Village of Deerfield Committee of the Whole met Monday, April 3.
Here is the minutes provided by the Committee:
Present-
Village Board:
Harriet Rosenthal, Mayor
Alan Farkas, Trustee
Thomas Jester, Trustee
Robert Nadler, Trustee
William Seiden, Trustee
Dan Shapiro, Trustee
Barbara Struthers, Trustee
Staff:
Kent Street, Village Manager
Andrew Lichterman, Assistant Village Manager
Barbara Little, Director of PW and Engineering
Robert Phillips, Deputy Director of Public Works
Brandon Janes, WRF Superintendent
Justin Keenan, Public Works Analyst
John Sliozis, Police Chief
Eric Burk, Finance Director
Absent:
None
Public Comment:
There was no one present for public comment.
Discussion of Sanitary and Storm Sewer Home Inspection Program:
Assistant Village Manager Lichterman presented an overview of the proposed closing ordinance for the sanitary and storm sewer home inspection program. The program would require homeowners to have an inspection completed to determine whether the home has illegal plumbing connections to the sanitary and/or storm sewer prior to selling their property. If the home is found to have a violation, repairs must be completed and bring the property into compliance before the transfer of real estate can occur. It is estimated that adopting the closing ordinance as contemplated will impact 300 home owners annually and will cost in excess of $150,000 per year ($500 per home inspection).
Trustee Farkas questioned if inspections would be necessary for every homeowner and suggested that there may be a more targeted approach rather than adopting a one size fits all solution. He believes that this issue could be solved with public meetings that inform residents of the options and potentially adopt a 50/50 cost share program to incent homeowners to solve the problem before legislation is enacted Village-wide.
Trustee Nadler inquired if the Village would pay the $500 inspection fee. Mr. Lichterman noted the intention is for the inspection cost to be a pass through similar to other Village inspection services.
Trustee Struthers asked why she would need to pay $500 to inspect her driveway drain when she already knows that the problem exists. Mr. Lichterman explained that this program is intended to be tailored to the inspection of yard drains, downspouts and sump pumps primarily. This would not affect driveway drains and footing tiles due to the large cost associated with that work.
Trustee Nadler asked if it is possible to have a preapproved list of plumbers that could do the inspections for residents who know that they will be selling their homes in the next five years. Residents could then receive a bulk rate thereby saving them money. This would also have the added benefit of not delaying the sale of the home. Mr. Lichterman stated that staff has had discussions with plumbers about conducting inspections; however, the majority of companies that were contacted preferred to do the plumbing disconnections instead of completing the inspections on behalf of the Village.
Trustee Jester asked if Deerfield is the only community that has a closing ordinance. Mr. Lichterman noted the program is modeled after the Lake Forest disconnection program. Village Manager Street noted that one key difference is that Lake Forest has a real-estate transfer tax that helps them ensure compliance with the program prior to a real estate transfer.
Mayor Rosenthal stated she preferred a targeted approach, which was one of the alternatives noted in the report. Since the northwest & northeast quadrants have the largest number of homes with illegal connections, instead of being punitive, she believed that the Village could be helpful and let the residents know in advance that the Village intended to send licensed plumbers to inspect their homes. If their homes are found to be noncompliant, the homeowner will have a certain number of days to correct this issue. It seems to her to be an easier idea that accomplishes what the Village wants to achieve. It also allows the Village to complete the project quadrant by quadrant. If residents do not fix the problem during the set timeframe, they will not be allowed to sell their home until the work is completed.
Trustee Shapiro mentioned the Village could use a carrot and stick approach. The Village could offer a 50/50 program if they comply in 90 days as the carrot. As the stick, he is not sure if the Village has the authority to enforce the closing ordinance without the same type of authority as Lake Forest. Trustees Nadler and Jester noted they would not be in favor of a 50/50 cost share.
Village Attorney Coblentz believes that while Lake Forest has a real-estate transfer tax that is tied to their disconnection program the Village of Deerfield’s proposed closing ordinance could be tied into the sale of homes as part of the Village’s home rule authority.
Trustee Seiden believes that the Board should adopt the closing ordinance and the Village could offer some incentive to help expedite the program’s 20 year timeline, which would save the Village money in the long-term by having the illegal connections removed sooner.
Trustee Farkas asked if there is any direct benefit to the homeowner to resolve an illegal connection. Mr. Lichterman noted there is not, otherwise homeowners likely would have already taken that action. Director of Public Works and Engineering Barb Little responded that some systems have a diverter valve installed that allows the resident to direct water to either the storm sewer or sanitary sewer; however, this would still be an illegal setup.
Trustee Jester discussed his concern with the lack of a comprehensive report that ties all the information from the Strand and RJN reports. Additionally, he would like to see a report that shows the total impact of I/I on the treatment plant and how much the overflow of water during a storm costs the Village. Since this is a Village-wide issue, staff should not just focus on the northern quadrants. The southern quadrants, while not as significant, also have serious I/I issues. He believes that the closing ordinance is the next step and the Village is going in the right direction. However, the Village should not lose sight of the main goal of substantially decreasing I/I and ensuring that the WRF is operating as designed.
Mayor Rosenthal mentioned that implementing this type of inspection program in-house will be a difficult process especially when compared to the water meter replacement program. She believes that the Village could subsidize the home inspection if residents agree to have the inspection done within a specified period. This could save the Village money long term by increasing the number of homes that become compliant thereby decreasing the costs associated with treating I/I. Mayor Rosenthal also noted that the Village does not have adequate resources to do hundreds of inspections a year. Therefore, she suggested the Village pursue a one or two year pilot program to bring residents into compliance before a closing ordinance is adopted.
Deputy Director of Public Works and Engineering Bob Phillips informed the group that the next EPA permit is coming up in the next few years that could require that the Village decommission the overflow pump stations. At the very least, the EPA will require that the Village show progress in decreasing sewer overflows during storm events.
Trustee Shapiro believes that it is important to let residents know what the incentive is if the Village offers a pilot program. He recommends that staff create a program with clear incentives on why residents should bring their properties into compliance now.
Trustees Farkas and Jester expressed their support for a two year pilot program and emphasized the need to include a benchmark so that the success of the pilot program could be evaluated in two years. Trustee Farkas suggested that staff hold educational meetings with plumbers and then allow private plumbers to conduct inspections and submit letters of verification to the Village.
Trustee Nadler believes that the majority of the Board is in favor of educating residents of the program requirements and implementing the program with a multi-year deadline. However, he also expressed his concern regarding the authority the Village would have after that set time period was up to force the remaining residents to comply. Village Attorney Coblentz reinforced the notion that since a Village Ordinance would ban illegal connections, residents could be fined or face other consequences.
Mr. Lichterman reiterated that village staff could handle a small number of inspections throughout the year. However, it would be very difficult when large numbers were required within a short time frame. He noted that staff was hesitant to allow private plumbers to complete inspections for residents but would be comfortable establishing guidelines to allow this to occur if it is the direction of the Board. Originally, staff preferred that the Village hire a contractor to complete the work on our behalf. Trustee Nadler and Struthers noted that allowing privately hired licensed plumbers to complete the inspection would make it easier for residents to comply. Trustee Struthers noted this is similar to how the Village treats inspections for backflow prevention devices.
Mr. Street summarized that the Board prefers to educate residents on the proposed requirements and supports allowing privately licensed plumbers to complete and verify the work to the Village over a two-year pilot program. He noted that an updated report & recommendation will be brought back to the Board in the near future and will include proposed incentives and target I/I reductions levels that the Village wants to see achieved over the period of the pilot program. If the target I/I reduction levels are not achieved by the end of the pilot program, the Village can consider enacting a closing ordinance to ensure that residents comply.
Trustee Farkas emphasized the need for set performance measurements that could be relayed to the board during the pilot program. This will give the board a clear idea on how successful the program was being over the first few years.
Discussion of Traffic Signal Operations: Lake Cook Road at Pine and at Embassy Way:
This item was deferred and will be discussed at a future Committee of the Whole meeting.
Adjournment:
Trustee Farkas made a motion to adjourn. The motion was seconded by Trustee Nadler.
The meeting adjourned at 7:26 p.m.
http://www.deerfield.il.us/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_04032017-294
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