MINUTES
Moraine Township Board of Trustees
Thursday, August 23, 2007 7:30 PM
Highwood City Hall, Council Chambers
MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING
August 23, 2007
The meeting was called to order at 7:40 PM by Supervisor Barnes and upon roll call the following members were present: Trustees Bryna Gamson, Margoth Moreno, and Cynthia Plouché. Trustee Jeff Zaluda was absent. Also Present: Clerk Ellen Gussin and Director General Assistance Tracy Coleman.
Approval of Minutes
The Regular Meeting Minutes of July 26, 2007 stand approved as written.
Approval of Bills
Trustee Gamson moved, seconded by Trustee Moreno, approval of the bills. Upon roll call, motion carried.
Public Comment
None
Assessor’s Report
Assessor’s office was unrepresented, possibly due to the inclement weather. Supervisor Barnes announced that the Assessor’s books will be closed in September instead of August as previously announced.
Supervisor’s Report
Supervisor Barnes reminded the Board of the November 2 event being hosted by Moraine Township for all county township officials.
A change in the Open Meetings Act concerning small Boards such as the Township now allows two Board members to meet without constituting an open meeting; however a minimum of three votes to support any Board resolution is now required.
Supervisor Barnes is working on bringing in Rotary to the holiday season gift project and encourages all Board members to think of other community entities that may want to participate.
Supervisor Barnes brought copies of the Resource Directory developed by Township volunteer Ada Goldstein, which will be available to the community. On the subject of Resource Directories, Trustee Gamson announced that United Way of Lake County will be putting the old Red Book resource guide on-line. Clerk Gussin reported on a discussion she had had with a parent in the community who suggested sharing resources between the schools and Township and suggested the Township establish links with the various school district websites to share information and recruit volunteers for various projects.
Citizens of communities beyond Moraine Township have been coming in to the office for RTA senior and disabled discount passes, and Trustee Gamson suggested that a nominal, non-resident processing fee be considered for these instances.
Supervisor Barnes reminded everyone about the Lions Club event on September 6 at the Lake County Health Clinic in Highland Park where free eye-screening for seniors will be offered from 9 AM to 1 PM. Seniors should call the Township office for more information or a ride to the health center.
Citizen Advocacy Advisory Committee
Trustee Plouché summarized her meeting with Trustee Moreno reviewing what she had previously discussed with Highland Park City Council member Terri Olian. They suggest a committee of six members: two Township trustees; three members from the general public at large making sure both Highland Park and Highwood are represented; and one member from the Human Relations Commission. Supervisor Barnes asked for an example of how the committee would be used, and Trustee Moreno offered the possibility of helping an individual(s) who have been frustrated in not being able to get answers on issues, such as housing, or any issue where the Township could step in as an advocate. In general the group would serve as all-purpose advocates for people in need. Trustee Gamson suggested the scope be further clarified and offered her perspective of the committee serving as community ombudsmen. Supervisor Barnes requested that Trustees Plouché and Moreno come back with a more defined scope at the Township’s next meeting prior to convening the committee and creating a mission statement.
Committee Reports
Food Pantry: Trustee Moreno commented that the pantry has been busy and referred to the monthly totals on the reports distributed in the Board packets. The Township purchases items from the Northern Illinois Food Bank as needed for the Pantry.
Clothes Closet: Township has been inundated with clothing and a large surplus was donated to Salvation Army last week.
Transportation: All employees were drug tested, in accordance with the PACE requirement. Vans are extremely busy and booked to the maximum. Trustee Gamson reported on the Lake County Paratransit Committee meeting she attended where gaps in services throughout the County were discussed. Everyone is encouraged to go to http://www.lsccs.com to review specifics of the initiative.
Township Website is almost complete. Everyone is encouraged to view the site at http://www.morainetownship.org.
Old Business
None
New Business
Clerk Gussin asked for any changes to the Township Meeting Dates for 2008, distributed in draft form via email. Board is asked to submit suggestions for any changes to Clerk Gussin; approval of the schedule will be on the Agenda for the September meeting.
Clerk Gussin announced she was pleased to represent the Township at the lovely event at the Botanic Garden on August 21. Unfortunately, the invites were date stamped August 1 by the Township office but not passed on to Board members until the packets for this meeting were received the day of the event.
Adjournment
With no further business to conduct, Trustee Gamson moved, seconded by Trustee Plouché, the meeting be adjourned at 8:32 PM. Motion carried.
Respectfully submitted,
_______________________
Ellen S. Gussin
Moraine Township Clerk
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