McHenry Times

City of Woodstock City Council met March 7

Here are the minutes provided by the council:

A regular meeting of the Woodstock City Council was called to order by Mayor Michael Turner at 7:00 PM on Tuesday, March 7, 2023, in the Council Chambers at Woodstock City Hall. He explained the Consent Calendar process, invited public participation, and noted, as is the City's policy, this meeting is being livestreamed with a recording archived should members of the public wish to view it in the future.

A roll call was taken.

COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: Lisa Lohmeyer, Tom Nierman, Wendy Piersall, Gordon Tebo, Bob Seegers Jr. and Mayor Michael Turner.

COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT: Darrin Flynn.

STAFF PRESENT: City Manager Roscoe Stelford, City Attorney Ruth Schlossberg, Deputy City Manager/Executive Director of Strategy & Planning Paul Christensen, Executive Director of Business Development Danielle Gulli, Executive Director of Operations Christina Betz, Public Works Director Brent Aymond, City Engineer Chris Tiedt, Grants Manager Terry Willcockson and City Clerk Cindy Smiley. City Planner Darrell Moore arrived at 7:08 PM.

City Clerk Smiley confirmed the agenda is a true and correct copy of the published agenda.

III. FLOOR DISCUSSION 

A. Proclamations 

1. Coach Dale Jandron 

Mayor Turner stated this is recognition of Coach Dale Jandron and Dale Jandron Day, which occurred on February 15, 2023. He was joined at the podium by Coach Jandron and Mrs. Jandron.

Without objection, the City Council approved and adopted a Proclamation Declaring Coach Dale Jandron Day in the City of Woodstock. Stating it is his honor to read the proclamation, Mayor Turner read the Proclamation for all to hear, which was met with hearty applause.

Mayor Turner opined Coach Jandron's retirement is bittersweet noting his impact on the development of thousands of youth athletes in Woodstock. He also cited Mrs. Jandron's role in Coach Jandron's accomplishments.

Coach Jandron thanked the City for honoring him, stating he could not have done this without his family and friends. He stated it has been a joy to coach with his two sons and he has been blessed with the youth who played with them.

2. Music in Our Schools Month 

Mayor Turner asked Rich Stiles, WHS Band Director, and Megan Kim, WNHS Choir Director, to join him at the podium.

Without objection, the City Council approved and accepted a Proclamation Honoring Music in our Schools Month March 2023. Mayor Turner read the Proclamation for all to hear, which was met with hearty applause.

Mr. Stiles stated they are honored to be here with their students. He introduced the WHS Saxophone Quartet and Ms. Kim introduced the WNHS Jazz Choir. The Saxophone Quartet and the Jazz Choir performed to hearty applause.

Noting his sons' participation in D200 music programs, Mayor Turner talked about the importance of music in the schools and the excellence of the programs. He thanked the students and their teachers for coming this evening, noting the performances were fantastic.

C. Public Comment 

Art Karaganis, 1211 Mitchell, expressed his concerns and that of several of his neighbors regarding the proposed development of apartments on property located at 1140/1142 Dean Street, noting the matter was before the Plan Commission in February.

Noting that item is not on this evening's agenda but will be in the future, Mayor Turner stated he has spoken with Mr. Karaganis and also with the petitioner. He stated the Plan Commission did approve the petitioner's request.

Mr. Karaganis wished to point out that while these are proposed to be residences, the permit being requested by the petitioner is a Special Use and a PUD for mixed use, which does not sound residential to him. Mr. Karaganis noted the apartments are proposed to be 600 to 700 sf,, opining two could fit in the Council Chambers. He also questioned the petitioner's statement that rent will be $1,200, opining this is not possible.

Mr. Moore stated the petitioner has requested to appear on the March 21, 2023 agenda. Mayor Turner stated Mr. Karaganis and the neighbors are welcome to provide feedback to the Council.

Colleen Jackson, Woodstock, expressed her surprise and pleasure at finding the music programs here this evening. She expressed her pride that the City recognized the music programs and had the student performers at the meeting. She opined any time children are given recognition, it makes a world of difference, thanking the City for doing this.

Mayor Turner stated the City Council is proud to do this noting it has been a tradition for many years.

D. Council Comment 

Mayor Turner recognized the award of a $600,000 OSLAD state grant to the City for the creation of the Intergenerational Inclusive Playground. Noting this was an effort of the entire Staff, Mr. Stelford stated this grant was a big piece of the plan for the Playground. Mayor Turner agreed this took a lot of work by Staff, noting it is the maximum amount that can be awarded.

Mayor Turner thanked Mr. Stelford and the Department of Public Works for starting the process of brush pick up from the recent ice storm.

In response to a question from Councilwoman Piersall, Ms. Betz stated Staff would have to look into the costs of making this a semi-annual program. Mayor Turner stated Staff can look into this but Council must be cognizant of costs.

CONSENT AGENDA 

Motion by W. Piersall, second by B. Seegers, to approve the Consent Agenda.

In response to a question from Mayor Turner, the following item was removed from the Consent Agenda at the request of Council or the Public:

• Item D-7 - Contract Award -- Website Redesign by Councilman Nierman

In response to a question from Mayor Turner, the following questions or comments were forthcoming from the Council or the Public regarding items remaining on the Consent Agenda:

Item D-2 - Artspace Facility Feasibility Study 

Councilman Tebo stated he is impressed with the direction Staff is taking on this item.

Item D-3 - Contract Award – Recreation Center Siding Replacement

In response to questions from Councilman Seegers, Mr. Aymond stated the siding will be Hardie board. Ms. Gulli noted the current siding is composite and is over 24 years old.

Item D-4 - Contract Award – Preventative Maintenance Services – Well #9

In response to a question from Councilman Tebo regarding the location of this well, Mr. Aymond stated it is near Victorian Village. Mayor Turner stated the City always tries to stay ahead, opining it is incredibly important to anticipate maintenance and the need for a new well.

Item D-5 - Contract Award – Concrete Repair and Painting - Woodstock Water Works Councilman Nierman opined it is great to see a local company used for this project.

There were no further comments or questions forthcoming from the Council or the Public on items remaining on the Consent Agenda.

There were no questions forthcoming from the Council or the Public on the motion on the table.

Mayor Turner affirmed the Consent Agenda to include items A through D-6 as follows:

A. APPROVAL OF CITY COUNCIL MINUTES February 21, 2023 City Council Minutes

B.  WARRANTS: 4042 4043

C.  MINUTES AND REPORTS 

Arts Commission Minutes

Arts Commission Minutes

January 9, 2023 February 13, 2023

Cultural & Social Awareness Commission Minutes February 6, 2023

Historic Preservation Commission Minutes January 23, 2023

Parks & Recreation Commission Minutes January 10, 2023

Opera House Advisory Commission 2022 Annual Report

D. MANAGER'S REPORT NO. 221: 

1. Ordinances - Property Tax Abatements - Approval of the following Ordinances authorizing the annual partial abatement of property taxes related to the City's General Obligation Bonds:

a) Approval of Ordinance 23-0-14, identified as Document 1, An Ordinance Partially abating the Levy of Property Taxes Imposed by Ordinance Number 21-0-59 for the Purpose of Borrowing Money and Issuing $9,385,000 Principal Amount General Obligation Bonds, Series 221, of the City of Woodstock, McHenry County Illinois, Issued for Constructing Roadway Improvements; and

b) Approval of Ordinance 23-0-15, identified as Document 2, An Ordinance Partially Abating the Levy of Property Taxes Imposed by Ordinance 22-0-15 for the Purpose of Borrowing Money and Issuing $9,860,000 Principal Amount General Obligation Bonds, Series 2022B, of the City of Woodstock, McHenry County Illinois, Issued for Constructing Roadway Improvements.

2. Artspace Facility Feasibility Study - Approval of the Artspace Scope of Work Contract and to authorize the City Manager to execute said agreement and conduct all actions necessary to comply with its terms, subject to final review and modification by the City Manager and City Attorney.

3. Contract Award – Recreation Center Siding Replacement - Approval to award a contract to complete siding removal and installation services for the Woodstock Recreation Center, utilizing Home Rule authority and waiving of bids, to Counsel Construction, LLC, Wonder Lake, IL, at a total cost of approximately $34,000, and to authorize the City Manager to execute a contract subject to final review by the City Attorney.

4. Contract Award - Preventative Maintenance Services - Well #9 - Approval to award a contract for preventative maintenance services on Groundwater Supply Well #9, utilizing Home Rule authority and waiving of bids, to Layne Christensen Company, Aurora, IL, for an amount not to exceed $53,622 and to authorize the City Manager to execute a contract subject to final review by the City Attorney.

5. Contract Award - Concrete Repair and Painting - Woodstock Water Works

Approval to award a contract to complete concrete repair and pool repainting services for the Woodstock Water Works Lap Pool, utilizing Home Rule authority and waiving of bids, to Fiesta Pool, Inc., Woodstock, IL, for a total cost of $29,800 and to authorize the City Manager to execute a contract subject to final review by the City Attorney.

6. Contract Cancellation - Professional Services Agreement - Emricson Park Storage Building - Approval to cancel the proposal and "draft" professional services agreement with Wold Architects and Engineers for the Emricson Park Storage Building Replacement Project, previously approved at the January 18, 2022 City Council meeting.

A roll call vote was taken Ayes: L. Lohmeyer, T. Nierman, W. Piersall, B. Seegers, G. Tebo, and Mayor M. Turner. Nays: none. Abstentions: none. Absentees: D. Flynn. Motion carried.

Item D-7 Contract Award – Website Redesign 

Councilman Nierman asked why the recommendation is to approve CivicPlus when Revize is less expensive, opining Revize offers similar components at less cost.

Ms. Gulli noted there were additional costs involved with the Revize proposal, reaching a total of $46,600, which is more than CivicPlus.

Noting the advantages of CivicPlus, Ms. Gulli stated the City's current website provider has been purchased by CivicPlus, which will allow them to migrate data and save a considerable amount of money. She noted Revize does not have nearly as robust a back-end, explaining this further. She stated in addition Revize does not offer credit-card processing, which is a very important component, has less storage capacity, and does not allow uploading of photos and graphics which saves a lot of time. Ms. Gulli also noted the Chatbot offered with CivicPlus is multilingual, which is very important for the City. She noted Staff is trying to streamline user features and create an intranet.

In response to Councilman Nierman's statement that Revize does offer credit-card processing and an intranet, Ms. Gulli stated they are entirely different than what the City wants and what is offered by CivicPlus. She noted Revize also does not offer a customization ability to make changes, which is important. She stated CivicPlus also has a more extensive search ability and is more user friendly for the public and for Staff on the back end.

Ms. Gulli stated the Department Directors spent four months researching the options, providing additional information.

Stating he has visited the Revize websites of other communities, Councilman Nierman opined they seem to have everything needed, citing Google Translates as an example. Mayor Turner stated Woodstock should not rely on Google Translates for our residents, citing its flaws.

Discussion ensued of the cost comparisons as provided in the Staff Report. Ms. Gulli noted the initial proposal from Revize was very low because it did not take into account the City's six unique websites, which was not referenced in the Staff Report.

Noting the amount of money is important and so is functionality and getting the highest return, Mayor Turner stated there are functional things that will impact the users, both the public and Staff. He suggested postponing this item until the next meeting to give Staff the opportunity to provide additional information to Council, as was previously stated by Ms. Gulli. Agreeing Staff could provide additional information, Ms. Gulli noted there are significant issues with the current site regarding user-friendliness up front and on the back end, opining a lot of improvements are needed. Councilman Seegers asked for a cost comparison of the three companies.

Councilman Tebo asked why Woodstock has six websites and Crystal Lake does not. In response, Ms. Gulli noted Crystal Lake does not have an Opera House and has a Park District and library which are not part of the municipality, nor is the library part of their City, as examples. Citing the Opera House, she talked about its unique needs and why a different website is used. Mayor Turner noted this is how the City evolved over the last several decades, opining it would interrupt the public to change.

Noting her experience in website development, Councilwoman Piersall opined security and document storage and retrieval, as well as the intranet, are very important. She noted the costs identified are to be expected.

Noting the three companies, Councilman Nierman stated Staff's recommendation was the top of the line and opined the City does not need the top of the line. He opined all three would provide a better product than the City has now.

Noting it is important to make the right decision, Mayor Turner again advocated for more information.

Motion by G. Tebo, second by L. Lohmeyer, to postpone Item D-7 - Contract Award – Website Design to time specific, the March 21, 2023 Council Meeting,

There were questions on the motion.

A roll call vote was taken. Ayes: L. Lohmeyer, T. Nierman, W. Piersall, B. Seegers, G. Tebo, and Mayor Turner. Nays: none. Abstentions: none. Absentees: D. Flynn. Motion carried.

VI. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS 

Mayor Turner provided information on a second Special Council Meeting, probably in early April, to discuss the FY23/24 Budget.

There were no additions, deletions, or corrections to the tentative future Council agendas.

ADJOURN 

Motion W. Piersall, second by T. Nierman, to adjourn this regular meeting of the Woodstock City Council to the next regular meeting on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, at 7:00 PM in the Council Chambers at Woodstock City Hall. Ayes: L. Lohmeyer, T. Nierman, W. Piersall, B. Seegers, G. Tebo, and Mayor M. Turner. Nays: none. Abstentions: none. Absentees: D. Flynn. Motion carried.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:07 PM.

https://www.woodstockil.gov/sites/default/files/fileattachments/city_council/meeting/46477/city_council_minutes_3-07-23.pdf