort to enhance the budget process and solicit Input at the earhest opportumty the Finance Commission had been more Involved in the process Informal meetings were held w~h department d~rectors in the spring and summer to d~scuss internal and external Issues, and to closely examine the budget forecast for the upcoming year. He stated that the Village was in a comfortable pos~t~on fiscally. Revenues are d~verse and healthy thanks to a strong economy, and expenditures are prudent and tailored to our objectives and needs. Mr. Janonis went on to hlghhght the b~ggest hscal accompl;shments of 1999 which included balancing the vehicle replacement fund, establishing a part~al permanent funding source for the Capital Improvement Plan, and revising the fund balance pohcy These cntical structural changes poslt~on the Wllage well for the future Mr. Janoms cited four areas of s~gnihcance in dascnb[ng 1999 It was a good time hscally due to the strong economy, and th~s in turn meant strong revenues for the Wllage Expenditures for the year were within budget and structural budget changes had been made to improve cond~bons for the future The economic development program was going strong, and many of the projects would be coming to fruition in the next year. A lot of work was being done to improve the curb appeal of the Village, through the street Improvement programs, and aesthetically through corridor improvement projects Finally, 1 some of the challenges that the V~llage ~s facing centered around "urban issues" -cnme, property maintenance ~ssues, and an ~ncreas~ng at-r~sk population These challenges w~ll continue to face us ,n 2000, and they will ~be area, s th~at w, II be focuse~d on Mayor Farley raised concern about increasing the amount of the reserve fund Trustee Hoefert sa~d that he was w~lhng to compromise on the percentage amount, but rem~nded Mayor Farl~ey~that ~t was a very gradual process Mr. Janonls continued h~s presentation, expla~r~ng that in the 2000 bu~lget, e~pendltures are down 10.1%, the Operahng Budget is up a modest 2 4%, the General Fund Budget up 3 8%, Personal Services up 4 6% There are no new revenue sources anticipated for 2000, and the programmed ~ncreases are Property Tax up 3 5%, and an ~ncrease ~n the Water/Sewer rate of 4% One unanticipated expenditure for 2000 that ~s not ~ncluded in the budget il f~ndmg for the Route 83 Detour Plan Extensive construction on Route 83 Is scheduled to take place ~n 2000 A detour plan ~s being developed and $100,000 ~s necessary for police overtime for traffic control officers Mr. Janoms proposed that th~s funding come from the General Fund Surplus Finance Director Douglas EIIsworth gave a detailed overview of ihe 2000 budget The total V~llage Budget for 2000 is $62,496,087 Budget expenditures broke down ~nto Capital Budget - 18%, Debt Services Budget 8%, Internal Services 7%, Pension Budget 5%, and Operabng Budget 62% Revenue for 2000 ~s as follows' Property Taxes 15%, Intergovernmental Revenue 13%, Investment Income 8%, Other Revenue 7%, Licenses and Permits 5%, Intedund Transfers 2%, Service Charges 19%, and Other Taxes (including Ut~hty Tax, Sales Tax, Home Rule Sates Tax, Special Services Area #5) 25% Some of the factors affect~n~ the 2000 budget included pension contribution for pohce and hre (which are determined by the state legislature), a $1 rnilhon flood management program grant that was obtained thanks to State Representabve Carolyn Krause, which w~ll be used for Weller Creek, and an anticipated 3% Increase m state income tax receipts Mr EIIsworth h~ghl~ghted some of the reasons for s~gmhcant ~ncreases and decreases in certain departments' budgets He pointed out that the $100,000 prewously mentioned by Mr Janoms for the Route 83 Detour Route would come from the General Fund surplus, making the Fund Balance for 2000 16 6% HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT OVERVIEW Human Services Director Nancy Morgan presented a general overview of the services prowded by the Human Services Department She pointed out that the revenue produmng programs that the department manages generated 14% of their 2000 budget A h~ghl~ght of the 1999 budget year was a grant from Northwest Commun~y Healthcare which enabled them to expand the mentor program and bogen a summer day camp program for at-risk children Ms Morgan thanked the board for their support of the grant She explained that the Human Services Department was famng a problem with their data base program, and explained that new software would have to be purchased in 2000 Performance measures were no.t completed th~s year because of d~fficulty in producing fair, consistent compansons VILLAGE MANAGER'S OFFICE Village Manager Michael Janonls provided a general background on the funcbons of the Wllage Manager's office wh;ch ~ncludes the MIS Department, Public Information, Telews~on Services, and Clerk's Office He highlighted items which showed significant changes from the prewous year A few significant chang~)~ included an InCreased contribution to the Northeastern Ilhno~s Planning Comm~sston, and a Vehicle Maintenance line item (due to the changes in the Vehicle Replacement Fund) Legal Services was combined because the same firm is used for General Counsel and Prosecutor The MIS Budget was up 36% due to the need for new software to upgrade to W~ndows NT, which would be a one-time expense TV Services is converting a part-time posit~on to full-time Commumty Producer, but the d~fference would be made up by funding from the L~brary and the Park DIstnct, as the pos~t~on would be responsible half-t~me for progra~mm~ lng.for those organization, s ~ FINANCE DEPARTMENT OVER~/IEW Finance Director Douglas EIIsw0rth provided an overview of the Departmental funct;ons The overall Finance Department budget for 2000 Is up 2 3% H;ghl~ghts of the Finance Department budget include upgrading a Part-t;me Customer Service Clerk to Full-time (would also assist the PayrolFBaneflts Coordinator), Computer financial software conversion expected to be completed, outsourcing of water bill pnnting and mailing, expanded outsourcmg of vehicle Imense apphcet~onsl and funds for office fumitura and partitions Mayor Farley Invited comments from the audmnce Frank Vlasney, 210~ ~Jody Court spoke He sta~ed thai the V~llage Board should g~ve charge to the V~llage manager to control the budget He sa~d that tax Increases should mirror ClP ~ncreases He stated that ordinary citizens couldnl be expected to come to budget meebngs and understand what the increases vail mean for them FINANCE COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS John Korn, Chairman of the Finance Commission presented the tentat;ve recommendations of the Finance Commission for the 2000 Budgets of the Wllage Manager's Office, Finance Department and Human Services He stated 1. ~ F~n ce Department · The Commission voted to support the upgrade of the part-t,me customer ~ servme clerk to full time (6-0) . ' '*o The Commission voted to support the decision to gradually ~ncrease fund ~ ~ balance in the General Fund to 25% (5-1) · The Commission voted to support outsoummg of W~ter billing and vehicle st~cker ma~l~ngs when it is appropnate in terms of staff time and cost/benefit (6-O) · · The Commission supports the pumhase of'modular office furniture for the : Finance Department (6-0) ~ 2 Manaoer's Office ~,, ~ The Commission voted t~ support the upgrade of the part-time cable television production assistant to full-t~me status (4-O-2 abstentions) 3 3 Human Services Department r ,~ ~ The Commission voted ~n favor of ?ont~nu~ng the summer mentonng program anoth, e~r year (6-0) ~'~, 'Mr. Korn thanked the Vdlage Board and the staff for, mvolwng the. Finance Commission early ~n the process this year OTHER BUSINESS ~ ~ , ~. 'Rich Benson, President of Harvest Heights Homeowners Association spoke Mr Bensen stated that he and his neighbors had been having a great deal of problems with the Menards construction project It started w~th trash and debns accumulating on the s~te, fmlure of the construmton crews to mow and remove litter The elevabon of the fence has been raised, construcbon crews have been starting before 8 00 a m, a painting sub- contractor was neglegent and as a result, the homes, vehicles and other property of the residents has been damaged w~th pmnt flecks Villa Manager Janonls stated that the Menards s~te had been one'of ~the worst managed construction sites In the Village, and that Menards would not take ownership of ~the problem. He suggested putting them on notice that the s~te will be shut down if we do not get a response He suggested sending a letter from Mayor, Farley and copy of the tape from th~s meeting D~scuss~on took place on the subject Several trustees felt that an ~mmedlate'shut down m~ght be in order F~nally, ~t was agreed that a letter from Mayor Farley and a copy of the tape of the meeting would be sent to Menards, a~nd if a response was not received, action would be taken , ' Melissa Sanson spoke She stated that Menards had promised to eave the trees behind the houses Ms Benson stated that the trees had been destroyed She was very concerned about th~s matter She also said that the construction noise from the site was unbearable Mr, Benson stated that by cutting down these trees It ruined the ecreen~ng effect that the residents were hop?g f~r . ~ ,~ Mel Mozcal, 802 Harvest Lane spoke He expressed concern that the stop sign near Aldl onto Harvest Lane was missing, and he requested that it be replaced He also stated that the construcbon workers from the Menards site had been parking along Harvest Lane and causing hazardous dnwng conditions Mr Mozcal also stated that Menards trucks were Menards' dehvery trucks were trying to exit ea?t onto, Hawest Lane, a narrow street, and were running over peoples' law.ns Joseph Llberlo, 302 Autumn Lane spoke He stated that the windows on h~s house had been damaged by the construction The fence in the back of h~s house had been knocked 'down and was actually m~ss~ng portions He beheves th~s is the fault of the Menards construcbon Joe Meditla, 224 Autumn Lane spoke He stated that his garden had been covered m ' the paint specs arid he couldn.'t eat anything out of h~s gard. e.n all summer Mike Mousbaca, 220 Autumn Lane spoke He stated that h~s car had pmnt flecks on the inside and outside He had received a quote that ~t would cost $1,100 to repair it The attorney for the painter is not being responsive He also stated that his deck was full of the paint flecks and would have to be sanded out Norton Geller, 301 Autumn Lane spoke Mr Geller is m the insurance claims and I~t~gat~on field He stated that Menards was trying to hide behind the;r indemn;hcat~on w~th the general contractor He stated that the subcontractor had substandard insurance, and that the general contractor d~d not want to put their hab~hty on not,ca Mr Geller stated that the residents were not receiving any response on the paint issue He asked that a stop work order be issued and not I~fted until residents were pa;d for the damages Mayer Ferley stated that the board would send via Federal Express a packet includ~ng a letter under the Mayor's s~gnature, and a copy of the tape of the meeting Louts Devaca, 222 Autumn Lane spoke He stated that he his garden and cars had also been covered in the paint specs He expressed concern because h~s family had eaten vegetables out of the garden and wanted to know what was in the paint Mayor Farley thanked the residents for coming to the meet;rig and prom~sed prompt follow-up Mayor Farley announced he had received not,ce that a group from Serves, France, Mount Pmspect's Sister C~ty, would be ws~ng May 16-21, 2000 He also expressed sympathy to the family and c;t~zens of Des Pla~nes for the sudden death of Mayor Paul Jung who had passed away the prewous Sunday Trustee Wllks announced that a pubhc service would be held for Mayor Jung She also described an internet informat~on night for parents that she had attended at St Emily's School which the Mount Prospect Police Department part~c~patad in She encouraged parents to understand pmtecbons that children have in regard to these ~ssues Trustee Necchi asked ~f tho Village had received an answer from Metre about the unsightly structures Mr. Janonls rephed that they were control mechanisms for the grade crossing gates and I~ghts VIII. ADJOURMENT Since there was no further business, the Comm~ee of the Whole meebng was adjourned at916pm Respectfully submitted, MAURA JANDRIS Public Information Officer MLJ H \GEN\Cow~Minutes\102699 COW Minutes doc