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CC_2025_11_03 MINUTESThe City of Lake Forest CITY COUNCIL MEETING Proceedings of Monday, November 3, 2025 City Council Meeting – City Council Chambers 220 E Deerpath, Lake Forest, IL 60045 CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL: Honorable Mayor Tack called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m., and City Clerk Margaret Boyer called the roll of Council members. Present: Mayor Tack, Alderman Novit, Alderman Clemens, Alderman Notz, Alderman Powers, Alderman LeVert, Alderman Bothfeld, Alderman Weber, and Alderman Walther. Absent: None PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE was recited by all those present. REPORTS OF CITY OFFICERS COMMENTS BY MAYOR Mayor Tack thanked everyone who attended the ribbon-cutting at Forest Park Beach Playground on Saturday, with a special thanks to all the kids who helped break in the new slides, swings, and climbing features. He also invited the community to join in on Saturday, November 8, at 10 am for the Deerpath Streetscape & Bank Lane Enhancements Ribbon Cutting. And lastly, he invited the Community to join the Central Business District Passport from November 8-29; shop, collect stamps, and enter to win cash and prizes from local businesses. COMMENTS BY CITY MANAGER City Manager Jason Wicha introduced Annie McAveeney, Founder and Executive Director of Fill a Heart 4 Kids. A. Community Spotlight - Fill-A-Heart 4 kids - Ann McAveeney, Founder and Executive Director Ms. McAveeney shared Fill-A-Heart’s history, along with giving and volunteering opportunities that the community can take part in. For more information, please contact info@fillaheart4kids.org OPPORTUNITY FOR CITIZENS TO ADDRESS THE CITY COUNCIL Diane offered her thanks to city staff. COMMITTEE REPORTS AUDIT COMMITTEE 1. Audit Committee Report and Presentation of the Fiscal Year 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report Proceedings of the November 3, 2025 Regular City Council Meeting Mark Dillon, Audit Committee Chair, gave an overview of the Committee’s work. Other topics discussed in depth included Financial Reporting Achievements, 2025 Baker Tilly Audit Opinion, 2025 Financials which included the positive results that The City has received an unmodified opinion on its Fiscal Year 2025 financial statements. Additionally, he shared highlights on the Foundations that included Parks & Recreation Foundation, CROYA Foundation, Lake Forest/ Lake Bluff Senior Foundation, Gorton Foundation, Ragdale Foundation, and the Police Foundation. The City Council had a discussion on the positive results. Mayor Tack asked if there was anyone from the public who would like to comment. Seeing none, he asked for a motion. COUNCIL ACTION: Receipt of the audit report for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2025. Alderman Weber made a motion to acknowledge Receipt of the audit report for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2025, seconded by Alderman Notz. The following voted “Aye”: Aldermen Novit, Clemens, Notz, Powers, LeVert, Bothfeld, Weber, and Walther. The following voted “Nay”: none. 8-Ayes, 0-Nays, motion carried. FINANCE COMMITTEE 1. Consideration of an Ordinance Restating and Reaffirming Ordinance No. 2024-045 (Self- Limiting Ordinance) Katie Skibbe, Finance Director, reported that historically, the City has estimated annual increases to the debt service cap for planning and forecasting purposes. This practice has been an important part of the City’s capital planning process, allowing it to anticipate future debt service capacity as capital expenses increase. The Police Station bond issuance will eliminate future debt capacity until 2032. Under the current self-limiting ordinance, the City does not have the authority to estimate future increases to the debt cap or act on those assumptions. The proposed amendments to the ordinance would allow the City to assume annual growth of up to 3% per year. If the assumed annual growth of 3% or less exceeds actual growth, the City would still be authorized to levy the amount necessary to pay the principal and interest on all bonds subject to the debt cap. Mayor Tack asked if there was anyone from the public who would like to comment. Seeing none, he asked for a motion. COUNCIL ACTION: Approval of an Ordinance Restating and Reaffirming Ordinance No. 2024-045 (Self- Limiting Ordinance). Alderman Clemens made a motion to approve an Ordinance Restating and Reaffirming Ordinance No. 2024- 045 (Self-Limiting Ordinance), seconded by Alderman Powers. The following voted “Aye”: Aldermen Novit, Clemens, Notz, Powers, LeVert, Bothfeld, Weber, and Walther. The following voted “Nay”: none. 8-Ayes, 0- Nays, motion carried. 2. Consideration of an Ordinance providing for the issuance of not to exceed $20,350,000 General Obligation Bonds of the City of Lake Forest, Lake County, Illinois, for the purpose of financing Proceedings of the November 3, 2025 Regular City Council Meeting capital improvements in and for the City including, but not limited to, renovation of a building for use as a public safety facility, including the site work, design and engineering related thereto, providing for the levy and collection of a direct annual tax sufficient to pay the principal and interest on said bonds, and authorizing the sale of said bonds to the purchaser thereof. (Second reading). Katie Skibbe, Finance Director, reported that at its October 6 meeting, City Council approved the contracts and bids for the new Police Station. Additionally, the City Council approved two items bid as alternates and amended the first reading of the bond ordinance to provide funding. For the second reading and final approval, the bond ordinance has been adjusted to a maximum value of $20,350,000, which represents a $20,000,000 par value and an estimated $350,000 in issuance costs. Increasing the par value of the bonds from $19.5m to $20m will cost a $1,000,000 homeowner approximately $55 over the 15-year maturity. The Bond Ordinance has also been revised from the first reading to accommodate potential changes in the self-limiting ordinance, also on tonight’s agenda. The sale of the bonds is being approved through a parameters ordinance to provide flexibility in issuance. The ordinance authorizes the sale of bonds at a future date, as long as certain parameters are met. City Council had a discussion on the Bond issuing timeline, and commented on the fiscal discipline of the previous City Councils. Mayor Tack asked if there was anyone from the public who would like to comment. Seeing none, he asked for a motion. COUNCIL ACTION: Approval of an Ordinance providing for the issuance of not to exceed $20,350,000 General Obligation Bonds of the City of Lake Forest, Lake County, Illinois, for the purpose of financing capital improvements in and for the City including, but not limited to, renovation of a building for use as a public safety facility, including the site work, design and engineering related thereto, providing for the levy and collection of a direct annual tax sufficient to pay the principal and interest on said bonds, and authorizing the sale of said bonds to the purchaser thereof. Alderman LeVert made a motion to Approve of an Ordinance providing for the issuance of not to exceed $20,350,000 General Obligation Bonds of the City of Lake Forest, Lake County, Illinois, for the purpose of financing capital improvements in and for the City including, but not limited to, renovation of a building for use as a public safety facility, including the site work, design and engineering related thereto, providing for the levy and collection of a direct annual tax sufficient to pay the principal and interest on said bonds, and authorizing the sale of said bonds to the purchaser thereof, seconded by Alderman Notz. The following voted “Aye”: Aldermen Novit, Clemens, Notz, Powers, LeVert, Bothfeld, Weber, and Walther. The following voted “Nay”: none. 8-Ayes, 0-Nays, motion carried. 3. Determination of a Non-Binding Estimate of the Amount of Revenue to be Generated from Property Taxes for the 2025 Calendar Year and Establishment of December 1, 2025 as a Public Hearing Date (if required) in Accordance with the Truth in Taxation Statute Katie Skibbe, Finance Director reported that under the Truth in Taxation Act, the City Council is required to determine the estimated amount of money to be raised by taxation twenty (20) days prior to the adoption of the annual tax levy. The amount determined is an estimate, and may be increased or decreased under the statute, provided that any increase does not exceed 105% of the prior year’s tax extension without the required notice and public hearing. Proceedings of the November 3, 2025 Regular City Council Meeting The 2025 property tax levy estimate, as considered by the Finance Committee on October 20, is as follows: Levy 2024 Extended 2025 Levy Estimate % Increase (Decr.) The tax levy cap applicable to the 2025 tax levy is 2.90%. The 2025 tax levy estimate reflects: • Assessed valuation estimates provided by the Lake County Assessor’s Office, • Required funding for police and fire pension purposes as established by a 4/30/25 independent actuarial valuation and reflecting the Pension Funding Policy approved 8/3/20, as recommended by the Pension Subcommittee, • Required debt service levy amounts as established by bond ordinances approved at the time of debt issuance, • An estimate for the 2025 issue for the Police Station renovation, • Capital Improvements Fund levy consistent with FY27-31 Five-Year Forecast, • 2.90% PTELL increase on library and parks/recreation levy line items which have consistently been limited to PTELL, and • An estimate of new growth, which impacts the General Fund and Library operating levies. After discussions with the Finance Committee, staff have also included in the 2025 tax levy estimate: • A reduction in the General Levy from 2.9% to 2.0% and • Abating the first-year debt service for the 2025 General Obligation Bond issue by $230,000 to further phase in the debt service to taxpayers. Based on the preliminary estimate, a public hearing will not be required under the Truth in Taxation Act. Mayor Tack asked if there was anyone from the public who would like to comment. Seeing none, he asked for a motion. COUNCIL ACTION: Determination of a Non-Binding Estimate of the Amount of Revenue to be Generated from Property Taxes for the 2025 Calendar Year and Establishment of December 1, 2025 as a Public Hearing Date (if required) in Accordance with the Truth in Taxation Statute. Alderman Weber made a motion to approve the Determination of a Non-Binding Estimate of the Amount of Revenue to be Generated from Property Taxes for the 2025 Calendar Year and Establishment of December 1, 2025 as a Public Hearing Date (if required) in Accordance with the Truth in Taxation Statute, seconded by Alderman Walther. The following voted “Aye”: Aldermen Novit, Clemens, Notz, Powers, LeVert, Bothfeld, Weber, and Walther. The following voted “Nay”: none. 8-Ayes, 0-Nays, motion carried. PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION COMPENSATION COMMITTEE 1. Approval of Proposed Changes to the City of Lake Forest’s Health Insurance Plan for Plan Year 2026 Ben Roesler, Director of Human Resources, reported that the Personnel Compensation Administration (PCA) Committee and staff request approval of proposed health insurance plan changes for Plan Year 2026 to help Proceedings of the November 3, 2025 Regular City Council Meeting manage costs. Specifically, these changes entail modifying access to GLP-1 weight loss drugs. These modifications would require GLP-1 users to take part in a lifestyle modification plan through the EnCircleRx program. He reviewed the proposed Health Insurance Plan Decisions for Plan Year 2026 to include premium increases. The IPBC underwriting team finalized premium rate adjustments for all IPBC members earlier in 2025. For Lake Forest, the underwriters seek a 9.1% increase for both the HDHP and traditional PPO plans, as well as a 6.2% increase for HMO plans. For context, the IPBC membership average for PPO and HMO rate increases are 11.1% and 6.2%, respectively, for the upcoming plan year. Before receiving the rate increases from IPBC, City staff had anticipated a premium increase of approximately 5% for Plan Year 2026. IPBC allows its members the opportunity to reduce premium rate increases for Plan Year 2026 by implementing the EnCircleRx Program. Specifically, GLP-1 users would take part in the Omada Health program that features one-on-one health coaching and support, a personalized care plan, and weekly at-home weigh-in requirements via a digital scale. Omada encourages lifestyle modifications with the goal of reducing the prescription dosage (or transitioning off the drugs) and maintaining a healthy weight. He summarized the GLP-1 access options as follows. • Option 1 – “Do Nothing”: by maintaining current access to GLP-1’s, the City would see a $375,826 (8.6%) increase in insurance premiums compared to the current plan year. • Option 2 – “Grandfather” – 0.5% Decrement: with Option 2, the City would see a $358,656 (8.2%) increase in insurance premium payments compared to the current plan year. This would save $17,170 compared to the “Do Nothing” option • Option 3 – “Modify for All” – 1% Decrement: with Option 3, the City would see a $336,771 (7.1%) increase in insurance premium payments compared to the current plan year. This would save $39,054 compared to the “Do Nothing” option. The City Council had lengthy discussion to include the opinion of over utilization of the drug, patient use, the expense, the minimal savings the city would see, criteria for the use, BMI percentages, not rushing to make a decision, out of pocket costs for users, the expanded health benefits of using the drug, doing a study on other communities in the pool who modify use to learn about it before acting on it and the City’s time in the pool of less than one year. Mayor Tack asked if there was anyone from the public who would like to comment. Diane offered her concerns over limiting people who have issues with weight loss, and the emotional barriers, which will not help the mental health of users, forcing people to check in. Mayor Tack again asked if there was anyone from the public who would like to comment. Seeing none, he asked for a motion. COUNCIL ACTION: Approval of health insurance plan modifications for Plan Year 2026 by implementing Option 3 ("Modify for All") for GLP-1 prescriptions. Alderman Clemens made a motion to approve health insurance plan modifications for Plan Year 2026 by implementing Option 3 ("Modify for All") for GLP-1 prescriptions, seconded by Alderman Powers. The following voted “Aye”: Aldermen Novit, Clemens, Powers, LeVert, Bothfeld, Weber, and Walther. The following voted “Nay”: Alderman Notz. 7-Ayes, 1-Nays, motion carried. Proceedings of the November 3, 2025 Regular City Council Meeting ITEMS FOR OMNIBUS VOTE CONSIDERATION 1. Approval of the Monday, October 20, 2025 City Council Meeting Minutes 2. Approval of the Check Register for the Period of September 20 – October 17, 2025. 3. Consideration of a Request to Waive the Fidelity Bond Requirement in Connection with Holding the Raffles in the City of Lake Forest for the School of St. Mary 4. Approval to authorize the City Manager to Award a Contract for Tree Pruning for FY2026 to Advanced Tree Care for an Amount Not to Exceed $83,000 5. Authorization to Dispose of City Property to the Highest Bidder, Miguel Camerena, for the Sale of the 2010 Chevrolet Express/Arboc Mobility in the Amount of $7,505 6. Approval of a Grant of Easement to Commonwealth Edison for the Waukegan and Westleigh Intersection Project and Authorization for Staff to Execute the Easement and Related Documentation 7. Consideration of a Recommendation from the Plan Commission in Support of Approval of the Elm Tree Road Subdivision at 1310 Lake Road and 1235 Elm Tree Road through a Special Use Permit. (Waive First Reading and Grant Final approval of An Ordinance.) 8. Consideration of an Ordinance Approving a Recommendation from the Zoning Board of Appeals for 491 Buena Road. (First Reading, and if Desired by the City Council, Final Approval) CITY COUNCIL ACTION Approve the eight (8) omnibus items as presented. Mayor Tack asked if anyone would like an item removed or taken separately. Seeing none, he asked for a motion. Alderman Weber made a motion to approve the eight (8) Omnibus items as presented, seconded by Alderman LeVert. The following voted “Aye”: Aldermen Novit, Clemens, Notz, Powers, LeVert, Bothfeld, Weber, and Walther. The following voted “Nay”: none. 8-Ayes, 0-Nays, motion carried. Information such as Purpose and Action Requested, Background/Discussion, Budget/Fiscal Impact, Council Action, and a Staff Contact as it relates to the Omnibus items can be found on the agenda. OLD BUSINESS 1. Consideration of a Recommendation from Staff to Authorize Negotiations with TowerNorth Relating to a Ground Lease for a Monopole Cell Tower at the City’s Compost Center, 1381 Kennedy Road. (By Motion.) Catherine Czerniak, Director of Community Development, reported that this item is for direction and to authorization. It is requested to allow City staff, in collaboration with the City Attorney, to begin lease negotiations with TowerNorth, the bidder presenting the most favorable terms. And importantly, the draft ground lease will be presented to the Council for consideration and action at a future meeting. She gave a brief overview, noting that the City Council reviewed the consultant’s report, confirming gaps in wireless coverage, especially in the southwest quadrant of the City, and the Council moved to begin improving Proceedings of the November 3, 2025 Regular City Council Meeting service. Council approved a Code amendment allowing a telecommunications monopole at the City’s Compost Center, after which staff surveyed the site to confirm the buildable area. The City issued an RFP for tower construction and received two proposals, though lease terms remain to be negotiated. She reviewed the anticipated wireless carriers and a summary of the proposals, along with the benefits and challenges, to include a revenue loss to the City based on current leases. And the benefits of removing the existing telecommunications facilities from the City’s elevated water tank. Lastly she stated staff recommends engaging with TowerNorth to negotiate a ground lease. TowerNorth has acknowledged the City’s interest in moving forward with the installation of the tower, and wireless service improvements as quickly as possible. Once a draft lease is prepared, the lease will be presented to the City Council for review and action. Every effort will be made to expedite this work. The City Council had a discussion on the current lease rates, negotiating a better price, the expediting the tower. Mayor Tack asked if there was anyone from the public who would like to comment. Seeing none, he asked for a motion. COUNCIL ACTION: Authorize staff to engage in lease negotiations with TowerNorth with the goal of expediting the installation of a cell tower at the City’s compost center to enhance service to residents and businesses in the community as well as those traveling through the community. Alderman Powers made a motion to authorize staff to engage in lease negotiations with TowerNorth with the goal of expediting the installation of a cell tower at the City’s compost center to enhance service to residents and businesses in the community as well as those traveling through the community, seconded by Alderman Walther. The following voted “Aye”: Aldermen Novit, Clemens, Notz, Powers, Bothfeld, Weber, and Walther. The following voted “Nay”: none. The Following Abstained: Alderman Levert (noting conflict of Interest), 7- Ayes, 0-Nays, 1-Abstention. Motion carried. NEW BUSINESS ADDITIONAL ITEMS FOR COUNCIL DISCUSSION/COMMENTS BY COUNCIL MEMBERS City Council thanked the Library for its Author Program. Mayor Tack noted that there will be no further business following the executive session. Mayor Tack asked for a motion to adjourn into executive session pursuant to 5 ILCS 120/2 (c) (2) collective bargaining and (5), Purchase or lease of real property for the use of the public body 1. EXECUTIVE SESSION Alderman Weber made a motion to adjourn into executive session pursuant to 5 ILCS 120/2 (c(2) collective bargaining and (5), Purchase or lease of real property for the use of the public body, seconded by Alderman Walther. The following voted “Aye”: Aldermen Novit, Clemens, Notz, Powers, LeVert, Bothfeld, Weber, and Walther. The following voted “Nay”: none. 8-Ayes, 0-Nays, motion carried. Adjournment into Executive Session 8:15 p.m. Reconvene into Regular Session 8:51 p.m. Proceedings of the November 3, 2025 Regular City Council Meeting ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Mayor Tack asked for a motion to adjourn. Alderman LeVert made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Alderman Powers. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote at 8:52 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Margaret Boyer, City Clerk A video of the City Council meeting is available for viewing at the Lake Forest Library and on file in the Clerk’s office at City Hall. You can also view it on the website by visiting www.cityoflakeforest.com. Click on I Want To, then click on View, then choose Archived Meetings Videos.