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Economic Development Minutes 2009 04-06-09 Page 1 of 6 APPROVED 5/4/09 UNITED CITY OF YORKVILLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Mondav, April 6, 2009, 7pm City Conference Room In Attendance: Committee Members Chairman Gary Golinski Alderman Joe Besco Alderman Robert Allen Alderman Marty Munns Other Citv Officials: Mayor Valerie Burd City Manager Brendan McLaughlin Community Development Director Travis Miller Alderwoman Rose Spears Alderwoman Robyn Sutcliff Alderman Wally Werderich Other Guests: Tom Gilmour Judy Gilmour George Gilson Richard Scheffrahn Tony Scott, Kendall County Record T. J. from Rosati's Pizza The meeting was called to order by Chairman Gary Golinski at 7:00pm. Presentation: None Minutes for Correction /Approval: March 3, 2009 The minutes were approved as read. Items Recommended by Plan Commission for Approval: 1. PC 2009 -03 Collier 1.5 Mile Review Jo Rics, currently located on Rt. 126, is moving the business to Rt. 34. The Plan Commission reviewed this and recommended to City Council for the County Board, that it be approved as a special use. The current zoning ordinance does not have a provision for this type of special use within a residential zoning classification, so a text amendment will be prepared by the County to allow for a special use within zoning class R3. The application requested to rezone from residential to B2 commercial. Page 2 of 6 Travis Miller detailed the staff recommendations regarding parking, parking lot improvements, landscaping and stormwater with regards to the well on the property. Chairman Golinski said he would like to include the City staff comments so the County can review. Aldermen Besco and Munns expressed concern for creating an access point since there is a large curve at this location. Mr. Besco said if a recommendation is made to the County, it should be stressed that IDOT approval is needed also since Rt. 34 will be widened in the future. Ms. Spears asked that the neighbors be informed when the matter comes before the Council. It was noted that a Public Hearing is not needed for a 1.5 Review. This will move forward to the April 10 City Council meeting. i 2. PC 2008 -29 Zoning Ordinance Amendment Regarding Mining Regulations A Public Hearing was held on March 11 "' and the Plan Commission recommended approval of the text amendment as presented. Mining is currently considered a special use in the M2 zoning classification. The proposed amendment would introduce an "article" that details what is expected in an application and what criteria to expect. Travis said the State does not address setbacks in their mining regulations, however, the text amendment does discuss this. The reclamation of this site when the mining is finished, is included in the amendment. This item will move forward to City Council for a "first reading ". New Business: 5. EDC 2009 -17 Sign Ordinance Discussion (moved forward on agenda) Currently, temporary signs are allowed only 3 times a year and 14 days at a time with a building permit being required each time. A Rosati's Pizza representative, T.J., was present and said he was told the temporary signs were prohibited and that banner signs were allowed. He said the banners are not very effective and do not fare well in bad weather. Rosati's was also told to remove the "sandwich" style signs they used. Mayor Burd said the City is trying to eliminate signs with portable letters, however, it was noted that the Police Department currently uses such a sign. She said she does not approve of temporary signs. Alderman Munns expressed concern that it took six months to address sign issues near Pearle Vision. For the record, Ms. Spears said she does not recommend that the Police Department stop using the portable sign trailer since it's used for public safety issues, but perhaps use it on a limited basis. Alderwoman Spears said the City should support the local businesses. Alderman Besco said the Council needs to look at the sign ordinance so that local businesses can thrive in the City in these tough economic times. The Mayor agreed that the City should do all it can to assist the businesses. i Page 3 of 6 Next year, Rosati's Pizza will celebrate their 10 years in business, but they feel they cannot celebrate this occasion because they cannot obtain a permit for any sort of temporary signage. Alderwoman Sutcliff pointed out that Verizon has "blow -up" type signage every weekend. Chairman Golinski said that Rosati's should send their concerns to Travis Miller and also that the prohibited sign list should be reviewed. There was also concern for the fact that a permit is needed for each occasion at $50 per time. The Committee felt a yearly permit might be more appropriate. The Mayor added that the City gave a dispensation for wind feathers and that this could be an option for Rosati's. This matter will be brought back to the next EDC meeting. 1. EDC 2009 -13 Building Permit Report for February 2009 No single - family permits were issued in February. Chairman Golsinki asked that the report reflect a year -to -date total and year -to -year comparison. 2. EDC 2009 -14 Plan Commission Report for March 2009 These items were previously discussed. 3. EDC 2009 -15 Zoning Commission Report The next meeting is April 29 at 7pm and the Commission is reviewing zoning assessments. Their regular meetings will normally be on the 4th Tuesday of each month. They have developed a timeline of topics to be discussed and Travis will provide a monthly review to this committee. At least one Public Hearing will be held and by the end of the year, a draft of the recommendations will be completed. Alderman Besco mentioned a comment by a Commission member that said a "density bonus" should be offered as part of orderly development. Mr. Besco said this goes against what the Council has recommended. Mayor Burd thought this might refer to development along railroad tracks. Travis Miller said his interpretation was that the person referred to incentive based requirements. Alderman Allen agreed with Mr. Besco and said he thought the City has good zoning requirements in place. It was noted that the City Council would receive the final documents from this Commission and could make changes as they see fit. No further action required. 4. EDC 2009 -16 Integrated Transportation Plan — Project Update The next meeting is April 30 at the Library. The recent focus has been on the streetscape. The plan is being finalized with valuable input from the public and the final document is expected to be finished by August. Alderwoman Sutcliff said she hoped the committee had looked at stormwater issues and that it would be wise to decrease stormwater flow to the river. Travis will present an update next month. i I Page 4 of 6 Old Business: 1. PC 2009 -01 Wind Energy Systems Ordinance – Review and Discussion A public forum was held on March l O th and a consortium was also held. The speaker reviewed the ordinance and made comments on it. Many email and public comments have been made on this topic. It was noted that Home Depot and Menards currently sell the small systems. The small systems would require a Public Hearing review and then a permit with special use. Alderman Werderich said one of the concerns brought up at the Public Hearing was abandonment of a large system. He said other towns are requiring wind farm owners to put up a bond in the event of a problem. If the owners did not disassemble the equipment, the bonds would be used to pay for this. Administrator McLaughlin said he would be more comfortable with a surety bond. Another concern Mr. Werderich shared was in relation to the mid -size system. He said those systems do not currently have a limitation on the number of windmills. These would be used for larger building such as schools or business. Alderman Werderich also addressed taxation and said that all regulations need to be in place. I Alderman Besco said that due to the complexity of the systems, the Council should consider three different ordinances —one for each system. Alderman Golinski agreed and said that more time should be taken to make sure the ordinances are correct. Mr. Besco said the system size should be defined by the kilowatts and possibly the size of the blades. Guest and Engineer Richard Scheffrahn said that the market has dictated the components li for wind systems. He added that his concern would be that a roof unit could be upgraded to a larger unit. He thought that 10 kilwatts seemed reasonable for a rooftop unit and agreed that it should be controlled by a separate ordinance. Alderman Munns also raised j the question of aesthetics if several homeowners had rooftop units installed. Discussion turned to permits. Travis said that at minimum, electric permits would be required for rooftop units since the units would be hooked into the electrical system of the home. Building permits would also be required for towers. Alderwoman Spears said that after a discussion with an attorney, it was learned that the City is responsible for including language in the code to avoid "fly by night" systems. She added that she agrees with having three separate ordinances. She also cautioned that the City must be careful of people claiming to be experts who might have personal agendas regarding wind systems. She further suggested a 3 -month moratorium on windmill systems until the ordinance is totally refined. She said even the Council members have different interpretations of the subject. i Chairman Golinski asked Mayor Burd to clarify an article in the Beacon News about the Mayor being approached about a wind farm. I i Page 5 of 6 Guest George Gilson said he agreed that this ordinance should not be rushed and that a moratorium would be appropriate. The liability would fall on the city /taxpayer if there was a problem since there is no mechanism in place in the ordinance to cover a problem. There was discussion of wind energy used on farms and Administrator McLaughlin said this usage needs to be refined in the ordinance. A list of recommended manufacturers was suggested, however, it was thought that a list of specs would be better. George Gilson said he is in the business of specifications and that manufacturers can be listed, however, manufacturers cannot be purposely listed for exclusion. Alderman Golsinksi said he agreed with a moratorium and cited a Finding of Fact from a DeKalb County Hearing for a wind farm recently denied. Most committee members agreed with a moratorium and the attorney will be asked to handle the details. Chairman Golinski said factors to be considered are: bond issuance needed, plan for decommissioning units, setbacks (1.5 -2 miles), sunset clause, property tax, fees, property value guarantee plan. The small systems will be addressed first and this matter will be brought back to the next EDC. Travis said he will try to find a speaker to attend the next meeting and any comments should be sent to Travis. Mr. Golinski said a seminar will be held in July in Bloomington. 2. EDC 2009 -07 "Shop Yorkville" Campaign -Update A marketing plan for this campaign was received from Glory Spies. Alderman Munns suggested an idea of "Yorkville's Biggest Winner" with an award for the business that increases their sales tax by the largest percentage for a given time. He also suggested providing "Shop Yorkville" to Yorkville High School. Alderman Besco suggested a punch card system that offers rewards for money spent in Yorkville. Other ideas from Alderman Munns were a $50 gift to the 1000 customer in a store and a "best pizza" contest. Mr. McLaughlin said in the wintertime, Rosati's offered pizza to winners who dropped off their business card. Other ideas included a poker run for businesses and a fishing tournament. Mr. Munns said a completed marketing plan is needed prior to a July 1 st kickoff. Alderwoman Spears said all plans should be gathered and presented to the Chamber. However, Mayor Burd replied that the Chamber does not wish to participate because they represent not just Yorkville businesses, but rather the Yorkville area. Since the City funds the Chamber, it was felt they should stand behind the City and that YEDC should also support the effort. There was a brief discussion regarding whether or not the funding should be continued. i Page 6 of 6 Chairman Golinski said he wants to see the City take the lead in this campaign since the City is spending the money and he wants Yorkville businesses to have a chance at being successful. As an offshoot of this discussion, Mr. Golinski said Yorkville businesses should be made aware of any bid opportunities that arise. He cited some examples from the past where Yorkville businesses did not have that opportunity. It was suggested to place information on the website about this process and it was noted that any bid over $20,000 is published. Alderman Munns requested a revised marketing plan prior to the next meeting and this item will be brought back for further discussion. Additional Business: Alderman Besco said he had heard the City is counting on $150,000 toward the budget, from a certain business in town. He said he also heard there are large judgments against that business for unpaid construction work. His concern was for a shortfall in the City budget. Brendan McLaughlin said the business would open this year and that sub - contractors have judgments against the business in an effort to preserve their rights for payment. Mr. McLaughlin said there were some asphalt deficiencies that the State has not accepted. There was no further business and the meeting was adjourned at 9:04pm. Minutes respectfully submitted by Marlys Young United City of Yorkville 800 Game Farm Road 1 1636 Yorkville, Illinois 60560 -�-� Telephone: 630 -553 -4350 Fax: 630 -553 -7575 .L w-e;.i P LEASE . SIGN IN, MEETING: IJ L DATE: 6-0 NAME COMPANY PHONE NUMBER ellc t A--c- .✓ 4i-, 1 1 1 I 1