City Council Meetings

City Council Special Meeting December 10, 2018 I. Call to Order and Roll Call The Special Wheaton City Council Meeting was called to order at 7:04 p.m. by Mayor Michael J. Gresk. Upon roll call, the following were: Physically Present: Mayor Michael Gresk Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Councilman Prendiville Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Absent: None City Staff Present: Michael Dzugan, City Manager John Duguay, Assistant City Manager Sarah Kallas, City Attorney James Kozik, Director of Planning & Economic Development Robert Lehnhardt, Director of Finance Arin Thrower, Public Information Officer Sharon Barrett-Hagen, City Clerk II. Public Comment None III. Agenda 1. Pass Ordinance No. O-2018-77, An Ordinance Adopting the City of Wheaton Calendar Year 2019 Budget Councilman Rutledge moved and Councilman Prendiville seconded that Ordinance No. O-2018-77, An Ordinance Adopting the City of Wheaton Calendar Year 2019 Budget, be passed. City Manager Dzugan stated the proposed ordinance would adopt the 2019 calendar year budget. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Councilman Prendiville WHEATON CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING December 10, 2018 Mayor Gresk Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously 2. Pass Ordinance No. O-2018-78, An Ordinance Levying Taxes for General and Special Corporate Purposes for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 for the City of Wheaton Councilman Scalzo moved and Councilman Prendiville seconded that Ordinance No. O-2018-78, An Ordinance Levying Taxes for General and Special Corporate Purposes for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 for the City of Wheaton, be passed. City Manager Dzugan stated the next eight items relate to the City’s property tax levy for General Purpose and Debt Service and the City’s three special service areas. He stated the General Purpose and Debt Service levy would capture $16.4MM of new construction, equaling a levy increase of $151,175 or .7%. He confirmed this is an increase in the levy from 2017. Councilman Barbier stated he does not see this as a tax issue, but rather a planning issue and does not see taxing new growth as a road map for success. Councilman Barbier believes the City has a reputation as a responsible taxing body, but feels the proposed levy shows a lack of strategy and planning. Rather than making a decision tonight, he would like to delay the vote to allow staff more time to consider the issues and provide the incoming mayor and council with a road map for future budget and levy amounts. Councilman Fitch agrees with the need for careful planning. While she supports additional funding for fire and police pensions, as well as the library, she does not support raising the tax levy. She feels the tax levy amount should be based upon what the City actually needs. Councilwoman Fitch stated the City has discussed capturing new growth over the years and believes the taxpayers should derive the benefit from capturing the new growth. She stated she would vote no. Councilman Prendiville continues to support the proposed levy. He feels it is a good plan, and given information provided by staff, feels it is appropriate. Councilman Suess stated he would also vote against the proposed levy and stated if we increase the levy, taxes will go up. He feels we capture growth whether we increase the levy or not. He indicated that in considering Special Service Area #8, the City increased the base and was able to lower the tax rate and feels the same process should be done for all the City’s residents. Councilman Scalzo expressed his support for the proposed levy. He feels that rather than making general statements that the City should reduce spending, it should be specified exactly what amount should be reduced. He stated the City has a responsibility to pay for fire, police, public works and the library and those costs go up each year. Councilman Scalzo stated the taxes collected are given back to residents with government services and he believes the City provides good services to its residents. Councilman Rutledge said the proposed budget would dip into the City’s reserves while holding cost increases to 2% a year. He stated 70% of the budget is for personnel with a large amount of that based 2 WHEATON CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING December 10, 2018 on union contracts. Councilman Rutledge is concerned about dipping into the City’s reserves now when a few years from now, projected revenues will decrease. He expressed his support for the levy. Mayor Gresk stated he would also support the levy for all the reasons previously articulated. He believes the City is a good steward of tax dollars and in providing for residents’ health and safety. Councilman Suess feels the City should be able to absorb the proposed levy increase $151,175 for the benefit of its residents. He feels the City has plenty of resources and does not need to hit up residents for $.15 on $100. Councilman Barbier reiterated his belief that the City needs to give some thought to the planning process going forward. He stated the Council has not been given an alternative to increasing the levy with regards to what specifically cannot be done or provided if the levy is not increased. Councilwoman Fitch feels the City should decrease or keep the levy flat out of respect for the taxpayers. Councilman Scalzo stated taxes are collected to keep pace with costs and to provide a high level of service to the City’s residents. He feels the City takes a deliberative stance on the issue of taxes. He stated he did not hear any calls to decrease services during the budget workshops. Councilman Barbier stated he would hate to lose the City’s favorable reputation for $.15 on $100. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Scalzo Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk Councilman Rutledge Nays: Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Absent: None Motion Carried 3. Pass Ordinance No. O-2018-79, An Ordinance Amending the 2018 Tax Levy Contained in Ordinance No. O-2018-78 Councilman Prendiville moved and Councilman Rutledge seconded that Ordinance No. O-2018-79, An Ordinance Amending the 2018 Tax Levy Contained in Ordinance No. O-2018-78, be passed. City Manager Dzugan stated the proposed ordinance amends the 2018 tax levy ordinance just approved by abating $1,568,365 of the bond and interest portion of the levy. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo 3 WHEATON CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING December 10, 2018 Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously 4. Pass Ordinance No. O-2018-80, An Ordinance for the Levy and Assessment of Taxes for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 in and for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Two Councilman Rutledge moved and Councilman Barbier seconded that Ordinance No. O-2018-80, An Ordinance for the Levy and Assessment of Taxes for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 in and for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Two, be passed. City Manager Dzugan stated the levy amount of $39,400 relates to parking service expenses in the central business area. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously 5. Pass Ordinance No. O-2018-81, An Ordinance Making Appropriations for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Two for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 Councilman Prendiville moved and Councilman Rutledge seconded that Ordinance No. O-2018-81, An Ordinance Making Appropriations for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Two for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019, be passed. City Manager Dzugan indicated this ordinance would appropriate taxes for Special Service Area Number Two. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier 4 WHEATON CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING December 10, 2018 Councilwoman Fitch Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously 6. Pass Ordinance No. O-2018-82, An Ordinance for the Levy and Assessment of Taxes for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 in and for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Three Councilwoman Fitch moved and Councilman Rutledge seconded that Ordinance No. O-2018-82, An Ordinance for the Levy and Assessment of Taxes for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 in and for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Three, be passed. City Manager Dzugan stated the levy amount of $12,000 is for maintenance of open spaces within the Streams Subdivision. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilwoman Fitch Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously 7. Pass Ordinance Number O-2018-83, An Ordinance Making Appropriations for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Three for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 Councilman Rutledge moved and Councilman Prendiville seconded that Ordinance Number O-2018-83, An Ordinance Making Appropriations for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Three for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019, be passed. City Manager Dzugan indicated this ordinance would appropriate taxes for Special Service Area Number Three. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk 5 WHEATON CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING December 10, 2018 Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously 8. Pass Ordinance No. O-2018-84, An Ordinance for the Levy and Assessment of Taxes for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 in and for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Eight Councilman Prendiville moved and Councilman Barbier seconded that Ordinance No. O-2018-84, An Ordinance for the Levy and Assessment of Taxes for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 in and for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Eight, be passed. City Manager Dzugan stated the levy amount for Special Service Area Number Eight of $126,600 will generate a total of $250,000, includes $123,400 from the TIF 2 increment, and funds the services provided by the Downtown Wheaton Association at a tax rate of $.2921. Councilman Scalzo feels that with this being the first year for Special Service Area #8, it is important not to set the rate at the bottom as discussions going forward will focus on whether the rate needs to be increased. He believes it is important to recoup some of the costs the City puts into the Downtown area. Councilman Suess agrees with those comments. He feels this is an opportunity to generate some revenue to reduce costs borne by the larger community. Councilman Barbier feels the City needs to look at what the cost coverage is for the services provided. He believes an analysis should be done when the project is completed to determine what those services should be. Councilman Prendiville is in favor of broadening the area to reduce the tax burden on downtown property owners. He feels everyone benefits from the downtown and feels it is appropriate for the entire City to bear some of the burden that the downtown property owners incur. Mayor Gresk believes the downtown property owners are taking an additional hit with taxes and feels providing tax relief to them is a good idea. Councilwoman Fitch supports the lower tax rate at this time. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously 6 WHEATON CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING December 10, 2018 9. Pass Ordinance No. O-2018-85, An Ordinance Making Appropriations for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Eight for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019 Councilman Rutledge moved and Councilman Prendiville seconded that Ordinance No. O-2018-85, An Ordinance Making Appropriations for the City of Wheaton Special Service Area Number Eight for the Fiscal Year Beginning January 1, 2019 and Ending December 31, 2019, be passed. City Manager Dzugan indicated this ordinance would appropriate the taxes for Special Service Area Number Eight. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Rutledge Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously 10. Adjournment Councilman Scalzo moved and Councilman Barbier seconded that the Wheaton City Council Special Meeting be adjourned at 7:32 p.m. Roll Call Vote: Ayes: Councilman Scalzo Councilman Suess Councilman Barbier Councilwoman Fitch Councilman Prendiville Mayor Gresk Councilman Rutledge Nays: None Absent: None Motion Carried Unanimously Respectfully submitted, Sharon Barrett-Hagen City Clerk Submitted for Approval: December 17, 2018 7