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Village Hall and the water department are currently without power and cannot conduct official business. Limited services are available. Please call with any concerns.
309.686.2385
Hydrant Flushing Begins Monday, Oct 12th
The Peoria Heights semi-annual hydrant flushing program will begin on Monday, October 12th, 2020 and continue through Friday, October 16th, 2020 weather and schedule permitting.
DATE LOCATION
Monday, October 12th North of Seiberling, west of Prospect
Tuesday, October 13th East of Prospect from Glen to Voss including Grandview
Wednesday, October 14th Galena area below the bluff
Thursday, October 15th West of Prospect from Hines to Toledo
Friday, October 16th South of Hines, west of Prospect
Hydrant flushing will occur on these days from 7:30am to 3:30pm. Use of water for laundry purposes is not advisable during flushing due to the possibility of discoloration. This condition does NOT pose any health hazard. For further information, please call the Water Office at (309) 686-2375.
Heights moves toward fire department decision
The Peoria Heights Village Board established an Office of the Fire Chief at its Tuesday, Sept. 15 meeting.
The move comes against the backdrop of the Village’s deliberations over the future of its fire department given the pending retirement of current Chief Greg Walters.
The Village essentially has whittled its options to two, either keeping fire operations in-house with a paid fire chief, part-time or full-time, who oversees a largely or completely volunteer force, or contracting fire protection out to the city of Peoria. The intention at this point is to ask local voters what their wishes are in an advisory referendum in April, 2021.
Tuesday’s vote puts a process in place if the Village Board decides to hire a new chief at some point down the road. Walters recently delayed his retirement, originally scheduled for November, to give the board more time and to relieve some of the immediate pressure to make a decision.
“It’s good to have it on the books,” said Village Attorney Mark Walton, who expressed surprise that such an ordinance didn’t already exist. “It clarifies the process for appointment and approval by the board. Frankly, it’s something we need.
“Just to be clear, I think if Chief Walters had told us he was going to work for another 15 years, I would still recommend we adopt this ordinance,” Walton added. “Nothing is changing. We’re formalizing that which we’ve already been doing.”
“Really, we’re just laying the groundwork if we need to hire a fire chief in the future,” said Mayor Michael Phelan, “so we’re not reacting, we’re ready to go.”
In other discussion, trustees again went back and forth on the wording of a non- binding referendum, should they decide to put one on the April 6, 2021 ballot. They have until late January to make up their minds on that score.
The goal, said Walton, is “to get as much input from the community as you can in a one-sentence question,” with the language as comprehensive as possible “so that when someone says yes or no, it has more meaning.” The difficulty is in finding the right balance, as the question can’t be so long and loaded with information that it’s “indecipherable” and people don’t know what they just voted on, he said.
The potential cost to taxpayers, for example, is an important consideration, but even that poses a conundrum.
As he has previously, Trustee Brandon Wisenburg questioned the reliability of the Peoria Fire Department’s cost estimates.
“I don’t feel comfortable telling the citizens of Peoria Heights that this is going to save them busloads of money when in a couple of years, it could be equal or more” to keeping fire protection local, he said. “We also need to put ... response times in the question,” especially in light of budget cuts in Peoria, he added.
“I don’t really want to load the question in any way,” said Wisenburg. “I want it to be as neutral as possible ... I’m a little cautious about even putting a number on there.”
Village Administrator Dustin Sutton explained that Peoria’s proposal was based on the Heights’ emergency call load in 2019. “Those numbers could increase if our calls go up, but it could decrease if our calls go down,” he said. “They had to have some starting point.”
“That’s where I get nervous,” said Wisenburg. “We can’t go back” after the decision is made.
“What I want to know is are you willing to pay more money if that means keeping our fire department in house,” said Trustee Sarah DeVore.
Trustees generally indicated they believed the cost to taxpayers would go up over time regardless of which option is ultimately chosen.
Walton responded that trustees may not want to put too much stock in what a referendum might tell them, especially given the low turnouts in off-presidential election years. Indeed, that “may be the least valuable” gauge of public sentiment.
“There are other ways to solicit public input,” including community forums and surveys on social media platforms, he said.
Even the status quo could remain an option, especially if Walters has more success in recruiting additional volunteers, said Sutton. That doesn’t mean the Village should not go ahead with the referendum -- which is not binding, he reminded the board – or that leaders should not prepare themselves for any eventuality.
“It’s a public safety issue,” Sutton said. “We’ve got to keep pushing everything forward.”
Forest Park Drive Closure
Forest Park Drive will be closed Thursday, September 17th, from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm for maintenance.
Blickenstaff hires a modicum of Manhattan, a hint of the heartland to shape Al Fresco
You could say that landscape architect Theodore Hoerr of Manhattan comes to his newest assignment here in central Illinois with the rich soil of the Midwest under his fingernails and the plants that grow in it a part of his DNA.
Waste Disposal/Recycling delayed one day next week
Waste Disposal/Recycling will be delayed one day next week due to the holiday!
Have a safe weekend!
For Heights Village Board, more time to decide future of fire department
Peoria Heights Fire Chief Greg Walters has postponed his scheduled November retirement, alleviating the immediate pressure on the Village Board to chart a new course for the fire department’s future.
“I cannot in good conscience abandon the men and women of the Peoria Heights Fire Department when so much is at stake.” said Walters on Sept. 1.
“I have a duty to rebuild the shattered morale of our current membership, which is the lowest I’ve ever seen. I will continue to fight to keep the fire department intact and in place, where it belongs.”
The surprise announcement comes after weeks of passionate deliberations. Village Board members had appeared to reach a consensus on asking voters for their input in a spring 2021 referendum.
Multiple options essentially had been whittled down to two: hiring a full-time local fire chief for the first time, or contracting with the Peoria Fire Department for service. Complicating matters has been the difficulty of recruiting people for the Heights’ current all-volunteer force.
Much of the conversation at Tuesday’s board meeting revolved around the number of missed emergency calls stemming from that shortage of voluntary manpower.
There was some disagreement over that number – 107 or 82 in 2019. Either way, the number surprised and concerned Walters.
“My heart dropped,” he said, while reassuring Heights residents that “we did not miss a fire call. We did not miss an accident with injuries. Anything that we refer to as a critical incident, we did not miss.”
Meanwhile, “somebody shows up” – ambulance service AMT, another public safety agency responding through the region’s mutual aid agreement – said Walters. “It might not be somebody from Peoria Heights Fire ... At least I know the citizens of Peoria Heights were taken care of in one way or another.”
In any case, addressing and rectifying that situation, to the degree possible – including getting the commercial driver’s license credentialing for volunteers that is necessary to operate the bigger fire equipment -- is the top priority, said Walters.
In other related discussion, board members debated the wording on the proposed referendum, which is now in the hands of village counsel. Again, there was disagreement over the interpretation of the word “neutral” in crafting a ballot question.
While some trustees want a question that contains more information about the choice being presented, including the potential cost to taxpayers, Trustee Brandon Wisenburg wants a simple up-or-down vote on the prospect of keeping a local department vs. outsourcing firefighting to the city of Peoria, or at least an attempt at a budgeting exercise before presenting any tax information to voters.
He again expressed little confidence in Peoria’s $153,000 proposal, which is considerably less than the Village now spends on such emergency services.
“Peoria is going to cost us something. It will at some point exceed what we’re paying now. I mean, that’s just the way it is, especially with public pensions,” he said. “At some point there’s going to be a tax increase, even to pay for Peoria. There’s not a person on this board that really believes it’s going to stay at (about) $150,000. I don’t.
“So we can’t possibly tell the people of Peoria Heights that they’re going to get a tax increase if we keep our fire department but they’re not going to get a tax increase if we go to Peoria. No one can make that promise. So the question when we put it on the ballot really has to be neutral.”
Peoria Assistant Fire Chief James Bachman was present to address the cost questions regarding the Peoria proposal, and did seek to clarify that the price as presented was based on the Heights’ 2019 data in terms of numbers and types of calls. Basically, it’s a “pay for what you use” option, he said. “It could be more, it could be less.”
Beyond that, typically the cost would be subject to an annual inflationary increase, usually about 3 percent, said Bachman. Of course, all of that would be subject to negotiation, including the length of the contract, said Bachman, who also clarified that the Peoria City Council would have to sign off on any agreement, just as the Heights Village Board would.
Heights Mayor Michael Phelan indicated that he has seen many a ballot initiative over the years, and in his view more information is better than less.
For example, voters could be asked, “Would you like a new vehicle? I think your answer would be ‘yes.” But there may be expectations that go along with that,” including how and how much to pay for it, he said. “We have good (cost) estimates of whatever option the Board decides to go with.”
The board did not reach a resolution on the wording of any ballot question. The matter will be taken up again at its next meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 15.
Ultimately, while the Village Board has gotten something of a reprieve on making a final fire department decision, it does have a deadline yet this year for filing to get a referendum on the Apr. 6, 2021 ballot.
Parks, Open Space, and Environmental Features Webinar
Join us for the Parks, Open Space, and Environmental Features Webinar for the Peoria Heights Comprehensive Plan!
This webinar will provide an overview of open space and parkland, trail network, and unique and sensitive natural resources. These recommendations will establish fundamental guidelines and a framework for appropriate develop and the protection of natural areas and ecological systems. Recommendations will be guided by previously discussed goals, policies, land use, and transportation, community facilities, and infrastructure recommendations.
The webinar will take place on Thursday, September 10, 2020 at 6:00 PM.
Click the following link to register:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8571500589057456139
The Peoria Heights Zoning Board of Appeals
The Peoria Heights Zoning Board of Appeals will meet Monday, September 21, 2020 at 5:30 p.m. at Village Hall, 4901 N. Prospect Road, Peoria Heights, Illinois.
The purpose of the meeting is to consider the following requests:
1. Site Plan review and variance application by PH Samuel, LLC seeking approval of a Site Plan with variances for lot size, rear setback and a front yard fence, for proposed residential development of the property located at 1324 East Samuel Avenue, Peoria Heights, Illinois, 61616 (PIN No. 14-22-402-027), which property is current zoned R-3 (Multiple Family Residential District).
2. Variance application by Gary L. Kempf, as Trustee of the GLK Land Trust, seeking a variance to permit construction of a front yard fence on the property located at 1209 East War Memorial Drive, Peoria Heights, Illinois, 61616 (PIN No. 14-27-182-028), which property is currently zoned B-2 (General Retail Business District).
Additional documents and information are available at the Village Administrator's Office in Village Hall and/or by calling 686-2385.