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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 02/08/1990 - Committee of the WholeCOMMITTEE MEETING OF THE WHOLE THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1990 7:30 p.m. Mayor Busse called to order a Committee Meeting of the Whole on Thursday, February 8, 1990 at 7:30 P.M. in city hall. The purpose of the meeting was to meet with School Board Members from High School District 156 and Elementary School District 15. The following Aldermen were present: Bolger, Donahue, Teta, Lieder, Patterson, Serritella. Absent: McClatchey, Smith. City staff in attendance were City Clerk Gilpin, Building and Zoning Officer Halik, Park Director Merkel. Plan Commission Members in attendance were Sheppard, Buhrman, Osmon, Toole, Swierk. School Officials and Board Members in attendance were Supt.Bob Swartzloff, Kelly Low, Jim Mowery, Butch Meyer, Francis Larsen, Gary Kraft, Jim Heffelfinger, Steve Cuda, Chris Cardamone, Ken Bruce, Lucy Fick, Supt.Bob Cassidy, Richarg Losch, Paula Ekstrom, Bill Landis, Norb Walter. Mayor Busse announced that the purpose of the meeting was to open up dialogue between the School Boards and the City Council to encourage better communication and cooperation between each agency. Mayor Busse presented a status report on development activity in the City outlining recent and proposed annexations which are pending before the City Council. The Developer Donation Ordinance was also discussed and Alderman Lieder, Chairman of the Finance Committee, reported that his committee is in the process of reviewing that ordinance and he will be back with a recommendation within the next few weeks. When future developments come in for annexation, the Council would like to know if the schools would be interested in cash donations or land for school sites. Presidents of both School Boards felt that cash would be more desirable. It was also noted that a new State Law was recently passed which required that a municipality must notify school districts of any annexations or subdivisions which will be coming into their jurisdiction and the schools should be given an opportunity to participate in the determination in the amount of the donated grounds or contributions and the use to which the donation or contribution should be put. The municipality also cannot adopt any ordinance or resolution to receive a donation of land or cash or a combination of both without first holding a Public Hearing on the matter and receiving comments from interested persons. Mayor Busse said the City would implement this plan and regulation immediately. It was also suggested that maybe the school boundaries should be put on the City maps. President Cuda of District 156 commented that his board is requesting that the City Council change the present developer donation split from 70 percent to grade schools and 30 percent to high schools. Lieder said that this would be part of the discussions when the Developer Donation fund was reviewed. It was also suggested that the Finance Committee should look at how the interest money from the developer donations is used and possibly allocate all, or a portion of it, for distribution to the schools. Another suggestion was to make disbursements of the developer donation fees to the schools more frequently (twice per year). Discussion was also held regarding incentives for non-residential economic development. The City Council and District 15 are of the opinion that incentives should be given to encourage industrial and commercial enterprises to settle in the McHenry Area while District 156 did not feel it was necessary. Everyone in attendance felt that a major effort that should be directed toward striving for better communication between all governmental bodies. Thursday, February 8, 1990 Page 2 It was suggested that School Board Members should attend Council meetings and City Council Members should attend School Board meetings to keep better informed. One suggestion that could be implemented immediately was to exchange agendas and minutes as a method of keeping the lines of communication open. Another suggestion was that these combined meetings should be held quarterly or semi-annually. Mayor Busse adjourned the meeting at 9:42 P.M.