Village of Oswego Committee of the Whole met Jan. 14.
Here is the minutes provided by the committee:
CALL TO ORDER
President Troy Parlier called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m.
ROLL CALL
Physically Present: President Troy Parlier and Trustees James Marter, Terry Olson, Pam Parr, Luis Perez, Judy Sollinger and Brian Thomas.
Staff Present: Dan Di Santo, Village Administrator; Tina Touchette, Village Clerk; Jeff Burgner, Police Chief; Susan Quasney, Village Engineer; Rod Zenner, Community Development Director; Jenette Sturges, Community Engagement Coordinator, Marketing; Joe Renzetti, IT/GIS Manager; Jay Hoover, Building & Zoning Manager; Carri Parker, Purchasing Manager; Corinna Cole, Economic Development Director; Steve Raasch, Facilities Manager; Karl Ottosen, Village Attorney; and Ryan Morton, Village Attorney.
CONSIDERATION OF AND POSSIBLE ACTIONS ON ANY REQUESTS FOR ELECTRONIC PARTICIPATION IN MEETING
There was no one requested to electronically participate.
PUBLIC FORUM
Public Forum was opened at 6:01 p.m.
David Edelman addressed the Board regarding the entertainment venue by the Park & Ride. The acquisition of Alexander Lumber objective was to payback the Village from the sale of the old Police Department; payback appears to be going to the amphitheater; project is not a bad idea; not following obligation to payback; money is not going to critical needs; what is the funding stream; not going through the RFP process; first time that he has heard of this type of project through the Village; how are other communities paying for these types of projects; who maintains the property; what are the rates and fees; reallocation of priorities and staff; Village has other important needs; timeline seems fast; don’t recall any input from the community; supportive of these types of projects; transparency issues with funding. He thanked the Board for their service to the community.
There was no one else who requested to speak; the Public Forum was closed at 6:08 p.m.
OLD BUSINESS
There was no Old Business.
NEW BUSINESS
F.1. Discuss the Plan to Design, Construct and Operate the Future Entertainment Venue Site Administrator Di Santo addressed the Board regarding the entertainment venue plan.
Background
On October 1, 2019, the Village Board accepted the donation of Lot 7 in Oswego Junction Phase 2 from local developer Kevin Fialko. Per the agreement, the Village agreed to develop “a venue for outdoor live performance and music entertainment and events to be enjoyed by the general public” within 3 years. Three-year window started on October 1, 2019. On December 5, 2019, the Village closed on the property. Staff is seeking direction from the Village Board on how to proceed with developing the entertainment venue.
Property
• Approximately 3 acres
• Adjacent to future Metra station owned by the Village
• Adjacent to 299-space parking lot owned by the Village
Capacity Estimating
Staff looked at numerous communities. Most were on 3 acres.
• Crowd sizes vary on density
➢ 2.5 sf/person for "mosh" pit
➢ 4.5 sf/person for elbow-to-elbow
➢ 10 sf/ person for a light crowd
➢ 16 sf/person if everyone is sitting on blankets
• Using 1.5 acres of crowd space, the site can accommodate 4,000-10,000+ people
Parking
• Parking is the biggest challenge
• At three people per parking space, the existing 299-space lot can accommodate 897 people
• Adding the 1,769 future parking lot to the north of the tracks, another 5,307 people can be accommodated for 6,204 in total
• Shared parking arrangements can also be made with nearby property owners and by using shuttle services
Design Goal
• Minimum Design Standards
➢ Covered performance stage
➢ Parklike setting
➢ Permanent public restrooms
➢ Site lighting plan
➢ Site signage plan
➢ Trash enclosure/ receptacles
➢ Loading path/ area
➢ Stage sound/lighting equipment
➢ Food truck location plan
➢ Re-grading site and pathways
➢ Electrical hook-ups
• Premium Design Standards; can add these if under budget or the Village receives a donation
➢ Permanent seating
➢ Restrooms for performers
➢ Dressing rooms for performers
➢ Wing walls on the stage
➢ Attached storage
➢ Emergency generator
➢ Walking path around the pond
➢ Permanent fencing
➢ Permanent concessions
➢ Playground
➢ Memorial Wall
Project Budget
• Not budgeted in FY20 budget
• FY21 budget currently being assembled
• Minimum standards could be accomplished with $750,000-1 million
• Premium cannot be accommodated
• Potential Funding Sources:
➢ Sale of Old Police Station ($800,000); $750,000 after commission is paid out
➢ State Capital Bill Funds ($265,000)
➢ Grants
➢ Fundraising/Sponsorships
Project Timeline
For construction to be complete in 2020, the proposed timeline should be followed:
• February 2020: Architect/Engineer Contract
• March 5, 2020: PZC Public Hearing
• May 15, 2020: Design Complete
• June 16, 2020: Construction Contract Award
• July 1, 2020: Construction Begins
• October 31, 2020: Construction Complete
Design Teams
• Steering Team
➢ Troy Parlier, Village President
➢ Dan Di Santo, Village Administrator
➢ Jeff Burgner, Chief of Police
➢ Jennifer Hughes, PW Director
➢ Jay Hoover, Building & Zoning Manager
➢ Steve Raasch, Facilities Manager
➢ Carri Parker, Purchasing Manager
➢ Natalie Zine, Planner
➢ Julie Hoffman, Special Events Coordinator
• Stakeholder Team; potential users of the space
➢ Village Board Member
➢ School District 308
➢ Oswegoland Park District
➢ Oswego Fire Protection District
➢ Oswego Area Chamber of Commerce
➢ Cultural Arts Commission Member
➢ Area Neighbors
➢ Veterans Representative
Procurement Processes
• Design
➢ Schoppe Design contract included on the January 14, 2020 Village Board agenda for the preliminary layout
✓ Offered 30% discount on the contract
• Acoustics
➢ Threshold Acoustics, LLC base contract proposed at $12,000
➢ Already did an RFP
• Architecture
➢ Staff seeks direction to vet experienced and qualified firms that the Village has already done business with
➢ Obtaining three quotes
• Engineering
➢ Staff recommends negotiating with one of our pre-qualified firms
➢ Already have an established list of engineers
• Construction requires bidding
• Will be done within the requirements of the procurement code and State code
Board and staff discussion focused on whether the minimum design standards are what the Board is looking for; consensus on process; timeline guides all; premium design examples in other communities; no return on investment; examples vary; not looking at booking and running the venue; maintaining and using by others; run as special event permit; community amenity for community use; Village tax on larger venues; purchase of old PD; what does the Board want to see for the venue; Board has only had one discussion regarding the property; cost of the venue; always a Public Works and PD cost; Village has no money, no budget and no staff for the venue; this meeting is the first opportunity to decide anything; no direction with management company; building will be an asset used by others; costs taken on by the special event permit applicant; management and design; don’t know where the funds are coming from; get feedback from schools and Park District; liking that the special event permit applicant pays; public thinks this venue is going to be free and it’s not; purpose is for Metra and not unused land; not wise to build anything permanent; budget and design; how easily can it be converted; close to transportation; could be an asset; positives and negatives; Metra saw as positive and supportive of it; ok if ran like River Edge in Aurora; River Edge is having parking issues; what is the hurry on getting this built; where is the money coming from; not comfortable without talking about the budget first; not the best use of money when money is needed for an alternative water source and Wolf’s Crossing; timing and funding; go slower and do it right the first time; staff member and architects have expertise in this field; losing staff by burying them in work; design goal; not knowing the costs; including items from the premium design list; potential that premium design items could be added later; premium design items catered more to the performers; talk to other districts regarding design; making sure premium items can be added later; whether it’s easier and cheaper to do initially rather than later; design teams; being competitive when offering the space; fee would be minimal if helping to pay for maintenance; fee would be substantial if helping to cover the cost of the building; what the goal of the fee is; whether the Park District has an amphitheater budgeted and planned already; no reason for both to build one; staff not aware of the Park District planning a amphitheater in the next 10 years; concerns with how the Village would manage the venue; details important; no outside operations; keeping burden on staff low; potential economic growth for Orchard corridor; direction needed as it applies to the timeline; timeline too aggressive; needing to be fair and transparent through the bidding process; what the train counts on the tracks are; going out to bid.
Due to time constraints, the continuation of this item was moved to Staff Reports at the Regular Village Board meeting on January 14, 2020.
F.2. Discussion Regarding Proposed Changes to Wine on the Fox
Item was moved to Staff Reports at the January 14, 2020 Regular Village Board meeting.
CLOSED SESSION
There was no Closed Session.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 7:01 p.m
http://www.oswegoil.org/pdf/1-14-20-cotw.pdf
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