Moline City Council met May 23.
Here is the minutes provided by the Council:
Council Meeting: The City Council meeting came to order at 7:19 p.m. The Council met in regular session in the Council Chambers at City Hall.
Pledge: The Council and audience recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
Invocation: No invocation was given.
Roll Call: Roll call was taken with Mayor Acri, Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg present. Absent: Aldermen Wendt and Potter. Alderman Berg attended electronically.
Items on Consent:
Approval of Minutes
Special Council Meeting Minutes of May 8, 2017, Special Council Meeting Minutes of May 9, 2017, Committee-of-the-Whole and Council meeting minutes of May 9, 2017, appointments made during Committee- of-the-Whole on May 23, 2017, and the April Financial Report.
Second Reading Ordinances
1. Council Bill/General Ordinance 3006-2017
An Ordinance amending Chapter 4, “Alcoholic Liquor,” of the Moline Code of Ordinances, by repealing Section 4-3322, “Option Vi Off-Site Retailer’s Special Use,” in its entirety and enacting in lieu thereof one new Section 4-3322, “Option Vi Off-Site Retailer’s Special Use,” dealing with the same subject matter.
2. Council Bill/Special Ordinance 4017-2017
A Special Ordinance authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to execute an Intergovernmental Agreement to establish and operate the Illinois Quad Cities Communications Center (“QComm911”) between and among the City of Moline, the City of East Moline, the Village of Milan and the City of Silvis, Illinois.
Resolutions
3. Council Bill/Resolution 1084-2017
A Resolution authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to accept one (1) Permanent Utility and Drainage Easement more particularly described herein to allow water improvements to proceed on 2912 28th Avenue A.
4. Council Bill/Resolution 1085-2017
A Resolution authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to accept one (1) Right of Entry more particularly described herein to allow construction to proceed on Project #1262, I-74 Utility Conflict Resolution.
5. Council Bill/Resolution 1086-2017
A Resolution accepting the actuarial valuation report submitted by MWM Consulting Group for the year ending December 31, 2016, for the City of Moline’s Other Post Employment Benefits Under GASB#45.
6. Council Bill/Resolution 1087-2017
A Resolution authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to execute a $100,000.00 Revolving Loan Fund Agreement with Moline Promenade, LLC and to execute any necessary agreements referenced therein, and authorizing all appropriate City officers and staff to do all things necessary to complete each of the City’s responsibilities pursuant to said Agreement.
7. Council Bill/Resolution 1088-2017
A Resolution authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to execute an Acknowledgment and Consent to the Collateral Assignment of TIF Property Tax Rebates of the Development Agreement for the Chase Bank Building Project.
Omnibus Vote: Alderman Parker, seconded by Alderman Turner, moved to approve and adopt, by omnibus vote, these items. Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg; nays: none.
Items Not on Consent:
Resolutions
8. Council Bill/Resolution 1089-2017
A Resolution approving the remote electronic attendance of Alderman-at-Large Sonia Berg, at the Committee-of-the-Whole and City Council meetings of May 23, 2017, due to her travel out of town as part of her current employment.
Approved: Alderman Parker, seconded by Alderman Schoonmaker, moved to approve Council Bill 1089- 2017. Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker and Waldron; nays: none. Alderman Berg abstained.
9. Council Bill/Resolution 1090-2017
A Resolution amending the Revolving Loan Fund Program Guidelines as recommended by City staff and the Revolving Loan Fund Committee.
Approved: Alderman Parker, seconded by Alderman Rodriguez, moved to approve Council Bill 1090-2017. Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg; nays: none.
10. Council Bill/Resolution 1091-2017
A Resolution authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to approve Amendment #1 for the Local Agency Agreement for Federal Participation for Motor Fuel Tax Section 15-00264-00-BR, Sylvan Slough Pedestrian Bridge.
Approved: Alderman Parker, seconded by Alderman Turner, moved to approve Council Bill 1091-2017. Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg; nays: none.
11. Council Bill/Resolution 1092-2017
A Resolution authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to approve a Construction Engineering Services Agreement for Federal Participation for Motor Fuel Tax Section 15-00264-00-BR, Sylvan Slough Pedestrian Bridge.
Approved: Alderman Parker, seconded by Alderman Turner, moved to approve Council Bill 1092-2017. Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg; nays: none.
First Reading Ordinances
12. Council Bill/Special Ordinance 4018-2017
A Special Ordinance authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to execute a Development and Economic Incentive Agreement between the City of Moline and Midwest Palms, LLC for the development project and to execute any necessary agreements referenced therein, and authorizing all appropriate City officers and staff to do all things necessary to complete each of the City’s responsibilities pursuant to said Agreement.
13. Council Bill/Special Ordinance 4019-2017
A Special Ordinance closing certain streets more particularly described herein to vehicular traffic and authorizing the use of public right-of-way in conjunction with the FROG Hop 5k, sponsored by Trinity Lutheran Church, scheduled for Saturday, June 3, 2017.
Motion for Consideration:
Alderman Parker, seconded by Alderman Rodriguez, moved to consider council bill 4019-2017. Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg; nays: none.
Adopted: Alderman Parker, seconded by Alderman Schoonmaker, moved to adopt Council Bill 4019-2017. Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg; nays: none.
Council, Staff and Citizen Comments:
Alderman Berg made a motion to direct City staff to convene the Parking Committee for the purpose of evaluating the current two-hour time limitations of on street parking and the space jumping regulations as adopted by the City Council. The purpose of the motion is to address the number of complaints and tickets that are written by visitors to downtown Moline. Seconded by Alderman Rodriguez. Alderman Berg also suggested that a couple of Council members be included on the Parking Committee. Lastly, Alderman Berg suggested changing the two-hour downtown parking to three-hour parking, and bringing a recommendation back to Council. Alderman Schoonmaker mentioned that he had a recent complaint from a downtown employer who suggested a solution. They suggested that the City look into the underutilized downtown parking lots and offer discounted downtown employee passes in those underutilized lots. The City could verify their employment through paystubs or some other method and give them an incentive, as a downtown employee, to park three or four blocks away in the underutilized lots to free up more space downtown. Alderman Rodriguez mentioned that another business owner mentioned that when you get a parking ticket in Davenport, the business can validate the ticket for the City, and the ticket goes away if the person is patronizing the business. Alderman Acri inquired as to whether there were elected officials on the Parking Committee. Ray Forsythe, Planning & Development Director, said that presently there are not any elected officials on the Parking Committee. It currently consists of staff, business owners and Moline Centre Main Street members. Mayor Acri confirmed that J.D. Schulte, Public Works Director/Interim City Administrator, will coordinate a committee with aldermen that are interested. Per Mayor Acri, if any aldermen are interested in being a part of this committee, they should e-mail Mayor Acri, and she will provide the names to Mr. Schulte. Alderman Berg gave City staff direction to bring something back to the City Council by the July 11, 2017 Council meeting or sooner. Motion passed unanimously.
Alderman Parker mentioned that the City is going to sell the parking lot located at 1818 5th Avenue. He inquired as to whether the sale proceeds are restricted. Ray Forsythe, Planning & Development Director, mentioned that this parking lot was purchased by the General Fund, so the typical policy is that the sale proceeds go back into the General Fund. If something is purchased by the TIF District, then the TIF District would receive the proceeds. Alderman Parker made a motion that the $37,500 proceeds from the sale of said parking lot be directed to the City’s sidewalk fund to help with projects throughout the City. Seconded by Alderman Rodriguez. Alderman Schoonmaker inquired as to whether City staff would support this motion.
J.D. Schulte, Public Works Director/Interim City Administrator, said that he would take a look at the City’s priorities concerning sidewalks and come back with a recommendation to the Council. Motion passed unanimously.
Ray Forsythe, Planning & Development Director, introduced Cole Neder. He is the Planning & Development Department’s summer intern. Mr. Neder is an Augustana College student who is coordinating the weekly Multi-Modal Station meetings, assisting with the “Why Moline” project, putting together the food truck policy, and will be making a presentation at the next Council meeting concerning the food truck policy. He is also going to be assigned to the Parking Committee.
Ray Forsythe, Planning & Development Director, mentioned that Sally Heffernan was a long time City of Rock Island economic development professional. She and Mr. Forsythe have a long history of working together. Ms. Heffernan is now the Economic Development Director for the City of Normal, and Normal received a TIGER grant at the same time as the City of Moline. However, Normal’s grant was a significantly larger award. Their Amtrak construction is now complete and operable. They built a parking deck and a new City Hall with their TIGER funds. The City of Normal has invited the City of Moline for a visit. The City of Normal has done a really good job of developing their downtown. Mr. Forsythe would like to extend the invitation to City Council members and department staff. They have also farmed out their parking enforcement, so it would be a good trip to see another community in Illinois that has been successful. The City of Normal would then like to come to the City of Moline and see our downtown housing, our TIGER grant-funded project and then our relationship with Western Illinois University, because they also have a university in their town. Mr. Forsythe is hoping to go to Normal on a work day in the second half of June. All interested City Council members should let Mr. Forsythe know, so he can begin coordinating schedules for this event.
Lori Wilson, Parks Recreation Director, mentioned that the Park Board meeting is Thursday, May 25, 2017, at 3:30 p.m., at Public Works. The Park Board will be discussing Parks CIP projects and wish lists, as well as current projects. Ms. Wilson welcomed everyone to attend.
Alderman Rodriguez mentioned the Touch-A-Truck event two weeks ago. He said it was a huge success. Numerous families attended and commented very positively to Alderman Rodriguez. This event is a model for City events that the Council likes to see. He expressed his gratitude to J.D. Schulte, Public Works Director, and his staff for their work on this event.
Alderman Rodriguez also mentioned that the annual Hero Street Memorial event is this Saturday, May 27, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. It is an event that honors fallen soldiers. The president of the memorial is a Moline resident who lives on 4th Avenue. Quite a few of the individuals that used to live in boxcars on Hero Street moved into the Floreciente Neighborhood. So, there is a strong tie between the Floreciente Neighborhood and the City of Silvis.
Alderman Rodriguez shared that the Floreciente Neighborhood Association is having their kickoff event at McCandless Park on Sunday, May 28, 2017, from 1:00-5:00 p.m. There will be food, games, prizes, information on the neighborhood and its history and information on how to communicate with the City and other organizations.
Alderman Parker expressed his appreciation to the Moline Fire Department for the Firefighters’ Memorial at Center Station. He thanked Retired Chief, Ron Miller, who did a great job at the event. He also thanked Mayor Acri for the very nice speech. He encouraged everyone to attend this event, because it means so much to the firefighters and their families. It is a great way to show support to the Fire Department and all the public safety staff.
J.D. Schulte, Public Works Director/Interim City Administrator, shared an example of a sign that will be placed in various neighborhoods. The sign reads, “Moline investing $805,000 in this construction funded by sales tax and utility fees.”
J.D. Schulte, Public Works Director/Interim City Administrator, shared with Alderman Rodriguez and the rest of the City Council that Public Works has a lot of dedicated staff that work on the Touch-A-Truck event. Social media advertising really increased the attendance this year.
Alderman Schoonmaker also mentioned the Touch-A-Truck event. He said it was a great outreach event for the City. He specifically mentioned Alex Sierra in the garbage truck. He was very engaging and encouraging to the children. Alderman Schoonmaker encouraged Public Works staff to request additional funding for this event, if necessary. He would certainly back an increase in funding. Alderman Schoonmaker also mentioned that it would be nice to have Touch-A-Truck T-shirts for all event staff to differentiate the staff representing the City of Moline. This also would help people if they have a question or issue during the event.
Alderman Waldron echoed the soccer official’s thank you to Public Works and Police staff earlier this evening. All the affected intersections are in the seventh ward. Alderman Waldron has had a lot of challenging phone calls over the last month or so, and those calls have gone away.
Ron Miller, Resident, and President of the Retired Fire Fighters, expressed his gratitude to Mayor Acri for her speech at the Firefighters’ Memorial Service. Mr. Miller enjoys his job and is happy to help people if they have questions. Mr. Miller also thanked Greg Wilson for organizing the mulch drop off at the Firefighters’ Memorial on Ben Butterworth Parkway. Mr. Miller said that he may need to ask for some more mulch.
Executive Session:
Alderman Parker, seconded by Alderman Rodriguez, moved for Executive Session, for the purpose of discussion of Collective Negotiating Matters-5 ILCS 120/2(C)(2). Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: Ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg; nays: none.
City Council convened in Executive Session at 7:49 p.m.
Alderman Parker moved to adjourn Executive Session, seconded by Alderman Schoonmaker. Motion carried on roll call with the following vote: Ayes: Aldermen Rodriguez, Parker, Turner, Schoonmaker, Waldron and Berg; nays: none.
Council reconvened in open session at 8:24 p.m.
On motion of Alderman Parker, Seconded by Alderman Rodriguez, Council adjourned at 8:24 p.m.
The next regularly scheduled City Council meeting is on June 6, 2017.
http://www.moline.il.us/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/4045
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