City of Greenville City Council met June 27.
Here are the minutes provided by the council:
The Special Council meeting was called to order on Tuesday, June 27, 2023 at 4:00 PM by Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Stephens.
1. ROLL CALL
Council Present: Council Member Kyle Littlefield, Council Member Lisa Stephens, and Council Member Blake Knox
Council Absent: Mayor George Barber and Council Member Ivan Estevez
Staff Present: JoAnn Hollenkamp, Jody Weiss, Patrick Schaufelberger, Michelle Liggett, Jim Sutton, Jake Freeman and Jake McClintock
Public Present: Roger McDowell, Matt Chase, Steven Smith, Kent Kampwerth, Patrick Grunloh, Andrew Grunloh, Lee Beckman, Jeff Leidel
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
3. CITIZEN INPUT / COMMENTS ON ANY AGENDA ITEM OR OTHERWISE
George Barber, Mayor of Greenville, is on vacation, so his time to speak on the subject was during citizen input. Barber wanted to thank the staff for their tireless work on this project. As mayor, he recommended to reject all bids. He has never felt that the mayor and council has owned this project and therefore has had a hard time understanding the process. He doesnt want to cave in from a lawsuit threat. He feels like Grunloh only completing 1 water treatment plant compared to 8 (in reality 4) that River City has built. He doesnt like feeling under pressure, as all of the options have consequences. He is unsure if we will lose the grant and interest rate if we reject all bids. He has seen that both sides of this are slanted for their side. He really feels like rejecting all bids is the right thing to do. The bottom line is we want a great water plant and clean water, therefore he again suggests we reject all bids.
Roger McDowell of Local 622 said that most local workers that were here at previous meeting support awarding the project to River City. The trades have attorneys that will help with any lawsuit.
Matt Chase of the Carpenters Union said this is not a union or non union issue, but whether Grunloh is a responsible bidder. For a project as big as a 20MM water treatment plant, you want to give the work to an experienced bidder.
Greg Kapp of the Ironworkers wanted to thank the council for listening to their comments. He emphasized that River City would use only trained and skilled workers.
Andrew Grunloh wanted to set the record straight. He didnt send the letter to council on Friday arbitrarily, but after the agenda was posted on Friday, June 23 for this meeting calling Grunloh a non responsible bidder. He emphasized they are the low and qualified bidder. It is illegal to award River City the project. If you reject all bidders it will cost tax payers more money. He will utilize a majority of signatory contractors (union) such as electricians and concrete. By law, all of his contractors have to have certifications to do the work. The City has a legal right to reject all bids, but it is at a very large cost to the citizens of Greenville.
Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Stephens asked Jim Sutton, Water Treatment Plant Supervisor, to give his opinion of the issue. He is the resident expert on how the plant is run on a day to day basis. She asked him what the condition of the plant is and he replied it is a 55 year old water plant, with the last upgrade being in 1992. He cant forecast what will go wrong, but the age of the equipment and the lack of parts is becoming an issue he deals with frequently. In all honesty, he felt the likelihood of extending the plant out 2-3 years down the road for a re-bid is not in the best interest of the citizens. Everything is mechanical and things break. You never know when something major will happen. In his professional opinion the life expectancy of the plant is 25-30 years. Most other water facilities have an upgrade every 5-7 years. We have gone 30 years. He went on to say the backwash pump has gone out and he is still waiting on parts with a cost of $75K. They just signed a rental agreement with Pureline for a chlorine dioxide generator unit that a new unit would be $168K. A new pump costs anywhere from $75-100K. There could be millions in repairs as the equipment has a lot of age on it. He never knows what will go wrong next. He isnt confident it will last 3 years.
4. CITY COUNCIL OR MAYOR COMMENTS
5. RECESS TO EXECUTIVE SESSION
5.1. Motion by Kyle Littlefield, seconded by Blake Knox, to go to Executive Session for possible Litigation at 4:25 PM.
| RESULT: Carried
MOVER: Kyle Littlefield SECONDER: Blake Knox AYES: Kyle Littlefield, Lisa Stephens, and Blake Knox ABSENT: George Barber and Ivan Estevez |
6.1. Motion by Lisa Stephens, seconded by Kyle Littlefield, resume Open Session of the Special Council Meeting at 6:10 PM.
| RESULT: Carried
MOVER: Lisa Stephens SECONDER: Kyle Littlefield AYES: Kyle Littlefield, Lisa Stephens, and Blake Knox ABSENT: George Barber and Ivan Estevez |
7.1. Reconsideration of motion to reject all bidders for the water treatment project. Motion by Kyle Littlefield, seconded by Blake Knox, Motion to reconsider the motion to reject all bidders for the water treatment plant project.
| RESULT: Carried
MOVER: Kyle Littlefield SECONDER: Blake Knox AYES: Kyle Littlefield, Lisa Stephens, and Blake Knox ABSENT: George Barber and Ivan Estevez |
7.3. Move to accept Grunloh Builders as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder for the water treatment plant project.
Motion by Blake Knox, seconded by Kyle Littlefield, Motion to amend and accept Grunloh Builders as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder for the water treatment plant project.
| RESULT: Carried
MOVER: Blake Knox SECONDER: Kyle Littlefield AYES: Kyle Littlefield, Lisa Stephens, and Blake Knox ABSENT: George Barber and Ivan Estevez |
7.4. Resolution for IEPA loan amount to be increased to up to 22 million.
Motion by Kyle Littlefield, seconded by Blake Knox, Motion to increase loan amount resolution with IEPA for up to 22 million.
| RESULT: Carried
MOVER: Kyle Littlefield SECONDER: Blake Knox AYES: Kyle Littlefield, Lisa Stephens, and Blake Knox ABSENT: George Barber and Ivan Estevez |
Motion by Kyle Littlefield, seconded by Blake Knox, to adjourn the Special Council Meeting at 6:20 PM
| RESULT: Carried
MOVER: Kyle Littlefield SECONDER: Blake Knox AYES: Kyle Littlefield, Lisa Stephens, and Blake Knox ABSENT: George Barber and Ivan Estevez |
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