MINUTES
Moraine Township Board of Trustees
Thursday, July 13, 2006 5:00 PM
Township Office

MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING
July 13, 2006

The meeting was called to order at 5:00 PM, and upon roll call the following members were present: Supervisor Mari Barnes, Trustees Bryna Gamson, Margoth Moreno, Cynthia Plouché and Jeff Zaluda. Also Present: Assessor Peter Koukos; Chief Deputy Assessor Trish Lenzini; Clerk Ellen Gussin; Director General Assistance Tracy Coleman; Janet Freed, and Peg Koukos, community members.

Approval of Minutes
Regular Meeting Minutes of June 22, 2006, stand as written.

Approval of Bills
Trustee Zaluda moved, seconded by Trustee Moreno, approval of the bills; only the Town Fund bills were prepared this month and the General Assistance Bills will be presented at the next meeting. Upon roll call, motion carried.

Assessor's Report
Chief Deputy Assessor Trish Lenzini reported that they are up to date with work and on target to get blue cards out on time this year in mid-October. Assessor Pete Koukos reported the appeals process for 2004 is progressing--many appeals have been withdrawn and the number pending may be under 20 at this point.

Public Comment
None

Supervisor's Report
Township received a letter from the Salvation Army advising that they have allocated $500 to the township for disbursement to an appropriate Emergency Assistance expenditure.

Supervisor Barnes continues to seek ways to publicize the Van transportation program. The PR piece is being sent to churches and synagogues. Tracy Coleman suggested that the piece be distributed to medical offices and that the Van drivers leave the brochure at the places they go to. Janet Freed suggested distributing the brochure to the North Shore Senior Center.

The Township Budget contains allocations for potential Taxi Program expenditures in the Taxi Program account as well as Printing and Publishing. The Board agreed that the expenditures should be identifiable by category (i.e., type of expenditure for "Taxi") and advised Supervisor Barnes to use her discretion.

Transfer of Appropriation
Supervisor Barnes requested a Transfer of Appropriation, in conjunction with closing the books for the last fiscal year, as follows:
Transfer $3,300 from General Assistance Contingencies to various accounts in General Assistance
Transfer $2,750 from Town Fund Contingencies to various accounts in the Town Fund.
Trustee Plouché moved, seconded by Trustee Zaluda, that the appropriations be transferred as recommended. Upon roll call, motion carried.

Committee Reports
Trustee Plouché commended Trustee Gamson on the new Township Handout first distributed at the Fourth of July Parade. She also commented on the success of the township's presence at the Parade. Trustee Gamson reported that several citizens expressed interest in volunteering and the widespread goodwill she felt as a result of the Parade participation.

The Lake County Coordinated Transportation Committee continues to meet to review county transportation issues.

Trustee Moreno reported on the Food Pantry and the continuing need for more volunteers as well as the need to reorganize the Pantry. The Clothing Closet had too much inventory, and 12 bags of old clothing were donated to Goodwill. Trustee Zaluda will follow up with a contact he heard from who had 10 adult volunteers who were looking for opportunities.

Old Business
Trustee Gamson wants to revisit the Mission Statement to simplify it to the first sentence. She suggests using a second paragraph to expand and explain the simplified Mission Statement, as per the language used in the recent handout for the Fourth of July Parade. Board agreed to put this on the Agenda for the next meeting, and commended her efforts. She is now proceeding with the Newsletter; it was decided that early September was a good target for first mailing. Pictures are welcomed. Need to review the frequency with which this will be published and, depending upon costs, it may be three or four times per year.

Assessor Koukos reported on a committee that will be trying to put together language on the Senior Assessment freeze--both in establishing validation of income and a mechanism by which qualified freezes will follow citizens if they downsize their homes (e.g., condos) so as not to incur property tax increases at their new property.

Supervisor Barnes distributed a sheet requesting the trustees' personal data, required by the State in order for the Moraine Township Board of Trustees to become the Board for the cemeteries within the township. This action was approved at the last township meeting.

New Business
Trustee Moreno reported that the Spanish television station Univision (Channel 66) will be publicizing opportunities within the communities of Lake County, and will be contacting her for township information and news.

Adjournment
With no further business to conduct, Trustee Zaluda moved, seconded by Trustee Plouché, the meeting be adjourned at 6:00 PM. Motion carried.

Respectfully submitted,

_______________________
Ellen S. Gussin, Moraine Township Clerk

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