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Beecher village approves first union contract for police  Share
The Beecher village board approved its first union contract with the police department on Monday, September 14. Following an executive session, the board agreed to a four-year Teamsters contract with Local 714. Retroactive to May 1, 2009, the contract gives a two percent pay raise for the first year, a 2.75 percent increase in the second year and three percent in the third and fourth years. It also increased the village's dependent portion for insurance, from 60 to 80 percent. ''The negotiations were amicable and very comparable to other areas,'' said Bob Barber, Village Administrator. Board holds contractors responsible for work completion
Two contractors who failed to complete work in the village will pay the price. The board has decided to hold the letters of credit of Montalbano Homes of Oak Brook Terrace for $516,000, for projects incomplete at Nantucket subdivision, and MGM Construction for $850,000 to complete work at The Preserve at Cardinal Creek subdivision. Both companies failed to complete final road surfacing, curb work, water valves and fine grading. The work will be bid in the spring of 2010. More subdivision woes When buyers purchased homes on Sunset Cove from MGM, a construction and development company, they say that they were told the price included a sprinkler system and landscaping. A few have received the sprinkler. Six homeowners never received the promised landscaping. ''My mother closed on her house on January 3, 2008,'' said Ken Pappas. ''We made numerous phone calls and received many empty promises from MGM, but they never did the landscaping.'' Finally, Pappas paid for it himself at a cost of approximately $4,000. Now, he says it's been paid for twice. His mother paid for it as a part of the purchase price of her home, and now he's paid for it. MGM has not reimbursed him for any of the costs. Another neighbor said he experienced the same situation and recently paid to sod, landscape and lay volcanic rock at his home. Four other homeowners, not present at the meeting, are in the same situation. Jim's Trees of Beecher completed the landscaping for the rest of the occupied homes and was paid by MGM, but the company failed to contract for the remaining homes. Residents have asked the village for relief. Barber said the village drew from a $15,000 letter of credit posted by MGM for completion of this work and placed it in escrow. The funds can be used to complete the work. At the village's request, Jim Sprague, owner of Jim's Tree Service, presented an estimate to the village, totaling $8,552 to landscape the remaining homes. The board authorized Village President Paul Lohman to distribute funds for the completion of landscaping at the four occupied homes and to reimburse the other two homeowners for a portion of the work done at their homes. Lohman will meet with all the homeowners to discuss the matter. Five year financial plan draft The board briefly discussed the first draft of the village's five-year financial plan which shows a $42,000 deficit in the general fund next fiscal year. Adjustments are being made to bring it into balance. Last year, the board ended with a positive fund balance of $237,000, and the board anticipates an additional $40,000 of fund balance this year. Prairie Crossings requests help Diane Williams, president of the Prairie Crossing Homeowners Association, asked the board for its assistance in alleviating problems with the retention pond in her subdivision. She said the biggest concern is the cattails that have spread to cover a large area of the pond and also have begun to spread into yards bordering the pond. She said the build-up of plants will minimize the effective storage capacity of the pond. Other concerns included algae growing on the outer 10-12 feet of the pond and erosion, particularly on the south side. Williamson said Doug Short of Natural Resource Management, Inc. of Beecher had completed a site visit and estimated that it would cost approximately $1,500 to remove the cattails. She later corrected the figure to an estimated $1,600 after being questioned by a trustee. Trustee Brian Cleary said he lives in the subdivision, but is concerned about the village paying for the project. He said the property is owned by the homeowners association, not the village. He also expressed concerns about threatening the ecosystem by applying herbicides. He said the pond connects to Trim Creek, which flows southward and eventually reaches the Kankakee River in the western part of Momence. Lohman said he was concerned about spraying, since the village sprays the ditches and the wildflowers are left untouched. He said an environmentally safe spray can be used. However, he felt that the project was the responsibility of the homeowner's association. He asked Williams about the fees for the association. She said there were 175 lots and 160 were occupied. The annual fee is $120. She told Lohman that the association had approximately $3,000 but needed funds for other projects. Barber said, ''I have a concern if the village helps you, then we have nine or 10 other ticking time bombs (other subdivisions or private property owners that may request the same assistance).'' A homeowner suggested that members of the association remove the cattails after it has been sprayed with herbicide and asked if the village would pick up the cattails. The village agreed to pick up the debris if it is left in one location at the curb. Public works building near completion The village expects the new public works facility on Town Center Road to be complete by November 15. The public works department plans to move from its location at the sewer plant on Ahrens Drive over the course of the winter to help in organizing tool racks and material storage. An open house will be held in the spring. The village has spent $1,002,976 of the $1,078,803 received in bond proceeds and has $75,827 remaining that can be used to meet any unexpected complications. The village granted a request from the Downtown Business Owner's Association to close Gould Street, from the south end of Hamilton Circulation Supplies to the north end of Halo Pizza and between Penfield and the north end of Teapots Cafe, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, October 3, for Oktoberfest. Barb Dorman is a reporter for Russell Publications.
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