Board of Trustees Meeting

VILLAGE OF HOMEWOOD BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING TUESDAY—JUNE 9, 2020 VILLAGE HALL BOARD ROOM and audio conferencing CALL TO ORDER: Village President Hofeld called the regular meeting to order at 7 p.m. There were no members of the public at Village Hall. The meeting was conducted by President Hofeld from the Boardroom. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: President Hofeld dispensed of the Pledge of Allegiance. MESSAGE OF CONDOLENCE: President Hofeld delivered a message of condolence on behalf of the Village Board to the family of George Floyd who was killed while in the custody of the Minneapolis Police. ROLL CALL: Clerk Marilyn Thomas called the roll. Those present were Village President Richard Hofeld at Village Hall, with Trustee Barbara Dawkins, Trustee Lisa Purcell, Trustee Karen Washington, Trustee Lauren Roman, Trustee Jay Heiferman, Trustee Larry Burnson and Clerk Thomas via audio conference. NOTE: Due to the Governor’s emergency order suspending provisions of the Open Meetings Act because of the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing recommendations, elected officials are permitted to participate via video/audio. The public was invited to listen into the meeting live via audio. The public was invited to submit comments by email before the meeting. INTRODUCTION OF STAFF: Village President Hofeld introduced staff members in attendance at Village Hall: Village Manager Jim Marino and Village Attorney Christopher Cummings joined him at the Boardroom. Assistant Village Manager Napoleon Haney was operating the remote operations. MINUTES: The minutes of the General Board Meeting of May 26, 2020, were reviewed. There were no comments or corrections. A motion was made by Trustee Purcell and seconded by Trustee Burnson to accept the minutes as presented. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, Heiferman and Burnson. NAYS –None. Motion carried. CLAIMS LIST: The Claims List in the amount of $565,581.62 was reviewed. There were no questions from the Trustees. A motion was made by Trustee Washington and seconded by Trustee Purcell to approve the Claims List as presented. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, Heiferman and Burnson. NAYS –None. Motion carried. President Hofeld said two items on the Claims List totaled 45 percent of the Village’s expenses: $209,165.19 for June employees’ health insurance and $38,387.22 to Winkler’s Tree Service. HEAR FROM THE AUDIENCE: No audience members were present and no correspondence, under remote guidelines, was received. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH VILLAGE OF FLOSSMOOR/PURCHASE OF WATER: Consider a motion to approve a memorandum of understanding between the Village of Flossmoor and the Village of Homewood that grants the Village of Flossmoor a six-month due diligence period to evaluate the requirements and issues to be resolved to permit Flossmoor to enter into a contract with Homewood for the purchase of water. Manager Marino said the proposal allows engineers for both parties to share information as Flossmoor considers whether to purchase water from Homewood or pursue another option. The memorandum doesn’t get into specifics related to water purchases. A motion was made by Trustee Burnson and seconded by Trustee Roman to accept the memorandum. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, Heiferman and Burnson. NAYS –None. Motion carried. GENERAL BOARD DISCUSSION: Trustees discussed the reactions in the village to the death of George Floyd. The village shut down all businesses the afternoon of Sunday, May 31, as a precaution after looting was reported in the general Chicago area and in at least two South Suburban communities. The Halsted business district remained closed for June 1, 2 and 3. Also, residents have conducted several marches to protest police actions against Floyd and to support the Black Lives Matter movement. Trustees applauded the work of the Police Department, the Fire Department and Public Works for all they did to keep the community safe during the unrest, and made special mention of the police for the department’s attention to the safety of the marchers. Trustees said Homewood residents coming together to share ideas and support one another is what makes the community a great place to live. It was pointed out that the Police Department website has been updated to include information on policing regulations, standards of conduct, training, use of force, and issuing complaints. Trustee Heiferman asked that if complaints are filed against a police officer, they not be kept just within the Police Department, but should be shared with a representative of the Village Board and the village’s Ethics Commission. ADJOURN: A motion was made by Trustee Heiferman and seconded by Trustee Washington to adjourn the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, Heiferman and Burnson. NAYS –None. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 7:16 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Marilyn Thomas Village Clerk