Public Comments
A few local business owners with cargo containers on their property first addressed the council regarding an ordinance to remove the storage units after two years, enacted in January 2020.
Tom Green of Prophet Gear said he was surprised to receive the city’s notice of violation, saying he didn’t know of the limitation. His container has been onsite for 10 years and is located between two buildings. The business has paid the $35 permit fee every year, per the original agreement.
Mayor Ryan Inskeep said enforcement was “overlooked” and the issue was brought up after a review of ordinances and following up on building permits. He agreed that the city should’ve kept better track of the units, and the property owners have all kept up their end of the agreement. He said he’d be open to a grandfather clause, and the city is in the process of gathering information, hearing concerns, and making it fair for everyone.
Former Mayor Steve Swanson addressed the council, admitting that the city overlooked enforcement for the containers in the past, and the current ones should be grandfathered in. He also noted that if required to be removed, local electrician Dave Strike has containers that would have to be removed which would impact his business. “He’s done a lot of work for the city. All of them have done a lot for town,” Swanson said of the business owners.
Keith Crady said he uses his for storage, he got a building permit in 2019, and he pays taxes on the cargo container. Corbin Anderson, who obtained his by buying the property for Scoops Ice Gream & Grill, said he’s working to make his cargo containers presentable. Strike’s Electric is charged an extra $250 a year for taxes.
Public Works Director Brian Strike said he just wants changes to the permit fee. Inskeep thanked the men for their comments, saying there would be more discussions later in the meeting.
Marty Oliva of Hanford Insurance provided a review of the city’s insurance plan with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois. The city’s current monthly premium will be going from $9,867 a month to $11,867 next year, though the benefits will stay the same. If they were to change it to “stay level,” the $1,600 deductible would go to $7,000 per individual, which is not a fair trade-off. For those on the dental plan, there will be an increase from $539 to $560. He noted that the city has the Gold Plan with BCBS.
He said the cost of care is going up and due to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and fully insured marker guarantees where no one can be denied, so claims and payouts have been going up. He said another option they could consider is a non-ACA network, where insurers would underwrite certain healthy groups. He noted that this process takes away healthier people on the current BCBS plan, leaving fewer people to pay off the claims.
The city’s plan will renew January 1, 2027, with open enrollment from now until then. He said they currently have the best national network and “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it,” as it’s always a challenge when changing carriers and plans. Any changes for employees need to be done by December 15th.
Henry C. Adams Memorial Library board president Beth Jacobs reported that lots is going on at the library. They received a $3,000 grant from the United Way of Whiteside County for their after-school tutoring for Homework Club. Upcoming classes include yogurt making, dreamcatchers, knife-care class, clay ornament workshop, and cookies with the Grinch. “There’s lots of good activities and events for kids and adults,” she said.
Items for Consideration and Possible Action
After a few months of discussion on a water payment plan agreement, and an attorney review with a few modifications, an ordinance was presented for a vote. Office Administrator Wendy Schultz said the ordinance would be for those “really trying to keep the water on and not turning them off.” However, she’s made arrangements before that weren’t followed through, so this would be to have something in writing that both parties agreed to. It was noted there will be a late fee of 10%. “We want to work with these people,” Schultz said of those struggling to pay, adding that it won’t be used all the time or very much, but it will be an option available. The council agreed to adopt the plan.
The council next approved replacing a broken 8” valve at the wet well on Locust Street with Mississippi Valley Pump, Inc. for $11,785. Strike said out of four pumps at the well, this is the last one to be replaced.
The council next approved enrollment into the Local Debt Recovery Program (LDRP), a state program that will withhold money from tax refunds or lottery winnings if the city submits an entry for a past due account. Attorney Zollinger said it’s not perfect and there will be people they won’t be able to collect from, but it’s successful as a program and cost effective.
The council approved the final Tax Levy, which was presented at the meeting last month, with no changes made since then. Mayor Inskeep said they’re ahead of the game, as the levy needs to be filed by the last business Tuesday of December at the county courthouse. This year’s levy amount is $2,275,652, down from last year’s levied amount of $2,537,210.
The council next approved the purchase of a furnace for the equipment shed, which was recently insulated. The 250,000 BTU hanging furnace from Hinrichs will cost $5,500 for the unit, labor, and hooking up the gas line. Director Strike said they have money in the budget and the unit will be sufficient to keep up the temperature, so the vac truck doesn’t freeze.
The council approved an ordinance authorizing the use of TIF District funds to replace the furnace at City Hall with Hinrichs for $5,000. Inskeep said the loss of the working furnace caught them off guard, but they do have TIF funds available. They might also need to replace the police department’s furnace next month.
The council next discussed charging tree service contractors more for dumping at the city’s yard waste facility. Director Strike said there’s been an ongoing gentlemen’s agreement to charge $50 per load but they’ve recently had some large tree loads that didn’t cover removal and labor costs. When large trees are dropped off, they take it out to Spring Hill Road; otherwise, they have to burn it and get charged.
The council agreed to suspend the use of the facility for contractors and tree service companies until they create an ordinance. “The intent was for the residents of town to drop off bushes, limbs, and leaves, not 100 ft. trees – that’s not the purpose,” said Inskeep. He encouraged the council to think about it.In final action, the council approved an ordinance to begin using the IL-EPay program starting January 1, 2027, replacing the MX Merchant credit card payment poral. During LOCiS software training, Schultz learned this program pairs better with the with software, and if they keep the current system it will get messy with journal entries and the 3% fees. By enrolling with IL-EPay, the fee will be taken automatically from transactions. The city purchased the LOCiS program for utility billing this year. The city will continue to accept debit/credit, ACH, and cash/check for bills. They added the 3% fee because the credit/debit system was costing the city up to $400 each month in fees.
Items for Consideration
Regarding the cargo containers, Inskeep asked the council for ordinance ideas going forward. The council suggested the city require maintaining and painting the containers, renewing the lease every two years, grandfathering in the current leases, restricting the timeframe allowed going forward, and increasing the permit fee. Alderman Greg Schmitt said the city should deny a permit if the container is not maintained. The council wondered if there was a county ordinance for accessory buildings to consider, and noted the city’s current code requires having a uniform color like the building.
Attorney Tim Zollinger said he will draft up a new ordinance they can review and vote on next month. He suggested a two-year permit and a non-conforming agreement for current leases (grandfathered in). Any new containers having to be outside a residential district, properly maintained, and with set-back guidelines. He suggested implementing the changes with the new fiscal year, which runs May 1 to April 30.
“We want to make it fair for everyone,” said Inskeep.
The council discussed food vendor fees for 2027, noting that “some pay, some haven’t,” and ensuring it’s enforced for all vendors. They suggested cleaning up the current ordinance and adding a $100 fee for the whole year, effective in 2027.
They next discussed vacation payout, allowing an employee to cash out up to one week of unused vacation time. They only need a resolution for this “Christmas perk,” which will be considered next month.
They also discussed whether to allow the holiday party costs to be a “cash value” holiday bonus. Alderman John Gibson said the employee dinner party is a plus, and those who want to attend can attend, and those who don’t, won’t. The city paid around $1,900 last year for the staff Christmas party, but they won’t be having one this year. The council will think about it before the next meeting, where they will also vote on holiday bonuses, with $300 for Department Heads, $200 for full-time employees, and $125 for part-time employees given in previous years.
Consent Agenda
The council approved the agenda with October meeting minutes, financial report, bills payable, and the following building permits:
- James Thompson, roof, $29,703.84
- Aubrey Gordon, siding/soffit, $27,703.84
- Curt Sonnenberg, prefab 10’x12’ accessory building, $500
- Shirley Leigh, roof, $22,149.81
Reports of Department Heads
Chief of Police Bruce Franks said the department is prepping for the Lighted Christmas Parade on Saturday, November 28th. Public Works Director Brian Strike added that the state parade permit arrived “way late” on October 20th.
The Police Department issued 26 verbal citations, 35 written warnings, and 20 State citations; three accident reports were taken in October; and 192 calls for service were received in September.
Officer Jered Cross and his wife handed out candy and stickers for the Prophetstown Proud’s Fourth Friday Halloween on Oct. 23. Officer Jason Brubaker, Cross, and Franks worked the football playoff game on Oct. 31 and then patrolled during trick-or-treating hours. Part-time officer Will Lukehart has been assigned the task of property maintenance code due to officer Boyd VanDellen reaching the maximum hours he can work.
Strike’s report on the Water Department noted water service line repairs at 106 Locust St. and 500 Washington Street, with a concrete repair patch. Crews conducted annual hydrant flushing Oct. 28-30 to help maintain the water distribution system and ensure proper hydrant operations.
The street sweeper has been running consistently over the past several weeks to keep up with falling leaves, preventing them from accumulating in storm drains. Crews cut and cored out the area surrounding the Sunset lift station in preparation for installing concrete. Due to the area continually holding water, the decision was made to pour concrete around the lift station to help eliminate the standing water issue and improve drainage.
Crews also painted the salt spreader on the 2005 IH dump truck in preparation for winter operations, and completed routine servicing on the 2015 Dodge Ram to keep it in proper working condition.
Public Works employees have been testing, inspecting, and preparing the holiday lights for installation over the next few weeks. Crews are working towards getting the holiday decorations for the annual Lighted Christmas parade on Nov. 28.
Mayor Inskeep said Hartig Drug will be mailing in the last set of keys, and he didn’t get a call back from a prospective pharmacist. When asked about the new Mexican restaurant at 3 Victorian Drive, he said they applied for a liquor license but lacked a piece of information that the city still hasn’t received. Their business sign says ‘open soon,’ but Inskeep said they “haven’t spoken to city so we’re not sure. We’ll wait and see.”
Inskeep also reported an outstanding ComEd bill for the water treatment plant; the city wasn’t billed for electricity during a period of construction, and the bill finally came in for $24,000. The city wasn’t even aware of the charges until transferring the account for Hartig Drug. Inskeep said they disputed some of the charges but will have to get that settled.
On a positive note, he reported that that street sweeper will be paid off in November. The city has four CDs maturing this month through Farmers National Bank. He reviewed the LOCiS financial snapshot from April-October a summary of funds, bills, what’s budgeted vs. spent, and what’s left in the budget and the city is on track.
The next regular meeting of the Prophetstown City Council will be on Tuesday, December 8th at 7 p.m. at Prophetstown City Hall.
