Board of Trustees Meeting

VILLAGE OF HOMEWOOD BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING TUESDAY JUNE 28, 2022 VILLAGE HALL BOARD ROOM CALL TO ORDER: President Hofeld called the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees to order at 7:00 p.m. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: President Hofeld led trustees in the Pledge of Allegiance. ROLL CALL: Clerk Marilyn Thomas called the roll. Those present were Village President Richard Hofeld, Trustee Lisa Purcell, Trustee Cece Belue, Trustee Karen Washington, Trustee Vivian Harris- Jones, Trustee Jay Heiferman and Trustee Lauren Roman. President Hofeld introduced staff present: Village Manager Napoleon Haney, Attorney Christopher Cummings, Director of Public Works John Schaefer, Director of Finance Dennis Bubenik, Fire Chief Bob Grabowski and Economic Development Director Angela Mesaros. MINUTES: The minutes of the meeting of June 14, 2022, were presented. There were no comments or corrections. A motion was made by Trustee Roman and seconded by Trustee Heiferman to approve the minutes as presented. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Belue, Washington, Harris-Jones, Heiferman and Roman. NAYS –None. ABSTAIN – Trustee Purcell. Motion carried. CLAIMS LIST: The Claims List in the amount of $109,059.64 was presented. There were no questions from the Trustees. A motion was made by Trustee Purcell and seconded by Trustee Washington to approve the Claims List as presented. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Purcell, Belue, Washington, Harris-Jones, Heiferman and Roman. NAYS –None. Motion carried. HEAR FROM THE AUDIENCE: President Hofeld invited anyone in the audience to discuss any item not on the agenda. Tracy Archibold stepped forward to ask for assistance with ongoing disturbances in her neighborhood near 189th & Jodi Terrace. President Hofeld said Manager Haney would be in touch to develop a strategy for how to handle the issue. David Rivera, who owns a home on the 18200 block of Kedzie, asked questions about the Kedzie Gateway TIF where his residence is located. Mr. Rivera asked if the Village or a developer will be buying his home. He said his home is one of three in the Kedzie Avenue TIF and he is concerned about how long he will be able to remain in his home. President Hofeld assured him he should have no immediate concerns about his property. Mr. Rivera also asked about what would become of the Brunswick Bowl building on 183rd Street. President Hofeld said the Village is attempting to acquire the property for redevelopment. APPOINTMENT: A motion was made by Trustee Roman and seconded by Trustee Washington to approve the appointment of Harry Boerema to the Veterans Committee for a three-year term ending June 28, 2025. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Purcell, Belue, Washington, Harris-Jones, Heiferman and Roman. NAYS –None. Motion carried. OATH OF OFFICE: Clerk Thomas administered the oath of office to Sharon Sedgwick, a new member of the Beautification Committee; Valerie Berstene, the new planner for the Village; Nerissa Major who was promoted to Finance Supervisor in the Finance Department; and Richard Wachowski, new information technology manager for the Village. OMNIBUS VOTE: The board was asked to pass, approve, authorize, accept or award the following: A. R-3113/Executive Session Minutes/Approval and Destruction: Pass a resolution approving the minutes of executive sessions held between January 2022 to May 24, 2022, and authorizing the destruction of audio recordings of executive sessions held from July 2020 through December 2020. B. R-3114/Release of Executive Session Minutes: Pass a resolution determining minutes or portions thereof from executive sessions no longer requiring confidential treatment. C. R-3115/Sale of Surplus Real Estate/ 2052-2066 Ridge Road and 18027 Harwood Avenue: Pass a resolution authorizing the sale of surplus real estate owned by the Village of Homewood and located at the northeast corner of Ridge Road and Harwood Avenue, 2052-2066 Ridge Road and 18027 Harwood Avenue, in the Village of Homewood. D. R-3116/John D. Schaefer/40 Years of Service/Booster Station Dedication: Pass a resolution honoring John D. Schaefer for 40 years of service to the Village of Homewood. E. Emergency Purchase/Dump Truck/D'Orazio Ford: Waive competitive bidding for an emergency purchase due to supply chain and manufacturing disruptions; and, authorize the purchase of a 2022 Ford F450 Dump Truck from D’Orazio Ford of Wilmington, IL in the amount of $68,607.24, and necessary equipment to outfit the vehicle for operational purposes for an additional $35,500. A motion was made by Trustee Purcell and seconded by Trustee Washington to approve the Omnibus Agenda as presented. Before the vote was taken, Clerk Thomas read the resolution honoring John Schaefer for his 40 years of service to the village. He thanked the board for the honor and said much of the credit for his success goes to his outstanding staff. He received a round of applause from the audience. Public comment regarding items on the omnibus agenda: A resident questioned whether the redevelopment plans for the property to be sold at the northeast corner of Ridge Road and Harwood Avenue would include affordable housing. Attorney Cummings said although a developer is interested in this parcel, there is no contact or redevelopment proposal at this time. The Board’s action was to declare this property surplus and to give notify the public that those parcels are available. The resident also questioned if there was asbestos in the Ridge Road site or the old public library building the Village purchased for the site of the new water tower. Mr. Schaefer said he was aware that asbestos had been removed from the library building. He assured her that if there is still asbestos, the Village must remove it before obtaining a demolition permit from Cook County. The resident also asked if the proposed development on the village parking lot will disturb the geo- thermal system there. Public Works Director Schaefer said the geo-thermal system is at the north end of the parking lot and would not be disturbed. She also said she was giving notice to the Board that the Ridge Road site and the old library site are up for approval on the National Register of Historic Places. The application is being evaluated in Springfield. This would be an honorary designation and would not limit the village of disposing of the properties on site. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Purcell, Belue, Washington, Harris-Jones, Heiferman and Roman. NAYS –None. Motion carried. GENERAL BOARD DISCUSSION: Trustee Washington thanked Finance Director Bubenik for taking time to speak before her finance class at Governors State University. He gave insights on local municipal finance procedures. Trustee Heiferman congratulated Angela Mesaros for her presentation as part of a virtual panel presented by the Metropolitan Planning Council. Her panel was on “Community and Transit Oriented Development,” and she spoke on Homewood’s TOD in the downtown area. President Hofeld said he was happy to announce the return of the 4th of July Parade. It will kick off at 10 a.m. from the St. Joseph Church parking lot and proceed down Ridge Road, followed by a picnic at the Izaak Walton Preserve. EXECUTIVE SESSION: A motion was made by Trustee Purcell and seconded by Trustee Washington to move into Executive Session to discuss pthe employment status of a specific employee. Roll Call: AYES—Trustees Purcell, Belue, Washington, Harris-Jones, Heiferman and Roman. NAYS –None. Motion carried. The board moved to Executive Session at 7:30 p.m. The board returned from Executive Session at 7:40 p.m. A motion was made by Trustee Purcell and seconded by Trustee Roman to adjourn the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees. The meeting adjourned on voice vote. Respectfully submitted, Marilyn Thomas Village Clerk