Board of Trustees Meeting

VILLAGE OF HOMEWOOD BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING TUESDAY - FEBRUARY 9, 2021 VILLAGE HALL BOARD ROOM And audio conferencing CALL TO ORDER: President Hofeld called the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees to order at 7 p.m. The meeting was conducted by President Hofeld from the board room. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: President Hofeld dispensed with the Pledge of Allegiance. 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. President Hofeld introduced staff: Village Manager Jim Marino and Attorney Christopher Cummings were in the board room. Joining via Zoom were Police Chief Bill Alcott, and Director of Public Works John Schaefer, and Assistant Village Manager Napoleon Haney was handling the Zoom feed. NOTE: Due to the Governor’s emergency order because of the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing recommendations, and the Village President finding that, pursuant to Public Act 101-0640, an in-person meeting is not prudent, 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. All elected officials were able to hear one another and all discussion. MINUTES: The minutes of the meeting of Jan. 26, 2021 were presented as amended. There were no comments or corrections. A motion was made by Trustee Purcell and seconded by Trustee Roman to approve the minutes as amended. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, Heiferman and Burnson. NAYS –None. Motion carried. CLAIMS LIST: The Claims List in the amount of $1,010,723.74 was presented. There were no questions from the Trustees. A motion was made by Trustee Burnson and seconded by Trustee Heiferman to approve the Claims List. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, Heiferman and Burnson. NAYS –None. Motion carried. President Hofeld said two items on the list totaled 71 percent of the charges: $493,385.53 to Burns & McDonnell Engineering for work on the water delivery project and $226,473.02 for February employee insurance premiums. HEAR FROM THE AUDIENCE: Clerk Thomas read an email submitted Jan. 28 by Jennifer Kellogg to the Trustees asking for attention to the speeding issues on 183rd Street. (See attached). President Hofeld addressed the concern saying the board would be taking action during the meeting that would answer her concerns. OMNIBUS VOTE: Consider a motion to pass, approve, authorize, accept, or award the following items A through G, with the exception of D which was voted on separately: A. APPOINTMENT: Approve the reappointment of Gianni Sansone to the Community Relations Commission for a 3-year term ending February 9, 2024. B. ORDINANCE M-2163/RATIFYING ACTIONS TAKEN AT VILLAGE BOARD MEETING: An ordinance ratifying that all actions of the Village President and Board of Trustees for the Village of Homewood taken at their meeting on January 26, 2021, are hereby ratified, confirmed and approved. C. BUDGET AMENDMENT/AGREEMENT/PARTICIPATION IN COMED ENERGY EFFICIENCY LED LIGHTING PROJECT: Approve a budget amendment for $34,734 and authorize the Village President to enter into an agreement with ComEd to participate in the 50/50 cost share Energy Efficiency LED Lighting Project. D. ORDINANCE MC-1046/AMENDING MUNICIPAL CODE/LIQUOR LICENSES: An ordinance amending Chapter 10 of the Homewood Municipal Code regarding the number, kind and classification of liquor licenses, the fees to be paid for such licenses, and authorizing certain actions to protect the safety, morals and welfare of the community. E. RESOLUTION R-3073/CONSTRUCTION ON STATE HIGHWAYS: Approve a resolution with the Illinois Department of Transportation in lieu of separate surety bonds for work to be performed on a state highway. F. BID AWARD/LED MARQUEE SIGN: i. BUDGET AMENDMENT: Approve a budget amendment for $3,200 to account number 35- 3-831-55-3122 (Village Hall Marquee Sign) increasing the approved FY2020/2021 budget from $25,000 to $28,200. ii. AWARD BID: Award a bid for the purchase and installation of one color LED Marquee Sign, including the removal of existing sign, to Roeda Inc. of Lynwood, IL in an amount not to exceed $28,200. G. VEHICLE PURCHASE/PUBLIC WORKS VEHICLES: i. WAIVE COMPETITIVE BID: Waive the competitive bidding process due to purchasing through a joint cooperative purchasing program - Suburban Purchasing Cooperative (SPC). ii. VEHICLE PURCHASE: Approve the purchase of two Ford F-250 pickup trucks through the Suburban Purchasing Cooperative Contract #178 from Currie Motors Commercial Center, Frankfort, IL in an amount not to exceed $88,893. A motion was made by Trustee Purcell and seconded by Trustee Burnson to approve the items on the Claims List, with the exception of Item D. Trustee Dawkins said relating to Item-B, it was unfortunate that the board was not notified until Friday, Jan. 29, that the Jan. 26 meeting was not fully recorded. While she appreciated that the Calumet Country Club discussion and vote was available, and that a back-up system is in place now to avoid a mishap again, she believed Trustees should have been informed of the issue much sooner. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, Heiferman and Burnson. NAYS –None. Motion carried. A motion was made by Trustee Burnson and seconded by Trustee Purcell to approve Item D – Ordinance MC-1046. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, and Burnson. NAYS – Trustee Heiferman. Motion carried. NEW BUSINESS: CONTRACT AND ENGINEERING AGREEMENT/183rd STREET TRAFFIC STUDY: Approve a contract and engineering agreement with the engineering firm Burns & McDonnell of Kansas City, MO to perform a traffic study for 183rd Street for an amount not to exceed $136,550.00. Public Works Director Schaefer said bids were solicited, and three firms were selected as finalists for interviews before Burns & McDonnell was selected. This study will focus on 183rd Street from Dixie Highway to Halsted. Engineers will consider what could possibly be done to reduce speed, accidents and injuries. Engineers will be responsible for project management, data collection and analysis, concept development and several possibilities to reduce speed and traffic congestion, along with safety. Their recommends will be presented to the board. Trustees thanked Schaefer and his team for addressing the concerns of residents, and hoped that the study will come up with plans for improvements along 183rd Street. Trustee Heiferman urged heavy enforcement of speed limits along the road. Police Chief Alcott said the Police Department has had 1,124 traffic stops since the fatal accident July 23, 2020. Of those, 324 were from drivers coming off of side streets. All were handled by directed patrol assigned just to 183rd Street. After the traffic light at Aberdeen was re-timed, it helped reduce traffic flow speeds. He said officers are out every day writing tickets or warnings. He said the police have high visibility and are in unmarked cars. Of 300 tickets issued, only 2 were for drivers going between 26-35 mph over the speed limit and 2 were issued to drivers going 35 mph or more over the speed limit. A majority of the high speeders are not from the area. The perception is that it’s a 4-lane road rather than a street in a residential area. The Police Department will investigate whether to install moveable digital speed signs at other locations besides the two permanent signs that are near James Hart School. Chief Alcott also shared that an arrest and charges have been filed following the fatal accident, and while it was the result of speed, drugs are believed to also have impaired the driver. A motion was made by Trustee Purcell and seconded by Trustee Burnson to approve the contract for a traffic study by Burns & McDonnell. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Dawkins, Purcell, Washington, Roman, Heiferman and Burnson. NAYS –None. Motion carried. After the vote, President Hofeld asked Director Schaefer to inquire if Burns & McDonnell would extend the study west to Harwood Avenue. GENERAL BOARD DISCUSSION: Trustee Dawkins said COVID-19 numbers in the area are going down, and she hoped that would continue to be the trend. She urged those eligible to get vaccinated, adding she wants the Village to be able to resume its calendar of summer festivals. A motion was made by Trustee Burnson 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 7:22 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Marilyn Thomas Village Clerk Public Comments received prior to the Regular Board Meeting on 2/9/2021 From: Jennifer Kellogg Sent: Thursday, January 28, 2021 1:36 PM To: PublicComments <comments@homewoodil.gov> Subject: Speeding on 183rd Street Homewood Village Board: Once again, I am writing with great concern regarding speeding traffic on 183rd Street. As of late, there is an increase in speeding vehicles on 183rd Street. Please provide an update of specific measures currently in place to immediately reduce speeding traffic along this street. It is a matter of safety and possibly life or death for me and my neighbors. This has been an ongoing concern. Promises to look into it have been made for months. What HAS been done? Waiting simply prolongs the danger. Regards, J. Kellogg