Rockford Sun

Village of Rockton Administration Committee met Aug. 18.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

Chairman York called the regular meeting of the Administration Committee to order at 5:30 pm. Members present: Mayor Peterson, Sarah Doerflinger, Dave Winters and Justin York Staff present: Dan Barber, Sally Bennett, Tricia Diduch and Chief Hollinger

Also present: Ross Grimes (Fehr Graham) & Eric Setter (Northern Illinois Land Bank)

Motion by Mr. Winters, second by Mrs. Doerflinger to waive the reading of and approve the minutes of July 14, 2025. All ayes. Motion approved 3-0.

Motion by Mr. Winters, second by Mr. Baumgartner to waive the reading of and approve the minutes of August 4, 2025. All ayes. Motion approved 3-0.

PUBLIC COMMENT

None.

MAYOR – JOHN PETERSON

Mayor Peterson advised the Committee that he understands that Village Hall is getting tight on space and asked Mr. York about cloud storage at Village Hall. Mr. York said that we are keeping paper that we are required to keep. Ms. Diduch stated that we have minimized a lot, but this isn’t going to save much space. Ms. Diduch added that the new village administrator should have background on this as well. Mayor Peterson said that there’s no reason for him to have his big office and asked if the police department could use it for more office space. Chief Hollinger said that he didn’t want the office at this time. Ms. Diduch said that she asked Chris Anderson, who serves on one of her commissions, to take a look at Village Hall since he has a background in architecture. Mayor Peterson said that we should definitely look into what we can do with the existing building to create more space.

Mayor Peterson stated that a convicted murderer just moved in at 806 Kocher Street and that he is meeting with Alan Zais, Executive Director of the Winnebago County Housing Authority (WCHA), on Wednesday because he has concerns about WCHA taking over the property at Goldie Floberg. Chief Hollinger added that there was another battery arrest with a different resident at 806 Kocher Street today and that the police department has had many occurrences with this person. Mayor Peterson said that a lot of these problems started five years ago. Mr. Winters inquired if the local manager of the property make these decisions as to who resides on the property. Mayor Peterson said that he didn’t have an answer to that, but that he is extremely concerned.

Mayor Peterson commented that the Rockton Inn had an issue with their liquor license payment and that he is going to talk to the owner in regards to this.

Mayor Peterson added that Comcast would like to install internet (fiber) for the businesses downtown, but this would not be offered for residential areas. Mr. Barber said that he has some concerns about this project that he is looking into.

ADMINISTRATION – JUSTIN YORK

Mr. York discussed the copier lease agreement with the Committee. Mr. York stated that he was satisfied with the information provided by Integra in reference to their service and maintenance for the copier. Mr. York said that he thinks the Village should go with a new copier lease and the Committee agreed. Mr. Winters said that we should get a consensus for this and ratify it at the next meeting. The Committee was okay with this.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT – SARAH DOERFLINGER

Motion by Mrs. Doerflinger to approve the payment for the annual membership with the Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau in the amount of $5,000, second by Mr. Winters. Roll call. All ayes. Motion approved 3-0.

Mrs. Doerflinger stated that Resolution 2025-117: Authorizing Execution of Intergovernmental Agreement to Join the Northern Illinois Land Bank is up for approval at the Village Board meeting on August 19, 2025. Ms. Diduch advised the Committee that just over a year ago the Village wanted to do a Brownfields grant for the Sonoco property. Ms. Diduch said that the Village has a NFR (no further remediation) letter for the commercial property, but that a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) was never done on the property and that without a Phase I the Village can’t apply for the grant. Ms. Diduch added that there is somewhat of an emergency since the federal funding is going to decrease after this next year. Ross Grimes with Fehr Graham and Eric Setter with the Northern Illinois Land Bank (NILB) spoke to the Committee in reference to what the Northern Illinois Land Bank can do to assist the Village. Mr. Grimes stated that there are significant challenges with PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) which are a group of man-made industrial chemical on the site. Mr. Grimes said that this would cost $1.8M - $2M to clean up the property to residential standards. Mr. Grimes stated that there is $300M in the federal program this year, but funding will be cut next year. Mr. Grimes explained that since the Village didn’t have a Phase I completed on the property that we can’t apply for the EPA grant and wouldn’t be eligible. Mr. Grimes said that an option to get this done would be to join the NILB and move the Sonoco property site to the land bank as soon as possible. Mr. Setter explained that there was no pressure for the Village to do this, but that the NILB is there to help the Village if they choose to do this. Mr. Setter said that the NILB includes six counties and that if the Village is interested, the NILB would vote to accept the property in late September. Mr. Setter said that the NILB wouldn’t take on the current loan payments once the property is deeded over to them and that there would be no direct financial relationship which would be spelled out in the agreement. Mr. Grimes said that the NILB would then apply for the Brownfields grant and, hopefully, get the property cleaned up to residential standards and have the option of a recreational path. Mr. Grimes said that deeding the property over to the NILB would only be necessary if the Village wants it cleaned up to residential standards. Mr. Grimes said that the chances are better this year to apply for the grant this year rather than waiting a year when the funding will substantially decrease. Mr. Setter explained that the Village would have a representative at the NILB who would approve who the property goes to after the cleanup is completed. Mr. Setter also explained that the Village wouldn’t get the proceeds from the sale of the property. Ms. Diduch stated that this is a solution to the problem of not getting the Phase I completed on the property. Ms. Diduch stated that the Village paid $325,000 for the property and that somehow a mistake was made along the way and that this was overlooked. Ms. Diduch added that the resolution up for approval simply approved the Village joining the NILB. Ms. Diduch said that Fehr Graham will write the grant and that this has been allocated for already. Mr. Setter said that the NILB will need to know by the end of September if the Village would like to do this. The Committee was okay with approving the resolution to join the NILB.

PUBLIC SAFETY & LEGAL – DAVE WINTERS

Motion by Mr. Winters to approve the purchase order for Northwestern Center for Public Safety School of Professional Studies for Sgt. Heintz to attend the School of Police Staff and Command in the amount of $4,700, second by Mrs. Doerflinger. Roll call. All ayes. Motion approved 3-0.

THE CHIEF– MATT HOLLINGER

Chief Hollinger stated that Officer Ryan Garst is graduating from the police academy this Thursday and that he will be starting field training when he returns.

PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATOR – TRICIA DIDUCH

Ms. Diduch stated that she is leaving comprehensive notes upon her departure and that it’s been a pleasure working for the Village.

EXECUTIVE SESSION

None.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS ALLOWED BY LAW

None.

ADJOURN

Motion by Mr. Winters, second by Mrs. Doerflinger, to adjourn at 6:27 pm.

https://rocktonil.gov/vertical/sites/%7B5EFC50B8-A3D6-48DC-ACA0-E05F307CFA0B%7D/uploads/8-18-25_Administration_Minutes.pdf