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Economic Development Minutes 2010 04-06-10 APPROVED 5/4/10 UNITED CITY OF YORKVILLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Tuesday, April 6, 2010, 6:30pm City Conference Room In Attendance: Committee Members Vice-Chairman Alderman Rose Spears Alderman Wally Werderich Alderman Robyn Sutcliff Other City Officials Mayor Valerie Burd City Administrator Bart Olson Interim Community Development Director Laura Schraw Building Code Official Paul Zabel Community Relations-Glory Spies Lynn Dubajic , YEDC (arr. 6:58pm) Other Guests Tony Scott, Kendall County Record Tom Fullerton, Standard Redevelopment The meeting was called to order by Vice-Chairman Rose Spears at 6:30pm. She said she would also be recording the meeting. Minutes for Correction/Approval March 2, 2010 Alderman Sutcliff asked for a correction on a statement she made during the liaison discussion. The corrected minutes will be brought back to the next meeting for review. Items Recommended by Plan Commission for Approval 1. EDC 2010-02 Standard Redevelopment Amended Annexation Agreement and Rezoning Request This concerns 20 acres owned by Standard Bank at the corner of Cannonball Trail and Rte. 47. It is a rezoning request from R3 to B3. It was noted that one resident across the street was notified and he is also a party to the agreement. Alderman Werderich asked about the property to the north. Mr. Olson answered that the property is part of the Bristol Bay Annexation Agreement and owned by State Bank of Countryside. Bart Olson said the Plan Commission gave a unanimous recommendation. th This item is scheduled for a Public Hearing on April 13 and it will proceed to the regular agenda of the City Council. New Business 1. EDC 2010-12 Building Permit Report for February 2010 There was a very brief discussion of the report and is for information only. 1 2. EDC 2010-13 Building Permit Report for March 2010 It was noted many of these permits were for Autumn Creek. Heartland Subdivision has 3 homes under construction with 2 more permits expected. 3. EDC 2010-14 Building Inspection Report Summary for February 2010 The committee commented that they liked the new design of this report. Alderman Spears inquired about the “other” classification inspections. Mr. Zabel thought it was inspections conducted by a private plumber. No further action required. 4. EDC 2010-15 Route 47 Project Signs Bart Olson reported that IDOT is conducting Phase 2 engineering for the Rt. 47 improvements. This item concerns the business signs along Rt. 47 and the fact that they will have to be moved. Many of them are non-conforming and it must be determined if they will just be moved or if the City should require them to become compliant with the new sign code also. IDOT will reimburse the sign moving costs. Photos of the signs that must be moved were included in the packet. Mr. Olson said some of the signs may have historic value or variances may have been granted in the past. Cost of moving and/or new signs is expected to range from $500-$5,000 per sign. The per unit cost may be less if several signs need to be replaced. It was noted that BP Amoco had requested a variance just a year ago and it would most likely just be moved, not changed. Ms. Schraw asked if the City would grant a blanket variance for signs needing to be moved. Alderman Werderich said this would be a good time for the City to have the signs brought into conformance since IDOT would pay. Alderman Spears said that the City Council should work with business owners and give them a choice. She said they could be contacted and then the City would inform IDOT of their decision. Alderman Sutcliff asked if it was the City’s responsibility to give a directive on behalf of all the business owners. Mayor Burd said she agreed with Mr. Olson—that individual business owners could ask for a variance if they wish. There is an $85 fee for a variance request or the fees could be waived. There are also legal fees and fees for drafting the ordinance, though it was noted by Alderman Werderich that an attorney is not necessarily needed for a variance. Ms. Spears said she is opposed to the $85 fee, which places an additional burden on the business owner. Ms. Schraw said she thought IDOT would cover the $85 fee if there were a blanket variance. Mayor Burd said she would like to view this process as a positive one and a means to bring signs into conformance. Ms. Sutcliff said she preferred that all businesses bring their signs into conformance since IDOT is paying for them. Alderman Werderich also felt the signs should conform and felt that the fees should be waived if the burden were to fall on the business owner. For the record, Mr. Werderich said if a business owner came forward with a variance on an existing sign they wish to keep, he would not oppose that. th This item will move forward to the City Council regular agenda for their April 27 2 meeting. Old Business: 1. EDC 2010-03 Building Permit Fees The original proposal was to decrease commercial fees substantially, however, after considering the City’s costs, etc., the fees will not change. Residential driveways, decks and parking lot fees will be changed to offset costs. Alderman Sutcliff asked if Yorkville’s costs had been compared with other towns. Ms. Spears asked that surrounding communities’ plan review fees be surveyed for comparison purposes and she asked for copies of the findings. Mr. Zabel shared some fees previously obtained. Ms. Spears opposed the changes in residential fees due to the poor state of the economy and said that residents are being penalized. Surcharges were also discussed and these would apply when work is begun prior to obtaining a work permit. This charge would be approximately half the cost of a permit. Mr. Zabel also said that refunds are requested occasionally for cancelled projects. Any such requests will be forwarded to the City Administrator along with an applicable report before the request is considered. Ms. Spears asked that these requests be brought to EDC for information. Discussion then turned to swimming pool inspection fees. Mr. Zabel said the building code definition of a pool is more than 2 feet of water and a pump. With an above-ground pool, he also looks for barrier and electrical requirements. Pool permits are now $50 with an increase being proposed. For the next meeting, Bart Olson said a comparison of fees is needed and standards for portable pools be drafted. These will be brought back to the committee in May. 2. EDC 2010-10 Ideas for Regional Events and Tournaments Glory Spies presented a brochure that listed various amenities available for upcoming tournaments. It will be put on the website as well and some brochures were emailed. Alderman Werderich questioned why south-side businesses were not included and said it should include all businesses. Other changes and additions were also discussed. Lynn Dubajic suggested promoting canoe rentals for when the kayak area opens. Mayor Burd said an institute day will be held in May for business owners to consider future events. Glory and Bart will revise the brochure. Ms. Spies said Yorkville, Plano, Sandwich, the Forest Preserve and Aurora Tourism are all working together to bring/promote events.. She said there is a cost of $250 to be included with other 5 other Tourism Bureaus. She announced a “Rte. 34 Event” that will be a continuation of the garage sale that extends to Galesburg. Plano and Sandwich will thth also be participating. This will be held on June 18 and 19 at the corner of Rte. 34 and 47. Tri-Lands is allowing the use of their property and on April 13th a license agreement will be brought before City Council. Tables will be sold at $20-25 for the weekend with the fees going into the City General Fund. Other events are being encouraged. The condition of the streets in the event area were discussed and some gravel will be spread. 3. EDC 2010-11 Committee Liaisons 3 It was noted that Alderman Golinski had asked to put this item on the agenda. Alderman Werderich suggested this be tabled until Alderman Golinski is present. Mayor Burd said she would be happy to keep Alderman Spears as the liaison of YEDC. She said she had written the governing ordinance to keep such processes democratic. Alderman Spears said she had not attended the first YEDC meeting due to the uncertainty of being liaison and she agreed that the matter should be tabled. Alderman Werderich said it was his understanding that there are 2 representatives to the YEDC, one of whom is a Mayoral appointee who represents the Mayor and is a voting member. The other person is a Council liaison. Mayor Burd said a liaison is also needed for Plan Commission. This agenda item will be brought back in May for further discussion. Additional Business On a positive note, Mayor Burd said signs of building are evident again. There was no further business and the meeting was adjourned at 7:45pm. Minutes respectfully submitted by Marlys Young 4