Village of Oswego President and Board of Trustees met Feb. 3.
Here are the minutes provided by the committee:
CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
President Ryan Kauffman called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. Chief Jason Bastin led us in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America.
ROLL CALL
Board Members Physically Present: President Ryan Kauffman; Trustees Jac Cooper, Rachelle Koenig, Karin McCarthy-Lange, Karen Novy, and Andrew Torres.
Board Members Absent: Trustee Jennifer Hughes
Staff Physically Present: Dan Di Santo, Village Administrator; Jean Bueche, Asst. Village Administrator; Tina Touchette, Village Clerk; Jason Bastin, Police Chief; Andrea Lamberg, Finance Director; Curt Cassidy, Public Works Director/Engineer; Rod Zenner, Development Services Director; Kevin Leighty, Economic Development Director; Maddie Upham, Asst. to the Village Administrator; Caroline Henzel, Community Relations Specialist; and James Murphy, Village Attorney.
CONSIDERATION OF AND POSSIBLE ACTIONS ON ANY REQUESTS FOR ELECTRONIC PARTICIPATION IN MEETING
President Kauffman noted that Trustee Hughes would like to electronically attend tonight’s Regular Village Board meeting. She submitted the necessary documents to the Village Clerk.
A motion was made by Trustee Koenig and seconded by Trustee Novy to approve Trustee Jennifer Hughes to electronically attend the February 3, 2026 Regular Village Board meeting.
Aye: Jac Cooper      Rachelle Koenig
Karin McCarthy-Lange Karen Novy
Andrew Torres
Nay: None
Absent: Jennifer Hughes
The motion was declared carried by a roll call vote with five (5) aye votes and zero (0) nay votes. Trustee Jennifer Hughes attended electronically at 7:08 p.m.
RECOGNITIONS/APPOINTMENTS
D.1 Proclamation- Valerie Anderson for the Design of the 250th Celebration Logo
President Kauffman asked Valerie to come to the front. He noted her mom, siblings and family friend were present in the audience. He read the proclamation and provided her with a copy of the proclamation. Pictures were taken.
PUBLIC FORUM
Public Forum was opened at 7:12 p.m. There was no one who requested to speak. The public forum was closed at 7:12 p.m.
STAFF REPORTS
Administrator Di Santo stated that on behalf of Village staff our hearts have been broken this past week with the recent tragedies in Oswego; our thoughts, prayers and hearts are with the families most impacted by these events; it’s been a rough 7 months in the Village with the tragedies; this is not something we are used to; have seen those who run to the tragedies to help and it reflected well on our staff; could not be prouder of how the investigations have been handled; Public Works Director has helped; hope the help has made a difference; incredible to see the support of the community; proud of our staff and how we have reacted to these events; hope this is it. President Kauffman stated our hearts go out to the families, friends and neighbors.
CONSENT AGENDA
President Kauffman asked if there were any questions regarding the items and whether an item should be removed from consent. There were none. President Kauffman read the items under consent.
G.1 January 20, 2026 Committee of the Whole Minutes
G.2 January 20, 2026 Regular Village Board Minutes
G.3 2026 Special Event IDOT Temporary Road Closures
a) Resolution Approving a Memorial Day Parade and the Temporary Closure of U.S. Highway 34 in the Village of Oswego.
b) Resolution Approving a PrairieFest Parade and the Temporary Closure of U.S. Highway 34 in the Village of Oswego.
c) Resolution Approving an Oswego High School Homecoming Parade and the Temporary Closure of U.S. Highway 34 and IL Route 71 in the Village of Oswego.
d) Resolution Approving an Oswegoland Park District Gobbler Hobbler 10K & Mashed Potato Mile and the Temporary Closure of IL Route 31 in the Village of Oswego.
e) Resolution Approving a Christmas Walk Parade and the Temporary Closure of U.S. Highway 34 in the Village of Oswego.
G.4 Resolution Authorizing the Execution of a Contract with Advanced Landscaping, LLC for Oswego Tree Pruning Services.
G.5 Resolution Authorizing the Execution of a Contract with ComEd, for the New Primary Electrical Feeds and Transformer for the Public Works Expansion Project in the Amount of $31,790.37.
G.6 Resolution Revising Fund Balance and Cash Management Policies.
G.7 Resolution Revising the Investment Policy.
G.8 Resolution Adopting Revised Fiscal Year 2026 Salary Ranges.
A motion was made by Trustee McCarthy-Lange and seconded by Trustee Novy to approve the Consent Agenda as read by President Kauffman.
Aye: Jac Cooper    Jennifer Hughes
Rachelle Koenig    Karin McCarthy-Lange
Karen Novy        Andrew Torres
Nay: None
The motion was declared carried by an omnibus roll call vote with six (6) aye votes and zero (0) nay votes.
BILL LIST
H.1 Approve Bill List Dated February 3, 2026, in the Amount of $1,327,701.22.
A motion was made by Trustee Torres and seconded by Trustee McCarthy-Lange to approve the Bill List Dated February 3, 2026, in the Amount of $1,327,701.22.
Aye: Jac Cooper   Jennifer Hughes
Rachelle Koenig    Karin McCarthy-Lange
Karen Novy        Andrew Torres
Nay: None
The motion was declared carried by a roll call vote with six (6) aye votes and zero (0) nay votes.
OLD BUSINESS
There was no old business.
NEW BUSINESS
J.1 Resolution Adopting the 2026-2030 Strategic Plan
Maddie Upham, Asst. to the Village Administrator, addressed the Board regarding the 2026-2030 strategic plan. Strategic plans are best practice for both private and public organizations. They provide direction that allows for resource optimization and improves decision making. In February 2025, the Village issued a Request for Proposals for assistance in developing the new strategic plan. Arndt Municipal Support, Inc. was selected and awarded the contract. She introduced James Arndt, President of Arndt Municipal Support.
Additional discussion included: thank you for the sessions at the library; insightful and helpful; excited about the plan; kudos to the team; thank you for the process; happy about how it came together; the plan is solid. There was no further discussion.
A motion was made by Trustee Torres and seconded by Trustee Koenig to approve a Resolution Adopting the 2026-2030 Strategic Plan.
Aye: Jac Cooper   Jennifer Hughes
Rachelle Koenig   Karin McCarthy-Lange
Karen Novy       Andrew Torres
Nay: None
The motion was declared carried by a roll call vote with six (6) aye votes and zero (0) nay votes.
TRUSTEE REPORTS
Trustee Hughes- no report
Trustee Cooper- great being around everyone at Denim & Diamonds; curious about how much funds were received; OHS cheer team is going to State on Friday; the past week we had tough tragedies in Oswego; support and appreciate staff and the community.
Trustee Koenig- congratulations to Valerie; it is a cool logo; thank you to the Oswego FD and other FDs for responding so quickly to the tragic house fire; whole community is gathering around the neighborhood; thank you to the PD and Chief on their swift investigation on the homicide; troubling on the frequency of women meeting violence; majority perpetrated by someone they know; awareness is important; organizations like Mutual Ground and others are important; encourage anyone in a situation to reach out to find someone who can help.
Trustee McCarthy-Lange- congratulations to Valerie; impressed with the logo; past couple weeks have been difficult; very thankful our staff is as good as they are; thank you to PD, FD and staff for all you’ve gone through; your dedication is amazing.
Trustee Torres- been a very rough past seven months; unforeseeable tragedies; PD and FD are elite; community always comes together; Valerie’s logo is awesome; hope everyone got through the cold weather; check in on loved ones; keep safe.
Trustee Novy- congratulations to Valerie; lucky to have dedicated first responders in town; please reach out to me if you want to help Seth.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
President Kauffman asked for a moment of silence for Ashley and the couple who died in the house explosion.
He stated: it’s been a heartbreaking week; kudos to the PD on the homicide; it took 27 minutes to get him in custody; the PD and FD were out all night for the house explosion and putting the fire out; entire region came to help; kudos to all who helped; kudos to Nicor; appreciate everything that was done; Denim & Diamonds was a blast; good to see everyone; Senior Center is working on the next one; Chamber Expo is on February 28th at OHS, 9am; OEHS does the pancake breakfast; will be attending the Governor’s annual budget in Springfield on February 18th; Community Kauffee is this Saturday at 9am at Starbucks on Orchard Road; Under Sheriff Richardson and officers from Oswego PD will be attending to answer questions.
CLOSED SESSION
There was no closed session.
ADJOURNMENT
A motion was made by Trustee McCarthy-Lange and seconded by Trustee Novy to adjourn the meeting.
Aye: Jac Cooper   Jennifer Hughes
Rachelle Koenig   Karin McCarthy-Lange
Karen Novy       Andrew Torres
Nay: None
The motion was declared carried by a roll call vote with six (6) aye votes and zero (0) nay votes. The meeting was adjourned at 7:42 p.m.
https://www.oswegoil.org/home/showpublisheddocument/8744/639074423723430000
