Grundy Reporter

Village of Diamond Board met June 26.

Here is the minutes provided by the Board:

Proceedings, transactions and resolution made and order of said record of said Board in the Village of Diamond, IL on the 26th Day of June, 2018.

The scheduled meeting of the Diamond Village Board was held on Tuesday, June 26th, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. with Mayor Teresa Kernc presiding. Upon roll call Commissioners present were Jeff Kasher and Dave Warner. Absent was Commissioner Adair.

Motion to accept the resignation of Carolyn Wilson as Commissioner effective as of June 12, 2018 at 11:59 p.m. CDT:

Motion was made by Commissioner Kasher, Second by Commissioner Warner to accept the resignation of Carolyn Wilson as Commissioner effective as of June 12, 2018 at 11:59 p.m. CDT. 3 Ayes, 1 Absent; Motion Carried.

Motion to appoint Denise Brown as Commissioner to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Carolyn Wilson:

Motion was made by Commissioner Warner, Second by Kasher to appoint Denise Brown as Commissioner to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Carolyn Wilson. 3 Ayes, 1 Absent; Motion Carried.

Commissioner Adair arrived at 6:03 p.m.

Official Oath of Office; Denise Brown Commissioner:

Deputy Clerk Cindy Haywood swore in Denise Brown and presented her with the Official Oath of Office.

Approval of Minutes:

Motion was made by Commissioner Kasher, Second by Commissioner Adair to approve the 6/12/2018 regular meeting minutes as reviewed and place on file. All Ayes; Motion Carried.

Approval of Bill List:

Motion was made by Commissioner Warner, Second by Commissioner Adair to approve the June 26, 2018 Bill List and place it on file. All Ayes; Motion Carried.

Approval of the Treasurer’s Report:

Motion was made by Commissioner Kasher, Second by Commissioner Adair to approve the May, 2018 Treasurer’s Report and place it on file. All Ayes; Motion Carried.

Public Comment:

Justin Pounder and Michelle Eggert of Burt Estates Mobile Home Park presented a preliminary concept plan to the Board for factory built affordable housing to be located where the previous mobile home park was located off Route 113. Mayor Kernc encouraged them to present a preliminary plan to the Board prior to investing in detailed engineering plans since the property is zoned business, and they would be requesting a residential use in the Village’s commercial corridor. Justin explained that it is their opinion there is a strong demand for this kind of housing in the area and developing it would promote business. He explained that the construction of factory mobile homes has improved significantly and they are proposing a community with a neighborhood design rather than rows of housing. Mr. Pounder said that it is a land lease community and they anticipate 50 to 70 homes. Mayor Kernc explained that detention and full road improvements would be necessary and it would be difficult to accommodate that number of homes. Members of the Board asked whether they considered developing the property with commercial and Justin explained that they do not specialize in that. The Village Board’s overall concern regarding the proposal was its location. Commissioner Warner said that it contradicts the Village’s Comprehensive Plan for its commercial corridor along Route 113. It is the Board’s goal to continue to promote commercial growth along Route 113 in order to help prevent a property tax increase. Mayor Kernc suggested that they reach out to Casey’s since they have appeared to have out-grown their current Diamond location. She also complimented Mr. Pounder and Ms. Eggert for their efforts to improve Burt Estates which has made a positive impact on the community. Mr. Pounder and Ms. Eggert appreciated the Board’s time and everyone agreed to keep communication open for future development of the property.

New Business:

ComEd Presentation of Smart Meter Installation in Diamond:

Mr. Jeff Hetrick of ComEd introduced Dave Doherty Director of the ComEd Smart Meter Program. Mr. Doherty stated that the installation program began in 2013 and out of 4 million meters they have approximately 100,000 remaining installations and all work is performed by ComEd employees, not contractors. The smart meter has a 900 mega hertz radio and eliminates meter reading. It measures all energy delivered to the grid including solar energy. Mr. Doherty said that customers are able to sign up for email alerts and energy usage alerts to aid in lowering individual energy costs. They do not sell information to third parties without explicit permission from the customer. In response to Commissioner Warner, Mr. Doherty explained that data is collected every half hour and transmits 6 times daily. There are collection units located on ComEd poles approximately every mile which then transmit to the data center. He said that the meters measure temperature which provides a safety feature to prevent fires. Additionally, they provide a safety inspection when a meter is installed. Mr. Doherty stated that security and safe equipment is a priority. Mr. Doherty said that they plan to begin meter replacement in Diamond on July 2 and anticipate that it will take approximately 1 month to complete. He added that resident safety is a priority and all vans are clearly marked “Smart Meter Installer”, each employee will have a photo ID, there is no need to enter a residence unless the meter is inside, and they will never request payment. Presently, customers have the option to refuse the meter but will be charged $21.00 per month because the meter will have to be manually read. Mr. Doherty further explained several other programs ComEd offers to its customers including Peak Line Savings Program, Hourly Pricing Program and Outage Alert Program. In response to Commissioner Brown, Mr. Hetrick said third party electric providers are still available for customers. He added that response times for outages are much faster with the smart meter installation because they can pinpoint where the outage exists.

Approve Ordinance 2018-10; Amending Designating Commissioner Posts:

Motion was made by Commissioner Kasher, Second by Commissioner Adair to approve Ordinance 2018-10; Amending Designating Commissioner Posts. All Ayes; Motion Carried.

Approve Ordinance 2018-11; Appropriating for All Corporate Purposes:

Motion was made by Commissioner Adair, Second by Commissioner Warner to approve Ordinance 2018-11; Appropriating for All Corporate Purposes. All Ayes; Motion Carried.

Fox Lawn Homeowner’s Association:

Mayor Kernc explained that during a drop off, Jeff James discovered rocks and debris being dumped at the plant which could damage the equipment. This was acknowledged as already having been dealt with by Austin Vining, and Fox Lawn did contact their vendor, and the situation appears to be resolved. The Board agreed he should pursue having the vendor use a strainer of some sort for future deliveries to prevent a reoccurrence should the vendor neglect to clean out their equipment before hauling waste to Diamond.

Old Business:

Grundy and Will County Sheriff’s Monthly Update:

Mayor Kernc stated that the Shell station continues to receive less drive-offs due to pre-pay pumps.

Legal Counsel:

No Report

Engineer Updates:

Absent

Maintenance Updates:

Public Works Director Austin Vining stated that the drive on the control board continues to be an issue that they are trying to rectify. He said the duct work at the sewer plant is complete and Josh Bzdusek is scheduled to take his Class C Water License exam on July 2, 2018.

Clerk Updates:

Deputy Clerk Cindy Haywood stated that she received a response regarding the drainage issue at 2530 Sterling Court from the contractor. Once they receive authorization to commence, they plan to repair the drain line from the catch basin to the pond, regrade the back yard with swales to ensure surface drainage from the house north to the pond will prevent surface run-off from impacting the neighbors and fill and drain the former pool area and any other low spots to prevent ponding of water.

Commissioner Comments

Commissioner Kasher:

No Report

Commissioner Brown:

No Report

Commissioner Warner: Commissioner Warner said they continue to make improvements at the water and sewer plants and the spreadsheets he prepared to track progress and maintenance are helping as well.

Commissioner Adair:

Commissioner Adair said that they have made some progress on the baseball field. They hope to obtain more bids for the fencing and backstop. Commissioner Adair asked asked Public Works Director Austin Vining to inspect along third base because that area appears to hold water. He also asked Vining to inspect the storm sewer at southwest corner of Route 113 and Will Road which may be blocked.

Mayor Kernc:

Mayor Kernc said that Dr. Bugg, Superintendent of Coal City School District, has requested a meeting to discuss monetary support to increase Coal City Police presence in the schools. Following discussion, the Board was not in favor of the request.

Adjournment:

Motion was made to adjourn the meeting at 7:30 p.m. by Commissioner Adair, Second by Commissioner Warner. All Ayes; Motion Carried.

https://www.villageofdiamond.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/06-26-2018-1.pdf