City Council

MINUTES City of Geneva Council Meeting April 10, 2023 6:00 p.m. Mr. Butera opened the Council Meeting at 6:00 p.m. Roll Call – Mario Butera, Philip Cordova, Robert Rosebrugh, Jeffrey Griffiths, James Baehr, John Barbo and William Baker Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag was said and prayer was offered by Pastor David Yarbrough, New Life Assembly of God. Motion was made by William Baker to approve the minutes of the March 27, 2023 council meeting, seconded by Philip Cordova. Roll call, 5 yeas, (Butera, Cordova, Rosebrugh, Baehr, Baker), 2 abstentions (Griffiths, Barbo). Motion duly passed. Presentation – Fire Department, Chief David Shook Presenting Chief Shook handed out the annual report and provided highlights. The Department responded to 557 requests for service of which only 62 were fire related and 112 were public service. One fire injury, a brush fire incident. The Department responded to 10 motor vehicle crashes last year. Several calls were for lock outs or open burns that were unauthorized. The Department did more inspections with COVID relief and more safety education classes. Although the runs were down slightly, the Department increased the amount of work the Department does to help maintain the facility and vehicles. In 1923 there were three full-time fireman in the Department, currently there are four full-time fireman in the Department and Chief Shook is one of the four. Chief Shook would like to schedule a Safety Committee Meeting to discuss different options. The Department covers the City of Geneva and Geneva Township. Fire Loss this year - $57,000 (of which $50,000 was a trailer). Property Value saved $217,000. Property loss and saved figures are based on tax records unless something is received from the insurance company regarding that. The report includes information on mutual aid / automatic aid incidents by jurisdiction. The City responded to Madison’s mutual aid 48 times last year. The Department is not compensated when mutual aid is provided. We provide mutual aid to other departments and they provide mutual aid to the City. It is the only way to get enough people on 1 scene to meet the standards. The standard is a minimum of fifteen people on scene for a structure fire. The Department has thirty-seven part-time personnel. The two trucks the Department has are newer. The Department does have debt. Mr. Baker stated that the Fire Department statistics should be posted. The Fire Department will be posting on the City’s website information as well as fire videos on safety. Citizens – None. City Manager Report – None. Items for Consideration of Council: Ordinance No. 3329 – First Reading. An Ordinance Amending Chapter 661, Safety, Sanitation and Health, Section 661.01(k) of the Geneva Codified Ordinances, and declaring an emergency. Ordinance No. 3330. An Ordinance Amending Chapter 661, Safety, Sanitation and Health, Section 661.12(c) of the Geneva Codified Ordinances, and declaring an emergency. This will save a lot of money in administration costs. The point is not to punish our citizens but to address those people that don’t respond. Mr. Griffiths noted that there are some people that are planting native plants. Motion by James Baehr, seconded by Philip Cordova that the rule of law requiring certain Ordinances be read at three separate meetings be waived and suspended and Ordinance No. 3330 be placed on the final roll for passage. Roll call, 6 yeas (Butera, Cordova, Rosebrugh, Baehr, Barbo, Baker); 1 nay (Griffiths). Motion by Philip Cordova to declare and pass Ordinance No. 3330 as an emergency measure, seconded by William Baker. Roll call, 6 yeas (Butera, Cordova, Rosebrugh, Baehr, Barbo, Baker); 1 nay (Griffiths). Roll call on passage, 6 yeas (Butera, Cordova, Rosebrugh, Baehr, Barbo, Baker); 1 nay (Griffiths). Ordinance No. 3330 duly passed. Ordinance No. 3331. An Ordinance to Amend the 2023 Budget through Appropriations and Fund Transfers, Attached Hereto and Marked Exhibit “A”, and declaring an emergency. This Ordinance will address items found in past audits with regard to projects. Grant funding still must go through the City’s books. Motion by James Baehr, seconded by John Barbo that the rule of law requiring certain Ordinances be read at three separate meetings be waived and suspended and Ordinance No. 3331 be placed on the final roll for passage. Roll call, 7 yeas (Butera, Cordova, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baehr, Barbo, Baker). Motion by James Baehr to declare and pass Ordinance No. 3331 as an emergency measure, seconded by John Barbo. Roll call, 7 yeas (Butera, Cordova, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baehr, Barbo, Baker). Roll call on passage, 7 yeas (Butera, Cordova, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baehr, Barbo, Baker). Ordinance No. 3331 duly passed. 2 Unfinished Business: The larger proposal for changes to the Weeds Ordinances as well as the Vacant Property Proposal was referred to the Committee of the Whole. The Committee of the Whole will meet next Monday evening, April 17, 2023, at 5:30 p.m. to review the language and address any conflict. New Business- None. Payment of Bills – None. Committee Reports: Sustainability Commission will hold a spring clean-up on April 23, 2023. Volunteers are needed. Citizen: Mark Thompson 716 West Main Street, Geneva Mr. Thompson lives on West Main Street. The road has been bad for a long time. Council stated that the issue is the sewer. The Street Department fills any potholes as they occur. The City has the project, an $8 million project, ready to go. The City is having trouble getting bids. It is difficult to get a contractor to commit to a twenty-two month project. The project has been bid three times with no bids. The sewer is in sandy soil. The City has been actively pursuing this project since 2017. The gas lines were moved in anticipation of starting the project. Superintendent Bittner stated that the entire budget for road paving is $100,000. The funding from the State for road improvements was cut years ago. The State funding goes into salt and line striping. It is a small amount in the City’s budget. The City is funded through mostly income tax. A small amount of the property tax, 27%, comes to the City. James Baehr made a motion to adjourn. Philip Cordova seconded. Council meeting adjourned at 6:57 p.m. Recorded by: Phyllis Dunlap Clerk of Council ___________________________________ President of Council ________________________________ Clerk of Council 3