Peoria Standard

Village of Hopewell Board met April 18.

Here is the minutes provided by the Board:

The meeting was opened at 7:00 p.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance. In the absence of board president Pete Christensen, a motion was made by Steve Shaffer, seconded by Chris Minch, and passed to have Carl Ham chair the meeting.

Attendees:

Treasurer Pam HIll, Clerk Sue Vik, Trustees: Carl Ham, Pete Chirchirillo, Steve Shaffer, Jim Casey, Chris Minch, Tanya Colby

Trustee elect: Trace Stoller, Rick Brown(arriving at 7:45 p.m.)

Village Employee: Don Chouinard

Village Resident: Mike Hill

Farnsworth Group Engineer: Josh Harken

Absent: President Pete Christensen

Audience Participation:

Engineer Josh Harken from the Farnsworth Group addressed the board with a proposal for summer road maintenance. He provide a handout detailing the results of a road condition survey and a cost estimate for work which could be done using all of the $32,000 in Motor Fuel Tax Account money the village will have available by August, plus some additional spray patching work which could be paid for from the General Fund as in past years.

After discussion, the board agreed to table the decision on road work for one month. A meeting will be held to define the specific areas which will be treated with spray patch and to prioritize the areas to be treated with chip and seal to stay within budget.

The board also informed Josh that they plan to proceed with the water system improvement project to add a second storage tank and a standby generator. A plan to pay for the project has been created, but details on bank financing are not yet finalized.

Don Chouinard attended the meeting to apply for a building permit for an alteration to his home at 91 Hopewell Drive. Chris Minch made a motion to approve the permit. Steve Shaffer seconded. Permit #2017-03 was approved and the $75 fee collected.

Minutes:

Minutes from the March 21, 2017 regular board meeting were distributed to board members before the April meeting. Pete Chirchirillo made a motion, seconded by Jim Casey, to approve the minutes as written. Minutes approved.

Correspondence:

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Financial Report:

Treasurer Pam Hill gave a summary report on the balances of the General Fund, Water Company Account and the Motor Fuel Tax Account as of March 31, 2017. Steve Shaffer made motion to approve the financial report. Jim Casey seconded. Financial report approved.

Bills:

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Water Company:

The water meter replacement program for 2017 will be started this month. Clerk Sue Vik will send notices April 19 to the first group of residents who will have their meters replaced this year. Jim Casey will coordinate the program.

Jim Casey stated that he plans to pursue a financing proposal for water system improvements through Illinois National Bank. The village is waiting on a proposal from Associated Bank as well. Jim stated that it is a matter of due diligence to determine the best financing for the project from multiple sources.

Paul Merdian was unable to attend the meeting so there was no summary report of overdue water company accounts.

Carl Ham reported that the new water meters have been installed at the village hall. The village can monitor how much water is pumped versus how much is billed and how much is waste from the water softener to help determine if water is being lost due to leaks in the system.

Zoning and Ordinances:

Clerk Sue Vik reported that there are no expiring building permits this month.

Steve Shaffer read a letter from Attorney Mike Mahoney regarding how the village can proceed with adopting the Marshall County Animal Control Ordinance. Counselor Mahoney stated in his letter that the village would not have to repeal its existing Dog Ordinance, but would have to pass another ordinance to adopt the County’s Animal Control Ordinance. He recommended that the village talk to the Marshall County vet, Al McCully. Carl Ham noted that this advice is different from what Marshall County State’s Attorney Paul Bauer had provided several months ago. Steve Shaffer will follow up.

Roads:

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Old Business:

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New Business:

Treasurer Pam Hill stated that with outgoing board president Pete Christensen’s retirement, the village’s bank accounts at Associated Bank need to have a new person approved to sign checks. Pam stated that she is not comfortable signing her own paycheck, and Pete Christensen had always signed it in the past. A motion was made by Pete Chirchirillo and seconded by Chris Minch to add Jim Casey’s name to the account as an official signor. The motion was unanimously approved. Jim stated that he will stop in at the bank to fill out any required paperwork. Clerk Sue Vik will write a letter to the bank and provide a copy of the meeting minutes to the bank as an official notification.

Pam also inquired about the possibility of raising chickens in the village. She stated that she is interested in having access to fresh eggs only and showed a picture of a totally contained chicken coop. The board stated that raising poultry in the village is prohibited by ordinance.

Resident Mike Hill inquired about the possibility of raising bees. The board has addressed this before and stated that bee keeping is allowed provided that the homeowner takes reasonable care and consideration of the residents of neighboring properties and limit the scope to one or two hives for personal use.

Adjournment:

Pete Chirchirillo made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:25 p.m. Steve Shaffer seconded. The meeting was adjourned.

http://villageofhopewell.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Hopewell-Board-Meeting-Minutes-04_18_2017.pdf