South Central Reporter

City of Centralia City Council met April 13.

Here is the minutes provided by the council:

ROLL CALL

Present: Mayor Williams, Councilman Jones, Councilman Smith, Councilman Sauer, and Councilman Marshall (all members attended electronically via teleconference) Absent: None

Staff Members Participating: Bill Agee, Acting City Manager; Doug Gruenke; City Attorney; Rose Aldag-McVey, Economic Development Director; and Kim Enke, City Clerk (all members attended electronically)

PRAYER & PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Mayor Williams led the Pledge of Allegiance and an opening prayer was also offered by Mayor Williams.

AMENDMENTS AND/OR ADDITIONS TO AGENDA

None

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

Submissions for public participation were submitted prior to the meeting electronically to the City Clerk. The submissions were also shared with the City Council by the City Clerk.

Shane addressed the City Council in regards to a petition on Change.org that has just under 1,200 signatures requesting the city to terminate the employment of Officer Billy White. He stated that this is not the first time in recent years that Officer White has been reprimanded for his actions and has cost the city enough trouble and money.

Steve Coleman addressed the City Council to ask if the Juneteenth celebration will occur this year and also inquired if the July 4th Celebration will take place in the park.

Mayor Williams asked the City Clerk to read the Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Awareness Month Proclamation to be presented to S.A.F.E.

CONSENT AGENDA

A Motion was made by Councilman Jones and seconded by Councilman Smith to Approve Items 1-9 of the Consent Agenda. 

1. Approval Of The Minutes Of The March 9, 2020 City Council Meeting

2. Approval Of The Minutes Of The March 25, 2020 Special City Council Meeting 

3. Approval Of The Minutes Of The April 1, 2020 Special City Council Meeting 

4. Approval Of The Minutes Of The April 2, 2020 Special City Council Meeting 

5. Approval Of The Minutes Of The April 8, 2020 Special City Council Meeting 

6. Approval Of The Minutes Of The April 9, 2020 Special City Council Meeting 

7. Approval Of Payrolls And Vouchers In The Amount Of $ 1,016,759.68 

8. Request To Use Fairview Park By Conquer Chiari on September 19, 2020 

9. Request to Use Fairview Park by the American Legion Post #446 for the Annual 4th of July Celebration From July 1st thru July 4th

Ayes: Councilman Jones, Councilman Smith, Councilman Sauer, Councilman Marshall, and Mayor Williams Nays: None

A majority of the Council voting aye, the motion carried.

REPORTS AND COMMUNICATIONS

The Economic Development Director, Rose Aldag-McVey, discussed and provided information about the Downstate Small Business Stabilization Grant. She explained that that the state has made this grant an option for businesses during the COVID-19 business closures. She reported that she shared it with the local businesses and 15 businesses expressed interest in it, but only 3 of the local businesses have submitted the necessary information in order to complete the grant application. She noted that the public hearing has been noticed and the hearing will take place on April 21st. She stated that it will be presented to the Council at the next Council meeting. She explained that the grant allows small businesses that meet certain criteria such as 50 employees or less with at least one full time employee other than the owner and some types of businesses are excluded. She explained that the maximum grant amount is $25,000 to help small businesses by providing approximately 2 months of working capital. She stated that the 3 businesses that have worked with her includes Advantage Door, Crooked Creek Winery, and Hollywood Hair. Councilman Smith asked how many others she expects to participate. She stated that possibly three others are considering applying. She explained that some are not interested due to the amount of information and financial information that is required. She also noted that some do not qualify based on the requirements of the grant.

BIDS

Acting City Manager Agee stated that this project will replace approximately 2 blocks of collapsed sanitary sewer line between Elm and South Maple from Calumet going south. He added that it serves the southeast portion of Centralia and will alleviate some issues. Councilman Jones asked if the project was budgeted and Acting City Manager Agee confirmed that it was. A motion was made Councilman Smith and seconded by Councilman Jones to Approve A Bid From Furlong Excavating Inc. For The Sanitary Sewer Main Replacement In The Amount Of $28,530.80.

Ayes: Councilman Jones, Councilman Smith, Councilman Sauer, Councilman Marshall, and Mayor Williams Nays: None

A majority of the Council voting aye, the motion carried.

ORDINANCES

None

RESOLUTIONS

Mayor Williams explained that the State Police will be using this space to establish the district headquarters in Centralia. He stated that it will be a win-win situation for the city since it will provide additional police presence. He stated that this is will put the city on the forefront of investigations for the State Police. A motion was made Councilman Smith and seconded by Councilman Marshall to Approve A Resolution Approving A Memorandum Of Understanding Between The City Of Centralia And The Illinois State Police Regarding Use Of Office Space In The Centralia Police Department.

Ayes: Councilman Jones, Councilman Smith, Councilman Sauer, Councilman Marshall, and Mayor Williams Nays: None

A majority of the Council voting aye, the motion carried.

Councilman Sauer stated that he would like a press release and media coverage concerning this memorandum since the building will be occupied with 3 state offices and it brings in potential employment and a lot of help with the Police.

Councilman Sauer explained that each of the plants have been operating with these agreements for several years. Councilman Jones asked if these are the same individuals that have been the operators in the past. Acting City Manager Agee stated that both the Water and Wastewater Operators are the same. A motion was made Councilman Sauer and seconded by Councilman Smith to Approve A Resolution Approving An Agreement With EJ Cooperative Inc. For A Certified Water System Operator.

Ayes: Councilman Jones, Councilman Smith, Councilman Sauer, Councilman Marshall, and Mayor Williams Nays: None

A majority of the Council voting aye, the motion carried.

A motion was made Councilman Jones and seconded by Councilman Sauer to Approve A Resolution Approving An Agreement With EJ Cooperative Inc. For A Certified Wastewater Operator.

Ayes: Councilman Jones, Councilman Smith, Councilman Sauer, Councilman Marshall, and Mayor Williams Nays: None

A majority of the Council voting aye, the motion carried.

Mayor Williams asked for clarification of the location of the Gragg St. reconstruction. Acting City Manager Agee stated that it will be along Gragg Street from Lincoln to Country Club. He also noted that the project is being paid for with TIF#6 funds. A motion was made Councilman Marshall and seconded by Councilman Smith to Approve A Resolution Approving An Agreement With Rhutasel & Associates Inc. To Perform Engineering Services For Gragg St. Reconstruction.

Ayes: Councilman Jones, Councilman Smith, Councilman Sauer, Councilman Marshall, and Mayor Williams Nays: None

A majority of the Council voting aye, the motion carried.

OTHER BUSINESS

None

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

None

REPORTS

City Clerk Enke reported that the City Hall offices do remain closed to the public but all employees are reporting to work and all essential services are being provided. She noted that water bills continue to go out each month and water is still being connected for those that are moving into residences. She also noted that boat stickers are continuing to be issued for fishing at the lakes and all necessary permits and licenses are also still being issued. This is being accomplished by utilizing the drop boxes, the city website, email, and mail. She encouraged residents to utilize the City website, not only for bill payments but also for the COVID-19 resource and information page to access up to date and factual information for reference.

Acting City Manager Agee reported that he had a meeting with the Public Property Foreman, Pat Stedelin, and Sonya Germann, from the Recreation Complex, to discuss the opening of the pool at Fairview Park. He stated that due to the cost and the uncertainty of when it would be able to open, he recommended not opening the pool at this time due to it costing $15,000 to open it and it taking 5 weeks to have it ready. He stated that due to those factors and the uncertainty at this time, it should be held off. He did note that Sonya Germann stated that swim lessons could be handled at the Recreation Complex. He stated that unless there is opposition, this will be what is done. Mayor Williams stated that he also talked to them all and he also concurs with them on this decision to hold off on opening the pool and it to remain closed until further notice. He noted that it would be a short season and the lessons could be held at the Recreation Complex. Councilman Smith stated that it is the right decision but questioned if the kids that go to the Recreation Center are going to be offered the same rate as the city pool. He stated that a lot of the kids that go to the pool will not be able to afford the Recreation Complex fees. Acting City Manager Agee stated that they will discuss and review this to see what could be done. Councilman Jones suggested that any maintenance and upkeep that needs to be done, be completed this year while it is closed so it is complete and ready for next year. Acting City Manager Agee stated that two pumps are in need of repair regardless if the pool would be opened this year or not and would have to be completed before opening next year. He stated that the rest of the maintenance is only cosmetic, such as patching and painting. Councilman Sauer suggested that Pat Stedelin has been maintaining the pool for years and is probably familiar with what needs to be done. Mayor Williams stated that the Public Property staff is limited at this time. Acting City Manager Agee confirmed that currently there are 3 employees but one has bid on a job in the water department, so they will be down to two. Mayor Williams stated that he understands that there has been some employees out for illness as well. it will need to be reviewed and possibly consider employing some part-time staff or summer help.

Acting City Manager Agee reported that the signs for the roadway by Conagra have arrived and are expected to be installed in the next couple weeks in addition to the completion of the crosswalks painting.

Acting City Manager Agee stated that he has cancelled the April 18th & 19th burn weekend to accommodate those that under the stay at home order so that they may enjoy their backyards. He stated that the leaf vacuum collection has been extended through this week and the Public Works crews have been collecting the other bagged yard waste. Councilman Smith questioned if the leaf vacuum could be extended through the rest of the month. Acting City Manager Agee stated that they will review it and see how much is left but at this time it is only extended through the end of this week. Councilman Smith also noted that when the city began leaf vacuuming, it was suggested that there was more flexibility with the collection times since the city owns the machines. Acting City Manager Agee stated that he would check with the Public Works Director to see what scheduling conflicts there may be for the staff. He stated that instead of collecting every day, it may be possible to just send them out one day to collect any remaining leaves. He added that he will continue to review the situation. Councilman Marshall commended Acting City Manager Agee for cancelling the burning and extending the leaf collection to help the residents. Mayor Williams reiterated that the city crews are collecting the bagged leaves as well. Mayor Williams commended both Bill Agee and Jeff Schwartz for accomplishing this.

Acting City Manager Agee noted that the city wide clean up was completed by the Public Works Department. He noted that the Public Works Director reported that there were 32 roll offs filled over the course of the collection week. He stated that with so many residents at home during this time, they must have been doing more cleaning.

Acting City Manager Agee reported that the consultant has met with all 5 unions. He stated the FOP Patrol and Telecommunicators both met on February 27th. The consultant provided the city’s response, but has not heard back from the unions since that time. He also reported that the Police Benevolent and the Fire both met with the consultant on March 12th. They were also scheduled to meet on March 25th which was cancelled due to City Hall being closed. He also reported that the operating engineers met on March 12th and the date of March 25th was proposed but the operating engineers could not meet, so he is waiting for a date to be scheduled for the operating engineers to meet with him.

Acting City Manager Agee discussed the revenue from the State of Illinois. He stated that the IML informed him today that the local government pass-through funds will not be subject to delays in payment due to any possible rules implemented by the Comptroller’s Office in the event of limited cash flow at the state level. He did note that income tax will be delayed due to the income tax deadline being delayed to July. He stated that what is normally received in May will not be received till August. He also noted that other income tax withholdings will be reduced due to the shutdown. He stated that what is distributed is based on a formula. He stated that the January sales tax was received by the city and it was a little more than a year ago at this time, but it will slow down also. He expects everything to hit during the middle of the summer. He stated that motor fuel tax will be coming as normal but will be less than normal due to there being less driving. He stated that last year the MFT was increased due to there being two distributions each month, which may help, but he still doesn’t expect the revenue to be the amount that was budgeted. He reported that he expects this month to be the last month that the city will receive video gaming revenue until the shutdown is over. He stated that in response to all of the reduced revenue they will hold the line on expenses and the department heads have been told to watch their budgets. He also stated that anything outside of the normal operations have to be preapproved before the funds are spent.

Mayor Williams asked if Acting City Manager Agee had a report concerning the meeting with the EPA. Mr. Agee reported that in regards to the NPDES permit, Mike Curry with Curry & Associates reported to him that the city has been granted a permit that doesn’t require additional compliance at this time. He stated that the information sent into the EPA satisfied them to consider it a hardship case. Councilman Sauer expressed that this was very good news. He stated that this doesn’t mean that the EPA won’t require other guidelines that need to be abided by, but for now the bullet has been dodged.

Mayor Williams asked if Dan Ramey will be done with the negotiations when his contract expires. Councilman Smith stated that his contract is through April 26th but there is a default in it that it can continue for another 3 months. He stated that he wanted to possibly discuss it in closed session. Councilman Sauer recalled that the agreement stated that if there is not a notice there is a 3 month extension and asked the City Attorney to review it. Mayor Williams also stated that he wanted to discuss it further in closed session as well. Councilman Marshall stated that he also wanted to be updated in closed session regarding the police negotiations. Councilman Sauer stated that they have not been meeting which is the problem. Councilman Smith asked why they have not been meeting via teleconference or zoom as many others have been. Councilman Marshall asked if Acting City Manager Agee sits in on the negotiations. Acting City Manager Agee reported that he does not sit in on them, but Kala Lambert does. Mayor Williams and Councilman Smith both stated that they thought he was to be sitting in along with the consultant. Councilman Marshall stated that he was under the understanding that Mr. Ramey was hired to handle the negotiations but was unsure if the Acting City Manager should also be sitting in as well. Councilman Sauer suggested that he has the option to work it out with his staff and he doesn’t think the Council should be telling the staff how to divide their time. Councilman Jones agreed. He stated that if Mr. Ramey and Mr. Agee think that Ms. Lambert should be there then she should. Councilman Marshall stated that he has no issues with that if she has worked on negotiations before. Councilman Jones stated that this should also be discussed further in closed session. City Clerk Enke asked for confirmation from the Attorney that the contract with a third party is not allowed to be discussed in closed session. Attorney Gruenke stated that collective bargaining could be discussed but closed session could not be held for a contract negotiation. Attorney Gruenke reviewed the contract and stated that the contract will automatically renew on April 26th for 90 days. He stated that a 30 day notice has to be given prior to the end of the term, so notice would have had to be given by March 26th. He stated that for it to end after the next 90 days the notice will be have to be given 30 days prior to the end of that period. Councilman Smith expressed his dissatisfaction with that since a new City Manager is in the process of being hired. Councilman Jones stated that the point of having Mr. Ramey finish the negotiations was so that a new city manager was not thrown into the middle of negotiations. Mayor Williams agreed and stated that if a new City Manager was hired before contracts were complete, the new City Manager could sit in on them as well. Mayor Williams suggested going into closed session for negotiations. Attorney Gruenke stated that if they wanted to discuss collective bargaining then they would need to add that to the motion to go into closed session. Mayor Williams then stated that the Council should not go into closed session concerning that after the regular meeting. Councilman Sauer expressed that he agreed with that and suggested that it be discussed at the next meeting. The City Clerk stated that she could add it to the next agenda for them.

Acting City Manager Agee stated that Chief Lynch has discussed his snorkel and ladder truck testing results with him. He stated that the UL testing was completed and the two ladder trucks and the snorkel truck had problems. He stated that it looks like the snorkel truck is probably done due to the estimated cost of repairs, with extensive cracks in the boom. He stated that one of the ladder trucks needs welding done on a piece which can be done at Tony’s Welding, but the other one will need to go to Indiana to a certified repair shop. He stated that the Chief is in the process of getting an estimate for that at this time. He stated that he will update the Council as he has more information.

Councilman Jones stated that he agrees with Councilman Smith that if it is possible, the leaf collection should be extended since there is no burning allowed at this time. Councilman Jones also thanked the city crews for their work during city wide clean up to collect the large amounts of trash.

Councilman Jones stated that he wanted to be updated at a later time about what is being done to protect the employees during COVID-19.

Councilman Smith again reiterated that he would like the leaf collection to be extended. He also thanked the city crews for handling the city wide clean up and also the essential employees that have to be on the front lines. He thanked the fire department for handling the number of calls to put out illegal fires.

Councilman Smith encouraged everyone to stay safe and follow the social distancing guidelines. He also stated that he has concerns about kids in the shopping center congregating in the parking lot as well as kids congregating around the old football field. He stated that quite a few people have contacted him and stated that they were concerned that the social distancing guidelines weren’t being followed.

Councilman Sauer stated that he has been researching and discussing the economic effects of COVID-19 with the Acting City Manager that he wanted to call to the attention of the city and the citizens. He stated that the effects will soon be painfully felt by the city. He stated that the budget was prepared and adopted based on the anticipated revenue from last year, but things have changed. He noted that the estimates for sales tax and motor fuel tax will be down by 30%. He stated that revenue from gaming machines will be zero while it is shut down. He recalled that last year there was over $240,000 from that source alone. He stated that all departments need to be aware that staying within the budget is not going to get the city through the year in the black. He stated that reserves are modest and raising taxes during these times seem unreasonable and also wouldn’t produce revenue in time to help. He stated that every department needs to be extra careful with their spending. He added that a workshop should be held in the future to determine how to work with the lost revenue and possibly rework the budget before the year is over. He stated that he agreed with Mr. Agee that the effects will be felt mid-summer.

Councilman Marshall responded to the public participation question about the Juneteenth and July 4th events stating that everyone is hoping that none of the events are cancelled, but he is not very optimistic to think that they will be able to have Juneteenth.

Councilman Marshall responded to the public participation comment about Officer Billy White and the petition. He asked what the process was and if it would be reviewed by the Chief or the Acting City Manager. He stated that he wanted it to be handled in the correct manner and process. Mayor Williams stated that he has already spoken to the Chief and he would comment on this concern later.

Mayor Williams stated that there has not been a determination made about Juneteenth, but Gayla Harting and himself have discussed it. He stated that they will continue to watch the situation and see if the stay at home orders are lifted. He stated that holding the 4th of July celebration will also be determined at a later time, noting that they also depend on revenue to hold the celebration.

Mayor Williams stated that he understands the feelings of those individuals with concerns about the incident with Officer White, but Officer White has been given the maximum allowed under the negotiated contract with the Police that can be enforced. He stated that he discussed this with the Chief and the Chief has made some additional requirements of Officer White that are already in place. He stated that terms of the labor agreement have to be followed. He stated that he understands the feelings of the residents, but doesn’t want the city to get into litigation by doing things that are outside of the contract.

Mayor Williams commented on the COVID safety measures for staff stating that he spoke to the Public Works Director and he has given them protections such as facemasks, gloves, and hand sanitizer to make sure the workers in the trucks are safe. He also complimented the Public Works Department for their work during the citywide clean up. Mayor Williams also thanked the City Hall employees for continuing operation and answering questions while maintaining social distance.

Mayor Williams stated that he agreed with Councilman Sauer that the City will need to tighten the budget and reduce spending.

Councilman Smith encouraged residents to compete their 2020 census forms.

ADJOURNMENT

A motion was made by Councilman Smith and seconded by Councilman Jones to Adjourn The Meeting To Closed Session Under 5ILCS 120/2(C)(1), The Appointment, Employment, Compensation, Discipline, Performance, Or Dismissal Of Specific Employees, Specific Individuals Who Serve As Independent Contractors In A Park, Recreational, Or Educational Setting, Or Specific Volunteers Of The Public Body Or Legal Counsel For The Public Body, Including Hearing Testimony On A Complaint Lodged Against An Employee , A Specific Individual Who Serves As An Independent Contractor In A Park, Recreational, Or Educational Setting, Or A Volunteer Of The Public Body Or Against Legal Counsel For The Public Body To Determine Its Validity.

Ayes: Councilman Jones, Councilman Smith, Councilman Sauer, and Mayor Williams Nays: None Abstained: Councilman Marshall was not electronically audible

A majority of the Council voting aye, the motion carried, and the meeting was adjourned at 7:02 p.m.

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