Peoria Standard

The Peoria County Board met Sept. 8 to appropriate remaining 2016 funds.

Here are the meeting's minutes, as provided by the board:

Sharon K. Williams, District 1

Junior Watkins, District 2

Lynn Scott Pearson, District 3

Chairperson-Andrew A. Rand, District 4

Rachael Parker District 5

G. Allen Mayer, District 6

James C. Dillon, District 7

Phillip Salzer, District 8

Michael Phelan, District 9 Andrew A. Rand - Chairperson

R. Steve Sonnemaker, County Clerk

Vice-Chairperson -Stephen M. Morris, District 10

Mary Ardapple, District 11

Robert Baietto, District 12

James T. Fennell, District 13

Brian Elsasser, District 14

Carol Trumpe, District 15

Brad Harding, District 16

Thomas H. O’Neill, III, District 17

Paul Rosenbohm, District 18

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PEORIA COUNTY BOARD

MEETING MINUTES

Thursday, September 8, 2016

6:00 PM

County Courthouse • 324 Main Street • County Board Room 403 • Peoria, Illinois 61602

Voice: (309) 672-6056 • Fax: (309) 672-6054 • TDD: (309) 672-6073

www.peoriacounty.org/countyboard

CALL TO ORDER

MOMENT OF SILENCE

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

ROLL CALL BY THE COUNTY CLERK

Attendance was taken with the Roll Call-Pro voting system, and the following members of the Board were

present: Baietto, Dillon, Elsasser, Fennell, Harding, Mayer, Morris, O'Neill, Parker, Pearson, Phelan,

Rand, Rosenbohm, Salzer, Watkins and Williams, with Ardapple and Trumpe absent.

I. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

• Approval of August 11, 2016 County Board Minutes

• Approval of August 18, 2016 County Board Minutes

O’Neill moved for approval of the minutes, Baietto seconded. The minutes were approved by a

unanimous roll call vote of 16 ayes.

Chairman Rand announced that the Peoria County Veterans Memorial Committee will be holding a

groundbreaking ceremony on Saturday, October 1st at 10am in the Courthouse Plaza.

II. CITIZENS' REMARKS

Dale Benson, Legislative Committee Chairman, Peoria County Farm Bureau, addressed the Board

with regard to the Planning and Zoning Department. He reported that in a survey of concerns

performed by the Farm Bureau, it repeatedly shows concern over the Planning and Zoning

Department. He asked that Planning and Zoning examine its processes and be made more userfriendly.

He said that he has been told by construction businesses that Peoria County is one of the

worst places to get a building permit for new construction or existing buildings. He explained that

repair companies do not like to come to Peoria County because if a building has seen 50% damage,

they run into many code violations. He noted that agriculture enjoys an exemption from

construction work and it is needed to run efficiently. He requested that the current adversarial

process be changed to more of a cooperative effort.

Skip Light, Township Supervisor, Limestone Township, addressed the Board with regard to the

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Planning and Zoning Department being builder-friendly in Peoria County. He detailed an instance

were a gentleman built a garage with a receptacle in the ceiling to plug in a garage door opener. He

said that the owner was told by an inspector that the receptacle must be child proof and he believes

that may be overkill. He expressed that it bothers him and asked if the County is really builder

friendly. He brought up that in 2015 the township only built 6 new houses, a couple of warehouses,

and there are clearly problems.

Matt Szentes, Szentes Concrete, addressed the Board with regard to regulations in Planning and

Zoning. He stated that the Board has encumbered some governmental units with too many rules

and regulations that are too difficult to understand. He said that when given a stack of books to

follow, nothing can get done. He asked that when the Board passes new regulations, it consider

how they will be interpreted. He said the jobs are simple, but they become complicated with rules.

Kevin Rose, 4915 N Ridgelawn Place, Peoria, addressed the Board with regard to the Planning and

Zoning Department. He identified that he is a contractor and he was surprised to be approached by

a board member to speak on the same subject for the third time in seven years. He believed that

the code is necessary to protect the homeowners. He said he has worked inside of the City of

Peoria, other Peoria County villages, East Peoria, and Pekin and has yet to fail an inspection, but

has never passed an inspection in Peoria County. He said that inspectors outside of Peoria County

have been helpful, letting him know about new codes, but in Peoria County the inspectors have said

it is not their job to explain or identify the code. He stated that inspectors are required to inform

the contractor about the code. He identified that there have been customers in the county that have

asked for him to not get a permit due to the problems they have heard about with the inspections.

He described an instance where he put on a room addition. He said to receive a permit he was

required to insert a support beam when a structural engineer identified that it was not necessary,

costing the homeowner an additional $1,000. He noted that when the inspector came to the site,

they asked why it was in place and he said he should talk to the people in charge. He stressed that

this is not helpful to anyone involved because when the homeowner spends money, the contractor

spends money, and the County receives revenue through taxes. He said that he hopes that this can

be resolved, and that if all work together, all can benefit.

Beth Tyre, 10815 N Fox Meadow Drive, Brimfield, addressed the Board with regard to the Planning

and Zoning Department. She explained that she built a home in Peoria County and concurs with

the others who have spoken in that there is quite a cumbersome process with Planning and Zoning.

She asked that there be a process to review how the code is interpreted and see if it is more

stringent than surrounding cities and counties. She said that when she entered she heard that the

code is the code and we need to follow the code, but it is important to support the businesses,

homeowners, builders, and contractors by partnering with them. She suggested that sometimes the

policies must be reevaluated to ensure that the codes are interpreted correctly and possibly

changed. She expressed that when anyone brings up the Planning and Zoning Department, it is not

in a positive light due to the process, code interpretation, extra cost, and extra time.

Fedi Davidovics, 12321 W Lancaster Road, Hanna City, addressed the Board with regard to the

Planning and Zoning Department. He described that his house used to be a school with a flat roof,

but when it began to leak, he decided to put on a pitched roof. He detailed how he was told a

permit for the roof would cost $.50 per square foot; at 6,000 square feet that would cost $3,000

and he was unwilling to pay that amount. He stated that the person came back at $.25 a square

foot, and would not agree to pay that amount, finally settling on $475 for the permit. He identified

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that once work was finished, the inspector came every 4 to 5 weeks saying that someone was calling

on him anonymously. He reported that an inspector once came to his home while he was not there

and told his wife that he must inspect the inside, finding that the whole house had to be rewired.

He said that after nearly a year and a half he asked the inspector to stop coming because it is

against his constitutional rights. He stated that as a handyman, customers have asked to not get a

permit for work done on homes because of the problems.

Wayne Satterfield, Township Supervisor, Logan Township, addressed the Board with regard to the

Planning and Zoning Department and the Hanna City Work Camp. He asserted that in all of his

conversations about the issue of inspectors, one name comes up, and when he has suggested that

he be fired, the response is that he cannot be fired because he is union. He stated that when a

problem is found by an inspector, they say they will have to wait two weeks, not because they are

busy, but to intimidate the homeowner. He suggested that the Board train the department in

customer service. He brought up that due to the problems, many property owners have gone into

preannexation agreements with Hanna City, not to relax rules, but to be treated respectfully. He

mentioned that Logan Township is building a new salt shed, and to get a building permit it had to

pay another $7,800. He inquired as to why farmers get an exemption from some of the rules, but

not other governing bodies. He urged the Board to find a use for the Hanna City Work Camp such

as parks, sport facilities, or training for fire and police departments. He said that as supervisor he

hopes to be kept in the loop for the site.

III. CONSENT AGENDA

C1. The Treasurer report consisting of the Bank and CD's Portfolio for the

month of July 2016 and Revenue & Expenditures for the month of

June 2016.

C2. The Auditor's report of expenditures from Accounts Payable system is

accessible at www.peoriacounty.org/auditor/transparency.

C3. A resolution (items 1 and 4 reconveyances and items 2 and 3 surrenders)

from the Ways and Means Committee recommending that the County

Board Chairman be authorized and directed to execute deed of said

property to the highest bidder, and be authorized to cancel the

appropriate Certificates of Purchase. This resolution shall be effective

ninety days from September 8, 2016 and any transaction between the

parties involved not occurring within this period shall be null and void.

(Poll Vote per Rules of Order, Article V, Section 18C)

C4. A resolution from your Health, Public Safety and Justice Committee

recommending approval to appropriate funding in the amount of

$8,280.00 into the PCAPS Fund in order to remodel the primary cat

adoption room.

C5. A resolution from your Health, Public Safety and Justice Committee

recommending approval of an Intergovernmental Agreement between

Tenth Judicial Circuit Court and Illinois Department of Healthcare and

Family Services for the Access and Visitation Program, and the

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appropriation of additional funds for FY2016 in the amount of $7,110.00.

C6. A resolution from your Health, Public Safety and Justice Committee

recommending approval of an appropriation of $50,600.00 to the Sheriff's

Office budget for overtime expenses related to ILEAS (Illinois Law

Enforcement Alarm System) training.

C7. A resolution from your Health, Public Safety and Justice Committee

recommending approval of the lowest responsible bid of Auto-Clear, LLC,

Hawthorn Woods, IL, in the amount of $44,800.00, for the purchase of

two (2) X-Ray Inspection Systems located at the Peoria County

Courthouse for the Peoria County Sheriff's Office.

C8. A resolution from your Health, Public Safety and Justice Committee

recommending approval of Police and Dispatch Service Contracts for

2016-2017 as follows:

? Dedicated Police Services

Medina Township $183,792.24; Village of Princeville $122,528.40;

Village of Bellevue $122,528.40; City of West Peoria $183,792.24,

Bike Patrol $140.33/hour; Dunlap Unit School District 323

$74,200.86

? Random Police Services

Village of Dunlap $19,528.08; Village of Hanna City $65,093.28;

Village of Norwood $19,585.90

? Dispatch Services

City of Elmwood $5,818.32; Village of Glasford $3,218.88

C9. A resolution from your Land Use and Infrastructure Committee

recommending approval to authorize the 2016 grant application for the

Community Development Assistance Program (CDAP), to assist

homeowners with meeting current building code requirements.

C10. A resolution from your Land Use and Infrastructure Committee

recommending approval of the FY 2017 Peoria-Pekin Urbanized Area

Transportation Study (PPUATS) annual agreement and appropriation in

the amount of $33,176.04.

C11. A resolution from your Land Use and Infrastructure Committee

recommending approval of an additional appropriation in the amount of

$10,000.00 from the County Motor Fuel Tax Fund for pavement patching

on Airport Road.

C12. Approval of a Trustee Bond for Merle Turner, Brimfield Community Fire

Protection District.

C13. Approval of Bond for Michael Menke, Greater Peoria Sanitary and Sewage

Disposal District.

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C14. Approval of Bond for Jeffrey T. Challacombe, Brimfield Sanitary District.

C15. Chairman Appointments.

Harding moved to approve the Consent Agenda and Mayer seconded. Harding asked to pull Item C4.

The Consent Agenda, except for Item C4, was approved by a roll call vote of 15 ayes and 1 nay, with

Harding voting nay.

C4. A resolution recommending approval to appropriate funding in the amount of

$8,280.00 into the PCAPS Fund to remodel the primary cat adoption room.

O’Neill moved to approve Item C4 and Mayer seconded.

Harding emphasized that he spoke with those at PCAPS and they are doing a good job, but with

all of the budget concerns, there not being a balanced budget, and burning through reserves at

an alarming rate, he will be voting no.

Item C4 was approved by a roll call vote of 15 ayes and 1 nay, with Harding voting nay.

IV. ZONING ORDINANCE AND RESOLUTIONS

1. Case W04-16, Michael J. Honegger. A resolution from your Land Use and Infrastructure

Committee recommending approval of a waiver of compliance from Section 20-3.16.3.2.b.1 of the

Unified Development Ordinance. This section requires a minimum of 30 feet of contiguous road

frontage for parcels created via subdivision plat which are less than 10 acres. The petitioner is

proposing to divide an existing 2.629 acre parcel into two (2) tracts of approximately 1.31 acres

each. The proposed 1.3 acre tract on the northern portion will have "0" feet of public road frontage

and requires a waiver. The property is located in Limestone Township.

Dillon moved to approve the ordinance and Elsasser seconded. The ordinance passed by a

unanimous roll call vote of 16 ayes.

2. A resolution from your Land Use and Infrastructure Committee recommending approval to reduce

the speed limit on McCullough Road from an unposted 55 mph to 45 mph for the portion from

Harkers Corner to Cameron Lane.

Dillon moved to approve the resolution and Rosenbohm seconded.

O’Neill thanked Amy McLaren for her work because Roger Alvey, Illini Bluffs Superintendent,

raised the concern over student safety on the road and she helped take care of it.

The resolution passed by a unanimous roll call vote of 16 ayes.

3. A resolution from your Land Use and Infrastructure Committee recommending approval of a Local

Agency Agreement for Federal Participation with the State of Illinois for construction and

construction engineering of Lancaster Road Bridge replacement.

O’Neill moved to approve the resolution and Dillon seconded. The resolution passed by a

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unanimous roll call vote of 16 ayes.

V. EXECUTIVE SESSION - Pending Litigation

Chairman Rand announced he would take Miscellaneous and Announcements before the Board went

into Executive Session. For those items, see below.

Mayer moved to go into executive session to discuss pending litigation and Fennell seconded. The

motion passed by a unanimous roll call vote of 16 ayes.

VI. MISCELLANEOUS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Harding thanked those that spoke about the Planning and Zoning department. He expressed that if

they have brought it up two or three times, that the Board should have the foresight to not repeat it

again. He emphasized that the Board can do better because, while public safety begins in the

Planning and Zoning Department, it has stretched way above state statutes and causes unfulfilled

growth.

Elsasser explained that he does not enjoy having to call people up to come to the meeting, saying that

this may be the time to speak in front of the Board. He said that he was not doing it for the publicity

because he did not call the Journal Star. He believed it was necessary to bring it in front of the Board

and let them hear what he hears when he attends farm bureau meetings, church, and family

gatherings. He expressed that there may be members that don’t believe him, but he wants all to know

that there are other contractors that wanted to come speak but fear retribution. He stressed that he

wants Peoria County to go from a tough place to do business to one of the best. He suggested that the

Planning and Zoning Department should not circumvent the code, but there may be other ways to

get the job done and be safe. He said that in the past there have been times when Board Members

have had to step in to help people through the process and it should not be that way. He discussed

that making the department more user-friendly will help the economy grow and increase the revenue

for the County. He detailed that he has heard, not just from the speakers, but other contractors, that

they will not pull a permit in Peoria County because they don’t want to work with the County and

that should be changed.

Rosenbohm agreed with Harding and Elsasser that three-fourths of the calls he receives are about

zoning. He said that it is a problem and that Board Members should listen and make Peoria County

the best place to do business.

Pearson confirmed that she is in the city, but she has heard the same issues with inspectors being

disrespectful. She believed that it had been solved previously, but the Board needs to make sure that

it does something now to fix it.

Parker announced that the Neighborhood Alliance will be holding an “Elected Official’s Got Talent”

event on Friday, October 28th. She urged all to attend and participate.

Chairman Rand recognized Baietto for his stewardship in restoring faith in Heddington Oaks, Phelan

for holding a special public hearing, Dillon for several matters requiring extra work, and the

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Collaborative Committee, especially Williams and Fennell. He thanked Morris for keeping him from

saying things he may have regretted.

VII. ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business before the Board, the Chairman announced the meeting was

adjourned.