HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/06/2025COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE – Meeting Minutes
October 6, 2025
The Village Board met as a Committee of the Whole in the Council Chambers of the Village
Hall at 8:08 p.m. on Monday, October 6, 2025. In attendance were:
PRESENT:
Village Board Staff
Dan Shapiro, Mayor Kent Street, Village Manager
Bob Benton, Trustee Andrew Lichterman, Deputy Village
Larry Berg, Trustee Manager/Director Community Development
Jesse Greenberg, Trustee Eric Burk, Director of Finance
Elaine Jacoby, Trustee Robert Phillips, Director of PW and Eng.
Mary Oppenheim, Trustee Justin Keenan, Assistant Village Manager
Tyler Dickinson, Asst. Dir. of PW and Eng.
ABSENT: Brandon Janes, WRF Superintendent
Jennifer Goldstone, Trustee Matthew Weiss, Director of IT
David Fitzgerald-Sullivan, Communications
Coordinator
Mike Brumm, Public Works Analyst
Benjamin Schuster, Village Attorney
Public Comment
There were no public comments on non-agenda items.
Business
Departmental Budget Requests – Department Summaries
• Finance
Mr. Burk noted the Village budget decreased by $1.7 million. Personnel levels for the finance
department are not expected to change and there is no expectation of adding new personnel in
2026. The only change to the department will be for COLA and merit increases. The department
consists of seven employees. The two CPAs and one HR professional will need continuing
education classes to keep their licenses active. There is also a new payroll employee who will
need some continuing education as well. Additionally, there will be harassment training for all
employees.
Contracted Services: The Walgreens and Jewel incentives will be partial payments. Shake Shack
will also have a payment.
EAP Program: There will be a $5,000 increase due to Village employees using the service.
Utilities: There will be a small increase.
Transfers Out: In 2026, there will be a transfer to the refuse fund. Capital projects are also paid.
• Wastewater Reclamation Facilities
Trustee Oppenheim asked why the utilities at the WRF are increasing so much. Mr. Janes
reported the water costs from Highland Park have increased. When there are heavy rains, the
Village has extra costs to flush the equipment. He believes the recent equipment replacements
should reduce some water-related costs.
The effective cost per therm of natural gas over the past five years has been consistent. The
increase is based on the extreme winters.
The annual electric cost over the past several years peaked in 2017. It was significantly reduced
in 2024. The Village is still trying to drive down the usage, but the costs are increasing.
• Administration
Mr. Lichterman reported there are six employees in the department plus a building custodian, as
well as four employees in IT and a part-time recording secretary. There will be no new additions,
but there will be COLA increases. The training budget request has increased slightly to $1,500.
Contractual Services: The proposed legal services budget has increased due to the upcoming
labor negotiations and land-use developments. There are 30 special events budgeted for 2026.
The Village also budgeted an additional $50,000 to celebrate the country’s 250th anniversary.
Mr. Lichterman noted staff has planned for a grander Family Days event plus events throughout
the year. The Village will partner with the other agencies on these events. Mayor Shapiro noted
the Village also gets sponsorships for some events. Mr. Lichterman noted the Village started a
sponsorship program for Village events and revenue has grown. Staff is looking into growing the
existing program.
Commodities: There will be a $1,000 increase, but all administrative department vehicles are
electric and do not use petroleum.
• Community Development
Mr. Lichterman noted there are five full-time employees between the building and planning
divisions. There are also contracted and shared employees. A new Building Division Supervisor
was hired after longtime employee Clint Case retired. There are additional training costs due to
his MCP certification,
Contractual Services are largely made up of the associated costs for adjudication hearings and
the accompanying software. A $200,000 expense was added due to expected inspection services
for new developments, that will largely be reimbursed, in the Village. Several other line items
have been reduced.
• Information Technology
Mr. Weiss reported 2026 is set to be a fairly standard year. IT will be leading the forms project
and there are some subscriptions that will have a cost increase. He believes the trend of industry
software subscriptions will require a significant increase in the future. The department set aside
$20,000 for outside consulting services. The largest IT expense is the replacement of data storage
at a budgeted cost of $100,000. This piece of equipment should last 7-8 years, but the existing
equipment is no longer being supported by the manufacturer after five years.
Mr. Street noted the Village is planning on holding a Public Hearing on the budget on November
3, 2025. Mayor Shapiro reported some dynamics are changing, but the Village is doing great, in
large part due to the staff. He noted while staff cannot anticipate every change, they do a
remarkable job.
Adjournment
There being no further business or discussion, Trustee Berg moved to adjourn the meeting.
Trustee Oppenheim seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously on a voice vote.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Jeri Cotton