Hearing Set on Alley Project Cost For Nearby Property Owners

Winnetka trustees gathered Tuesday night in a regularly schedule village board meeting. Below are some highlights from the meeting:

• Trustees passed a resolution opposing the state's plan to send less income tax revenue back to municipalities. According to village documents, the proposed cuts could result in the loss of about $290,000 out of the $931,000 estimated income tax revenue, a 31 percent reduction in revenue. The $931,000 was already factored into Winnetka's budget. The resolution will be passed on to state legislators, said Village President Jessica Tucker.
• A public hearing on alley improvements was scheduled for June 7 at 7:30 p.m. Trustees established two special service areas (SSA) for the alleys in order to identify properties that would share a portion of the cost of the improvements. Steve Saunders, director of the Public Works Department, said his staff is reviewing some options for residents included in the SSA who do not use or access the alleys. He said those options would be presented at the public hearing. "There's time to work with the neighbors," Saunders said.
• Trustees passed an ordinance that changes the composition of various boards and commissions after numerous discussions on the topic. The ordinance calls for 13 Plan Commission members, including representatives from the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA), park district, District 36 and library board. The ZBA representative is required to abstain from voting on anything that would also go before that board. The village board member on the Plan Commission will be a non-voting member. Trustees also revised the language on the duties and powers of the Environmental and Forestry Commission.
• Finally, trustees debated the membership of the executive director of the Winnetka-Northfield Chamber of Commerce on the Business Community Development Commission (BCDC). Because the two chambers are merging, the original language in the ordinance said the executive director would serve if that person is a Winnetka resident; otherwise, the village president would appoint the member of the chamber board who is a Winnetka resident. After some debate and comments from Richard Kates, an incoming trustee, and Terry Dason, current executive director of the chamber, the council decided to allow the executive director to sit on the commission, even he or she is not a Winnetka resident. Kates, Tucker and trustee Bill Johnson preferred a Winnetka resident. "When it comes to a government board, it makes sense that you would want a resident or at least the director to have a business here," Tucker said. Trustee Linda Pedian said residency should not determine the value of the executive director's input on the BCDC's work. "Developing business for those who have an interest in it is developing business," she said.
• Trustees awarded $2.25 million contract to Simpson Construction for renovation of Village Hall. Public Works' Saunders said the cost of the project had been in the budget for years. "No bonds are going to be issued, no taxes are going to be raised," trustee Johnson said in support. "Funds have been set aside over the years…for this project."

• Also, trustees pointed out that parsing out different parts of the project through separate bids saved the village about $326,000. The village will also pursue LEED certification for the building. "We’re all about the future and preserving and protecting what we have," Pedian said. The Leaders in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a program of the U.S. Green Building Council.
• The owners of the asked trustees for an amendment to their liquor license that would allow them to serve beer and wine with food at outside tables. They also seek permission to open earlier in the day around the holidays and on Saturdays. The trustees did not have any objections to the proposals and congratulated the Winnetka Wine Shop on its first anniversary.