Carbondale Reporter

City of Genoa City Council met Feb. 7.

Here are the minutes provided by the council:

Mayor Brust called the meeting of the City Council to order at 7:01pm followed by roll call. Alderman Wesner, Pulley, Freund, Stage, Winter, Braheny and Hughes were present. Alderman Roca was absent. Quorum present.

Mayor Brust led the pledge of allegiance.

GUEST SPEAKERS – None

PUBLIC COMMENT – None

OLD BUSINESS – None

RECOGNITIONS:

A PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING THE GENOA AREA COMMUNITY THANKSGIVING

Mayor Brust presented a proclamation to multiple individuals and businesses within the community of Genoa for their contributions to the Genoa Area Community Thanksgiving.

RECOGNITION OF SERGEANT ADAM SCHURING, SERGEANT CHRIS HATHCOAT AND POLICE OFFICER BRYAN HAVLICEK

Chief Smith recognized Sergeant Adam Schuring, Sergeant Chris Hathcoat and Officer Bryan Havlicek for their recent work in which they all three went above and beyond for the City of Genoa Police Department.

CONSENT AGENDA

Alderman Wesner made a motion to approve of items 1 and 2 within the consent agenda, seconded by Alderman Pulley. No further discussion. Alderman Wesner, Pulley, Freund, Stage, Winter, Braheny and Hughes voted yes. Motion carried.

1. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE JANUARY 17, 2024, CITY COUNCIL MEETING

2. APPROVAL OF THE ACCOUNTS PAYABLES DATED JANUARY 31, 2024

NEW BUSINESS:

PRESENTATION OF THE EMMETT STREET DOWNTOWN GATHERING SPACE CONCEPT

Mayor Brust began the presentation by explaining why this gathering space was being incorporated into downtown Genoa. He utilized data from surveys that had been sent out to both individuals and businesses within the city, along with feedback from the community over the past several years. Stephanie Bradac then presented a visual draft of what the space could look like which gave the council a more in-depth idea of the future of Emmett Street.

APPROVE AN AGREEMENT WITH LOCIS, INC, FOR FINANCIAL SOFTWARE

Finance Director Jan Tures explained that this is the software that the Finance Department uses daily. The added cost is due to them doing a major upgrade. Alderman Wesner made a motion to approve the agreement with Locis, Inc, seconded by Alderman Freund. No further discussion. Alderman Wesner, Pulley, Freund, Stage, Winter, Braheny and Hughes voted yes. Motion carried.

APPROVE AN AGREEMENT WITH GUARDIAN ALLIANCE TECHNOLOGIES, LLC

Sergeant Chris Hathcoat explained that Guardian would allow a more streamlined way of performing background checks. This software could also be used for hiring employees in other departments as well. Alderman Braheny made a motion to approve of the agreement with Guardian Alliance Technologies, LLC, seconded by Alderman Wesner. No further discussion. Alderman Wesner, Pulley, Freund, Stage, Winter, Braheny, and Hughes voted yes. Motion carried.

PRESENTATION OF E-FORCE AND E-CITATION SOFTWARE

Sergeant Chris Hathcoat gave a presentation on E-Force Software. He explained the current process for traffic violations and ticket writing and then explained how this process would change with the use of E-Force. Hathcoat described how E-Force would combine the multiple software’s they are currently using into one place and therefore save the officers time when doing traffic stops. Since E-Force is costly compared to the current software, Mayor Brust and the council requested that the Police Department look into potentially getting funding from the county for it to help with the overall cost. This item will be revisited at a future meeting.

FUTURE ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION – Alderman Winter brought up the idea of placing hidden cogs around town on sidewalks, buildings, planter boxes, etc. as an activity for members of the community to do year-round. Alderman Wesner had a question about which sidewalks are going to be improved through the upcoming sidewalk improvement project and had one that she recommended be added to the list.

DEPARTMENT REPORTS:

FINANCE:

Finance Director Jan Tures told the council that they’ve still been working on the budgets. They’ve been having many meetings and are working to get the first draft finalized.

PUBLIC WORKS:

Public Works Director Lucas Smith informed the council that he has been working on the budget and setting up preliminary meetings with the engineering firms to get caught up on the capital improvement projects.

POLICE:

Police Chief Smith told the council they are hiring for new officers, both brand new and lateral. They will be accepting applications until March 22nd. Mayor Brust also brought up the fact that Chief Smith will be retiring this year which means the process for hiring a new Chief will be beginning soon. The job posting will be published soon to kick off the search process.

ADMINISTRATION:

City Administrator Seguss informed the council that they received the first draft of the housing study that was done. The results of this study will be presented in March. She explained that the city did receive grants for this study as well. They are also working through the strategic plan and working towards making an action plan that will be presented to the council in March.

ANNOUNCEMENTS – None

Motion to adjourn the meeting of the City Council was made by Alderman Wesner, seconded by Alderman Pulley. Voice vote was taken, all voted yes. Motion was carried. Meeting adjourned at 9:00pm.

https://www.genoa-il.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Meeting-Minutes-02072024.pdf