Village of Swansea Board of Trustees Met July 19.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
Attendees: Board President Michael Leopold, Village Administrator Ben Schloesser, Village Clerk Tyler Thompson, Treasurer John Walter, Trustee Marilyn Neumeyer, Trustee Richard “Rocky” McDonald, Trustee Cary Lewis, Trustee Matt Lanter, Trustee Jeff Parker, Police Department Chief Steve Johnson, Fire Department Chief Chris Tell, and Director of Public Works Rick Tucker
Absent: Trustee Brian McGuire and Building and Zoning Director Dallas Alley
I) Call to Order
II) Pledge Allegiance to The Flag
III) Roll Call
IV) Approval of Minutes
1. Board Minutes – July 6, 2021
2. Committee Minutes – July 6, 2021
3. Special Meeting Minutes Board- July 12, 2021
Motion to Accept: Made by Trustee Lanter, seconded by Trustee Parker
Trustee Votes: All ayes
V) Acceptance of Minutes
1. Park Board Minutes- July 10, 2021
Motion to Accept: Made by Trustee Lanter, seconded by Trustee Neumeyer
Trustee Votes: All ayes
VI) Mayor’s Announcements/Correspondence
Mayor Leopold received a letter that answered some questions he had involving the size of one of the CPA’s workdays. He also received an email confirming an application for grants for bullet proof vests.
VII) Village Attorney/Village Administrator-Announcements/Comments
A. Department Reports
a. Public Works/Sewer
Nothing further than written report.
b. Police Department Stats
Chief Johnson stated that it is an honor that he is president of the Southern Illinois Area Police Chiefs Association. Another Police Officer has resigned and the department will be meeting with one of the people on the hiring list next week. There has been an increase in incidents involving mental health concerns, with 5 even happing in the same day. There has been a significant increase in the information that needs to be reported to the state due to the new policing bill. The CPAs have had trouble keeping up are starting to fall behind. Trustee McDonald suggested having a part time CPA that would just deal with the reporting, and Chief Johnson said that would help. The Board President asked him to document how much they are falling behind for 3 months to determine if hiring a part time CPA would fix it or if a full time CPA would be needed. c. Fire Department Monthly Stats-TBD
Fire Chief Tell gave a reminder that the department needs more air packs before the end of October. The Board President spoke to Jay Hoffman about a bill involving grant money for air packs. The Board President said we still have time as the current packs go out of service in May 2022, but they have to be ordered several months in advance. He asked the Fire Chief to determine how long is left until the Village has to act. There was a residential fire and the fire department was low on manpower but they dealt with the fire quickly. It was caused by a propane heater being used to deal with bed bugs which caught the mattress on fire. The Fire Department Globingo is on July 30th at 7:30pm at Belle Vegas Bingo. B.Village Administrator
The Village Administrator has become the Secretary-Treasurer of the regional city managers group. Around a month and a half ago a village vehicle got into a slight accident with a school bus in which there was not much damage. Two weeks ago, the bus driver made a claim against the Village’s insurance and a week ago a student on the school bus also made a claim. The Village Administrator wanted to make the board aware that there could be changes in premiums in the future.
VIII) Park Board Chairman Report
On August 13th the treasure hunt will be held at Schranz Park at the TWM building and throughout the park. Adult beverages will be there and maybe a food truck. The Chairmen thanked the board for applying for grant money to fix some things at Swansea Kingdom instead of replacing it. The Park Board is considering getting a professional to become a planner. A person who retired from a similar position has come to the Board President’s attention, and he would like to sit down and meet with her along with the Village Administrator and the Park Board. The Board President will contact her to set up a meeting.
IX) Treasurer’s Report
Motion: Made by Trustee Lanter, seconded by Trustee Neumeyer
Trustee Votes: All ayes
X) Public Comment
A member of the Moose Lodge was present and he expressed his displeasure at the moving of the Fire Department’s Globingo from the Lodge. Fire Chief Tell told him that he would get some answers as to why it was moved. XI) Report of Committees
A) Personnel Committee - Comments
1. Resignation Of Civilian Police Aide Sarah Alvarez.
Motion to Accept and Place on File: Made by Trustee Lanter, seconded by Trustee Parker Trustee Votes: All ayes
2. Position Reclassification – Full-Time Civilian Police Aide- Lesnia Gonzalez
Motion to Hire: Made by Trustee Lanter, seconded by Trustee Parker
Trustee Votes: All ayes
3. Travel Requests – IML Conference-TBD
Motion to Accept the Travel Request of the Village Administrator, Building and Zoning Director, and HR Manager: Made by Trustee Neumeyer, seconded by Trustee Lanter
Trustee Votes: All Ayes
The Board wanted to wait until the next meeting to vote on approving paying all expenses for up to 3 trustees to travel to the conference.
B) Finance Committee Report – Comments
1. General Fund Analysis
2. Approval of Bills
Motion to Approve: Made by Trustee Lanter, seconded by Trustee Neumeyer
Trustee Votes: All ayes
C) Judiciary Committee – Nothing Requested
D) Community & Economic Development – Nothing Requested
E) Public Safety Committee – Comments
1. Training Request
Motion to Approve: Made by Trustee Parker, seconded by Trustee Lanter
Trustee Votes: All ayes
F) Public Works Committee – Nothing Requested
G) Cultural Committee – Nothing Requested
H) Swansea Report Committee –Comments
The deadline is August 23rd for articles for the September issue.
XII) Old Business
No Old Business
XIII) New Business
No New Business
XIV) Announcements
No Announcements
XV) Adjournment
Motion to Adjourn: Made by Trustee Neumeyer, seconded by Trustee Parker
Trustee Votes: All ayes
https://www.swanseail.org/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/1525
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