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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/21/2024COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE – Meeting Minutes October 21, 2024 The Village Board met as a Committee of the Whole in the Council Chambers of the Village Hall at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, October 21, 2024. In attendance were: PRESENT: Village Board Staff Dan Shapiro, Mayor Kent Street, Village Manager Bob Benton, Trustee Andrew Lichterman, Deputy Village Manager/ Larry Berg, Trustee Director Community Development Jennifer Goldstone, Trustee Brian Budny, Deputy Police Chief Elaine Jacoby, Trustee Benjamin Schuster, Village Attorney Mary Oppenheim, Trustee (remote) Eric Burk, Director of Finance Robert Phillips, Director of PW and Eng. Justin Keenan, Assistant Village Manager Tyler Dickinson, Asst. Dir. of PW and Eng. Desiree Van Thorre, Admin. Services Coord. David Fitzgerald-Sullivan, Comm. Coord. Daniel Van Dusen, Deputy Village Clerk ABSENT: Rebekah Metts-Childers, Trustee Public Comment There were no public comments on non-agenda items. Business 1. 2025 Budget – Follow-up items from Director of Finance Eric Burk Mr. Burk reported the 2025 operational expenditures budget changes from the 2024 projection include a $5,000 difference in personnel services, a $2 million increase in contractual services, and commodities are $200,000 higher due to the increased water rate from Highland Park. Capital outlays are $200,000 higher and transfers out are $1 million higher than last year. Monthly electric bills at the treatment plant average $35,000 per month. There is a 64% increase in reserves and, if $2 million were pulled for solar panels, the level of the reserves would be at 60% He believes the account may replenish itself in the next few years if the $2 million were pulled out. Mayor Shapiro followed up on the flyer and Facebook posts (i.e., the educational piece) on electric bikes and scooters. Deputy Chief Budny will have conversations with the high school and District 109 as well as the school resource officer regarding the flyer. Committee of the Whole October 21, 2024 Page 2 of 5 2. Departmental Budget Requests – Departmental Summaries a. Public Works – Director of Public Works and Engineering Bob Phillips noted the process to go over the individual department budget requests begins in July. There is a proposed 4% pay increase for the 26 union employees. There will be a 3-4% increase in 2026. Some salaries will increase by more than 4% due to non-contractual employees with step increases. Personnel has open positions including an administrative assistant, a street department division position and an analyst/engineer position. Mr. Phillips noted they will look at filling the open positions after January 1, 2025. A superintendent may be retiring, so that position may be backfilled as well. The budget is relatively flat aside from the salary increases and office supplies. The cost of materials (asphalt and concrete) have increased substantially. Overall, the Public Works operational budget is about $17 million including $4 million in water distribution. (1) The street division handles special events, mowing, pavement patching and restoration and snow removal. They have excess rock salt this year and are obligated to purchase more. a. The street division budget has historically increased due to maintenance costs for the older buildings. They are looking for a $25,000 budget for maintenance. The garage heaters will be replaced. b. Operating equipment budget has increased due to the proposed purchase of software for a citizen service request interface between the department and the public. c. Street forestry pays for treatment of Village-owned oak trees. It is an every-other-year program. d. Streetscape improvements budget has not changed. e. Overtime salaries have increased due to additional events. $80,000 request. f. Miscellaneous includes additional training and audits from the Department of Labor. g. Professional Services-Other is the fund used to hire contractors to perform additional work. This is a 45% increase. Mayor Shapiro questioned the necessity of the 45% increase. Mr. Phillips will get more information, but believes the increase is to cover the cost of materials h. Operating equipment is down by 100%. (2) The engineering division handles IEPA reporting and planning for executing the budget and programs. a. Part of the personnel salaries comes out of this division. b. They are trying to hire an hourly employee and may have some overtime. c. There is an increase in the apparel budget for a new employee that will be in the field. d. Dues and memberships decreased due to the TMA closing. Committee of the Whole October 21, 2024 Page 3 of 5 e. Professional Services Engineering increased by $300,000 for operational expenses, stormwater management, reporting, general assistance, structural engineering and bridge expenses as well as private development. The majority of private development expenses are pass-through. f. GIS Services assists every department. There is a person available two days a week plus on-call. They have a COLA adjustment. g. Operating expenses include office supplies and furniture. (3) Water Department a. Equipment is shared between four departments. b. Vehicle Maintenance costs are increasing. The proposed request is up 50% to $30,000 to ensure the vehicles are maintained. c. Material – a 28.6% increase due to increased material costs. d. Operating equipment is down slightly. Mr. Street noted the costs for material replacement in the water department has skyrocketed. The team cannot provide water without maintaining the equipment. e. Professional services and water main reading costs are increasing. f. Operating equipment – A large portion of the cost will be passed through, but the meters are $15,000 and may have a lead time of eight months. (4) Sewer Division supports the water division, sewer cleaning and are requesting $14,000 for a push camera. a. Water Reclamation Facility requires a number of changes including regulatory updates. b. The Waste Water division handles the WRF and nine stormwater pumping stations. The WRF was built between 2011 and 2013. It is a high-dollar asset, but it is aging. This budget reflects that. The regulatory updates include the phosphorus updates. The WRF usually hires a part-time employee for the summer and has an 8.75% increase. (5) Building repair and maintenance has a decrease due to fiber optic cables. a. The equipment repair and maintenance are for the older equipment primarily as some of the equipment is starting to go. There have been equipment failures. b. Engineering Services – the stormwater detention facility has been under the Village’s maintenance and management for about 30 years. It was formerly a shooting range. Next year, staff will stop testing the water as there has not been any lead found in test samples. c. Professional services include sludge hauling, which has a 16.52% increase. Committee of the Whole October 21, 2024 Page 4 of 5 d. Water and usage at the pumping stations is generally based on the amount of rain. e. The department is looking to replace some operating equipment in 2025 as there have been some equipment failures. At 6:56 p.m., Trustee Berg moved to appoint Trustee Goldstone as the presiding officer. Trustee Jacoby seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously on a voice vote. (6) VERF – The vehicle equipment and replacement fund is requested to increase by 3-4% with an aggregate total increase in 2025 of 6.58%. b. Finance Department There is a requested $1.1 million budget increase, which is 16% of the departmental budget. The proposed increase represents the transfer from finance to the infrastructure fund for 2025 capital projects. Personnel services have COLA and merit increases for seven employees. Additional funds will be used for tuition reimbursement, training and development. Contractual services total $4 million which includes the economic incentives. There is a one-time cost for the remaining underground survey work at the cemetery. The capital outlay expense includes computer replacement. c. Administration Deputy Village Manager/Director of Community Development Andrew Lichterman reported the administration department includes the IT division and the Village Manager’s Office (11 people in total). Salaries include a 9% increase in full-time salaries and 30% decrease in part-time salaries. This is the first full year the IT analyst position is in place. The administrative intern is now a management analyst. The COLA and step increases are in this budget. Medical and dental benefits will increase and training registration will be $15,000. There will be a 25% increase in subscriptions ($500). Contractual services will decrease in building repair and maintenance. Equipment repair and replacement is down. Vehicle maintenance up 33% to $1,000. Dues, travel expenses and printing are flat. There is a $100 increase in legal notices, a $5,000 increase in contractual services and a $5,000 cost for rebranding Family Days. The Family Days event increase of $10,000 includes additional rentals and security. Capital outlay is up 230% for new laptops. The transfer out to VERF increased by $5,000. The total administrative budget just over $3.1 million representing an 8% increase. d. Community Development Mr. Lichterman reported Community Development includes the building and planning divisions. This includes the new administrative adjudication hearings. $30,000 was added to the budget for credit card fees. $40,000 was added in outsourcing for inspections and plan reviews. The department consists of nine people plus 25% of one Public Works employee assisting in code Committee of the Whole October 21, 2024 Page 5 of 5 enforcement. Part time salaries are down. The cost of benefits will increase. Building repair and maintenance are down. Professional services increased by $7,500 for administrative hearings. Professional services other - ongoing costs has an 11% increase of the $2.1 million budget. Matt Weiss discussed the IT Budget. He noted the other departments referenced a number of IT budget items. Most IT expenses are cyclical. For 2025, a large amount of hardware is planned for replacement. 3. Adjournment Trustee Benton moved to adjourn the Committee of the Whole. Trustee Berg seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously by a voice vote. The meeting was adjourned at 7:23 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Daniel Van Dusen Deputy Village Clerk