Village of Bethalto Board of Trustees met April 11.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
The Village Board of Trustees met on the above date in the Council Chambers of Village Hall in a regular meeting called to order by Mayor Bost at 7:00 p.m. The meeting opened with the “Pledge of Allegiance”. Roll call was taken by Village Clerk Sue Lowrance. Present: Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy, and Keister. Trustee Mull was absent. Also present: Police Chief Mike Dixon, Public Works Director Rod Cheatham, Village Attorney Ken Balsters, Fire Chief Brian Buhs, Zoning Administrator Randy Reddick, and Village Treasurer Joe Hughes.
Motion made by Tweedy, seconded by Lowrance, to approve Village Board meeting minutes of March 14, 2022, as printed. All members voted aye viva voce. Motion carried 5-0.
REPORTS FROM DEPARTMENTAL SUPERVISORS:
Fire Chief Brian Buhs presented his report for March, noting 121 calls for the month. This is down slightly from last year. There were no questions.
Police Chief Dixon presented the monthly activity report for March, with his department running 580 calls. The department is still short 2 officers, but they are working to find qualified candidates. Dixon reviewed some of the recent major cases and updated the board on their status. There were no questions.
Public Works Director Cheatham presented his reports and reviewed activity by department. There was a significant break in the Interceptor line over this weekend, near where the last one was a few months ago. Crews are still working to repair that break but once complete, that area will either have completely new lines (400+ feet) or linings. There were no questions.
Zoning Administrator Randy Reddick presented his monthly report, noting everything is running smoothly in his department but that his focus over the past couple of weeks has been FOIA requests. Reddick updated the board on nuisance properties. 58 N. Williams is awaiting a court decision; 1409 West Drive has a new owner who plans to rehab the property. 305 Butcher St. has drawings in hand for construction, but permits have yet to be issued. There were no questions.
GUESTS/PUBLIC COMMENT:
Jeff Allsman from Bethalto Spirit addressed the board with concerns over the conflict in scheduling of Concerts in the Park and Farmers Markets with the Jaycees Carnival request on tonight’s agenda. Mayor Bost stated that the request will be discussed under his reports. Allsman asked for guidance from the board so this can be avoided for future events.
David Decker, co-owner of Prairie Street Auto, was in attendance to express his concerns over the lack of communication regarding the Prairie Street reconstruction project. He stated that the business had not been informed that anything was in the works; Mayor Bost answered that he personally had stood in their building last March (2021) and told Brad (the other owner) that work was scheduled to begin in March, 2022. Bost added that he has a stack of documentation between he and Brad and also former Mayor Winslow and Brad as well. Decker asked for copies of that correspondence. There was discussion of what entity is overseeing the construction; it is an IDOT project in conjunction with the Village, with oversight being done by our engineering company. Decker stated that he’s asking for better communication, and Bost answered that he would personally see to it that the Village does a better job of getting information to Decker. Trustee Lowrance asked for clarification that the business was notified in March, 2021; Bost answered he personally visited there and informed Brad. Trustee Tweedy also stated he had been in contact with Brad and left his card and number if he had questions, but had heard nothing.
Jane Ahasay from Bethalto Spirit announced that the Arboretum has achieved Level 2 status, one of only 74 Level 2 Arboretums internationally. There will be an Arbor Day event on April 28 from 10am-1pm in the park, and residents are encouraged to attend and enjoy all the park has to offer.
RESOLUTIONS
Resolution 2022-05 A Resolution For Approval of an Intergovernmental Agreement for Emergency and Other Communication Services was presented. This authorizes an agreement with Wood River for police and fire dispatching services as discussed in committee. There were no questions. Motion made by Lowrance, seconded by Tweedy, to approve Resolution 2022-05 A Resolution For Approval of An Intergovernmental Agreement for Emergency and Other Communication Services. Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
Resolution 2022-06 A Resolution Determining Village Surplus Real Estate and Authorizing Corporate Authorities to Pursue Statutory Permissible Lease was presented. This declares the property at 101 S. Prairie Street as surplus property and authorizes the Mayor to proceed with seeking to lease the building. Attorney Balsters reviewed the process and noted that this is the first step before negotiations to lease can begin. The building is expected to be vacant within the next 6 months. Motion made by Lowrance, seconded by Dugger, to approve Resolution 2022-06 A Resolution Determining Village Surplus Real Estate and Authorizing Corporate Authorities to Pursue Statutory Permissible Lease. Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
ORDINANCES
Ordinance 2022-02 An Ordinance Amending Chapter 21-Liquor was presented. This amends the current hours for sale of liquor on Sundays to start at 11am, changing from 12pm, as discussed in committee. Motion made by Lowrance, seconded by Perkhiser to approve Ordinance 2022-02 An Ordinance Amending Chapter 21-Liquor. Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5- 0.
REPORTS FROM THE MAYOR:
Police Chief Dixon presented a proposal from Utilitra for the purchase of six (6) Mobile Data Terminals (MDTs) for his department at a cost of $26,989. This proposal is for equipment only, and installation will be at an extra cost. The GPS option may also be an additional $1,800. There were no questions. Motion made by Perkhiser, seconded by Tweedy, to approve the purchase of six (6) Mobile Data Terminals for the Police Department. Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
The Bethalto Jaycees have asked for use of Central Park from June 2 through June 5 for a carnival. It was noted that there are already events scheduled in the park on June 2 and June 5, causing a conflict. Jaycee Tab Roberson noted that the Jaycees have been holding their carnival for over 60 years, and that he is at the mercy of the dates the carnival company can give him. He added that the carnival is their big money maker, and that without it the Club may cease to exist. There was discussion of the two groups working out a compromise, with suggestions of moving the concert or adding it to the Jaycees’ entertainment, and relocating the Farmers Market to the parking lot behind the water office. There was further discussion of what the Jaycees do for the community. Bost stated that we can consider options if something can be worked out, but for now there will be no action taken by the Board.
Mayor Bost announced that the Stephenson Scholarship recipients have been selected. Two seniors at CMHS—Tyler Winegardner and Madison McNealy--will receive $500 scholarships at their awards banquet on May 12. Motion made by Keister, seconded by Dugger, to approve the awarding of Stephenson Scholarships to Tyler Winegardner and Madison McNealy. Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
MONTHLY TREASURER’S REPORT:
The February Treasurer’s report was sent to Trustees the week after the March meeting, delayed due to software issues and training. The March Treasurer’s Report is now delayed due to issues with the conversion of data to the new software and problems with balancing the converted data. The report will be delivered as soon as possible.
COMMITTEE MEETING
Committee meetings will be held on April 25 at 6pm. This may be changed to a special meeting depending on progress with the Public Works CBA negotiations.
BILLS
GENERAL FUND
Clerk Lowrance noted the new reports show a breakdown of bills paid by fund along with a listing of each check issued by the Village since the last board meeting. The new software is working well but still has a few kinks to be worked out. Trustees were encouraged to call the office if they have any questions on the information provided. Motion made by Tweedy, seconded by Lowrance, authorizing payment of bills in the amount of $303,198.69. Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
WATER & SEWER FUND
Motion by Lowrance, seconded by Tweedy, authorizing payment of bills in the amount of $256.667.85. Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
ESDA FUND
Motion by Perkhiser, seconded by Dugger, authorizing payment of bills in the amount of $785.65. Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
GARBAGE FUND
Motion by Lowrance, seconded by Tweedy, authorizing payment of bills in the amount of $54,112.00 Trustees Dugger, Lowrance, Perkhiser, Tweedy and Keister voted aye; nays none. Motion carried 5-0.
The next regularly scheduled meeting will be held on May 9, 2022 at 7:00pm in the Council Room of Village Hall.
Mayor Bost announced the need to enter Executive Session for Collective Bargaining, 5 ILCS 120 Section 2 (c) (2) and Personnel 5 ILCS 120 Section 2 (c) (1). Entered executive session at 7:44pm.
Re-entered regular session at 9:36pm. Having no further business, motion made by Lowrance, seconded by Tweedy, to adjourn the meeting. All trustees voted aye viva voce. Meeting adjourned at 9:37pm.
https://bethalto.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/VILLAGE-BOARD-MINUTES-041122.pdf
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