By Stephanie Irvine
The Village of Manhattan is continuing to work on establishing an updated comprehensive plan as Nik Davis from the Houseal Lavigne design firm presented the existing conditions at the August 27 board meeting.
The comprehensive plan is intended to serve as a planning blueprint for the next 20 years. Houseal Lavigne’s planning process has five steps, and this was the third step toward finalizing the plan.
Thus far, they have completed the kick-off with public engagement, including a village board workshop, business community workshop, key stakeholder interviews, and online surveys to evaluate existing conditions. They are beginning the third stage, which is visioning and key recommendations.
The PowerPoint presentation included a high-level overview of the feedback collected, emphasizing the ability to collect more community input through the website’s online survey.
Information, including the presentation documents and the survey, are available to the public at manhattan-illinois-comprehensive-plan-hlplanning.hub.arcgis.com/.
Davis explained that the presentation included ideas regarding transportation, land use, and community services developed from community input. The firm noted that the community expressed a desire for open space with a well-maintained transportation network for walking, biking, and vehicular traffic, a broader tax base through commercial and industrial businesses, a well-maintained and supported historic downtown center, and preservation of the town’s rural character.
During the presentation, Trustee Dave Beemsterboer expressed concerns about the language in the vision statement, worrying that the village could be forced to uphold or be held financially responsible for what was included in the vision statement.
Beemsterboer’s concern resulted in a spirited yet respectful discussion between the mayor and the trustee.
“People are going to read this vision statement—the first seven pages or seven paragraphs— and that’s the Holy Bible, which is why we have to look at this so closely,” Beemsterboer said.
Mayor Mike Adrieansen interjected and offered, “Like with anything, when you have a subdivision come in, they do an annexation agreement. We go through everything they’re required to do before we accept, so it’s always negotiable, I feel like.”
Beemsterboer still felt like there was an issue at hand regarding the language.
“What we’re running into right now is that there are areas that don’t have bike paths that were given away, so-to-speak, by the park district in the past that didn’t want them. Because who’s going to maintain them? Who’s going to fix them? They didn’t want to do it. We couldn’t afford to do it […] I just want to be careful with the language of what we’re saying we’re going to provide,” Beemsterboer explained further.
“I don’t think we need to get into the weeds on this paragraph,” Adrieansen said.
Davis said he had some ideas and that they could adjust the language before adding that “no one should be reading a vision statement and think it’s locked in.”
Adrieansen then proposed a slight change with the language, which Beemsterboer then agreed was perfect.
Davis continued with the presentation, reviewing various planning points, including what types of development should be allowed or considered and where.
Trustee Ron Adamski commented that they needed to define where specifically certain developments and open spaces should be allowed.
Adrieansen raised the concern that solar farms should be included in the plan discussions as they are proposed throughout the county. He wanted the plan to identify relevant areas for solar farms should they be approved. Davis said they could add language regarding solar farms, but it may also be something that should be codified in the Village code.
The new plan will take into account the village’s recently adopted downtown master plan, the Will County 2040 long-range plan, the village’s previous village center plan from 2011, and its 2008 comprehensive plan.
The next steps in creating the comprehensive plan include another village board workshop to review a plan outline this fall, followed by another meeting and focus on more land use plan elements before the end of 2024. They hope to work through the adoption process by January or February 2025.
The August 27 village board meeting began with a proclamation declaring September as Suicide Awareness Month in the Village of Manhattan, with special commentary from Village Clerk Shelly Lewis, who lost her 15-year-old son, Jackson, to suicide in 2020. In her comments, she expressed how devastating this loss was for her and her family while expressing appreciation to the village for its support in allowing her to raise awareness.
Lewis stated it is important to recognize how significant of an issue suicide is in this community, noting that the Village of Manhattan has lost five of its residents to suicide since January 2023, and there have been 20 documented suicide threats or attempts. Lewis advised people to look out for loved ones, note isolation or changes in personality, and encourage friends and family to seek early help if they notice any signs of mental health struggles.
Following the proclamation and comprehensive plan presentation and discussion, the board unanimously approved several action items.
Funding for a state-mandated radium treatment facility was also on the agenda; the village received 3.5 million from Congressman Rush’s office, plus another million prior to that in grant money. However, there is still a gap in funding needed, and in the absence of an IEPA loan that is no longer available, the board approved a $6M General Obligation Bond.
Additionally, the board approved purchase of two police cars for $97,802.06 and outfitting for $42,000.00 from D’Orazio Ford in Wilmington, and a used 2010 Freightliner fully-outfitted snow plow truck from the Village of Flossmoor for $35,000.00.
Trustee Bob Dilling and other board members commended Superintendent John Tyk for finding a truck that could be fixed up in-house for an extremely affordable amount. Dilling also complimented Tyk and his crew for their hard work after the board approved a Local 150 MOU that allowed Jim Bennett to be promoted to Crew Leader.
The board increased the number of gaming licenses to allow Arrowhead Smoke Works to install three video gaming machines. Trustee Adamski asked if this would allow the restaurant to open the gaming machines exclusively before the food. Adrieansen advised that would not be the case and said it also takes a while for the state to get the machines approved and ready.
The school district requested that the village install a stop sign at Smith Road and Foxford Drive, which is directly across from the new junior high school driveway. The stop sign was approved.
Linda Barton, Rebecca Bouck, Gwen Petrella, Norma Schutts, and Raymond Wertelka were hired as Temporary Election Clerks for the upcoming presidential election from October 21 through November 1 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Finally, the board approved a new ordinance that prevents all elected officials from serving as village employees.
A brief discussion took place regarding solar farms, and Adrieansen noted that he had sent out a proposed map with some points of discussion. He said he is talking with Manhattan Township regarding solar farm proposals. Beemsterboer asked Village Attorney Jeff Taylor if it was possible to create a new zoning classification outside of blanket industrial classifications, to which he explained that they could look into that.
Supervisor Tyk notified the board that the village received a $25,000 grant for the Trask Street drainage project. Engineer Carrie Pintar anticipates that Baker Road MFT reconstruction project should begin the second or third week of September.
From Finance, Glen Gehrke noted that they finished up the implementation of the new ERP system, which had some challenges. The village also implemented a new utility billing system. Gehrke appreciated everyone’s patience as they worked through these new processes.
The board held a closed session, which Adrieansen said would likely be lengthy. The board took no action upon its return.
Stephanie Irvine is a freelance reporter.