Kankakee Times

Kankakee County Highway Waterways & Building Committee met June 12.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

The meeting of the Kankakee County Highways, Waterways, & Buildings Committee was held on June 12, 2025 and was called to order by Committee Chairman, Mr. Carrico at 9:00 am. The following members were present:

Mr. Carrico, Mr. Fetherling, Mr. Kerkstra, Ms. Parker, Mr. Crutcher, Ms. Denise Turner, Mr. Hess, Mr. Dunnill, Mr. Marion, Mr. Nims, Ms. Amber Turner, Mr. Alexander-Hildebrand

Members Absent –Mr. Swanson, Mr. Miller, Mr. Smith, Ms. Rittmanic-Emme, Mr. Long

Mr. Marion made a motion to allow Mr. Fetherling to attend by Zoom and Ms. Turner seconded it. Motion carried with a voice vote.

In Attendance:

• Board Members

Rosemary Foster

• Department Heads Present –Greg Heiden, Ted Workman, Anita Speckman, Eric Cavender

Media - Present

Minutes of the Last Meeting

• Highways, Waterways, & Buildings – May 15, 2025

Ms. Denise Turner made a motion to approve the minutes and Mr. Crutcher seconded it. Motion carried with a voice vote.

Buildings – Ted Workman

• Facility Dude Report

They completed 138 work orders in May throughout the buildings last month with 32 still in progress.

• Financial Report

Mr. Workman reviewed the report with the committee. He is significantly below budget compared to where they were last year at this time.

• Building Report

Mr. Workman reviewed the various projects in progress throughout the various county buildings.

Mr. Dunnill made a motion to combine & approve the reports and Ms. Parker seconded it. Motion carried with a voice vote.

• Resolution Authorizing the County Board Chairman to Sign an Agreement with Construction Management Company for Capital Improvements at the Kankakee County Courthouse

Mr. Alexander-Hildebrand made a motion to have Bear Construction be our construction manager for the courthouse project and Mr. Dunnill seconded it.

Mr. Alexander-Hildebrand stated that this was a very transparent process. They interviewed four different companies with three of them being local. Bear Construction came in lower than others, at 2.5%. This resolution will allow him to enter into an engagement with them and at the full board meeting he will have the detailed contract.

Mr. Cavender thanked Senator Joyce in Springfield for his work in Springfield in getting this grant for the County.

Mr. Cavender reviewed the time line of the courthouse project thus far.

Mr. Marion asked if there is an estimated time line as to when subcontractors can go out to bid.

Mr. Cavender stated that Bear Construction gave them a time line of 14 months from when the bids first go out to when the last portion of the project is completed. They plan on starting construction December 1st so the bids will probably go out sometime in August or September.

Mr. Alexander-Hildebrand stated that the courthouse is shut down for a portion of December so they would like to get in and get as much done at that time.

Motion carried with a roll call vote of 12 ayes and 0 nays. Voting aye were Mr. Carrico, Mr. Fetherling, Mr. Kerkstra, Ms. Parker, Mr. Crutcher, Ms. Denise Turner, Mr. Hess, Mr. Dunnill, Mr. Marion, Mr. Nims, Ms. Amber Turner, and Mr. Alexander-Hildebrand.

• Resolution Authorizing the County Board Chairman to Execute & Amend a Grant Agreement with the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity for Capital Improvements at the Kankakee County Courthouse

Ms. Denise Turner made a motion to approve and Mr. Marion seconded it.

Mr. Cavender stated that this is the formality required to obtain the six million dollar grant from the State of Illinois.

Motion carried with a roll call vote of 12 ayes and 0 nays. Voting aye were Mr. Carrico, Mr. Fetherling, Mr. Kerkstra, Ms. Parker, Mr. Crutcher, Ms. Denise Turner, Mr. Hess, Mr. Dunnill, Mr. Marion, Mr. Nims, Ms. Amber Turner, and Mr. Alexander-Hildebrand.

• Bidding and Lettings

There were none.

• County Engineer Pay Estimates

There were no comments or questions on the pay estimates.

Ms. Amber Turner made a motion to combine, waive the reading, and approve the pay estimates and Mr. Dunnill seconded it. Motion carried with a roll call vote of 12 ayes and 0 nays. Voting aye were Mr. Carrico, Mr. Fetherling, Mr. Kerkstra, Ms. Parker, Mr. Crutcher, Ms. Denise Turner, Mr. Hess, Mr. Dunnill, Mr. Marion, Mr. Nims, Ms. Amber Turner, and Mr. Alexander-Hildebrand.

Resolutions

• Resolution Authorizing the County Board Chairman to Sign Local Agency Agreement for Federal Participation and Appropriating Matching Tax Funds for Resurfacing of County Highway 41 Between South Street and the Will County Line in the Village of Essex.

Mr. Carrico stated that this is being removed from the agenda because it was approved last month but it did not get removed from the agenda

• A Resolution Designating County Highway 2 (4500 South Road) Between 16000 East Road & 17000 East Road as “Honorary George Washington Jr. Roadway”

M. Foster stated that George Washington, Jr. was a member of the county board and the residents of Pembroke want to recognize him for his service and his leadership not only on the county board but in Pembroke, also. The members of Pembroke Township asked her to bring this resolution forward.

Mr. Hess made a motion to approve and Ms. Parker seconded it. Motion carried with voice vote.

Waterways

• Aroma park Sediment Management Project Update

Mr. Heiden stated that they are still out there working and are moving along very well. Some people that have gone out there have noticed that the flow has already improved which is one of the objectives that they are working towards.

• Kankakee County Waterways Advisory Subcommittee Update

Mr. Carrico stated that he and Eric have been working on a boat safety course, along with the coast guard, which will be offered on July 19 at the Health Department. Each participant will receive a card which will be recognized by the State of Illinois.

Mr. Cavender stated that the subcommittee met last Thursday morning. The Indiana representative that we have on our board will be going to the Indiana meeting on June 20. There is a recommendation from the subcommittee in today’s packet. The subcommittee is recommending to further detail a map of the river to provide better emergency access for first responders. They want to place mile markers on the river, label bridges, number boat ramps, etc. which would help detail where exactly the first responders are needed in an emergency situation. He is working with the Highway Department with the signage.

Old Business

New Business

• Limestone Fire Protection District Rescue Boat

Mr. Carrico stated that the motion is not to exceed $75,000 for the purchase of the boat.

Mr. Kerkstra made a motion to approve the purchase not to exceed $75,000 and Ms. Denise Turner seconded it.

Mr. Cavender stated that this is the exact same boat that was purchased for the Aroma Park Fire Protection District back in 2021. At that time the boat cost just under $50,000. They don’t have a final quote on what this boat will cost now so that is why they put not to exceed $75,000 as a limit. The purpose of this boat is to have a boat that can be picked up by two people to carry which will enhance response time. We will now have one upstream from the dam and one downstream from the dam which is critical. The boat will be a county owned asset due to the requirements of the grant; however, they will work on an intergovernmental agreement with the Limestone Fire District with regards to insurance and usage of the boat.

Motion carried with a roll call vote of 12 ayes and 0 nays. Voting aye were Mr. Carrico, Mr. Fetherling, Mr. Kerkstra, Ms. Parker, Mr. Crutcher, Ms. Denise Turner, Mr. Hess, Mr. Dunnill, Mr. Marion, Mr. Nims, Ms. Amber Turner, and Mr. Alexander-Hildebrand.

Other Business

Adjournment

Mr. Hess made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 9:36 a.m. and Mr. Kerkstra seconded it. Motion carried with a voice vote.

https://www.k3county.net/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_06122025-2200