City of East Moline Committee of the Whole Met April 19.
Here is the minutes provided by the committee:
ROLL CALL
Mayor Freeman called the meeting to order and directed City Clerk Arletta D. Holmes to call the roll. The following Aldermen were present: Larry Toppert, Gary Almblade, Nancy Mulcahey, Jayne O’Brien, Frederic Kotoku, Maria Tapia and Jose Rico. 7:00 p.m.
ADDITIONS/CORRECTIONS TO AGENDA
None.
PENSION OBLIGATION BONDS (Ms. Whiting – Finance Director) On February 1st, a presentation by Baird and Speer Financial on Pension Obligation Bonds (POBs) was presented to City Council as an informational item. POBs are a long-term overall strategy to fund the unfunded portion of the City's pension liabilities. In addition to potential short-term and long-term saving opportunities, POBs will also reduce the City's overall OPEB liabilities.
Stephan Roberts from Baird will provide updates on the market and relevant information pertaining to this matter.
FINANCIAL:
This is a budgeted item.
Title: Police and Fire Pensions
Amount Budgeted: $2,882,080.00 Actual Cost: TBD
Funding Sources: Tax Levy, Replacement Tax
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends action by City Councilfor direction to proceed, recommendation would include directing staff to pursue a POB issuance including the engagement of bond counsel and debt structuring.
A motion was made by Alderman Mulcahey, seconded by Alderman Almblade to concur with the recommendation as presented. Upon roll call the following voted in favor: Rico, Toppert, Almblade, Mulcahey, O’Brien, Kotoku and Tapia. Motion carried.
REQUEST BY DRUNKEN BARRELS FOR USE OF CITY PARKING LOT FOR OUTDOOR SERVICE AREA (Mr. Maxeiner, City Administrator)
The owner of Drunken Barrels Pub, located at 821 15th Avenue, wants to utilize a portion (approximately 20' x 60') of the adjoining municipal parking lot (to the west) as an outdoor service area for alcoholic beverages and food. If approved, he intends to participate in the Special Service Area's Quick Fix Fence Grant Program to attain financial assistance to erect an aesthetically pleasing fence to enclose this area. COVID-19 has increased the need for taverns and restaurants to utilize outdoor space. At the current time, the sidewalk space in front of the business is not sufficient to create this amenity zone so the adjoining parking lot is a logical alternative. The parking lot is typically underutilized except in the instances of larger special events in the downtown area.
A license agreement for the use of the parking lot, similar to that utilized with Stop's Showroom (attached), will need to be considered and approved by the City Council prior to moving forward. All rules and regulations in the Municipal Code (including noise restrictions) will apply to the use of this space. This has no cost to the City other than potential enforcement expenses.
FINANCIAL:
This is not a budgeted item.
This is not a CIP.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends consideration of the request.
A motion was made by Alderman Almblade, seconded by Alderman O’Brien to concur with the recommendation as presented. Upon roll call the following voted in favor: Rico, Toppert, Almblade, Mulcahey, O’Brien, Kotoku and Tapia. Motion carried.
AMENDMENT OF ROCK ISLAND COUNTY ENTERPRISE ZONE TO ADDITIONAL PARCELS IN EAST MOLINE (Mr. Maxeiner, City Administrator)
Reynold's Ford located at 1900 Avenue of the Cities was recently purchased by the Kunes Company. As part of the purchase agreement, Ford Motor Company is requiring that Kunes bring the facility up to their current facility standards. Kunes is anticipating investing $2 - $3 million in renovation costs and improvements to meet this requirement and have requested that the Rock Island County Enterprise Zone be amended to include this property. The former Godfather's Pizza building and the vacant lot to the east of Godfathers is also included in this amendment.
The Enterprise Zone statute (20 ILCS 655) provides for the exemption of state sales taxes on building materials purchased for remodeling, rehabilitation or new construction within an Enterprise Zone. This benefit can result in tens of thousands of dollars of reduced costs on a project of this magnitude.
To amend the Zone, each entity in the Zone (County plus five municipalities) will need to approve an ordinance after conducting a public hearing.
FINANCIAL:
This is not a budgeted item.
This is not a CIP
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends approval of the amendment to the Enterprise Zone.
A motion was made by Alderman Almblade, seconded by Alderman Toppert to concur with the recommendation as presented. Upon roll call the following voted in favor: Toppert, Almblade, Mulcahey, O’Brien, Kotoku and Tapia. Abstention: Rico. Motion carried 6 – Abstention 1
SCADA UPGRADE AT THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT (Parker Prochaska, Interim Director of Wastewater Treatment)
The SCADA system is a computer automation system that controls nearly all processes in the wastewater treatment plant as well as the lift stations in the collection system. On a recent service call, staff was informed by our service vendor - Tri City Engineering and Integration - that they will no longer support Windows 7 based operating systems and that we need to upgrade to Windows 10. This is an unplanned but necessary expense to ensure reliable operation of the wastewater system. This system is also critical to submit data and reports to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA).
FINANCIAL:
This is a budgeted item.
Line Item#: 250-4549-430.0
Title: Equipment Repairs
Actual Cost: $18,440.00
Departments: Wastewater Treatment Plant
This is not a CIP.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff requests authorization to proceed with the required upgrade of the SCADA system.
A motion was made by Alderman O’Brien, seconded by Alderman Mulcahey to concur with the recommendation as presented. Upon roll call the following voted in favor: Rico, Toppert, Almblade, Mulcahey, O’Brien, Kotoku and Tapia. Motion carried.
ADJOURMENT:
A motion was made by Alderman Almblade, seconded by Alderman Toppert to adjourn the Committee-of-the-Whole meeting. Upon roll call the following voted in favor: Rico, Toppert, Almblade, Mulcahey, O’Brien, Kotoku and Tapia. Motion carried. 7:41 p.m.
https://www.eastmoline.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_04192021-698
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