United City of Yorkville Economic Development Committee met Sept. 1.
Here is the minutes provided by the committee:
Note: In accordance with Public Act 101-0640 and Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamation issued by Governor Pritzker pursuant to the powers vested in the Governor under the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, remote attendance was allowed for this meeting to encourage social distancing due to the current Covid-19 pandemic.
In Attendance:
Committee Members
Chairman Jackie Milschewski/in-person Alderman Ken Koch/in-person
Alderman Jason Peterson/in-person Alderman Joel Frieders/remote
Other City Officials
City Administrator Bart Olson/in-person
Assistant City Administrator Erin Willrett/remote
Community Development Director Krysti Barksdale-Noble/in-person
Senior Planner Jason Engberg/in-person
Code Official Pete Ratos/in-person
Alderman Chris Funkhouser/in-person
Other Guests
Consultant Lynn Dubajic/remote
Todd Vandermyde, Federal Firearms Licensees of Illinois (FFL-IL)/in-person
Amy Vandermyde, Federal Firearms Licensees of Illinois (FFL-IL)/in-person
The meeting was called to order at 6:00pm by Chairman Jackie Milschewski.
Citizen Comments
Mr. Todd Vandermyde, Executive Director of Federal Firearms Licensees of Illinois, was present to provide information in regards to a proposal from Alderman Funkhouser to be discussed later in the meeting. Mr. Vandermyde shared information regarding manufacturing of specialized guns and gun parts. With over 30 years of experience, he also works with law enforcement and provides services to them.
Minutes for Correction/Approval August 4, 2020
The minutes were approved by a unanimous voice vote.
New Business
1. EDC 2020-38 Building Permit Report for July 2020
Mr. Ratos reported the number of permits issued and said the staff has been very busy with inspections. He said the numbers of permits this year have already exceeded last years' total. More inspections will be outsourced and single-family homes comprise the largest number of those. Damage from a recent storm was also discussed.
2. EDC 2020-39 Building Inspection Report for July 2020
There were 543 inspections completed in July, most of which were done in-house.
However, Mr. Ratos said more will be outsourced due to the increasing volume. No further discussion.
3. EDC 2020-40 Property Maintenance Report for July 2020
Three cases were heard in July, one of which was a weed violation on Heustis that was found liable and fined. Mr. Ratos said when a case goes to adjudication, the violator has received several door-hangers and visits in an effort to avoid citations. Chairman Milschewski asked how chronic violators could be handled in the future. Due to Public Works workload, the storm that came through Yorkville and Covid, the process is taking longer. Mr. Ratos said they must allow the weeds to become tall enough to constitute a violation and if they are mowed every two weeks, it might not qualify as a violation. Mr. Ratos said notifications are made to all concerned parties such as mortgage holders, owners, etc. before the case proceeds to adjudication.
4. EDC 2020-41 Economic Development Report for August 2020
Ms. Dubajic highlighted the following:
1. Popeye's is slated to open around September 7th.
2. Gas n Wash is scheduled for a ribbon-cutting on September 21st. The Dunkin Donuts store there will open after Labor Day and prior to ribbon-cutting.
5. EDC 2020-42 Limited Manufacturing Uses in Residential Districts
Ms. Noble said staff received a call from a resident who has a gun-manufacturing business and would like to re-locate it to his garage to save the overhead on rental space.
A request was received from Alderman Funkhouser to amend the Zoning Ordinance to allow limited manufacturing use in a residential zoned district. A similar discussion was held in 2012 at a Plan Commission meeting and it was decided to not allow manufacturing or the retail aspect of guns in residential areas. Ms. Noble contacted other local municipalities for input and found differing codes and different types of firearms licenses. She also spoke with the Police Chief who had some questions and concerns.
She is now seeking direction from the committee.
Alderman Koch verified that the guns cannot be discharged in a residential area and he also expressed concern about theft. Ms. Noble said ATF has a chart that shows where all the licenses are being held and where thefts have occurred. Alderman Frieders said he does not want to see retail sales or re-loaded ammunition in a residential area and that a special use is the best way to approach this. Alderman Peterson asked Mr. Vandermyde if he has fully assembled guns, which he does not. Mr. Vandermyde discussed licensing requirements and noted that he is required to have a home security system and other safeguards and there are 60 pages of regulations. He said the majority of his business is the sale of parts. A special use request would go through the Public Hearing process and would take about 4-5 months. A license process would take less time. Mr. Olson said specific guidelines will be brought back for discussion.
Old Business:
1. EDC 2020-32 Urban Chickens
Ms. Noble said she was given direction in July to research an urban chicken policy and she has obtained information from other communities. Staff found three policy options: limited regulation, moderate regulation and substantial regulation. She discussed the components of each such as lot size requirements, number of chickens, coop size, permits, enforcement, etc. She asked for direction as to what policy type the Aldermen would prefer.
The committee discussed whether there had been any other resident input or requests for chickens. There were mixed opinions among the small number of citizens who responded and they had concerns for noise, mess, etc. It was decided that public input is important and staff was directed to contact HOA's first. Aldermen will also reach out to their Wards for feedback via Facebook and all information will be brought back to this committee.
Additional Business: None
There was no further business and the meeting adjourned at 7:08pm.
https://www.yorkville.il.us/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/3675
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