Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. A copy of the agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.
Archive for the ‘Building Department’ Category
Village Board of Trustees meets tonight
Posted in BACOG, Board of Elections, Building Department, ePacket Agendas, Equestrian Commission, Ethics, Finance Committee, Mac's Property Management, Minutes, Plan Commission, Police Pension Board, Police Reports, Property Taxes, Roads & Bridges Committee, VBHPD, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Code, Village Director of Administration, Village Engineer, Village Government, Village President, Village Treasurer, Zoning Board on December 19, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Hoffman Estates moving building permit, inspection applications online
Posted in Building Department, Conflict of interest, Village Government on December 16, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Editorial note: There are numerous valid reasons Barrington Hills needs to move in this direction soon. The current paper based, “Application For Building Permit,” (click on link) is one prime example.
Starting Jan. 1, contractors and residents in Hoffman Estates will apply for building permits and schedule inspections through a streamlined online portal.
The new eTRAKiT system will move the entire permit application and plan review process online, creating what village officials say is an easier and more efficient experience for the applicant. Users will submit and access all of their permit documents electronically, including those issued by the village.
After creating an account, users will be able to submit required documents, receive notifications, and communicate with staff throughout the review process. The portal also will be used to schedule inspections and even track the status of permits and plan reviews.
Visit the building permit page on the village’s website, www.hoffmanestates.org, for more information about applying for a building permit, or call (847) 781-2361.
Happy Retro Thanksgiving!
Posted in Barrington Hills Park District, Bicyclists, Big Red, Building Department, Clown Car, Conflict of interest, Ethics, Horse Boarding, LeCompte/Anderson Commercial Horse boarding amendment, Mac's Property Management, Mad Cow, One Barrington Hills, OP/Ed, Politics, Riding Club of Barrington Hills, Roads & Bridges Committee, Transparency, Village Board, Village President, Your Barrington Hills on November 24, 2022| Leave a Comment »
“TV families are a lot like real families. They always come together for Thanksgiving. For the ultimate TV Thanksgiving, look no further than the 1968 episode of The (Barrington) Hillbillies, “The Thanksgiving Spirit.”
The crossover episode not only features the Clampetts, it features the cast members of Green Acres and Petticoat Junction. The episode culminates with a shared dinner that includes characters from the three shows.” (Source)
Editorial note: Many preferred to use the phrase, “Barrington Hillbillies,” when referring to the political antics of some in our “oasis of another time” Village, but that subsided until recently when the Cecola Administration took office. Now the popularity of that phrase is experiencing a resurgence.
Village Board of Trustees meets tonight
Posted in Agendas, Audio Recordings, Big Red, Building Department, Clown Car, Conflict of interest, Deception, Elections, ePacket Agendas, Finance Committee, Financial Reports, FOIA, FUBAR, Legal Expenses, Mac's Property Management, Minutes, Pension Funding, Politics, Property Taxes, Public Safety, Real Estate, Road construction, Roads & Bridges Committee, Roads and Bridges, Taxes, The New Normal, Transparency, VBHPD, Village Board, Village Engineer, Village Government, Village President, Village Treasurer on November 17, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. A copy of their agenda can be viewed and downloaded here, however residents should take special note of their draft 2023 Budget, particularly as it relates to Roads & Bridges where at least one expense is up over 100%.
By far one of the largest increases is in, “Road Maintenance Contracts.” This year’s budget is $661,000. But the proposed amount next year is $1,059,200. That’s an increase of $398,200.
“Mowing/Cleanup Contracts,” is going from $70,00 this year to more than double that in 2023 at $150,000.
In an effort to understand the underlying reasons for these and other increases, we listened to the recordings of the nearly two (2) hour November 8th Special Meeting of the Roads & Bridges Committee yesterday. What we found revealed largely incoherent rambling (as usual) by the chair. As of this posting, the audio now states, “Unsupported audio,” as seen in this link, unfortunately, but some who heard the recording might consider this a blessing.
Hopefully this evening we’ll learn why such exorbitant roads increases are being proposed, but beforehand we’d like to share some advice with the Roads & Bridges Chair in the form quote from a famous Thanksgiving movie that goes, “…when you’re telling these little stories, here’s a good idea. Have a point. It makes it so much more interesting for the listener!”
Village Board of Trustees meets tonight
Posted in Agendas, BACOG, Big Red, BOHICA, Building Department, Conflict of interest, ePacket Agendas, Equestrian Commission, Ethics, Financial Reports, FUBAR, Mac's Property Management, Minutes, OMA, Organizations, Politics, Property Taxes, Public Safety, Road construction, Roads & Bridges Committee, Transparency, VBHPD, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Code, Village Director of Administration, Village Engineer, Village Government, Village President, Well Water Quality on October 24, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. Some topics on the agenda include:
- [Vote] A Resolution Authorizing the Purchase and Installation of Tile Flooring by the Village of Barrington Hills Resolution 22 – 12
- Meeting Calendar 2023 – Draft
- BACOG’s Private Well Water Testing Summary
Also, for those who’ve endured the deplorable sound quality when phoning in to attempt to participate in board meetings conversations, a new phone number appears on tonight’s agenda. What’s just swell about this new number is an eleven (11) digit meeting ID is required to participate on the call.
One can only assume this added aggravation will result in significantly improved sound quality. We’re looking forward to being pleasantly surprised.
A copy of the agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.
Better (decades) late than never
Posted in Appointments, Better Government Association, Big Red, Board of Health, BOHICA, Building Department, Conflict of interest, Contests, Crain's Chicago Business, Cuba Township Road District, Deception, Elections, Equestrian Commission, Ethics, Illinois State Board of Elections, LeCompte/Anderson Commercial Horse boarding amendment, Mac's Property Management, OMA, One Barrington Hills, OP/Ed, Politics, Property Taxes, Real Estate, Riding Club of Barrington Hills, Road construction, Roads & Bridges Committee, The New Normal, The Other Half, Transparency, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Code, Village President, Village Treasurer on September 30, 2022| 1 Comment »
Last Winter, the Village of Lake Barrington published the following in their seasonal newsletter:
“Lake Barrington’s Ethics Commission
Did you know that the Village has an Ethics Commission? The independent commission adds to the overall transparency of our government and serves to investigate complaints alleging violations of the Ethics Chapter of the Village Code. We are proud to report that this 3-member Commission has never once had to meet regarding a violation!”
Their Municipal Code actually devotes a chapter to ethics, and the main page of their website contains a link to, “Report a Concern.”
As previously chronicled in this publication, if one searches our Village Code, keying in the word “ethics,” the result reads, “No Matches Found.”
Our Village needs an Ethics Commission. How else could parties involved in complaints present their respective cases to determine if ethics violations did, or did not, occur? Listed below are typical practices that might arise in our Village, and in our opinion, may warrant investigation, understanding that there are no implications as to guilt or innocence of any on the list:
- Should expensive legal battles, possibly precipitated by actions of elected and appointed Village officials, be investigated?
- Should the hiring and retention of Village paid staff positions by elected family members be investigated?
- Should contracts with vendors who maintain personal and professional relationships with elected Village officials and their families be investigated?
- Should the solicitations of funds and hand selection of vendors by family members or close friends of elected Village officials, absent oversight by appointed Village committees, be investigated?
For these and other reasons, our Village needs to appoint an Ethics Commission to act as ombudsmen, when any question of potential maladministration or ethics violations is considered or occurs.
Candidates for this proposed commission could come from existing appointed Village bodies, ones whose objectivity would be unquestioned.
The perfect candidates for this roll are the incumbent members of the Board of Heath. They are highly qualified, underutilized, and would prove to be an effective force in maintaining ethical governance of the Village of Barrington Hills.
Related: “Our predominantly pusillanimous Village Board (Part 1),” “Our predominantly pusillanimous Village Board (Part 2),” “Better Government Association Commends Passage of Chicago Ethics Ordinance–Sees More to Do,” “What happened to ethics reform in Illinois government? Why watchdogs have some hope,” “Meanwhile, One Barrington Hills makes amends, extinguishes website and turns the volume down,” “Learn from your (big) mistake, Laura, Bryan, Dave and Tom,” “Agreed”
Village Board of Trustees meets tonight
Posted in Building Department, Conflict of interest, Deception, Elections, ePacket Agendas, Ethics, Minutes, Plan Commission, Politics, Property Taxes, Roads & Bridges Committee, Unions, VBHPD, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Code, Village Director of Administration, Village Government, Village President, Village Treasurer on August 22, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. A copy of the agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.
It’s doubtful the telephony issues have been corrected by the Cecola administration, but readers are welcome to call in and try once again to listen to the meeting.
Village posts Summer newsletter
Posted in 220, Building Department, Conflict of interest, Crime, Deception, EJ&E/Canadian National, Ethics, Fundraisers, Horizon Farm, Intergovernmental agreements (IGA), Land Use, Mówimy po polsku, One Barrington Hills, Politics, Property Taxes, Resident Spotlights, Roads & Bridges Committee, School Districts, Traffic, Transparency, VBHPD, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Director of Administration, Village Government on July 29, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Barrington Hills First Lady and Village of Lakemoor Building Permit Coordinator, Stephanie Cecola, was seen running at the start of the 2nd annual, “The Land We Love Run,” earlier this month.
The Summer 2022 edition of the Village Newsletter was recently released. Topics covered include:
- President’s letter
- 2nd Annual “The Land We Love Run” recap*
- Horizon Farm public meeting
- Tornado preparation tips
- Donlea Road drainage update
- Crime prevention, and
- Pointers on whether permits are required for landscaping or earth moving
A copy can be viewed and downloaded here.
* Event participant results (no First Lady listed??), by category, can be found here.
Village Board of Trustees meets tonight
Posted in Agendas, Building Department, Conflict of interest, Elections, Ethics, Intergovernmental agreements (IGA), Land Use, OMA, One Barrington Hills, Personnel Committee, Plan Commission, Politics, Property Taxes, Roads & Bridges Committee, Transparency, Unions, VBHPD, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Code, Village Director of Administration, Village Engineer, Village Government, Village President, Zoning Board on July 25, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Barrington Area Conservation Trust officers
Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. Some of the topics on their agenda include:
- [Vote] Appointment: Matthew Vondra, Plan Commission Chairman Term as Chair expires 04/2023
- [Vote] A Resolution of Proclamation Appreciating Doctor Pamela Cools for Years of Dedicated Service Resolution 22 –
- The Land We Love Run Summary
A brief statement of Matthew Vondra’s qualifications for consideration can be viewed here. Without too much detail, we’ll expound on his experience a bit.
Matt is currently Vice President of the Barrington Area Conservation Trust (BACT). Their President is Brian Croll, who is also a Trustee of the Village of Barrington Hills. The BACT Treasurer is Loren Ekstrom, the husband of Village of Barrington Hills Trustee Laura Ekstrom.
The BACT is responsible for, “…creating the largest permanent land preservation easement in the state of Illinois,” known as Horizon Farm, which is now owned and managed under that easement by the Forest Preserves of Cook County.
A copy of the agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.
Note: For the third month in a row, it’s unknown if the telephony issues that have plagued recent meetings have been remedied yet, so callers might encounter issues again.
Village Board of Trustees meets tonight
Posted in Agendas, BACT, Board of Health, Building Department, Cuba Rd Bridge, ePacket Agendas, Financial Reports, Land Use, Minutes, Plan Commission, Resident Surveys, Roads & Bridges Committee, VBHPD, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Code, Village Director of Administration, Village Engineer, Village Government, Village President, Zoning Board on May 23, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. Some of the topics on their agenda include:
- [Vote] A Resolution of Proclamation Appreciating Patrick Hennelly for 22 years of Dedicated Service to the Village of Barrington Hills Resolution 22 –
- [Vote] Resolution of Proclamation Appreciating Dr. Gwynne H. Johnston for 28 Years of Dedicated Service to the Village of Barrington Hills Resolution 22 –
- 5K/10K The Land We Love Run
The two gentlemen being recognized for decades of service on the Zoning Board of Appeals and the Board of Health have our utmost gratitude and respect for their commitment to the residents of our Village.
A copy of the agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.
Comments
OMA on 220 Board of Ed issues Superin… Godspeed on Upper Arlington Schools welcom… One can dream on District 220 Superintendent gi… Good Luck on District 220 Superintendent gi… OMA violation on 220 Parents call BS! Sandra's shit show on District 220 Superintendent gi… Get the wool out of… on 220 Parents call BS! Archives
Categories
Subscribe to The Observer
