Peoria Standard

Peoria County Board - Executive Committee met June 3.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

Attendance

Present:

Members: Member Dillon, Member Williams, Member Blair, Member Daley, Member Duncan, Member Groves Allison, Member Phelan, Member Reneau, Member Rieker, Member Rosenbohm, Member Ruhland, Member Salzer, Member Windish

Staff & Guests:

Scott Sorrel, Jennie Cordis Boswell, Heather McCord, Julie Kusturin, Andre Allen, Nicole Bjerke, Branden Martin, Megan Bentley

Absent:

Members: Member Coates and Member Kelch

1. CALL TO ORDER

1.1 Call to Order

The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Member Dillon at 4:31 p.m.

A motion to admit Member Reneau to the meeting via teleconference was made by Member Rosenbohm and was seconded by Member Salzer.

Motion Carried. (11-0)

Abstained: Member Reneau

Absent: Member Coates, Member Kelch

2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

2.1 April 22, 2025

A motion to approve the Executive Committee meeting minutes from April 22, 2025 was made by Member Blair and was seconded by Member Daley.

Motion Carried. (12-0)

Absent: Member Coates, Member Kelch

Teleconference: Member Reneau

3. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS / REPORTS / OTHER MINUTES / UPDATES Chairperson Dillon moved to receive and file the informational items. Member Rieker requested that some time be spent on Item 3.5 which was a requested report.

3.1 Springdale Cemetery Minutes

3.2 American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Summary

3.3 Long-Term Care Services Fund Report

3.4 Peoria County Enterprise Zone Report

3.5 Government Assistance Program Loans as of March 31, 2025.

Government Assistance Program Loans as of March 31, 2025

Ms. McCord stated that this report will probably be prepared twice a year. She advised there is currently one loan out and one pending; the documentation has not yet been finalized for Harvest Supermarket. She stated we have a $3 million dollar loan out to Natural Fiber Welding (NFW) structured as a line of credit. They have a little over a million dollars out and have requested over half a million dollars more that will be distributed to them shortly. She further stated that all loan payments have been made on time and are currently interest only payments.

Chairperson Dillon called for questions from the committee. He asked if everyone was okay with the twice a year reporting.

Member Rieker stated his agreement with every 6 months reporting. He further stated that if something changes in the interim, he requested it be added. He asked if the request from NFW is for $500,000.00.

Ms. McCord confirmed the amount of the request.

4. RESOLUTIONS

4.1 Peoria County Administrator's Annual Evaluation and Employment Agreement

A motion to approve the resolution was made by Member Duncan and was seconded by Member Blair.

Chairperson Dillon advised this is the bonus that was previously discussed. He stated Ms. Cordis Boswell advised this item be brought forward for a vote.

Chairperson Dillon called for questions from the committee.

Member Blair commented that the evaluation subcommittee met with Administrator Sorrel and discussed his evaluation.

Chairperson Dillon expressed his gratitude for the team.

Motion Carried. (13-0)

Teleconference: Member Reneau

Absent: Member Coates and Member Kelch

4.2 Resolution from the Executive Committee recommending an appropriation and investment of $50,000 to the Heart of Illinois Regional Port District Chairperson Dillon advised this will be an informational item only for this meeting. He stated it will be brought forward to the committee again in a month or two.

Mr. Sorrel advised the Heart of Illinois Regional Port District was established in 2003 by an act of the general assembly. At that time, Peoria County was one of the primary drivers that asked for and was lobbying for the creation of the port district through that legislation. Peoria County is one of six counties the district covers. The original goal was to be an economic driver. He stated due to a variety of issues, not a whole lot of activity was able to occur other than grain activity on barges up and down the river. Mr. Sorrel explained during 2020, it went dormant but in July 2023, they attended a meeting to request funding support. It should be noted that up until 2008-2009, the county did provide an annual investment in the port district between its creation and the great recession. He advised this current request is a one-time investment of $50,000.00 and it should be acknowledged that performance parameters are needed prior to cutting a check to ensure the county is making a sound investment. He noted the port district is slowly moving in the right direction. If and when this is approved, this would be an amendment from the reserves of the general fund into the general county departmental budget once the performance metrics are defined. If the metrics are met, this would be brought back to the Board as part of the fiscal year 2026 budget for a second round of investment.

Chairperson Dillon thanked Member Groves Allison and Administrator Sorrel and stated there have been numerous meetings and it was made clear this is not perpetual funding, that it would be one year, then possibly multiple years to get them up and running. He requested that if the Board members have questions to please ask them.

Member Rieker stated his appreciation for moving this item out and allowing for more information and better explanation. He further stated if the port district has some materials or a brief summary they would like to share, they could do that in advance.

Chairperson Dillon stated we are currently getting quite a bit of information, if more information is desired.

Member Rieker asked that they be more specific and stated he would like a one-page executive summary explaining what they plan to do with the funds, and a description of their reporting process to keep the county updated on their progress.

Member Groves Allison advised in terms of the goal, they lay the groundwork for the lobbying to be done. The intent is to get federal funds flowing regarding economic development on the river and they do receive funds from all the other counties that are within the port district.

Chairperson Dillon added they are intertwined with the EDC here. By statute, they are allowed to have public private partnership to build a port. He also stated they would request the executive summary and get it back to the Board.

5. DISCUSSION

5.1 Grocery Sales Tax

Chairperson Dillon advised he thought it was worth the discussion as other municipalities have had this discussion or approved it. He felt it was worth hearing the information and understanding how much money is being captured. He stated this is a policy decision. He expects that sooner or later there will be a Becks/Kickapoo agreement soon which has taxable incomes. He advised that is not looking for a decision on this today but he wanted the Board members to be able to make an informed decision should it be pursued.

Ms. McCord advised at Chairman Dillon's request, Finance pulled information from the Illinois Department of Revenue. It is confidential information and Chairman Dillon has to sign off on the select few individuals that have access. Sales tax is all lumped together with no line item broken out for grocery sales tax. Research was done online with a very thorough analysis and we extrapolated out the data. Ms. McCord walked the committee through the breakdown provided in the agenda briefing. She advised in the budget there is an estimated $21,000.00 the county is receiving. Should the county decide not to implement, that would be revenue we would not receive going forward.

Mr. Sorrel stated we are looking for policy direction from the committee today and we do not have a recommendation as to what we should do. He advised if the committee wants to enact the sales tax it will be exactly 1.0%, it cannot be more than that, it cannot be a fraction of that. He stated that we are receiving that revenue today. A policy decision to move forward allows us to continue to receive that tax. A policy decision not to enact this, means we will no longer receive that revenue stream.

Chairperson Dillon stated he not looking for 100% policy direction today.

Ms. McCord advised within the six counties that comprise the Peoria metropolitan area, there have been seven municipalities that have already voted to implement: Chillicothe, Deer Creek, East Peoria, El Paso, Pekin, Tremont, and the City of Peoria. She explained the City of Peoria is not on the list even though they voted to approve it. There have been 187 municipalities and 67 counties within Illinois that have approved the 1% grocery sales tax.

Chairperson Dillon called for questions.

Member Phelan asked if it would be easy to show the difference in property tax collected with the change in the equalized assessed value versus the loss in revenue.

Mr. Sorrel confirmed this could be done.

Chairperson Dillon asked the committee if there was any other additional data the committee would like to see presented and gave praise to the Finance Department for their work on this data.

5.2 Standing Committees

The following Standing Committee meetings were summarized by their respective Chairperson as follows:

Infrastructure

The following resolutions were recommended to the County Board for approval.

• Preliminary Engineering for Willow Knolls Road Bridge Rehabilitation

• Reimbursement Agreement for Willow Knolls Road Preliminary Engineering Services with Union Pacific Railroad Company

• Glasford Road Resurfacing Bid Letting

• Courthouse Exterior Repairs and Cleaning Contract Change Order - Alternate #01

Ways and Means

The following resolutions were recommended to the County Board for approval.

• Monthly Delinquent Taxes

Land Use

The following were recommended to the County Board for approval.

Zoning Board of Appeals

• Zoning Case #ZBA-2025-0001, Petition of Gary Duley

Subdivision Waivers

• Waiver Case #WAV-2025-0001, Petition of Jim Dawson

• Waiver Case #WAV-2025-0002, Petition of Jim Dawson

County Operations

There were no resolutions recommended to the County Board for approval. County Health

There were no resolutions recommended to the County Board for approval. Public Safety and Justice

The following resolutions were recommended to the County Board for approval.

• Circuit Clerk scanning project for remodel.

• Peoria County Sheriff's Office FY 25 ILETSB NIBIN Grant Program

Finance, Audit and Legislative and Executive

The following resolutions were recommended to the County Board for approval.

• General Fund Transfer Policy Inactivation

• Ordinance to Amend Peoria County's Purchasing Ordinance, Chapter 6.5- 34-36, to require a Community Workforce Agreement in public works project awards exceeding limit set by State Statute 55 ILCS 5/5 1022, currently $30,000.00.

6. PUBLIC COMMENT

6.1 Public Comment

Chairperson Dillon called for public comments. There were none.

7. MISCELLANEOUS

7.1 Miscellaneous

Chairperson Dillon called for miscellaneous comments.

Member Rieker asked if the county is still providing funds to the Minority Business Development Center and when the Board would receive the annual update on their progress.

Committed to Serving All Page 6

Executive Committee - 06-03-2025

Mr. Sorrel confirmed the county is still providing those funds and advised he had requested DEI Officer Allen to schedule an update for the June committee meeting before it was decided to shorten the June committee meeting. He stated they are currently scheduled for the July committee meeting and they will be present.

Chairperson Dillon stated the Visitors and Convention Bureau will also be here at some point to provide a yearly update for request for funding. He also welcomed two new interns from the States's Attorney's Office and asked them to introduce themselves.

8. ADJOURNMENT

8.1 Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned by Chairperson Member Dillon at 5:17 pm.

https://www.peoriacounty.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_06032025-1763