Carbondale Reporter

City of Genoa City Council met July 17.

Here are the minutes provided by the council:

Mayor Brust called the meeting of the City Council to order at 7:04pm followed by roll call. Alderman Wesner, Pulley, Freund, Stage, Winter, Hughes and Roca were present. Alderman Braheny was absent. Quorum present.

Mayor Brust led the pledge of allegiance.

GUEST SPEAKERS – None

PUBLIC COMMENT – Victor Young, owner of Redwoods Sports Bar, came before the council to ask if it’s possible to allow a for profit business to obtain a raffle license. As it currently stands, only non-profits are allowed to obtain this license. City Attorney Kelly Cahill explained that it may be an Illinois state statute and if that’s the case, we can’t change it. Mayor Brust also explained that this hasn’t been investigated previously as the city doesn’t want to take business away from the VFW, since they are a non-profit and the only place in Genoa to host Bingo. However, if it is a possibility to change it, there could be language added to restrict what kind of raffles other businesses could have, leaving Bingo to the VFW. This will be investigated further.

OLD BUSINESS – None

CONSENT AGENDA

Alderman Pulley made a motion to approve of items 1-6 within the consent agenda, seconded by Alderman Wesner. No further discussion. Alderman Wesner, Pulley, Freund, Stage, Winter, Hughes and Roca voted yes. Motion carried.

1. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE JUNE 26, 2024, SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING

2. APPROVAL OF THE ACCOUNTS PAYABLES DATED JULY 15, 2024

3. A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS TO EXECUTE LEAD SERVICE LINE REPLACEMENT AGREEMENTS

4. THE TRANSFER OF $50,000 FROM THE GENERAL FUND TO THE GOVERNMENTAL CAPITAL FUND FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024

5. THE TRANSFER OF $130,000 FROM THE GENERAL FUND TO THE STREET IMPROVEMENT FUND FOR THE FISCAL YEAR 2024

6. THE TRANSFER OF $250,000 FROM THE WATER/SEWER FUND TO THE WATER/SEWER CAPITAL FUND FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024

NEW BUSINESS:

DOWNTOWN PROJECT UPDATE AND RDMS/RISE GRANT APPLICATION

Public Works Director Lucas Smith gave an update on the downtown project that has been under construction over the past couple of weeks. A couple aldermen asked what would happen to the old streetlights after they’re taken down and Smith explained that they would be auctioned off. There was also a question of whether throughout this downtown project, they have been thinking about the future Emmett Street project. Smith explained that they have, and that the location of streetlights near Emmett Street were strategically placed so that a minimal amount of work that is being done now will have to be torn up or redone in the process of creating Emmett Street.

This question led into City Administrator Alyssa Seguss explaining the RISE/RDMS grant that has been recently launched through the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Seguss explained that through this grant, the city could have the potential to be awarded funds to cover 75% of the future project. Alderman Roca expressed his support for the project and how beneficial he believes this would be for future events such as Genoa Days, Celebrate the Season, Harvest Fest, and more. Roca also mentioned that it would promote safety within downtown because it would give people, especially families, a place to gather during events that is further from the very busy route 72. Alderman Pulley shared that he has had great community feedback regarding the project as well and has had many people ask him when it is happening. Along with residents, there have been several property owners in the area that have expressed their desire for the project to be completed including the new owners of 304 W Main St and Mike Bell, an owner and landlord on Jackson St, who came to the June 26th city council meeting to show his support for the project and get an update on it. Additionally, Mayor Brust shared his support for the project saying that it would bring positive impacts to other downtown businesses and serve as a gathering space for not only residents of the city but visitors from surrounding areas as well. He also highlighted that the project falls right into place with the comprehensive and strategic plans and is in line with the responses from the extensive community surveys that have been sent out.

AWARD A BID TO PETER BAKER & SONS CO. FOR THE RESURFACING OF PORTIONS OF SYCAMORE STREET AND WEST HILL STREET AS WELL AS REMOVING AND REPLACING SIDEWALKS, NOT TO EXCEED $253,878

Alderman Wesner made a motion to award the bid to Peter Baker & Sons Co. seconded by Alderman Winter. No further discussion. Alderman Wesner, Pulley, Freund, Stage, Winter, Hughes and Roca voted yes. Motion carried.

FUTURE ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION – Alderman Hughes brought up the no parking along the end of the courts in Riverbend, such as Boulder Ct and Cobblestone Ct, as he has had a resident express their frustrations to him. Unfortunately, Chief Smith explained that before they had the ends of those streets marked as no parking, they were getting many complaints about cars being parked there and headlights shining into residents’ houses on Preserve Dr. Due to the number of complaints that were coming in prior to no parking being added, this is unlikely to be changed. There was also a discussion regarding the chicken ordinance. Mayor Brust and City Administrator Seguss explained that this ordinance needs to be finalized so that they can work on enforcement throughout the city. This will be discussed and finalized within the next couple of meetings. Mayor Brust also brought up the topic of moving city council meeting start times up to 6:30pm rather than 7 pm. This will also be discussed at future meetings.

DEPARTMENT REPORTS:

FINANCE:

Finance Director Jan Tures told the council that last week was field work for the audit meaning they are about 90% done and announced that the full audit will be ready in October. She also announced that there were no amendments to the budget needed as everything came in under budget for the fiscal year 2024.

PUBLIC WORKS:

Public Works Director Lucas Smith gave an update on the cleanup that the department has been working on because of the recent storms. He explained that they have had employees out for the last couple days along with contractual help to aid in getting everything cleaned up around town.

He announced that they will also be doing special brush pickups to help residents that need brush removal for their private properties. Smith did address that there is one street that is still without power, and they are waiting on ComEd to fix their pole and transformer to restore power. Alderman Roca expressed his frustrations with ComEd at this time as well, as the Riverbend subdivision was without power for a prolonged period, and the claimed 99% success rate has not been supported in that area. Smith went on to tell the council that they received their final NPDES permit for the wastewater plant, and they also had a bid opening for well #5 filter rehab. He also announced that they met with IDOT regarding the Safe Routes to School grant and discuss the timeline for the project. Smith also gave an update on the construction of E First St.

ADMINISTRATION:

City Administrator Alyssa Seguss announced that the plan commission met recently to discuss the definition of a corner side yard as they are trying to make things more inclusive within the UDO. There will be a public hearing at the next plan commission meeting before there is any recommendation to the city council. Seguss also explained that they are beginning to prepare the OSLAD grant application for the central park in Riverbend. There will be a public input meeting on August 7th before the city council meeting.

POLICE:

Chief Robert Smith announced that there will be two officers graduating on August 22nd, Nicholet Gonzalez and Madeleine King.

ANNOUNCEMENTS – Alderman Pulley announced there will be a Harvest Fest meeting at 10am on Friday.

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 carried. Meeting adjourned at 7:49pm.

https://www.genoa-il.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Meeting-Minutes-07172024.pdf