Village of Bethalto Village Board met Feb. 8
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
The Village Board of Trustees meeting was held in the Community Room of Village Hall on the above date in a regular meeting called to order by Mayor Alan Winslow at 7:00 p.m. The meeting opened with the “Pledge of Allegiance”. Roll call was taken by Village Clerk Sue Lowrance with Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, and Stassi in attendance. Trustee Gibbons was absent. Also attending were Village Attorney Ken Balsters, Public Works Director Rod Cheatham, Police Chief Mike Dixon, Fire Chief James Schulte, Village Treasurer Joe Hughes, and Zoning Administrator Randy Reddick.
A motion was made by Stassi, seconded by Lowrance, to approve the village board meeting minutes of January 11, 2021. All members voted aye viva voce. Motion carried 5-0.
REPORTS FROM DEPARTMENTAL SUPERVISORS:
Fire Chief James Schulte presented his monthly report, noting 123 runs in January. Lift assist volume remains the same, with 20 calls this month. There was one box alarm, and a fire loss of just over $12,000. The new defibrillator is in service. Preventative maintenance has been completed on all department vehicles, and Truck 2212 had a lot of repairs completed in 2020. There were no questions.
Police Chief Mike Dixon presented his monthly activity report, noting 619 calls in January. The hiring list is being completed, with hope to start interviews in the next couple of weeks. There were no questions.
Public Works Director Cheatham presented his departmental reports. Crews are working on potholes, sidewalk maintenance, street signs and trimming. There have been four snow events so far this season. Work is being done raising manholes, and GIS work for manholes, catch basins, etc. is being completed. Several lights have been replaced with LED bulbs. Work is still being done along the main on Main Street. There were six main breaks in January, and one today close to the Fifth Street/Mine water tower that caused some concern. Crews managed to repair the break quickly and the water tower reserves were not affected. There were no questions.
Zoning Administrator Randy Reddick presented his monthly activity report. Permit numbers are down, largely due to Metro Apartments completing their renovations. Two new construction permits were pulled in January, with four new homes currently under construction. Code violations have been light. The Village’s IOS questionnaire has been completed, and Reddick expects to hear back from it in March. There were no questions.
GUESTS/PUBLIC COMMENT
There were no guests or public comments.
RESOLUTIONS
Resolution 2021-01 A Resolution for Approval of an Intergovernmental Agreement for Emergency and Other Communication Services was presented. This authorizes the IGA with Wood River for police dispatch consolidation as discussed in committee meetings over the last couple of months. Trustee Perkhiser asked about the reference to the Steelworkers Union; Chief Dixon responded that Wood River is represented by them and that the Village has no control over that; any of our employees who go to Wood River will be represented by their union as Wood River employees. Perkhiser then inquired about the 365 day notice of termination that’s included in the agreement; Dixon explained that this would be to allow Wood River enough time to adjust to any entity that may leave the dispatching agreement, as employees may need to be terminated, etc. Attorney Balsters noted that he had cleaned up some of the language in the agreement, adding the requirement of 2 dispatchers on duty at all times. Balsters stated that all member organizations will be negotiating a new contract with Wood River starting April 30, so Bethalto is getting in on the tail end of this contract. That gives Bethalto a year to review the entire agreement and modify it as necessary. Motion made by Perkhiser, seconded by Lowrance, to approve Resolution 2021-01 A Resolution for Approval of an Intergovernmental Agreement for Emergency and Other Communication Services. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
Resolution 2021-02 A Resolution for Approval of Revised General Orders on “Use of Force” was presented. Chief Dixon stated that in July former President Trump mandated that certain Use of Force regulations be in place in order to receive Federal grant funding, so Dixon wanted to bring the department into compliance. Dixon noted that our policy hadn’t been updated in several years and that several policies need attention. Mayor Winslow added that this is one of the biggest liabilities the department has, so it was overdue to update the policy. Motion made by Bost, seconded by Stassi, to approve Resolution 2021-02 A Resolution for Approval of Revised General Orders on “Use of Force”. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
ORDINANCES
Ordinance 2021-01 An Ordinance Amending Chapter 24-Motor Vehicle Code was presented. This updates the Village’s street parking ordinance to require parallel parking along a roadway. Motion made by Perkhiser, seconded by Dugger, to approve Ordinance 2021-01 An Ordinance Amending Chapter 24-Motor Vehicle Code. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
REPORTS FROM THE MAYOR:
Offices will be closed on February 15 in observance of Presidents Day.
Tim Brown was in attendance to summarize the Bethalto 100th Military Homecoming event and present donations of the remainder of the funds raised to three local Military organizations. Checks for $300 each were presented to the Bethalto American Legion and Civil Air Patrol, and a check for $1028 was presented to the VFW with hope of helping bring in the Global War on Terrorism wall. Mayor Winslow thanked Brown and everyone involved in making the event a huge success.
Bethalto Spirit has requested use of Central Park and/or the parking lot behind Village Hall (in cases of inclement weather) for weekly Farmers Markets this year. The markets will host 50+ vendors and will be held weekly on Sundays starting in mid-May through mid-October. Labor Day Weekend will be the exception. Motion made by Lowrance, seconded by Dugger, to approve the use of Central Park and/or the parking lot for Farmers Markets sponsored by Bethalto Spirit. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
Winslow presented Brian Buhs as an appointee to the Plan Commission/Zoning Board of Appeals to fill the final vacancy on that board. Buhs is a current firefighter and former Village Trustee and is eager to continue his participation in Village government. Motion made by Bost, seconded by Lowrance, to approve the appointment of Brian Buhs to the Plan Commission/Zoning Board of Appeals. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
Winslow presented the trustees with a list of four applications received for 2021 Façade Grants and noted that he is expecting two more applications. It was noted that these projects had not yet undergone the review process, but Winslow wanted the board to see what had been submitted so far. The formal review process will be completed and successful candidates presented for consideration at a future meeting.
PROCLAMATIONS
Mayor Winslow presented Proclamations for the Great Rivers & Routes Tourism Bureau and Supermarket Employee Day. Great Rivers & Routes uses their proclamation annually to show outside support in order to receive grant funding. Schnucks presented the Supermarket Employee Day proclamation to request recognition of the hard work supermarket employees do daily and especially during the COVID pandemic.
MONTHLY TREASURER’S REPORT:
The monthly Treasurer’s Report was reviewed by Joseph Hughes. Income and expenses were reviewed, and the ending cash balance was up from the previous month. The CURES funding reimbursement check was received today. There were no questions. Motion made by Perkhiser, seconded by Lowrance, to approve the Treasurer’s Report for the month of January, 2021. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays
none. Motion carried 5-0.
COMMITTEE MEETINGS:
Committee meetings were scheduled for Monday, February 22. There will be a special meeting at 6pm with committee meetings to follow. The special meeting will deal with the PEP Grant, auction items, and software purchase.
BILLS:
GENERAL FUND
Motion by Bost, seconded by Dugger, authorizing payment of bills in the amount of $124,604.96. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
WATER & SEWER FUND
Motion by Lowrance, seconded by Stassi, authorizing payment of bills in the amount of $146,487.62. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
GARBAGE FUND
Motion by Lowrance, seconded by Bost, authorizing payment of bills in the amount of $58,829.50. Trustees Bost, Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser and Stassi voted aye, nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
The next regularly scheduled meeting will be held on March 8, 2021 at 7:00pm.
Having no further business, a motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Perkhiser, seconded by Dugger. All voted aye viva voce. Meeting adjourned at 7:33pm.
http://bethalto.com/media/pdf/VILLAGE_BOARD_MINUTES_020821.pdf
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