Here’s a recap of our live coverage of this evening’s Evanston City Council Administration and Pubic Works Committee meeting.
A packet with information on tonight’s agenda items is available online.
Among the items up for approval tonight is an engineering design services contract for the Main Street Corridor Improvement Project. The project started last year with a $75,000 topographic survey and data collection effort. For this year the contract calls for spending $175,000 to do engineering design work.
Meeting called to order at 6:13 p.m.
Minutes approved.
Payroll and bills approved.
Agenda items ….
A 3.1 – Three-year janitorial services contract with Eco-Clean Maintenance of Elmhurst. $120,576 annually.
Covers police and fire facilities and the civic center.
Alderman Ann Rainey, 8th Ward, asks what the concerns were with current company.
Facilities manager staffer says were “communications issues” and some performance problems at police headquarters.
Rainey asks about hiring Evanston residents to do the work.
Says wish that had been addressed in the report from staff.
Alderman Peter Braithwaite, 2nd Ward, asks about contractors being Evanston-based.
Rainey says the vendors may be too big to be Evanston-based.
Deputy City Manager Erika Storlie says could ask the vendor to try to hire as many Evanston residents as possible.
Contract approved.
A 3.2 – Cable TV PEG funds allocation to school districts $25K to D202 and $23K to D65.
Approved.
A 3.3 – Pre-qualification of five contractors for cured-in-place pipe rehabilitation of sewer mains.
Rainey asks about variation in techniques used by the different contractors. Some use hot water others use steam, some use both.
Approved.
A 3.4 – Engineering services contract with Terra Engineering for Emerson Street traffic signal modernization project.
Approved.
A 3.5 – Change order for Penny Park Renovation with Elanar Construction.
No cost change … adds 128 days to completion date … from Dec. 23, 2016, to April 30, 2017.
Braithwaite asks reason for extension?
Lara Biggs, bureau chief of capital planning, says there were a number of underground issues. Says had been building on site — threw layer of dirt over and put in the playground. As did excavation for new work found rubble that had to be removed. Then some weather delays as well.
Approved.
A 3.6 – Engineering deisgn service contract for Main Street Corridor Improvment Project with Stanley Consultants
Approved.
A 3.7 – SWANCC disposal fee agreement for FY 2017
$750K + per ton tipping fee increas of 1.5% over 2016 rates.
Public Works Agency Director Dave Stoneback says likely to owe more at end of year because of disposal of old garbage carts.
Rainey says she has doubts about the accuracy of the weights calculated.
City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz says haven’t been any changes to the membership of SWANCC over the past seven-plus years that he’s been the city’s alternate delegate to the SWANCC board.
Stoneback says for a while recycling was increasing and decreasing trash amounts — but that pattern has reversed in recent years. So total quantity of trash is increasing.
Alderman Melissa Wynne, 3rd Ward, suggests may need to increase recycling education.
Stoneback says contract with Groot ends 3/4 of the way through this year — will be looking at other alternatives.
Bobkiewicz says there’s a problem at many multi-family buildings that there’s not space to store recycling stuff.
Says a lot of multi-family property owners aren’t interested because of the cost.
Single-family recycling, he says has been pretty steady.
Stoneback says staff is working on a request for proposals. Will bring to City Council before sending requests out to vendors.
Rainey says Chicago just past requirement making it illegal for rental buildings to not recycle.
Approved.
A 4 – Authorization of construction on state highways.
Approved.
A 5 – Easement for fence at 822 Colfax St.
Approved.
A 6 – Approval of grant award for Long Term Care Ombudsman program.
Program cost $165K. Grant amount $53.9K.
Approved.
Meeting adjourned at 6:52 p.m.
Planning and Development Committee meeting to start at 7:15 p.m.