A meeting of the Highway Committee of the DeKalb County Board met on Thursday January 4, 2007 at 6:00pm in the Conference Room of the DeKalb County Highway Department, DeKalb, Illinois.  

Chair LaVigne called the meeting to order at 6:00pm.  Committee members present were, Vice-Chair Augsburger, Mr. Anderson, Mr. Gudmunson, Mr. Stuckert, Mr. Walt and Mr. Whelan.   Also present were Wayne Davey-Support Services Manager, Highway Department, Gregg Millburg, Farm Bureau and John Chyson, St John Lutheran Church, Sycamore, Illinois.  The County Engineer was absent due to an illness.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES:

Motion made by Vice-Chair Augsburger and seconded by Mr. Anderson to approve the minutes of the regular December 7, 2006 meeting.  The motion to approve the minutes carried unanimously.

APPROVAL OF AGENDA:

Motion made by Mr. Anderson to approve the agenda and Mr. Walt seconded this motion.  Discussion followed to amend the agenda by deleting item 1 and replacing it with a Resolution to enter into an agreement with the State of Illinois Department of Transportation, the County of DeKalb and the Iowa, Chicago and Eastern Railroad for Grade Crossing Improvements.  The motion carried unanimously to approve the agenda as amended.    

PUBLIC COMMENT:   There was no public comment.  Mr. Chyson appeared before the Committee went into session and requested that the request by St. John Lutheran Church to place directional signs within the County’s right-of-way be removed from the agenda.  All of Mr. Chyson’s research indicated that local as well as State regulations would prohibit favorable action on this request.  Mr. Chyson was provided with copies of the DeKalb County Code, Illinois Compiled Statutes and information on the State of Illinois Tourist Oriented Directional Signing Program and Business Logo Signing Program for his information.  All of this information appears to preclude the placement of the requested signs as well. 

RESOLUTION TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE COUNTY OF DEKALB AND THE IOWA, CHICAGO AND EASTERN RAILROAD FOR GRADE CROSSING IMPROVEMENTS:

Mr. Davey explained that a request from the State of Illinois has been received to improve public safety at the railway crossing on Five Points Road, just north of State Route 72 in Kingston, Illinois.  This project would involve the installation of crossing gates and new circuitry at this location.  This project will be financed with funds from the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).  There would be no cost to the County for this project unless the County Engineer determines that work would be necessary on the crossing approaches and a decision was made to complete that work at the same time.  The original agreement is making its way through proper channels and when it arrives at DeKalb County they will need to be executed.  As a measure to expedite this process the County Engineer is requesting that the Committee recommend signature when received.  A motion was made by Mr. Anderson and seconded by Mr. Whelan to forward the resolution to the full County Board recommending approval.  The motion carried unanimously.        

MFT RESOLUTION FOR SALARY AND EQUIPMENT FOR 2007:

Mr. Davey explained that every year the County Board approves a resolution allowing MFT funds to be used for certain salary activities and the rental of County equipment.  In order for the County to spend its MFT allotments the County Board must approve the expenditure and the State must authorize the expenditure.  This is the paperwork that makes it possible for that to happen.  This year’s resolution is in the amount of $723,000.00 ($448,000.00 for salaries and $275,000.00 for equipment rental).  A motion was made by Vice-Chair Augsburger and seconded by Mr. Anderson to forward the resolution to the full County Board recommending approval.  The motion carried unanimously.

RESOLUTION FOR AWARDING 2007 GENERAL COUNTY LETTING:

Mr. Davey explained that every year the County would request bids from local plants and quarries for road maintenance materials to be used by the County and all 19 Road Districts during the year.  The bid letting was held on January 2, 2007.  The County and Road Districts pick up these materials at these local activities.  The location of the project would determine which vendor would be used and they would use the most economical vendor for the project being completed.  This resolution assures that the price awarded in this resolution will be the price the County and Road Districts will pay for the quoted materials for the entire year.  The County will award to all bidders with the exception of the liquid calcium chloride and crack sealer, which is awarded to the lowest bidder meeting specifications. A motion was made by Mr. Whelan and seconded by Mr. Gudmunson to forward the resolution to the full County Board recommending approval.  The motion carried unanimously.

RESOLUTION FOR BID AWARD-DUMP BODY, FRAME, PLOW, WING AND PRE-WET SPREADER SYSTEM FOR ONE INTERNATIONAL 7400 SBA 6 x 4 CHASSIS:

Mr. Davey stated that the Highway Department opened bids for furnishing a dump body, frame, plow, wing and pre-wet spreader system for the tandem approved by the Committee and County Board last month.  Two bids were received and Monroe Truck Sales from Monroe, Wisconsin submitted the low bid meeting specifications.  Mr. Stuckert inquired how the requests for bids were sent out.  Mr. Davey explained the County advertises the request in the Daily Chronicle and a bid request is sent to all parties that have requested to be placed on the County Highway Department Bidder’s List maintained by the County Engineer.  A motion was made by Mr. Anderson and seconded by Mr. Walt to forward the resolution to the full County Board recommending approval.  The motion carried unanimously.

CHAIR’S COMMENTS:           None

COUNTY ENGINEER’S COMMENTS: 

The Transportation Improvement Progress Report was provided to the Committee for their review.  The highlighted projects were discussed.  Peace Road widening construction work is done for the winter however, work on traffic signals will continue through the winter.  The majority of our winter work will continue to be located in the area of preliminary and design engineering for our upcoming bridge projects for next year.  We are progressing on the right-of-way acquisition for Glidden Road and the negotiator is hoping to have that project wrapped up by the end of February.

Mr. Whelan inquired about the Peace/Bethany Road project and why it was still at 99% complete.  Mr. Whelan was informed that the County is still awaiting final paperwork from the City of Sycamore before closing this section. 

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: 

Mr. Anderson inquired why all the water was standing along Peace Road just north of Wirsing Parkway.  Mr. Davey informed Mr. Anderson that the biggest problem was the straw bales were still in place to prevent the silt from running into the cross pipe.  Once the seeding is established in that area and erosion is not a concern these would be removed.  Mr. Anderson was concerned that if the water gets over the road and it freezes we will have a mess on our hands.  Mr. Davey indicated that Operations will keep an eye on it and if the water has the possibility of going over the roadway they will take care of it. 

Mr. Anderson also had concerns about Peace Road striping.  At night it is hard to see the stripes and when it rains they completely disappear.  Mr. Davey stated that all County roads that are not striped with thermal striping are striped every year.  Thermal striping is usually down for five years before we begin to paint over it.  The County Engineer has already indicated that thermal striping on Peace Road from Pleasant Street to Wirsing Parkway will be painted next year. 

ADJOURNMENT:

Chair LaVigne inquired if there was anything else that needed to be brought before the Committee and hearing none asked for a motion to adjourn.  A motion was made by Vice-Chair Augsburger to adjourn and Mr. Stuckert seconded this motion.  The motion passed unanimously and the January 4, 2007 meeting was adjourned at 6:35p.m. 

Respectfully Submitted

Pat LaVigne

Chair