The Peoria County Board held its regular meeting January 13th with all present. There were no Citizen’s Remarks. 
The Consent agenda passed on a vote of 17-1 without discussion. Among items approved were:

• A budget amendment that funds two positions within county departments for two of the three employees who lost their positions with the County Auditor’s office.  The third employee chose not to accept another county position.
• Two grants to fund specific PCAPS services.
• PCAPS veterinary services contract extension.
• Approval of the Peoria City/County Landfill 2022 budget.
• Cedar Hills Drive engineering for resurfacing work.
• Dogtown Road bridge replacement. 

The regular agenda consisted of ten items and all were approved.  These include:

• Special use to permit short term rentals (Airbnb/VRBO) on three properties on River Beach Road in Medina and Chillicothe townships.
• Rezoning request in Medina Township.
• Placement of temporary meteorological towers to record and measure wind data for up to three years in Millbrook, Princeville and Brimfield townships.
• Zoning two tracts on an island in the Illinois River adjacent to the town of Chillicothe as “A-2” Agricultural. (This island had been proposed as a barge depot in 2021, and this designation ensures that this use will not be permitted).
• After a presentation by Tom Bride, Election Commission Executive Director, several questions and some discussion; an amended budget amendment resolution permitting the purchase of a new paper ballot voting system and upgrades to the existing electronic pollbooks, and new label printers.
• A resolution to replace the current facilities housing a number of county services with a new health and human services campus.  All the services have not yet been determined however the Health Department, Coroner, Regional Superintendent of Schools, and Sustainability and Recycling Department will definitely be included. This permits the county to continue activities to replace the current Health Department facilities on Sheridan Road and the Coroner’s facility on Gift Ave. rather than renovating either.
• Suspension of the Rules to permit extension of the Declaration of Emergency due to COVID-19 in the county.

The board went into Executive Session to discuss a personnel matter.
Jim Runyon, Observer
Links to the meeting agenda and video are here:
Agenda
Video
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​The Peoria County Board held its regular meeting December 9 with all present except Chairman Rand and Member Reliford.
During Citizen’s Remarks, Tim Howard, LVWGP Vice President and Board member, read a letter on behalf of the League of Women Voters Greater Peoria thanking the County Board, its Redistricting Committee, and past board members Allen Mayer and Stephen Morris for their excellent redistricting process and resulting districts map. 
The Consent agenda passed without discussion. Among items approved were:

• Appropriation to cover unanticipated expenses related to COVID-19 in the amount of $95,000 to the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office.
• Transfer of $45,000 to the PCAPS budget for replacement of one Animal Control Vehicle.
• Approval of two bids to cash rent Peoria County owned farms for the next three growing seasons.
• Appropriations and expenditures associated with commercial kitchen equipment for the Juvenile Detention Center.

The regular agenda consisted of only five items and all were approved:

• Special use in a zoning case related to subdividing a parcel in Logan Township.
• Quotations for County Highway Maintenance materials for 2022.
• Review of Executive Minutes
• Suspension of the Rules to permit extension of the Declaration of Emergency due to COVID-19 in the county.

Jim Runyon, Observer

​The Peoria County Board held a special meeting November 30 with all present except Members Pastucha and Windish.  Member Reliford participated via phone.
The sole agenda item was final approval of the draft redistricting map based on the 2020 Census and that will be in place for the next decade.  Former members Allen Mayer and Stephen Morris worked with the county IT and GIS departments to determine population gain/loss in each census track and then drafted a map that reflected these changes but also retained substantially same populations—the 18 districts vary in size by no more than 124 people.  In general, heritage neighborhoods within the City of Peoria lost population while the Route 6 Corridor saw significant growth compared to the 2010 Census. All 18 members will be elected in 2022.
Members thanked Mayer and Morris for their bipartisanship and generosity for volunteering their time and expertise.
The map was approved unanimously on a 16-0 vote.  The interactive map is available on the County website under the Departments/GIS tab.
During Citizen’s Remarks, Sherriff Brian Asbell surprised the board by announcing he would not stand for election in 2022. He cited unspecified policy disagreements with the board over the past year for his decision not to run again.
Jim Runyon, Observer

​  The Peoria County Board held its regular monthly meeting November 11 with all members present except Chairman Rand.  Member Rieker participated via phone.
  The meeting was preceded by a Redistricting Committee meeting that discussed recent changes to the draft county board district boundaries including recent modifications for the more rural areas in Districts 14 and 16.   Four public comments were read into the record.  The interactive draft map that will be recommended for approval is available on the County website under the Departments/GIS tab. Videos describing the redistricting process will be posted on the same site beginning November 24th. Additional public comments will be accepted through November 30 when the county board is scheduled to vote on the draft map.
   One proclamation was read recognizing Small Business Saturday.
 Ten items on the consent agenda were approved without discussion. Among these items were approvals of a contract extension for independent external auditing, a three year contract for health care provision for juvenile and adult detainees, technology improvements for the county board room, and a bid for rehabilitation of a bridge on Swords Avenue.
Under regular business:

• Following four public comments, special use was approved with restrictions for an AirBnB operating on N. River Beach Drive in Medina Township.
• A Joint Emergency Telephone System Board for Peoria and Stark counties was approved.  Stark County is the final Illinois county without 9-1-1 service and this alignment will permit this service within the next two years.
• PCAPS redemption and adoption fees were modified.

Jim Runyon, Observer
Video of meeting (copy paste):  https://youtu.be/Toy3OJ6oWy4   

The Peoria County Board held its regular monthly meeting October 14th with all members present except Chairman Rand.  Member Daley participated via phone.
Two proclamations recognizing Bartonville Hardware’s 70th anniversary and the Heart of Illinois United Way’s 100th anniversary were read. 
Twelve citizens offered remarks related to the proposed 2022 budget’s staffing and appropriation reductions in the County Auditor’s office.  Among those speaking were Jessica Thomas, County Auditor, and the three employees impacted by those reductions. State’s Attorney Jodi Hoos also spoke later in the meeting responding to some statements made during public comment.
The seventeen consent agenda items were approved on a 16-1 vote without discussion. Among those items were acceptance of five grants, approval of additional funds for the Distillery Labs Smart City/Mobility Living Laboratory, and approval of four infrastructure projects in western Peoria County.
Other regular business included approval of a Long Term Care Ombudsman/Senior Advocate position in conjunction with the Center for Prevention of Abuse, and discussion and approval of ten resolutions related to the 2022 budget. Highlights include:

• Adoption of the Annual Tax Levy—there is no increase in this rate.
• Approval of a budget amendment to permit use of ARPA (America Rescue Plan Act) funds to cover the increases in health care premiums for county employees with one or more dependents.
• Approval of a budget amendment setting aside $87,000 from the General Fund to ensure the three Auditor’s office employees could laterally transfer to other county positions in 2022.
• Adoption of the 2022 Peoria County Annual Budget and Appropriation Ordinance as amended by the previous two bulleted items on a 15-2 vote.
• With the adoption of the 2022 amended Budget the Auditor’s office staffing was eliminated with only the elected Auditor serving in that office for the upcoming year.

A proclamation was approved on a 13-4 vote extending the Declaration of Emergency due to COVID-19 in Peoria County.
Jim Runyon, Observer

​         The Peoria County Board held its regular meeting face-to-face Aug. 12. All were present except Chairman Andrew Rand and Member Matt Windish; three members participated via phone— Rachel Reliford, Brian Elsasser and Paul Rosenbohm.  The regular agenda was very short with the seven items on the consent agenda passing unanimously with no discussion.
         Two rezoning petitions were approved without opposition.  One permitted a tavern to open within the Madison Park shopping center and the other waived a public water supply in favor of a private well in a single lot subdivision in Rosefield Township.  A third rezoning request in Radnor Township was denied on the recommendation of the Land Use Committee and the Zoning Board of Appeals.                        The petitioner had requested rezoning to permit the creation of a buildable lot. However, it was denied since the lot would have been located in a flood plain.
         The only other item of new business was a resolution from the Executive Committee recommending approval of $200,000 to settle a legal case related to a fall by a nursing home resident.  It was approved on a vote of 15-0, with one abstention.
         A proclamation was approved on a 13-3 vote extending the Declaration of Emergency due to COVID-19 in Peoria County.
——— Jim Runyon, Observer

​The Peoria County Board held its regular meeting via face-to-face format on July 8th with all present except Members Pastucha and Bryant.  A proclamation was read by Chairman Rand recognizing David Tuttle, former Director of the Emergency Communications Center, upon his retirement in June 2021 following 38 years of service.  The regular agenda was short with the four items on the consent agenda passing on a 15-1 vote.
Two rezoning petitions (one in Princeville Township and another in Medina) were approved without opposition.
A recommendation from the Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee and the County Administrator recommending approval of an appropriation of unused grant funds from the Center for Tech and Civic Life in the amount of $19,430 into the FY2021 Election Commission budget was approved on a 12-4 vote following a brief discussion that included one citizen’s comment and one member expressing opposition to the resolution.  LWVGP President Terry Kohlbuss was present in support and had written a letter asking the County Board members to revise the budget to accept the no-strings-attached grant money. Peoria Election Executive Director Tom Bride and Election Commission Chairman Matt Bartolo were present to answer any questions from board members but none were asked.
A resolution was unanimously approved recommending approval of a permanent easement for the construction of an overflow spillway at the Peoria County Landfill #3.  The Peoria City Council had already voted in favor of this same resolution.
Under Miscellaneous and Announcements, Administrator Sorrell and Member Salzer spoke to the recent dedication of the “Final Salute” statute dedicated on July 3rd.  Member Salzer encouraged attendance at the upcoming HOI Fair. Member Dillon recognized LWVGP for again assigning an observer to their board meetings.
Jim Runyon, Observer

  Vice Chairman James Fennell presided at the Peoria County Board meeting's regularly scheduled second Thursday 6 p.m. board meeting with the absence of Chairman Andrew Rand. Member Windish was also absent. Board members and staff were sitting with social distancing and COVID masks in the County Building board room with members Salzer and Daley participating by phone. Members of the public could watch the meeting live via Facebook or YouTube and at different times on Cable Access 22. (Public comments were to be sent to the County Clerk by 3 p.m. on the day of the board meeting and  would be read into the record.) County Clerk Rachel Parker read public comments from the following in support of the agenda item regarding the Hanna City Trail: 1) from Roberta English, Wildlife Prairie Park, trail will enhance the Park and be a benefit to the county; 2)  Tri-County Regional Planning Commission, benefits of the proposed trail include recreation, added property value, tourism regional attraction; 3) Heart of Illinois Group Sierra Club,  Rock Island Trail shows economic values and growth from trails including preservation of a green corridor; 4) Brett Baker, Bike Peoria, petition with 1,719 signatures in support of the trail and urge that funding be secured to acquire the trail.
   The first Resolution was the Intergovernmental Agreement between Peoria County, the City of Farmington, Fulton County, and Village of Hanna City for the formation of the Hanna City Trail Negotiation Commission. County Administrator Scott Sorrel explained that the main purpose was establishing a body that could proceed with grant applications. Hanna City Mayor Winteroff was in the audience. The project would acquire 24.7 miles of right-of-way that has been rail-banked for years. Board member Sharon Williams was credited with her earnest work on this project since she became a Peoria County Board member and she would be the Board representative on the Negotiation Commission. The significance of this effort is the Federal Government has said this is the last chance for the trail section to be purchased as previous extensions of time have been approved. If the project cannot go forward the land will be released from rail-banking and sold. The goal is to apply for federal grant funding which will cover 80% of the purchase. Twenty per cent is to be a local match and state grants could pay up to half of that. The Board would allocate $170,225.80 as it’s pledge for the funding to come from the Keystone Fund, which is used exclusively for economic development purposes. Mr. Sorrel explained that trail projects like this are classic examples of economic development. Rural area Board member Paul Rosenbaum commented that he had a call from a subdivision resident near Wildlife Prairie Park who is on the subdivision council and strongly urged support for this on behalf of the subdivision. Sharon Williams spoke to receiving calls and communications in support. Board member Dillon thanked Mrs. Williams for her persistence on this project and gave his support. Brian Elsasser said this is a very worthy project as did Kate Pastucha. Vice Chairman Fennell said he had calls in support and others spoke to strong support. The Resolution passed unanimously. 

Peoria County Board Chairman Andrew Rand opened the regular monthly meeting at 6 p.m. 
Board members James Dillon, Barry Robinson and  Phillip Salzer were absent. 
Mr. Rand announced the agenda schedule would be adjusted so the meeting could begin with an update from Monica Hendrickson, Director, Peoria City/County Health Department. Ms. Henderson gave an overview of the current status of COVID-19 for the county, including the opening of a joint response center for Peoria City and County, ongoing work of a strong policy group addressing a wide range of issues and ongoing public information. She said the virus situation is fluid and evolving and while it will not be possible to stop all cases, the goal is to slow down the number of those infected and protect the public. She commented that this effort will be a marathon and reviewed recommended procedures. Chairman Rand urged everyone to follow guidelines for hand washing and other protective measures.
The Consent Agenda had nine items which were approved. Five items were on the Zoning Ordinance and Resolutions listings. The first was a variance request for a cell tower that would be 255 feet, which is above the County Unified Development Ordinance limit of 200 feet for a non-residential zoning district. This was approved. There were two other zoning cases. Two Resolutions were approved: 1) a cooperative research agreement between the County of Peoria and Bradley University regarding maintaining the Pavement Management Program; 2) a resolution from the Board Executive Committee recommending County Administrator Compensation. Information on this last item was contained in a separate Agenda Briefing blue page available on the public table containing print-outs of the meeting agenda and board packet. A 2.5% increase was approved based on the performance review, along with a one year extension to the Administrator's current employment agreement.