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HomeMy WebLinkAbout9. Coffee with Council Minutes 06/11/2011MINUTES VILLAGE OF MOUNT PROSPECT COFFEE WITH COUNCIL Saturday, June 11, 2011 9:00 A.M. Village Hall, 50 South Emerson Street The meeting convened at 9:05 a.m. Those present were Mayor Irvana Wilks and Trustee Steven Polit. Representing the Village were Village Manager Michael Janonis and Director of Public Works Sean Dorsey. Residents in Attendance Judy Kirman Central Road John Elenberger Redwood Drive Skip Farley Emerson Street Ken Koeppen Linneman Road W. Beck Main Street Jim Chylik Locust Street Thomas Tezky School Street Mal Holec Quince Lane Carol Tortorello Elmhurst Avenue David Schein Na Wa Ta Avenue Jan Kent Briarwood Drive Sheldon Tabas Wheeling Road Mayor Wilks related that she had just returned from a visit to the Village's Sister City in Sevres, France. She commented that the trip was very enjoyable and noted that the citizenry of Sevres were uniformly welcoming and gracious. Judy Kirman stated she was here to discuss a request for a fence variance. She related that problems she has experienced with her next door neighbor. Among her concerns was the behavior of her neighbor, the upkeep of the house and property, as well as the improper discharge of a sump pump towards her property. Recently, she queried Village staff about the process to replace the existing 42" cyclone fence that separates their properties. She desires to replace the existing fence with a higher fence that would afford more privacy. She learned that the installation of higher fence would require a variance from the Planning and Zoning Commission. She was disconcerted to hear that the Planning and Zoning Commission process could take as much as 3 -4 months. She inquired whether the process could be avoided or expedited given her circumstances. Mayor Wilks and Trustee Polit explained that the process was unavoidable and that no shortcuts could be promised. They encouraged her to initiate the process at her earliest opportunity with the hope that reality would prove more expeditious than the forecast. John Elenberger noted that the catch basin at the northwest corner of Cottonwood and Redwood requires cleaning. Mr. Dorsey responded that public works crews would investigate and clean if necessary. Mr. Elenberger also asked if a permit is required to perform a minor repair on his driveway apron. Mr. Janonis responded that a permit is required. Mr. Elenberger then asked for examples of circumstances that the Planning and Zoning Commission would consider allowing a higher fence. Mayor Wilks responded that children with special needs and homeowners with larger dogs are some examples of circumstances where the Planning and Zoning Commission have allowed higher fences. Skip Farley asked how the Building Division contractual inspectors were performing. Mr. Janonis responded that the transition from in -house inspectors to contractual inspectors has been seamless and successful. To the best of his knowledge, there have been no significant problems reported. Mr. Farley more pointedly asked whether the contractor was requiring more inspections than the norm as a means to increase their compensation (correctly suggesting that the contract inspectors are paid on volume of inspections). Mr. Janonis responded that there is no evidence the contractor is generating an inappropriate number of inspections. Ken Koeppen asked what agency was responsible for the recent road improvements on Dempster Street. He noted that a number of failures were already evident. Mr. Dorsey responded that the Dempster Street work was a Cook County Highway Department (CCHD) project. He also explained that the Village was currently in the process of preparing a punch list of defects that would be submitted to CCHD for correction. As part of the punch list preparation process, PW staff will inspect the entire project area. Mr. Koeppen also noted that the retention ponds near the Briarwood development on Linneman Road might attract swimmers during the summer months and suggested the ponds should be signed to warn people not to swim there. Mr. Janonis responded that the ponds are private property and the property owners are responsible for maintenance and safety. Finally, Mr. Koeppen asked if the Village had lists of Mount Prospect residents currently deployed overseas in the armed forces. He suggested that such lists might help organize grass roots efforts to help their families with property maintenance or child care. Mr. Janonis responded that the Village does not have any lists of residents on armed forces deployments. Trustee Polit opined that public release of such information, while potentially helpful, could also create a security risk for the families. Mr. Janonis suggested that organizations such as the VFW or American Legion might be able to offer advice on this matter. W. Beck presented a notice from the Community Development Department that he found on his front door this morning suggesting that his shingled roof needed repair. He was confused by the notice because he has a tar and gravel roof; not a shingled roof. He also commented that the notice was not correctly addressed. Mr. Janonis responded that he would investigate the matter and report back to Mr. Beck. Jim Chylik noted that the City of Des Plaines was recently deemed a "Storm Ready Community ". He asked whether the Village had obtained, or was pursuing, such a designation. Mr. Dorsey responded that the Village participates in the Community Rating System (CRS) which rates communities on readiness to deal with surface water flooding. Presently, the Village holds one of the highest CRS ratings in the State of Illinois which affords residents significant discounts on flood insurance. Dave Schein commented that "Storm Ready" designation is different from the CRS ratings in that it is more weather related and does not offer any flood or homeowner insurance discounts. Thomas Tezky had no issues to disucss. Dave Schein asked about the status of the feral cat issues. Carol Tortorello responded that the scope of the problem seems unchanged. Mr. Schein suggested that the problem might have a causal nexus with the location of catmint plants. Mr. Schein explained that this plant is closely related to catnip and is a very popular landscaping perennial. He suggested that he would be interested in performing a small -scale analysis of these variables to see if a relationship exists. Jan Kent inquired about the status of the Lake Briarwood Sanitary Sewer Improvements. Mr. Dorsey responded that PW staff had just held a pre- construction meeting with the contractor this past week and learned that he intends to mobilize crews during the first week of August. Ms. Kent also asked if public works crews were continuing to monitor the Lake Briarwood area sewers. She commented that there have been no problems but noted that she has not seen public works crews in the area as frequently. Mr. Dorsey responded that public works crews continue to monitor the Lake Briarwood area sewers closely and perform physical inspections at least 3 times per week. Finally, Ms. Kent inquired about the current status of payments to Village from the State of Illinois. Mayor Wilks responded that the threat to withhold the Village's share of the state income tax had been withdrawn for the time being. The current budget presented for the governor's signature did not include any changes to the Local Government Distributive Fund. Mr. Janonis further explained that local communities in Illinois have the right to collect an income tax. However, when the state constitution was drafted in the early 1970s, it was agreed that local government would refrain from taxing income in exchange for 10% of the income tax collected by the state. Recently, the state legislature entertained the idea of withholding the local share and using it pay state debts. Mr. Janonis cautioned that although the threat had subsided, we must remain vigilant because the issue could re- emerge in the fall veto sessions. Finally, Mr. Janonis noted that the state is still slow to pay; typically 3 -4 months late. Sheldon Tabas asked why some intersections do not have painted crosswalks. Mr. Dorsey explained that the Village only installs painted crosswalks in locations where there is a substantiated need to promote pedestrian safety such as near schools, parks, high - volume roads, or areas with high pedestrian counts. He noted that installing painted crosswalks at every intersection would be extremely expensive to maintain. Mr. Tabas also asked if the Village could take a look at the pavement condition on Boxwood Lane and Wheeling Road. He acknowledged that the Village had recently performed some minor patching but concerned that the roadway requires more significant repairs. Mr. Dorsey briefly described the Village's Street Resurfacing Program and the methodology employed to determine which streets receive priority each year. Mr. Dorsey also stated that public works staff would re- evaluate his concerns about the pavement on Boxwood Lane and Wheeling Road. Finally, Mr. Tabas commented that he was having an extremely difficult time communicating with the Mount Prospect Townhomes Owners Association ( MPTOA) regarding the condition of their fence that abuts the Randhurst Village property. Trustee Polit responded that he recently met with Casto, the developers of the Randhurst Village project, and learned that they had recently reached agreement with the MPTOA regarding replacement of the fence. Casto indicated to that the fence would be replaced very soon. Having no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 11:05 am. Respectfully Submitt d, Sean P. Dorsey Director of Public Works