HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/08/2000 CWC MinutesMINUTES
FLOATING COFFEE WITH COUNCIL
Saturday, July 8, 2000
9:00 a.m.
Location 1 - 2nd Floor Conference Room, Village Hall
Mayor Gerald "Skip" Farley convened the meeting at 9:00 a.m. Those present were: Trustees
Timothy Corcoran, Michaele Skowron and Irvana Wilks. Representing staff were Assistant Village
Manager David Strahl and Chief of Police Ronald Pavlock.
Residents present were:
Rosemary Koenig, 1813 N. Laurel Drive
Robert Storr, 105 S. Edward
Chris Lenz, 214 N. Louis
Al Engberg, 1801 Hopi
Tim & Julie Gagne, 103 S. Edward
Don Maxwell, 632 S. Edward
Richard Van Dyke, 22 S. Edward
Tom Grafton, Dana Point
Jim Caulfied, 219 N. Pine
Michael Zielinski, 10 S. Wille, #304
Anne Marie Hazl, 104 S. Edward
Joyce Pinz, 2003 Woodview
David Schein, 700 Ivanhoe
Tom McGovern, 200 S. Pine
Chris Arnold, 102 S. Edward
Rosemary Koenig, 1813 N. Laurel Drive, presented a petition signed by several neighbors (see
attached) requesting that the Village Board create a new ordinance covering the construction and
location of dog runs. She indicated that the homeowner at 1815 N. Laurel Drive placed numerous
patio blocks outside their attached garage door as well as a pit in which they place animal waste. She
was concerned about the odor from this pit during the months of July, August and September.
During the past month she had called Community Development and was advised that their inspection
did not find any violations of any existing ordinance. She has approached her neighbor at 1815 N.
Laurel and gave her two weeks to clean up the area. It was at that time that she called Community
Development and made the formal complaint. Mayor Farley and the Trustees present suggested that
this matter be turned over to mediation. The Village Mediator Lisa Angell will be contacted and
asked to follow up on this concern. Community Development Deputy Director Mike Blue will also
be asked to look further into this concern regarding side yard dog runs.
Robert Storr, 105 S. Edward; Tim & Julie Gagne, 103 S. Edward; Anne Marie Hazl, 104 S.
Edward; Chris Arnold, 102 S. Edward, wished to discuss sewer problems they had during a recent
rainfall that resulted in damage to their basements. They were asking for some relief from the
damage and looking for ways to prevent it in the future. They were referred to the Public Works
Director and other Village staff for some resolution to their problems. Director Andler met with one
of the residents immediately after the Coffee with Council meetings.
Chris Lenz, 214 N. Louis, asked for a solution to large trucks parking in the front parking lot of
Menards overnight. He was not sure whether it was covered in the various agreements approving
their plans, but asked if the Village could look into it. This matter was passed on to Planning for a
review of the agreements between Menards and the Village. He also expressed a concern with the
construction at Emerson and Northwest Highway, but did notice that the gaps in the sidewalk had
been corrected on this date. He mentioned there will be a meeting regarding a new development
going in at Rand and Louis. The meeting will take place on July 17, 2000 at the Mount Prospect
Library. He was advised that he should go to the meeting and listen to what they have to present,
and then attend the following meetings that will be necessary for the completion of any project.
Al Engberg, 1801 Hopi, gave his views on how space could be saved regarding the new Village
Hall proposal. The Mayor mentioned that he was certainly welcome to attend any public meetings
relative to this project and express his opinions. Mr. Engberg also asked what perimeters had been
established for cleaning McDonald Creek. He mentioned he had found large amounts of debris
behind his house in the creek and had cleaned this area, placing the debris on the shore. He wanted
to know how the Village chose areas to be cleaned up by subcontractors, and who he should call to
assist him in cleaning up the debris. Public Works Director Andler will be advised to contact Mr.
Engberg.
Don Maxwell, 632 S. Edwards, advised that recently he had a serious termite problem at his home
and had contracted a local business who assisted him in removing the termites. He was concerned,
however, because termites are subterranean and could move from his house to others in the
neighborhood. He suggested that our newsletter carry an article about this problem. The Mayor and
Trustees present suggested that this information be given to our Public Information Officer for a
possible future publication. He also expressed his concern about continuing noise from O'Hare that
has been growing louder over the past several months. The Mayor and Trustees present explained
the Village's involvement and that, in fact, Mayor Farley and Trustees Wilks• and Skowron serve on
the O'Hare Noise Committee and that problems are monitored on a continuous basis. Trustee
Skowron suggested that the resident come back to the Village Hall during the week and review a
copies of the many reports that have been issued by this Committee. Trustee Wilks explained that
the Village of Mount Prospect is deeply involved in this issue and would certainly appreciate any
input from the residents.
Joyce Pinz, 2003 Woodview, stated she stopped by the meeting to simply say thanks to the Village
Board for all their efforts in preventing flooding in her area. She wanted to congratulate the Board
and staff for a job well done. Mayor Farley stated we are continuing to work on flooding in all parts
of the Village as this is a concern of the Village Board.
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Tom Grafton, Dana Point & Jim Caulfield, 219 N. Pine, wanted to correct a recent newspaper
article that stated the Senior Center was not necessary to the community. Mr. Grafton and Mr.
Caulfied reported that 27 different organizations meet at the Senior Center and certainly there is
a need for this facility in the future. They also indicated that it is necessary to have parking for the
seniors and seniors do not like underground parking. Mayor Farley stated that he is planning on
bringing this subject up for discussion at the July 25, 2000 Committee of the Whole meeting.
Michael Zielinski, 10 S. Wille Street, #304, came to see a meeting and wanted to thank the Village
for keeping a lot of the greenery in downtown.
David Schein, 700 Ivanhoe, wanted to advise the residents that Mount Prospect has a large
population of black squirrels, and suggested signs be put up in the St. Raymond's area warning of
their existence. He will be following up on this at a later date.
Tom McGovern, 200 S. Pine Street, expressed his concern that when a person has a piece of
property in Mount Prospect that is actually a lot and a half and wants to do something with the
property, they have to go through a process of consolidation. In his opinion, this is an imposition
on the taxpayer and there is no reason for a citizen to go through this process. He worked for the
assessor's office for 22 years and is retired, and found that only a couple of cities have this type of
legislation. The Mayor stated that he doesn't know the actual historical reason for this legislation,
but asked Mr. McGovern to write it up and forward it to the Village Manager for review. The
resident stated he would do so.
The meeting at Location 1 adjourned at 10:25 a.m.
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LOCATION 2 — ROBERT FROST SOUTH, 1308 S. CYPRESS DRIVE
The Floating Coffee with Council was reconvened at 10:45 a.m. by Mayor Farley. Trustee Irvana
Wilks was present. Representing staff were Assistant Village Manager David Strahl, Public Works
Director Glen Andler and Chief of Police Ronald Pavlock.
Village residents in attendance were:
Wilhelm Follmer, 1008 W. Ash
June Richards, 1412 S. Hickory
Mary Collins, 1103 Ash
Harry Ahern, 1419 Cypress
Ray O'Brien, 1414 Cypress
John & Connie Creen, 1015 Church
Tim Gagne, 103 S. Edward
Wilhelm Foller, 1008 W. Ash, expressed a concern about the lack of presence of police cars in the
area and that on the Fourth of July over 100 people were behind Frost South School. Mayor Farley
advised the resident that if there is an incident, police squads are always available to respond
immediately. The Police Chief indicated he will check the reports to see if there were, in fact, any
problems reported at the school on the Fourth of July.
Mike Gray, Robert Frost School Custodian, was asked by Mike Collins, 1103 Ash to describe
the activities that have been occurring around the school this past week. Mr. Gray stated that they
have been tagged at least six times during the past couple of weeks, and last night someone not only
sprayed graffiti on the back of the school, but also cut down the American flag. A report was taken
by the Police Department on each of these incidents. Mr. Gray stated there apparently was quite a
lot of activity behind the school since on the night of July 4 -5 it took him and two other maintenance
workers eight hours to clean up the debris. He reported this to his supervisor, but was not sure
whether or not it was reported to the Police Department. He attempts to keep the weeds down in the
grassy area behind the school to preclude individuals from hiding in those areas. The maintenance
staff does remove all graffiti immediately and works with the police in an attempt to prevent future
problems. He realizes that most of the problems occur when the custodians are not present at the
school. During the summer custodians are only present Monday through Friday during daylight
hours and do not work on holidays. He understands that the neighbors may not call because of the
large, fifteen feet tall bushes in the back that block their view of the school property. He stated that
although things have been better this past year, he is afraid they are starting to deteriorate again. The
Chief of Police stated that he would pass this on to his shifts and ask his crime prevention officers
to meet with school staff in an attempt to prevent any further vandalism. A special watch will also
be initiated that will call for officers to walk the school grounds in the evening hours. The Public
Works Director will work with school custodian staff to assist them in removing the graffiti. Public
Works has the appropriate chemicals that make the removal of graffiti more efficient without
damaging the property.
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June Richards, 1412 S. Hickory, explained that she had attended the Village Hall discussions and
does utilize the Senior Center. She wanted to express her opinion that the seniors do need some kind
of community center. Mayor Farley indicated that the seniors were never told that they do not need
a center and that the newspaper report was not factual as to the feelings of the Board and the Senior
Citizens. He further stated that the Board has never made any comments as far as he knows to
eliminate the Senior Center. Trustee Wilks added that there certainly is a time when all citizens will
need the services of a Senior Community Center. She indicated there have been suggestions that a
third level be added to the library for these programs. She emphasized that Mount Prospect is one
of the few communities that have a core of over 700 seniors that are very involved in the community.
Mike Collins, 1103 Ash, expressed concerns about property maintenance on the south side and
pointed to a residence in the 1000 block of Cypress as an example. He also mentioned a home on
Golf Road that has several cars in its front yard with "for sale" signs on them. He expressed
concerns that leashes on dogs are too long and that we should have part-time people that could walk
the neighborhood and look for violations. Mayor Farley explained that residents should call in
violations so that staff can review them and take appropriate action. The information relative to the
home on Cypress and Golf Road will be passed on to Community Development for review. He also
explained that property maintenance cases are difficult to process through the court system, but that
the Village has a good track record on following through on these complaints.
The other neighbors present expressed concerns about traffic and mischievous incidents occurring
in their neighborhoods, but felt that the Village is doing a good job in taking care of existing
problems. Village staff will review Frost South School property issues and step up maintenance
review as well as police patrol in the area.
Mayor Farley adjourned the meeting at 11:30 a.m.
Respectfully subm itte
Ronald W. Pavlock
Chief of Police
RWP :jd
Attachments
Petition to the Board — City of Mount Prospect, IL
Ladies and Gentlemen:
July 7, 2000
We request that the Board give consideration to an Addendum to an existing ordinance or create a new
ordinance /regulation covering the construction of a dog patio and/or dog run. This regulation would prohibit
construction of dog patio within grassy areas between homes and/or toward the front yard of any home in
Mt. Prospect.
The homeowner at 1815 N. Laurel Drive placed numerous patio blocks outside their attached garage door as well as
a pit in which they place the residue. It is unsightly as well as odorous and will become even more so with the heat
of the upcoming months (July, August, and September). The homes in our area have nice size backyards which can
easily be used for their animals' waste (dog patios, dog runs, etc.)
We would like to preclude this neighbor or any future neighbor from installing this type of structure between two
homes as well as building this structure toward the front yard of any home, especially since the backyard affords
them ample space for their animals.
Signature
Address
L �r���✓
,
Vi of Mount Prospect
Coffee with Council
Saturday, July 8
Time: Place:
9:00 a.m. - 10 :00 a.m. Village Hall
100 S. Emerson Street
10:15 a.m. - Noon Robert Frost School
1308 S. Cypress Drive
Elected officials and Village Staff will be on hand to answer your questions
and provide general information about the Village and its services
The Mount Prospect Village Board hosts a Coffee with Council on the second Saturday
of each month. The intent of these meetings is to give residents the opportunity to
meet on an informal basis with elected officials and Village staff to discuss their concerns,
get answers to questions, or simply share a cup of coffee with the Mayor and Trustees.
Every three months, the Village Board convenes Coffee with Council at a different
location within the community in an effort to make it more convenient for residents in
the area to meet with their elected officials. On these dates, the schedule is split
between Village Hall and the off -site location.
The topics of discussion are determined by the residents so you will be sure to have
your say regarding any matter of importance to you.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL
� THE VILLAGE MANAGER'S OFFICE 847/392 -6000
Village of Mount Prospect ❖ 100 South Emerson Street ❖ Mount Prospect, IL 60056 ❖ 847/392 -6000