COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING

Lincoln City Hall, Council Chambers 700 Broadway Street ILincoln, Illinois

Tuesday, September 24,2019

The Committee of the Whole Meeting of the City Council of Lincoln was called to order by Mayor Seth Goodman at 7:02 p.m., with proper notice given. City Clerk Peggy Bateman called roll.

Present:

Alderman Tracy Welch, Ward 1

Alderman Steve Parrott, Ward 1

Alderman Kathryn Schmidt, Ward 2

Alderman Sam Downs, Ward 2

Alderman Kevin Bateman, Ward 3

Alderman Ron Keller, Ward 3

Alderman Kathy Horn, Ward 4

Alderman Jeff Hoinacki, Ward 4

Staff Present:

Seth Goodman, Mayor

Elizabeth Kavelman, City Administrator

John Hoblit, City Attorney

Peggy Bateman, City Clerk

Alex Williams, Recording Secretary

Chuck Conzo, City Treasurer

Matt Vlahovich, Police Chief

Wes Woodhall, Building and Safety Officer

Walt Landers, Streets Superintendent

Absent:

Bob Dunovsky, Fire Chief

Anthony Harper, Veolia Water, Project Manager

Public Comment:

Mayor Goodman called upon citizens registered to speak. Mr. Kirby Campbell came forward, he is pastor of Park Meadows Baptist Church in Lincoln. Sunday will be mystery guest Sunday. He called it an unusual request that the council might not get very often. He said he needed a guest too. He is new and has been in town for nine months.

There being no further public participation, Mayor Goodman moved down to other agenda items.

Update: Presentation by Com-Ed for the Upcoming Remediation Project on the Former Street Department and Gas Works Factory, and Railroad Bed Property:

Mr. Walt Landers opened discussion, sharing Com-Ed is targeting a date to come and give an extensive update on the project.

Request for Special Use Permit at 920/922 Woodlawn Road - PC 2019-02:

Mr. Wes Woodhall opened discussion about the planning commission, about the new owners of two properties on Woodlawn Road. There would be a new Burger King going onto the site. They need a drive-thru. The item would be placed on the regular agenda.

Mr. Robert DeAtley came forward, he wanted to extend the opportunity for questions. He said Lincoln was settled on, he works with a franchisee. They were not able to make the numbers work at the previous Burger King location. He said they have also been in touch with the Illinois Department of Transportation. Mayor Goodman thanked him for their interest in Lincoln. Alderman Keller addressed a question about exiting back to Main Street. The anticipated completion date would be before the end of the calendar year. There is still a series of approvals that have to happen, before they can complete the project.

Alderman Horn asked how many employees he thought Burger King would hire. He estimated between 24 and 40 employees, maybe mostly part-time.

Request to Permit Fire Prevention Parade on Sunday, October 6, 2019 from 2-4 p.m. With the need to block off Mclean Street from Pulaski to Broadway Streets, submitted by Danielle Ketcham, LCFA Secretary, and Latham, Ill.:

Mayor Goodman said between Pulaski and Broadway Streets, would help in reducing the blockage of traffic. The item would be placed on the consent agenda.

First Pay request by Kinney Contractor, Inc., for $203,123.50 for the Jefferson Street Bridge Project:

Mr. Landers opened discussion about the project, saying he was hoping asphalt would go down maybe this week, with more to come next week. He said it was good progress being made. He said this amount was about half of what the cost would be. Alderman Downs asked when the project would wrap up. Mr. Landers said in a couple of weeks - maybe. He mentioned a change order, and a review with Farnsworth Group. Alderman Schmidt said they will totally have to take everything out . . . Mr. Landers said they basically dam off the area, they have had to block things off on two different occasions. There were dishes discovered, at one point someone backfilled with old pottery. Underneath the ground somewhere - there was a pocket of water, which ran for nearly three days before it ran out. He said at one point there was a tile that was running successfully. He said there was a pocket of water somewhere in that area.

Treasurer Conzo spoke. Then they moved to other items.

Bid Discussion for General Cleaning Services of City Buildings:

City Clerk Peggy Bateman said Royce Scales put their bid in, and Resilient Cleaning. Their price was per visit. Royce Scales included on year floor maintenance, and quarterly for the Amtrak Station.

Resilient

$2,370 per month for all three locations. She asked that this be put on the voting session.

$3184.98 for Resilient, plus window washing and the Amtrak Station cleaning. The item would be placed on the regular agenda, for Royce Scales.

Bid Opening for City of Lincoln Wastewater Treatment Truck:

Mr. Bateman began opening bids for the new truck at her desk.

• Jim Xamis: $38,244
• Lincoln Chrysler Jeep: $37,587
• Landmark Automotive Group:$45,475
• Graue Chevrolet: $44,830 and $38,913

She said Lincoln Chrysler Jeep is likely the lowest. This would be brought back at the next voting meeting. This would be placed on the next regular agenda - in order to review.

Curb and Sidewalk Improvement Project Bid Award and Additional Targets:

Mr. Walt Landers opened discussion saying the bid opening for the sidewalk for this year - Otto Baum Company, $124,403.62, Sangomo Construction $157,774.09, Kenny Contractors $131,534. Their budget is $125,000. He asked that the council goes ahead and approves the contract for Otto Baum Company, Inc. of Morton. Alderman Parrott wanted it put on the agenda.

Alderman Hoinacki said he anticipated, he hoped they would do it this season.Mr. Landers said next year they intend to move the sidewalk project ahead, while the kids are out of school. His team intends on shifting things around a little bit. The item would be placed on the regular agenda.

Solar Energy Panels RFP:

Alderman Bateman opened discussion saying the Request for Proposals are going out -then they can decide on whether or not they will move forward on this. They will have to provide the city with their scope in years and offer a buyout quote within the same offer. They would be bidding separately years.

Treasurer Conzo said before they make a decision on this, he wanted to share some facts on the land, he said the farm lease on the land $202,691.61 was garnered since 1993. The first 16 years or 17 years, $4,000 to $6,500. He said beginning 10 years ago - the payments or rent was $120,000 plus for just those nine years. He listed the ranges on rents. He said last year it was $11,742.79 dollars. He said before you kiss that money goodbye - you might want to be very diligent in reviewing the proposals for solar panels and decide if it's really worth it and the claims are viable. He said he did know that solar panels are not always as beneficial as they're reported to be.

He cited former President Obama's investment in a solar power company. He called for reviewing this with due diligence. He said he was not an expert on farm leases. Mr. Bateman said Mr. Conzo is correct, this is just an RFP on a proposal on a project that was turned over to him to look into. He said at this point it is fact gathering information. He said the sewer treatment plant is the largest consumer of electricity that the city pays for. He said there's the potential for $800-plus thousand dollars in savings.

He said there would still be some farm income, but all numbers would have to be considered and looked into. He said this by no means is a done deal. He said this would be a zero cost to the city, except for the farmland that would be a loss.

The city believes the lease is up in November on the 40 acres of land. Treasurer Conzo said  he appreciated all of Mr. Bateman's work on this. Mr. Bateman added that in the proposal there is a decommission plan in the RFP.So the city would not be stuck with any solar panels. If something were to fail, the company would be responsible for taking down all the panels and returning the property to its original state.

City Attorney Hoblit said in the current lease they usually are November to November, he said that time is coming up. He said you essentially have a little over a month before the leasing gets signed.

Mr. Conzo said the remediation of the property - he thought this was great in the RFP. He said it's only as good as the company. He said the promise of remediation is worthless if the company goes bankrupt. Mr. Hoblit said he concurred with Mr. Conzo on this, he said he really did not anticipate the company.... he said they usually find a way for solvency. Mr. Bateman said if the numbers come back promising . . . he said everything needs to be looked into.

Alderman Welch said he remained skeptical about the project, no matter what the company is. He said he struggle with the issue that the city will allow a company come in and turn a significant property for themselves under the guise that they are saving the city money. Mr. Hoblit said a month-to-month lease would not make sense for a farmer. He said it would have to be a one year lease.

Overall Update of the Progress on the City's Portion of the Fifth Street Road Project and Eminent Domain Letters from the City sent to Non-Responsive Fifth Street Road Property Owners:

City Administrator Kavelman opened discussion saying the city is still within the 60-day eminent domain letter, since that has been sent out. Some people have been sent some checks recently. Some people requested information on a semi-tum. She said there might be some good news from that end, but that they are waiting on things. Mr. Hoblit said as they get closer to the end of 60-days, he would need to see a definitive list. She said the engineers are working on that this week. She said it's narrowing.

Alderman Welch asked Mr. Conzo if he has done any research into options to fund the project. Mr. Conzo said options are not good. He said it will exceed $1 million. He said one options is bonds, but they have bond debt already for the sewer project, and they will have a third and larger sewer mandate that will have to be paid for too. He said the police station is a 15-year bond, relatively short-term. Plus Loans for types of equipment. He said that's probably the only option - some type of a long-term bond, but it would add considerable debt to the city's overall debt. He noted credit ratings.

Mrs. Kavelman cited things she learned about the Opportunity Zone, from the Federal Government. He wanted to know if she was talking about grants. October 22 would be the 60-day.

Landscape Waste Facility Update:

Mr. Walt Landers shared that staff has been busy at the landscape waste facility. They have one and a half days left of grinding. He said they city has plenty mulch - 70-80 loads if not more. Rate changes and projections will be coming. The mulch is not treated so it would not be good around homes, but out by trees.

He said they can move it relatively easily.

Committees Structure:

This item was removed.

Announcements:

Mayor Goodman asked if anyone had any announcements.

• Nila Smith of Lincoln Daily News shared information about the "Pink Pumpkin" auction on October 3.
• Alderman Parrott said residents in Ward 1, have shared information about dust from the road upgrades/repairs made a few weeks ago. He said there is still dust flying around. He wanted Mr. Landers to explain what the company plans to do to fix the gravel and get rid of the dust. Alderman Welch also weighed in on this. Mr. Landers weighed in on what options could be done. He said it's more extensive and harder to get done, but he said there are things they can look at to improve process. The company would have to bring in a large water truck. He said they would soak the road and sweep up the excess gravel. He said it would not be a cure all. He said it would be there until it finally got washed away.
• October 5, at Kickapoo Creek Park - there will be trail walk at 7 p.m. People can just show up.
• City Clerk Bateman said Rusty Rail Pub, the former Characters - they want to have a grand opening Saturday, October 5 from 5-9 p.m. There is permission to have this in the parking lot. Lincoln Police have been notified. They want to have a band. Alcohol would have to be contained in the parking lot. Mr. Welch said this was being done on private property -so he did not see any issue.
• Mr. Woodhall shared information on two projects.
• Mrs. Schmidt asked a question about the Kickapoo Street Rail Road Crossing. Mr. Landers filled her in.
• Mrs. Schmidt commented about the Illinois Municipal League conference that everyone went through. She went to a presentation on, “Retail" and one called, "Aurora Strong."
• The Annual Life Banquet will host a free meal and speech on alternative means for not having an abortion
• Operation Honor Flight - information was shared about this announcement
• There will be an insurance advisory meeting tomorrow, per request of two of the three unions this year

Adjournment:

There being no further discussion to come before the City Council of Lincoln, Alderman Keller motioned to adjourn, seconded by Alderman Bateman. Roll call was taken.

Present:

Alderman Tracy Welch Alderman

Steve Parrott Alderman

Kathryn Schmidt Alderman

Sam Downs Alderman

Kevin Bateman Alderman

Ron Keller Alderman

Kathy Horn Alderman

Jeff Hoinacki Alderman

Absent:

None

Mayor Goodman adjourned the meeting at 8:03 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted By:

Alex Williams, Recording Secretary