Planning and Development Committee - Regular Meeting

I'd like to call to order the Planning and Development Committee meeting for Monday, August 10, 2026. We'll first start with our invocation tonight. And we just ask that you step up to the mic, state your prayer, and then we'll follow that with the Pledge of Allegiance. To our public speakers for tonight, I just want to remind everyone that we do have two microphones located at the back of the horseshoe. We just ask that you step up to the mic, make your comments. Once your three minutes is up, you will hear an alarm sound go off. We just ask that you bring your comments to a close at that time. That being said, our first speaker tonight is John Tack-Brentley.

Good evening, Mayor McNair. I'm a citizen of Rockford, Illinois. I'm going to give a shout-out, first of all, to Mayor McNair. When Mayor McNair ran for office, Maurice West was running against him. John McNair came to me and asked me to back up his son. Back during the 80s, They said John McNamara and Charles Box said, after they get you doing East State Street, they was going to come back and do West State Street, put business on West State Street. But instead of putting business on West State Street, They turned West State Street into a green zone. Now I want to go back to the fact that we got 18,000 registered black voters here in Rockford. We only had 3,445 of our registered voters to vote. And then on top of that, too, Maurice Steele was kind of upset with me for voting for Tom McNair. I put time back in there because I thought he was going to finish what his father had started to do, but he did not accomplish that. My other thing I'm coming before you is that I'm tickled pink because when I found out that they wanted to put the data center on our holy ground, on Camp Grant, we had over 4,000 Buffalo soldiers that got sick, that got the Spanish flu. 1,000 of them passed away. I had a meeting with the UAW. veterans, boys, they are 100% behind us putting a memorial out there at the circle, at the front gate, at Kitchlocky, where the roundabout is. We've got to find out if it's owned by the city or the state where we can put a monument there. Park District is one. Thank you, Park District, 100% behind. They're taking the lead. They're also going to use their escrow account. I talked with Tom Knacken there. He mentioned to me that at the National Night Out, $15,000 and $30,000 for a monument. Really? That's chump change. We was promised 40 acres and a mule and $100. Where's our restitution at for the way they treated our Buffalo soldiers at Camp Grant? It's a no-brainer. It's also a sanctuary. How will you dare want to build a data center on our sanctuary, on our holy ground? What if we take that data center and put it on Tom McNair's family member's graveyard? How will you like that and whatnot? That's not acceptable about putting a data center on Camp Grant, on our holy ground. And with that being said, I'm ending my conversation.

Thank you. Our next speaker is Alyssa Waples.

As a concerned small business owner,

resident, and more importantly, a mother, I'm urging you to cancel the Monarch project, the AI data center. According to a My Stateline article written in May of 2026, ComEd was going to have another increase in energy costs to the residents of Northern Illinois by at least 12%, mostly because of a huge increase in energy demand from these AI data centers. In the article, AI data center frenzy is pushing up your electric bill. Here's why. It says, forecasted demand has fueled the need for new infrastructure like power lines, substations, and power plants. the cost of which companies at least partly pass on to residential consumers, said Quigley of UPenn. In other words, households are partially subsidizing the AI data center expansion. Another 2026 article states, air, noise, and water pollution from data centers can come with health problems for humans, according to a study published in February. Long-term impacts may include increased risk of respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, mental health struggles, stroke, diabetes, and adverse reproductive outcomes like miscarriage and stillbirth. The article continues, because these data centers operate 24-7, they generate persistent background noise, and chronic exposure to environmental noise has been associated with sleep disturbance, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, and even stress-related outcomes. Noise pollution can be especially harmful to children, as it has been linked to poor cognition, decreased learning, and lower reading comprehension. In an article titled, Analyzing Air Pollution Health Economic Risks from AI Data Centers, Dr. Michael Kork, who is a PhD from Harvard and analyzes these health risks, has said, what I think is getting less attention right now is not that this is just an energy or a climate issue. It's also a public health issue because of the dangers of fine particulate matter. Fine particulate matter is estimated to drive nearly 90% of health impacts from air pollution and is often not captured in traditional energy or climate assessments or incorporated into infrastructure planning decisions. Dr. Michael Court analyzed the Vantage data center in the densely populated Virginia and found that these emissions from this facility would cost between $53 and $99 million a year in health damages. Further, since it's not been disclosed as to which AI data center we might have, I want to point out that these AI companies aren't exactly following their own company policies. For example, there's an article titled, Meta ran ads that contained AI-generated child sexual abuse imagery. And that was on April 5th of last week. More than 50 offending image and video ads were published across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, or Threads, according to Meta's ad library data. Some ran as recently as this week. Another article states, these ads made no effort to mask the images or hide what they were promoting, TTP director Katie Paul told Wired. It's important to point out that this is not content posted by third parties on Facebook or Instagram. These are ads that were reviewed, approved, and allowed to run by Meta, never encountering interference while the company collected the ad dollars. We need to protect our community's health over AI and their company's wealth. Thank you.

Thank you. Our next speaker is Chitton Thacker.

Good evening. So first of all, I wanted to thank, uh, the council members and, uh, city leadership and, uh, my fellow citizens over here as well. Um, I do recognize that, uh, having a platform to be able to speak and to express our thoughts, uh, is a value in our democratic society. And, uh, that is not lost on us. And so we appreciate your, your time for hearing us out. I'm here today to talk about, um, which is the hotel industry. I've been a Rockford resident for about 22 years now. And in those 22 years, I've had multiple businesses, a dozen different businesses from restaurants to medical offices to financial services institutions as well. And hotels is something that is near and dear to me. Hospitality is something that is absolutely near and dear to me. We currently have six different brands in seven different states at this point in time. And what we're seeing today in the hospitality industry is a landscape that's completely changed than what it was about 10 years ago. So a decade ago, we used to just set our rates and kind of walk away. You sell all your rooms, you put a no vacancy sign up, and you're done for the night. Nowadays, every five minutes, there's AI, there's technology that's checking rates. It has become so much more complex to run any business nowadays than it was a decade ago. With that comes costs. And our costs have significantly gone up. And just a... I'd like to share a few stats from the Oxford Economic Study that was done earlier in 2026. The costs over the last five years, over the last six years, have gone up as follows at a national level. So labor has gone up by 15%. Admin in general has gone up by 18%. Operations have gone up by 23%. Utilities have gone up by 28%. Insurance has gone up by a staggering 111%. With all these costs that continue to go up and the top line revenue is not going up with it, the operators are forced in an impossible situation to make a decision on how to run their businesses without compromising quality and safety and security. And so some of those creative shortcuts might result into layoffs for some people. It might result into overworking our salary managers. Uh, so the solution really, there is a limited amount that we can cut on expenses, but the true solution really is to be able to bring our top line up. How do we attract more business into the Rockford area, into our community? And one of the best tools, the best instrument that we've seen so far is what you guys will hear about later today, the TID, the Tourism Improvement District. That assessment is something that is going to help our region to reinvigorate our region and to be able to...

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you. Our next speaker is Gino Lafrete.

Hi, good evening, everyone. I am, uh, I'm Gino Ifrit, president of Hard Rock Casino, Rockford, and also the chair of Go Rockford. I am here to talk about the TID that, uh, Shinton, um, talked about, and you're gonna, we're gonna hear more about shortly. About a year and a half ago, I knew nothing about TIDs. And I, I was at a convention in Orlando with John Groh. We were introduced to Tiffany, who we'll hear from tonight, and I was intrigued. Generally speaking, I'm not an advocate of new taxes or incremental taxes, and Tiffany has educated me that this is an assessment. It is not a tax. money generated by hoteliers for the specific purpose to benefit the hoteliers. They will have a committee that will direct the use of these funds. And as someone in the tourism business, Tourism isn't free. It's a highly competitive landscape. And if we do nothing, our surrounding communities and our competitive communities that we're not only competing with for new business, but to maintain our existing book of business, whether that's events at the Park District, events like Iron Man, those events are not free. And this Tourism Incentive or Improvement District and the incremental funding generated by this will allow the hoteliers to remain competitive, it'll allow Go Rockford to have access to to needed incremental marketing dollars. And I, as an advocate for the team at Go Rockford and as someone who represents the tourism industry here in Rockford, fully support, the Hard Rock fully supports the creation of a TID. And frankly, the only thing I'm disappointed in is we don't yet have a hotel, so I was unable to sign the petition. I wish I would have been able to sign it first. But hopefully we learn more about it tonight, and I hope that everybody agrees with me and realizes that this incremental funding is a necessary tool for Rockford to remain competitive in the regional and national tourism business. Thank you.

Thank you. Our next public speaker is Mary Ann Marlowe. That concludes tonight's public speakers. We're going to move into our planning and development committee meeting, which we do have a presentation tonight. So I'll go ahead and invite those individuals up to be seated up front. And while they're doing that, clerk, will you please call the roll? 30.

Neal.

Here. Austin.

Here.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak.

My name is John and President and CEO of

I do want to take a moment to recognize the mayor and thank him for the support that he has shown in his time in office and as mayor for the hospitality, travel, and theater industry. I wish him luck in all of his future endeavors. So it has had a busy six months with going through June and continues on a really good split here in the summer. We've seen some fantastic events that many of you have been in attendance at around the community from the AHL All-Star Classic, which was held at the Dino Center over the winter. It's kind of hard to think that far back to Iron Man having happened in the middle of June with fantastic supporting infrastructure from the city, from the county, and from many public and private partners, and over 1,500 volunteers. Is this on?

You just have to speak directly into there.

Oh, it was not on. All right.

Made an assumption.

I won't go over all of that again, assuming some of you have at least heard it. So it has been, from marquee events to individual attendance at sites and attractions, a really strong six months. Restaurant Week, which I think we've talked about, the restaurant grant program that we were able to administer, helping stabilize restaurants throughout Rockford and Winnebago County, has been, I think, foundational work through these six months that we wrapped up. One of the work that we do, I think you know, is helping to lift the perception, the reputation of our community. with the team that we have in-house, have secured some really fantastic news coverage for the community in The Economist, The Atlantic, Realtor.com, Midwest Living, The Today Show, Forbes, and others. And we will continue to do that work as we look to amplifying the positive news and all the reasons that individuals have to visit here and to live here. On that note, the Made for Rockford program, which City Council has been a strong supporter of, continues to grow. We've completely revamped our digital marketing program, the website. We do have an upcoming new resident mixer, which will be taking place later this week. as part of the Rockyard Music Festival, which we're excited about. That will be the third new resident mixer. So I believe last week you all received an invitation at your place to invite new residents that you may be aware of to attend that on 8-15 day. The last point I'll make before we open up for questions, because I think there may be some conversation, is about Rockyard Music Fest. I want to make sure that all aldermen, staff, as well as our residents know about this new festival that is happening at Davis Park this Friday and Saturday, Friday starting at 4 p.m. and Saturday starting at 7 a.m., and both days going until 10 p.m. We're calling it a sneak peek in Davis Park. The park is coming along, and we are excited to be able to utilize it in cooperation with the city to host a music festival. There'll be live music both days, activities that are family friendly, food and beverage. And I think as people come down, they'll get a glimpse of what this new park that you've all prioritized can do for our community. It is free, it is open to all, and we're looking forward to a great two days this Friday and Saturday at Davis Park with all of you. With that, I'm happy to answer questions. I know their packet had a lot of information in it.

Well, we'll open it up to the floor. Are there any questions? There don't seem to be any.

All right, thank you.

Appreciate the update.

Yep.

Thank you. Before we conclude, though, I want to personally thank John, or publicly thank John. And there are many members of Go Rockford staff present today. The hard work that this team puts in day in, day out, the results speak for themselves. But they really do. They are dedicated, and they really do put in a tremendous amount of work. So thank you, John. Thank you, staff. Thank you. Appreciate that.

Thank you.

OK, we're just going to stay here.

All right, we'll go ahead and move into our committee reports. Item one, and I'm sorry, we're gonna go a little out of order since we did just have the presentation from Go Rockford. We'll start with item two first. Item one is an approval for the proposed amendment to the funding agreement with the Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, Go Rockford, extending the term and the agreement from an expiration of 2028 to an extension of 2034 and the continued lease of 102 North Main Street. This is an extension of six years from the existing agreement and lease. Do I have a motion to approve? I'll go ahead and second the motion. Do we have any questions or comments? All the women meets.

What was the reasoning for us updating this contract when it doesn't expire until 2028?

So I will go ahead and answer from the city staff perspective, recognizing a few items. One, I'll just restate a portion of the request that the chairwoman talked about. This is an extension of the funding agreement and the lease for a period of six years going till 2034. It is also an increase in the share of the 5% hotel motel tax that is currently at 70% under the existing funding agreement to go up to 75% of the 5% hotel motel tax in general terms. And for the increase in funding, it includes taking on certain responsibilities related to the operations of Davis Park. Currently, the city of Rockford has an intergovernmental agreement with RAVE, Rockford Area Venues and Entertainment Association, which is a unit of local government established in part by the city of Rockford when the metro, which was the metro center, was established. When we recently approved their intergovernmental agreement, there was an addendum related to Davis Park in regards to the activities that they would perform and the activities that they would not perform. And understanding the level of investment for Davis Park and some of the discussions that we had, not only with the community, but certainly here with city council, making sure that the park was accessible to the entire community in a cost-effective way, we worked directly with Ray representatives, staff member Gretchen and John, to evaluate how we could work in conjunction with one another, and ultimately came up with a draft memorandum of understanding, which is in the packet, which would identify the obligations of both parties related to Davis Park. When we look at the success that Go Rockford has had related to certain community events, whether that's Stroll On State, Mural Fest, or the upcoming concert series that take place down at Davis Park, we thought they were a good partner. as a not-for-profit in regards to filling the gap of the activities that Rave does not currently do at the park. So that was one avenue. We wanted to make sure that we fully activated Davis Park in a cost-effective way for the community. and later on the finance and personnel committee agenda item as a tourism improvement district. Now, without getting into too great detail of that resolution, it's only a resolution of intent, which really starts the statutory and public process related to the evaluation of a tourism improvement district. But that initial period is for five years. So we did want to show a good faith commitment to the hospitality and tourism industry, specifically the hotel operators that were all in with them. The creation of the Tourism Improvement District is intended to be an add-on, not a substitute of existing funding opportunities. So it was a good faith commitment regarding that. So primarily, those two reasons is why we worked with John and his team in advancing the proposed amendments.

So can I get just an idea of what type of services you will be providing at Davis Park that is not being provided currently under Legends?

Sure. So starting with what we understand Legends Global, the Rave team will do. Their role will essentially be to book larger ticketed concerts in the park. And I believe there's six to eight dates a year that they are anticipating being able to do that. So that leaves 350 plus additional days per year where the park needs to be programmed, it needs to be managed, it needs to be activated. Not just on stroll on state days, but throughout the year, weekly, monthly kinds of activations. family-friendly programming, whether it's at the playground, working with the local community to activate the skate park, as an example. We envision health and wellness activities in the park, fitness activities, as well as smaller events that may not have a fee associated with them, or they are low cost to attend. We want to maximize the use of the stage and the use of the park. in as many ways as we can, consistent with the plans that were developed for the park. Private rentals have always been envisioned to be possible in the park. So that will need to be coordinated, as well as welcoming as many community events that will want to take place in the park as possible, whether those are events that currently exist somewhere else and they, for whatever reason, need a new space, or they're being created and they want to have a home. Somebody will need to program, contract, work with different contractors in terms of set up, clean up, tear down. All of those are the activities that we anticipate being part of.

Now, I did, I can continue, right? Yep. Okay. Now, I did notice that some of the restrictions that Legends has related to like labor agreements and the use of, I think it's, I don't know how to pronounce it, IATSE. IATSE. IATSE that's out there. So you wouldn't be required to honor those contracts?

So not all events need stage hand or stage labor. If we're programming family wellness activities or children's activities at the playground, we're not hiring stage hands or lighting designers or riggers.

But if it was a situation where you did need to utilize a stage and it was a concert, but maybe a free concert, a community concert, would you then have to follow those requirements?

We're not obligated to follow those. We do have a voluntary agreement already in place with IATSE.

And then I did have one more question. Who manages the park? Because I'm understanding that when it comes to snow removal and some of the actual maintenance, Requirements that Davis Park will have to Tend to who manages that because I'm understanding that the park district no longer is doing that So who is doing that?

so all the women you are correct that there is an existing IGA between the city and the Rockford Park District and they have walked away from that intergovernmental agreement As we move forward, and as was anticipated when we went into construction, that'll be a combination of RAVE and our public works team. Some of that work will be contracted out. Some of it will be done in-house.

So I thought that I read that RAVE was very explicit about them not doing the maintenance at Davis Park. Maybe I need to find that part. Is that accurate or not?

I mean, maintenance is a pretty broad term. So it depends in regards to the level of detail. And I can't remember explicit in regards to the addendum to the IGA with RAVE. But there were some conditions and concerns in regards to, ongoing capital improvements that would be required, that that wasn't going to fall under their budget. And that would be under the city of Rockford's budget. So in that regard, it'd be the city of Rockford. Day to day, to your point on snow plowing, landscaping, mowing, Those would be issues that would be taken care of by the City of Rockford staff. City Council has authorized the purchase of equipment that can be utilized at Davis Park, which is under the control of RAVE. And so that portion of the maintenance would fall under them.

so i am i'm just kind of wrapping my mind around this i happen to be the one lone individual that voted no for davis park because i felt we weren't in a financial position to take on something new i understand everyone else's position around this you but i do also understand that we're also in different conversations related to the budget So while I still kind of mull this over in my head, I would love to just make a request to lay this item over so that I can just kind of do a little bit more digging myself, understanding Just kind of the dollar amount that this is going to equate to. I still don't really have my mind wrapped around how much, at the end of the day, this is going to cost us. And I do get it that it is a hotel-motel tax. But I also understand that we have quite a bit of facilities that are experiencing debt service right now. And that funding could be used towards debt service. So I just, I want to kind of wrap my mind around it. So I'd like to make a motion to lay this item over.

Do we have a second? I'll second the motion. I, too, have gotten some phone calls about it, and I'd like to have just additional conversation. But you know I support Goat Rockwood and everything. I appreciate all you've done.

Sure. May I make one comment, if I may?

Sure.

Thank you for the questions. We're happy to have the conversations. Davis Park is, we believe, an important community asset. When the administration asked us if we would entertain taking on this responsibility, like we tend to do, we kind of came to it with, OK, so what if and how could we make this possible? make this happen. Certainly, we believe that if you are investing in the park, it needs to be activated. And we need to provide as many activities for our residents and potential visitors as possible to move it forward and to make it successful. So the team put together, our team that's here and the team that's actually probably working around the clock right now to get ready for this weekend's festival, put together a pro forma that said, we will commit to raising this if the city can do this. And that's kind of where we get to today. So we absolutely would be happy to answer your questions. This isn't something that we were seeking out. But as the administration looked to the future of having this public asset, we said we would be Willing to step in and do our best to be a partner to make it work Thank you alderman frost I

for stepping up taking over the program because as a city it's just not something that lives in our wheelhouse right and it is more akin to your wheelhouse frankly even more so so i appreciate you learning to have more than the city and the way to you know to engage with us Thank you.

Thank you, thank you Is this a regard civilly over mm-hmm all the woman meets I just want to say that Yes, it is not in our wheelhouse, but it was in the Park District's wheelhouse and they did I don't want to say completely object, but I'm just going to say object to how we moved forward. And so I just want to ensure that we are connected with those partners, that this is in their wheelhouse. They do understand why it was a concern for them as to why they didn't move forward. And I think we need to consider those concerns as we move forward, which is why I think a layover to talk some of these things through. isn't the worst thing in the world.

So Alderwoman, I should make sure that the record's clear that the Park District was part of the entire designing process, including the consultant that designed it and participated. It was not until we were bringing it forward for actually construction that they walked away from the intergovernmental agreement that they agreed to when the property was donated to the community.

Do you, is there more to add to that? Not at all.

No. I think if I could respectfully, the park district's role in the park historically was maintenance, not operation, not activation. If you go back to the late 80s and early 90s, what the city is asking Go Rockford to move forward on with activation, creating celebrations, festivals, events, that was not part of the intergovernmental agreement there. So we're not seeking to step into that space that the park district had. The maintenance and the operation, as Todd has already talked to, will be with contractors, city staff, and somewhat with RAVE. We're being asked to step into the programming and the activation space.

Alderman Thunberg.

Thanks, Chairwoman. On behalf of representing Rave at City Council, member of City Council on the Rave Board, and Alderman Beach as well, I know that the Rave Board is excited with the partnership bringing Go Rockford on and the experience they have with that. I also appreciate the distinct responsibilities that were also put forth to where the city of Rockford, Rave, and Go Rockford will have forward those distinct risk responsibilities I think are pretty clearly spelled out so the time spent on that is appreciated but I know rave is excited the rate board is excited to bring go Rockford on future programming in the park thank you thank you do we need to take a roll call on the motion I

Thank you, gentlemen.

Thank you so much. Item two is an approval for the proposed funding agreement with Living Well Center of Northern Illinois in the amount of $100,000 annually for a period of three years, not to exceed a total amount of $300,000 to support the establishment of a senior center located at 1111 South Alpine Road. The funding source is casino funds. Do I have a motion to approve? Are there any questions or just all the women granted?

Just give me an overview of the new group that is the Living Well Center people who's doing it and what organization maybe they're attached to.

So this is a... So thank you, older woman. This is a newly created not-for-profit, and they do have representatives here tonight. It would be the desire of the committee to have Carlos speak on the not-for-profit's behalf. But as many of you are aware, the city of Rockford approved a funding agreement with the Northern Illinois area for aging it. There's too many A's in that. Just go with NIA last year or earlier this year for a location off East State Street. They ultimately did not move forward with that. And as they evaluated whether they should be the proper organization to establish a senior center, they worked with this partner in the establishing of a new not-for-profit. They will be working with NIA, understanding that NIA is located at the same address, 1111 South Alpine Road. So they do believe that there's some opportunity for partnership, shared services, but they will function as an independent not-for-profit. And the request is for $100,000 annually over a period of three years to be matched with an additional $110,000 from the newly formed not-for-profit.

Alderman McGrath. So there's going to be the ability to have NIAA work with this new nonprofit and be able to coordinate services? Or is this like a life scape? I mean, I'm just trying to wrap my head around a new nonprofit, but yet how are they going to work with established entities that already are serving our seniors?

So it may be better answered by Carlos, but what we have seen from senior centers is that they do bring in other not-for-profits or partners to provide services. They don't provide all those services directly. NIA, in large part, has been a funding agency for a number of organizations that provide services. But if the committee's willing, Carlos could answer that question.

Does the committee have an issue with Brother Carl answering the question? We need to take a vote on that. If there's no objection from the committee, you can go ahead and step up to the mic.

Hello, everyone. My name is Carlos Aguirre. I'm a physician by training. And instead of golfing, I decided that I was going to take on creating a senior center. So the specific question, how does NIA and the Senior Center work with each other? They're two very different entities. NIA, I think, was the birthplace of the idea, because they deal with taking federal and state funds and funding all kinds of different programs. social programs. Now the Senior Center, it is not a place for people to go and find these things, right? Like there's no competing. The Senior Center is a place to, for citizens of Rockford, seniors, to go find a place to really fight social isolation. So if somebody goes to the Senior Center because they want to learn new things, stay active, find people that have similar wants and interests and then they have a question about how do I go about getting a discount on my license plate, we can then say, well, NIA can help you with that. They offer those social services. But the senior center itself, it is not a place for get those things. But we are going to work together with NIA because they have been around for 50 years. They have really a lot of knowledge about the city and the resources and the social needs. But again, it's a completely separate entity. And the things that the senior center are going to do are very different than the staff at NIAID does.

You still have the floor, Alderman Meeks. Oh, do I? No. Oh, I'm sorry. That was Alderman Granite. I'm done. Sorry. Did you have your hand up? You know, after Alderman Hoffman had her hand up first, Alderwoman Hoffman. I was just going to move that we hold this over. Do I have a second? First, we have a second. Are there any questions or comments on the layover?

I mean, I just do have one question that doesn't pertain to the layover.

Well, the layover will provide you time to get that question answered until the next meeting. Clerk, will you please call the roll? Aye. Aye.

Aye. Aye. Aye.

Those two items have been held out. Moving on to resolutions. Item one is an authorization for acceptance of the Green Infrastructure Grant Opportunities Program through the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency in the amount of $613,551 to implement the Beverly Park floodplain connection. The city would match $333,384 of local CIP funds. Do I have a motion to approve? So moved. Second. Are there any questions or comments? All those in favor? I'm sorry. Clerk, will you please call the roll? Aye.

Aye. Aye.

Aye.

Thank you. Item passes. Item two is authorization for acceptance to utilize an allotment of Region 1 Planning Commission's Surface Transportation Block Grant. funds received from the Federal Highway Administration in the amount of $4,349,410 for the federal fiscal year of 2028 to implement the Harrison Avenue reconstruction project. The city will match $4 million and will continue to seek STBG and other federal grants to make up this gap by fiscal year 2028. The funding source is the motor fuel tax. Do I have a motion to approve?

So moved. Second.

Are there any questions or comments? All those in favor, please indicate by stating aye. Aye. Any opposed, same sign. That item passes. Item three is an authorization for acceptance to utilize an allotment of Region 1 Planning Commission's Transportation Alternative Program funds received from the Federal Highway Administration in the amount of $1,271,066 in the federal fiscal year 2028 to implement the High Crest Multi-Use Path Project. This grant is in addition to the $3 million grant received from the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program for the same project. The city's match of $317,767 will come from motor fuel tax funds. Do I have a motion to approve?

So moved. Second.

Are there any questions or comments? Alderwoman Meeks.

Just a general question. What's the purpose of the motor fuel tax?

to make capital improvements to the capital infrastructure and transportation projects.

How do you prioritize what is chosen and selected under the motor fuel tax?

So motor fuel tax is administered by IDOP. And so when we look at projects for these tax dollars, There's a lot of different requirements and regulations that go with motor fuel tax. So a great candidate for using motor fuel tax is when we're using federal funds that Audiodat has already administered. And so one of the first things we look at is matching federal funds with motor fuel tax funds. Another good expenditure of motor fuel tax preservation and other type of simple maintenance projects or other projects that IDOT would otherwise have authority to look at. So local sales tax funds that we use don't have any IDOT oversight and so that's how we start over.

In this position, how would I kind of get a leg up on understanding what the federal projects are that are out there to see how they align within, say, my ward or wards surrounding my area?

Sure. We have our interactive capital improvement program map that's on our website that would show different projects and funding that they're using. Our capital improvements program breaks out a column within that program of other funding. And so if you have funds in that column for those, you have motor fuel tax, you have sales tax, and then other funding, If you see a number in that column, you look to the comments section to the right, and it'll tell you exactly what federal program or other type of program it is for. Otherwise, you can reach out to us personally, and we can get you a list.

Oh, OK. Perfect. That's easier. Thank you. All right.

Are there any other questions or comments? All those in favor, please indicate by stating aye. Aye. Any opposed, same sign. The item passes. Do I have a motion to adjourn? So moved. Second. Are there any questions or comments? All those in favor, please state by indicating aye. Aye. Any opposed, same sign. This meeting is adjourned.