McHenry Times

Algonquin Township Board of Town Trustees met Wednesday, Nov. 9.

Algonquin Township is located at 3702 Us Highway 14, Crystal Lake.

Here are the minutes as provided by Algonquin:

MEETING MINUTES-BOARD OF TOWN TRUSTEES

STATE OF ILLINOIS

MCHENRY COUNTY

ALGONQUIN TOWNSHIP

The board of Town Trustees met at the office of the Township at 3702 Northwest Highway, Crystal Lake IL on Wednesday, November 9, 2016 at 7 PM. The following were in attendance:

Clerk: Charles Lutzow Supervisor: Dianne Klemm-excused absence Trustee: Dan Shea Trustee: Russ Cardelli Trustee: Larry Emery Trustee: Melissa Fischer

Also present: Township Highway Commissioner Robert Miller, Township Assessor Robert Kunz, and Township attorney Lewis Matuszewich.

Dan Shea acting as Supervisor and Charles Lutzow acting as Township Clerk, the following business was transacted. The meeting was called to order at 7 PM.

Approval of Minutes:

A motion was made by Trustee Emery, seconded by Trustee Cardelli to accept the minutes of the regular meeting held October 12, 2016. Voice vote: All Ayes.

Audit of Bills & Treasurer’s Report:

A motion was made by Trustee Emery, seconded by Trustee Cardelli to audit the claims of the Town Fund in the amount of $96,703.01. Roll Call: all ayes

A motion was made by Trustee Emery, seconded by Trustee Fischer to audit the claims of the General Assistance Fund in the amount of $6,116.41. Roll Call: all ayes

A motion was made by Trustee Cardelli, seconded by Trustee Fischer to audit the claims of the Road and Bridge Fund in the amount of $138,951.89. Roll Call: all ayes

A motion was made by Trustee Emery, seconded by Trustee Fischer to audit the claims of the Equipment & Building Fund in the amount of $5,690.95. Roll Call : all ayes

Audience Participation:

Lou Ann Majewski, Algonquin-She suggested that the trustee packets and bills should be available for review ahead of time. She suggested we notify vendors to submit bills earlier. She had come to the Township last Friday and could hardly find a parking space and maybe there could be 1 or 2 restricted spots for conducting Township business.

Mike Lesperance- Nunda Highway Commissioner, said he did not agree with the Board reducing the salary of the Algonquin Township Highway Commissioner. He has worked with many professionals in life that make things look easy, but it is because they are practiced and skilled. He has used Bob Miller as a reference quite often because he is so knowledgeable and no one does the job better than he does.

Lee Jennings, Nunda Township Supervisor, said Bob Miller is a leader of the Townships in the County. He has always been there for all the Townships in the County and is a consummate professional.

Reports:

Supervisor: Trustee Shea reported that in Lake County there is a movement to have the Fox Waterways taken care of by the State.

Trustee: Trustee Fischer is on the legislative committee on MCOG, one of the main issues is road projects.

Clerk: Thanked everyone for the help on the Early voting. The judges accommodated the large crowds.

Highway Commissioner: Recycling at the end of October was once again very successful and we had to turn people away because the cars back up almost to Thornton’s. 1500 TV, 300 monitors and large amounts of paint, antifreeze and other electronics have been collected this year.

The bills are always available for inspection even after the meetings.

In lights of the referendums and the concern for tax burdens he expects to reduce the levy for next year. The levy have been flat for 3 years. They have also trimmed the budget. The Department is in the process of working with McHenry county on agreements to do work on non-dedicated roads.

Assessor: 2016 assessments are at the county and he expects release in a few weeks. The Lake county township 6 assessors are suing the county assessor for changing assessments.

Attorney: Attorney Matuszewich explained the litigation letter and why it was so time-consuming to defend. See attached.

Old Business: none

New Business:

Trustee Cardelli made a motion to rescind the 2017-2021 Compensation Resolution, seconded by Trustee Emery.

Trustee Emery said he would like to analyze how the compensation is figured based on responsibilities and hours. It makes sense to keep the salaries flat. Trustee Shea said there are 3 other townships in the area that you could compare Algonquin Township to. Highway Commissioner pointed out that Elgin Township, which is very similar size, has the following salaries: Highway Commission, $113,151, Assessor $110,844, Supervisor $94,700.

Roll Call Vote: Cardelli-yes Emery-yes Fischer-yes Shea-no

Trustee Emery made the motion to adopt the Resolution of flat compensation for 2017-2021, seconded by Trustee Cardelli.

Trustee Emery thought the supervisor compensation should be lowered to $55,000 which is a 20% reduction. Trustee Shea said that Supervisor Klemm has been very ill and has done a lot of work from home and the new Supervisor may do things differently. Trustee Emery suggested 4% reduction for Assessor and Highway Commissioner. He stressed there needs to be a process to determine what is fair compensation for each position. Trustee Emery thought the trustee’s salaries should be increased to $5000. Trustee Shea felt the trustee salaries are fair.

Trustee Emery made a motion to amend the Resolution to reduce the Supervisor’s compensation to $55,000, seconded by Trustee Cardelli. Roll Call: Emery-yes Cardelli-yes Fischer-yes Shea-no

Trustee Cardelli made a motion to amend the Resolution to reduce the Highway Commissioner’s compensation by 4%, seconded by Trustee Fischer.

Highway Commissioner Miller said he felt that a reduction to his salary would be a slap in the face and he provides an excellent service to the community. They have kept the levy flat for 4 years.

Roll Call: Fischer-yes Emery-yes Fischer-yes Shea-no

Trustee Emery asked if there should be a COLA added.

Roll Call: Fischer-yes Emery-yes Fischer-yes Shea-yes

Trustee Cardelli made a motion for the Adoption of an Ordinance to regulate the reimbursement of expenses per Illinois Public Act 99-0604, seconded by Trustee Fischer.

Attorney Matuszewich explained the difference between the proposed Ordinance and Resolution.

Trustee Cardelli withdrew the motion, seconded by Trustee Fischer. Motion Withdrawn.

Trustee Cardelli made a motion for Adoption of the Resolution on the Guidelines Establishing the Reimbursement of all travel, Meal, and Lodging Expenses related to official business of officers and employees in the township of Algonquin IL, seconded by Emery.

Roll Call:

Emery: yes Fischer: yes Shea: yes Cardelli: yes

Public Discussion: Lou Ann Majewski does not think the board runs in accordance with Roberts Rules and the discussions were hard to folllow.

Rachel Lawrence of Cary agrees with Lou Ann.

A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Trustee Cardelli, seconded by Trustee Emery at 8:34 pm.

Charles Lutzow Algonquin Township Clerk Approved: Date: