Village of Arlington Heights Committee-of-the-Whole met May 30
Here are the minutes provided by the committee:
I. CALL TO ORDER
II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
III.ROLL CALL
President Hayes and the following Trustees responded to roll: Schwingbeck, Dunnington, Bertucci, LaBedz, Baldino, Grasse, Tinaglia, and Shirley.
Also present were: Randy Recklaus, Tom Kuehne, Cris Papierniak, Mary Rath, Kelly Livingston Mary Ellen Juarez and Becky Hume.
IV.NEW BUSINESS
A. Department Reports
A. Finance
B. Human Resources
C. Public Works
All reports presented are attached to the May 30, 2023 Agenda for this meeting.
Finance
Tom Kuehne and Mary Ellen Juarez presented the Finance Department overview. Also introduced were Alexis Smulson, Kevin Baumgartner, Georgine Voight and Becky Hume. Mr. Kuehne noted the hard work involved in being the launching department for the ERP. As the first module was going live, the Department was flooded by a burst pipe over Christmas. Staff has been working late nights and Saturdays since November while implementing the new system.
Mr. Kuehne highlighted the use of surplus monies to pay down the Village’s pension requirements. This helps keep down property taxes. The Debt Service Levy is being paid down, and as debt matures, we will have the opportunity for another bond issue in 2024-2025. Every five years we have the opportunity for a bond issue. This is another way we keep the property tax level from year to year. Income and sales tax receipts have increased over the past two years and are much higher as we are now receiving internet sales taxes, inflation has been high and salaries are higher State wide. The key to keeping things stable is to look ahead further than one year out.
In March 2023 the Village Board approved a resolution directing Cook County to change the loss and cost amount to 2% starting with the 2023 levy to effectively capture the amount levied each year. In the past, the Village has used the 1% loss and cost applied by Cook County as part of the base for the Village’s proposed levy for the succeeding year. This has been done to capture a portion of the approximate 2% annual uncollected property tax amount due to appeals and exemptions.
To address the loss of revenue in the Telecommunications Tax, staff is researching a Streaming Tax.
Becky Hume reported the Village’s FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) numbers. In 2022, there were 1,722 FOIAs, a 10% increase over 2021. On average, the Village completed requests for records in 3.3 business days. Most requests were completed in 2 business days. This year, the Village has received 837 FOIA’s, an average of 167 per month. Of the requests received, 18 were related to the Chicago Bears Football Club.
President Hayes thanked the team for their hard work and said he had a lot of trust in the Finance Department. Each Board member expressed their thanks for the Department’s efforts overall and especially noted their commitment to the ERP project in the midst of recovering from the flood.
Trustee Bertucci asked why the Village would tax Streaming. Mr. Kuehne answered that many residents have abandoned cable and are using streaming services. That tax revenue is being degraded over time. A streaming tax would recover that money. Mr. Recklaus added there are infrastructure right of way management costs. When everyone was on cable and had telephones, we collected franchise fees as the lines go through yards. There is staff time and data tracking in Public Works. The streaming companies benefit from the same infrastructure, but we are not collecting revenue from them, even as we are losing revenue from cable companies. Mr. Papierniak added there is conduit all over town, and the Village needs to make sure installations are safe. There are inspections, permits, and tracking which adds costs and staff time too.
Trustee LaBedz asked how streaming taxes would be collected. Mr. Kuehne said each provider like Disney or HBO would have a tax associated with them. Staff is watching Evanston and Mt. Prospect to see how their implementations have worked. There is a tracking mechanism for these services.
Trustee LaBedz asked if the Fire and Police Pension Funds have been consolidated with the State Pension Funds. Mr. Kuehne said the Fire Department has joined the State Fire Pension Consortium. The State passed legislation for these pension funds’ investments to be handled by a central fund. The Village’s Fire Pension Fund elected to do that. The Police Pension Fund decided not to, and is fighting it in court. Their thinking is that the State couldn’t do better than their fund managers could. Their joining the consortium would help the state overall, but wouldn’t be a benefit to the AH Police Pension Fund. They have lost their case so far, and we are waiting to see what happens next.
Trustee LaBedz asked if, as an aging population, the Village’s income tax revenues may decline. Mr. Kuehne replied that income tax is distributed by the State on a per capita basis. Mr. Recklaus noted the Village is still a destination community because of the school districts. There is a lot of interest in multi- family housing, which would add to the Village’s population base. It may make sense for us to do a special census which may show additional residents, thus increasing our income tax base. All ages are included in the per capita tally.
Trustee LaBedz asked about the requirement to fulfill FOIA requests in 5 days. Ms. Hume said the requirement is State mandated, but staff can add 5 more days if necessary. For truly large requests, we communicate with the requester and ask if it’s okay to spread out the response over a period of time past the required response time, rather than deny the request outright as unduly burdensome.
Trustee Shirley asked what changed in 2021 when the Village first received internet sales taxes. Mr. Kuehne answered there was State legislation that made the change. Prior to that time, the State was collecting taxes and keeping most of them. Some monies were remitted to municipalities. Also, not everything on the internet was taxable before 2021, now it is. Trustee Shirley asked about water main replacement and if the projections for losses were factored into the budget. Mr. Papierniak said the Board will be reviewing a contract for installation to be complete in ‘24 and ‘25. Mr. Kuehne said projections for lowering the loss are not factored into the budget. Staff will have to look at this when deciding the water rate. Trustee Shirley asked if there is a payback analysis. Mr. Kuehne said no, but the last time it was almost $1 million in additional revenue.
Trustee Shirley called out the $9.8 million of savings earned by paying down the pension funds. He said that’s a good story to tell.
Trustee Tinaglia agreed saying he appreciated the lack of a tax increase for four years.
Trustee Grasse said she appreciated the consistent conservative and responsible financial practices. She also highlighted the Department’s ability to adapt and be open to the change.
Trustee Dunnington asked if there was any goal setting connected to the DEI data collection. Mr. Recklaus said right now, we are just tracking the information. The next phase is to figure out how we can cast a wider net to firms which are diverse.
Trustee Baldino asked if there was any hope of the State increasing its percentage of income taxes being returned to the municipalities. Mr. Kuehne said probably not. Even though IML and other organizations are working to get the money back, he said it’s going to be hard. Mr. Recklaus said the State’s opinion seems to be that their need is greater than the municipalities’. President Hayes said we get just over 6%, and he did not think it would go back to what it used to be.
Mr. Recklaus said the Finance team has been ground zero in the ERP project which requires rethinking every process. He likened it to building a new airplane, while you’re flying, with back seat drivers. He noted the Clerk stepped up to take on the FOIA responsibility, which has seen an increase in numbers. He said Ms. Hume cares about the spirit of transparency and challenges staff to consider thoughtfully their responses and redactions. Mr. Recklaus recognized Ms. Smulson as she has been covering as Purchasing Coordinator while implementing the ERP project and performing her regular duties as the Accounting Manager.
Human Resources
Mary Rath and Kelly Livingston presented the report. There were 20 full time positions hired in 2023. The hiring pool is tighter than ever before. Ms. Rath said the Department has implemented training in best practices in lifting to avoid injury and has a focus on mental health wellness. DEI initiatives are at the forefront in attracting retaining and creating a diverse and inclusive workforce. Added to DEI is the concept of belonging. The Department has been focused on retention, enhanced use of technology, integration of the ERP and the internal IDEA resource group. Insurance is being re-evaluated. Staff is also looking into MD live and is hopeful employees will use that service to help reduce costs. The concept of boomerang employees is growing due to the tight job market. Upon separation, departing employees are being asked to consider reaching out to the Village if their new position isn’t working.
Ms. Livingston reviewed the retention and attrition rates. HR is working on succession planning, employee wellbeing and skill-level and training. She discussed new promotional materials featuring employees in order to highlight the varied jobs within the Village. These posts will enhance recruiting and boost morale.
President Hayes noted Ms. Rath’s passion for her job and said many of the 430 employees are a reflection of her 23 years of hiring the right people and making sure we do all we can to ensure they stay. The Village will miss you.
(Ms. Rath is retiring at the end of the week.) President Hayes asked what are people asking in interviews. Ms. Rath said candidates ask what is your longevity, and what kind of support do you get from the Village Board. On
exit interviews, people cite limited opportunity for promotion in certain departments. She is starting to see people leaving because they can work remotely, but that is not viable in the public sector.
Trustee Dunnington noted the job descriptions have the salary information. She thanked HR for including that information as it shows value equity.
Trustee Baldino asked how the Police negotiations were going? Ms. Rath said they are ongoing.
Trustee Shirley asked for an explanation on quiet quitting. Ms. Rath explained it’s a phenomenon where employees do the bare minimum to get by. They have no desire to be on an improvement path. Trustee Shirley said this would be picked up in performance evaluations. It’s not okay. Ms. Rath said open communication needs to be a part of what is happening, evaluations alone are not the answer.
Mr. Shirley asked if our hiring is trying to match the community in regards to diversity and if there was a target demographic. Mr. Recklaus said we want the Village staff to generally reflect the community, but there are no quotas, and we hire the best candidates. We are casting a wider net, advertising in places we hadn’t previously. There are lots of different types of diversity. We are already diverse in our skills, specialties, and expertise as engineers, accountants, health professionals and construction professionals. Staff already brings a variety of experiences and approaches to problems. Mr. Recklaus said there are multiple targeted websites and organizations to which we reach out, not one or two specifically. Also, postings are more diverse in the language being used. Some of our employees are seeking out former coworkers recruiting them.
Trustee LaBedz said 80% of our budget is salary and benefits, so we aught to be pursuing the best.
Trustee Tinaglia appreciated that HR was open to teaching the job. Sometimes it’s easy to find people with experience, but not so easy to find the human that is excitable, coachable and interested in the career path you are offering. He liked that Ms. Rath added belonging to DEI, saying a lot of young candidates that want to be a part of something bigger than themselves. It is meaningful to feel like you belong to something. Trustee Tinaglia asked about the impact of working from home. Ms. Rath said most candidates expect to work 2 days at home. The village does have alternative work arrangements, certain eligible exempt employees, with approval, can work remotely one day a week. Others can alter their work hours by coming in 1 hour earlier or later, but there are restrictions. A lot depends on the position, it can’t cover all employees.
Trustee Grasse said she appreciated the language of the presentation and how the Department is embracing what it needs to take care of the humans in order for them to serve the public. She asked for more details on the project to highlight employees.
Ms. Livingston said staff was brainstorming a way to highlight individuals within a position to show the variety of careers. She would like to create outreach and explain the kinds of positions we offer and make the employee feel good by being highlighted.
Trustee Schwingbeck asked how the Department Heads were involved in hiring. Ms. Rath explained HR is actively involved in filling every position in the Village except interns. This hands-on approach creates consistency. The Department Heads are not directly involved with hiring, but they look at the resumes and agree to who is being interviewed. Trustee
Schwingbeck doesn’t see people as being productive working at home. They lose camaraderie in the office and relationships with coworkers.
Trustee LaBedz countered that with the right job and expectations, work from home can work. She finds it easy to collaborate, but it is job specific. It’s an expectation of many applicants, and sometimes it is hard to fill jobs without a remote work option.
Mr. Recklaus said when Fire Chief Harris came here, the first thing he said, is that he never felt as supported by an HR department as he did here. Ms. Rath really thinks deeply about what we need and who we are. She is the strongest keeper of our organization’s culture. She makes sure we are doing things the right way.
Public Works
Cris Papierniak presented the Public Works report. PW provides engineering design, maintenance, repairs, inspections of infrastructure, maintains vehicles, provides utility permitting, and reviews plans. They are involved in the ERP, set up Special Events, and set and maintain Arlington Alfresco. He added Nicor is going to add 15,000 feet of 2” line requiring the attention of our Utility Services Coordinator. PW covers weather related emergencies, plows the streets and fulfils service mandates covered by law, the most recent being the lead service line replacement. Roadway resurfacing and reconstruction is their largest project. More residents are using the see-click fix app and link on the website. He summarized the responsibilities of the Engineering, Maintenance and Utility Divisions. Most employees are on a single shift. They respond to emergency call outs at all hours. They are managing the Fire Station #3 kitchen remodel and the Building Department remodel.
President Hayes said PW is critical as service providers to our customers. He noted the grant applications are active and aggressive, and he appreciates the efforts. Mr. Papierniak said one challenge is that we don’t burn out our staff. The water meter replacement will be a massive project.
Trustee Tinaglia said they are the third biggest department. People are happy to see PW because they fix things. They are involved in the community and reflect the culture.
Trustee Grasse noted PW is a family, she said they are treated respectfully and they like who they work with. She wished more would use see-click-fix. She loves that the information shows if a ticket has already been submitted.
She asked about edge grinding as it is a common question. Is there a way to give better communication about that? Mr. Papierniak said he fought edge grinding, but now he is now a believer. The process extends the life of a street by 5 years. It protects the base of the street from water erosion.
Trustee LaBedz appreciated the relationship between PW and the children in the community. She asked how it was decided to use beat juice. Mr. Papierniak said ff there is any chance of a snow event mixed with rain, we do not use it, as it makes surfaces slippery. Last winter there was a significant amount of rain/snow so we could not use much beat juice.
Trustee Baldino asked how water main breaks occur in the summer. Mr. Papierniak explained construction has shut downs, which affects other nearby water mains, the pressure builds. Trustee Baldino said he was interested in the results of the survey of lead lines. Mr. Papierniak said the draft plan has been submitted, with a final survey occurring during the water meter replacement program evaluation. During that activity, inspectors will have documents, pictures and hopefully identify lead lines with 100% accuracy. Trustee Baldino would like to see the published report when it is complete.
Trustee Dunnington noticed an increase in sign maintenance costs from 2021 to 2022. Why was that the case? Mr. Papierniak said PW typically creates 3,000 signs per year. In 2021, Frontier Days and the 4th of July parade were canceled in 2021. A single event could have 700 signs installed and/or removed. There was also a lot of stop-sign maintenance in 2022, which is on a 10-year schedule. There are ebbs and flows for special events. Alfresco signage has been added as well. Now that the design is finalized, and Alfresco is not temporary, the sign costs should be more stable for that event.
Trustee Shirley said the number of grants received is amazing, it’s close to $40 million. Because you have earned it, the Board and the residents appreciate Public Works. The social media posting impact has been great, it’s an awesome improvement.
Mr. Recklaus said near 2015, the Board has pushed staff to be more aggressive about grants. Staff in PW took it to heart and they responded in spades. In relation to the Illinois Capital Bill, he heard from multiple Representatives and Senators, that the reasons we got grants was because PW was so prepared and could respond immediately. The Department has always had a strong service culture, and Mr. Papierniak has added a new look/feel. The communication is going well. He is meticulous and always looking to save money. Because he is team oriented, people like working with him.
V. OTHER BUSINESS
VI.PUBLIC COMMENTS
VIIA. DJOURNMENT
Trustee Tinaglia moved to adjourn at 9:17 p.m. Trustee Schwingbeck seconded the motion.
The motion carried and the meeting was adjourned.
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