Countryside City Council tackles long list of items

By Steve Metsch

Water leaks, a new truck and abandoned vehicles were among a laundry list of items tackled by the Countryside City Council at its latest meeting.

They were all from the infrastructure committee chaired by Ald. Mark Benson (3rd). All of the following were approved by a unanimous 6-0 vote on March 13.

The city will pay $16,450 to M.E. Simpson for the annual water distribution system test.

“This is something we do yearly in different wards just to make sure there are no holes in our water system,” Benson said.

“We test our pipes to make sure all the water we get. … Make sure we’re not losing any. We’re around a 95 percent retention rate,” he said.

The city will charge companies who fill up water tanks at public works the commercial rate of $13.16 per 1,000 gallons. That’s $4 to $5 more than the residential rate.

“Landscapers that will use high volumes of water,” Benson said.

A new loader/backhoe will be purchased for use by public works. A price and seller have not yet been determined.

A new Ford F-250 4-by-4 will be purchased from Westfield Ford in Countryside for $42,000. Trading in a Ford Ranger that dates back to the 1990s will bring the city $5,500.

“We’re looking to upgrade because the Ranger has lots of miles on it,” Benson said.

A new plow and LED light system will be bought for the new truck for $8,335 from Regional Truck Equipment, he said.

Abandoned vehicles will no longer be allowed to sit on city streets up to 30 days. The council cut that to seven days.

Business license penalties are being changed.

Instead of a 30- to 45-day waiting period, those tardy buying a license will be fined $250 upfront. The fine will be applied to the price of buying a new license.

Sump pump discharges – a bone of contention for some residents – are now required to be 15 from a side property line, 25 from the back property line and 5 feet from any property line for gutters.

“We had some issues in Ward One, where the lots are smaller. … One gentleman had a back slope on his driveway and was getting water (from a neighbor’s pipe) in his garage. Those two (neighbors) were going at it,” Benson said.

The problem is not as prevalent in the 2nd and 3rd wards, he said, because lots are larger.

All buildings will be required to have 10-year smoke detectors and have addresses clearly seen on the exteriors.

“I thought that was common sense, to have an address on your building, but some of them don’t,” Benson said.

For those wondering, new construction on the north side of Plainfield Road, between La Grange Road and East Avenue, will be a self-storage facility, he said.

And the city’s decision regarding expansion of the public works building or building a new one is still on hold.

“We’re trying to find money for it. Sponsorships. Perhaps get some state, county and federal money for it. We don’t want to jump the gun before we know we have those options,” Benson said.

The city council’s next scheduled meeting was set for 7:30 p.m. March 27.