Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Crystal Lake City Council Meets Tuesday Evening

Crystal Lake City Council is meeting Tuesday evening beginning at 7:30 in the Council Chambers at 100 West Woodstock Street, Crystal Lake.

Street Closures For Benefits – Included on the consent agenda are a couple street closure requests. One is for the 13th Annual Woods Creek Feet Meet to take place on Alexandra Boulevard from an area west of Dogwood Drive to an area east of Driftwood Lane on Sunday May 1 for a one-mile walk/run to begin at 8:00 an and a 5K walk/run to begin at 8:30 am. A second street closure request is for Glacier Ridge Elementary School PTA for a "Paws for the Pantry" Run on Sunday, May 31 with a 1-mile walk/run beginning at 8:00 a.m. and a 5K walk/run to begin at 8:30 a.m. Closure of  Village Road is requested for an area between Moorland Drive and Driftwood Lane.

Metra Ridgefield Station Continuation--A request is again made to continue to March 1 the Annexation Hearing for the Ridgefield Metra Station and associated parking lot. The City staff notes that the petitioner has been working to assemble all the information requested by the City Council at the pre-annexation meetings. Additionally, some time is needed to prepare for the upcoming meeting in light of the start of the new Chief Executive Officer of Metra.

A retail Facade and Commercial Tenant Improvement Program—An application request for Crosstown Management/Labemi's at 109 N. Main Street will be considered by the Council.

A Unified Development Ordinance Sign Variation request for a projecting wall sign for Living Room Martini Lounge,(formerly Porter's), 446 W. Virginia Street will be considered; Also for the same establishment, a request for a temporary Use Permit request for a Special Promotion to allow a 50-inch LCD video screen to project outward towards Virginia Street.

A Temporary Use Permit request to allow an ice rink in the front yard of the property at 794 Dover Court will be considered along with the request to waive the Temporary Use Permit Fee.

Gas Depot at 471 Virginia Street is requesting a sign Ordinance variation to change the fee of the existing freestanding sign and to add signage to the canopy at the business at 471 Virginia Street.

Developers for the proposed City Square development at 110 W. Woodstock Street are requesting an extension of the Preliminary Planned Unit Development.

An extension of the Final Plan of Subdivision approval is also being requested for Ashwood Estates Subdivision, located on the west side of Huntley Road, south of Oakwood Drive.

Virginia Street Improvements--A bid award and resolution authorizing execution of an $88,775 contract for the installation of new electrical service laterals for the Virginia Street Corridor and allowing for a 10 percent contingency. This is for the Virginia Street improvement program. Associated Electrical Contractors, Inc., Woodstock was the lowest bidder of three proposals. This project is being funded by Tax Increment Financing (TIF).

Changes for the city's public safety radio system. The Federal Communication Commission has mandated that all public safety radio systems be narrowbanded from 25 kHz to 12.5 kHz by January 1, 2013. This is due to congestion within this radio spectrum. The City is retaining an independent radio system consultant to guide the City through the FCC mandates. Consulting services are being retained to guide the City through the necessary process.

Currently the City has three radio channels, one used by the Police Department, one by the Fire Rescue Department and one used by the Public Works Department with Three Oaks Recreation Area (TORA) share the Public Works Department channel. That sharing may change since there is interference experienced at TORA. A new license is being considered for TORA.

A contract is to be awarded to the lowest responsive, responsible proposer, Elert Associates, Libertyville for the narrowbanding and a new radio channel.

Pingree Road Improvements--The project limits for this are from Rakow Road to US Route 14; and the physical roadway limits extend from McArdle Drive to Pointe Drive. The scope of the work includes resurfacing from McArdle Drive to Tek Drive with reconstruction and widening from Tek Drive to Pointe Drive.

The city has secured $1.5 million in federal Surface Transportation Program funds for the construction and Phase III Engineering portions of the project. City Motor Fuel Tax funds will cover the balance. A letting date is scheduled on April 29, for the project. In order to complete the project, the City must select a consultant to perform what is know as Phase III Engineering, to ensure the project is completed per plan and on time. It is recommended by the City Engineering Department that a firm knowledgeable and experienced oversee the project construction. Since Federal STP funds are being used in Phase III Engineering, federal laws require that purely qualifications-based selection process be followed to secure an engineering firm.

After reviewing 13 proposals, the Engineering Division determined Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd as the most qualified and responsible proposer at a cost of approximately $68,000 less than what is currently budgeted for the Phase III Engineering services. Federal law prohibits revealing or considering any other proposer's cost.

The Council is also being asked to approve the appropriation of $72,183 in MFT funds for the construction and Phase III Engineering services for the Pingree Road Segment 3 Improvement. This is to cover $115,790 for the engineering consulting services, $344,814 for the construction, and a contingency of $11,579.

New Police Cars--A resolution is being presented for the purchase of seven Police Pursuit Cars to replace seven 2008 Crown Victoria cars currently used by the Department. They have been in place since 2007 and logged an average of 83,240 miles each. Although this model of car is being discontinued the City can reduce equipment installation costs since the current equipment can be transferred to the new cars since they are the same configuration as previous mode years. If cars are not ordered by March 2 of this year, a different model vehicle would have to be ordered leading to higher cost of equipment transfer.

Well #7 Problems--Investigation of problems with the well has revealed the need to replace the motor for this well as well as an electrical cable at a cost of $163,801.70.

Union Pacific Railroad Grade Crossing Improvement On Pingree Road--The area of improvement is between Cog Circle and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. Included are additional turn lanes at the Congress Parkway intersection. Metra is also participating in this project since it involves the Metra Pingree Road Station.

The improvements as approved by IDOT include an extension of the current sidewalk network along Pingree Road across the tracks to connect the existing shared-use path to the north.

Estimated labor and material cots for the installation of the necessary grade crossing improvements are listed at $189,738. This is the overall construction cost and is being funded through Metra contributions and Federal Surface Transportation Program funding. The City will be responsible for the annual maintenance fee of $2,720 per year for the two pedestrian warning gates needed.

Stormwater Management Consultant Agreement--An extension of the City's current agreement for stormwater management consulting services with Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd. is also to be authorized.

Dial-A-Ride Services from Senior Services Grant Fund--The Council is asked to approve the necessary resolution for an intergovernmental agreement between McHenry County and the City enabling the payments for Dial-A-Ride Services from the Senior Services Grant Fund.

In order to continue the Dial-A-Ride services, approval is needed for a resolution authorizing execution of an intergovernmental agreement between McHenry County and the City enabling payments for the services from the Senior Services Grant Fund.

Crystal Lake Police Department As Part of the Drug Enforcement Administration--The Council is asked to execute an Intergovernmental Agreement with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration enabling the Crystal Lake Police Department to become a member of the Provisional State and Local Government Task Force.

Crystal Lake Police Department To Be Part of the Cyber Crimes Investigation Group --A resolution execution is needed for a Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement enabling the Crystal Lake Police Department to become a member of the Cyber Crimes Investigation Group federal task force and for reimbursement of joint operations expenses from the Treasury Forfeiture Fund.

Resolution of Suppor for Mercy Hospital--Mercy Health System has requested the City Council to pass a resolution supporting their proposed Crystal Lake Hospital, planned for location at the southeast corner of Route 31 and Three Oaks Road. This would be a 128-bed hospital offering a full spectrum of services. It would be conveniently located for Crystal Lake residents as well as provide a positive economic impact to the community. Zoning approval for the proposed facility cannot be requested until the State application is processed and approved.

Although the City Council previously granted zoning approval for a Preliminary PUD, Special Use Permits for a hospital and helipad along with variations, these are no longer in effect since they expired after two years if the use was not instituted.

The State's certificate of need process provides for a local public hearing for the proposed hospital. That hearing is scheduled for March 18 at 10:00 a.m. in the City Council Chambers. The resolution being presented to the Council for approval is to be signed by a Mayor Pro-Tem because of Mayor Shepley's position with Centegra Hospital.

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