Peoria approves $50,000 Peoria Grown funding, rejects Western Avenue Greenway grant

e e good evening everyone it is 6 o'clock pm on Tuesday October 29th 2024 I'd like to call the meeting of the peia city council to order this is a special meeting um concerning the budget I'd also like to welcome everyone that's here in our historic council chambers as well as our audience listening at wcbu and also our audience watching on cable channel 22 Madam clerk the council mics are open please call the RO mayor Ali present council member Allen present council member sear here council member Gordon young present council member graab council member Jackson here council member Kelly council member Oiler here council member riggenbach council member council member velpula and council member vesa here you have a quorum present Madame mayor great thank you everyone please join me and stand for a moment of Silent prayer or silent reflection followed by the Pledge of Allegiance andice for all Madam clerk we have one public hearing 24- 318 is a truth and Taxation hearing regarding the 2024 property tax levy to be held at City Hall 419 fton Street room 400 thank you I'd like to um ask for a motion to open the public hearing move by councilman sear seconded by councilman belula please cast your ballots uh still doesn't show Kelly and Jackson motion passes unanimously we're going to open the floor uh for anyone that would like to speak to the truth in taxation hearing regarding the 2024 property tax levy and I do have a card from uh AO is it merer a can you come forth if I said that name wrong please correct it thank you that's okay my name is Anita maker Madame mayor City Council Members thank you I just wanted to take a moment tonight um last Thursday it was interesting I opened my mail and I had a letter from my mortgage company and it told me that in 2025 my escrow was going to be in the deficit to the tune of $3,497 and the letter stated this was due to increases of taxes and insurance and then on Friday I happened to see the public notice about tonight and the vote on the tax increase of 7.87% over last year and as you might imagine uh that was like a Tipping Point for me I was pretty upset and when I received the notice of the increase to the my mortgage the day before you know as a taxpayer as a homeowner I had to take a look and say Hey Now where am I going to cut my budget to make up for this $3,500 I'm a single person single income I support myself um so I had to make some hard decisions and how am I going to do that and it's going to be to cut things I want to do not things I have to do because I've already I'm obligated to do those things so I began to make some calls due to research make sure I understood what you were voting on tonight and after speaking to several people some of you in this room they mentioned to me oh Anita we have to do this because the assess valuation on the homes has gone up the thing that upsets me about that is unless I sell my home that has no meaning to me today I realize nothing from my house value increasing and has it absolutely it has and I'm pleased that purri is thriving and doing well but the taxpayers just can't take another burden the only way to feel that increase and take advantage of it is for us to sell our property and I want to stay right here in Poria this is my home my son actually asked me today he said Mom are you going to sell your home and move and I said I don't want to move I love Peoria this is my home currently my property tax alone without my house payment is already over $600 a month and I live in a very modest home over by Keller school it's nothing fancy but I love my home my amaron rates have Skyrocket as has many of my friends like we are feeling the Crunch and the burden if we go out to eat in Peoria now and try to support our businesses the food tax at a restaurant now is 12% I can remember not too long ago it was 7% I could go on and on I know you guys have families you have children and grandchildren that you're trying to support so you are feeling the pinch too and really tonight I just came to say I just implore that this Council would take a look at their budget see if there's any fat that they can trim instead of asking the taxpayers of this city to continue to fill in gaps when money is needed higher taxes just cause a hardship on the hardworking people of piia Illinois so thank you for your time I really appreciate it you're welcome Miss Anita merer yes you're welcome is there anyone else that would like to speak to the truth and Taxation hearing regarding the 2024 property tax levy and finally is there anyone else that would like to speak to the truth and Taxation hearing regarding the 2024 property tax levy we have a motion to close the public hearing moved by councilman Kelly seconded by Council councilwoman Gordon young please cast your ballots motion passes unanimously Madam Clerk we have one town item for tonight okay uh we have attorney rling schaer do you is that speaker working okay great yes thank you um Madam chair as we're here on the on the town side yes um both the local government officer compensation act and the township code require the Township Board to pass the annual well four uh year salaries of the Township officials at least 180 days before those terms of office begin so in front of you in in addition to my memo is a revised uh ordinance that breaks down the proposed salaries for the office of Township supervisor assessor clerk uh chair and trustees and then also The Collector the change that you have in front of you is a revision of the collector's salary down to zero for an annual salary now that is a unique change um but between the intergovernmental agreement with Poria County for collector services and that individual's dual role as the city treasurer it's you know uh it's not that uh outlandish I would say um as well that the reason why we weren't able to do that you may recall then collector Morris seeking to reduce that salary is if we were in the middle of his term and so that those same statutes I talked about do not allow for an increase or a decrease during those terms as they are actively running so that's that's why this is the opportunity to address those that long-standing concern and that's the ordinance in front of you tonight thank you thank you uh questions for attorney rling schaer truste ringenbach thank you Madame mayor I just wanted to thank um the supervisor's office for putting this forward and the attorney's office excuse me um that I think it's important for the citizens to know that these are the same salaries that they're being frozen they are there's no increase in these salaries so with that I would move for the approval okay is there a second seconded by truste Kelly any discussion pass your ballots motion passes unanimously Madam Clark we're at the city portion of the agenda 24- 320 is a communication from the city manager and Corporation Council with requests for the following a adopt an ordinance setting the compensation for the offices of Mayor district council members and at large council members of the city of Poria Illinois and B adopt an ordinance setting the compensation for the offices of city clerk and treasurer of the city of Poria Illinois okay uh Corporation councel thank you Madame mayor uh I won't repeat what attorney bradling Schaefer just said about the requirements because I think we all know we have to do this six months before your term in office the slight difference you'll see in this compared to what you see in the township office is we're making some proposals here that would delay an increase for our council members that will take office in 2025 so that the salaries attached to those offices will then become consistent with our at llarge council members and our district council members in two years we're also making some corrections to make sure we equalize the clerk and the treasurer salary and then you'll see that there is a 2% increase for them as well as a delay in any increase um for any other office so with that I'll be happy to answer any questions okay so I just want to highlight in here that uh for the council salary and the mayor salaries the the last previous four years it was no increase at all and this calls for two more years of no increase so six six years of no increase yet aligning the any increase between the council and the district to get at the same time basically bringing those together the mayor's salary the district and the at large all together with the same uh timing is that correct uh counselor yes okay thank you council member Kelly thank you Madame mayor um just for clarity um Madam mayor what you what you just said I thought maybe uh was a little uh short I think that it's been more than I don't know I don't know when the salary hit where they are now but I think it was more than four years ago there there's some history that is included on page six nope that's not it that's the history on page 10 shows 2021 through 2025 that's when it remained the same and then on page 12 shows the history from 2017 through 2020 counselor did you want to comment Madame mayor I just wanted to supplement that I believe that um salary for the atlarge councilman uh Council persons was actually set in 2015 and so that figure has largely been the same since 2015 yeah thank you I uh that's that was my understanding as well uh so it's it's it's been a while yes thank you Madame May you're you're very welcome council member Oiler thank you madam chairwoman looking at this table on the page 12 here it's proposing two % increases in 27 and 28 for the mayor and the council am I understanding that correctly yes 2% in 27 where did that come that decision come from who made that [Music] decision I'm I wasn't part of those discussion so I apologize that I don't have the best information with you it would not be abnor noral though if you look around at other um compensation ordinances to see an increase set somewhat consistent with what a cola would be so that number doesn't necessarily jump out to me as being abnormal I apologize I just don't have the backstory of how they actually landed on that 2% well I'm not objecting to the fact of whether or not it's normal or abnormal but we've had a pretty longstanding position since I've been here that we have not changed it and so I would object to any increases for the mayor or the council and and the these future years and so if if the motion is to approve this as outlined I would be a no okay any other questions can I get a motion to approve as outlined oh move by council member Allan seconded by council member Gordon young further discussion council member graab yes um you know I have for a long time felt that we need to ensure that uh we have some compensation for people serving our city um because I do not believe in the concept of n bless that only the people who are well healed should be able to serve in these offices and I mean that sincerely there's a lot of Homemakers for example people who have very fine qualities who can bring perspectives here who wouldn't be able to if we didn't provide some compensation for the huge amount of time certainly involved in in being a district councilman and I believe based on councilman uh Oilers work ethic uh the huge amount of time that he spends so I have no heartburn with this and so you know I'm willing to support it um although I know thank you madam mayor and I concur with my colleague from the second district I think it's important um that we are reflecting the times cost of living has in increased and then also to I think ensuring that those who want to be a part of this space have the ability to um again uh contrary to belief no one is getting rich being on the city council I will say that but we are fulfilled with the joy of serving our constituents but I think again offering a compensation that um is attractive Ure to ensure that we have the diverse of talent skills experiences reflecting the constituents of the city of Poria thank you madam mayor yes you're very welcome seeing no more discussion please cash your ballots motion passes with three Nays Oiler sear and rigin Bach Madam clerk we need a question on Item B we need a motion on Item B please okay can I get a motion please okay uh second report back was the corrected CIP by District um so that's included in the packet as well um the third report back um pertains to the seped program the the clearing of lots um and kind of um and kind of a status report and maybe if I could ask director Duan to just come forward and and just give a quick update on on where those lots have occurred where the the lot clearing has taken place uh and where we have left to do just to give you a quick update on that um and then we'll move on to the next report back uh thank you manager thank you mayor thank you councel uh outlined in the report shows kind of where the public works department and Community Development have worked to clear some of those lots uh the process started as you remember about eight months ago uh when we identified uh with the police department where the various hotpots were uh there's one down on the south end one in the North Valley one in the East Bluff one in the center Bluff and then one over in the West Bluff area based on the crime property crime data that that existed in those areas uh in addition to lot clearing in the last report backs talked about the alley and porch light program that is going so far on that program we've had about 240 households sign up uh so we'll continue to work through next year clearing the Lots I think the question that came up was if some of that budget got cut where would that money come from uh the reality is with the vacant Lots identified uh in those areas uh we probably won't be able to get through them all even with the amount of money money we have funded uh but we I did identify a few areas that we feel like uh if the money was reduced where those would come from and I think that was included in the report yeah so moving on to the next report back um which is the Western Avenue Greenway I had an opportunity to have a correspondence with Dan Callahan uh of the Western Avenue Greenway project there's some history that's included in the report back that talks about when they got started back in in 1986 um they identified if they received a $50,000 Grant what would they put that money towards uh there were about $32,000 of capital projects uh that they identified and then they would set up a a a stabilization fund for the The Greenway with the remaining $18,000 um they spend roughly $9 to $10,000 a year as their budget so that's ultimately what they're spending on an annualized basis so the stabilization fund would keep them afloat for a couple years if that were the case if they weren't able to fund raise um and then uh in addition we included some um report back from the public works department on the amount of ink kind contributions that we've given which is totals uh annually about 11 to 115,000 a year uh for mulch and cleanup activities tree planning and removal uh those kind of costs um and then lastly um we did reach out to idot about the Western Avenue project they are in the process it's in the the state's five-year uh multi-use uh multi-year plan uh in order to um improve um um Western Avenue and and and uh reconstruct that stretch looking at some uh Ada improvements some sidewalk improvements and some utility relocations uh but they have no timeline yet on when that project is going to start so uh I don't have any any good news to report there about when that would would happen but it is uh funded uh I am going to ask director Duan maybe come back up one more time uh to talk about the uh the next report back which is the report back on Pua grown um just to give a little quick overview of what's in the packet for you um and then we'll move on to the next report back after that sorry director I should have asked you to stay at the at the podium uh thank you manager uh we reached out to Poria groan um and kind of asked for the information that councilman Jackson requested uh in the packet they just provided their annual report of kind of their impact what they've been doing uh and how they provide service to our community in addition they provided uh they were pretty open about providing their full budget of what their organization spends and doesn't spend on an annual basis uh and all that information was directly provided to us from them as you see most of their budget goes directly uh towards their expensives it's not like it's an organization has a lot of admin fees uh and that is all in there so uh happy to answer any questions questions but more so probably direct questions back to them if you have any director can you speak to who they serve within the city of Poria um I believe it's a lot highlighted in their impact report their main um area a lot has been down uh in the they have a kind of weekend office in trewin park the park district building um specifically you know they I know have worked out where they can take uh the SNAP benefits um they get pretty good deals on uh produce from some of the contracts they have with local vendors so it's uh very reduced produce to a lot of our low-income residents who don't have close access to produce and Fresh Foods okay so primarily Southside or do they serve any residents on the near North Valley or other I don't have it in front of me I believe they had an they've had different offices but I can get back to the exact locations okay thank you uh council member Jackson um thank you Madame mayor well since we're talking about Poria groan I I just kind of wanted to um bring a little bit more attention to some of the work they they are doing um if I'm not mistaken director duelan they do also have a market 309 that serves Bradley University students as well yes I I think all their locations are highlighted their report but they have a they've had a few different locations throughout the city so if I believe that is where they're currently at as well and I if I'm not correct if I'm not mistaken uh they had another location which uh was the Poria women Club but they stopped providing Market 309 once they were doing their Renovations and uh one of the Challen Alles Market 309 has faced uh most recently in recent years uh they were they had to cut back on the hours because um they sell out Madame mayor they open up at 11:30 and within 20 minutes they are sold out of all of the fresh fruit and produce that uh they are providing through hi ve because people come through so fast and uh so as a result of that they have had to cut back um on the numbers of people that have been coming uh there were lots of people that would come after church uh but they decided what's the point because if they're sold out within 20 minutes uh they're usually sold out by noon and it it really was uh useless for them to continue so they've had to cut back in uh their capacity because folks have stopped coming and as a result um they haven't been able to grow uh they were they were dealing with a a big uh funding uh shortfall recently that they were uh wondering whether or not the market would be able to continue uh so you know I think this report pretty much uh sums up um how much um inflation uh food insecurities has become a big problem and will continue to be uh because they are serving not well as you can see in the handout they're primary they're committed to serving 61605 but uh they they've had people come to the market that do not reside in 61605 in fact they've had several people come down to the market from 61603 61604 and um on some of the occasions I've had to go to the market they've also had folks from other counties and they've had folks from West peor uh so they're a little um you know they're hindered in their efforts to uh provide enough food because they've been able to get grants but some of the grants have been earmarked for equipment and not food and and their goal had been to have the market could open three maybe four days a week at different locations but because of their lack of uh ability to purchase enough fresh fruits and vegetables they're not able to do it and they've had to cut back to just being open once a month so um this is a this is a a problem that has U been going on for a while and and you know they talk to the residents that come to the market about um what kinds of foods they'd like and this is how they've been able to uh get fresh produce and fruits and vegetables they've also hired a dietitian that had part-time and so as a result of that uh they've been able to gather data and have found out from talking to the residents that uh people are becoming a lot healthier a lot of the folks that attend the market are families with children uh and and these are low-income families and uh so their overall goal had been to create sort of a wellness Hub and they've taken a multifaceted approach uh with regards to food insecurities because the mindset is if you feed people uh you have Healthy Families uh Healthy Families will create stronger communities and at some point stronger communities could mean a a stronger Workforce and so um this is why Market 309 has been uh so essential and I think uh with this kind of money uh you know this would help at least Shore up some of their efforts in the short run and until they're able to um do fundraising uh maybe um apply with United Way but they would like to be able to get in a position to build their capacity and they're just not able to do it because uh a lot of the funding resources that they have gotten have been earmarked uh for things outside of food so uh I think this is uh money that would be well Spin and if you uh would Google it u a lot of national Studies have shown that um a lot of times crime if people are poor that often can result in higher crimes and so uh you know if we don't address those basic needs of uh food insecurities um housing then we are I think we're just doing our community uh and Injustice this is something that uh we hope will be around well into uh Redevelopment phases and so uh I think um Market 309 has uh done a phenomenal job and I would hate to see uh it close uh because they've spent a lot of time building trust and um collecting data uh from Comm from residents throughout the community so okay I know you haven't announced any dollar amount on this but you obviously have a motion coming but let let us let the manager go through all the report backs and then we'll come back to whatever motions are going to be presented thank you Mr manager uh thank you Madame mayor sorry I did have uh council member uh rean Bach I can wait until the motion comes forward thank you you're welcome Mr manager uh thank you Madame mayor the the next report back is from The Economic Development Department I'd like to ask our assistant city manager Kimberly Richardson to come up and just outline uh what's in the report back pertaining to uh different um uh Economic Development programs that uh We've researched and wanted to come back to you with thank you thank you manager Council mayor the very high level so what is presented today are the tax incentives that are available to our business development and business small businesses through the state um most of our as any state um program tax any type of uh tax incentive program they are run through the state um administered at the local level and some are mostly administered at the state level um for to respond to councilman B Pula last week he asked a question regarding the capital investment tax credit well the the state doesn't have what we call a capital investment tax credit per se instead we have a high impact Business program um which is outlined and detailed in the report back as well as the blue paror uh jobs Act tax program um communities the states that do have um a capital um investment credit is usually are in Florida uh Texas I believe colado I'm not mistaken there's a couple but for most part that particular program um is Blended into other type of capital investment um opportunities but I also want to just highlight uh a few other tax incentives just just for the public to know since um I'm in front of the council um we have a number of programs that I think think are important for our our businesses especially locally uh should be aware of and you know we have the Enterprise Zone which we are administer at the local level that allows for small businesses who are looking to do any type of capital Improvement that's for fixed um construction within their business if they are an Enterprise Zone they can apply for uh an app applied application through the econom development department and for that they are able to get the sales tax that is attributed to that that um material uh Exempted that is a significant actual savings to the project up front because we're talking about our sales tax around 10% so think of that multiply by however amount of of uh material that's needed for that project that is incentive one can apply for today and get that if you're an Enterprise own and I want to say approximately most of our commercial Corridor areas are in Enterprise Zone or River Edge um area and so those are local tax incentives that are available to our small businesses uh for those who are looking at more development we have the our tax increment financing districts uh which we do uh Redevelopment agreements with our community members developers as well as um we have the Illinois historic preservation tax credit program a little more complicated but that is available depending on the area that community members are looking to um invest in there are other programs I might go into exhaustive list uh we always direct our our our community members who are interested in investment and uh need some additional assistance on how to access these types of programs are always welcome to come an econom development office and we will definitely sit down with them explain to them how they can navigate some of these programs Mr manager uh thank you m uh council member belula uh thank you Madame mayor uh I really like the comprehensive report that you have provided and the number of opportunities that the new businesses that can Avail in puia and I think if any of these businesses qualify to the criteria that is mentioned any any anybody can Avail these opportunities I like that I have couple couple questions so as usual so one the first question is majority of the things that are reported here are from the state of Illinois and I I had a very brief discussion with the city manager and he said we have we are we actually have the uh we are actually actively doing that uh historic preservation tax credit program as well as the illino opportunity J zones so my question is so since we have so many so many of these opportunities do you think we can tailor it to any of these local businesses I know there is no Crystal B for that but what are your thoughts on that actually it's a it's interesting that you say that I think spurred from our conversation that we had last week with Council and also with additional discussions with just community members awareness of these programs is the first thing and so we in necon devolopment Department are looking to tell our story a little bit more effectively to the everyday person who may not be a developer or are are used to these types of uh programs and how to navigate them because most of the time when we're talking to someone they already know what their project is they're working through that they're looking for Gap financing and coming to the city there are a lot of numbers of a number of community members that we recognize just through our grant granting programs that have no clue and when we talk about Enterprise Zone we're talking over their heads they don't know what these terminologies mean so what we are working through is creating more uh under more understandable language documents that can direct people to how to facilitate those conversations with us but more important that they can share out and that you all are able to help an assistant sharing out so that it's even digestible for you you don't have to be in this space every day to know what we're talking about and honestly that's the best way of getting the educational piece out is talking to people meeting our meeting those businesses where they're at but in addition to that is working with our Community Partnerships that we have with our local um minority businesses small business um Center uh the chamber disy Labs I can keep going on and on and just making sure we're making our materials available to them as well so that they have that Rel for those individuals who may not yet know how to navigate the city's processes thank you I have uh one more small it's it's more like a clarification question so since all the grant funding will be sunsetted because we don't have more money going forward what are your thoughts on um low interest loans as mentioned in the dcoo website small businesses loans or micro loans I know we stopped it a while back but do you have any thoughts of reinstating that actually yes and how do we do it how do we administer it that's the piece that we're looking for uh so we have currently our um Eda uh Loan program we have two loan programs one that's actually one Loan program excuse me we would need to rewrite the the program guidelines and get it submitted to Eda for us to make it more of a microloan program because right now it really is not the way that the program language is written and approved by the Eda it's really for high to more development um and uh businesses that are employe more than a hundred in uh employees and so we would have to rewrite that program and get their approval but then we have to say who's going to help us administer it we used to administer it inhouse we had a staff person as part of their job do that that skill said it's rare and it's not always reliable so we will need to have to find that in person individual to help us underwrite the loans because it's really a a loan underwriting is not something that we have in House at this presid moment to be to do so what do you think would be the ETA for that to come and kick in I would have to come back to you that with that answer because I have been working on this for a year okay and we still don't have that resolution of how who can do that I've inquired and looked to see if we can bring someone on to do that work and that at this time we're still having that difficulty and the market at the time just didn't bear at interest so we because of the interest rates it really didn't it wasn't very competitive for anyone so we need to rewrite our program first and then come back and with a Ed ETA for you thank you thank you Madame mayor you're welcome Mr manager uh I'm going to ask our assistant city manager to stay right there and talk about the next report pack which um is simply kind of a report pack of the firms that took advantage of our technology grant program sure uh just a quick list overview of the businesses that participated in the technology Grant this program Sunset it uh this month we have um I would say been very pleased with the reception that we received in fact we have a number of those entities um currently in their R R&D phase which is research and development phase of their product uh what we are getting back from them is a report so at the end of their uh time or the way that we do this is because these are small these most of them are startup not all of them uh we are asking them to give us a report back and so as we give them their um second half of their fund they're able to give us some feedback about how this grant has been used how is it useful uh what could we do better do we need to add something in addition to just funding to help support them because this is a very much Niche uh industry we're not this is not going to be supporting all of the different um Industries within the city and so so far we've had success in participation and as I said last week we had individuals who actually relocated or located in the city prioria where they were in the surrounding communities uh to to be able to take part in this grant part uh participation and just so you know if you relocate it into Poria you have to maintain your business within a peri for a period of time so you just can't come in and get the Grant and then a year later you're gone you have to actually show a long-term lease so we can show that you are really committed to staying and growing your business here okay thank you I am pretty impressed with this grant um I I really I really like the way the grant shaped up I really like the way the message was outside even if you get $1,000 as for a startup it's a big amount and then bringing more kind more businesses to the city of Poria especially in the tech field is is amazing and I'm very very uh fortunate to know that there are more than handful of companies that they wanted to you know make purea their destination and several companies wanted to come and and uh you know start their business in Poria I'm very thankful for the council as well as the city manager and Kimberly for drafting this and this is one of its kind thank you madam you should be proud of this initiative and what is produced to date thank you yeah I am thank you m'am Mr manager uh thank you Madame mayor the the next report back uh was at the request council member s thank you madam mayor uh just a a couple question number one um when did we start investing the money I mean we got about $177,000 invested in this program and when will be your first report back what what's the timeline for your first report back we don't have a timeline for report back to council so we will have not for the council for like how you doing with our money are you going to check with them six months a year when when will be first oh so we actually excuse me I apologize so we are they get in installments so for a number of them they have uh so it's in that second installment before they get their second installment okay so for the majority of them they've already gone through because this is the program has been in in place for over a year and so for a number of those businesses they've already met that second installment so are you excited of any of these companies in particular as far their growth or how well they're doing Yes actually there's been a few companies that we've gone on site and they've invited us actually come on site to see their demo of their product what's interesting is that they're kind of unseen because number of them are in R&D so they're in research and development they're not yet at that stage where they're Mass producing their product or they have a large clientele so they're in office spaces and but you see their product and they're demonstrating them and just to hear the clients that they are beginning to bring on board to help with that um scale scaling up is amazing if if you go to disty lab you have a few of those prototypes in there that are beneficiaries of the program one thing that's interesting enough is that our concern isn't the startups more so it's the people who have been here who are growing quietly in spaces that they're outg growing and how do we gradu we have to figure out graduation spaces for those buil those particular businesses to be able to move to so they don't move out of Poria once they have scaled up and their their products are finding a retail market for it um we're beginning to see that as something as the next challenge is how do we create graduation space to support growth in these areas that currently are maxing out in the smaller incubator spaces that they're in currently thank you very much thank you madam mayor you're welcome council member Vala thank you Madame mayor just a point I wanted to make here is I visited dis and um it's phenomenal basically whenever you go to an incubation Center nobody believes that you have such bandwidth in distillary labs and I have personally visited these companies which are landed in dis labs and and and they actually follow the similar Pro similar protocol like the biggest incubators even in Boston or Massachusetts or even in U Juke University so so they are the the the facility is on par with International standards and I am I'm very impressed with the way this money has catalyzed businesses to move in and maybe they will grandfather it somewhere sometime very soon and we wanted to make sure that those companies don't leave Poria but stay back in Poria great absolutely thank you I I know that the governor's office you know the state of Illinois whatever agency these work on these business incentives are very much putting together some additional tools uh for municipalities all over the state of Illinois are are we working with a particular agency or particular contacts through the governor's office to be able to get in early on these uh resources that are coming our way we are very fortunate that we have a great working relationship with the Department of Commerce and um and econom economic development excuse me we work with them we have a we have corly meetings they are participating in a lot of our regional conversations we are one of the few areas so I can say we know the names of our our uh Le on in those departments and depart directors in those departments so yeah and they hear our feedback okay it's the feedback that we're giving them saying boots on the ground this is where we're having difficulties how do we navigate the systems in this at the state level to help us untangle so that we can then be able to support and administer at the the ground level and that's something that we continue to do uh I would just say one thing is a lot of the programs that the state look at most times in the past have been about bigger developments it's great that they are looking at smaller tools and expanding and extending some of the tools that we do have where they like the River Edge you know that was an extension so those tools to keep those going is great for us and we want to always benefit for those tools that are no cost to the businesses to participate okay thank you Mr manager uh thank you Madame mayor the next report back uh comes from councilman grab he had asked about the police and fire calls uh thank you to the ECC and police and fire for putting this together um since 2023 we've seen over 70 calls for service uh at various encampment locations and I think that um we wanted to identify the specifics of that and you have that information here in the report back for you so moving on to the next report back uh which is the Cascade of HRA taxes I'm going to turn the floor over uh to our finance director who will actually then walk into the budget motions as well so I'll turn it over to director crat thank you Mr manager uh the HRA report back in your packet um from top to bottom you look at the revenues that we are anticipated to collect next year on the amusement hotel and restaurant side on the uses side or the expense side this is in Cascade order per the HRA agreement that we have in place now so the top of the priority Heap is going to be the debt service the city is is maintaining for the Civic Center all the way down to the final priority of uh any remaining H dollars um at the end of the Cascade go to the Civic Center for financial support um just a reminder to council we do have a floor in that agreement at 1.2 million um based off of the collection numbers of where this lies we looking at about 2.4 million almost 2.5 million next year in terms of what that share would be with the Civic Center um and that's per that agreement and then if there's any is there any questions on that one before I move into the Motions council member sirk thank you madam mayor um just I'm I'm not sure I have any question but I definitely want to make a comment uh HRA is U one of these uh Revenue that I believe will increase at least for a couple more years because if you look at these numbers 60% of the revenues from HRA comes from the restaurant restaurant tax 60% and at the same time I know if it's a a common thing or not but uh our debt service is also 60% of the money that we give uh or we spend so I want to make sure people understand that next year okay the minimum wages and the Sal ofo are going up which mean that restaurant will probably have to increase their prices again next year which mean that our Revenue should go up I truly believe that which mean that we need to support support our restaurant our local restaurant as best as we can we all know the prices are going up we all have seen closing a lot of closings in PR restaurant a lot of restaurant closed because some just cannot afford the where the minimum wages are going and also I just want to give a kudos to our restaurant and that's why we need to support them in Peoria okayy covid-19 was shut down City shut down state shut down the country and restaurant came back ASAP as soon as they could and that enabled us the city to pay our debt okay on the Civic Center it's important that we understand that I mean while they they our restaurants and PE are carried a big burden while the city was shut down okay but when that because they open as soon as they could and they paid obviously they did some business and they were PID to taxes that those revenues were able to uh to pay our debt for for the C so Kudos the restaurant and thank you for the report Mr crty thank you madam mayor you're welcome uh the last report back in your packet was the Motions that we received from council members uh the first motion uh would be to amend the 2025 revised budget to provide $50,000 of funding to the Western Avenue Greenway and decrease the vacant lot clearing project by 50,000 that was from councilwoman Jackson um we have a motion to amend the 2025 revised budget to provide $50,000 of funding to Poria grown and decrease the vacant lot clearing project by 50,000 that was also a request from councilwoman Jackson um we have a motion to amend the 2025 revised budget to reduce homelessness funding by 76,000 due to an additional payment of 76,000 in 2024 of arpa fund so this is um an additional payment that is going to the county for their administrative costs associated with some of the programs they administered for the city so we have to reduce the amount we're rolling over to next year by that 76,000 um because we obviously are not going to spend more than those dollars so that does reduce the amount for homelessness funding um that is in the packet there is an an updated spreadsheet related to anticipated uses of arpa um so that would reduce at homelessness number to $866,000 University traffic light project budgeted at 500,000 from the out years to the Future to the 202 six budget so that does not necessarily have an impact on the financials of this budget but that is a motion that councilman Allen has brought forward um the individual motions are in the packet what I would draw the attention to council is the last page which is page 48 that is the net effect of these motions um the net effect is actually a $76,000 decrease in expenditures year-over-year are kind of in this budget year um because of the additional funds being spent in 24 versus 25 so uh the total uh decrease in fund balance or use in fund balance uh drops at $3,687 and with that we're we're open for any questions okay council member Allen uh thank you Madame mayor I just wanted to provide some context to the uh recommended budget amendment for 2026 uh when I was first elected several years ago um there were some concerns raised about uh speeding and traction uh traffic and uh pedestrian safety along University past Rich was High School uh at the corner of Teton and so uh our traffic engineering department um and within Public Works did a traffic study and Justified that that space was eligible for a traffic light uh unfortunately we haven't had to have much action on that the last several years and so uh in order to address this issue I thought it was important to move it up uh from the outer the outer years of uh of CIP to a little bit more of a relevant time to address this very busy part of of our district um of our city excuse me one side of Teton is District Four and the other side is District Five but we all know that uh many uh cars travel down University each and every day so this will be a public safety approvement for all thank you you're welcome council member s uh thank you Madame mayor I didn't get a chance to call to talk to uh city manager this afternoon but I will have a motion after we're done with this work if it's okay thank you all right very good and we don't have to go in any particular order I mean we certainly can start with the first one listed but um let me know your pleasure council member Allan you want to start there um I would like to make a motion to move the Ton University traffic light project budget at $500,000 from the outer years uh future to the 2026 budget seconded by council member Seer any additional discussion please cast your ballots motion passes unanimously the motion on the um Mr manager the motion on the reducing the homelessness fund didn't come from anybody in particular other than staff right this came from as we we finalized the audit work as as director cratty said um with the county over the Cure violence program there was $76,000 that needed to be paid to them um that didn't anticipate so this will close all of that out it's a payment for that so that just reduces on the bottom line what's left in terms of the the final payments um and and would thus reduce the amount that we have available for homeless fundings by that corresponding amount okay can I get a motion to approve that anyone mov by council member GB second by council member Jackson any discussion there council member Oiler thank you madam chairwoman uh Mr manager do you know off hand where this leaves us in terms of total dollars for the homelessness issue and so so how that compares to what we feel that we need in 2025 so this this will leave us with uh $866,000 of funds available for uh discussion with the with the community about what uh we can do to address uh encampments going forward um this is a start obviously that's not going to be the end all I mean for example The Haven which is a is is a a a low barrier shelter that's operated in the North Valley costs about $400,000 a year to operate serves 15 people at Max in the in capacity when they're in now that may not be 15 people over the entire year as people come and go but but ultimately that's the number of beds that are available so um what we need though is more space right and and so that's what we're really trying to do with this is have some dollars that we can come back to council with a plan once we've had this engagement and say Here's Where we think that we can go with with addressing these uh issues in in the next year so do you anticipate amending the budget later once we have that discussion and additional dollars for so so I think what we would do this this would would basically set aside $866,000 towards that we whatever we end up doing we'd come back to you for approval with if if there's a need for more then we would have to look at that and have a conversation with you about do we want to use Reserve to come back and and pay for that at that time what day are we having that discussion so I think what we'd like to do on the 17th is on the 19th I think it would be uh that we have the the discussion about the anti-camping ordinance and uh bringing that back and having that convers a special meeting with Council that evening to just talk about that item okay thank you you're welcome council member Jackson thank you Madame mayor I um well I I don't know if my colleagues had an opportunity to look through the information but I I just kind of wanted to provide some context for uh my motion two motions and mayor uh I remember three years ago hold on just a minute councilwoman I think we have a motion on the uh reducing the homeless funding by 76 but we'll come to you next okay so we do have a motion on the floor and a second uh for the item to amend the 2025 revised budget to reduce homelessness funding by 76,000 due to an additional payment of 76,000 in 2024 of arpa funds that will go to the health department please cast your ballots motion passes unanimously council member Jackson thank you Madame mayor I um as I was saying I I just kind of wanted to provide some contexts for my motion uh two motions uh mayor uh three years ago uh after shortly after I got elected I remember we had a one of my concerns running for Council was about the issue of safety uh we have so many we had so many areas in and around uh my neighborhood Southside and other areas where we had seen so many homes torn down and and it was just dark at night and uh I reached out to you and uh the coun the city staff about the alley lighting program and we had discussion on Zoom with um Amon and several officials and since that time um I'm happy to hear tonight from uh director Duan about the efforts that have been put forth by the city since that time and we've seen I think he said 240 hous HS that had requested alley lighting which has all been I think conducive to reducing crime and other issues that we have seen in and around the city I certainly feel a lot safer now uh in in many areas that I've driven around at night and uh have not you know alleys are lit up older people living in homes with detached garages have C called me and thanked the city for installing allei lights they've had to go out at night and or or get you know come home and and retrieve their garbage uh receptacles so I think the city has done a wonderful job towards uh safety in that respect um we've also seen uh in some areas and I think the chief has been very good about sending out uh reports Nationwide wide crime has gone down um the city council has been in a position to approved several uh programs as a result of Grants the police department has obtained and so I think the city of Poria is beneficiaries of what we're seeing Nationwide in addition to those other things I alluded to that we have talked about and I I'm I at least feel conf confident uh that crime will continue based on some of the things that we've changes we've seen in the police department with the improved technology their ability to apprehend suspects and Etc and Etc and anybody that has followed crime you understand it's uh cyclical it's fluid it doesn't always stay in the same areas and if you talk to uh folks in some of those areas in and around uh The Greenway area the Arbor District uh you know some of their comments has been since we've seen uh the establishment of the greenway some of our neighborhoods are thriving that's not to say that we don't have episodes uh where there might be Peaks but I feel very confident about it I just believe that as a city uh we need to this is money that would be well spent uh it would uh it would uh ensure the long-term viability of an area uh The Greenway which uh we've seen uh which could have been blight but 38 years ago the group had the foresight to to establish a Greenway I dos coming along in a few we hope sooner rather than later with major road Redevelopment projects and so I think based on what they're doing and what's in the pipeline this is money that was be well spent at least until those folks on the greenway are able to recruit younger people uh they've done some fundraising activities but right now they could use a financial boost uh to help uh uh sustain some of their efforts a lot of what they're doing they're doing by themselves and they're older as many folks in our neighborhood associations around the city are so I would like to see their f future uh ensure it I'd love the work that they've done on the greenway and I think it'll go a long ways towards not only um enhancing Western Avenue but reducing crime in and around the area people want to come to the greenway and I think if we are able to help them with things like $7,000 mowing expenses and and uh you know uh they need new signs and things of that nature uh we will see we will continue to reap the benefits of the hard work that they've put forth in the last 38 years so so I'm happy I think it's money that's well spent and as far as um period grown is concerned as I said earlier uh they have done a great job in terms of providing healthy alternatives uh to folks that really really need it and um if you would Google there's studies all around that talk about when uh people are able not able to have basic needs met food shelter and clothing crime tends to go up so we've got to make sure that we're at least uh providing assistance uh to those who are most vulnerable in our our our communities and I think what Poria groan has done for the last seven years should continue um so with that thank you you want to make your motion yes absolutely I would uh Madame mayor I I I made the mo the first motion at the last meeting but uh I would like to propose the motion to amend the 2025 revised budget to provide $50 funding to per grown and decrease the vacant lot clearing project by $50,000 is there a second seconded by um councilman almost said Congressman sorry about that councilman Kelly any discussion council member riggenbach thank you Madame mayor I I would concur the work prioria grown does is phenomenal and um they're clearly a critical partner in in dealing with the food and security issues I just have a couple concerns about the way this is coming though because most of the nonprofits um with requests like this go through the CD BG committee and we have a a process put in place for those to be vetted by a commission and recommendations made so I'm I'm a little concerned about um circumventing that we have the East Blu food pantry at St Bernard's that um if they would have known that we could do earmarks such as this I'm sure they would have wanted to do the ask me to reallocate some f funding I I think it's just this is not the way that we've done it in the past and I would be very concerned about setting a precedent that having nonprofits Lobby council members for line items in the budget as opposed to going through what has been a quite successful process of of Distributing funds to them in the past um I'm also a little concerned concerned about saying that we've had success and we can put the um CP Ted program to rest and for those of you that don't like our acronyms that's crime prevention through environmental design um 284 Lots were targeted by the police department um for for this lot clearing and 31 have been done so if if we've had great success already councilwoman I think just imagine if we can get those other 250 Lots cleared how how much greater that will be so I I would be remiss to take any money from that while that's still at work in process the alley light portion of the 240 lights that have been ordered only about a third of them is what I had been reported have actually been installed called so again a lot of the lights with the camera element had to be backordered so folks don't even have those yet so I I I feel like we're robbing Peter to pay Paul here um both of these are very worthwhile and worthwhile and effective programs for for what they they are intended for it just seems to me that Poria groan has opportunities whether it's through the cdbg program or the United Way that there there's other opportunities for them to receive funding while the the lot clearing program is something that's clearly on us and I would encourage my colleagues that we we stay committed to this program that we put forward um last summer and and see that to fruition before we change course in Midstream regarding the greenway I mean if if you're willing to swap Lots in the first district for for the greenway I think that that could be amable but I think the other parts of the city that have been promised that this was going to happen um would would be concerned so I I know the I know the motion on the floor is for Poria grown and as as much as I respect and um support their work I won't be able to support the budget amendment okay council member vesa thank you Madame mayor um yeah I've I've been privileged to volunteered with Poria groan um Julie and uh Michelle I think are you know they do fantastic work and we should be giving a shout out out to high VE for providing produce at Cost um you know they they drive the truck up uh everyone goes up there and hauls all the food in there um you have people you know teaching uh how to cook uh you know um dietitian like you said um and it sells out pretty quickly um and you know it's it's expensive to be poor um people with poor diets uh processed foods a lot of salt leads to you know diabetes um high blood pressure um more hospital visits so um you know poor people get poor um it it does actually I mean I I don't think it's you know the solution to Crime but you know it's it's a good thing to help improve uh the south side of Poria where Poria grown uh mainly serves and yeah I I think it's just I think it's Bradley and I think uh tree win um so yeah I know that they've I know they've been frustrated um through the BL Grant um you know commission um it's not it's not really clear to me why they they haven't gotten through yet um but I mean I I am confident that that they're doing good work that's making a difference uh on on the south side of Poria um I I also I also very much believe in in the environmental design uh in that it it deters crime um yet obviously crime is committed in the dark um criminals would like to commit crimes in the dark um so letting up Alleyways is important clearing shrub is important um for better visibility people do feel more safe and that has an impact too these are all good things um I'm not saying there's right or wrong here um but you know I I do know firsthand Pur grown is is a very worthy organization and I do understand wanting to have that filter um that extra regulatory step in the process but um for puod grown I think I am a yes on this thank you madam mayor you're welcome council member Gordon young thank you Madame mayor um you know I Echo the sentiments of Pur grown in terms of what all they have done in this community I think it's been phenomenal in a short period of time however um I am concerned about the process so I have to agree with my colleague riggenbach in terms of this is we can't just arbitrarily start um delegating or um designating funds with and skipping a process I think that sets us up I think it um is unfair and it doesn't take away from the great work that they've done but I think we are really um creating a problem by going outside of the policy or at least the procedures that we have in place and so for that reason it's not that I don't support PR grown because I love what they do but I cannot support going outside of the process I have a question then from the manager since cdbg funding has been brought up has that funding allowed for an organization addressing food Security to apply for funding uh it has and I think that in this last go around the the the request from puia grown or the direction back from staff was that um they could fund salaries and not food and so that's the reason why they ended up not applying what I my understanding okay so there really wasn't an opportunity to get funding for I guess product or correct I think because they're using volunteers they're not really paying for the staff that was the rational okay thank you council member Oiler thank you madam chairwoman on both of these issues I would be opposed from the standpoint of reducing vacant lot clearing I think this problem is going to get bigger not smaller as we continue to take on more properties um through the land bank and the demolition program and so I have an issue with that I don't have so much of an issue about funding uh Peoria gr because I think that this is a much bigger issue even than this $50,000 that we're talking about and I think that longer term we're going to have to be talking about funding through the budget for this specific type of concept um so I'm not opposed to that if the motion were to just fund Peoria Gran I would be okay with that part but any of them that reduce the Community Development money to address the challenges that we're having in the neighborhoods where I could and see that we need more funding not less I can't support thank you you're welcome did you want to speak again council member Jackson I just wanted to clarify a comment that was made uh they P grown did not approach me uh and to on they did not neither of the groups did um and I I will say um mayor they did apply um oh I think a couple of years ago as did some other non-traditional nonprofits for some of the grants that were available but were denied so um you know there there had been a time they went through the the channels but but were denied and I think at that time they were uh had applied with the park district as well so I I just want to make it clear that uh they did not approach me I just um think that there are certain things that we as as a a city need to address if we want to have healthy vibrant uh communities uh and and these are folks that live in these communities so uh that was pretty much the whole basis for uh my motion so okay thank you Madame mayor you're welcome we have a motion on the floor and a second before we go there council member Allan wants to uh thank you madam mayor uh this is uh definitely um a tough one because P grown is so impactful um they've been in the Gap addressing a huge need in our issu especially when we talk about the uh issue of the food deserts that is really plagued areas of our city almost 10 years now especially with the closing of those two Kroger um and then you're balancing reallocating FRS from another important initiative and that's cleaning the vacant lots and addressing public safety concerns and blight and things of that nature and then you throw in president as well too and we have a lot of very giving organizations in our community that do a lot of great work and for whatever reason whether it's documentation data paperwork you know they just can't get the funding that they need you know from public bodies and so um and that's frustrating because we have so many that are that are in the trenches uh you know doing the work so on this particular matter though um and I'm a big processed person as well too but I do believe um that Poria grown just because they've been in the the gap of this important issue for so long um I think they are are warranted uh a fast pass on this one I really do um I think theyve they've proven themselves they've been impactful and so with that I'll be supporting this tonight thank you please cast your ballots motion passes with five NOS Kelly riggenbach sear Oiler and Gordon Young council member Jackson thank you Madame mayor um the second motion uh deals with um the Western Avenue Greenway project and um as I I was saying um up until about September uh The Greenway was experiencing a a serious cash crunch um they have as they have done a lot of the manual work themselves uh with the help of volunteers and um they have not had any Capital Improvements uh in their entire existence and um they were able to transform what could have been blight all throughout uh that portion of Western Avenue and um they have recently established a a good go fundme um and um are trying to raise money uh through other means but as I was saying earlier um a lot of the members have gotten to be older and um they they've reached out they're in the recruitment phase but they believe uh getting this younger generation as many neighborhood associations around the city have seen uh has been a challenge most of the folks involved in in groups like this are older people and um I'm just of the mindset that uh we ought to find a way to help them preserve this beautiful green space on a major thorough Fair uh in a vibrant thoroughfare with uh businesses and and and I believe if we hope to uh attract more businesses in the future uh we've got to find a way to uh at least if not on a regular basis uh be able to help uh groups that are uh doing uh work to help beautify and enhance uh areas Green Space particularly in some of our older neighborhoods this is a major thoroughfare that takes people to and from the Poria airport uh and so I would just hate to see um the hard work they have put forth um suffer uh so as I said they've never had any Capital Improvements uh some of their trails are wearing out um they are in need of new signage uh they don't have an upgraded water system and um while they have partnered with Peoria Park District in the past they have found out that when the park district was doing a lot of their mowing uh they said they were coming more often uh than needed and the costs were actually much more expensive so they have resorted to um a private vendor so I just think uh helping them uh with um some of their um operating expenses at least until they are in a position to um Shore up their funds uh would be beneficial and um not only help to enhance that neighborhood but to uh help it to become a viable continue to be a viable part along one of the city's major thorough faires thank you you want to make your motion Madame mayor um I would like to make a motion to amend the 2025 revised budget to provide 50,000 of the funding to the Western Avenue Greenway uh and decrease the vacant lot clearing project by $50,000 is there a second seconded by council member grup any discussion council member Kelly thank you Madame mayor uh piggybacking on the discussion on the last item um first of all I I I think those uh starting with councilman riggenbach and and and others um talking about setting a precedent for uh charitable operations of value in our city um that are uh either in some cases all of a sudden or in some cases after many years short of money um I I think think we we set a dangerous precedent saying well the city is available for that for that funding um Western Avenue Greenway project I remember when it went in it was a wonderful thing um was a great Improvement and it was done by the people there um I don't know that anyone even I I have no idea whether it occurred to anybody there to say hey let's let's go fund this with the city this was totally a neighborhood effort um I I don't believe that those days are over and if they are over I don't know how we can take over all things like this around around the city um I you know this is a wonderful asset and it's a wonderful neighborhood and it seems to me that the neighborhood should figure out a way to continue uh to maintain this this asset and uh I both for that reason and for the reason that any anybody who's in trouble comes to the city I you know uh that's probably a little extreme but U uh I I will be opposing this thank you Madame mayor you're welcome council member vesa thank you Madame mayor um yeah I I agree I think this is a wonderful part of our city um I I do take sort of a different stance and a different perspective on this because I don't see the Nexus um between this and Public Safety or public health like I like I did with Pura grown um I think that certainly helps Public Health quite a bit and I think the vacant lot clearing helps Public Safety um this this would be great for the neighborhood I do think it would but um I do think vacant lot clearing is a little little more important I have to come down on that so I'll be a no on this but thank you thank you madam you're welcome council member Gordon Young I just want thank you madam mayor I just want to um basically repeat the same sentiment from earlier I think we are going down a slippery slope of um you know uh funding uh nonprofits and and I have a nonprofit and I get it I I totally get it and many times we coming out of my pocket or we're doing what we can and you know and and and and what we're you know we got to be careful that we're not playing favoritism we got to be careful that um we're not neglecting one you know for another one or this neighborhood for another neighborhood I just think that it's a very and again it doesn't mean that this isn't great work um or even um deserving work but I think that it is um a very dangerous area um you know so when the next person comes up and and I know nobody asked and on this occasion but when people start asking um how do we handle that um and so again particularly when we're talking about taking away from a project that is already in the works and definitely is needed uh I cannot uh support this and again doesn't mean it's not great work but I do don't want to go um down that pattern of supporting things that um without a process to it thank you madam mayor you're welcome council member grup well I can remember um when we had a discussion uh not too long ago about the um Cancer Center coming online and we had the Third District councilman very correctly and rightfully asking for us to fix the road and that wasn't exactly in the queue in anybody's queue yet we recognize the importance of uh the OSF as an employer there Cancer Center which houses the proton beam we also have on Western Avenue Bradley University just a stone soll away which is a critical key employer and we are really stretched to the point where it just can't continue the way it's going now yes we do get U heroic efforts on the part of the girls softball team recently helping uh with the clearing of that area but it's unsustainable and as my colleague said this is a major Corridor it's near one of our top employers uh vacant Lots how many vacant lots are we not going to be able to clear a manager because of this $50,000 five six where are they nobody has ownership on those this is this is something we all have ownership the the number of vacant Lots would probably for Combined would be about 10 that we would would not be able to do I think it's been roughly about um $10,000 a lot has been roughly what we've been spending so that would be the impact of of what we would see with the last vote and then if and then this vote coming forward so and and some of those lots may also be in district one that that's correct easy for me very very simple we need to help the greenway project they've been limping along for a long time and if it goes under guess what city's going to have to assume responsibility for it park districts unlikely to do much a lot of organizations have tried to help but it's just stretched to the point where we owe it to the people who have been working and who cannot continue to do this uh for a few amorphous Lots somewhere I don't I just don't think that should take priority and I agreed with my Council colleague when needed money for the that was all torn up after the cancer center went in and I think we should make an exception here Dorothy Sinclair was an ant llarge council member and ran for mayor one of the first females to ever run said Pandora's Box has been opened many times so but I don't think this is Pandora's Box no no thank you I think this is infrastructure Improvement which is uh part of our strategic plan and you know I I know that we have probably $800,000 in the Evans Street uh sidewalk project built in with a staff recommendation so I think that that's you know this is a much smaller amount with $50,000 in comparison to that and I support I support both projects I think they're part of the infrastructure and again Western is right by Bradley it is it is a major thorir and I I just think that this is a small boost to something that is going to provide or could certainly provide um very positive uh amenity to that area did you want to say something additional just a thank you a last comment um um you know people say they're concerned about setting a precedent um I remember oh I think it was a year or so ago we had uh some grants available and one common concern I heard from a lot of nonprofits was that why do you always award to the same groups these other groups smaller groups don't ever stand a chance and I'm just concerned and and again they did not approach me uh my whole whole rationale for This was um you know thinking we had additional funds when uh some of the money came back from the House of Hope situation and so I I'm not sure what we're going to tell people all those other groups out there and and I'm not suggesting that we uh send a message that the Ci's got all this money uh I just um I'm concerned about uh the message we're sending when to those other n non-traditional nonprofits that need some assistance whether whether it's an emergency boost or what um what's the message you can't come to the city of Poria for assistance because chances are if this particular nonprofits applying they're going to get it and not you and and so that's been the criticism uh in the past and so while we're saying we don't want to set a precedent by uh helping in this one-time situation we're also sending the message to folks that are smaller nonprofits that you don't stand a chance to get support from us thank you Madame mayor you're welcome any other discussion we have a motion on the floor in a second please cast your ballots motion fails with five Ys Jackson grab Ali Allan and Seer I read that right okay uh council member SE thank you Madame mayor welcome my desire tonight is try to provide release to our taxpayer to miss um Mrs merer that's here tonight and 47,000 other homes we have right here in peus I'm going to start with a motion A and B uh Madam Clerk and U see where the discussion goes the I I move to keep property tax levy at the same dollar value as last year that's a b would be to pay for the $2.5 million that the city manager is asking for from the general fund that way uh we won't miss any payment for pension for for uh for library or for anything else so the the this uh this uh motion would be funded from the general fund thank you madam mayor you're welcome that's two motions a one motion A and B okay motion A and B voted on separately what yes so we have to approve obviously item item a and then Item B okay seconded by um council member Oiler and we are open for discussion uh council member SI you want to say more yes ma'am okay so I want to start by explaining a little bit about inflation okay our federal government has printed money for years and years and every time we print money we devalue our dollar and and when we devalue our dollar we create inflation I think uh most people in the discussion would agree that is a correct statement so we have a lot of inflation right now okay because we have printed a lot of money through the tune of 35 trillion doll okay so when we understand about inflation okay that inflation is really a tax on everybody you know I hear all kinds of comments around the Horseshoe about the most vulnerable about people that are in fixed income okay and so they're the one being heard the most but everybody gets hit by inflation everybody okay example and I put five or six example mortgage rates are up right now forclosures and bankruptcies are up right now our sto our own storm water utility bill that when I start sitting in this chair you know we used to get about $8 million in Revenue now that revenues up to $16 million the reason I bring that up obviously because most my phone calls and complaint in the fifth district is about property taxes and storm water utility fee after that talk about inflation what what else went up all transportation and gas gasoline is up insurance is up utilities are up groceries are up and the list goes on and on and on okay at this point okay the city of peor okay has never been in such a great financial position we're we are so to speak flush with money right now and just to give you some example of that I talked to you earlier about the H taxes how the revenues are going up every year and why they're going up every year director cratty forgot to put something in the budget a few years ago it was called interest on our money where last year we received $8 million in interest rough using round numbers $8 million now this year in our budget we have over $6 million interest on our money okay so when we have ways we're looking at creative ways to look at how we can fund some of the things that are important to us there is many ways that we can do that many ways so uh with those explanation I mean I think it's important when we make changes everybody always okay how is it going to be funded so that's why I decide to break my motion in item A and B so first of all if we're having having the conversation of is that a good idea or not and number two how will we pay for it and mayor thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to open the discussion do you want to go ahead and proceed with your motion I made the motion already yeah so um oh you you've already made made made and B yeah I made both A and B and and the councilman orist I believe I supported both of them yeah I second both of them so the Motions are on the floor A and B is on the floor already now it's open to discussion we need to take one at a time yes we need to take one at a time yes okay okay so I made my motion I don't know if there's any discussion or not I made the motion okay I'm I'm a I guess I'm gonna have to ask um legal counsel so he made the motion for A and B but we have to vote on them separately so don't we need separate motions if I understood the motion correctly if motion a does not pass then motion B would be mo there would be no reason to vote on it um so you can have a motion with two separate parts we'll just have to be thoughtful about making sure if a passes you will need to vote on B if a does not pass you would not need to vote on B okay that's your intention then yes ma'am thank you okay all right right discussion council member grup what is motion aard you know I believe the motion is to keep the um the tax dollar amount the same as last year however I don't know what that rate is off hands then that would mean we would set the property tax levy at the the same uh place where it was in 24 correct no change correct into okay uh I would like to speak to it I think um we do have many people in this community who are hurting just before I got here at 5:00 I sat down with the riverfront business Merchants Association and they have described in Grizzly detail the impact on business downtown with the obscenity that we have right now of allowing encampments to continue to destroy the viability of our downtown bringing many comments from not only our own Merchants but our own people and people who come from out of town to me this is one way of compensating for our malignant malignant neglect which must stop imagine the people who are dependent upon some of our businesses that have been dramatically hurt by this people who live in your districts entrepreneurs who live in your District they're hurting and we heard that same story did we not councilman Oiler at the U downtown Advisory Group at Downtown Development Group in addition to the riverfront Association group it's just as clear as can be we're hurting so if this is an attempt to help help keep the tax bite down until we get away from our malignant neglect of our downtown and allowing unconscionable things to happen then I'm going to support it and what I like about it too is this city council needs to do more work creative work instead of relying entirely upon on our Administration to bring forth policy after all we are the chief policymaking body of the municipal Corporation called the city of Pura that's not to say that we don't get involved in the administration as well because we do there's an overlap but to rely entirely Upon Our Administration to advance policy we're not doing our job so I appreciate you councilman here doing what you're doing now eventually we'll probably pay for this but this is the time when we need relief very badly for our entrepreneurs downtown and even other business people who have been impacted by this so I will support it for that reason Mr manager I want to hear the impact Act of $2.5 million is a lot of money out of our our uh our budget and the impact is certainly going to be felt if not immediately in the the coming years and I thought we were moving in a a positive direction and setting ourselves up to be able to pay down pensions and and perhaps sometime early in 20 30s um after paying off some bonds that we have with the Civic Center that we might be in a position to to issue bonds to pay down our our pensions so I want to know what impact this might have on being in a better position down the road and and what impact it could have on cutting services sooner or later um thank you Madame mayor the if you in the budget book on page 51 we talk about the future considerations within the book and we talk about the impact of Public Safety pension costs and on page 52 there's a graph that director Kat put together that talks about and anticipates where we're going to see pension contributions between 2025 in 2040 and today in 2025 we're looking at 30 6.2 million of pension costs and we anticipate by 2040 that number could be as high as 81.3 million so that's the growth rate that we're on in terms of making these payments now as I understand councilman's motion what he's Part B does is say that the general fund will will make up the payment difference for all the funds in terms of the $2.5 million the amount of the freeze of the property taxes is $2.5 million so that means that we'll be spending more in reserves down this year and in a couple of areas that we didn't anticipate um some of this is a cut to the libraries Levy so that means we would be providing an additional contribution out of the general fund to the libraries in order to support their operations um it means that we would be putting money from the general fund towards FICA and imrf um which we didn't anticipate we did anticipate that there would be general fund transfers out for police and fire pensions because the cost is so great uh back on page 51 um property taxes make up only half of where the contributions come from there's about 28% that comes from personal property replacement tax and then the other 21% comes from the general fund is other revenues are we're using that to pay Public Safety pensions so if we're putting more in that means that that general fund transfer is going to get bigger but that also means in the out years we have less money to support operations in the out years and and the plan that we put together was the plan was let's let's use the reserves that we have to spend down for those that pension growth that we're seeing and then at some point in time we know that the debt service for the the Civic Center is going to fall off we'll be able to capture some that for a period of time and use those dollars to pay pension costs and then eventually we're going to get to a point where we can issue pension obligation bonds and then so then again jumping back to page 52 try and take the top of the mountain off where where the the pension costs are going up so that we can kind of scoop that out and toss that out into the future to reduce our contribution costs over a longer period of time because these costs are so great and are growing so great so if we if we have to take $2 and5 million that we didn't anticipate out of the general fund that means that the transfers out in 2025 go from $8.3 million to $10.8 million okay and then that just accelerates how soon we will be back at a point where and this if you look at the chart on page 53 that's the 5-year projection that director Katty put together and that's where those transfers out go to PayPal ition costs and that's where those transfers outgo to pay debt service costs that we have um and and so if if that accelerates it means we have less money in the general fund to weather other storms and do other things it's it's certainly a policy decision for Council how you want to handle that and that's something um that that is the perview of you as the as the the city council to make that decision uh but it will mean that that point at which um we are not in compliance with our fund balance policies from 2028 likely moves forward into 2027 um uh and it'll be 2027 not 2026 but it'll be uh we'll be close to being right at fund balance policy in 2027 thank you council member rbot thank you madam mayor so if I'm understanding the motion correctly you want to keep the levy the the same which results in a tax cut and I I think it's important that it's it it's clear that the eav increase of 7.3% is something that we should be celebrating that's as I was talking to a colleague today about the pension obligation and how in the world are we ever going to get out of it and he said we have to grow our tax base so here we are growing our tax base and the first thing we're going to do is cut the tax rate so if if if I have an obligation at home in my personal budget I'm going to do everything I can to pay that down sooner than later the interest and every everything thing just compounds that and and and let's not belittle the fact that we're paying 36.2 million this year for Public Safety pensions so we are making the Yan's effort to do that but it just seems counterintuitive that we would take the opportunity to put another $2.5 million down through eav growth which is one of our our goals and something that we're striving to see our eav increase um and then and and then squander that so we this this hits all of us that own our homes I mean this is not something that um discriminates against a certain population this this is something where all paying and and we're in this together so I I would not be able to support a tax cut when we have such a tremendous pension obligation that we still have to pay so thank you madam mayor you're welcome council member vesa thank you Madame mayor um I I agree with uh councilman riggenbach here I I think those were very good remarks um I I think this motion while well intended is fiscally irresponsible um we have we we all know we've all seen these graphs you know how much um how much in obligations we have over the next decade plus and you know saying well we're just going to take it out of the general fund and then we'll just start issuing bonds sooner that doesn't make me feel comfortable that that's more debt that we're going to be uh putting on the backs of future councils uh so that we can get get a break today and I mean I understand people you know I like a break i' like to get my taxes cut um but you know I do think it's it's a misnomer people saying that that we're raising taxes uh you know your federal income taxes at 37% is is the highest marginal rate if you make more money the next year uh you're going to pay more in taxes but you know the federal govern didn't raise your taxes it's the same rate as it was um I do understand I think I think uh Miss maker made a decent point at the outside here it's you know it's less liquid than income uh property tax are less liquid um so I I mean I wish we could do this via an income tax and you know put more more of a burden on the wealthy um make it more Progressive but um unfortunately we we need to collect our Revenue via property taxes um and I I mean I also think a false Choice was presented I you know either I have to sell the you know sell the home or or you know um find the money elsewhere I I mean you can if you if the value of your home went up that means you have more equity in the home that means you can take out an equity loan I'm not you know I know it's it's not the greatest thing to say to people hey we can take out a loan if you need to pay your taxes but those those loans have very low interest rates because they're secured by the home um and uh they're easy to get um I you know I know people living on the margins and it's tough uh if people can't pay their rents um you know they're out on the street I would hate to have anybody sell their homes but unfortunately our hands are I we we have this this uh fiscal house that we have and we cannot just say well future councils are going to have to borrow money and let's just you know drain the general fund now so I do oppose this motion thank you you're welcome council member velpula thank you Madame mayor I do not support the proposed tax increase a lot more comments were made but I believe that it places an unnecessary burden on the residents while while I understand that it is important critical to fill the Gap I don't believe that raising tax might be the right solution I also understand that we speak about tax value and Equitable assess value so while assess values have increased I have uh the um they show increase that but they really don't justify an automatic increase in taxes okay and also homeowners may not see this as an actual increase in wealth families and fixed income as several people pointed might be into a problem and also a point taken from cman that the inflation and we recently had some economic issues with the covid hitting us a lot more burden is on the people and assist values I would say reflects market conditions but not the actual wealth so if I have to say something that is you know if so take a take taking a look at what discussions are being made here so in one way or other way we are asking people to pay and if they're not going to if not they're not willing to go that route they probably will leave the city when I came to Poria in 2009 I think we have like you take a you close your eyes and throw a stone it goes and hit an Indian family 50 people stayed with me and all the 50 people left Poria for obvious reasons but one of the citing reason they say is oh Poria has high taxes Poria has no businesses so at this point of time when we wanted to consolidate our base we wanted to grow I don't think this is the right time to do that there are multiple Avenues and opportunities that we can think about it to kind of you know fill that Gap but at so since since we just started coming out of businesses right uh in this room we saw we heard that the restaurants are picking up so it takes some time for PE for the for the people to come back and say okay this I own this place I wanted to stay back and you pay your taxes and I I would not see that um happening let's say there will be another uh um pandemic and then are we willing to lower our taxes we don't once you impose you impose so this more at this point of time I'm I'm not in a position to support that thank you Madame mayor you're welcome and just to clarify manager um the original plan was not to increase the rate the rate would stay the same the the the rate actually goes down slightly but it's virtually the same okay thank you uh council member Kelly thank you Madame mayor um I would like to piggyback first of all on what uh councilman velpula uh just went through um in Illinois Illinois is one of we're second in the nation in high real estate taxes Peoria in Illinois used to be tops we're no longer tops but we're right up there this discourages capital investment it discourages residential discourages all the things we want more of we are fairly flush right now uh that that will change but today we are fairly flush and we can't afford this we we just bought a building for a million 750 out of I the general fund I believe um so somehow that was justifiable um this I feel it's it is a significant amount of money but not compared to the uh uh to the overall budget our budget is up 40% you know now we're we're we're coming back off covid now and now we're only up 40% from five years ago how much income how much are our citizens incomes up in the last five years we are we are every one of our taxes is way up at the top we got a 10% sales tax you know if you go to a restaurant or whatever a little more okay we've got you pay about a 3% rent essentially on your house every year in real estate taxes you you you know you go up and down the line we need to begin to concentrate on making our city more attractive not only you know we always talk about all those outside all that outside Capital how about the people who live here how about the people who have businesses here it's tough going we can we if if we do this we're only affecting 11 or 12% of people's real estate tax bill I would like it if the rest of the taxing bodies hopped on board I'm not confident of that but at least it makes a headline for our city that says we get it folks we get it and and we're on your side it we can't do everything right now but we're we're making that we're making a start um we our pension problems are big and they're going to get bigger and bigger and bigger if our city is growing and growing and growing during that time it's going to be easier the way it'll grow outside of inflation which is all we're seeing here the way we can make it really grow is to is to make investment in our city really better I would I think we would all like to see Peoria Illinois being the best place in the state of Illinois to invest to live Etc and we get all wrapped up in our minutia all of which is important but the overall picture is we're not doing anything different than we've ever done and I think we need to start moving down the road toward things that maybe maybe take a chance on doing some things a little bit differently so I'm going to support this realizing that uh for M Meer and others our keeping our Levy the same is hardly going going to be noticeable on her tax bill because of all the other taxing bodies that are on her tax bill but at least it's something where we're getting on the on the right side of our citizens thank you Madame mayor you're welcome council member Oiler thank you madam chairwoman first of all I hope no one ever has to go to their friendly local banker and say councilman oil are making sure the city of porri is flush and they need a loan is the solution to any problem um back to the actual issue um Mr manager can you clarify the budget proposal you provided is keeping the tax rate the same correct so reducing $2.5 million would be reducing the rate the rate the rate would go down to about a145 from a155 so for the audience because I think even up here it's in been incredibly confusing and I'm not sure everyone fully understands the discussion we are not planning to raise taxes however the equalized assessed value the public value has gone up so that will cause additional Revenue to come into the city I am going to support the proposal because I think because values have gone up we can afford to reduce the rate but I want to make sure the public is very clear on what the actual discussion is and it's not a proposed tax increase it's the fact that the values went up so the manager did his job and built a budget based on the rate and so I appreciate the manager's budget but from there it's on us to decide what to do next so we have to make the conscious decision to reduce the rate to compensate and give some of that back and help the taxpayer regardless of what we do here in this budget that needs to be understood amongst everyone as it relates to every other taxing body because the majority of it goes to the school district you've got the park district the county and so all of those other taxing bodies are going to have the exact same effect they are all going to see budget increases because the rate if their rates are staying the same they're going to generate additional Revenue because the values increased and so this is probably one of the smallest pieces of the pie in terms of the rate and the tax payment that you make and so anyone who feels the desire to come and address this with us and they should absolutely that's that's the purpose of the open hearing should be doing it with every single one of the other taxing bodies as well because the bang for the buck isn't going to be here at peia City Hall it's going to be at some of the others thank you you're welcome council member Allan uh uh thank you Madame mayor um and I appreciate the the motion being brought forth I think you know having the foresight to want to provide some relief to our constituents is very important and as someone who is doing his best to balance his own family's budget I completely relate uh although I think we have to be sensitive to the fact of making a short-term decision that will have long-term consequences um and really having an impact on basic coure Services later on for our our constituents um we talk about the value that they want and the quality of life they want in our city they want to ensure that they have quality basic core services and that's police fire code enforcement uh we got that white stuff coming this uh here in a couple of months making sure we got you know adequate snow removal things of that nature and so we just want to start always keeping in mind of keeping the main thing the main thing sometime I mean it's unfortunate that we do have such a unfunded mandate that we have to balance but we have to do our best of balancing that unfunded mandate while also maintaining basic coure service that our constituents deserve so unfortunately I won't be able to support the motion that's presented thank you madam mayor you're welcome council member grup I find it interesting that fiscal responsibility means sitting in these chairs for several months now doing nothing about the collapse of our downtown that's fiscally responsible right wrong you have a report and I asked for it and you got it on the amount of drain we've had police resources fire rescue resources Community Development resources uh dispatch resources because of this continuing malignancy that we have downtown which frankly manager didn't seem to bother you that much or the mayor nor the council members I am the councilman for the downtown neighborhood and I'm here to tell you right now I have over a thousand emails on this and I know these people have copied a lot of you folks on what's Happening the destruction of people's property downtown business property running off business Civic Center having concerns about it Etc yet the concern is not about our downtown or our collapsing business downtown no that's not a concern we'll just sit here and let it go on week after week after week and that has no impact on our treasury does it the fact that people don't want to come downtown the way they used to I hear it every day you ought to know that this has to change and I'm hopeful that on the 19th of November it can change in the meantime because of the malignant neglect and I'll use the term again caused by some of you who are obviously not fiscal Hawks not protecting your downtown business we're now in a situation where this is the least we can do then you have the people who live in the neighborhoods who have been vastly impacted by the repeat crime because for some reason in this state we just can't get control of the repeat criminal go to some of my neighborhood meetings find out about the vandalism the break-ins and everything else that's that's happened oh but we're going to be fiscal Hawks really while your city is collapsing around you it's like Nero fiddling I'm telling you and I've said it before if we don't do something about what's happening stones are away from us we're not going to have a viable downtown and we're not going to have viable neighborhoods period so when I hear all this oh I'm the uh I'm the very Stern father and I'm going and make certain that you don't squander your allowance you've sat here while our downtown's been squandered while our neighborhoods are overrun by crime and I know it's not just second district I know it it's not just the second district neighborhoods that here to for have never asked the police never ask the police to come and make a presentation nebor neighborhoods that have never asked for a neighborhood watch program are hurting you think crimes down it's not down there are a lot of crimes in this community who which are absolutely not being reported which is of course the fault of the citizens I try to encourage them to continue to have faith in the system which isn't working well right now we've got to get this system working for all neighborhoods including the downtown neighborhood probably especially the downtown neighborhood right now but we've sat and we've sat and we've sat I just before I came in here there was a blinky email on my phone about a lady who has a business downtown they've broken in there they've done damage you've gotten emails uh from folks who have businesses downtown about the extra expenses they're having to incur having trash alled away and you sit here and you ask like you're fiscally a hawk that you're trying to prevent something bad from happening we've got to get our downtown and all of our neighborhoods moving again this is not a Panacea but it's a step in the right direction until this Council changes the trajectory of where our city is going and we start standing up for law-abiding citizens and people who are following all the rules instead of paying no attention to them and enabling folks who need a push in the right direction so that's why councilman here when you called me I was on board because I know the hurt that's out there in every neighborhood probably especially our downtown neighborhood right now and you'll hear about it in the days coming thank you you're welcome I think that we're in a strong financial position now the city is but I I do believe a storm is coming I believe at some point in our near future a storm will come a financial storm that will weaken our position um and ultimately impact core Services if we take this action $2.5 million do can be numerous positions with staff positions that lead to Cuts in services for the city that definitely have an impact on our residents and our neighborhoods and what we can do to improve the quality of life and and serve this the residents of of the city so that's why you know I I can't support this you know the original recommendation was to leave the tax ta Levy the same virtually the same a little bit less but allow us to have additional revenues to continue paying down the pension debt and to put it put the city in a position in a few years to maintain our threshold within the reserve funds the general fund of 25 million which this will definitely cause that to go down sooner and at some point to be able to issue bonds to pay down our our pension debt so for those reasons I I I can't support the motion council member Jackson um thank you Madame mayor um I you know I I think everybody would appreciate seeing uh a little bit of relief uh in their tax rate um one of the reasons I um decided to run was the concern about our our pension obligations and the fact that you know the Can had been kicked down the road for years but and so you know that is that is um deep on my mind um mayor you talked about a financial storm and I I haven't heard us talk at all about how we're going to address the uh Governor's situation with regards to the grocery store 4.3 uh how how we would uh make up those funds but you know this is a wonderful uh idea I'm just the timing for me is uh problematic given the situation we're going to see with the grocery uh store uh grocery tax grocery tax is what I'm yeah referring to um and and we didn't see that did we see that coming mayor we didn't see that coming did we did we see that so um I I'm just concerned about us uh putting ourselves in a bit of a bind uh this soon in the process with regards to our uh police and fire pension situation um you know if if if we were a little further down the line and um then I would feel comfortable uh police and fire Public Works code enforcement uh We've cut those departments uh years past and and those folks still haven't been able to keep up with the amount of work they have to do uh so uh right now I I I would be reluctant to support this because um uh city services are essential and uh especially when you're talking about police and fire and cod enforcement in public works and so and and the probability that we don't have a crystal ball and we can't foresee uh what else is brewing out there uh financially so uh I would I would feel uh better to um air on the side of caution and uh I won't be able to support this at this time thank you you're welcome council member sirar thank you Madame mayor first of all I want to say thank you to all my colleagues for all their inputs I think it's a great conversation we're having right now so thank you very much for your inputs uh Mr craty it's your turn uh talk to us a little bit about pension uh we all know I think we all know that down the road Mr manager just said that he wants to chop the cap off that mountain that Cliff eventually so tell me when is the to you and I'm sorry I didn't call you or I don't know if you have that answer but when's the last time that we had a down market and what did it do to our how much extra money we had to pay for our pension fund uh the last year I believe that they had negative returns in the fund was I believe two years ago um that increased our unfunded liability close to about $30 million so we saw our contributions go up about3 million doish um the last time that we had earnings in the Pension funds at a low lower rate than what the the fund says they should earn so I've heard you say $3 million is that correct M so let's talk about using my count my colleague uh councilwoman Jackson do you have a crystal ball I'll take that as a no uh so from year 2030 to year 2040 you and I had that conversation a couple meetings ago our liability on funded liability right now for the pensions about $340 million is that correct so about 366 I'm I'm sorry 66 366 thank you what are your uh guess that that uh liab unfunded liability will be at by 2030 my rough estimate would probably be in the neighborhood of 225 to 250 million so you told us that before let's use the high number or you can use the low I don't care let's use $250 million so we will bond whoever is in these chairs the and whoever's in that chair over there city manager um we will bond $250 million for 20 years usually pension obligation bonds extend out a little bit further than 20 years uh it really depends on uh what the market looks like at the time of offering so 20 years just for the sake of conversation tonight $250 million for 20 years okay you're looking at 13 something like that maybe $ 13 million of payment every year plus interest so the Mountain Cap will really be gone because right now we're paying over $30 million but for the last 10 years we would be down if that plan works about 13 to15 million a year correct well you'd still have the current pension obligations that you have to make for for the salaries which assuming salary growth over the next 15 years you're going to have to make those payments at roughly 30% of payroll so your best guess would be how much money you're going to be in the probably the $ 25 to $30 million range right there $35 million is a lot less than your page whatever it was here the graph on page uh 52 we're at 80 uh $81 million year 2040 so by your guest today which we don't have a crystal ball but will be around $30 million level payment for 10 years Mr cred do you believe that level payment would be level for 10 years what can what can happen that would increase that level payment so the payment on the debt specifically will usually be a level payment normally you're do you do structure that debt to be a level payment that's taking into account really that spread of Interest earnings that you're paying on the bonds versus what you're earning the problem that is inherent in pension obligation bonds and the risk is if you invest the money in the funds and the fund loses 10% that coming year now the city could potentially be again an unfunded liability situation that the city is having to make up that difference to get to that 90% funded level um in some fashion the bond rating agencies are going to want a policy usually associated with how quickly you're going to get back to that number um or more than likely that you would see a downgrade to the rating thank you very much Mr crit very long explanation but my point I think is very simple there's just none of us has a crystal ball especially to what will happen with our investment Bond investment from 2030 to 2040 so I I believe I I really believe that plan but I mean there's just no guarantee if you look for Guarantee uh I don't know where we go for guarantees anymore so I want to make sure I make that point to all my colleagues that are afraid of the pension okay our pension obligation will be painful down the road but $2.5 million today okay I prefer to celebrate providing relief to our taxpayers in 2025 than being concerned about a stock market that we have zero control over from year 2030 to 2040 the other thing I've heard is um I agree with mayor Ali I mean no we will have some storms in the future we had some storms in the past last time we had a storm in the pension we had a pension uh a uh what was it called a pension fee we had a pension fee for a couple years and our taxpayers were not happy about it but we took care of it and we went through that storm so mam mayor you are correct we will have some plal storms in the future but for now all I'm trying to do is just celebrate providing some relief for current taxpayers thank you very much all of you guys that's all I'm going to say about it but I really appreciate all your comments tonight thank you madam mayor thank you council member Kelly thank you Madame mayor and uh thank you councilman Sears for inspiring me to make this short thank you thank [Laughter] you um I I would just like to say we look at our situation as something that's never going to change we adopt policies that are failing in Pittsburgh in Milwaukee in Cleveland in Chicago we're we're doing the same things they're doing and we're expecting a different result we need to get off that train or we will fail this is something those towns don't do we need to think of some other things that they don't do that that work but just continuing to go along like everybody else means we're deeper and deeper and deeper in the mud all the time we need a little imagination and I compliment U councilman here on his let's all get to work on imagination thank you Madame mayor you're very welcome uh seeing no more discussion I would ask uh Madam clerk if you would read the motion the motion is to uh reduce the tax levy to the 2024 amount is that correct oh sorry uh would you make the motion yes the motion is to keep the property tax levy at the same dollar value as last year that is the motion okay and that was second It On by council member Oiler so please cast your ballots motion fails with four y belula Kelly grab sear and Oiler five five sorry five y thank you okay Mr Mr manager next steps uh so the next step mam mayor mam mayor can I make one comment pardon me I'll oh I'll pull the the motion off the table okay you withdrew the motion I'm withdrawing the motion okay thank you um Mr manager uh thank you Madame mayor um at this point if there are no other motions um staff will uh be willing to prepare the the appropriation ordinance and the levy ordinance with the Motions that have been uh adopted this evening and we can prepare those um for the night of the 12th so that we wouldn't have to have a meeting next Tuesday um if council is amable to that and then we can have everything ready to go for um the adoption of the appropriation ordinance and Levy ordinance uh on November 12th November 12th okay we won't have to meet next election day November 5th corre all right U Madam clerk we are at citizens opportunity to address the city council do we have any cards no we do not cards do we have an exact we do do okay don't have that uh before we go anywhere uh do you have a motion to read for executive yes madame mayor we need to move into executive session under five ilcs 122 C11 to discuss litigation that is probable or imminent okay can I get a motion moved by council member SE seconded by council member oil please cast your ballots Oiler oh shoot uh Jackson and riggenbach Jackson and rigin Bach yeah thank you for your service