The Minonk City Hall was packed Monday night as the City Council discussed the requirements for hiring a new City Administrator and a new Police Chief. Mayor Bill Koos asked the council to discuss the job description for a new City Administrator. In particular, is a full time administrator needed or can the city get by with a part-time administrator or can the job be handled by the office manager, the Mayor and the city council?
Alderman Nick Caverra said that 25 out of 26 constituents wanted to either eliminate the position of city administrator or make it a part-time job. But then Alderman Larry Fortner asked how are we going to run the day to day business of the city. Alderman Jack Marcoline said he has received a 50/50 split on whether the city administrator job should be full time. He said most businessmen thought it should be a full time job.
Alderman Russell Ruestman suggested the city step back and have the office manager, Libby Goodwin, take over some of the city administrator duties and have the city council members handle some of the duties as well for a period of 6 months or more and see how well it works out. Alderman Ronald "Corky" Marshall suggested eliminating the position and either get a part-time person to devote a half day on the job and maybe partner with another town like El Paso.
Mayor Koos said we could try with some one on a part time basis to learn the strengths and weaknesses of that approach and then decide what is needed for the position. He said the council is willing to help out during this trial period.
The Mayor then asked for pubic comments on the position of a city administrator. Rich Luckey said to go without a city administrator would be very dangerous. Jan Beschorner said someone from Minonk would be better for the job.
Dave Uphoff said he thinks the City needs someone who can bring businesses into Minonk, someone who can write grants. He said the city is fortunate to be located on an interstate access and should do whatever it can to bring in a McDonalds and other businesses to that intersection. He said if the City doesn't want to hire a city administrator to procure businesses, they should hire a consultant to do the job.
Jim Liner said the City needs someone who is accountable to the public. He said we need a professional that can handle the job. The City is opening itself up to liability by not having a professional city administrator who knows the ins and outs of dealing with the government's rules and regulations.
Gary May didn't think it was a good idea to share the city administrator job with another community since we would want the city administrator to promote Minonk.
Mayor Koos said the City is looking for a balance between budget and needs when determining the requirements for a city administrator. Alderman Ruestman said it is hard to get a highly qualified individual for the city administrator job since Minonk is not located near a large metropolitan area.
Police Staffing
Mayor Koos said we have to clearly define what a new policeman is expected to do so he doesn't become overwhelmed by the job or disillusioned and the public doesn't become disappointed in his performance. Alderman Marcoline said most of his constituents want a local police force, not anyone from the county. Alderman Ruestman said most people want a local policeman and his feedback is that the City spends too much resources on the Police Department which spent $320,000 last year. He said people complained about the police spending too much time on catching speeders on Route 251 and not enough time in town.
Mayor Koos said we have to balance security with individual liberty in determining our standard of law enforcement. Alderman Marcoline said most people don't care if a policeman doesn't live in Minonk. They just want a person who knows Minonk.
Alderman Caverra said many people thought the hours for the police could be reduced. Alderman Ruestman said a study of the dispatch records should be done to determine when police need to be on duty and see if 4 hours can be reduced from the night shift.
Jerry Glowacki wanted to know why the City can't pick the new Police Chief from the existing police force. Mayor Koos said the existing police force will be considered after the council decides on the requirements for the Police Chief. Glowacki also wanted to know why a police candidate isn't checked out by contacting local residents of his former place of employment to get a better perspective rather than relying on former employers who are limited on what they can say because of legal ramifications. He didn't feel a proper background check was done on the last police chief.
Steve Hill made a presentation on his behalf to become the next Police Chief. He said he grew up in Minonk and has worked as a police officer in Minonk off and on for 14 years. He said he has the experience and knows the town, He said he is 46 years old and said the City needs someone with the maturity to lead the department in a new direction.
Richard Stillwell said the city needs a police chief from Minonk and said Steve Hill is the best candidate. A woman mentioned that drugs are a huge issue in Minonk and that Steve Hill would address that problem. Jay Jochums said the police should spend less time on catching speeders on Route 251 and more time building relationships with the young people in the community.
Mayor Koos said he does not want a self-funded police force that depends on traffic tickets for revenue. He said the City will be losing TIF money next year and a decision will have to be made on how much can be spent on the police department and a city administrator. He did say that Minonk is in a better financial condition than most other communities.
Kevin Persic asked if the City can get grants to help with expenses. Mayor Koos said the City has a hard time getting grants because Minonk has a per capita income that is above the limit for making it eligible for a grant. He said the City has tried to stay on a cash basis and when the state cuts it shared revenue this summer Minonk will not be hurt as much as other communities since Minonk has no debt.
Parks and Recs Supervisor Rich Luckey wanted to know if they can purchase some equipment that is in the budget for this year. Mayor Koos told him to be patient and wait until they know how much cutbacks will be forthcoming from the State.
Library to digitize micro-fiche
A presentation was made on a system that digitizes the micro-fiche files at the Filger Library. Bill Stewart, the presenter, said his company will digitize all the micro-fiche files of old newspaper articles and put them on a website so that viewers can view the articles. Articles can be searched, emailed and printed. In addition, a Google type search can be done that will display all articles satisfying the search parameters. The articles can then be drilled down into further detail which will highlight the part of the article containing the search parameter.
Viewers will also be able to search on other communities that have their archival files on the system such as El Paso. Viewers will be able to access the articles through the Filger Library website.
Librarian Debra Blunier said the digitizing procedure should take 4 to 6 weeks and wants the Council's approval to go ahead with the project. It will cost $700 a year for cloud storage. Mayor Koos said the money for the project is already in the budget and asked Ms. Blunier to prepare a formal request with cost and present it to the Council at the next meeting for approval.
TIF application for Vintage Canvas
Jan Beschorner of Vintage Canvas located at 420 N. Chestnut applied for a TIF grant of 50% to upgrade the building with a new door, windows and steps. The project cost has a low bid of $14,000. She will be using the building for refinishing furniture. The council will vote on the application at the next meeting in June.
Grocery store
Alderman Marcoline asked the Mayor to put the grocery store issue on next month's agenda. He wants the grocery owner to appear before the council to explain why he is letting the store go downhill. He said someone needs to talk to this guy to see if he can improve his service or check to see if the city can take some action. Mayor Koos said it is hard to interfere with a private business unless some laws are being broken.