City of Fairfield City Council met Sept. 24.
Here is the minutes provided by the council:
Meeting called to order by Mayor Brent Maguire at 6:00 P.M.
Prayer led by David Mills followed by the pledge of allegiance to the flag.
City Clerk Tina Hutchcraft called the roll:
Mayor: Brent Maguire
City Clerk: Tina Hutchcraft
City Treasurer: Julie Duncan
City Attorney: Darrin Rice
Aldermen: Ralph Barbre; Brett Coale; Jim Griffith; Tyler Lampley; Eugene McGill; Jerry Lisenbee; Gary Moore
Absent: Terry Stahl
Also Present: David Mills, Wayne County Press; Ken Otey, WFIW Radio; Andrew Miller, Fire Chief; Keith Colclasure, Police Chief; Silas Eckleberry, Assistant Police Chief; Dian Downs; DiElle Rogers; Tyler Lashbrook, Electric Department; Travis Williams, Airport; Robert Kamp, Street & Bridge; D.E. Young, Garage; and other citizens from the community.
The minutes of the meeting of September 10, 2019, agendas and bills of September 24, 2019 were sent out to those entitled to receive them. Mayor Maguire asked for approval of the minutes for the September 10, 2019 meeting. Motion by Alderman McGill, seconded by Alderman Lisenbee to approve the minutes of the meeting of September 10, 2019.
Vote yes: Coale; Griffith; Lampley; Lisenbee; McGill; Moore; Barbre
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried.
Mayor Maguire asked for approval to pay the bills for the September 24, 2019 meeting. A motion was made by Alderman Barbre, seconded by Alderman Coale to approve the bills for payment.
Vote yes: Griffith; Lampley; Lisenbee; McGill; Moore; Barbre; Coale
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried.
Proclamation for Adult Education and Family Literacy Week – Mayor Maguire read a proclamation declaring September 22nd through September 28th as Adult Education and Family Literacy Week.
Authorization to Accept Bids for the Sale of the Electric Department Digger Truck – Tyler Lashbrook told the Council that he has a 1985 Chevrolet Altec Tandem Digger Truck in his department that he would like to sell. The last time it was inspected it was discovered that the inner cylinder had gone bad and it would cost approximately $30,000 to repair it. If Council approves offering it for sale he would like to put a minimum bid of $5,000 on it. A motion was made by Alderman Lampley, seconded by Alderman McGill to seek bids for the sale of the 1985 Chevrolet Altec Tandem Digger Truck. A minimum bid of $5,000 is required.
Vote yes: Lampley; Lisenbee; McGill; Moore; Barbre; Coale; Griffith
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried.
Ordinance Amending Chapter 51 of the City Ordinances Regarding Garbage Collections and Disposal - This new ordinance would amend the current ordinance concerning garbage collections. It adds a section concerning brush pickup for city residents. It includes a $5.00 per household per month for brush pickup fee and a $.50 per household per month administration fee. This will be a flat fee. The brush will be picked up by wards each week. At this time the monthly fees for each household will be $15.05 for garbage and brush pickup. When we negotiate a new contract for garbage collections, that amount will be adjusted accordingly. Alderman Moore asked that language be added to the ordinance to state that the brush will only be picked up at curbside. Attorney Rice will make these changes. A motion was made by Alderman Coale, seconded by Alderman Lampley to approve the ordinance to add a brush pickup fee and a service administration fee including the changes as suggested by Alderman Moore. This new fee will begin October 1st.
Vote yes: Moore; Barbre; Coale; Griffith; Lampley; Lisenbee; McGill
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried and Ordinance No. 19-0924-185 approved and duly adopted.
Approval of Hiring an Employee at Street & Bridge – The topic of brush pickup has been discussed by Council for a while now as to whether or not we should continue this service. In previous discussions it was the consensus of the Council to continue the service. The discussions not only included adding a fee for the service but to also purchase a new truck and add another employee to that department. Although hiring of employees usually is not brought before the Council, Mayor Maguire felt since this topic has been back and forth so much he wanted clear direction from the Council about adding a new employee. If we do hire add another employee, that employee will not only be doing brush pickup but also other duties as assigned. Alderman Barbre asked what authority the Council has to hire employees. Attorney Rice said it is not improper for the Council to show their support in hiring an employee. A motion was made by Alderman Griffith, seconded by Alderman Lisenbee to begin the hiring process to add a new employee at the Street and Bridge Department.
Vote yes: Lisenbee; McGill; Moore; Barbre; Coale; Griffith; Lampley
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried.
Approval of Purchasing a Dump Truck for Street & Bridge – Robert Kamp told the Council that he would like permission to purchase a new 550 Ford four-wheel drive truck. He plans to put the snow plow on it and use it for brush pickup. The cost of the truck is $60,000 and Mayor Maguire would like to do a lease/purchase. The brush truck they are currently using has 200,000 miles on it and can only handle small loads because the bed of the truck has a lot of rust problems. He plans to use it as long as it will last and use it as a backup truck. Alderman Moore stated he heard the truck was not road safe but both Kamp and D.E. Young said that it could still be used as a backup truck. When it is no longer safe it will be taken out of the fleet. Mayor Maguire stated that the Council could decide to put it up for sale at a later date if they choose to. A motion was made by Alderman Griffith, seconded by Alderman Barbre to approve the purchase of a new dump truck for Street & Bridge.
Vote yes: McGill; Moore; Barbre; Coale; Griffith; Lampley; Lisenbee
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried. Mayor Maguire said this will be a four year lease with payments being a little over $16,000 per year. This price includes the cost of the truck along with tax, title, license and interest.
Ordinance to Approve New License Classifications – At the last meeting the Council discussed adding some new liquor classifications to our liquor ordinance. Attorney Rice explained the new classifications to the Council. A motion was made by Alderman Coale, seconded by Alderman Moore to approve the ordinance amending and revising the Fairfield Code of Ordinances Regulating Alcoholic Liquor.
Vote yes: Barbre; Coale; Griffith; Lampley; Lisenbee; McGill; Moore
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried and Ordinance No. 19-0924-186 approved and duly adopted.
Previously the Council had also discussed the possibility of removing the language limiting the number of licenses on retail businesses. Currently the ordinance states only two licenses are available to retail businesses. There were some concerns about removing the limit and how it could severely impact the current businesses that hold those licenses. Alderman Moore and Alderman Coale both felt that we should open it up to allow more retail licenses and stated that competition is good for the consumer and limiting the number of available licenses is not fair to others. They also would like to allow Sunday sales for the liquor stores. They also said maybe we could redefine the language concerning retail stores, package stores, and supermarkets. Attorney Rice will draft another ordinance to address these two issues and it will be brought back to Council for their consideration.
Liability Waiver for Volunteers Wishing to do Work on Atkinson Forest – The City is required to carry liability insurance on Atkinson Forest as part of the agreement with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. In the past few years we have had individuals and groups that have volunteered and done work there. The Illinois Municipal League Risk Management Association has advised for us to have a liability waiver signed by individuals before any work is done. Attorney Rice has prepared the waiver and individuals are asked to contact the Mayor’s office and sign a waiver to be on file before working in the forest. Our agreement gives us the ability to allow certain groups that have expressed an interest in making improvements to the forest the right to do so. At this time we still don’t know what, if any, monetary support the City can give to this project but we can certainly allow voluntary work to be done. Mayor Maguire has spoken with the park board and he stated that at the next meeting the Council should have a more in depth discussion concerning Atkinson Forest.
Discussion Concerning Amendment to the Open Burning Ordinance – When we considered eliminating brush pickup Mayor Maguire spoke with Fire Chief Andrew Miller about the possibility of removing the restrictions on open burning. Chief Miller addressed the Council and stated there weren’t any restrictions that would prevent us from allowing year-round burning. This could also help reduce the amount of yard waste put out by residents for pickup. There wasn’t any support from the Council to make a change at this time.
Award Bid for the New Roof System for City Hall – We received five bids for the roof project at City Hall. The lowest bidder was TOP Roofing from Wheaton, Illinois in the amount of $68,000. The engineer stated the bid included a bid bond and a certificate of insurance. He did not see any reason that this company wouldn’t be considered a responsible bidder. A motion was made by Alderman Lisenbee, seconded by Alderman Barbre to award the bid for the new roof system for City Hall to TOP Roofing in the amount of $68,000. This project will be paid for out of TIF.
Vote yes: Coale; Griffith; Lampley; Lisenbee; McGill; Moore; Barbre
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried.
Alderman Barbre left the meeting at 7:00 p.m. to go to work.
Discussion Concerning New Cannabis Laws – Mayor Maguire attended the IML Conference last week and he received more information concerning the new law that will go in to effect January 1, 2020 regarding cannabis. We will need to make a decision as to whether or not we want to allow cannabis related businesses. If we do, we will need to address issues such as zoning and sales tax. We would also be able to place certain restrictions on these establishments such as hours of operations and locations they would be allowed to be in. Municipalities can regulate recreational cannabis dispensaries but we cannot regulate the medical marijuana aspect at all. We will be having a public hearing to solicit input from the public concerning this issue in the near future.
Resolution No. 19-0924-322/Street Closing Request for the Veteran’s Parade – The Council needs to approve this resolution for the street closing for the Veteran’s Parade. The parade is scheduled for Saturday, November 9th. Alderman Coale made a motion, seconded by Alderman McGill to adopt Resolution No. 19-0924-322 approving the street closing for the Veteran’s Parade.
Vote yes: Griffith; Lampley; Lisenbee; McGill; Moore; Coale
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl; Barbre
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried and Resolution No. 19-0924-322 approved and duly adopted.
Street Closing Request for NYOC – Not Your Ordinary Church has requested permission to close SE 2nd Street from Main to Delaware on Friday, October 18th from 3-10 p.m. They plan to have a chili dinner fundraiser and a NYOC Praise Team concert. A motion was made by Alderman McGill, seconded by Alderman Lampley to approve the street closing request for NYOC.
Vote yes: Lampley; Lisenbee; McGill; Moore; Coale; Griffith
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl; Barbre
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried.
NYOC pastor, Jason Mason, addressed the Council concerning the discussions about liquor and cannabis. He expressed his concerns over these issues. He stated just because these things are legal, it doesn’t make it right. He has seen alcohol and drug use destroy individual’s lives, families, and communities. Losing revenue shouldn’t be a reason for the Council to approve liquor licenses or cannabis dispensaries. He will continue to try and help those individuals that have addictions.
Miscellaneous – Mayor Maguire announced that the Fairfield Police Department will begin scheduling appointments for golf cart and side-by-side vehicle inspections on Wednesday, September 25th. Before these vehicles can be registered and licensed, they are required to have brakes, a steering apparatus, tires, rearview mirror, red reflective emblems on the front and rear, a slow moving vehicle sign on the rear, white headlamps, red tail lamps, break lights, turn signals, windshield, and seat belts. If the vehicle doesn’t have a windshield eye protection must be worn while the vehicle is being operated.
Executive Session – Alderman McGill made a motion, seconded by Alderman Coale to go into Executive Session to discuss Section 2(c)(21) – discuss minutes of closed session meetings; Section 2(c)(2) – collective negotiating matters between the public body and its employees; and Section 2(c)(23) – contracts relating to the purchase, sale, or delivery of electricity or natural gas.
Vote yes: Lisenbee; McGill; Moore; Coale; Griffith; Lampley
Vote no: none
Absent: Stahl; Barbre
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried.
Return to Regular Session – Alderman McGill made a motion, seconded by Alderman Lampley to return to regular session.
Vote yes: Coale; Griffith; Lampley; McGill; Lisenbee; Moore
Vote no: none
Absent: Barbre; Stahl
Mayor Maguire declared motion carried and Council returned to regular session at 7:43 p.m.
Adjourn Meeting – Motion by Alderman Lampley, seconded by Alderman Moore to adjourn the meeting.
Vote yes: 6
Vote no: 0
Absent: 2
Mayor Maguire declared meeting adjourned at 7:46 p.m.
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