Village of Frankfort Committee of the Whole met Feb. 9.
Here are the minutes provided by the committee:
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Keith Ogle called the Committee of the Whole meeting to order at 5:33 P.M., at the Village Administration Building, 432 W. Nebraska Street, Frankfort, Illinois.
ROLL CALL
Village Clerk Katie Schubert called the roll. In attendance were Mayor Keith Ogle, Clerk Katie Schubert, Trustees Margaret Farina, Michael Leddin, Jessica Petrow, Dan Rossi, and Gene Savaria. Staff in attendance included Village Administrator Rob Piscia, Asst. Administrator John Burica, Police Chief Leanne Chelepis, Deputy Clerk Theresa Cork, Public Works Supt. Terry Kestel, and Director of Community and Economic Development Michael Schwarz. Also in attendance were representatives of Redwood USA, Inc., Paul DeKruiff and Kevin Serafin.
Trustee Borrelli arrived at 5:36 P.M., following the approval of the minutes. APPROVAL OF MINUTES (January 12, 2022 and January 18, 2022)
Trustee Savaria made a motion (#1), seconded by Trustee Farina, to approve the minutes of the Committee of the Whole meeting of January 12, 2022 and January 18, 2022. A voice vote was taken. All were in favor. The motion carried.
REPLACEMENT DUMP TRUCK PURCHASE – BID CONSIDERATION
Supt. Kestel presented a request to purchase a 2023 International HV507 Chassis truck with dump truck body and snowplow equipment to replace a 2005 International dump truck. He reported Rush Truck Center was awarded the State Purchasing contract and Monroe Truck Equipment was awarded the Sourcewell contract, which satisfies the competitive bidding requirements. The cost of the fully equipped truck is $204,409.06.
Trustee Petrow inquired about the Village pre-treating roads for snow and ice events. Supt. Kestel explained the Village currently uses a beet juice/calcium chloride blend to treat the existing road salt which reduces the amount of road salt used. He stated the equipment ordered for pre-treating the roadways prior to snow events is scheduled for delivery in March, noting pre-treating will also reduce the amount of road salt needed to clear the roadways.
Trustee Farina made a motion (#2), seconded by Trustee Savaria, to forward a recommendation to the Village Board authorizing a contract with Rush Truck Centers and Monroe Truck Equipment for the purchase of a 2023 International HV507 chassis truck with dump body and snow removal equipment for a total cost of $204,409.06. A voice vote was taken. All were in favor. The motion carried.
SIDEWALK CAFÉ LEASE AGREEMENT RENEWALS: KANSAS STREET
Administrator Piscia reported the three-year lease agreements with Trail’s Edge, Francesca’s Fortunato, and Fat Rosie’s for use of a portion of public sidewalk/right-of-way as a season outdoor café expired on December 31, 2021. Agreement terms specified an annual rent of $5.00 per square foot for 2019; $6.00 per square foot for 2020; and $7.00 per square foot for 2021. He reported staff is preparing lease agreements for the next three-year term and requests committee consideration of future rent escalators to present to the restaurateurs as part of the lease renewal process.
Members discussed future rent escalators and directed staff to move forward with the café lease agreement renewals with the restaurants.
Trustee Farina made a motion (#3), seconded by Trustee Borrelli, to forward a recommendation to the Village Board to approve the café lease agreement renewals for an annual rent of $7.00 per square foot for 2022; $7.50 per square foot for 2023; and $8.00 per square foot for 2024. A voice vote was taken. All were in favor. The motion carried.
PETITION FOR ANNEXATION: SOUTHWEST CORNER OF ST. FRANCIS ROAD AND HARLEM AVENUE
Director Schwarz reported Kathleen Ailts, Trustee for the Irrevocable Hunter Family Land Management Trust (property owner) is requesting permission to connect the 33.89-acre property located near the southwest corner of W. St. Francis Road and Harlem Avenue to the Village’s utility system. The subject property is located in unincorporated Frankfort Square and is not contiguous to Village limits, nor is it likely that the property will become contiguous in the near future. He reported Village ordinance requires that any property wishing to connect to our utility system either annex or, if non-contiguous, pre-annex their property to the Village of Frankfort prior to connection. In accordance with ordinance requirements, the property owner has submitted an irrevocable petition for annexation, and in the event the property ever becomes contiguous, it would automatically annex to the Village. Director Schwarz noted the property is zoned A-1 Agricultural District in Will County and the Village’s Comprehensive Plan designates the overall 33.89-acre parcel as General Commercial.
The property owner intends to sell 25.27 acres to Redwood USA, LLC for the development of a proposed 122 ranch-style rental townhome community. Redwood representative, Mr. Paul DeKruiff, further described the proposed rental neighborhood and provided slides depicting their core values, targeted demographics, interior and exterior designs, and their various locations throughout the U.S.
Members considered granting a tap-on connection to the Village of Frankfort utility system for the proposed Redwood project. Director Schwarz noted this proposed development would not meet several Village zoning standards which could be problematic if it were to annex in the future. Members voiced concerns about not meeting Village zoning standards and it was the consensus of the Committee not to support moving forward with a petition for annexation for the purpose of the non-contiguous property to interconnect and utilize the Frankfort utility system.
AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT OF 2021
Administrator Piscia reported the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) established the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) to provide state, local, and Tribal governments with the resources needed to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic effects and to replace revenue lost due to the public health emergency, preventing cuts to government services. He reported the U.S. Treasury Department recently issued the final rule for the ARPA and provides broader flexibility for use of the SLFRF funds. He stated recipients may now elect a “standard allowance” of up to $10 million to spend on government services. The Village of Frankfort’s award amount was approximately $2.6 million. Administrator Piscia noted the Village’s largest “traditional expense” is police services and requested approval for staff to proceed with allotting these funds for traditional government services, which would ultimately result in a larger transfer of funds to the Village’s Capital Fund at the end of the year for other projects.
Committee members discussed the final ruling and eligible uses of funds that the Village may consider. Members supported staff allotting these funds for traditional government services. Trustee Borrelli asked the board to consider investing in infrastructure for the downtown during the 2022/2023 budgeting process.
MASTER POLE ATTACHMENT AGREEMENT: VERIZON WIRELESS
Director Schwarz presented a draft Master Pole Attachment Agreement between the Village of Frankfort and Chicago SMSA Limited Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless for committee consideration and discussion. He reported the Village recently approved Ordinance No. 3334, titled “Ordinance Amending the Regulation of and Application for Small Wireless Facilities and Approving a Master Pole Attachment Agreement Template. This action followed Governor Pritzker’s signing of House Bill 743 (now Public Act 102-0009) on June 30, 2021. Director Schwarz noted Verizon has not identified specific locations for any small wireless facilities in the Village at this time. As such, when locations are known, Verizon will apply for a building permit and staff will execute the license supplement. He further noted the license supplement simply memorializes the location(s) of each small wireless facility and triggers the rent payment process for the location.
Committee members discussed the Master Pole Attachment Agreement and the license supplement application process for each small wireless facility. Trustee Farina voiced concerns relating to the potential emission of radiation, location, and aesthetics of the small wireless facilities.
Trustee Borrelli made a motion (#4), seconded by Trustee Savaria, to forward a recommendation to the Village Board to approve an ordinance authorizing the execution of a Master Pole Attachment Agreement with Chicago SMSA Limited Partnership, d/b/a Verizon Wireless. A voice vote was taken. The motion was approved by a majority vote with a dissenting vote by Trustee Farina. The motion carried.
OTHER BUSINESS
o Next Committee Night
Mayor Ogle announced the Committee of the Whole meeting scheduled for Wednesday, March 9, 2022, will be cancelled as he will be out of town.
o Committee Structure
Mayor Ogle advised members that he has asked staff to present an amendment to the Village’s Municipal Code rescinding the Village President and Trustees serving as ex officio members of committees at the next Village Board meeting. He also shared that he intends to institute finance and economic development citizen advisory committees and the chair of these committees would report to the Committee of the Whole. Members supported citizen advisory committees and provided additional suggestions to improve the application and onboarding processes.
o Frankfort Bluegrass Festival 2022
Mayor Ogle reported the Frankfort Bluegrass Festival is returning this year after being cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He shared that the Bluegrass committee approached the Village for a $15,000 sponsorship for this year’s event. He noted that he will approve the request and will appear on the next bill list.
o Frankfort Chamber of Commerce
Mayor Ogle noted Pauline Modjeski was appointed as the new Chamber of Commerce Executive Director and Kris Pasquini as Membership & Events Director.
o Communication for Snow Removal
Trustee Petrow requested consideration to provide additional communication to residents during winter storm events regarding snow removal priority areas as well as identifying the roadways which are maintained by the Will County Highway Department and the Frankfort Township. Staff noted the Village is working with a GIS consultant to provide these types of services to our residents.
o Community Events
Trustee Petrow requested consideration for staff to provide additional event information in a timely manner. Staff noted community events will be included in the monthly executive report distributed to board members.
o TIP Program
Trustee Borrelli inquired if façade and landscaping improvements are eligible under the Targeted Incentive Program. Director Schwarz reported that the program guidelines do include these types of improvements and while there may be some overlap with the Façade Improvement Low Interest Loan Program (FILILP) incentive program, the available funding for each of these programs is at a much different scale so the appropriate incentive program depends on the project.
o RFP for Downtown Plan
Trustee Borrelli requested consideration to shorten the timeline for the request for proposals (RFP) for professional planning services to prepare a downtown plan. Members supported amending the RFP so the recommended strategies from the approved plan could be considered as part of the 2023/2024 budget process.
o Old Growth Heritage Tree Preservation
Mike and Laurie Wessman contacted the Village regarding an Old Growth Heritage Tree Preservation initiative. Staff will research regulations pertaining to tree preservation and the permitting process for tree removal requests and present at a future meeting. It was noted that Jamie Viebach will soon be joining the Morton Arboretum and has offered assistance in our endeavor.
o Request for Purchase Proposals and Parking Fees
Members held a lengthy discussion regarding a provision in the Request for Purchase Proposals for the property commonly known as 2 Smith Street. Members considered if the language pertaining to “the prospective buyer may be responsible to pay the Village a cash-in-lieu of parking fee in the amount of $3,000.00 per required parking space, based upon standards published in the Village of Frankfort Zoning Ordinance, as amended from time to time” should be omitted from the RFP. Members discussed previous agreements and parking fees. Members in support of omitting the provision felt imposing parking fees in the downtown district negates the intent of the Targeted Incentive Program (TIP) and stimulate private investment in the downtown. Members in opposition to removing the language wanted to make sure that developments moving forward understood all of the costs and incentives associated with projects. Following discussion, it was the consensus of the majority of the board to strike the language.
BOARD COMMENTS
None.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
None.
Committee of the Whole
February 9, 2022
Page 6
ADJOURNMENT
Hearing no further business, Trustee Farina made a motion (#5), seconded by Trustee Savaria, to adjourn the Committee of the Whole meeting of Wednesday, February 9, 2022. A voice vote was taken. All were in favor. The motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 8:36 P.M.
https://files4.1.revize.com/frankfortil/2022-02-09-cow-min.pdf
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