Harrisburg City Council met Oct. 17.
Here is the minutes provided by the Council:
Mayor John McPeek called the October 17, 2019 meeting to order. Mayor John McPeek presided over the meeting with Commissioner Raymond Gunning, Roger Angelly, Rupert Johnson and Ron Morse present and answering roll call.
Pastor Jerry Wells from Dorrisville Social Brethren led the group in prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance.
Commissioner Ron Morse made the motion to approve the consent agenda.
Regular Meeting Minutes – Oct. 03, 2019
TIF Meeting Minutes – Oct. 15, 2019
Brown and Roberts – Job 2019-089 Harrisburg Lake Dam Inspection - $392.00
Relinquish Harrisburg Lake Lot – John Winters – 2nd Addition, Block 2, Lot 9
Petition to Lease Harrisburg Lake Lot – Becky Corso – 2nd Addition, Block 2, Lot 9
Seconded by Commissioner Rupert Johnson. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes.
Motion carried.
Commissioner Ron Morse made the motion to approve Ordinance 1790 for sale of property at 115 W.
Towle Street. Seconded by Commissioner Rupert Johnson. A roll call vote was taken with all present
voting yes. Motion carried.
Commissioner Raymond Gunning made the motion to approve Ordinance 1791 for sale of property at 631 W. Barnett Street. Seconded by Commissioner Roger Angelly. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Commissioner Raymond Gunning made the motion to approve Ordinance 1792 for sale of property at 621 W. Barnett Street. Seconded by Commissioner Rupert Johnson. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Alene Carr from Southeastern Illinois Regional Planning and on behalf of Saline County Industrial Development approached council and stated they are in the process of reapplying for the Enterprise Zone in Saline County. The application must be submitted by December 31, 2019 and the current Enterprise Zone will expire in 2021. She presented an ordinance to establish the Enterprise Zone. This is the ordinance that we have had in the past and used in the original application. There will be some changed to the boundaries. Keith Moran will be tweaking the zone as now is the time to make and changes. Commissioner Raymond Gunning made the motion to approve Ordinance 1793 to establish an Enterprise Zone. Seconded by Commissioner Rupert Johnson. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Alene Carr from Southeastern Illinois Regional Planning presented the Intergovernmental Agreement between the city and all other municipalities in Saline County along with the County. Commissioner Roger Angelly made the motion to enter into an Intergovernmental Agreement for the Enterprise Zone. Seconded by Commissioner Ron Morse. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Alene Carr from Southeastern Illinois Regional Planning discussed the tax abatement agreement within the Enterprise Zone. The tax abatement will be the same as the past. Commissioner Roger Angelly made the motion to approve Resolution 10-1719 Authorizing Tax Abatement within the Enterprise Zone. Seconded by Commissioner Raymond Gunning. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Heather Morse addressed council in regards to Deaconess Illinois EMS/Airvac Life Team. She discussed some issue for emergency medical services. We currently have air and ground EMS in the City of Harrisburg. There is one aircraft at HMS and two ground service providers in Harrisburg. One is Deaconess Illinois EMS and Saline County EMS. Currently our County does not have a 911 committed service. There are no contracts to either service. At points and time because of that, there is no service available for our ground service because they are busy doing inter-facility transfers. This leave the county/city uncovered. The call volume is very high and so they are coming before council tonight to propose to do a contracted service with Deaconess Illinois EMS. They will have committed trucks to ensure the 911 and inter-facilities are handled.
Amy Susott with Deaconess Illinois EMS informed council that this contract does not ask for a subsidy. The contract is asking for a first call arrangement. The 911 and EMS businesses is a lost leader in the financial world of the EMS business. There is no money made off of 911 services. Profits are made in inter-facility transports. There are multiple services competing and those companies are taking the inter-facility runs leaving the 911 uncovered. This community is different because we have two hospitals. Financially our community can support a book of 911 business and the inter-facility business. This will financially support and possibly break-even if there is an exclusive contract in place for 911 and inter-facility. Harrisburg Medical Center stated they did not have ALS high level ground for various reasons. Deaconess Illinois partnered with Harrisburg Medical Center and decided to help some of the community services. A company named Tanscare came into this market and took the inter-facility runs which made the other EMS companies not profitable and then lost 911 coverage. Another company is trying to come in take the inter-facility run which again leaves 911 uncovered. This community is at risk. There has never been 911 contractual coverage. Deaconess Illinois is in current conversations with Harrisburg Medical Center on putting an ambulance base close to the hospital. They have been working with the community on covering 911. It is time to come together to get some backing. The next couple of weeks there will be a meeting with Eldorado and then to work county wide.
This proposal with the backing of Harrisburg Medical Center, Ferrell Hospital, Deaconess Illinois EMS, and Air Evac is jointly proposed in creating a county-wide governance structure for air and medical services. They would also like to create an exclusive first call county wide contract for all ground and air services. Today they are asking for support with a service arrangement. This will provide the best level of care. This will give consistent ambulance coverage for the county. There will always be an ambulance in the county with consistent service standards. How long is it acceptable to wait for a transfer from the hospital? There will be consistent mutual aid agreements for coverage during peak times. There is no financial impact to the community. There will no subsidy; however, they are asking for an exclusivity for ground and air.
Mayor John McPeek asked if this agreement is agreed upon tonight, will Deaconess have a full-time ambulance in Harrisburg. Amy Susott said that is the plan. Commissioner Raymond Gunning said it is important for the citizen of Harrisburg to get 24/7 coverage. Commissioner Roger Angelly asked if they would be the sole ambulance provider for Harrisburg. Heather Morse stated currently there are two ground services and neither of those have a 911 contract. Currently, the calls go into dispatch and then they tone out to whatever service is available. What happens is a lot of those are inter-facility transfers and so they are committed to those, and there is no committed asset in our county to take care of 911 calls. This commitment will make sure an ambulance is here to take care of the 911 calls. There will be an ambulance in Harrisburg 24/7. The goal is to have an ambulance in Harrisburg, Eldorado, sitting in Gallatin County and have two back-ups while utilizing the air medical. Deaconess Illinois EMS is already here and Saline County EMS. Saline County EMS will still be available to do inter-facility transfers. There will need to an agreement with Saline County Dispatch.
Commissioner Raymond Gunning asked Harrisburg Medical Center asked for their opinion on this service. Leslie Ferrell said that Harrisburg Medical Center sees about 12,000 patients a year in the emergency room and about 720 patients are transferred out every year. The problems that arise is an everyday example is that if an ambulance is out on a 911 call and someone comes in with a heart attack and while Transcare is taking someone to Evansville and you are having a heart attack, you will have to sit there for several hours waiting on someone to take you. They are asking for the City’s support to move forward with this agreement. This is needed within our community.
Commissioner Roger Angelly made the motion enter into an agreement with Deaconess Illinois EMS. Seconded by Commissioner Ron Morse. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Jason McKee from ST Network presented a utility recovery program. His company does forensic auditing of utility bills. They review all utility bills such as telephone, gas, electric, wireless and internet bills. They review for any billing errors and there may be no issues in regards to billing errors. He works with many municipalities and school districts. The team of auditors are TRI Utility Cost Reductions out of Manhattan. Their team of auditors does the forensic auditing. ST Network is a non-profit and works with TRI Utility. Their company is here to find any billing errors. They usually find 3% of the annual cost, but have found up to 18 percent in billing errors. The terms of agreement consist of a 50/50 split of any money is found. They have a “Good Faith” incentive and if the City is able to recommend other business/contacts in this area to ST Network, Jason McKee will personally donate his portion on this salary from our business to a non-profit food panty of our choice.
Jason McKee will need one month of all utility bills and a letter of authorization which needs to be on City letterhead. That will give ST Network the authority to begin researching utility bills for the City of Harrisburg for the past six years. Mayor John McPeek asked if his company will come to City Hall and look through the bills. Jason McKee said he will work with the Treasurer’s Office to scan the necessary bills into his platform program which will go to the auditors. He only needs one month worth of each billing provider. The best part of about this is that if nothing is found, it does not cost the City anything. If money is found, that is when there is a 50/50 split. This could be as simple as human billing error. ST Network is the way to find out if there are any errors. This is a six month process. The utility company has up to three months to present ST Network with the requested information. The City is not required to send in all utility billing. He suggest only submitting utility company’s the city would like to audit. Commissioner Ron Morse ask Treasurer David Cox if he was okay with this process. Treasurer David Cox is okay and will get Jason McKee the bills. Commissioner Ron Morse asked Jason McKee to be patient as the Treasurer’s Office is in the middle of the yearly financial audit.
Commissioner Ron Morse made the motion to enter into an agreement with ST Network for a trial period. Seconded by Commissioner Roger Angelly. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Mayor John McPeek stated property acquisition will be discusses in Executive Session and he asked Fire Chief John Gunning be included.
Commissioner Raymond Gunning informed council that Metropolis Fire Department lost one of their full-time Firefighters Chad Parker. The Herrin Fire Chief, a full-time firefighter from Murphysboro and three Harrisburg firefighters, Carrier Mills, Paducah, and Herrin donated their time to cover the Metropolis Fire Station during the funeral service. The Marion Fire Department also took some firefighters to help cover the station as well. Fire Chief John Gunning stated the Fire Chief from Shawneetown, some his guys and the Carrier Mills firefighters helped cover our fire station. This is something for which our community should be proud.
Commissioner Roger Angelly made the motion that be is resolved that the previous deferred retirement date of Larry Greer recited in the June 26, 2019 special meeting of the city council be and hereby is changed to make Larry Greer’s retirement as Superintendent of the Water, Sewer and Flood Control Department effective Dec. 02, 2019 at 3:00 p.m. and further that at Dec. 02, 2019 at 3 p.m. Jason Haney is appointed the Superintendent for Water, Sewer and Flood Control and shall be the Responsible Operator in Charge of the water effective at that time. Seconded by Commissioner Raymond Gunning. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Commissioner Roger Angelly gave an update on the sewer plant operation. He said the City of Harrisburg has entered into an agreement with Mid-West Environmental Service to have a short-term operator to get back on track until we can get an operator. Commissioner Raymond Gunning stated he went to the sewer plant and said it looks good. Commissioner Roger Angelly said his employees have worked hard to get things straightened up at the sewer plant.
Mayor John McPeek reminded the citizens that Trick-or-Treat is Oct. 31, 2019 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Track-or-Treat is the same night from 5 p.m. To 7:00 p.m.
James Porter, President of Deaconess, thanked council for the vote for the 911 first call. He stated the way many cities provide their 911 service is by providing an exclusive for the inter-facility transfers to a particular provider and then commits to the 911 service in exchange for the exclusive on the interfacility transfers. You lose money on the 911 business, but you do get paid by insurance for the interfacility transfers which makes enough money on the inter-facility transfers to offset the losses from the 911 service. We need to provide the 911 first call, but the way it is financed is through a city ordinance. It states that within the City of Harrisburg an ambulance service is going be provided with an exclusive so they can do all the inter-facility transfers. That revenue will off-set the 911 service. The vote for the 911 is good, but what they actually need to make it financially viable is a city ordinance which gives them an exclusive on all the inter-facility transfers. Mayor John McPeek will get with Attorney Kolby Smithpeters and get an ordinance prepared for the Nov. 07, 2019 council meeting.
Citizen Judy Sparh thanked city council for addressing the previous issue of the animal running lose in their neighborhood. She believes some of the laws need to be changed in Harrisburg. The laws need to become stricter and the fines should be higher. She would like to see a dog park in the City of Harrisburg. This would allow the dogs to get out and roam a little. She thinks fine should be higher and after their fourth ticket perhaps the animal should be removed from that owner. Citizen Margaret Kirn stated there are fighting rings in our area. She said this effects the humans and animals. She has video footage of the dog training to kill cats. Mayor John McPeek will review the ordinance with Commissioner Raymond Gunning and Attorney Kolby Smithpeters.
Citizen Andrew Allen said he does not have driveway parking only have road parking. He stated one of the employees for Bryant Construction was throwing rock dust and Mr. Allen asked to be given time to move the vehicles. The employee told him to hurry up that he had a job to do. Mr. Allen moved the vehicles, but would like to see some respect from Bryant Construction workers. He asked for the Bryant Constructions employees to knock on doors before work begins in order to move vehicles. The driveways have been blocked causing citizens to be late for work. Mayor John McPeek asked Commissioner Roger Angelly and Superintendent Larry Greer to talk with Bryant Construction regarding this issue.
Citizen Rosie Naumvoski from Thrive Dispensary addressed council about the public discussion regarding adult sale of cannabis within the city limits of Harrisburg. There was great dialog and the response was split. The Mayor and Council was invited to visit the dispensary to see the set up. She is requesting the discussion continue and a decision be made at the next city council meeting. She request this topic be added to the agenda. As a business owner, she needs to know if she can proceed with applying for the adult use license with the City of Harrisburg. She needs to know if she is allowed to make this investment in the business located in Harrisburg. She must remodel, hire and train staff. She must submit all necessary documents to the State of Illinois. The deadline is Jan. 01, 2020. The council can make the decision based on morals or make the decision based on business and economic improvement which is needed in this community. There are jobs forthcoming and out-of-state residents coming into this region which will support other businesses in Harrisburg. Harrisburg is only one of fiftyfive communities that has this opportunity right now. The states came out with the application for another seventy-five licenses in the State of Illinois. Harrisburg is included as an impacted area related to criminalization of cannabis. Several applicants will come to Harrisburg and want to have the opportunity to participate in the legal cannabis business. This is not going away. If you say no to Thrive, you are saying yes to the black market. People can buy safe tested product from Thrive or they can play Russian roulette with the dealers. People are going to buy it. Legally individuals can go to Williamson County on Jan. 01, 2010 and make a purchase and drive back to Harrisburg and use it. It is your decision. She asked council to let her know yes or no. If it’s no, she gets it. Her financial obligations and energy needs to focus elsewhere. She hopes council votes yes. Mayor John McPeek said he is going to try and have Public Hearing before the next council meeting which will allow the public to come and voice their pros and cons. He will let her know the date. He said a vote will be taken at the next meeting.
Citizen Danny Gibbs stated said we are the equity city and the Southern Illinoisan said the west side of our community was drug invested. They said with recreational marijuana the state is willing, if the City of Harrisburg passes it, to give the city 20% of the sales to help fight drug addiction on the west side of the city. Does anyone know how much money that will create? Mayor John McPeek said no because no one is sure how much money will be made. Danny Gibbs said the City of Harrisburg has been demoralized because of everything that happens here. He thinks we have a more prominent question about drug abuse going on at the west end of the city. The State of Illinois seems to know the City of Harrisburg has a problem.
Mayor John McPeek made the motion to adjourn and go into Executive Session with Fire Chief John Gunning staying in Executive Session. Seconded by Commissioner Ron Morse. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Adjourn: 6:50 p.m.
Reconvene: 7:05 p.m.
Mayor John McPeek made the motion to return to open session. Seconded by Commissioner Raymond Gunning. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Mayor John McPeek presided over the meeting with Commissioners Raymond Gunning, Roger Angelly, Rupert Johnson and Ron Morse present and answering roll call.
Mayor John McPeek made the motion to proceed with the process of accepting a deed in lieu of foreclosure from the property located at Logan Street and Hobson Street. Seconded by Commissioner Rupert Johnson. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Commissioner Ron Morse made the motion to adjourn. Seconded by Commissioner Roger Angelly. A roll call vote was taken with all present voting yes. Motion carried.
Adjourn: 7:10 p.m.
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