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Economic Development Minutes 2013 10-01-13 UNITED CITY OF YORKVILLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Tuesday, October 1, 2013, 7:00pm Yorkville City Hall, Conference Room 800 Game Farm Road In Attendance: Committee Members Chairman Ken Koch Alderman Diane Teeling Alderman Joel Frieders Absent: Alderman Carlo Colosimo Other City Officials City Administrator Bart Olson Community Development Director Krysti Barksdale-Noble Chief Rich Hart Alderman Chris Funkhouser Code Official Peter Ratos Administrative Intern Jeff Weckbach Other Guests: Tony Scott, Kendall County Record J. J. Albarran, Aurora University Jeff Wehrli, Kendall County Forest Preserve Amanda Huggins, Aurora University Stuart Osteroff, Imperial Investments Kelly Plocher Ron Plocher Katie Plocher Joe Plocher Linda Batt Ed & Ean Bell The meeting was called to order by Chairman Ken Koch at 7pm. Citizen Comments None Previous Meeting Minutes August 5, 2013 The minutes were approved as read. New Business 1. EDC 2013-32 Building Permit Report for August 2013 Ms. Barksdale-Noble noted that the permits are increasing and the current tally is 71. Page 1 of 3 APPROVED W/ CORRECTIONS 11/5/13 2. EDC 2013-33 Building Inspection Report for August 2013 No comment. 3. EDC 2013-34 Beekeeping within City Limits Beekeeping was brought forward by Alderman Frieders for the educational aspect and importance of bees. Staff was asked to research beekeeping and Ms. Barksdale-Noble reviewed model ordinances from Evanston and Milwaukee. She reported some of the ordinance details. If aggressiveness was detected, the City could inspect due to a clause in the ordinance. The owner could be asked to “re- queen” the colony, but few such complaints have been received. A course must be taken and a beekeeping competency certificate is required. Beekeeping is also regulated by the State with two inspections annually and the right to pull a license. City ordinances would be extending what the State already allows. Ms. Barksdale-Noble said zoning requirements or a Special Use should be considered. If a Special Use process is utilized, notification to neighbors within 500 feet would be needed and a Public Hearing would be held. If a permit process is used, the City can ask the applicant to provide a signature or notification list verifying they have talked with their neighbors and they approve. Mr. Frieders said honeybees are not aggressive unless agitated and they die after stinging. He said signage is important along with a fence for landing pathways. Alderman Koch said beekeeping would have to be monitored if there are allergic children nearby. He was also concerned about liability issues and asked how it would be handled if a neighbor does not approve of the bees. Ms. Barksdale-Noble said the Plan Commission would make the determination based on standards. He added that swimming pools can also attract bees. A $50 fee per location (2 hives per location allowed) was suggested with a $25 renewal fee. The permit would not be transferrable and the property owner would be the applicant. Suggested space would be two colonies per acre/or less and up to 8 hives on over two acres. This is based on research suggesting appropriate space. If Special Use permits are needed, a permit would be needed for each location. A suggested $500 fee would be required for a Special Use. The location of a hive was also discussed. Ms. Barksdale-Noble said the suggested range is 5 feet to 25 feet from a lot line. Alderman Funkhouser felt that straight zoning should be used with a permit required and special considerations should be made for surrounding residents rather than using a Plan Commission process. Residents would also be notified. Mr. Olson said if the City decided on a permitted use, it would be done at the staff level. Alderman Teeling said she would prefer a Special Use type application and she asked how concerns would be heard if the City does not utilize a Special Use process. She said there could be issues if a child is allergic. Mr. Ed Bell, a professional beekeeper, said that bees are not inclined to sting when away from their hive. He added that the startup cost for 2 hives is approximately $350 to $700/$800. He said it would be important to know in advance if the State would allow him to even have the hives before investing the money. As it is written now, he must have approval from the State first. For new ventures, Ms. Barksdale-Noble said there would be a 60-day time frame after State approval. For existing apiaries, the city would require the State number. Page 2 of 3 The committee members decided a permitted use was more appropriate. Language will be drafted and it will be brought back to committee for review. Old Business: 1. EDC 2013-28 Fourth Amendment to the Redevelopment Agreement for the Downtown Yorkville Redevelopment Project Area (Imperial Investments, LLC) This item had been tabled from City Council and not officially authorized by the EDC. The 80/20 split has not yet been resolved. Mr. Olson said 20% is privately owned, while 80% is considered public infrastructure. Ms. Teeling asked if the 20% would still come from TIF funds, which it eventually will. Alderman Koch said one of the concerns is that the TIF funds would be depleted prior to redeveloping the east side of the street. Mr. Funkhouser suggested a different split. He said the expenses would eventually be paid from the TIF funds and it is just a question of when. Mr. Osteroff said about 20,000 square feet of improvements has been made by Imperial Investments, however, now the infrastructure, such as power surges, is beginning to cost a large amount of money. Ms. Teeling said days of business are being lost to outages. Mr. Osteroff noted that Imperial owns property on the east side of downtown as well. He added that it is sometimes more complicated and costly to redevelop existing structures than to build new ones. The committee is in favor of the language as it stands since all funding will eventually come from the TIF. This item will return to the Council on the regular agenda. 2. EDC 2013-22 Disconnection of a Portion of the Hoover Forest Preserve Mr. Olson referred the committee to a packet memo and said that Jeff Wehrli, County Board member and Forest Preserve member was also present. Mr. Wehrli presented a GIS map showing the City limits relating to Hoover. A liquor license for weddings etc. is being sought for use at the new lodge (Meadowhawk) and Ellis Equestrian Center. They hoped to combine a liquor license and caterer's license for both facilities, however, it was discovered that the City owns a portion of the property. Currently, the City charges $35-$75 for a permit and police protection would be needed by the City as well. Mr. Wehrli said liquor is not allowed beyond 200 feet of the buildings. He is asking the City to de-annex a portion of the property. Alderman Funkhouser addressed the City noise ordinance and how noise would be handled if the County had jurisdiction over the property. The committee said they were OK with de-annexing the buildings and 200 feet surrounding the buildings. It was decided to have Attorney Orr review this item and it will move forward to the Council regular agenda on October 8th. Additional Business: None There was no further business and the meeting was adjourned at 8:08pm. Minutes respectfully submitted by Marlys Young Page 3 of 3