Village of Oswego Committee of the Whole met Aug. 18.
Here is the minutes provided by the committee:
CALL TO ORDER
President Troy Parlier called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m.
ROLL CALL
Board Members Physically Present: President Troy Parlier and Trustees James Marter II, Terry Olson, Pam Parr, Luis Perez, Judy Sollinger and Brian Thomas.
Staff Physically Present: Dan Di Santo, Village Administrator; Christina Burns, Asst. Village Administrator/HR Director; Tina Touchette, Village Clerk; Jeff Burgner, Police Chief; Joe Renzetti, IT/GIS Director; Mark Horton, Finance Director; and Rod Zenner, Community Development Director; Jennifer Hughes, Public Works Director; Susan Quasney, Project Engineer; Tim Zasada, Asst. Public Works Director Utilities; Ryan Morton, Village Attorney; and Karl Ottosen, Village Attorney.
PUBLIC FORUM
Public Forum was opened at 6:02 p.m. There was no one else who requested to speak; the Public Forum was closed at 6:02 p.m.
OLD BUSINESS
F.1 Consideration and Discussion of a Summer Street Sweep
Director Hughes addressed the Board regarding the summer street sweep. The Village currently contracts with Lake Shore Recycling Systems-Clean Sweep for annual street sweeping. The current spring sweep was completed the week of June 15, 2020. During the May 12, 2020 Committee of the Whole meeting, initial discussion took place regarding a new street sweeping contract. Part of the discussion was the previous contract which included three sweeps a year, spring, summer, and fall. Due to the current COVID situation and budgetary concerns, staff suggested the consideration of skipping the summer sweep in 2020. Since the spring sweep in June, the Village has had a few storms, including one on August 11th, which left minimal debris in the curb lines. Staff suggests the summer sweep could be skipped. Our contractor indicates that skipping the sweep could result in a slightly higher cost for the winter sweep, anticipating that more debris would be collected. The fall sweep is typically conducted near the end of the leaf season, sometime in November or early December. To continue to improve the quality of stormwater runoff, remove leaves, grass clippings, other debris and improve the appearance of our Village streets, it is recommended to street sweep at least three times a year. The cost of the summer sweep is $13,137.00
Board and staff discussion focused on last time the sweep was skipped was five years ago; street sweeping used to be done in-house; this is the second year with the contractor; Village only has one sweeper; whether still need to do an August sweep; origin of the sweeper; no sanitary sewers back in the day; clogged storm sewers is the risk; having to unclog inlets; Village was lucky in this last storm; skipping is not the end of the world; if the Village gets more storms, it may get more expensive; 300+ miles to sweep; staff did send out our own trucks for certain sections; have a program for cleaning out catch basins; especially the catch basins by the corn fields; could cost an additional $3,000 if the Village gets a storm; would be around $16,000; two-three sweepers working 12 hour days can get the Village completed; machine is powerful; very costly to maintain the Village’s sweeper; contracted a company to extend the life of the machine and gaining workers; end of November, beginning December will be the next sweep; don’t care one way or another as long as staying on schedule; worried about clogged drains; can call out the contractors if the Village gets storms; costs for an emergency sweep; consensus was to pass on the summer sweep; staff will bring back, if needed. There was no further discussion.
NEW BUSINESS
G.1 Discuss How to Conduct Village Board Meetings During the Remainder of the COVID-19 Pandemic.
President Parlier and Administrator Di Santo addressed the Board regarding Village Board meetings. The August 4, 2020 Village Board meeting was held in-person in compliance with state guidelines, without the use of Zoom web conferencing. Seating at the dais was spaced out to provide 6’ of distance between seats and many chairs in the audience were labeled “Do Not Sit” to ensure at least 6’ of distance was maintained from each occupied seat. Overflow seating was provided in the lobby and Community Room, where the Board meeting was simulcasted if more public attended than could safely be seated in the Board Room. In addition, the temperature was taken of each person entering the building. As always, the Village Board meeting was live-streamed and recorded on the Village website. Under the Trustee Reports portion of the meeting, Trustee Parr asked to discuss the new meeting protocol under COVID-19. In turn, Mayor Parlier directed staff to add the discussion to the August 18, 2020 Committee of the Whole meeting.
Board and staff discussion focused on appreciate back to normal; number of COVID cases are starting to creep up; this is not normal; policy if pandemic is in play; public should have the right to address the Board without having to come in person; would like to see other options available; opportunity to come or stay at home and address the Board; Oswego is the only Board doing this; there are other communities and organizations back to normal; Village President would be happy to read comments under his report; seat markers and social distancing is in place; temperature is being checked at the door; policy is that public comment has to be in person; difference between intent and actual; last meeting a couple left their house and they were terrified; Village will know if there is a spike and the Governor will make a change, if needed; trying to get back to normalcy and it’s not perfect; feels like you want to limit conversations; there’s a reason for the Open Meetings Act; it’s so residents can see how we make decisions; don’t care what we do, just want people to know; having some blended approaches and solutions; whether a lot of public comment burdens the Board; bandwidth; at-risk residents would benefit from going on-line; even before COVID, the Board had people email them and they would read them under their reports; contacting Board members who would represent that resident during their reports; residents don’t know that they can do that; Board members get emails all the time and can encourage more; different through email than in person; school district gets a lot of comments; like emails and being able to follow-up with them; game changer is the pandemic; if it is important to them, they will come to a meeting; so health is not important; there is always an inherent risk; always rooting for normalcy; grey area is the accommodations; what hasn’t the Board been transparent with; two days after the last Board meeting, Village Hall had to close due to a positive COVID case; wanting other options; public comment is not the only way to talk to the Board; encourage residents to contact the Board; wanting the public to know how to contact them during a pandemic; consensus was to return to normal. President Parlier thanked everyone for the discussion. There was no further discussion.
CLOSED SESSION
There was no Closed Session held.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 6:35 p.m.
http://www.oswegoil.org/pdf/8-18-20-cotw.pdf
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