REGULAR MEETING OF THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF TAMPICO

December 16, 2014
7:00 PM
Reagan Community Center

Mayor Kristine L. Hill called the regular meeting of the Tampico Village Council to order at 7:00 PM.

Commissioners Toby Johnson, Bruce Hill, Mary Jo Sigel and Derrick Maupin were present.

Also present: Village Attorney William Shirk, Police Chief Terry Strike. Village Clerk, Kathy Leathers, recorded the written and digital minutes.

Mayor Hill led those present in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Minutes of the December 2, 2014 Regular Meeting Minutes were approved as presented.

Local business owner, Bonnie Anderson, was present to tell the council the recent violation against the Kickback should be dropped. Anderson was recently advised she would need to have her plumbing system inspected by a licensed plumber. The request comes after Commissioner Maupin and Public Works Superintendent, Tom Pierce, were taking water testing samples after Anderson’s quality of the village’s water complaints and sewer smells entering the business. Anderson stated she was inspected by Whiteside County Health when she was building the business and she was given the okay to open. Anderson said a year and a half later she installed a kitchen after which she was inspected again and she was allowed a food service license by Whiteside County Health, who takes care of that. Anderson said after calling numerous plumbers she was advised they cannot even get to her for an inspection until at least after the first of the year. Anderson stated she contacted Whiteside County Health and the State Plumbing Inspector and was told since she has been inspected twice and if there has been no plumbing done since, she is within the law. Village Attorney Shirk told Anderson, this is a question of a violation of village law. He said he is sure that they are not going to re-inspect her in regards to state for the purposes that she mentions because if the business passed the inspection, then it passed the inspection. Shirk reported as far as he knew it was just a warning notice. He asked Anderson if this was the warning notice she was referring to. Anderson said she was told of it before the November 18th board meeting and then she was served with a summons on November 21st by the Tampico Police Department. Shirk advised her it was a warning notice. Anderson said he was right, it is a warning notice. Shirk told Anderson it is a warning notice that says to get it corrected. Anderson said the notice states she has to be inspected by the 22nd of December and she can’t get a licensed plumber to come out. Shirk advised her it was up to the council if they wanted to grant her more time. Anderson said that’s what she is asking. Shirk asked her what she is asking the deadline to be put to. Anderson said she is asking for the matter to be dropped. Resident Al Morthland stated the only reason Anderson was wrote up was to shut her up because she complained about the water in town. Commissioner Maupin advised Morthland it is not his [Morthland’s] issue and it’s not his floor time. Maupin said he is fine with granting more time to Anderson, as for dropping the issue, he doesn’t know how he feels about that. Commissioner Johnson stated the citation is in place for health and safety, correct? If it did violate then the council would want it corrected. Commissioner Sigel said if the council is saying it’s for health and safety then why didn’t Commissioner Hill file it. Mayor Hill said the violation is water and sewer. Commissioner Hill agreed, saying he is public safety. Anderson told the council she has been told the council does not feel the county health department does a thorough inspection. Mayor Hill said the council has never said that, she believes the health department is thorough. Anderson said when she was building the business, she was inspected periodically. Anderson stated when they put the bar sink in they did it direct, Whiteside County was there and told her it has to be an open air vent at which point Anderson said they showed her where to put the trap in the basement and they changed it to open air. Anderson said as far as a back-flow device, it doesn’t have to be installed in her building because of the fact of open air drains. Anderson explained to those present what an open air drain is. She stated it is open so if you do have a back-up it’s not going to come up in your sinks and contaminate your sinks. Mayor Hill stated a part of this stemmed from the business was having so many issues and this was another way to safeguard and make sure everything was in place. Anderson said we will further go on that. Tom, [Pierce] is not here, but just recently he came in and told her he got the water samples back and the iron content in the water was very high but it’s not bacteria. She doesn’t know who Pierce was with but they were sitting in the truck at the old city hall discussing what could be the problem because of the slime coming in through her sink. Anderson said Pierce told her they were discussing everything going on, they’ve taken sludge out of the drains, the water tower has been emptied and everything. Mayor Hill told Anderson, the water tower was a scheduled cleaning. Anderson said she started complaining a year ago. Anderson said what Pierce and the other man believe is all the empty buildings and not being used, the water is sitting there becoming stagnant. Mayor Hill told Anderson the council appreciates Anderson working with them on that. Anderson said she doesn’t know if that is what is happening. Anderson said, in fact, they told her to shut off her water. Anderson said she has had her water running 24/7. Mayor Hill said probably to do more testing. Anderson said it was supposed to happen at the old city hall, the community building and Pierce was going to ask Shirley [Lester]. Mayor Hill told Anderson Pierce was going to run other locations too, because the village has more vacant buildings down there and this water does need to get moved through a little bit more to keep the levels of what they are putting in at a better rate. Anderson said she told Pierce she has not had the slime since the water tower was drained and super chlorinated. Anderson said hopefully that killed it, she said she doesn’t know. Anderson stated when she told the health department that they said if it is some kind of bacteria, within a month it would be back after super chlorinating. Mayor Hill said there has been no bacteria. Anderson said hopefully not, but that’s what she was told. Anderson states she believes it’s not her problem and she doesn’t see how the village can violate her and not any other place. Mayor Hill said the village is not asking for a plumber to do any work for her, someone else can do your work, you can do your work, it was the point of having somebody come in and verify that everything was in place and proper, that’s all. Mayor Hill stated if they came in and said you need to address this, Anderson could address that, it’s fine, and then have the plumber come back and say it was done. Commissioner Maupin stated he doesn’t know that someone who is not a licensed plumber can actually do the work. Mayor Hill said anyone can do the work but it has to be approved by the plumbers. Commissioner Maupin said he found it had to be done by a licensed plumber. Anderson said the state plumbing inspector said they know little towns do not make businesses use licensed plumbers and they let it go because it is small towns and they know they have their own building code and they don’t inspect. Mayor Hill told Anderson, she was having so many odors in her building and the council wanted to find out what the problem was with this and there is nothing wrong with having someone come in and inspect it. Morthland wanted to know what the council wrote her up for. Attorney Shirk said a warning is not written up, it’s a warning violation, so it’s not a violation, it’s a warning. Shirk stated it’s a request to do something and it says specifically to have a licensed plumber view and inspect and any corrective actions would be taken as recommended by a licensed plumber. Shirk said that is specifically what it states. Anderson said by December 22nd and she can’t even get a plumber in. Anderson is asking for a reasonable amount of time such as 90 days to comply. Attorney Shirk stated all the council would need to do would be pass a motion to extend the date. Commissioner Hill stated he thinks that is fair. Commissioner Sigel said to extend it for 90 days. Another resident, Sue Frank, said she [Anderson] is not the only one in the town that has had sewer problems with smells. Mayor Hill said the council is talking about Anderson’s situation right now. Commissioner Maupin said this is not about the rest of the town this is about Anderson. Mayor Hill said it’s about the warning violation. Anderson asked if it is found that it is the stagnant water causing the problem and she doesn’t know how the village will prove it, but if it is and it happens again, then what? Mayor Hill said then the council will address it. Anderson said we can’t run water 24/7 for forever. Commissioner Maupin said his question is, and Anderson is stating, the only thing Anderson has been in here to complain about on the village’s end is slimy water, she hasn’t been in to complain about a sewer smell backing up in her basement and Anderson still isn’t standing by that she does have a sewer smell and Anderson believes it’s the village’s fault, when it was witnessed that the business has an un-trapped line. Anderson said she doesn’t think Pierce has talked to them the way he talked to her and they don’t know what he said. Anderson said for ten months Pierce told her it was dry traps and her business is open seven days a week, 365 days a year, every sink, every toilet, every faucet is used on a daily basis with the exception of maybe one, the sink in the kitchen. Anderson said since the first time Pierce told her it was a dry trap, she has run water in that sink to make sure. Anderson said for ten months she was told it was dry traps and it’s impossible. Anderson said after that, when Maupin and Pierce were there to do the water testing, Pierce said it was because there was not a trap in the sump pump, Pete Green told Anderson he doesn’t want to see a trap on a sump pump, a sump pump has it’s own check valve which will not allow anything to come back out. Anderson said Pierce told her it has to be kept wet and no it does not, according to Pete Green, the state plumbing license inspector. Maupin asked Anderson if she has verified that her sump pump is actually functioning properly. Maupin said, what he is saying is the village wants to make sure that Anderson has taken all the steps on her end because sewer smell from the…. Maupin said he is going to buy the water into this, it could be the fact that water is not being moved on that street or on those lines. Maupin said he is fine with that. Maupin said after he had talked to her last, he didn’t stop trying to investigate what was going on and just assume it was just her problem and it wasn’t just to shut her up like everybody is suggesting. Maupin said what needs to happen if the village is going to go to all this work to try and figure out what’s going on, Anderson needs to be sure there is absolutely nothing wrong on her end. Maupin said the only way for the village to know that she has gone through these steps is if she has somebody come out that the village can trust and tell the village it is done and everything is 100% and functioning. Maupin said everything he has found suggests that sewer smell comes from the owner’s side of it and the village could not be putting sewer smell into her building. Anderson asked if Maupin has talked to Pierce. Commissioner Maupin said yes he had talked to Pierce on the day Water Solutions was here. Anderson said Pierce told her it could be coming in from the businesses that are closed. Anderson said the air coming in to the village lift station which is a sealed container, the lift station is totally sealed. Anderson said every time that pump turns on it’s drawing from the sewer, it’s drawing air. Anderson said the air comes into the bottom of the sewer tank and that air is coming through the lines and it has to come up, it will come up and it’s very possible, Anderson said Pierce will tell the council this, it’s possible that that is coming up and escaping up through her drains. Maupin told Anderson the air cannot go through, pass through the water. Maupin asked Anderson how the air can pass through the water of her traps. Anderson said really, Maupin really believes that. Anderson still maintains air will bubble and come up. Maupin told Anderson that is the whole purpose of a trap to prevent gases from coming back through. Anderson maintains it still has to pass through. Mayor Hill asked the council if they would like to grant the extension for this warning violation. Commissioner Maupin said that would be fine. Mayor Hill asked the council if they would like to do another 60 days with the holidays coming up it could be a little difficult, and this way we can all get on the same page and make sure they covering and checking everything possible on this end. Anderson said she wants 90 days because of the holidays. Maupin told Anderson she has already had 30. Mayor Hill said another 60 days would take her to the end of February. Village Attorney Shirk asked the council if they had taken council action on this matter before or did Commissioner Maupin just do it. Maupin advised he did. Attorney Shirk advised Maupin would still have the authority since it is not on the agenda. Mayor Hill advised Anderson is on the agenda. Attorney Shirk advised then that is fine. Commissioner Maupin said the council should push for the 90 days from today. Mayor Hill advised that would take Anderson to March. Commissioner Maupin made sure Anderson understood the extended time period would be 90 days from today. A motion was made by Commissioner Maupin, second by Commissioner Sigel to extend the date for the Kickback Saloon to comply with having her business’s plumbing system inspected by a licensed plumber to 90 days from today’s date. Anderson asked the council what licensed plumber the village uses. Mayor Hill told her Hinrichs in Prophetstown. Anderson said she had tried them. Mayor Hill said Morthland has contacts with a few plumbers, Anderson might want to talk to him. “Yes” votes were Johnson, Hill, Sigel, Maupin and Mayor Hill. The motion carried.

Resident Al Morthland said he had talked to Commissioner Johnson before he went in the hospital. Johnson said he has been talking with Commissioner Maupin. Maupin is suggesting if the council, as a committee, approve plumbing to be done and it’s indicated who is doing it, then the council can’t come back later and fine them based on them not using a licensed plumber because the village knew when they approved it. Johnson also said he does not even know if that’s even on the…when the Kickback was trying to get a permit through. Johnson said to be honest, he has never seen a plumbing permit come through. Mayor Hill said, no the village does not have them. Attorney Shirk advised those present that an administrative person cannot change the ordinances. Shirk said there is an example going on in the county where there was an agreement by the city where a building had to be “x” number of square feet. Shirk said the individual submitted to the county zoning office a building permit that was less than that square feet and he started building. Shirk said the county found out that it did not comply with the agreement. Shirk said the fact that the zoning officer granted the building permit doesn’t change the agreement because the agreement was passed by the board, nor could a building permit be in contravention of the zoning ordinance. Shirk said whatever permits the village grants, if cannot override the ordinances unless the ordinance is changed. Shirk reported the village does not have an ordinance or at least none he is aware of. Morthland said no one on the board ever goes out and checks the job Kuepker, [village zoning administrator], has done. Morthland said that should be up to Kuepker, he should be checking the permits and stuff. Mayor Hill said Kuepker absolutely does. Mayor Hill said he does his job very well and he does check with people in making sure they are following through with their permits and everything else. Mayor Hill said the Zoning Administrator is not really on the topic here. Mayor Hill said as for the water issue, the village is doing everything it possibly can, testing water constantly, trying to make sure everybody had got……Mayor Hill said there is no way this board wants to endanger anybody in this town and it’s ridiculous going on and on while the village is trying to make an effort here to put the headlines, to make this town look bad constantly is getting to be ridiculous. Mayor Hill said village safety is of the utmost importance. Mayor Hill said she loves this town and all of the council is trying to make this a better place for families to live. Anderson said so do they. Morthland asked why there are so many empty houses here in town. Mayor Hill said the council loves the businesses and the good work they are doing. Mayor Hill said she popped into Anderson’s place and it looked beautiful and she told business owner Michael Scuteri his place is looking fantastic too. Morthland said when he was in the hospital, his hired man called him and told him Pierce wanted to check the water. Morthland told him that’s alright, let him in. Mayor Hill said great, that’s how we need to work with people, if there are issues, then we need to work with people. Morthland said Pierce has never been around to check it. Mayor Hill said Pierce has checked right upstream from Morthland and it was perfectly clear. The Mayor told Morthland if there is a problem in his house, and the council has told him before at previous meetings, he needs to talk to his landlord and Pierce is willing to help and come in and advise. Morthland said Pierce talked to the guy who is watching his place and he called and said Pierce wanted to come into the house and check the water. Morthland said good, let him come in and check it. Morthland said he never showed up. Mayor Hill said she couldn’t verify that and if it didn’t get done, the village will make sure it does. Mayor Hill said these tests are costing the village money too and when the village is sending out a good product and everywhere the village has been testing. When the village does extra tests, it costs the village more money. The mayor said the EPA mandates where the village takes the tests to be done at random sites and that is covered under the village’s water testing contract with the City of Dixon. Mayor Hill continued by saying, that being said, the village has a good product going out, there might be issues within residences and there might be occasional incidents along a line or leg that the village needs to address, but like Maupin has said in the past, call him up, tell him exactly what’s going on, what you got, so he can get a map going so he can determine what’s going on. Bonnie Anderson spoke up as far as making this town look bad, she believes in this town, she lives in this town, she opened a business in this town. Mayor Hill said it’s been a great business. Anderson said she does cares about her customers. Mayor Hill replied, she didn’t say Anderson didn’t. Anderson said she came to this city one year ago about her water problem and it took ten months and her coming to the board meeting before anybody took it real. Anderson said don’t say they don’t care, because they do. Morthland said, they wouldn’t be coming to the meetings if they didn’t care about it. Mayor Hill said she isn’t saying they don’t care, it’s this constant, repetitive…the village is trying to work too. We’re trying to do a good job. Anderson said she doesn’t like her customers walking out of her business because of the sewer smell. Mayor Hill said that’s why the village needs to follow through and get everything in line to make sure and see if there is something going on. Mayor Hill said the village has checked every thing on it’s end and now it just needs to be verified on her end by someone that Anderson picks, so that it’s not the village sending someone in there and then the village is making them say things. Mayor Hill told Anderson to pick out somebody and then the village can work it out from there.

Resident Sue Frank questioned the council on the high iron, the high rust, or however it is put , in the water cause she has been reading about it on the internet. Frank said along with that goes manganese. Mayor Hill told Frank the village has no harmful toxins in our water. Frank said manganese creates the black in the back of the toliet, the slime, it creates all this stuff that people are complaining about. Frank said a manganese test should cost $8.00 unless Dixon escalates the rate and puts the water test at a higher price. Frank said if you read on the internet if you get on there, you will find that high iron content, and that’s what the village has got. Mayor Hill said that is typical for this region. Commissioner Maupin said manganese was tested for. Maupin said manganese also showed up with the irons and the high end of the range. Maupin stated they are both treated the same with phosphates. Maupin said Pierce and the gentleman from Water Solutions decided the village would up the dosage of phosphates in the water for the next month to try and combat it and to get the levels back down. Maupin told the council, his exact recommendation was, normally he wouldn’t adjust for these levels, but since the village is having people in town have problems they will put extra phosphates in the water, to get it regulated back down. Maupin said that is why Pierce had them come out and then they went around town trying to figure out, look at it and that’s when they determined that most of that street, the Kickback’s street, is sitting empty and there is not enough flow so they need to increase the flow to help pull the chemicals through that to make sure they were getting into those lines. Maupin said the plan was to increase for a month and then it will be retested and see what things are looking like. Maupin said manganese has been known it is something Pierce told him about at one of the first times Maupin went down there and that’s why the village has the phosphates hooked up to treat it. Mayor Hill said the village is trying. Commissioner Maupin said it’s not some big secret, it’s not a conspiracy to ruin the town.

Downtown business owner, Mike Scuteri, said he owns two buildings and he does not get any odors in those buildings and he has no complaints. Scuteri said if he is not supposed to be drinking the water, somebody better tell him. Anderson said no one has died yet. Sue Frank said there are a lot of people sick, though. Commissioner Maupin said, it’s not as if it’s cold and flu season.

A member of the audience mentioned hearing tires were slashed in Tampico. Mayor Hill said it has been posted with Crime Stoppers. Commissioner Hill said it’s been on the radio. Mayor Hill asked if anyone sees a blue van and a tall slender guy. Commissioner Hill said it’s a newer blue van. Mayor Hill told everyone to keep their eyes and ears open, it doesn’t hurt to turn the information in. Commissioner Hill said to call Crime Stoppers or Chief Terry Strike. Mayor Hill said people can remain anonymous.

Clerk Leathers advised the council contractors involved in the storm warning system business have been contacting her about the storm siren grant. She said she is advising them to send their information to Sharon Pepin at Community Funding and Planning Services.

Final review was made of the 2014-2015 Tax Levy Ordinance. Attorney Shirk advised the council he had reviewed the ordinance and it looked fine. Commissioner Hill motioned seconded by Commissioner Johnson, that Ordinance No. O04-14-12-16 Tax Levy Ordinance for the 2014-2015 Fiscal Year be passed, approved and in effect after it’s adoption as provided by law. “Yes” votes were Johnson, Hill, Sigel, Maupin and Mayor Hill. The motion carried. This tax levy provides for $14,314.00 in General Corporate Fund taxes and $59,928.00 in Special Funds taxes. The total of the tax levy is $74,242.00. This is 105%, (104.99%), over last year’s tax levy.

Attorney Shirk told the council he knows the village had a policy of public comment and rules. Other than a slight little change, the village does not have to worry about changing anything. Shirk said he represents four different cities and one of the things he does is to check the Illinois Municipal League website at least twice a week to see what the latest news is. Shirk told council members they get the IML magazine, the Review, and in the September issue, that now based upon the change in law, it is the opinion of the IML and the Illinois Attorney General that there has to be an ordinance establishing written rules for public comment. Shirk said most communities did not have rules of public comment. He stated Tampico does and there are few who actually do. Shirk continued by saying when he finds there is something that municipalities have to do, to make it less expensive for all communities, he prepares the same ordinance for all four, sends it out and the cost is shared making it less expensive. Shirk said it is something the village has to do. Shirk stated this was something that was not solicited by anyone here on the council, he sent the same exact letter and the same exact thing to every mayor of the communities he serves. He said Erie passed the ordinance at their last meeting. Shirk stated he sent the rules as just an example to everybody and it is what the state of Illinois public participation rules are that he found on a website for one of the state agencies. Shirk said in most communities those rules are not part of the ordinance because every time you want to change something, the village would have to change the ordinance and that costs money. He said the best way to do it is just say you are passing an ordinance saying the village will have written rules, and that’s what the village is required to do, period, and then the village can amend those rules by a motion of the board. Shirk said in the last couple of months, the village’s current rules ask for the persons address. He said the village cannot ask that any more, but you can ask their name and probably their phone number, their business and their firm name. Shirk said other than that, he has reviewed the village’s rules and he thinks the village has a good set and he is not suggesting the council change anything other than saying the village does not really need the address or the phone number either. Mayor Hill said one of the issues was the three and five minutes for speaking and it’s been clearly seen the council does not limit the time. Shirk said the village of Erie has had no problems since probably ten or fifteen years ago when there were a lot of people at a meeting. He said they do pretty much what the council does here, ask every body and spend the first half hour allowing people to have their conversation. Shirk said they adopted the rules he had set out and that they’ll use when their meeting is literally in the gymnasium when there are thirty or forty people and you need some decorum there because of the issue. Shirk said at that point, they could suspend the rules, the chair always has the right to suspend the rules. Shirk advised these rules will apply to every public meeting, Zoning Board, everybody has to have the same set of rules including committee meetings if you have them. Shirk said any public meeting has these set of rules. Shirk stated his suggestion is to approve the ordinance and then have a motion to approve the rules that the council already has, if that’s what they want to do or with whatever changes they decide to make. Shirk said at least the council needs to delete the address and the phone number is really not necessary either. Shirk said the council does need their name for the purpose of the minutes and that’s appropriate and if they are a company, the name of the company they represent is appropriate. Shirk told the council all the other rules they have are fine and the council has number 9 that states the presiding officer can suspend the rules at any time, which Mayor Hill does. Shirk advised whose present this is part of the amendment to the Opening Meetings Act. Mayor Hill said she did make reference at the last meeting this is to keep it, this is a business meeting as well, and to keep decorum it’s not a town hall. Shirk said really, for years, the law said that the chair and the agenda had a right to decide who had the right to speak and it was only at the decision of the chair that anyone had the right to speak. Shirk said as the mayor just mentioned, it’s really a board meeting, a council meeting and not a town hall meeting or a city meeting. Shirk said, in the Open Meetings Act, they said there should be the right for citizen participation at meetings or comments, which most communities did. Shirk told those present the law says there has to be an ordinance that says you will have written rules, the ordinance doesn’t set the rules it just says that you will have written rules and then in a motion, the council will have a motion to approve the ordinance and approve the current written rules deleting at least the address requirement. Mayor Hill said for future reference, which Shirk had set forward, everything was explained in the other rules draft. A resident asked if the future reference was the two and a half pages. Shirk advised the resident that one has been adopted by many state agencies and it’s on the internet. Commissioner Sigel asked Shirk if he had heard of the Illinois Sunshine Laws. Shirk said sure, he actually has it and didn’t think to bring it. Shirk explained the Sunshine Law is the Freedom of Information Act and the Open Meetings Act which the village council operates under. Shirk stated it’s really a bad term for it because the Sunshine Law just means a law that automatically terminates, the medical marjuana is a Sunshine Law, it terminates in four years unless they take affirmative action to extend it. Sigel said she knows Walnut, Rock Falls and Sterling all abide by those laws. Shirk told Sigel this village council does too, they have to. Shirk said to abide by the Open Meetings Act, the council has to approve this ordinance and the council has to have a written policy. Shirk said some municipalities haven’t done it yet. He said Erie adopted it and others will soon. He said many are taking their time to do it and really they should have it. Shirk said it’s due and it’s required. Clerk Leathers asked Shirk if it was okay if the council approved the ordinance and then let the council take their time to adjust the current written policy. Shirk said the written policy draft he gave to the council was just a suggestion. Mayor Hill said she liked some of the things in the draft Shirk had recommended, since they clarified some things. Commissioner Hill said, all the council had to do was pass it [the ordinance]. Mayor Hill said, right, that’s what she had tried to do at the last meeting. Attorney Shirk said what he had given them was just a suggestion. Shirk said he put “the kitchen sink” in there and
December 16, 2014 Regular Meeting Minutes, everyone could take out what they want. Shirk said the council has to address the fact there’s a regular meeting where people are just wanting to, there are not on the agenda but they have a question. He said others may be specifically on the agenda for a particular item. He stated there will also be public hearings on various things. Shirk told the council the rules can be different depending on what type of a public participation issue it is. Shirk also said some communities will open the comment period at the beginning of the meeting for people to speak and then that’s it. When the public body gets to the business for the rest of the meeting there is no more public participation. Shirk said when there is a motion on the floor and the public body is discussing it, then you also have a question of rules, do you allow the public then to have a discussion. Shirk said most councils don’t, because at that point it’s the council’s discussion. Shirk said these rules allow for the different instances and it’s the trend to say that although you can’t have everybody talking about it, you’ll be here all night. Shirk said that’s why there is a limit usually of a few minutes or if there’s ten people with the same subject matter or the same argument have a spokesman. Shirk is saying the council needs to adopt the rules and have rules. He also said at this point the current rules are just that until the council changes them.

On a motion by Commissioner Johnson, seconded by Commissioner Hill, Ordinance No. O03-14-12-16 Creating Rules for Citizen Participation at Public Meetings was approved. “Yes” votes were Johnson, Hill, Sigel, Maupin and Mayor Hill. The motion carried. Commissioner Sigel asked if the approval was just for the ordinance, not the rules, we already have the rules. Attorney Shirk advised her the rules won’t change. Mayor Hill said that’s what was discussed at the last meeting, the policy was there, the council had to just get it in the ordinance. Mayor Hill said now the council can adjust the rest, but other than striking just the one item. Clerk Leathers asked for and received council permission to review the current policy and take those items that should not be in there such as the address, phone number, etc. Mayor Hill stated she thought it would be a good idea to review and use some of the example policy. The mayor said it wouldn’t change the policy, it would explain and clarify things better.

Approval was given to pay the annual Tampico Historical Society website fees. The motion was made by Commissioner Maupin with a second by Commissioner Sigel to pay the annual fee of $479.76. “Yes” votes were Johnson, Hill, Sigel, Maupin and Mayor Hill. The motion carried.

Council members were asked to review the Village’s Investment Policy. At this time there will be no changes in the policy currently in place to safe guard Village funds while equitably distributing the investments and maximizing the income of this specific governmental unit.

Reports of Village Officials

Mayor Hill reported Toys for Tots donations have been picked up and Casey’s did a bang up job, their donation can was pretty full. The mayor said the grade school, Tiger Club and others coming through Village Hall, made up two boxes and a big bag of toy donations. Toys for Tots organizers were very pleased with the response from the community.

Commissioner Sigel asked if there has been any interest in the former Village Hall building. Clerk Leathers advised none that she is aware of.

Commissioner Johnson told council members that he has contacted Frontier Communications about the slow internet speeds. Johnson said he had e-mailed the CEO, who put him in touch with someone who could address the issue. Johnson said his concern is if the current telephone infrastructure may not be up to par to run up to six megabits per second. Johnson stated he just wanted frontier to tell the village that or give customers up to three for half the cost. Johnson said many of the people he has spoken to have a plan that’s up to 6 megabits per second and they pay somewhere around $49.00. Johnson said he has never come anywhere near six and everyone he has talked to is the same. Johnson said he told the company if the current telephone infrastructure can’t handle that, reduce resident’s prices and give us a different fee schedule. Johnson also said on a return call from frontier, they said they now have a plan in place to come in by February of next year, so three months, to update the infrastructure. Johnson said at that point he let them know he was a commissioner in town and asked if he could bring the issue up at a meeting to let the public know. Frontier agreed and asked if Johnson would like someone from their company to come in, they would. Discussion turned to the previously mentioned ifiber network. Commissioner Maupin reported there is fiber optic in town but none of the providers are running on it right now. Maupin stated he has spoken with Mediacom about bringing their internet service to town and the last time he spoke with them the company thought it would be possible to bring the service to town but he hasn’t heard anything from them since. Also discussed were the possibilities the ifiber network was to have helped to provide internet access to the schools. Mayor Hill stated Black Hawks Hills Council was to be continuing their work on getting access to smaller communities. Commissioner Johnson advised if there is enough public interest he will have someone come in and advise what they, Frontier, are going to do.

Commissioner Sigel asked if there was anything the council can do about the Nicor gas in energy savings on this building in anyway. Mayor Hill advised her she has been working with Blackhawk Hills Council about grants for different heating systems and things the village could do to reduce energy costs. Mayor Hill said Commissioner Hill has been covering the air conditioning units on the outside. Commissioner Hill said he walked through the current village hall building, the water tower building and they recommended a lot of things that could be done. Commissioner Hill and Mayor Hill advised they are chipping away at it and that way it’s not costing the village.

Bills were paid on a motion by Commissioner Johnson, second by Commissioner Hill. “Yes” votes were Johnson, Hill, Sigel, Maupin and Mayor Hill. The motion carried.

There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 8:02 P.M. The next regular meeting of the Tampico Village Council will be Tuesday, January 6, 2015 at 7:00 PM in the Reagan Community Center located at 202 W. Second Street.

______Kathy A. Leathers ______________ _____Kristine L. Hill________________
Clerk Mayor

MINUTES APPROVED THIS _6th_ DAY OF ___January______, 2015

**These minutes are not official until signed, dated and sealed by the Village Clerk**