President and Board of Trustees

123 Madison Street Village of Oak Park Oak Park, Illinois 60302 www.oak-park.us Meeting Minutes President and Board of Trustees Monday, January 23, 2023 7:00 PM Village Hall I. Call to Order Village President Vicki Scaman called the Special Meeting to order at 7:06 P.M. II. Roll Call Trustee Enyia joined the meeting at 7:08 P.M. Present: 7- Village President Scaman, Village Trustee Buchanan, Village Trustee Enyia, Village Trustee Parakkat, Village Trustee Robinson, Village Trustee Taglia, and Village Trustee Wesley Absent: 0 III. Agenda Approval President Scaman started the Meeting with a moment of silence for the mass shooting at a dance hall in Monterrey Park, California, two students fatally shot at a school in Des Moines, Iowa, and 30 shot in the city of Chicago over the weekend resulting in 7 fatalities. It was moved by Trustee Wesley, seconded by Trustee Robinson to approve the Agenda. A voice vote was taken and the motion was approved. IV. Non-Agenda Public Comment There was no Non-Agenda Public Comment. V. Regular Agenda A. ID 23-69 Racial Equity Assessment Presentation Village Manager Kevin Jackson introduced the Item and said the Village seeks feedback from the Village Board to ensure full alignment with the Board goal. He introduced Chief DEI Officer Dr. Danielle Walker who presented on the Racial Equity Assessment. Trustee Robinson asked about the definition of race that should be incorporated in this process. She referenced the police consultant who had said that Hispanic and Latino are not race categories. She wants to ensure the Village is not using too narrow of a definition that misses important Village of Oak Park Page 1 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 racial equity impacts in the community that the Village wants to address. Dr. Walker responded that the consultant is correct that Hispanic is not a race, but this assessment would be comprehensive and expanding of different racial categories, including Latinx, Asian American, Native American. Trustee Robinson asked how the racial-centered perspective at the outset parlays into using the assessment tool for other types of equity. Dr. Walker responded that racial equity is a tool for connecting through intersectional systems of oppression and is an opportunity to dive deeper into areas often not considered in these types of assessments. If the Village is going to be a leader in racial equity, it is important to ask questions that may seem difficult or uncomfortable and have those be centered and grounded and be explicit but not exclusive. Trustee Robinson inquired about the amount approved by the Village Board for the DEI consultant and if the Village anticipates using it for other pieces of the process. Dr. Walker confirmed that the $150K consultant fee will remain within the scope of the Racial Equity Assessment. Trustee Robinson recommended adding an evaluative part to the process to look back at initiatives and see if there are any unintended racial impacts. She said she hopes the consultant comes back with a framework that will include that. Dr. Walker agreed it is essential within the process for the consultant to look at what has been responsible for promoting racial equity in the community. Trustee Robinson said this Village Board's experience with surveys has been mixed. Her perception is that when certain groups are targeted, the Village has a higher success rate and response rate. Dr. Walker agreed that having a robust outreach effort is paramount. Surveys can provide more opportunity for respondents to go into detail and focus groups can focus on a particular group so having both is helpful to get a variety of data. Trustee Parakkat asked if this type of assessment typically starts with a hypothesis of what it is assessing for or if it starts with a blank slate. Dr. Walker said she has seen hypotheses occur when it is more so a response to a particular event. This assessment is a blank slate approach that starts with general demographics and dives deeper into the neighborhoods, housing, and the community overall to see what is revealed. Trustee Parakkat asked if a possible outcome from the assessment is a determination that the Village is a leader in racial equity and nothing needs to be done. Dr. Walker responded that from a practice standpoint, we are not hoping to affirm something, we are hoping to evaluate the assessment Village of Oak Park Page 2 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 by creating a framework of what it means to be a leader in racial equity and how does that apply here in Oak Park. Trustee Parakkat asked for a definition of success and how to start measuring for it now. Dr. Walker responded by asking what success looks like and how that aligns with how the community defines it, which is a goal of the assessment. Defining success through data is an important component. Trustee Parakkat encouraged the Village to have a view to take to the community and then build around it. Dr. Walker emphasized that all voices are needed to be a part of this study, not just selected groups. Trustee Taglia asked why the Village is using an RFP and if other communities typically conduct their own assessments or use an outside consultant. Dr. Walker responded that it depends on the scale of the assessment. For a large-scale study like this one that is also the first of its kind, it is helpful to have a consultant and the capacity to process the qualitative data and be able to set Oak Park up for success for years to come. Trustee Buchanan asked if there is any anticipated push back from Village staff. Dr. Walker said she does not anticipate any push back and there is a lot of excitement amongst staff around this assessment and equity. Trustee Wesley asked how to reach those who are not typically engaged and may be marginalized. Dr. Walker responded that the Village is building relationships and partnerships and she is out in the community meeting with many different people so they recognize us and we can get more participation in the assessment. Trustee Wesley asked if the Village will take a specific look across all policies that might indirectly contribute to systemic racism or injustices. Dr. Walker responded that the Village wants to think through what we want to achieve with the policy audit and use multiple approaches to data collection. Trustee Wesley asked if the Village will communicate its approach with the community so they know to bring those policies to our attention. Dr. Walker confirmed that the Village will host listening sessions so the community understands what the assessment is, what things are we looking for, and give a definition and example of a policy. Trustee Wesley asked if the Village is collaborating with other governments in Oak Park. Dr. Walker confirmed that there will be collaborations with D97 and D200 and Oak Park Township which are essential to reach. Trustee Wesley said the Library will be a good government body to Village of Oak Park Page 3 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 collaborate with as well, which Dr. Walker agreed. Trustee Enyia said he will put his trust in the staff and will let the process take its course and ask questions along the way. President Scaman said she looks forward to seeing the collaborations between the Village departments, other governing partners, and commissions. Trustee Parakkat asked if a short list of consultants have been identified and if the timeline is feasible. Dr. Walker responded that it is and the RFP will be released soon. In February, a consultant will be selected and brought to the Village Board for consideration and approval. In March, the research design will be solidified and communications outreach will be done. In April, May, and June, the data analyzation will take place. Trustee Parakkat recalled that the consultant budget was $200K rather than $150K. He asked if that budget is appropriate. Dr. Walker confirmed that the amount is on par with a study of this magnitude. Trustee Parakkat asked what tool will be used for the survey data to provide granular data about who is engaging and if it will be made available to the Village Board to see where the inputs are coming from. Dr. Walker responded that survey will have online and paper options and be translated into multiple languages. Trustee Parakkat asked if the data will be subdivided regionally within Oak Park. Dr. Walker responded that the Village will be closely monitoring to ensure all areas are being reached. Trustee Wesley asked what the output of the assessment will look like. Dr. Walker responded that this study will use mixed methods with both qualitative focus groups and quantitative survey data. Trustee Wesley asked if the scope of the assessment is at the systemic racism level or if it more interpersonal racism. Dr. Walker responded that racial equity is a method and a tool for all systems of oppression and this assessment will focus on the macro level. Manager Jackson said he is excited about the way the Village is approaching the equity action planning process. He acknowledged the concurrent activity happening with the Racial Equity Assessment, which includes the systematic assessment of collecting data as well as the day-to-day evaluation of the Village's policies and practices. B. ID 23-27 Report on Building Decarbonization Policies Manager Jackson introduced the Item and introduced Village Sustainability Village of Oak Park Page 4 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 Coordinator Marcella Bondie-Keenan. Chris Pinc, of Oak Park Climate Action Network: Grew up in Oak Park and lives near Rehm Park. He has done a lot to reduce their energy usage in their home which is emitting greenhouse gases like other residential and commercial buildings in Oak Park. Every new building is digging that hole deeper. He hopes the Village will pass an ordinance to require all new construction to be all electric like dozens of other villages across the country. Alex McLesse, of Oak Park Climate Action Plan Network: To avoid the worst effects of climate change, as a society we need to try to electrify our buildings and our transportation as quickly as possible. Oak Park can require new buildings to be all electric and explore a pilot program to electrify existing buildings. Electrification can bring climate and health benefits and save homeowners money. Oak Park should show leadership and not wait for the stretch code to take action. Tom Bassett-Dilley, of Oak Park Climate Action Plan Network: Lives at 1042 Highland and has an office at 216 Harrison. He collected 200+ signatures over the summer in support of electrification. He is an architect who has designed all-electric buildings for 12 years. He decarbonized his house. If buildings are allowed to install gas today, they'll still be burning gas in 2050 which does not meet the climate action plan's goal. Village Sustainability Coordinator Marcella Bondie-Keenan provided a report on the building decarbonization policies. Trustee Enyia asked about benchmarking for schools and public buildings over 10,000 square feet, including the Village. Coordinator Keenan responded that she does benchmarking for the Village. She believes D97, D200, and the Park District are benchmarking and can confirm with them. Trustee Enyia said bringing engagement to the community is paramount to make it less painful. He said he believes residents are ready for it and he did it for his house based on the Village's recommendations. Trustee Parakkat asked if the steep decline that is required is realistic. Coordinator Keenan responded that it will be really tough and it will depend on the community taking action. Trustee Parakkat asked how many buildings fit the category. Coordinator Keenan responded that it is about 250 buildings, which is a doable amount. Trustee Parakkat said he believes that electricity is the fuel of the future and electrifying new buildings makes sense. He is concerned about the Village of Oak Park Page 5 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 stretch code and hurrying into it could be problematic. He said he sees the Village's role is to trust the process is making the right choices and move it forward. He said he likes what he sees and supports it fully. Trustee Robinson asked if a Village Code would necessarily be a stretch code. Coordinator Keenan responded that every year the Building Code Commission looks at the state's adopted code and makes local amendments. It is not necessarily a stretch code if it's not going beyond the state's baseline. In this case, it would be specifying something more stringent which makes it a stretch code. Trustee Robinson asked if there was a further breakdown in the type of commercial and the type of residential buildings. Coordinator Keenan said more benchmarking data would be required. Trustee Robinson asked about the cost of that. Coordinator Keenan said that U.S. EPA is providing their support pro bono and the Village has some money budgeted in case additional people or educational materials are needed. Trustee Robinson asked who the stakeholders would be for the new construction ordinance. Coordinator Keenan responded that for the Stretch Code, the most impacted in the short-term is the development community so we would want to consult with them. Regarding the environment, everyone is a stakeholder so the entire community would be giving input. She said she would want to speak to the planned developments, commercial, and affordable housing. Trustee Robinson asked about the efficacy for an ordinance focused on new construction if the Village's issue is on existing building stock. Coordinator Keenan responded that it would not have to be debated down the line each time a new development permit comes up so that energies can be focused on the existing buildings and what support and programs are needed to move those forward. Trustee Robinson said it sounds like a new construction ordinance would not move the needle much in the short-term, which Coordinator Keenan confirmed is correct but it would have an impact long-term. Trustee Robinson asked about the impact to the tenant population. Coordinator Keenan said the Village talked about benchmarking with the landlords, which usually results in a 2% energy decrease compounded annually which might be passed along to tenants. Trustee Robinson referenced the Denver ordinance and said she wants to see what it looks like for other communities who have moved forward with this so we are not reinventing the wheel. C. ID 23-63 Energy Code Presentation Village of Oak Park Page 6 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 Development Customer Services (DCS) Director Tammie Grossman introduced Chief Building Official Steve Curtaia. CBO Curtaia presented on the Energy Code and Village Planner Craig Failor presented on the Village Zoning Ordinance. President Scaman invited the Chair of the Building Codes Advisory Commission (BCAC) to speak to the discussion that was had. BCAC Chair Tim Kelly said the stretch codes are coming and they would like it to be as painless as possible. The BCAC is for electrification but their amendment would require a gas line for a back-up generator in the event of a power outage. Trustee Buchanan asked how the City of Chicago adopted the Illinois 2021 Code yet Oak Park wants to wait for the state to approve it. CBO Curtaia said Oak Park can adopt the 2021 Energy Code now. The City of Chicago has the authority to create some laws over and above the state. When the state mandates the code, it may be more restrictive than the publication we are reviewing now so the commission may want to wait to see what the state does. Trustee Buchanan asked if we could just change our code if the state makes it more strict. Director Grossman responded that the state could make amendments to the 2021 Code in the next few months to make it stronger and more efficient. It is difficult to change codes with ongoing construction projects and better to have codes ready so there is a sense of predictability in the construction community. It is a heavy lift to educate contractors on the new codes. Trustee Buchanan asked if the City of Chicago and other municipalities in the state would have to do that as well, which Director Grossman confirmed is correct. Trustee Buchanan said she is not in favor of waiting and wants Oak Park to lead on this and she will never vote for gas lines to be maintained in buildings because of the greenhouse gas emissions. President Scaman asked how long it would take for the BCAC to review the state's codes once they come out in a few months and come back to the Village Board for a recommendation. CBO Curtaia said it can be put on the BCAC agenda for next month and it should be a quick process. President Scaman asked Coordinator Keenan for a timeline of the engagement process to inform an ordinance. Coordinator Keenan responded that reaching all of the stakeholders and doing an economic impact study from an outside consultant would take about three months. She said she feels the climate urgency though she wants electrification to Village of Oak Park Page 7 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 succeed and for it to be done through a strong engagement process that can happen concurrently with these other things that need to happen. President Scaman said the Village Board could direct staff to consider an electrification ordinance and start the engagement process now. By the time staff gets through that, the BCAC would have the state's information. It would then come back to the Village Board for a final decision. Director Grossman responded that DCS would work together with Coordinator Keenan and the BCAC to do education. President Scaman said it sounds like full electrification cannot happen next week. Trustee Wesley said he doesn't understand why it couldn't happen next week. He said he feels the Village Board can approve electrification separately from the ratification of the building codes. Director Grossman responded that electrification is just one element of the IEC Code and the Village would still want to follow the engagement process outlined by Coordinator Keenan. Manager Jackson added that if there is consensus to truncate or eliminate either the engagement or the economic impact study, that would shorten the timeframe. Trustee Wesley asked how this works together with older existing buildings and new construction. Coordinator Keenan responded that it is difficult to retrofit existing buildings and historic buildings but it is possible to do it affordably. She thinks a dedicated resource is needed to help people through the process and work with them over a period of years. Trustee Wesley asked what percentage of the Village's sustainability goals would be met through the residential portion of this program. Coordinator Keenan responded that 37% of our greenhouse gases are from residential. If half of them were gotten off of natural gas, it would make a significant dent in those emissions. Trustee Wesley noted that Oak Park's zoning map is almost entirely single-family homes, which cannot be truly sustainable. Director Grossman said there are a few sustainable homes and only a few new homes are built each year. Most of residential is retrofitting existing structures. Trustee Buchanan said there is money available in the Infrastructure Reduction Act to support people switching over to heat pumps in single-family homes. Trustee Wesley asked if the Village is looking at geothermal at a community level. Coordinator Keenan responded that the Village put together a grant with Argonne for community geothermal and will continue to look for those opportunities. Group buy is a form of neighborhood level. Village of Oak Park Page 8 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 There is a group called Heat that works with natural gas utilities to replace gas lines with geothermal well fields. Trustee Buchanan said she is in favor of a benchmark ordinance. She asked if the Village is seeking direction on the building performance standards. Coordinator Keenan said the Village is wanting to know whether to start an engagement process on electrification now or the other options presented by DCS. Trustee Buchanan said she thinks engagement on the electrification process is warranted. She asked if the Village is also seeking direction on the five options for stretch code elements. Director Grossman responded that the Village is seeking direction on whether to move forward with the zoning code amendment. The Village wants to move forward with the 2021 IEC Code but the BCAC would like to wait to see what the state amendments are to that code before bringing it forward for adoption. When the stretch code becomes available, staff can review it and bring it forward to the Village Board. Trustee Buchanan said she is not in favor of waiting to review the state code. Coordinator Keenan said the stretch code draft is open for public comment and the state is signaling that they are adopting the full 2021 IECC. The strengthening amendments would come through the stretch code and written comments can be given until February 3. A gas ban can be a separate ordinance from a code, which can make it easier to get through the building code process later on. Trustee Robinson said she is in favor of the benchmark ordinance and she thinks the Village should wait and see what the state amendments are to the 2021 IEC Code. She asked if moving forward now means that either the stakeholder engagement or the economic impact analysis need to be skipped. Manager Jackson confirmed that is correct. She said she thinks they're both way too important to bypass. Trustee Parakkat said he is in favor of the benchmarking ordinance. He said he would like to see the state codes changed once. He said he feels the Village can go ahead with the zoning code change from "shall" to "required." Trustee Taglia asked if the proposed gas line is for an emergency back-up, which Chair Kelly confirmed is correct. He said the codes are about the science of safety in case the electric goes out. Trustee Buchanan said a gas back-up is not needed. There can be other heat pumps and generators. Director Grossman responded that that would be a local amendment that the Village Board can approve or deny. She said if there Village of Oak Park Page 9 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 is a draft of the stretch code, the Village can start reviewing that simultaneously with the IEC Code. If the Village Board's direction is to look at electrification as part of any of those codes, the staff will review everything and make a recommendation of which one they think makes the most sense to move forward with. The staff believes that should be done once and not multiple times. Trustee Buchanan said the construction companies are probably the same as the ones in Chicago. Director Grossman responded that the City of Chicago did not adopt an electrification ordinance. They just made the 2021 IEC Code a little more strict. President Scaman said she wants to avoid having a development before the Village Board that doesn't have to follow the code that is foreseen to be the future of Oak Park. She asked how the Village will address developers working on projects now. Director Grossman responded that they follow the code that is in effect when they file their building code permit. Manager Jackson asked for the timeline on the completion of the IEC Code review. Director Grossman responded that it is tentatively scheduled to go before the Village Board in May or June. Trustee Buchanan said the stretch code is not going to be done until December. Director Grossman said the staff will review the new information that was received. President Scaman said if it is available for the Village Board to give its feedback on now, then the staff could start their review sooner. Director Grossman agreed that if the Village Board wants electrification quickly, then the staff will determine which of these codes makes the most sense to move forward on. President Scaman said the Village Board will want to know what the training, programs, and education to the community will look like, as well as how the Village might have to come up with dollars to assist. Trustee Wesley said his understanding is that most new construction goes through the plan development process. Director Grossman said that is not accurate. The Village only did four planned developments this year. The majority of construction in this community does not go through the plan development process. Trustee Wesley asked for the scale of that construction. Director Grossman responded that it can be an in field development, it could be a retrofit of an existing building. Trustee Wesley asked how many constructions would be impacted by an electrification ordinance. Director Grossman said if the same definition is used as the zoning ordinance, it would be the substantial rehab of 1,000 square feet or 20% of the existing square footage of the building. Village of Oak Park Page 10 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 Trustee Wesley said he is in favor of benchmarking and would love if the Village could benchmark residential as well. He said he is in favor of only doing zoning once. He said he is in favor of doing electrification as quickly as it can be done without bypassing the community engagement or cost analysis. Coordinator Keenan said the framing of the community engagement can be different depending on the direction from the Village Board. She said she thinks the approach to the community is that this is the strong interest of the Village Board and we want to educate you about what that means and get your feedback. Trustee Parakkat agreed that the framing should be "how can we together make this work." Trustee Taglia said he agrees that time is of the essence and electricity is our future. Getting greenhouse gases down as soon as possible is important to achieving our goals and electrification is our key strategy. He said he agrees with the benchmarking ordinance and believes that community engagement and an economic impact analysis is important for education, input, and feedback and should include all stakeholders. Pursuing a parallel path while reviewing the 2021 IEC Code is a prudent approach as the Village moves forward quickly with a building electrification ordinance. President Scaman said in addition to the engagement piece, it is about training to our permitting staff and enforcement mechanisms that are needed prior to implementation. Trustee Buchanan said she assumes Oak Park will be more strict than the stretch codes because we want to be a leader and we have the will on this Village Board, so she doesn't understand why the need to wait for the stretch codes. She said she understands the desire to look organized, but she thinks that is a lesser priority compared to the flooding, fires, rain, tornadoes, and landslides. The changes we are going to make to meet our goals are going to be messy, inconvenient, and expensive and we have to do them anyway. She said she would like the Village to move forward with a stretch code that will require electrification for all new buildings. President Scaman confirmed that the entire Village Board is in favor of electrification for all new buildings. She said she understands that training contractors is no small task and she cannot require the staff to do that twice within a couple month period, especially if we can gain access to the state code sooner rather than later. She said she would like for staff to come back with all of these different timelines put together so the Village Board can digest it. The will of this Village Board for electrification hasn't happened before and is something to celebrate. Village of Oak Park Page 11 Printed on 2/22/2023 President and Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes January 23, 2023 Trustee Parakkat asked what the takeaway is from this discussion. Director Grossman said she heard from the Village Board to move forward with the zoning ordinance amendment, move forward with the benchmarking ordinance, in favor an all electrification ordinance. Whether it is within the stretch code or the IEC Code, the Village Board will let the staff go back and make a recommendation once they review that. The Village Board wants the staff to move in that direction and move forward as quickly as possible, which the staff is hoping to do sometime in Q2 of 2023. Manager Jackson added that the staff can provide a follow-up of more definitive timelines on all of these timelines. Coordinator Keenan said she also heard that the Village should start the community engagement/education process now and work on the language for the stretch code to have ready. Trustee Parakkat asked about the engagement and the economic impact assessment and the stretch code review. Manager Jackson responded that the community engagement and economic impact study will occur as part of the electrification process. The Village wants the opportunity to assess whether or not it needs to go all the way to the stretch code. VI. Adjourn It was moved by Trustee Wesley, seconded by Trustee Buchanan to Adjourn. A voice vote was taken and the motion was approved. Meeting adjourned at 9:56 P.M., Monday, January 23, 2023. Respectfully Submitted, Deputy Clerk Hansen Village of Oak Park Page 12 Printed on 2/22/2023