VILLAGE OF NORTH AURORA
VILLAGE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
FEBRUARY 18, 2019
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Berman called the meeting to order.
SILENT PRAYER – MEDITATION – PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
ROLL CALL
In attendance: Mayor Dale Berman, Trustee Mark Gaffino, Trustee Mike Lowery, Trustee Mark Carroll, Trustee Tao Martinez, Trustee Mark Guethle, Village Clerk Lori Murray. Not in attendance: Trustee Laura Curtis.
Staff in attendance: Village Administrator Steve Bosco, Community & Economic Development Director Mike Toth, Public Works Director John Laskowski, Street Superintendent Brian Richter, Deputy Police Chief Joseph DeLeo, Village Attorney Kevin Drendel.
AUDIENCE COMMENTS
Nick Dalo, 2065 Westover Road, North Aurora, IL – Mr. Dalo stated that members of the Mirador community have been outspoken about speeding in the neighborhood, specifically on Westover Road. Although the Village added two 25 mph streets last spring and the police have written citations and tickets, it has not been enough to condition people to drive the speed limit. Dalo said that a study done by police indicated 95% of the people drive 30 mph and under. Dalo said that the speed limit is 25 mph and not 30. The study saw 135,534 cars traveled one way going eastbound. The average was 2400 – 3400 cars that traveled down Westover Road per day. If 5% of the 135,534 cars are doing 30 mph or less, that would result in 6,770 cars traveling over 30 mph. Dalo noted that in the fall, the police did 51 hours of detail. They wrote 39 warnings and 6 tickets. They cited 45 people of the 6,770 cars for .66% of speeders. Dalo said that if 6,770 cars were ticketed at $120 per ticket, the Village could have collected a revenue of $813,000 in a few months on their street alone. Dalo said that when he met with Chief Fisher, Deputy Chief DeLeo and Village Administrator Steve Bosc, all were very receptive to the concerns. They mentioned that the comparative streets were narrower and have lots of cars which are physical deterrents for speeders. Dalo said this is what is needed on Westover. Dalo suggested speed tables and removable speed humps. In answer to these types of devices slowing down emergency vehicles, Dalo said he spoke with two firemen at fire house #2 and they said that of the 2200 calls they receive per year, they rarely drive down Westover. Dalo asked the Board to focus on making North Aurora safe.
Josh Adler, 2088 Westover Road, North Aurora, IL – Mr. Adler said that he and his wife have lived in their home for 6 years. Adler said he fears every day allowing his kids to go out and ride their bikes. Adler said he has seen individuals crash into parked landscape trucks 2 days in a row. He has been passed by other cars because he is driving the 25 mph speed limit. Adler stated that the Village has a great opportunity to make a change in the residential areas. With the volume of cars going down the road on a daily basis, something has to change, whether it be the addition of stop signs or finding other access points to help residents move around without cutting through neighborhoods.
Allisa Adler, 2088 Westover Road, North Aurora, IL – Mrs. Adler noted that there is a great concern for safety due to there being three bus stops on Westover Road. One for the elementary school with approximately 10 children, a middle school stop on Bennett and Westover and also for Kaneland School District an additional stop on Bennett and Westover.
Martin Reutimann, 2113 Westover Road, North Aurora, IL – Mr. Reutimann is a retired police officer with 15 years of service. His suggestion was to give tickets and no breaks. There are many children in the neighborhood and drivers who are speeding should be ticketed. Reutimann said he wants to be proud to live in North Aurora and asked the Board to do what needs to be done in order to resolve the issue with speeding in their neighborhood.
Joe Schodrof, 2057 Westover Road, North Aurora, IL – Mr. Schodrof said that he is new to the area and sees many cars speeding down the road, adding that Westover is a thoroughfare from Deerpath to Bennett.
Jason Davis, 2049 Westover, North Aurora, IL – Mr. Davis said he has lived at his residence since 2008. At that time, there were not a lot of homes and Tanner Trails was not fully developed. The Tanner population has grown and there are more drivers. Davis said that his family does not allow anyone to play in the front yard. They installed a fence to keep their children and others in the backyard for safety. Davis said that there is absolutely no way, if a child ran out in the yard chasing after a ball that a driver would be able to stop in time. Davis said that something physical needs to be done to stop the speeding. Community messaging will not solve the problem.
Brian Apgar, 970 Mirador Drive, North Aurora, IL – Mr. Apgar has been a resident for 5-1/2 years. He stated that there is a problem and having a radar car to make people slow down will not show the true situation of people speeding in the area. With Westover, Mirador and Bartram there needs to be speed signs and a solar panel light that clocks speeds so that drivers know how fast they are going. Apgar said he grew up in Naperville at 87th and Book Road. Neighbors pleaded their case for a stop light in that area. A light was put up 2 months after someone was killed. Apgar said he does not let his kids go near the street. The Village needs to figure out how to put something in place that will remind people that they are doing something wrong and that there are consequences. Apgar added that, “We need to feel safe in our neighborhoods.”
Mayor Berman thanked those in attendance for presenting their concerns.
Village Administrator Steve Bosco said that he, Deputy Chief DeLeo and Police Chief Fisher met with Nick last week. Nick Dalo came to a meeting in August. The Village completed two updated traffic studies. The last one was a 52-day study over the course of October and November in which they counted 60,000 cars. Double that number for both directions. That would account for 2500 cars a day on average for that street. Bosco noted that Westover is a collector street and was designed to filter people from Deerpath into Mirador and Tanner Trails subdivisions. Westover is currently the only collector street that is active between Deerpath into any of the western subdivisions of North Aurora. It was designed to take in a higher traffic volume than a normal side street. In the study, 75% of all people in the 60,000 cars were doing 25 mph or under. The remaining 25% were above 25 mph. Almost all of the remaining drivers in the speeding category were between 26 and 30 mph. Only 4% or 5% were going 31 mph or more. Bosco said that staff is looking at installing a solar panel speed sign at a cost of $4000 – $6000. In terms of speed bumps, Bosco agreed that they slow down traffic but with that comes noise complaints and shifting traffic burden to adjacent neighborhoods.
Deputy Chief Joe DeLeo said that an overtime detail was conducted with 60 hours. Problem times were identified as 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. DeLeo said that the department is still conducting periodic speed details. When looking for comparable streets to Westover the closest was Pinecreek. In comparison they had 19,000 cars that traveled through compared to 60,000 on Westover. DeLeo said that the best option at this time is to install the solar panel signs.
Trustee Guethle asked if the indicator in Pinecreek is working to prevent speeding. DeLeo said yes. Guethle said he was in favor of installing the speed indicators. DeLeo noted that in terms of speed bumps, drivers will go around the speed bumps in order to keep their speed.
Mayor Berman said that this topic has been discussed in staff meetings. He suggested installing the speed signs. If that does not work, a camera could be installed and anyone found speeding would be caught on camera and ticketed.
Trustee Carroll said he agrees with the solar speed indicators but not cameras. Carroll asked if there is any plan to extend Bauer to Deerpath when the south property develops, which would alleviate some of the traffic. Answer was yes.
Bosco said that if the Board is in favor of the speed indicator signs, staff would move forward. Bosco said he would also like to speak with the HOA to hear their opinion, thoughts and concerns. If the speed indicator signs do not work, the Village could hire a traffic engineer to look at the neighborhood and make recommendations.
Trustee Gaffino said he was in favor of the speed indicators. Gaffino also said he is not opposed to zero tolerance on tickets. Gaffino suggested a speed campaign to make sure the community is aware of the seriousness of this issue. Trustee Lowery suggested lowering the speed limit. Gaffino said he appreciated everyone’s comments and agreed with wanting to feel safe in our neighborhoods. It is a concern and the Board wants to come up with a solution.
Guethle asked DeLeo if he is seeing issues such as drivers on their cell phones. DeLeo said yes and that it is a nonstop problem.
Trustee Martinez said he passes Westover four times a day and speeding is a concern. He suggested possibly having an officer on site.
Mayor Berman said that staff will evaluate further and come back at a committee meeting with a recommendation.
TRUSTEE COMMENTS
Trustee Carroll extended condolences to the families of those affected by Friday’s tragedy in Aurora. He commended the Village’s police and fire departments, thanking them for their service. Carroll said that our hearts go out to everyone.
CONSENT AGENDA
1. Village Board Minutes dated 2/4/19
2. Rempe-Sharpe and Associates Inc. 2019 Rates
3. Resolution Accepting Mitchell Road Right-of-Way Dedication
4. Bills List dated 2/18/19 in the Amount of $472,329.18
Motion for approval made by Trustee Gaffino and seconded by Trustee Guehtle. Roll Call Vote: Trustee Gaffino – yes, Trustee Lowery – yes, Trustee Carroll – yes, Trustee Martinez – yes, Trustee Guethle – yes. Motion approved (5-0).
NEW BUSINESS
1. Approval of the Purchase of a 2019 Ford F-250 from landmark Ford in Springfield,
IL in the amount of $34,472.00
Motion for approval made by Trustee Guethle and seconded by Trustee Carroll. Public Works Director John Laskowski stated that the old vehicle will go to auction. The trade in value ranges from $8500 – $10,000 and the Village normally gets more than that at auction.
Trustee Gaffino asked if there is anything wrong with the current vehicle. Laskowski said not to his knowledge and that the last repair was for a $500 brake job. Gaffino said that the current vehicle has low mileage and could be used for plowing. Bosco said that the Village has a replacement program for trucks. Pick-up trucks are typically built out for 10 years. The current truck is 13 years old and money was put aside years ago for this new truck. Martinez said that the current truck is still a decent vehicle and should be used for another department if possible. Carroll asked if the truck is breaking down. Laskowski said it is not and has just needed preventive maintenance.
Mayor Berman noted that it is a standard replacement program that has been in place for years. Gaffino said he would like to see it kept and used elsewhere. Berman said that is a good idea.
Bosco said that should we go forward with the purchase, will look at repurposing the current vehicle for a water truck. If not, will bring this back to the Village Board.
Roll Call Vote: Trustee Guethle – yes, Trustee Martinez – yes, Trustee Carroll – yes, Trustee Lowery – yes, Trustee Gaffino – yes. Motion approved (5-0).
2. Approval of a Proposal from Legat Architects to conduct a Public Works Space
Needs Analysis in the Amount of $24,925.00
The Village received nine proposals and that was then narrowed to four firms. Staff recommended Legat Architects. Motion for approval made by Trustee Guethle and seconded by Trustee Carroll.
Bosco said this design is phase 1 of 3 phases. This study will take a look at the current space and come up with 3 recommendations: 1. redevelopment, 2. additions if needed, 3. new building. Staff is not pushing for any one topic. This will be brought back to the Board with information on what the architect is supporting.
Gaffino asked if they will be bringing in an engineer for an additional $5000 – $7000. Bosco said that Legat does not believe they need an engineer at this time. Gaffino asked if any of the top four proposals included engineering. Bosco said he believes that Kluber Engineering included an engineer. Bosco noted that there is $25,000 in the budget for the analysis.
Roll Call Vote: Trustee Guethle – yes, Trustee Martinez – yes, Trustee Carroll – yes, Trustee Lowery – yes, Trustee Gaffino – yes. Motion approved (5-0).
OLD BUSINESS – None
VILLAGE PRESIDENT
Mayor Berman said that Trustee Carroll covered the feelings of everyone as to what happened in Aurora and the sympathies for the families of the victims. Mayor Berman stated that the Village is very proud of the eleven North Aurora officers who were involved.
COMMITTEE REPORTS – None
TRUSTEES’ COMMENTS – None
ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT – None
ATTORNEY’S REPORT – None
VILLAGE DEPARTAMENT REPORTS
1. Finance – None
2. Community Development – None
3. Police – None
4. Public Works – Laskowski complemented his Public Works employees for an outstanding job of taking care of village streets. They were out for 12 hours snow plowing from 7 am – 1pm and then 5 pm – 1 am. Four trucks went down during the snow event yesterday. The department got two of those trucks back online and working on a third tonight.
Bosco informed the Board that the Village’s expense for plowing is going up dramatically this year. The Village budgeted $160,000 for contract plowing and are already approaching that amount. The salt supply is close to being 100% of what was requested and will be requesting a 20% overage.
ADJOURMENT
Motion to adjourn made by Trustee Carroll and seconded by Trustee Guethle. All in favor. Motion approved.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lori J. Murray/Village Clerk
