Carbondale Reporter

Carbondale City Council met Tuesday, Jan. 10.

The mission of the Mayor and City Council is to serve as the legislative and policy body of the City Government. The Mayor serves as the official head of the government. The Mayor and City Council Members are elected at-large for staggered four-year terms on a biennial basis. Regular meetings of the City Council are typically held every two or three weeks.

Here are the minutes as provided by Carbondale:

Regular City Council Meeting January 10, 2017 (Tuesday, January 10, 2017) Generated by Jennifer R Sorrell on Friday, January 13, 2017

Council Members present Councilwoman Jessica Bradshaw, Councilman Lee Fronabarger, Councilman Tom Grant, Councilwoman Carolin Harvey, Councilman Navreet Kang, Councilman Adam Loos, and Mayor John M Henry

Meeting called to order at 7:01 PM

1. Preliminaries to the City Council Meeting

Procedural: 1.1 Roll Call

Procedural: 1.2 General Announcements and Proclamations

Councilman Fronabarger announced the continuation of the winter indoor Farmers' Market on this and future Saturdays at the Carbondale High School, the Southern Illinois Women’s March on Saturday, January 21, and the annual Carbondale Community High School multicultural festival on Thursday, February 9.

Councilwoman Harvey reminded the community about the upcoming Martin Luther King Jr. celebrations this weekend at the Civic Center and at the SIU Student Center.

City Manager Williams advised the public that City Hall will be closed on Monday which will delay trash routes by one day.

Mayor Henry remarked on the success of the chat with the Chancellor on Monday at the Civic Center.

Councilwoman Bradshaw announced a joint public discussion between the Sierra Club and the Sustainability Commission on Thursday at Township offices and the annual Neighborhood Alliance meeting on January 21 at the First United Methodist Church.

Procedural: 1.3 Citizens' Comments and Questions

Melvin Holder, 410 East James and Thelma Walker Avenue, called attention to the need for additional options for assistance to individuals dealing with mental disorders.

Procedural, Reports: 1.4 Public Hearings and Special Reports

Marie Bukowski and Lisa Jansen from Carbondale Community Arts presented a plan for a public arts initiative tied to the Downtown Master Plan improvements. City Council members offered additional suggestions and requested additional details.

2. Consent Agenda of the City Council

Action (Consent): 2.1 Approval of the Regular City Council Meeting Minutes from December 20, 2016 Resolution: Approve the regular City Council meeting minutes from December 20, 2016.

Action (Consent): 2.2 Approval of Warrant for the Period Ending: 12/05/2016 FY 2017 Warrant 1289 in the amount of $1,773,747.44 Resolution: Accept the following report of payments made for the period ended: 12/05/2016 totaling $1,773,747.44 (Exhibit A-01-10-2017)

Action (Consent): 2.3 Acceptance of Approved Meeting Minutes from Boards, Commissions, and Committees Resolution: Accept and place on file the approved meeting minutes from Boards, Commissions, and Committees.

Action (Consent): 2.4 Award of Contract for Carpet Replacement in the Engineering and Planning Division suites to Modern Tile and Carpet of Carbondale, Illinois in the amount of $39,475.24 Resolution: It's recommended that the City Council approve a contract for carpet replacement in the Engineering and Planning Division suites to Modern Tile and Carpet of Carbondale in the amount of $39,475.24.

Action: 2.5 A Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into an Agreement with Frontier Communications for relocation of Utilities on South Illinois Avenue and Approve an Ordinance Increasing the FY2017 Five-Year Community Investment Program (CIP) budget by $277,000 for Utility Relocation on South Illinois Avenue This item was pulled from consent by L. Fronabarger.

Action (Consent): 2.6 Resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a municipality power of attorney Resolution: Approve a resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a municipality power of attorney with Select Energy Partners, LLC (Resolution 2017-R-2; Exhibit D-01-10-2017)

Action: 2.7 A Resolution approving the Final BPL Development Plan for a Building Addition and Parking Lot Modifications to Kroger Located at 501 North Giant City Road This item was pulled from Consent by L. Fronabarger.

Action (Consent): 2.8 Approval of Consent Agenda Items Resolution: Approval of all Consent Agenda Items which were not pulled for separate consideration

MOTION: Approve Consent Agenda Items 2.1 - 2.4 and 2.6

Motion by Lee Fronabarger, second by Navreet Kang. Final Resolution: Motion Carries Yea: Jessica Bradshaw, Lee Fronabarger, Tom Grant, Carolin Harvey, Navreet Kang, Adam Loos, John M Henry

Action: 2.5 A Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into an Agreement with Frontier Communications for relocation of Utilities on South Illinois Avenue and Approve an Ordinance Increasing the FY2017 Five-Year Community Investment Program (CIP) budget by $277,000 for Utility Relocation on South Illinois Avenue (Resolution 2017-R-01, Ordinance 2017-01; Exhibits B & C-01-10- 2017)

City Council inquired about established deadlines for completion of work, what other utilities must be addressed, and whether imposing a tariff would still be considered. Rodney Cavitt expressed why did not feel payment should be necessary for the relocation services.

MOTION: Approve a Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to enter into an Agreement with Frontier Communications for relocation of Utilities on South Illinois Avenue and Approve an Ordinance Increasing the FY2017 Five-Year Community Investment Program (CIP) budget by $277,000 for Utility Relocation on South Illinois Avenue.

Motion by Jessica Bradshaw, second by Carolin Harvey. Final Resolution: Motion Carries

Yea: Jessica Bradshaw, Lee Fronabarger, Tom Grant, Carolin Harvey, Navreet Kang, Adam Loos, John M Henry

Action: 2.7 A Resolution approving the Final BPL Development Plan for a Building Addition and Parking Lot Modifications to Kroger Located at 501 North Giant City Road

Council shared details related to and requested further information about the project. Elius Reed asked about the total cost of the project.

MOTION: Adopt the Resolution approving the final BPL development plan for building and parking lot modifications to the Kroger building located at 501 North Giant City Road

Motion by Tom Grant, second by Lee Fronabarger. Final Resolution: Motion Carries Yea: Jessica Bradshaw, Lee Fronabarger, Tom Grant, Carolin Harvey, Navreet Kang, Adam Loos, John M Henry (Resolution 2017-R-3; Exhibit E-01-10-2017)

3. General Business of the City Council

Discussion: 3.1 A Discussion Regarding a Proposed Text Amendment to Title 5 and Title 15 of the Revised Code of the City of Carbondale, Illinois Relative to the Creation and Regulation of the Vacation Rental Unit Land Use

City Council inquired about regulations in other communities, specifics regarding signage, insurance requirements, parking standards, licensing for homeowners versus lessees, if vacation rentals were eligible for special use where not specifically a permitted use, suggested modification to language, when a unit would be deemed a standard rental unit as opposed to a vacation rental unit, collection of state and city hotel taxes, and questions regarding frequency of inspections.

Discussion: 3.2 A Discussion Regarding Proposed Regulations During the 2017 Solar Eclipse

Kathy Renfro, Executive Director of the Park District, and Cinnamon Smith, Carbondale Tourism Director, responded to City Council inquiries regarding camping matters on Park District properties, open containers of alcohol, and parking relating issues.

4. Council Comments for the City Council

Information: 4.1 An opportunity for City Council members to offer general comments

Councilman Loos inquired about the progress for rental property licensing and suggested it may be worth considering whether to do away with parking minimums.

Councilman Grant commented that it would be interesting to see how removal of parking minimums will work for Buffalo and noted he is happy to see the progress on the downtown and the eclipse planning.

Councilman Fronabarger remarked that the Illinois House passed a bill freezing property taxes for all units of government for three years which must now go before the Senate.

Councilwoman Bradshaw noted that the Rotary Club was discussing the idea of installing bus shelters and utilizing the space in the shelters to advertise for local nonprofits. Council Members briefly discussed the pros and cons of such a plan.

5. Executive Session

Action: 5.1 Vote to enter into Executive Session

MOTION: The City Council should enter into an Executive Session to discuss the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees of the public body, conduct deliberations concerning salary schedules for one or more classes of employees, and the setting of a price for sale or lease of property owned by the public body pursuant to 5 ILCS 120/2 (c) (1), (c) (2), and (c) (6) of the Illinois Open Meetings Act.

Motion by Tom Grant, second by Lee Fronabarger. Final Resolution: Motion Carries Yea: Jessica Bradshaw, Lee Fronabarger, Tom Grant, Carolin Harvey, Navreet Kang, Adam Loos, John M Henry

Action: 5.2 Motion to reenter into Open Session

MOTION: The City Council is asked to return to Open Session.

Motion by Carolin Harvey, second by Jessica Bradshaw. Final Resolution: Motion Carries Yea: Jessica Bradshaw, Lee Fronabarger, Tom Grant, Carolin Harvey, Navreet Kang, Adam Loos, John M Henry Open session resumed at 9:20 p.m.

6. Adjournment of the City Council Meeting

Procedural: 6.1 Adjourn meeting

The City Council meeting adjourned at 9:21 p.m.