City Council - Regular Meeting

recording in progress

Test, test, test Loud and clear

How you doing, big boy? Good, yeah. How you doing? Thank you.

Thank you.

Are you ready, young lady? Unless you want to sign that. I got this. You want to move over there?

Thank you.

Thank you.

That's the whole thing.

Oh, okay.

A lot smaller than the scale they're talking about.

Thank you. Yeah, my, I have a grandson who graduated today.

He's a career engineer in Miami. He's a football player.

He's a football player. He's a football player. He's a football player. Thank you. . . . .

Thank you.

Good to be here. Thank you. Thank you.

We went there on Saturday and came back on Sunday.

So Saturday and Sunday. Thank you. How you feeling, Harley? You feeling better?

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Yes. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, don't count. Thank you. Thank you.

We'll call the June 1st, 2026 meeting to order. If you're able to, please stand up, remove your hats for the pledge.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Welcome, everyone, to the June 1st, 2026 City Council meeting. For those of you watching online, thank you. And as we go through the agenda tonight, everything should have been posted online so you can follow it, and you can also follow on the screen. We have our city treasurer, Mr. Hersey, with us today. Thank you for joining us. And at this time, we will move down to 1.3 for our roll call.

Rosenberg. Present. Mylord. Here. Lotz.

Here.

Stoffel.

Here.

Carney. Here. Thony.

Here.

Roach. Here. Newcomb. Here. Hudson. Here. Blackburn. Here. Worse. Here. Campbell. I don't think he's going to be here. Parchman. Here. Ford. Here.

Okay, thank you. Moving on to 1.4, approval of the minutes from the May 18th, 2026 meeting. Can I get a motion to approve the minutes from the May 18th, 2026 meeting?

I make a motion. Second, Myler.

Motion and a second from Myler. Myler. Carney was the motion. Do we have any discussion or comments on 1.4? Seeing none, all in favor? Opposed? Motion carries. Moving on to two, public hearings. We do not have any. Three, we have city presentations. We do not have any this evening. So this takes us up to four public comments. This is the first of two times tonight that the citizens will be able to make public comments. This portion of the city council meeting is reserved for any member of the public wishing to address the council. All remarks should be made to the Council as a whole, not to individual members or the audience. The Illinois Open Meetings Act 5 ILCS 120 forward slash 1 mandates no action shall be taken on matters not listed on this agenda, but Council may direct staff to address the topic or refer the matter to a committee. Please provide the city clerk with your name, speak into the microphone, limit presentations to five minutes, and avoid repetitious comments. Thank you. Would anybody like to make public comments at this time? Please come forward.

Good evening, Mr. Mayor, members of the council, Doug Gaines, Ward 5. I stand before you tonight because public servants swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Illinois, not to blindly follow unelected federal agencies or international organizations. During the COVID area, mandates for masks, lockdowns, business closures, and experimental medical interventions were imposed on we the people without sufficient local evidence and without our consent. In October 2021, I sent a Freedom of Information Act request to the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois Governor's Office asking for any scientific laboratory studies isolating and identifying the SARS-CoV-2 virus from actual human sample here in Illinois. Their response, they provided links to flu dashboards and described COVID testing workflows, but provided zero primary isolation studies conducted or held by the state. Not one record proving they had definitive, locally verified proof of the virus before directing policies that restricted our movement, our children's education, our livelihoods, and our bodily autonomy. Their silence speaks volumes and their actions were crimes against humanity. mandates are not laws. The CDC and the WHO are not elected and have no direct jurisdiction over we the people of the United States of America. As the Declaration of Independence declares, we are endowed by our Creator with unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The Constitution exists to protect individual liberty and private property, including our own bodies, the most valuable property each of us own. Natural law and common law stand above man-made edicts. No act that conflicts with the Constitution can be valid. Masks were recommended without licensed medical practitioners present in violation of basic practice standards, especially since masks are ineffective against aerosol viruses cause measurable toxic CO2 buildup, and serve more as a visible tool of control and compliance than genuine protection. Lockdowns destroyed small businesses, harmed our children's development, and produced historic lows in flu activity, which is odd in and of itself. Fear and coercion replaced common sense. Informed consent was replaced by coercion and virtue signaling. 18 USC section 241 and 242 make it a federal crime to conspire against or deprive any persons of rights secured by the Constitution. 42 USC section 1983 allows civil action for those violations. We remember. To every public servant in this room, you work for us, not Washington, not Geneva, or any other unelected entity that purports to know what is best for our health. Government derives its just powers from the consent of the governed. We the people hereby declare we do not consent. We will never again surrender our God-given rights to fear-driven edicts, flawed modeling, or pressure from governmental or non-governmental organizations. No more masks, no more school closures, no more forced medical interventions on healthy people, no more emergency powers that outlast a genuine emergency. If another so-called pandemic, whether it be Hanta, Ebola, bird flu, or the next fear headline is announced, our answer is the same. Show us the isolated virus, show us the local evidence, respect individual choice, protect the vulnerable without destroying everyone else's liberty, We will question, we will record, we will assert our rights peacefully but unapologetically. As one wise court affirmed, every man is independent of all laws except those prescribed by nature and is not bound by any institutions formed by his fellow man without his consent. Citizens of O'Fallon, we are done consenting to tyranny dressed as public health. City of O'Fallon, choose now to stand with your people. defend liberty, demand transparency, and never again let outside agencies turn public servants into enforcers of unconstitutional, unlawful mandates. We the people are watching. We will not consent, we will not comply, we will defend our rights. Thank you for your time, consideration, and God bless.

Thank you for your comments. Does anyone else wish to make public comments at this time? Please come forward.

Burn the wire Ward three I Wasn't able to be with you is the last time we went through the warrant report. So this is just a a couple items I have on this warrant and Also to let the public know where you're spending your funds it At Butler supply you spent fifteen thousand five hundred and change on some crown point eat LF electrical repairs and then From dirty equipment you bought some crown point dual 10 horsepower LP LS give me panel for $41,000 And then I guess you from focal point St. Louis, he bought a new pavilion for $28,630, 26, excuse me, and a Jensen Hughes Incorporation $28,263 for emergency response support. I'd like to know what that was. Of course, you had TWM, Cuban Wade Merchant, on Highway 50 again for $23,400 change. $108,000 for some vacuum extractors. Just a few things that hopefully I can get an answer to. But also, I noticed under Midwest... meters you spent fifty six thousand dollars this month last month you purchased sixty four thousand dollars and you took back twenty five thousand dollars and ended up with thirty one thousand thirty nine thousand five hundred thirty nine thousand five hundred back uh i just can't figure out what the he hauling back and forth is and all the stuff is for the waste treatment plant i suppose because of uh... i guess are these additional upgrades to the waste treatment plant i don't know maybe someone could maybe we can get some answers since we uh... there wasn't a public Works meeting last month, so maybe I'll have to wait this month to get the answers.

Thank you. Okay. Thank you for your comments. Would anyone else like to make public comments at this time? Seeing none, we will close public comments. Move on to 5, clerk's report.

No report tonight, Mayor. Thank you.

Okay, thank you. Moving on to six, the mayor's report. We only have two items. June 4th, 2026, our downtown district nights. Be our first one from 5 to 9 p.m. It's a great time, great family environment. And July 3rd, 2026, we have America's 250th anniversary celebration. Okay, moving on to seven. We'll start with 7.1, Mr. Parchman, resolutions.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I'd like to make a motion to approve a resolution recommending Schedule B of the executive session minutes remain closed. Second, Lotz.

Okay, we have a motion and we have a second from Councilmember Lotz. Do we have any discussion or comments on 7.1? Seeing none, roll call, please.

Mylard. Yes. Lotz.

Yes.

Stoffel.

Yes.

Carney. Yes. Thony.

Yes.

Roach. Yes. Newcomb. Yes. Hudson. Yes. Blackburn. Yes. Vorce. Yes. Parchman.

Yes.

Ford. Yes. Rosenberg. Affirmative.

Okay, thank you. Motion carries. Moving on to 7.2 again. Mr. Parchman, please.

Thanks, sir. I'd like to make a motion authorizing the mayor to execute a change order request for an additional two years of data conversion and added setup of a second meter system, including Badger Beacon meter integration with BSNA software in the amount of $16,910. Second. Rosenberg.

Okay, we have a motion and a second for Mr. Rosenberg. Do we have any comments or discussions on 7.2? Seeing none, roll call, please. Lotz?

Yes.

Stoffel?

Yes.

Carney? Yes. Foney?

Yes.

Roach?

Yes.

Newcomb? Yes. Hudson? Yes. Blackburn? Yes. Vorce? Yes. Parchman? Yes. Ford? Yes.

Rosenberg? Affirmative. Madler?

Yes.

Thank you. Motion carries. Moving on to 7.3. Again, Mr. Parchman, please.

Thanks, sir. I'd like to make a motion to approve a resolution authorizing the mayor to execute an agreement for professional software upgrade configuration and training services with Timmons Group for CityWorks and Esri platforms in the amount of $78,873. Second. Rosenberg? Yes.

Okay, we have a motion and a second for Mr. Rosenberg. Do we have any comments or discussion on 7.3? Seeing none, roll call, please.

Stoffel?

Yes.

Carney? Yes. Boney?

Yes.

Roach? Yes. Newcomb?

Yes.

Hudson?

Yes.

Blackburn? Yes. Vorce? Yes. Parchman? Yes. Ford? Yes. Rosenberg? Affirmative. My Lord, yes.

Yes.

Thank you. Motion carries. One more time, Mr. Parchman, please. 7.4. All right.

Thanks, sir. I'd like to make a motion to approve a resolution authorizing the mayor to enter in an agreement with Matchbox Design Group for a tourism website in the amount not to exceed $38,800. Second. Rosenberg?

Okay. We have a motion and a second from Mr. Rosenberg. Do we have any questions or comments on 7.4? Seeing none, roll call, please. Carney.

Yes. Foney. Yes.

Lynch.

Yes. Newcomb. Yes. Hudson. Yes. Blackburn. Yes. Vorce. Yes. Parchman. Yes. Ford. Yes. Rosenberg. Affirmative. Mallard. Yes. Latz.

Yes.

Stoffel.

Yes.

okay thank you motion carries we do not have any other resolutions tonight so we will move on to eight ordinances first reading which we do not have any uh... we will move down to nine ordinances second reading and we do not have any ordinances for second reading so at this time we'll move on to ten which is our second session of public comments i'm not going to reread the instructions but they all do apply as read before the first session so if anybody would like to come forward To make some additional public comments or public comments, please step up to the microphone Verma where Ward three just have a few questions.

I noticed you Mentioned the 250 celebration for O'Fallon here and I was at the ton chip meal a week ago or so, and I've had several people ask me, what's going on? What's the deal? Are we going to hear anything? Because a lot of them don't know what's going on in town about it or information about it or that. And if we're ever going to see any information from on whatever, your internet stuff and whatever, and maybe post it, you know, If we're ever going to see any signs like this around maybe, but in the snow that you're going to have a parade and these different events here in town. I don't know why you're keeping it a secret. I'm just trying to understand it.

Thank you. Okay, thank you. Would anybody else like to make public comments at this time? Okay, seeing none, we will close out our second session of public comments. We will now move on to 11 staff and council member comments. We'll start with our city administrator, Mr. Grant Littiken.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. So a few questions are mentioned today. So the Crown Point LF, those are lift station and panel replacements for one of our sewer lift stations in the Crown Point area. That was budgeted for, I think, approximately $100,000. So that came in under budget. Focal Point, it was a new pavilion at the community park. Jensen Hughes is a contractor or a company we are using. Chief White and Chief Bergeman, we organized it. They come in, they look at our emergency operation manual and procedures and policies. They train staff in the event of a large-scale emergency, whether that be tornado, you know, some type of attack. And so we had some training earlier. They're working on our operation plan, and then we'll have follow-up training. And I believe it's a three-year program where they come back and retrain us and do tabletop exercises. So TWM Engineering, that was for, again, the Highway 50 project, which is a multi-use trail going from the community park to the RecPlex. Midwest meters, these are part of our meter replacement. This is the endpoint connections. The back and forth was we received some compound meters. We returned them and got some ultrasonic meters. For more details, Jeff Taylor is going to have to discuss that. If you guys remember, Jeff did present a couple months ago. We are in the process of replacing all of our water meters throughout our water system. It's gonna be a couple years for us to complete that. When it is complete, it'll be a lot more user-friendly for the customers and for the city staff. It'll have kind of real-time leak detection. Things make us a lot more efficient. All of those meter replacement and that cost are included in the rates. And so there's some questions whether this would cause water rates to go up, and that is not. Those rates will support these upgrades. And lastly, the 250 celebration. We had our meeting right before this with that committee group. The bands are committed. They're scheduled. The parade is ready to roll. We will kick off at 9 a.m. for the parade and then transition to 10 a.m. for the event at the community park from 10 to 5. And then at 8 o'clock at the sports park, we'll have a dedication of Liberty Tree with our partners at the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Sons of the American Revolution. And I believe Mayor Van Hook will be speaking at that dedication. And then fireworks will begin at dusk. As a reminder, we have a large public safety contingency that is focused on safety of these events, as well as district nights, which is this Thursday. will tell you for the fireworks be prepared bring a lunch or a late dinner because it does take a while with traffic to get out of the park we will begin advertising the 250th celebration here now that the bands are lined up and all the events are confirmed with that mr. mayor my comments are through okay thank you any other members of the leadership team have any comments they would like to make council

To the point about the 250th anniversary so the city's had a page dedicated on our website to the 250th anniversary Not only kind of the schedule of events But also if people want to volunteer or find ways to get involved and I think that web page went up back in February In addition to that, there's a Facebook event at this point over 800 people have expressed interest in it So I realize there's more than one way to get information out there But I appreciate the efforts that have been made so far to do that. I

Great points, thank you. Anyone else? Mr. Carney?

Yes, I'd like to do a shout out to the residents in Ward 3 and the city for coming out for a meet and greet that Andrea and I had this past Saturday in front of the outdoorsman by the marketplace and talked to a lot of people, had a lot of good inputs. answered questions we could answer and then took other questions that we couldn't answer and brought it to the city. But really want to thank them for, and Mr. Hudson helped us also. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Kearney. Mr. Vorce?

Just wanted to remind the citizens of Ward 6 that we will be having a meeting here tomorrow night at 6 p.m.

Very good. Thank you. Anyone else? Okay, seeing no more comments, we will move on to 12. We'll start with our reports, community development. Mrs. Lotz, please.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. We have not met since our last council meeting, and we are likely not going to meet this coming time due to lack of business. But there is a planning commission meeting that's likely scheduled for the 6th. So that is a Tuesday.

Those begin at 6 p.m. Is it 9th? 9th. I'm sorry? It's next Tuesday.

Next Tuesday, that date. And that's all I have.

Okay, thank you. Moving on to 13, we have Public Works with Mr. Rosenberg.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Pardon me, Public Works hasn't met since the last City Council meeting. Our next scheduled meeting is for the 22nd, and check the website in case times change. It's scheduled for 7, but times often change.

Okay, thank you. Moving down to 14, Public Safety, Mr. Blackburn.

Thank you, Mayor. Public Safety Committee has not met since the last council meeting. Our next meeting is scheduled for June 8th at 630. That's possible. The time will change, so check the website for that.

Okay, thank you. Moving down to 15, we have Parks and Environment. Mr. Vorce?

Yes, we have not met since the last council meeting, so the next scheduled meeting is a week from tonight. Check the website for details.

Okay, perfect, thank you. And moving down to 16, Finance and Administration, Mr. Parchman.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Our draft minutes are attached. Our next meeting will be on the 22nd of June. Check the website for changes if that happens or a time would change. But we also do have a few items that need approval as well. So first off is the warrant approval. So I'd like to make a motion to approve warrant number 584 in the amount of $1,531,008.47. Second, Forrest. Okay, we have a second from Mr. Forrest. So do we have any comments or discussion on 16.2, the warrant approval?

Yes, Mr. Mayor. As an Ameren employee, I do consent to all items listed with the exception of the one payment on page three. So for this reason, I am abstaining from this vote.

Okay. Thank you. Looks like we're ready for a roll call. Floney.

Abstain.

Roach.

Yes.

Newcomb. Yes. Hudson. Yes. Blackburn. Yes. Vorce. Yes. Parchman. Yes. Ford? Yes. Rosenberg? Affirmative. Mylar? Yes. Lotz?

Yes.

Stoffel?

Yes.

Carney? Yes. Thank you. Motion carries. Moving on to 16.3. Mr. Parchman, please.

Thanks, sir. I'd like to make a motion to approve budget to actual report as of 3-31-26. Second. Lotz?

Okay, we have a motion and a second from Ms. Lotz. Do we have any discussion or any comments on 16.3? Seeing none, roll call, please.

Roach. Yes.

Newcomb.

Yes. Hudson. Yes. Blackburn. Yes. Vorce. Yes. Parchman. Yes. Ford. Yes. Rosenberg. Affirmative. Mallard. Yes. Lotz.

Yes.

Stoffel.

Yes.

Carney? Yes. Foley? Yes.

OK. Thank you. Motion carries. Moving on to 16.4, Mr. Parchman, please.

All right. This is it. We'd like to make a motion to approve the special event permit request from Preloved for their grand opening located at 705 Cambridge Boulevard, Suite B. Seconded, Blackburn.

OK. We have a motion and a second from Mr. Blackburn. Do we have any discussion or comments on 16.4? Seeing none, roll call, please.

Newcomb. Yes. Hudson. Yes. Blackburn. Yes. Vorce. Yes. Parchman. Yes. Ford. Yes. Rosenberg. Affirmative. Mallard. Yes. Lotz. Yes. Stoffel.

Yes.

Kearney. Yes. Foley. Yes. Roach. Yes.

Thank you. Motion carries. We do not have any other, we don't have executive session, so we have no other business for tonight. So I would entertain a motion for adjournment.

I'll make a motion. Blackburn. Second. Second, of course.

Okay, we have a motion for Mr. Blackburn and a second for Mr. Voris. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Thank you. Meeting is ended.