Rockford Sun

City of South Beloit City Council met Oct. 19.

Here is the minutes provided by the council:

CALL TO ORDER: 5:00 pm, Council Chambers, City Hall by Mayor Rehl.

ROLL CALL: Present & answering to roll call were Commissioners Adleman, Fitzgerald, Hedrington, Morse, and Mayor Rehl.

City Attorney Wiktoria Goscik was present

City Clerk Tracy Patrick recorded the minutes

Department Heads in attendance:

Police Chief Adam Truman

Fire Chief Administrator Dan Zerfass

Waste Water Treatment Plant Superintendent Jeff Reininger

Street Superintendent Mike Murphy

PLEDGE OF

ALLEGIANCE: Led by Mayor Rehl and recited by all members present.

INVOCATION: Mayor Rehl asked for a moment of silence.

APPROVE AGENDA: Commissioner Hedrington made a motion to approve the agenda second by Commissioner

Fitzgerald. Voice vote carried the motion.

PUBLIC COMMENT: None.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES:

1. Commissioner Adleman made a motion to approve the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting held on October 5, 2020. Commissioner Fitzgerald second the motion. Voice vote carried the motion.

2. Commissioner Hedrington made a motion to layover the minutes of the Special Council Meeting held on October 12, 2020. Commissioner Morse second the motion. Voice vote carried the motion.

REPORT OF OFFICERS:

1. Finance:

Commissioner Morse made a motion to pay the claims to be paid from October 3-16, 2020 in the amount of $1,897,388.86. Commissioner Fitzgerald second the motion. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

2. Attorney Report:

4. Commissioner’s Report:

Accounts & Finance-Commissioner Tom Fitzgerald

Health & Public Safety-Commissioner Brian Hedrington 

Streets & Public Improvement-Commissioner Ryan Adleman

Public Properties-Commissioner Ken Morse

CORRESPONDENCE:

Celestino Ruffini was present from Visit Beloit to give a presentation to Council regarding what Visit Beloit does for membership with South Beloit. Mayor Rehl said Loves Park temporarily suspended its membership with the Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau (RACVB). Council wanted to bring new Council Members up to speed with Visit Beloit wanted to meet with RACVB and Visit Beloit to see if the City and to continue membership with one or both groups Mr. Ruffini introduced himself at President and CEO of Visit Beloit and said Visit Beloit is identical to RACVB only with a much smaller budget. Mr. Ruffini talked to Council about its partnership with the City of South Beloit and said Covid has been an issue with visitors. Mr. Ruffini said Visit Beloit is not a Chamber of Commerce or a Nature at the Confluence partner. Mr. Ruffini said there are 46 active businesses in South Beloit that are part of Visit Beloit and there are 49 listings. Mr. Ruffini reviewed some of the South Beloit businesses that are active with Visit Beloit. Mr. Ruffini spoke about the promotional guides that are placed at the Welcome Center on I90. Commissioner Fitzgerald said he went out to the Welcome Center during the time the City was celebrating its Centennial celebration, and only saw 1small paragraph, and said that he was contacted by a member of the Lion’s Club and was told that they have tried to contact Visit Beloit but had not received a call back yet. Mr. Ruffini said that Visit Beloit has struggled with having brochures from businesses to put out there, and added that he is a member of the Lion’s Club as well. Mayor Rehl thanked Mr. Ruffini for the presentation.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

1. Discussion and/or Motion Items:

a. Commissioner Morse made a motion to approve Resolution 6166 appointing member to the Fire Pension Board as follows:

• Nicole Castillo is hereby appointed as Trustee for the Fire Pension Board for a three (3) year term with said term to expire in September 2023.

Commissioner Adleman second the motion. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

b. Commissioner Hedrington made a motion to approve Resolution 6167 appointing member to the Police Pension Board as follows:

• Elizabeth L. Rozsa is hereby appointed as Trustee for the Police Pension Board for a two (2) year term with said term to expire on the second Tuesday of May of 2021.

Commissioner Adleman second the motion. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

NEW BUSINESS:

a. Commissioner Morse made a motion to approve Ordinance 2557 issuing a Class BG Bar Boutique Gaming Liquor License for Deep 1 Inc. contingent on a clean background check for 280 Blackhawk Blvd. Commissioner Hedrington second the motion. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

b. Commissioner Fitzgerald made a motion to approve Ordinance 2558 issuing a Class BG Bar Boutique Gaming Liquor License for Deep 1 Inc. contingent on a clean background check for 129 Blackhawk Blvd. Commissioner Hedrington second the motion. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

c. Commissioner Hedrington made a motion to approve Ordinance 2559 issuing a Class BG Bar Boutique Gaming Liquor License for Twins75 SB LLC. contingent on a clean background check. Commissioner Fitzgerald second the motion. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

d. Commissioner Morse made a motion to approve Ordinance 2560 amending Chapter 6 Alcoholic Beverages, Article III, Retail License, Section 6-91, of the City of South Beloit Code of Ordinances. Commissioner Fitzgerald second the motion. Attorney Goscik said the change is a minor change regarding the method of written notice being sent from registered mail to certified mail. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

e. Commissioner Morse made a motion to approve Ordinance 2561 amending Chapter 86 – Streets, Sidewalks, and Other Public Places, Article V Driveways of the City Code of Ordinances. Commissioner Hedrington second the motion. Zoning Official, Jessica Roberts explained the change is to designate a secondary front yard on a corner lot for driveway additions. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

f. Commissioner Morse made a motion to approve Resolution 6171 approving Change Order #4 to Larson & Larson for the Fire Department roof in the amount of $9,720.00. Commissioner Hedrington second the motion. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

g. Commissioner Adleman made a motion to approve Resolution 6172 approving Change Order #2 and Final Pay Request to Stenstrom Excavation and Blacktop for Oak Grove and Donor Drive project. Commissioner Fitzgerald second the motion. City Engineer, Mik Gronewold was present and said the change order will be for the final payment and will close out the project. Commissioner Fitzgerald asked how the project did for the budget. Mr. Gronewold explained the project came in 13% under the bid amount. Roll call vote showed 5 ayes.

h. Council discussed storage and parking of RV’s in the front yard. Council members have received phone calls regarding this issue. Council were provided photos of a number of homes that were parked illegally for review. Commissioner Fitzgerald said the current ordinance prohibits parking RV’s on driveways. Council discussed what residents would do with items such as RV’s, boats, jet skis, and other recreational items for parking. Mayor Rehl asked Code Enforcement Officer, Shawna Henthorn where these items are most commonly parked. Ms. Henthorn said they are mostly parking in the driveway or to the side of the driveway. The revision that was made in May does not allow parking in front of a garage. Commissioner Fitzgerald said he would not be opposed to allowing items parked in driveways during the season for the use. Mayor Rehl said the items should not be parked on grass at all. Council discussed the difference between the sidewalk and the right-of-way. Zoning Official, Jessica Roberts said there is a required dimension to be behind the sidewalk. WWTP Superintendent, Jeff Reininger said typically the measurement is 33’ from the center of the road. Commissioner Adleman said he wouldn’t want to allow parking for all year, possibly for the season, however; he has concerns with bigger items being allowed to be parked in driveways such as RV’s. Commissioner Adleman said he has concerns in his own neighborhood where there are several large items parked in driveways, and is concerned with children’s safety. Mayor Rehl said he would be ok with a allowing in the driveway or pad and suggested from April 1 – November 1, otherwise on a pad or to the side or rear, not in the front. Ms. Roberts said the current ordinance only allows for 1 item to be parked on the property. Commissioner Morse said he believes the intent was due to too many items being parked at 1 property. Commissioner Hedrington asked what residents would be expected to do in the winter. Commissioner Adleman said he has concerns with policing what people can own. He also believes if the items are small enough they should be put inside the garage, and said as a homeowner he does not want to have to look at items that become old or are an eyesore. Commissioner Adleman would like to know what other municipalities allow. Commissioner Morse said the City can end up with a lot in the front of the house if allowed. Commissioner Fitzgerald said he would be in favor of 1 item being allowed in the driveway and 1 item being allowed on a pad. It was determined that Mayor Rehl and Commissioner Morse would work with Attorney Goscik to put together an amended ordinance to bring back to Council for review.

MISCELLANEOUS LICENSES:

1. Business Licenses:

a. Betsy’s Slots

Commissioner Fitzgerald made a motion to approve the license second by Commissioner Hedrington. Voice vote carried the motion.

ADJOURN:

At 5:59 pm on a motion made by Commissioner Hedrington second by Commissioner Adleman. Voice vote carried the motion.

https://southbeloit.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/10-19-20-Regular-Council-Meeting.pdf