[0:04] All right, good evening and welcome. It
[0:06] is 6 pm on uh August 18, 2026. I call
[0:11] the Stalk Township Board of Trustees
[0:13] meeting to order. Uh roll call, please
[0:15] clerk.
[0:17] » Supervisor House
[0:18] » Here. Commissioner Smith present.
[0:20] » Cesar Dyer here.
[0:22] » Trusty Bradlo here.
[0:24] » Trusty Acres here.
[0:25] » Trusty Sha Williams here.
[0:27] » Trusty Thurman here.
[0:30] Okay.
[0:32] All right. Uh, first and foremost, I'd
[0:33] like to say welcome to our newest
[0:35] trustee, Brick, and uh, glad to have you
[0:39] on board then. So, if we could please
[0:41] stand for the pledge, please, and if our
[0:43] newest trust could lead us.
[0:44] » I told you.
[0:47] » All right. Pledge allegiance to the flag
[0:50] of the United States of America and to
[0:53] the republic for which it stands. One
[0:55] nation under God, indivisible, with
[0:59] liberty and justice for all.
[1:02] » That
[1:02] » I told him you were going to throw him
[1:04] under the bottle, so he might want to
[1:05] know how to say it like froze earlier
[1:08] this year.
[1:10] » Okay.
[1:12] Um, next item we have is approval of the
[1:15] agenda. Um, does anyone wish to
[1:20] uh make or can I get a motion to approve
[1:23] the agenda? I'm sorry.
[1:24] » A motion.
[1:26] » I'll second.
[1:29] » Um, anyone wish to make any changes?
[1:33] I apologizes. Um, somehow I forgot to
[1:34] put page numbers on it this time. So, no
[1:37] page numbers. Um, okay. All those in
[1:39] favor of the agenda as presented signify
[1:42] by saying I. Please.
[1:44] » Any oppositions? extensions. Agenda is
[1:47] approved.
[1:49] Next up, we have presentations. And so,
[1:51] familiar faces with us tonight. Angela
[1:53] Meyer, who's CPA with Newark and
[1:55] Associates, who spent some time with us
[1:58] um the last few months doing our annual
[2:00] audit. And so, we all have uh the audit
[2:03] in front of us tonight.
[2:05] » Yes. So, as Mary said, you have the
[2:07] audit in front of you. We're going to
[2:08] start with the letter that we u write to
[2:10] you, the board. So, that's in the back.
[2:12] Um, if you want to pull that out, we'll
[2:14] start with that. So, our professional
[2:16] standards require that at the conclusion
[2:18] of the audit, we communicate certain
[2:20] matters to the board. And this is how we
[2:22] do it by writing you this letter here.
[2:25] Um,
[2:28] so on pages on page two, um, some of the
[2:32] things we're required to communicate
[2:33] with you if if there were any new
[2:35] accounting pronouncements. Um, there
[2:38] were not. Um, we're also required to say
[2:41] if we had any difficulties dealing with
[2:43] management or in completing the audit
[2:45] and I'm pleased to say we did not. Um,
[2:47] was went very smoothly. Um, all the
[2:50] information that we requested was
[2:52] provided. Um, so no no disagreements
[2:55] with management, no difficulties in
[2:57] completing the audit. Um, it went very
[2:59] well this year.
[3:02] Following that are the audit journal
[3:04] entries. Um so the audit journal entries
[3:07] are a variety of entries. Um
[3:12] the financial statements of the township
[3:14] are GAP basis which means they're full
[3:17] acral but in daytoday operations the
[3:21] township does not always record
[3:23] everything on a full acral basis such as
[3:26] deferred inflows and outflows. Those are
[3:28] things that we book as an audit entry um
[3:31] to present gap financial statements. So
[3:34] that's what some of these entries are.
[3:36] Um you'll see that there is reversing
[3:39] prior year payables and then recording
[3:41] this year's payable. Next year will
[3:44] reverse what was booked this year to
[3:46] record the next year. Um so it it looks
[3:48] like a lot of entries, but it doesn't
[3:50] mean anything was done incorrectly. Um
[3:53] it's just a function of the audit to
[3:55] pull the financial information into a
[3:57] full acral um format. Um there are also
[4:01] some reclassification entries. Um
[4:04] sometimes we break things apart into
[4:07] more specific account categories just
[4:09] for presentation purposes. So once
[4:12] again, it doesn't mean anything was done
[4:13] incorrectly. Um it's more of a a
[4:16] reporting entry just to make the
[4:19] financial statements um easier. you
[4:22] know, maybe on our trial balance and how
[4:24] we have things linked and pull through
[4:26] to our statements, it's easier to list
[4:29] them out. Um, so there were no entries
[4:32] that I would say were concerning or that
[4:36] gave me pause like what what's going on
[4:39] out here. Um, I'd say from an accounting
[4:40] standpoint, everything was recorded very
[4:42] well. Bank accounts were reconciled,
[4:44] which is what we like to see.
[4:47] And then after that is a discussion of
[4:51] internal control um
[4:56] significant deficiencies and material
[4:57] weaknesses. So we don't audit internal
[5:00] controls as part of the audit. We're
[5:02] only doing a financial statement audit,
[5:05] but we gain an understanding of what
[5:08] controls are in place over the financial
[5:10] reporting process. And if we notice
[5:13] anything that would be a material
[5:14] weakness or significant deficiency, then
[5:17] we're required to point it out, but it's
[5:19] definitely not all inclusive in that we
[5:22] don't audit the internal controls
[5:24] specifically.
[5:26] Um, so there's really not a significant
[5:28] change from prior years. As I've
[5:30] mentioned in past years, with a smaller
[5:33] governmental entity, it's hard to get
[5:35] away from segregation of duties and
[5:37] preparation of financial statements just
[5:39] because you have a limited staff to work
[5:41] with. Um, so with segregation of duties,
[5:45] you want to segregate custody of assets
[5:48] from recording from reconciliation. And
[5:52] when you only have a couple people in
[5:54] the office, that's a that's really hard
[5:56] to achieve. Um, I will say that
[6:01] you've over the years that we've been
[6:03] doing the audit, you've made great
[6:04] progress in trying to segregate things
[6:06] as much as possible with the staff that
[6:08] you have. Um, so when we have a
[6:13] discussion of saying cash dispersements
[6:15] at the township level aren't fully
[6:18] segregated,
[6:19] it's just Mary and the admin assistant.
[6:22] And so with two people, sometimes it's
[6:24] hard to split those duties up. Um, so
[6:26] that Mary's not doing everything. Um,
[6:29] but she has included a sheet for you
[6:33] guys that she's probably going to talk
[6:35] to you guys about a little bit more in
[6:37] depth that shows how she has tried to
[6:39] segregate the financial um, duties
[6:43] there. and we just pointed out in our
[6:46] letter maybe a few other things or ways
[6:49] that we think she could um maybe
[6:52] consider to help segregate them further,
[6:54] but you've made a lot of good progress
[6:56] in that. Um the other one is preparation
[7:00] of the financial statements. So that's
[7:02] basically saying that you rely on us to
[7:05] make those full acral entries so that
[7:08] you can have full gap financial
[7:10] statements. And so that kind of goes
[7:11] back to staffing without
[7:14] » [laughter]
[7:14] » An accounting professional with a good a
[7:17] deep understanding of financial
[7:18] statement presentation on staff. It's
[7:21] not something you could do on your own
[7:22] or that we expect you to. So, I'd say
[7:24] 90% of our clients all have that comment
[7:28] and it's really not something to be
[7:29] concerned about. It's just letting you
[7:32] know that
[7:34] you don't that we are providing that
[7:36] service for you and you don't have
[7:38] someone on staff doing it. And also that
[7:41] as a board your responsibility of review
[7:44] is even more important. Um with
[7:47] segregation of duties especially um you
[7:50] get quite a bit of information before
[7:52] the board meeting in your board packet
[7:55] um with the list of invoices and bank
[7:58] statements and so your review of those
[8:01] things is really valuable as another
[8:04] level of oversight.
[8:09] Mary, did you want to jump in on any of
[8:11] that before we talk about the financial
[8:12] statements themselves?
[8:14] » Um,
[8:16] no, just the Well, yeah. Um so
[8:22] every year in in this report it we talk
[8:26] about segregation of fees and so um you
[8:30] know as Tiffany has completed completed
[8:32] a full year now and um we've been able
[8:35] to create systems and I've able been
[8:39] able to learn what her strengths are and
[8:41] everything. We have um found ways to try
[8:44] to segregate things a little bit more.
[8:47] So, this is what we do. Hopefully, um,
[8:50] when she sends you that report prior to
[8:52] the board meetings that has all the
[8:54] check reconciliations,
[8:56] um, you know, you're looking at those,
[8:57] comparing them to what's in the board
[9:00] packet, making sure that things are, um,
[9:04] you know, all all aligning there. Um and
[9:07] Andrea had some further recommendations
[9:09] of currently I keep the check stock of
[9:12] the um unwritten checks or you know the
[9:15] the blank checks and so she suggested
[9:18] that maybe uh her administrative
[9:20] assistant keep those in a locked area
[9:21] and then I just take what's as needed
[9:23] and Tiffany is recording on her
[9:26] spreadsheet that she sends to you the
[9:28] check numbers. So that's another system.
[9:31] And then um uh the check reconciliations
[9:35] um after I go into QuickBooks and
[9:37] reconcile the checks and produce these
[9:39] reports that are in the board packet,
[9:41] right? That's what you want.
[9:42] » So like the bank reconciliation, so when
[9:45] you reconcile the bank account.
[9:46] » Okay. Yep. and and those are included in
[9:49] the board packets that either one of you
[9:52] um compares what I came up with in the
[9:55] QuickBooks report to what resource bank
[9:58] sent us to make sure that the totals are
[10:01] the same and every single um activity
[10:06] that's whether it's a debit or credit in
[10:08] there
[10:08] » Matches up.
[10:09] » So we talked about maybe the admin
[10:10] assistant doing that role or maybe a
[10:13] trustee. it would just provide another
[10:15] person kind of checking over Mary's work
[10:18] to provide a check on on a reviewer
[10:22] oversight of that so that she's because
[10:25] she's able to sign the checks and she's
[10:26] also able to record the checks in the
[10:29] system and then she's reconciling them.
[10:31] So, not saying she would, but
[10:34] hypothetically, if she was to write a
[10:36] check um
[10:39] for personal use or to
[10:42] for some other reason, the bank
[10:45] reconciliation is a good way you would
[10:47] catch that because you would see that
[10:50] maybe it's it wouldn't be recorded in
[10:52] QuickBooks, but now all of a sudden you
[10:53] have this check on the bank statement
[10:55] that doesn't match over here and you're
[10:57] saying, "Well, we need to look a little
[10:59] bit more into this check." So that's why
[11:02] it's a good way to kind of have that
[11:04] oversight when somebody has all the
[11:07] responsibility.
[11:11] » I think that's all I have to add. Thank
[11:14] you.
[11:14] » So then in front of you, this um packet
[11:17] here are the audited financial
[11:19] statements.
[11:21] So it's going to start with our opinion
[11:22] on the audit once you get past the table
[11:24] of contents there. Um, so our opinion on
[11:27] the audit is the first item and we
[11:29] issued an unmodified opinion which is
[11:31] also referred to as a clean audit
[11:33] opinion. So that's the best audit
[11:35] opinion you can receive. Um, so you
[11:37] should be very pleased with that.
[11:40] Um, it just goes through and kind of
[11:41] lays out what our opinion was, what
[11:44] management's responsibilities for the
[11:46] financial statements are, and what our
[11:48] responsibilities as an auditor.
[11:52] And then after that, we get into the
[11:54] financial statements. And it's going to
[11:55] start at a very high level with the
[11:57] governmentwide financial statements and
[11:59] then as you move through it'll move to
[12:01] the fund financial statements and
[12:03] ultimately when we get to the back it'll
[12:05] get to your budget's actual. Um
[12:08] so not to say that there's no value in
[12:10] the governmentwide financial statements.
[12:12] there is it's just at a very high level
[12:16] and so a lot of boards find more of the
[12:20] information as they move through the
[12:22] packet because it's broken out into a
[12:24] lot more detail. Um so we'll kind of
[12:28] skip through that in case unless anybody
[12:30] has any questions. Um page five is when
[12:33] you're going to start to get to your
[12:34] fund financial statements and this is
[12:37] what you're probably a little bit more
[12:38] used to seeing because it's going to be
[12:39] broken out by fund. Um, so you'll have a
[12:43] little bit more detail of what the cash
[12:47] is in each fund or where the liabilities
[12:51] are.
[12:52] And following that is the income
[12:55] statement on page seven. Um, so that'll
[12:58] kind of let you know how you did overall
[13:00] for the year. Um,
[13:04] as far as income or expenses there.
[13:08] Following that are the notes to the
[13:10] financial statements and the notes to
[13:12] the financial statements just provide
[13:14] more information on the statements that
[13:19] um proceed it. So it gives you more
[13:21] in-depth information of the accounting
[13:23] policies of the township. Um how what's
[13:28] the policies for compensated absences?
[13:30] What's the policies for sick time? Um
[13:33] how are things calculated? Um, so it
[13:36] just delves a little bit deeper into
[13:38] those matters. What makes up
[13:40] investments? What types of things does
[13:43] the township invest in? So that's where
[13:45] you're going to find that information.
[13:47] Um, probably one of the more useful ones
[13:50] for a lot of boards is note four on page
[13:53] 15. So this is going to be a breakdown
[13:56] of your fixed assets. So on that first
[13:59] page, fixed assets, not a depreciation,
[14:01] are all just lumped together. So this is
[14:04] going to give you a little bit more of a
[14:06] breakdown of your land, your buildings,
[14:09] equipment, infrastructure, and then how
[14:11] much depreciation has been taken on
[14:13] that. And it also gives a breakdown on
[14:15] depreciation as far as how much is
[14:17] general government. So general
[14:19] government, think town,
[14:22] GA, and then roadenbridge. That's pretty
[14:25] self-explanatory there.
[14:28] Um, and then on the next page is a note
[14:32] that's a little bit newer for you guys.
[14:34] It is debt because you took out a loan
[14:37] for the new building. So, that's going
[14:40] to show how much was taken out and how
[14:43] much was repaid. And then you will also
[14:45] have a schedule um for the debt payoff.
[14:48] So, you can kind of see over the next
[14:49] several years what the outlay for that
[14:53] debt payoff looks like.
[14:56] Um, following that on page 17, it starts
[14:59] to get into the IRMF
[15:01] note disclosures. Um, so that's going to
[15:04] give you a lot more information on the
[15:06] IRF plan
[15:11] and um
[15:14] when we get through that we get to the
[15:17] required supplementary information. So
[15:21] this is information that GASBY, the
[15:24] governmental accounting standards board,
[15:26] thinks is important to accompany the
[15:29] financial statements to put the
[15:31] financial statements um in context and
[15:33] provide additional information. So pages
[15:36] 23 and 24 are just a lot more
[15:38] information on IRF. you have a 10-year
[15:40] schedule if you want to see how the
[15:44] retirement plan for IMREF has been
[15:47] funded and how that's looking over a
[15:49] 10-year. Um, it's a nice historical look
[15:52] back there.
[15:54] But then you're going to get into the
[15:56] budget to actual. And I think this is
[15:58] what a lot of boards find the most
[16:00] useful because you can kind of see at a
[16:02] much more detailed level how you
[16:05] performed compared to the budget that
[16:08] you were expecting. Um and so that's
[16:12] what follows on the next few pages. The
[16:14] only other thing that is really
[16:16] different this year in this year's audit
[16:18] is you do have a new fund and it is the
[16:20] road capital fund. Um, so this is the
[16:23] first year that that fund has had
[16:25] activity and that fund was set up um for
[16:28] the new building.
[16:31] Are there any questions on the financial
[16:33] statements or the audit process in
[16:35] general?
[16:39] I know it's a lot to take in, a lot to
[16:42] read and look at. So, if you do take
[16:45] time to look at it over the next couple
[16:46] days and you come up with a question or
[16:48] something doesn't
[16:51] you you want a little more explanation
[16:52] on something, um Mary and Craig both
[16:55] have my email, so feel free to reach out
[16:57] and I'm happy to try and answer anything
[17:00] um that may come up or any questions
[17:02] that you may have. The only other item
[17:05] outstanding is the Illinois Comproller
[17:07] AFR report. Um, and
[17:11] Mary has approved that. So, we will get
[17:13] that filed. Um,
[17:16] and then that takes care of all your
[17:18] audit requirements for the year other
[17:20] than what needs to be sent to the county
[17:22] that you'll take care of.
[17:24] » And, um, we'll be voting to approve the
[17:27] audit at next month's meeting. I didn't
[17:29] want to do it tonight because I want to
[17:30] give you a chance to review it. Reach
[17:32] out to Andrea if you have questions. So,
[17:35] um, you know, you have the next 30 days
[17:37] to, uh, formulate your your vote, um, if
[17:42] if you want to get further clarification
[17:44] on anything.
[17:48] » Well, thank you very much for letting us
[17:49] serve you again this year.
[17:50] » Thank you.
[17:53] » Let's give you this.
[18:04] Bye
[18:05] » Bye.
[18:08] » Okay. Well,
[18:11] pleased that all went well. And
[18:15] » Well, troopers aren't here. No.
[18:19] » I do not believe.
[18:24] » Okay. Uh, next we have public comment.
[18:26] No members of the public. So, we'll go
[18:28] into reports, uh, supervisors report.
[18:32] Um,
[18:34] if you follow our Facebook page,
[18:36] hopefully you're seeing more marketing
[18:38] of Peace Park. Um, we're we're already
[18:42] making sales, so I'm excited about that.
[18:45] Um, and then we're wrapping up the final
[18:47] details for the memorials and the sign
[18:50] and um, post for the sign and just a lot
[18:54] of decisions all at once that It's kind
[18:57] of overwhelming. Um, but uh, thanks to
[19:00] Clerk Mccclaclin, we were able to do
[19:02] that wonderful aerial uh, video that
[19:06] gives a u, a great um, bird's eye view
[19:10] of the peace park. Um, and then I sent
[19:13] you all a calendar invite for the grand
[19:17] opening um, that's going to be on or
[19:19] dedication ceremony that's going to be
[19:21] on October 16th. That's a Friday. Um, so
[19:25] I do hope that you can join us. It's I
[19:27] I'm thinking it'll be late afternoon. Um
[19:30] but uh we kind of have to put the whole
[19:33] program together of what it's going to
[19:35] look like.
[19:36] Um
[19:38] uh since the last meeting on August 6,
[19:40] we had our senior summit. Um thank you
[19:43] to all of those who could volunteer to
[19:46] our presenters. Um Kim did an
[19:49] exceptional job um uh with the event
[19:53] again this year. um no attention was uh
[19:56] or no detail was uh not prepared for. Um
[20:00] we had um some folks from the uh uh
[20:05] senior coalition out of St. Charles come
[20:09] to check it out, observe it, see how it
[20:11] ran, said that they had heard about it
[20:13] out in their community. Um so I I really
[20:16] love that the attention that this event
[20:18] is getting. Um all the participants were
[20:21] very happy. I sat in on a couple
[20:23] sessions. Um, great information was
[20:26] shared. The, um, uh, Farm Bureau was
[20:30] wonderful to work with, very
[20:31] accommodating.
[20:32] And, um, since the senior summit, um,
[20:35] for the next couple of weeks, we have
[20:38] what is called the Thrive Encore series.
[20:41] And that, um, is sessions out in the
[20:44] community for some of our more popular
[20:46] topics. um because people's oftentimes
[20:50] either have a hard time decision
[20:52] deciding what session they want to go to
[20:55] um and so we like to offer we thought
[20:58] this would be a way to offer something
[21:01] um outside or if they can't if they
[21:03] couldn't make it that day.
[21:04] [clears throat] Um
[21:07] so um overall just very pleased with how
[21:10] everything is going with the senior
[21:11] summit.
[21:13] Um on August 11th um I um participated
[21:18] in the Decalp Metro expansion planning
[21:20] and environmental linkages study
[21:23] meeting. Um I was asked to serve on the
[21:25] technical advisory group and so uh it
[21:28] was a fascinating meeting. It was hosted
[21:30] at NIOU. Um there were individuals from
[21:34] Union Pacific, Metra, NIOU, the city um
[21:39] uh um the the group um
[21:45] can't remember the name of it, but but
[21:46] it's like a a urban planning group that
[21:49] um is doing the study for the city. Um
[21:52] so they talked about writership.
[21:55] Um they had all kinds of demographics
[21:57] for that. Um and so this is the first of
[22:00] 12 meetings. Um so uh this is just a
[22:05] necessary stage that or thing they have
[22:08] to do um to move on to the next phase of
[22:12] um you know requesting that the the
[22:14] lines
[22:16] passenger rail be extended out here.
[22:19] Very very I'm multi-year process but um
[22:22] I'm really excited to be part of that.
[22:25] Um and then today um uh clerk mcclucklin
[22:29] and I both attended together from the
[22:31] start community and campus um welcome
[22:34] reception. It was a lunchon at parandas
[22:37] that was made up of um a lot of new
[22:42] faculty staff leadership at niu and then
[22:45] also throughout the community. So people
[22:47] were introduced um uh people from city
[22:50] departments, from uh nonforprofits,
[22:54] um niu leadership and it was just a
[22:57] great way to emphasize how uh so much
[23:01] wonderful collaboration happens in this
[23:02] community. Um so that was was very well
[23:06] attended as well. Um and then upcoming
[23:09] events, uh we have our
[23:12] uh vision and hearing screening clinic
[23:15] with the Decal or the um Lines of
[23:18] Illinois Foundation uh coming up on
[23:20] September 2nd.
[23:23] Um September 17th, IASH and iPass will
[23:26] be here again.
[23:28] And um October 3rd, we have our shred
[23:32] and recycle event for the fall.
[23:36] And then the 16th I mentioned is our
[23:38] peace park dedication ceremony 16th of
[23:41] October. And October 17th um the uh
[23:45] dedicate the grave dedication that was
[23:47] supposed to take place this last
[23:49] Saturday for the through the Daughters
[23:51] of the American Revolution um was
[23:53] rescheduled to the 17th because of
[23:55] Saturday's weather.
[23:57] And then today I received an email um
[24:00] for another um person that's buried in
[24:03] our cemetery that is going to have a
[24:05] medallion placed on their grave for
[24:06] recognition. Um that's uh George Ger and
[24:12] he's buried at Oakland Cemetery and he
[24:14] is the last Decal County
[24:18] um Civil War veteran
[24:21] » That must have been he's the last to
[24:23] survive. Um, so I'm I'm waiting to hear
[24:26] back if they're going to do a dedication
[24:28] ceremony because I thought we could
[24:29] combine them in the same day. Um, and
[24:32] then lastly, uh, September 1st, our
[24:34] committee on youth applications are due.
[24:37] And then also on September 1st is when
[24:39] we'll open our 2026 human service
[24:42] partnership applications and those will
[24:44] be available on our website.
[24:47] So, any questions about any of that?
[24:53] Okay. books report.
[24:56] Um
[24:58] on August
[25:00] 10th, 11th, 10th maybe, we had um the
[25:03] Founders back to school bash. My kids go
[25:05] to Founders. And so um and Jeff from the
[25:09] um [clears throat] Road Fisher. They
[25:11] came out with their um you brought two
[25:15] plow trucks, two big trucks. Yeah. And
[25:17] so that was really nice for the kids to
[25:18] climb into and see up there and they
[25:21] stayed um for that whole event. it was
[25:25] very rainy. Um, but we really
[25:27] appreciated them being out there. So,
[25:30] uh, and then I also want to highlight
[25:32] some other events that we have coming
[25:33] up. So, the township town hall, uh, is
[25:36] taking place this Thursday. Uh, if you
[25:38] want to go to that, it's at the Decal
[25:41] County Community Outreach building from
[25:44] 9:00 a.m. to 400 p.m. There's a variety
[25:46] of, um, topics being covered that day.
[25:49] Uh there's lunch being served and um
[25:52] just some really good information. Um I
[25:54] believe everyone's been sent that um
[25:58] yeah the schedule for it too. Um I know
[26:00] I'll be going out there and I can only
[26:01] stay for like an hour or so. So whatever
[26:04] you can go to is great. Um there's also
[26:06] the MCA you guys have in front of you.
[26:09] The symposium is coming up on
[26:13] September 29th. Um again a variety of
[26:17] sessions. um and things that they are
[26:20] covering. And then if you want to
[26:22] register, TOI is having their annual
[26:25] conference November 9th through 11th.
[26:32] Any questions for clerk?
[26:35] Thank you.
[26:37] Commissioner,
[26:38] » I'm just I've got quite a little list
[26:40] here and uh I'm going to first start by
[26:42] saying that we are still working through
[26:45] our QuickBooks and you'll I'll have more
[26:47] information So that's why you didn't
[26:49] receive anything. These two packets that
[26:51] were given out to everyone kind of give
[26:53] all the financial reports
[26:55] um up to date or uh for the road
[26:59] district portion of that. So we're
[27:01] hoping by September's meeting. I know I
[27:05] bet you it's like a recording coming out
[27:07] of me, but uh u we're there. We're
[27:11] getting there. So, um, and there's a lot
[27:13] of news on that that I can't really
[27:15] share, um, with the legalities of all
[27:18] that, but, uh, so yeah, moving forward.
[27:21] So, uh, June 27th, or I'm sorry, July
[27:24] 27th through the 29th, I was in East
[27:26] Pori at the Township Highway
[27:28] Commissioners, Illinois summer seminar.
[27:31] Learned a lot. It was um, I've been
[27:33] going since 13, I think, was my first
[27:35] year going. Um, one of the better ones.
[27:37] I have to admit they uh they as in we as
[27:41] I'm the vice president now. Um, and
[27:44] former president. I replaced Danny
[27:46] Henning that passed away unexpectedly as
[27:48] the vice president again. Uh, but
[27:50] anyway, uh, changed the whole format
[27:52] around. Had a lot of different and new
[27:55] speakers, uh, county engineers,
[27:58] um, and different, uh, engineering
[28:00] groups and stuff. Learned a lot more
[28:02] about roads. Um, and I'm always up for
[28:04] that kind of stuff. So that was really
[28:07] interesting. Um
[28:10] I and also uh moving on my uh Hunter and
[28:14] Ryan
[28:15] um have both left me for the summer and
[28:18] are back to school. So I guess they do
[28:20] not want to most cemeteries and do ditch
[28:23] work the rest of their lives. So they
[28:24] went back to school. Uh Hunter's last
[28:27] day was August 6th. He's a college
[28:30] student down in Southern Illinois. Um
[28:32] and then Ryan's last day was August
[28:34] 13th. So, my staff's kind of dwindling
[28:37] down. Um, a more important thing, moving
[28:40] on, um, I have to declare an emergency
[28:44] purchase under um, ILCS56-201
[28:51] um.7
[28:54] um, of the Illinois Highway Code um, as
[28:57] the highway commission in the Cal
[28:58] Township Road District to to abruptly
[29:01] secure salt for this season. Um, in this
[29:06] bundle of paperwork you got is a
[29:08] memorandum from the the purchasing
[29:10] program to the state of Illinois which
[29:12] is the central management services.
[29:15] um 247 entities statewide including uh
[29:20] most of Decalb County, the city of
[29:23] Decalb uh the local tollway shop uh the
[29:27] university myself and most all but one
[29:30] township that I'm aware of and one town
[29:33] in Decal County amongst a whole lot of
[29:36] other people did not get a salt bid uh
[29:39] this year. So reading on this memorandum
[29:42] and and talk and the emails that I've
[29:44] received from the state, basically they
[29:47] would lock you in if you wanted to go
[29:49] back out and they would put it out for
[29:50] an emergency bid again. Um you have to
[29:54] purchase you have to take the bid and
[29:56] you have to take 100% of your salt.
[29:58] Usually we're on an 80 um to 120% of
[30:02] salt. So um those prices that was not
[30:07] something I was comfortable with. Hence
[30:09] bringing me to the emergency purchase
[30:12] because it is not something that I would
[30:14] be able to put out for bid. Also, just
[30:16] to back up that information is a is a
[30:19] letter from uh the road district's
[30:21] attorney, John Reding Schaefer, that
[30:23] you'll see to address to me explaining
[30:26] why he has come up with the same um
[30:31] reasoning behind that I have as far as
[30:33] the no bid. I have secured salt
[30:37] um and uh it the salt I have secured for
[30:40] the for this season the 26 27 season is
[30:44] $140 per ton not delivered.
[30:49] So that um we can either we will haul it
[30:52] ourselves from Lamont to here um which
[30:56] or we will hire um transportation. The
[30:59] transportation costs are extremely high
[31:02] and could range anywhere from about $16
[31:05] a ton to $40 a ton.
[31:09] » Are there any advantages to having them
[31:10] delivered over
[31:12] » Yeah, it it would just I mean I have to
[31:15] put tarps on my trucks. I have to get
[31:17] eye passes, you know, and just and we
[31:19] can't. Our straight trucks haul
[31:22] approximately 12 ton. Semi hauls 25.
[31:26] So, um,
[31:28] » Well, what they charge per axle, that
[31:29] would I mean, the tolls alone.
[31:31] » Yeah. I I mean, so I I don't know yet.
[31:35] They're still working on the salt, but I
[31:37] wanted to make sure and secured this
[31:39] tonnage. Um, I've also lowered my
[31:42] quantity. We were my original to go off
[31:45] for bid was 350 or 350 ton. I dropped it
[31:48] to 200.
[31:50] um which the 200 not delivered puts me
[31:53] at $28,000 which keeps me under the
[31:56] $30,000 threshold of bidding. You will
[31:59] see in the letter from the attorney that
[32:01] he is of the old school and forgot that
[32:05] they raised it. So he um I think the
[32:07] third paragraph down on the first page
[32:09] he put $20,000. That is actually now
[32:12] been changed to $30,000.
[32:15] Um, and in comparison, last year we paid
[32:19] delivered here
[32:21] $782 a ton for solar.
[32:24] » Wow.
[32:25] » So that's the difference.
[32:26] » Yeah.
[32:26] » I got a quote from a gentleman that cold
[32:28] called me today from down by St. Louis
[32:31] » Of $310 a ton delivered here.
[32:36] » And that's what the range is. This $140
[32:39] a ton is treated that we treat here. It
[32:43] runs me anywhere from$25 to $30 a ton.
[32:47] So I can pick it up directly or have it
[32:49] delivered as treated salt. Their price
[32:52] of just regular salt was like 111
[32:57] which is more mirrors that 7802
[33:00] than we received last year. Still not
[33:03] delivered. So I would still be say the
[33:06] 140 to 160 delivered. So, I mean, it's
[33:10] it's really um we can afford it. I will
[33:14] say that. I mean, I found out at the
[33:17] summer seminar and and was making calls
[33:20] on the way home to secure salt. That
[33:22] because I wanted to be the first one to
[33:25] secure salt, not the last one to secure
[33:27] salt. You're going to hear numbers. I
[33:28] think city, the county, niu, and a bunch
[33:32] of them went in together.
[33:34] Um I don't know if they've secured it
[33:36] yet and their number is right around
[33:37] thatund 15 I think 108 somewhere around
[33:41] in there. Um and the problem being is
[33:44] the salt that I've already secured
[33:47] is on route from Egypt to the United
[33:50] States. A lot of these other companies
[33:52] are or placing orders overseas whether
[33:55] it be in Europe or in South America.
[33:58] Um so uh Chile is a big producer of salt
[34:02] Egypt and other places. I can go on and
[34:05] on. I've learned more in the last three
[34:07] weeks than I ever thought I'd want to
[34:09] know about salt. And the biggest deal
[34:11] was Cargill, one of the biggest
[34:13] producers in the state suppliers in the
[34:15] state of Illinois, did not bid any salt
[34:18] this year.
[34:20] Um, so that's what really hurt us. So,
[34:22] uh, it kind of it is what it is. You
[34:25] have to have it or we have to have it
[34:27] anyway. um you know to try and tell
[34:30] folks that there's no salt on the roads
[34:33] in an ice storm uh in this populated
[34:35] area is just not something I'm up for.
[34:38] So uh we can secure it
[34:41] and we're going to and I'll have more
[34:42] updates on the uh whether we deliver it
[34:45] or how we're going to work that. Um so
[34:48] that's kind of the worst news. Um we are
[34:51] finishing up Nelson Road and South Bald
[34:53] Road uh and paving there will start uh
[34:56] the week of September 1st and last about
[34:59] 2 or 3 weeks and then our annual uh road
[35:02] striping. Under federal law, you have to
[35:05] restripe your roads annually under the
[35:08] new MUCD
[35:10] book that um comes out about every
[35:14] 8 to 20 years. It seems like the feds
[35:17] put this book out. uh what it does and
[35:20] it's really now the driverless cars
[35:23] follow the stripes on your roads.
[35:25] » So I don't understand what's going to
[35:26] happen when they hit a gravel road, but
[35:28] that's not in this township. So I don't
[35:30] concern myself a lot with that. Um on
[35:33] Saturday, August 1st, we were at the
[35:36] resource bank um for a touch of truck
[35:38] program and got a wonderful card from
[35:41] the folks over on the Glidden Road. Um I
[35:44] did not was not aware they're 150 years
[35:47] oldund something like that. So they
[35:49] started out as a multinational bank and
[35:51] then that's when it became resource and
[35:55] then um as the clerk talked about on
[35:57] August 8th me and Jeff took the a
[35:59] snowplow and the greater to founders uh
[36:02] for that I'm uh the kids love this stuff
[36:04] you know they like to climb up the
[36:06] grater resource bank I was the only one
[36:08] that went with just one truck it was a
[36:11] little tighter parking lot but uh um had
[36:14] a great time at Founders. It rained and
[36:17] uh and it was hotter than you know what,
[36:19] but uh other than that, this old guy
[36:21] held on. So, um moving on to my last
[36:25] thing, uh the road district is has
[36:28] contracted with the new accounting firm
[36:30] for our QuickBooks and to stay on later
[36:33] on. As the auditor um that was here,
[36:36] Andrea, spoke about kind of that
[36:39] internal extra measure. That's what they
[36:42] were going to that's what they're going
[36:43] to do for the road district. They're
[36:44] going to quarterly reconcile everything
[36:46] backwards. They're right now going back
[36:49] into our books and [clears throat]
[36:50] having to start over from April one,
[36:53] taking payroll back to January 1 because
[36:56] a lot of that the numbers
[36:59] um aren't mirroring what should be
[37:01] happening. It's not that my staff didn't
[37:03] get paid properly, the taxes are proper.
[37:07] It's just QuickBooks is shooting out
[37:09] numbers that just don't make sense. and
[37:12] we were really steered in the wrong
[37:14] direction and took on the wrong
[37:15] QuickBooks.
[37:17] So, this firm does it all. They also
[37:19] will be auditing our portion of IMRF.
[37:22] They they are uh contracted with IMRF
[37:26] and it's just an extra layer that they
[37:28] will look at and then they're also put
[37:31] them in contact with the auditors to try
[37:33] and get our books as close as possible
[37:36] to, you know, minimize the time for the
[37:38] auditors to have to be here. like what
[37:40] exactly are you looking for? And with
[37:43] all these reconciles and the the pages
[37:46] from the auditors
[37:48] um they're trying to you know they want
[37:51] to figure all that out so that it's less
[37:53] you know abruptly at the end of the year
[37:56] too. So they will be staying on there's
[37:58] like there's three phases realistically.
[38:01] This first phase is just to get us up
[38:04] and running and then the second phase is
[38:07] kind of working with us and then kind of
[38:09] auditing us on a quarterly cycle of, you
[38:13] know, checking Amy's work, my new uh
[38:16] executive assistant, you know, with the
[38:18] reconciling of the checking accounts
[38:20] back and forth to the to QuickBooks to
[38:23] keep that updated. They are also digging
[38:25] back and I've sent them every audit that
[38:29] I have. They they found an account on
[38:31] QuickBooks that's out floating out there
[38:34] with not only the township's information
[38:38] because they they've worked with
[38:39] QuickBooks, this company has been in
[38:41] business since 1991.
[38:44] So, um, she's cuz she's asking questions
[38:47] and I'm trying to explain being the
[38:50] oldest man in in this room right now
[38:52] when it comes to being elected here
[38:54] because there was so many like we'd have
[38:56] a supervisor set up a QuickBooks and
[38:59] then let it go and then, you know,
[39:01] another person do it. So, she's just
[39:04] trying to weed through all that because
[39:06] as she's putting our name out there, the
[39:08] stuff's coming at her.
[39:10] » Yeah. So, it's really just uh kind of
[39:13] going through that and figuring it all
[39:15] out. And a lot of the numbers even years
[39:17] ago aren't coinciding with the audits,
[39:21] you know, and stuff like that can come
[39:23] back to really get us. So, um that's
[39:25] what they're trying to do. Um, it's
[39:28] crazy because when I walk in this
[39:30] building at 6:00 am, she's tied to our
[39:32] computers for just the road district
[39:35] part of the server for QuickBooks and
[39:37] that computers on in Amy's office at
[39:40] 6:00 a.m. there. She's working on stuff.
[39:43] So, I know they were when I was down
[39:45] here Saturday, she was working. So, um,
[39:48] she's doing her best to get the proper
[39:51] board documents to you folks and just
[39:54] to, you know, maybe slow down my gray
[39:57] hair coming out of my head on a daily
[39:59] basis so I don't rip it out trying to
[40:01] resolve all these issues. So, that's
[40:04] kind of where we're at. I'll have a lot
[40:05] more updates with that. And she might
[40:07] even be coming in to uh speak with all
[40:09] you guys um here in either probably be
[40:13] October. So, um, if that happens. Uh, so
[40:17] yeah, that's it for me. If there's not
[40:19] any questions,
[40:21] » You pass the warrants down, please.
[40:23] Signature pages.
[40:27] » Thank you.
[40:30] » Okay. Assessor's report.
[40:32] » Uh, last month I attended a land
[40:35] valuation class for part of my
[40:36] continuing education
[40:39] uh in Neighborville, July 29th through
[40:42] the 31st. Uh we are scheduled to move on
[40:48] August 24th. That would be on Monday. We
[40:51] are in process of packing everything up
[40:54] in containers so it's as simple as
[40:56] possible for the movers and we will be
[40:59] out of the building Monday.
[41:02] That's all I got.
[41:08] » Uh trustes reports. Trusty Acres
[41:11] » No report. Trusty report.
[41:14] » Trusty Thurman.
[41:15] » Trusty Shy Williams.
[41:17] » Uh, nothing besides I'm excited to be
[41:19] here for my first meeting, but otherwise
[41:21] I report.
[41:22] » Thank you.
[41:25] » Okay, we'll move on to bill paying.
[41:29] Um, may I get a motion to approve the
[41:32] August bills to pay? Uh, for town that
[41:35] equals $40,495.
[41:41] And for the road district,
[41:44] um
[41:46] August is $88,28243.
[41:52] And then the July audit reports, uh July
[41:55] for the road district is $59,81.35
[42:01] and for town 210,00
[42:05] $210,396.74.
[42:11] Second
[42:15] » Uh discussion
[42:18] any questions?
[42:20] Uh the July audit report for town was
[42:22] much larger than usual because of a a
[42:26] big payment for to the construction firm
[42:28] of Peace Park which um
[42:32] brought our Peace Park balance uh down.
[42:37] We pretty much spent all of uh the
[42:40] donated money now.
[42:43] Any questions?
[42:46] Okay. Roll call, please.
[42:48] » Trusty Thurman.
[42:49] » Yes.
[42:50] » Trusty Acres.
[42:51] » Hi.
[42:52] » Uh Trusty Shol Williams.
[42:54] » I.
[42:55] » Trusty Brilo.
[42:56] » Yes.
[42:56] » Supervisor House.
[42:57] » Yes.
[42:59] » Uh next, can I get a motion to receive,
[43:01] file, and approve the treasurer's July
[43:03] budget reports?
[43:05] » So moved. Second
[43:09] » Questions or discussion.
[43:15] » Hearing none. Roll call, please.
[43:17] » Trusty Acres.
[43:18] » Hi.
[43:18] » Trusty Chiola Williams.
[43:20] » Yes.
[43:20] » Trusty Breth,
[43:21] » Yes.
[43:22] » Supervisor Hus,
[43:23] » Yes.
[43:23] » Trusty Thurman.
[43:24] » Hi.
[43:27] » We have nothing under unfinished
[43:28] business. So, new business. Uh, can I
[43:31] get a motion to approve the minutes of
[43:32] the board of trustees meeting of July
[43:34] 21st, 2026?
[43:36] also move
[43:38] a second.
[43:42] » Um, any comments or any adjustments that
[43:46] need to be made?
[43:52] [laughter]
[43:53] All those in favor signify by saying I
[43:55] please.
[43:56] » I uh anyone opposed? Extensions.
[44:01] Okay, minutes are approved. Uh, no old
[44:04] business. So, other business, our next
[44:06] board of trustees meeting is September
[44:08] 15th, 2026 at 6 p.m.
[44:12] And with that, I'll take a motion to
[44:14] adjurnn, please.
[44:15] » A motion to adjurnn.
[44:18] » I'll second.
[44:19] » All those in favor of enjoyment, signify
[44:21] by saying I.
[44:22] » I posted.
[44:24] » We are joured at 6:44.
[44:28] » That's right.
[44:29] » Yeah. When I saw the agenda today or
[44:31] » Seen them shorter than that agenda, I
[44:33] was like, "Oh, this one's gonna be short
[44:35] compared to the last."
[44:37] » Yeah.
[44:39] » Hey, Mary, can I Oh, sorry.
[44:40] » No, go ahead. I'm sorry.
[44:41] » Can I buy another one of these shirts?
[44:43] » Um, because I noticed I must have got a
[44:46] hole in it when I was at the park. Just
[44:48] go down to Sports Sorts and order one
[44:51] and they'll invoice us for it.
[44:52] » Okay. Yep.
[45:05] That must be the German spelling.
[45:11] » I don't know where you got it.
[45:19] » Oh, and these in front of you. I just
[45:20] That's interesting information about the
[45:23] » Yeah, it is.
[45:29] Well,
[45:30] » One of my neighbors passed away a couple
[45:32] weeks ago and we wanted to do something
[45:34] for them kind of put stuff together. I
[45:38] think we we getting her something at uh
[45:41] Peace Park.
[45:42] » Oh, very nice.
[45:45] » Is that process set up yet or?
[45:47] » Yep. Yeah, actually I can grab you a
[45:51] » I know my brother's working on something
[45:52] for my post. So,
[45:59] » So on one side is the bench and the
[46:03] pavers and then on the other side is the
[46:06] trees. There's three different trees to
[46:08] choose
[46:11] » You know my nephew died a couple months
[46:14] to
[46:15] » Think about doing something too. Oh,
[46:19] » No, he's from He's the kid that