Economic Development Minutes 2021 01-05-21Page 1 of 3
APPROVED 2/2/21
UNITED CITY OF YORKVILLE
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
Tuesday, January 5, 2021, 6:00pm
City Council Chambers
Note: In accordance with Public Act 101-0640 and Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamation
issued by Governor Pritzker pursuant to the powers vested in the Governor under the
Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, remote attendance was allowed for this
meeting to encourage social distancing due to the current Covid-19 pandemic.
In Attendance:
Committee Members
Chairman Jackie Milschewski/remote Alderman Ken Koch/in-person
Alderman Jason Peterson/remote (6:16pm) Alderman Joel Frieders/remote
Other City Officials
City Administrator Bart Olson/in-person
Assistant City Administrator Erin Willrett/remote
Chief of Police Jim Jensen/in-person
Community Development Director Krysti Barksdale-Noble/remote
Senior Planner Jason Engberg/remote
Code Official Pete Ratos/remote
Alderman Chris Funkhouser/remote
Other Guests
Consultant Lynn Dubajic/remote
Matt Asselmeier, Kendall County/remote
Lucas Robinson/remote
The meeting was called to order at 6:02pm by Chairman Jackie Milschewski.
Citizen Comments None
Minutes for Correction/Approval December 1, 2020
The minutes were approved as presented.
New Business
1. EDC 2021-01 Building Permit Report for November 2020
Mr. Ratos reported permits issued in November were for 14 single-family detached
homes with a total of 36 building permits. This included several single-family
modifications such as decks, fences and pools.
2. EDC 2021-02 Building Inspection Report for November 2020
Inspections totaled 718 and 105 were outsourced. Due to increased permits, more jobs
were outsourced to allow time for plan reviews.
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3. EDC 2021-03 Property Maintenance Report for November 2020
Six cases were heard and only a grass/weeds case was found liable with a $750 fine.
Alderman Koch inquired about the Greenbriar sign which has been down. He said
Greenbriar has no HOA and wondered how it should be handled. Mr. Ratos said the sign
is on city property and Public Works would need direction to repair or remove it. In the
past, Greenbriar residents have maintained the sign. This matter will move to the City
Council.
4. EDC 2021-04 Economic Development Report for December 2020
In addition to her report, Ms. Dubajic highlighted pandemic grants that were processed
including 56 state grants totaling over $3 million for local businesses. Locally, $400,000
was given to 42 businesses. She said Ms. Willrett spearheaded the efforts to distribute
documents to the businesses. Alderman Frieders commended all city employees for their
hard work and said the business owners were pleased with the follow-through from city
employees.
5. EDC 2021-05 Annual Foreclosure Report
Mr. Engberg said this report is compiled each year and 2019-2020 showed a drastic
decrease in foreclosures after March. He said this was largely due to the Covid pandemic
and the forbearance program that allowed people to not make mortgage payments. He
compared the numbers in the city Wards and by subdivisions. Bristol Bay had the
highest number of foreclosures and commercial property foreclosures decreased. An
overall comparison from 2015 to present was also included in the report. Kendall County
also reflected a decrease.
6. EDC 2021-06 9261 Kennedy Road ( Variance) – 1.5 Mile Review
This is a driveway variance request at Kennedy and McHugh Rd. Normally the county
setback is 5 feet, but the residents are requesting a zero-feet setback. This allows better
access to back lots and will keep the driveway out of an existing flood plain. The owner
plans on building a house in the future which this driveway would serve. Staff and the
committee had no objections and it moves to PZC on January 13 and City Council
January 26.
7. EDC 2021-07 Nonconforming Signs – Text Amendment
Ms. Noble said the Mayor brought this issue forward. Staff decided on a text amendment
to address any legally non-conforming signs whose owners may want to convert from a
static message board to an electronic message board in the future. Staff looked at signs
on major roads where businesses were impacted by widening or faster travel. They found
the largest number of non-conforming signs were along Rt. 47. The Mayor also asked
staff to look at signs on minor roads and staff determined that more than 50% of the signs
on the minor roads could also benefit. This matter will go to PZC on January 13. Ms.
Noble asked for committee feedback and she has compiled a chart of eligible signs.
Committee members said it is beneficial to allow business owners to invest in their
businesses, especially in these economic times. They also said it was prudent to address
this now and not each individual instance and they wish to support small business.
Alderman Funkhouser objected and said there was a massive overhaul 6 years ago. He
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said some businesses have more money to spend, but there is a need for consistency.
Ms. Noble reminded the committee that many of the signs received variances when Rt.
47 was widened. This item moves to the January 13th PZC meeting.
8. EDC 2021-08 Sign Code - Discussion
Mr. Olson stated this discussion will be tabled until next month to allow for discussion
with the Mayor.
Old Business:
1. EDC 2021-32 Urban Chickens
Ms. Noble said staff drafted an ordinance and she summarized the stipulations. The
committee agreed that since roosters are not allowed after 4 months of age and the gender
cannot be determined until that point, roosters could become an issue as people try to
rehome them. They also discussed the complaint process, noise complaints, “fowl”
odors, sanitation, etc. Alderman Koch cautioned that problems could arise if
neighborhood dogs chased/killed loose chickens and he cited a lawsuit in Aurora where a
dog killed chickens. He added that some of the HOA's do not include language to deal
with chickens. The Chief of Police also cautioned about enforcement difficulties.
Committee members discussed the required lot sizes and said that not many city lots
would qualify It was also noted that only two citizens had requested chickens. In
conclusion, the committee decided to end discussions on this matter and not move it
forward.
Additional Business: None
There was no further business and the meeting adjourned at 6:57pm.
Minutes respectfully submitted by
Marlys Young, Minute Taker/remote