City of Prospect Heights Chicago Executive Airport Board of Directors met Sept. 18.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
I. Call to Order and Roll Call
Chairman Harris called the meeting to order at 4:05 PM. Roll call confirmed the following present: Directors Donohue, Kiefer, Lang and Saewert. Absent: Director Kearns.
Also in Attendance:
Jamie Abbott – Executive Director
Jason Griffith – Director of Finance
Jennifer Pfeifer- Recording Secretary
Tom Lester – Attorney
II. Pledge of Allegiance
Chairman Harris led those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance.
III. Approval of Minutes
A motion was made by Director Saewert and seconded by Director Donohue to approve the minutes from the August 14, 2019 Regular Board Meeting. The motion was approved by voice vote. Ayes: Directors Donohue, Kiefer, Lang and Saewert. Nays: None. Absent: Director Kearns.
IV. Changes to the Agenda
Jamie requested the removal of item VII. D. The agreement is not ready. There was no opposition to this change.
V. Public Comments
Warren Bruhl said that he has been a pilot at Chicago Executive Airport for four and a half years and just purchased a Cirrus. He spoke about his opposition to the closure of Runway 6/24. He said this month he used that runway four times due to the wind direction and closing the runway would be very dangerous. He asked for further study because this is a key runway for GA.
Michael Haupt is from Aviation Explorers Post 9 and thanked the Airport for its continued support. He spoke about the Aviation Explorers and what they do. The Post has two meetings per month which are supplemented by field trips. The Explorers also have a flight lesson option, they volunteer at Air Venture and other events. He thanked the Board of Directors and Airport for ongoing support.
VI. Hearing and Reports
A) Treasurer’s Report
Director Saewert said the Airport is in the fourth month of its fiscal year, operating income is up, and expenses are below budget. The audit is complete; he thanked Jason and Elizabeth for their effort and said that Sikich will recommend Chicago Executive Airport for the GFOA certificate of achievement.
B) ExecutiveDirector’sReport.
Executive Director, Jamie Abbott, reported on the following:
Residential Sound Insulation Program (RSIP) – A draft noise contour map with property PINs has been created to help residents determine if they might be eligible to participate in the program. There will be a public meeting mid-November.
U.S. Customs building – The 30% plans are currently under review by DHS and the staff. The next two steps are 60% and 90% with more details each step.
Master Plan – The draft ALP will be shown at the Joint Workshop. The final product will be presented for review and approval when it is complete.
Construction Projects –
o Runway 12/30 should re-open on September 23rd. Pavement grooving is taking place now, next is striping and then landscaping.
o Noise complaint data charts were displayed for August. The numbers are typical.
o Industrial Lane construction is ongoing. Please use Sumac to access the Airport Administration office and Northeast t-hangars.
Upcoming notable events:
o Jamie will be speaking at a Career Day at Wheeling High School on September 26th.
o October 8th he will be attending the TIPS meeting in Springfield. The TIPS schedule will be on the October agenda.
o NBAA conference is October 21st to 24th.
o October 28th to 30th he will be presenting at the AAAE Conference about airport noise.
C) Director of Economic Development – George Sakas
❖ The Property Inventory Report has been published but is a work in progress as changes occur.
❖ The Airport will be re-platted. All the FBOs are in favor of this because it will simplify property tax records and bills.
❖ Aviation Academy update – The new classroom remodeling and construction has taken longer than expected because it was more complicated than expected. In the meantime, classes are taking place in Atlantic Aviation’s Hangar 41.
❖ Youth Aviation Adventure event which is supported by Southwest Airlines will take place on October 5th at Signature Flight Support in Hangar 19.
❖ In preparation for the NBAA conference, George has scheduled meetings with the three FBOs.
❖ He will be attending the IPAA Conference in Galena and presenting about the Economic Impact of airports.
D) Public Relations Update – Cody Rogers
❖ He has been working on Airport “branding” and marketing materials. He displayed recent ads and flyers he created.
❖ The NBAA trade show display booth has a new look for this year, a new rolling video and handouts.
❖ He will be working with C&S to coordinate efforts to get the word out about the RSIP.
❖ He is thinking ahead to 2020’s marketing efforts.
E) CMT Report – Dan Pape
• Currently they are focusing on Atlantic Aviation expansion and building reconfiguration.
• Also working with the FAA on a cabling project on the field.
• Working on changes and development to the upcoming TIPS sheet.
• He spoke about re-platting the Airport property and said FAA funding may be possible.
• Finished the single sheet ALP for the Master Plan and now summarizing the reports.
• Finishing up construction on Runway 12/30, it is about 90% done and the project came in under budget.
• Working on the final punch list items on the pavement repairs project which also came in under budget.
• Tower Road is complete and needs final inspection which will be done along with the other projects’ inspections. This project was completed under budget.
• Hangar 4 demolition and Hangar 7 work update – working on getting utilities information.
Director Saewert questioned Plote’s bid versus the final cost and Dan spoke about the estimate process he uses.
Chairman Harris commented on the project’s completions being under budget and asked if anyone has been appointed to the Division of Aeronautics. Dan said, no, not yet.
F) BoardMemberComments
• Director Kiefer thanked the three FBOs for attending the meeting, he complimented the meeting slide presentation and said he is looking forward to the demolition of Hangar 4 and the upcoming busy construction season.
• Director Lang said he received good feedback regarding Jamie’s attendance at the monthly Village of Wheeling staff meeting. He suggested that Jamie attend the City of Prospect Heights meetings as well to keep the lines of communication open. He said to consider when to publish the detailed noise map so residents know if they should attend the meetings for qualified homeowners.
• Director Donohue spoke about the recent drone attacks in the Middle East and said the Airport needs to prepare for drones in our airspace. He said it would be a good topic to research at the NBAA conference.
• Director Saewert said the results of the CAFR were positive and the auditor’s recommendations make us better.
G) Correspondence and Chairman’s Comments
Chairman Harris apologized for being a few minutes late.
VII. NewBusiness
A. Organizational Assessment Presentation – V.E. Solutions;
Mr. Angel Torres spoke about the organization assessment he conducted over the last few weeks at the Airport and said it is a fantastic organization and a team that cares about each other and the Airport. The Airport staff is very capable at doing their jobs and empowered. The staff is very close knit. The employee handbook is well done. He gave a brief summary of his report and the following recommendations: better communication from the leaders, technology solution for payroll management, viable job training plan across the organization, EEO/Sexual Harassment reporting system, leadership training, communication channels for providing feedback and some job title revisions.
B. Resolution 19-028 – A Resolution Authorizing the Payment of Claims;
A motion to approve was made by Director Kiefer and seconded by Director Lang. The motion was approved by roll call. Ayes: Directors Donohue, Kiefer, Lang and Saewert. Nays: None. Absent: Director Kearns.
C. Resolution 19-029 – A Resolution Accepting the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the Fiscal Year Ending April 30, 2019 and 2018;
A motion to approve was made by Director Lang and seconded by Director Donohue. The motion was approved by roll call. Ayes: Directors Donohue, Kiefer, Lang and Saewert. Nays: None. Absent: Director Kearns.
Dan with Sikich said the audit went very smoothly and finished almost two months earlier than in the past. He spoke about the segregations of duties comment in the report and recommended improvements to internal control. The report is ready for submission and he expects it to receive an award. Jason did an excellent job on the discussion portion and Sikich gives the audit a clean opinion.
Director Kiefer asked if there is any advice about how much cash to keep on hand. Dan spoke about past debt and said he does not have a feel for what we need in reserves. He spoke about clients that have all different levels of reserves and said he will give a reserve fund policy example to Jason.
D. Resolution 19-030 – A Resolution Approving a Purchase Agreement for the Wolf Road Property;
Removed from the Agenda.
VIII. Executive Session
At 4:59 p.m. a motion was made by Director Kiefer and seconded by Director Donohue to go into Executive Session pursuant to 5 ILCS 120/2 (c) (1), (5), (6) to discuss the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance or dismissal of specific employees, approval of executive session minutes or the sale or lease of property owned by public body. The motion was approved by roll call. Ayes: Directors Donohue, Kiefer, Lang and Saewert. Nays: None. Absent: Director Kearns.
At 6:24 p.m. a motion was made by Director Kiefer and seconded by Director Saewert to return to Regular Session. The motion was approved by voice vote. Ayes: Directors Donohue, Kiefer, Lang and Saewert. Nays: None. Absent: Director Kearns.
IX. Action Taken from Executive Session, if required
A motion was made to approve but not release Executive Session Minutes dated August 14, 2019 by Director Donohue and seconded by Director Lang. The motion was approved by voice vote. Ayes: Directors Donohue, Kiefer, Lang and Saewert. Nay: None. Absent: Director Kearns.
X. Adjournment
At 6:26 p.m. a motion was made by Director Saewert and seconded by Director Donohue to adjourn the meeting. The motion was approved by voice vote. Ayes: Directors Donohue, Kiefer, Lang and Saewert. Nays: None. Absent: Director Kearns.
https://www.prospect-heights.il.us/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_09182019-904
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