Village of South Barrington President and Board of Trustees met Nov. 11.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
CALL TO ORDER: made by Village President Paula McCombie at 1:04 p.m.
ROLL CALL:
Present: Trustees Abbate, Alvarado Guranovich, Panchal, Patel and Stagno.
Absent: None.
Others present: Treasurer Bodie, Administrator Palmer, Village Attorney Vasselli and Mr. Kirk Bishop, Duncan Associates
CITIZENS COMMENTS: None
APPROVAL OF SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES OF OCTOBER 24, 2022: Minutes were not available for approval.
PRESENTATION:
A. Presentation by Duncan Associates for Zoning Code Review.
Mayor McCombie introduced Mr. Kirk Bishop to the Village Board Members and asked him to provide some background on himself and his firm. Bishop introduced himself and talked about past work (i.e. Impact Fee Ordinance for Austin, TX). Focus would be on the Village Zoning Ordinance which in many cases has not been updated since the '60's' or '70's'. Specialty topics such as cannabis uses and short-term rentals are land uses that are new and have been incorporated into many zoning ordinances recently. The approach would be a comprehensive zoning ordinance overhaul, which has yet to be discussed in depth. Phase I would be to listen and learn about South Barrington, talking with staff, administration, appointed and elected officials. Next step would be a re-zoning review and identify problems and interpretation issues with the current ordinance. From this step a summary check list would be developed, identifying the specific items to address. Identification of new (zoning) districts is often the next development, which is outlined into a new ordinance. Also, part of outlining a new ordinance if formatting regulations so they easier to read and follow. Amendments would be a part of this process as well. An overall punch-list would be developed. Phase II would be to address the most urgent issues, keeping in mind that the entire process for a full overhaul can be one-year in length. Phase III would be to package together the changes and recommendations and provide draft copies for review. After reviewing the proposed ordinance, final preparations would be made for a public hearing. It is estimated that it would take 3-4 months to address the most urgent issues and be able to present a solution in ordinance form. Mayor McCombie stated that the existing ordinance has been put together in a piecemeal fashion, the Village has some urgent issues to address. For example, there has been work done on regulating RVs in the Village but the work so far has not been conclusive or provided a workable solution. This has been a difficult issue for the Village Board to address and one of the questions that has risen is what are the villages around us doing on this matter in their own towns. Swimming Pools is another common issue, where the Village would be looking for a recommendation to incorporate into the ordinance and update the ordinance section. Bishop reiterated identifying the issues and incorporating some 'Best Practices' that would benefit South Barrington and support its character. The will be 'forward thinking' based on the firm's 30 plus years of experience. Mayor McCombie mentioned that the zoning classifications that the Village has are not conducive to the Village's vision. Some parcels along the border with Hoffman Estates need to be re-evaluated, particularly in light of the Village's re-drafting of the Comprehensive Plan and also the existing border agreements with neighboring communities. Bishop stated that zoning should align with the Comprehensive Plan and this is an opportune time to establish the vision towards the future. Part of the process will be to look at allowable uses and how they align with the existing zoning. In many instances, for example, where there is a range of industrial uses identified - today they are not there anymore. Mayor McCombie identified the former Allstate Insurance Building site and recent proposals for development – the existing zoning ordinance posed a road-block in the project that had to be worked around. An update the zoning ordinance is needed to better accommodate and process such proposals for some of the larger sites in the Village. Bishop explained that the focus is on the zoning ordinance, other controls outside the zoning ordinance need to be examined as well. Mayor McCombie continued while mentioning that the Arboretum shopping center will often have proposals for new development, which would lead to new classifications of zoning. Trustee Stagno made the analogy with medicine and starting with the question: "what is the patient complaining about?". Trustee Stagno continued by explaining that expertise in this area is needed, Village Board members can identify the problems – addressing them through zoning is where the assistance is needed. Trustee Alvarado stated that the zoning review needs to capture the 'feel' of the town and provide a sense of direction - 'what do we want as a structure for our zoning benchmark?' Bishop stated that every community is different and that the process would call for a rigorous review, including the Comprehensive Plan, to reach an understanding and a sense of what the community values and wants to achieve. Trustee Panchal commented that the goal is the best interest of the Village and what can be put in place within the governing laws. Trustee Patel asked about other areas that Mr. Bishop had worked in, specifically in Cook and Lake Counties. Bishop responded that he had worked extensively throughout both counties. Trustee Guranovich asked if Mr. Bishop had driven through and around in the Village. Bishop replied that he had driven the area. Trustee Guranovich asked about Mr. Bishop's impression based on the current zoning ordinance. Bishop responded that the zoning ordinance is older, however it appears to have served the Village well based on what has been built-out and what has been preserved. Trustee Abbate commented that the planning of the Village has to work with the zoning, they have to be in agreement and work together. Expectations have to be kept in mind during this process. Mayor McCombie stated that the Comprehensive Plan needs to be completed before the boundary agreements expire. Bishop commented that he needs to get a sense of what the Mayor and Board want and fix those classifications in the zoning ordinance that may be underperforming. Trustee Alvarado asked what the expectations would be for the Village Board in this process. Bishop responded that being a 'sounding board' would be helpful, homework would be to review draft provisions that are made and to provide thoughts and feedback, always looking to establish what is right and what is wrong. Mayor McCombie mentioned that the project would be under the Building and Zoning Committee to review. Trustee Abbate mentioned that Mike Moreland (who was not in attendance) would be a key resource for the project. Bishop stated he would plan to meet with Mike Moreland early and often as part of the project. Trustee Stagno asked about getting progress reports and the time involved to complete the project. Trustee Alvarado stated that what was needed is flexibility to allow what we want, while working to prevent what we don't want - beyond working in those two areas may be too difficult. Bishop commented that he has been doing this work for a long time and there are many peer communities that can be relied on as examples - we may find some unusual circumstances though (such as addressing areas that are residential, but appear to be more like heavily wooded parcels with active wildlife).
Trustee Abbate made a motion to waive formal bid and accept the proposal from Duncan Associates for the Zoning Code Review. Second was made Trustee Panchal. On a roll-call vote the motion passed unanimously.
B. An Ordinance to waive formal bid and accept the proposal from Midwest Meter, Inc. for the purchase, set-up and training for new Beacon Hosted Mobile Drive-By Meter Reading Solution.
Bodie presented the item to the Village Board by saying that the Finance Committee had reviewed the proposal and basically the current equipment is antiquated and is in need of replacement. The data is collected and stored in 'the cloud'. Badger Meter is the vendor and there are no other bidders for this upgraded equipment. The Trustees had questions about the current equipment and what has been happening. Bodie explained some of the meter reading problems that have taken place with readers and transponders not working properly, and that the new transponders are ‘radio read' models. Trustee Abbate asked about other methods to read meters. Bodie said she would contact Sheaffer and Roland to find out about alternatives. Seeing no reason to further discuss without additional information a motion was made by Trustee Abbate to table the item. Second by Trustee Stagno. On a roll-call vote the motion passed unanimously.
C. An Ordinance to waive formal bid and accept the proposal by St. Aubin Nursery & Landscape for the purchase and planting of trees on Village owned property in South Barrington.
Motion was made by Trustee Abbate to purchase 18 oak trees from St. Aubin Nursery for planting this year. Second by Trustee Guranovich. On a roll-call vote the motion passed unanimously.
ADJOURNMENT
Motion made by Trustee Panchal to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Trustee Stagno. The motion passed by voice vote and the meeting adjourned at 2:21 PM.
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