Administration Minutes 2012 01-19-12
APPROVED 2/16/12
UNITED CITY OF YORKVILLE
ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE MEETING
Thursday, January 19, 2012 6:00pm
City Hall Conference Room
COMMITTEE MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE:
Chairman Rose Spears
Alderman Carlo Colosimo
Alderman George Gilson
Absent: Alderman Marty Munns
OTHER CITY OFFICIALS IN ATTENDANCE:
Mayor Gary Golinski
City Administrator Bart Olson
Alderman Chris Funkhouser
(arr. 7:35pm)
Human Resources Manager Meghan Ostreko
GUESTS:
Matt Seng, Fox Highlands
(arr. 6:45pm)
Jill Duchnowski, Yorkville Patch
(arr. 7:18pm)
The meeting was called to order at 6:02pm by Chairman Rose Spears.
Citizen Comments:
None
Minutes for Correction/Approval-
December 15, 2011
Page 1: Item #1 under New Business, last sentence should read …”when F. E. Wheaton
closes…” (not “is closes”)
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Page 4: First paragraph, last sentence should read “Ward will…”
Going forward, committee members not in attendance at the committee meetings will be
documented in the minutes as being absent.
The minutes were then approved as corrected.
New Business:
1. ADM 2012-01 Monthly Budget Report for December 2011
It was noted that the budget is at 67% at this time. The committee then discussed several
items in the report as follows.
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Page 2
: Alderman Gilson questioned Administration overtime. It was attributed to
employees cashing out comp time, also some overtime was paid for water bills litigation
(Mr. Olson to check on line item for this), FOIA requests and legal discovery for Ocean
Atlantic. The December amount was $660, bringing the total to $1,030 with a budget of
$575. Mr. Gilson questioned how the City could ever accurately budget this category.
Page 3:
Mr. Gilson noted the part-time police salaries and overtime were very high.
These salaries will be offset by the lack of cadets and Mr. Olson said the Chief of Police
had already predicted this category would be high. The projected amount of overtime is
$125,000 for the year. Bart Olson will check on the details of professional services costs.
Page 4:
Alderman Spears asked about the expenditures in the wearing apparel category.
This is due to new hires in the Police Department with a cost of about $2,000 to $2,500
per officer. Alderman Gilson asked how much more would be spent on inspections. The
total spent is $27,500 for the year with $4,000 more being anticipated.
Page 5:
The Administration expenses for Professional Services are at 121% of the
budget. This is the IT/GIS line item and the expense was for the City server. This will
be transferred to contingency and the Council has already approved.
Page 7:
Alderman Gilson questioned the Public Works Professional Services being
123% over budget. Mr. Olson said this is lien fees and the City will recoup that money.
Page 10:
Chairman Spearsquestionedthe Lift Station Maintenance at 95.48%. Expense
was a pump motor.
Page 9:
Mr.Gilson said Publicity and Advertising for Water Operations is at budget. He
questioned Professional Services at 180%. Water liens are coded here and will be
recouped. Mr. Olson will research the $15,000 spent for Repair and Maintenance in
November.
Page 12:
Part-time salaries for Parks were questioned by Mr. Gilson and determined to
be seasonal employees. Overtime could be attributed to snowplowing. Copier expenses
are coded to Professional Services with$5,000 being spent per month. Professional
Services are program instructors; for example, All Star Baseball instructors receive 80%
of the fees charged. The possibility of a separate line item for contractual services will be
explored. The program refunds are high and were from fall classes. Salaries of $75,000
for employees and $50,000 for contracted employees were questioned by Mr. Gilson.
He also suggested separate lines for expenses and revenues. He noted program fees are
17-18% behind, however, memberships are doing well.
This monthly budget report moves forward to the Council consent agenda.
2. ADM 20-12 02 Monthly Treasurer’s Report for December 2011
Mr. Olson commented that bond payments are made in December. This moves forward
to the Council consent agenda.
3. ADM 20-12 03 Cash Statement for November 2011
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Information only, moves forward to Council consent agenda.
4. ADM 2012-04 Quarterly Comp Time Report
This committee had requested this report. Alderman Colosimo asked if an offer had been
made to employees. The offer was made and some employees took advantage of it. This
report will come back to committee every 6 months for review.
5. ADM 2012-05 NIMEC Bid for Electric Accounts
Administrator Olson said NIMEC bids out to potential electric power suppliers. When
the winning bid is determined, it will be presented to the City and a decision is required
within 24 hours. The City Administrator and Finance Director are seeking approval to
make a decision on behalf of the City. This item will be moved forward to Council for a
motion to approve on the consent agenda.
6. ADM 2012-06 Audit RFP – Vendor Selection
All bidders were qualified and the low bidder was Lauterbach and Amen. Mr.
Fredrickson had previous experience with this company and they were selected. This
item will move to the Council consent agenda.
7. ADM 2012-07 Revision to Procedural Ordinance
Mr. Olson said this proposed revision resulted from the bike path discussion. The
revision would require an agenda item with a negative committee recommendation, to
move forward to the Council level. Attorney Orr suggested giving discretion to
committees to discuss and put items on the Council agenda and she said the Mayor
always reviews committee agendas.
Alderman Colosimo said he thinks there are enough safeguards to place items on agendas
and not all items proceed to the Council level. He said although “killing” items in
committee has a bad connotation, committees are in place to filter information.
Following discussion, this proposed revision was defeated in the committee.
Old Business
1. ADM 2011-41 Redistricting – Ward Maps
Mr. Olson said there are 2 maps in the packet and on Alternate 2 a change was made
placing Bristol Bay in Ward 3. Another suggestion was to place a section of Heartland
Circle & Heartland into Ward 2.
Alternate 1 keeps Heartland Circle and Heartland in Ward 4. Ward 4 still has the highest
number of residents and is the fastest-growing.
Alternate 2 places Heartland Circle in Ward 2 and leaves Heartland subdivision in Ward
4. Alternate 2 has the most even population distribution and also sets Ward 4 as the
lowest populated ward allowing for future growth.
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All committee members preferred Alternate map 2. The next step is to move this choice
forward and schedule a March Public Hearing for formal adoption. Alderman Colosimo
asked that this map be placed on the website for citizen review. After the Public
Hearing, the recommendation would move forward to the Council consent agenda.
2. ADM 2011-40 Employee Manual Revision –Sections 3 & 4
Human Resource Manager Meghan Ostreko said Section 3 is compensation and 4 is
benefits. Many clarifications were made to better administer the policies and benefits.
She opened the floor to questions.
Page 65:
Gilson questioned callback pay and asked if it is standard to pay 1.5 times
regular pay. This is standard and the revision spells out that if an employee is called in
on a holiday, they receive 2 times their normal pay.
Page 66:
Gilson asked for clarification on the longevity change. Meghan explained
longevity relating to bargaining units. She cited the example of 2 employees who left the
City, then returned and she said their years of service do not count towards their
longevity. Alderman Colosimo pointed out that continuous service means no break from
service and suggested the wording could be interpreted differently. Mr. Olson said some
employees may have been grandfathered in under a previous policy. However, if
someone is laid off and then brought back without another job in between, Mr. Olson said
that would be continuous service under this policy. Aldermen Spears and Colosimo
agreed, however George Gilson said it should not be continuous service. He said if the
City adopts this policy, there should be a time limit for someone who was laid off.
Alderman Colosimo said this change in the longevity is one of the benefits the City can
extend in this economy.
Page 67:
Chairman Spears asked what the probationary time period is. It is 12 months.
Page 68:
It was noted that a new hire would receive 1 week of vacation after 6 months
employment giving earlier access to vacation. Previously it was 2 weeks after 1 year.
Mr. Gilson said most companies do not allow vacation after just 6 months. He raised the
scenario of an employee using vacation after 6 months and then leaving the City. Ms.
Ostreko said pro-rated vacation is paid to an employee who leaves within a year.
Mr. Gilson questioned whether a part-time employee should receive the same vacation as
a full-time person as stated in the policy. There was discussion on this and Mr. Olson
said there was a clause stating it would only be given to an eligible part time employee if
it was a compensation package approved by the Mayor. Alderman Spears and Colosimo
said there should be a definition of an eligible part-time person. Staff will revise the
language for this section.
Non-exempt employees can now receive 200 hours of vacation after 16 years, which was
previously capped at 160 hours. This mirrors the Public Works contract. Mr. Gilson
questioned the Public Works double time pay vs. time and one-half for regular
employees, plus holiday pay for holiday call-ins. The Public Works manual will be
checked and staff will make a recommendation for next month.
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In general discussion, Ms. Ostreko commented that the City might want to consider a
Paid Time Off (PTO) Policy whereby the employee has one pool of time off. She said it
has pros and cons and is somewhat complicated to implement. It is used in Naperville
and has 2 tiers. Alderman Gilson said he is on a PTO policy and it works well.
Alderman Colosimo said if certain categories are separated such as bereavement, military
etc., then it creates more categories like the present policy. Mayor Golinski asked how
many more days would be added if a PTO policy was instituted. Basically the number of
days are decreased, but the flexibility is increased. Mr. Olson said the employees could
be asked their opinion of such a program. He also noted that currently, sick time can be
banked. Alderman Colosimo asked if PTO can be given to other employees who are
sick. The policy could be changed to accommodate according to Bart. City employees
and also other towns will be surveyed for their opinion.
Page 69:
Alderman Gilson asked if the 960-hour accrual of sick leave would continue
It depends if PTO accrual is adopted according to Mr. Olson. He said there is a
recommendation that it cannot be cashed out unless the employee works 20 years. Ms.
Ostreko said she also did a survey of other towns and some of them have no limits on
accruals..
Page 71
: Alderman Colosimo said the “Mayor” should be included in the language
approving emergency or bereavement leave.
Page 74:
Ms. Spears said the term “Cobra” should be included in the section regarding
continuation of medical coverage.
The Education section language was also discussed. The current language states
reimbursement will occur at the discretion of the Mayor & City Council. Revised
language agreed on is: Upon approval pursuant to Section a, the City shall pay tuition
and fees only”. Carlo also said a grade of “B-” or greater, should be required for
reimbursement.
Page 75:
The rate of $150 for lodging and meals for a night was questioned, but it was
decided this is close to the going rate. It was noted the City receives a per diem rate.
th
Alderman Spears noted a revision is needed in the 4 sentence under Lodging where it
says “…City credit card when feasibletaken…”
Alderman Gilson questioned the phrase “within the narrative of the budget” under the
heading “Training and Certificates”. Mr. Olson said this phrase requires details of the
trip prior to attending.
Ms. Ostreko said after the last 2 sections are discussed, the Labor Attorney will review
st
the document. It is hoped to have it completed by May 1. Mayor Golinski said this was
a good comprehensive update.
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3. 2011-44 City Services Survey
Committee members reviewed the survey on-line and Mr. Olson said it took about 10-15
minutes for City employees to finish. He added that abundant analysis can be derived
from the survey. It will proceed to the consent agenda for a February Council meeting.
Additional Business:
Chairman Spears said she received a call from the UPS store that has a concern since the
UPSUPS store
City has an account with UPS. and the are totally different businesses.
The store representative said City employees drop packages off there, however, they do
not receive any money from this transaction. The store has been processing the packages
nonetheless. He said UPS and the UPS store charge the same amount unless the City has
the daily pickup service. The store does not charge for weigh bills, but UPS does. Bart
Olson will speak with the store rep for further information.
===============
Ms. Spears also received a call regarding Com Ed and City power outages. The resident
said this shuts down his internet service where he receives Doctor information and he
wished to know what action the City is taking. Alderman Gilson also noted there are
power surges occurring especially on the south side. Mr. Olson said the resident should
contact Com Ed who logs problems and a year-end report is provided to the City. Mr.
Gilson asked if the City could do anything now. Mr. Olson will also report the problem
to the Com Ed rep. Aldermen Colosimo and Gilson would like to see a Com Ed report of
the outages. Com Ed is starting to roll out a GIS report of where surges occur, but is not
completely reliable yet. The City will be receiving upgrades in the next couple years
according to Bart Olson.
=================
Alderman Gilson inquired about the funding for the River Road bridge. Mr. Olson said
State funds are available through an inter-governmental agreement. The City asked the
County to front-fund the money for the City portion. Bond payments are due in
December and the front-funding will help cash flow.
=================
Mayor Golinski said he is going to bring an item back that had been killed in committee.
This concerns the Blackberry Creek agreement. Public Works did not agree with some of
the language in the agreement, since IDOT had changed some language. It is hoped there
will be an agreement by end of January to take advantage of a grant. It will then be
moved forward to City Council.
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A 6-month extension has been received for the bike path according to Bart Olson.
=================
There was no further business and the meeting adjourned at 7:56pm.
Minutes transcribed by
Marlys Young, Minute Taker
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