Minutes of the Barrington Hills Village Communications Committee Meeting April 21, 2008 Time: 5:30 P.M. Location: Training Room VILLAGE HALL 112 Algonquin Road Final 1. Call to Order Chairman Nikki Panos called the meeting to order at 5:36 p.m. in the Barrington Hills Village Hall. 2. Roll Call of Members Present: Nikki Panos, Chairman Vicki Kelly Vice Chairman Barbara Kemp, Recording Secretary Pamela Cools, Member Maureen Prettyman, Member Linda Fox, Member, left at 7:00 p.m. Laura Ekstrom, Member, arrived at 5:40 p.m. Beth Mallen, Village Trustee, Sponsor Bob Kosin, Village Administrator, Sponsor Absent: Representative of the Police Force . 3. Reports from Village Trustee Beth Mallen Barns and Horses Barn sizing and operation remain open issues. Roads and Pot Holes The village ban on heavy loads on the roads is still in effect. No exact date is know for removing the restriction which depends on the sun drying out the moisture which makes the roads vulnerable to heavy loads. Pot hole repairs are temporary and will have to be redone once the asphalt plants start back into operation. Notices of Pot hole repairs and Road improvements for 2008 will be broadcast via the .info site when they are known. Heritage Tree Violations The Village is taking action to protect the Heritage Trees per the new Ordinance. Otis and Old Sutton Roads had wholesale tree removal. The important thing to note is the kind of trees being removed. Residents who observe improper cutting activity should call the Police while the cutting is in progress. After the fact tree replacement leaves the Village with loss of large of important old growth trees. The Village Government website has the Ordinance links and references and the Newsletter will carry information regarding this Ordinance. Health McHenry County Department of Health opened a Breast and Cervical Cancer Testing Clinic in April. Citizens for Conservation received a Grant to help preserve and restore the Flint Creek Watershed. They are petitioning the Village to Partner in this effort. The topic will be presented to the Trustees in their April 28 meeting. Mr. Robert Kosin More on Heritage Trees Bob Kosin sent the Committee a Chart showing which trees are covered in the Ordinance to be added to the website. Pines are not covered for example. The .gov link to the Arbor Day Association provides free help with identification of tree types so residents will know if they are in compliance before they remove live trees. Winter “Drops” Utilities often cannot bury their lines or “drops” in winter months due to frozen ground. Residents who find they need spring “drop” burial service should contact the utility directly. If residents need added help getting their restoration done because the utility seems to have lost their information, they can contact the Village Clerk for assistance. It is good to walk our properties to see if lines have heaved during the winter months before beginning mowing or maintenance service. JULIE It is also recommended to call “JULIE,” the utility Hotline for free marking services before proceeding with any digging or maintenance work on personal property. The resident is liable for the cost of restoration if they have directly or indirectly allowed digging to interrupt service to themselves or others. Police Department There was no representative at the meeting. The website team needs prompt information from the Police Department to complete the website design and launch. Vicki Kelly will contact the Chief tomorrow to ask for information. 4. Approve Minutes The Commission Members reviewed the minutes from the March 17, 2008 Meeting. Pam Cools motioned and Maureen Prettyman seconded. Motion passed to approve as amended. (6-0-1) 5. Old Business Newsletter – Pamela Cools and Linda Fox The Newsletter input deadline was April 16 with a plan for publication May 2-3 2008. All articles are ready except the article from the President. The Newsletter is 9 pages long and the team is trying to get to 8 pages. Technology Committee – Linda Fox Linda had to leave at 7:00 p.m. Report deferred to next meeting. Website – Vicki Kelly and Barbara Kemp The Website update was provided. This topic consumed the majority of the meeting schedule. Estimated completion date is May 15 assuming the Website team gets information ready for Tim Evans the Developer on schedule. The team is enthusiastic about the look and feel of the .info website. Beth Mallen complimented Vicki on her additions of the Crane articles and conservation news to the existing site to maintain its beauty and timeliness. A lengthy discussion ensued regarding photos and the layout of the Main and Sub Pages. Changes were agreed upon to the Main Page sequence and wording, which are different than the RFP Requirements. These changes are based on interactive dialog with the Developer using the experience and recommendations of various Committee members. Barbara and Vicki are creating an Architecture mapping process to move data from the old site to the new site seamlessly. Tim Evans is providing a temporary site for us to use to make the transition go smoothly. This is the same status as the last meeting. The final due dates for photos and architecture were April 21. Vicki and Barbara need to iron out differences to give Tim a unified response or risk delays in project timing and costs. The Police Department needs to provide their input and responses to draft suggestions to meet deadlines. The team members agreed on helping to provide content for Evans to load to the initial site, all relevant to the May 15 launch. Training will most likely take place after launch since we are behind on providing Evans with final details of requirements. Commitments • Patty Meroni will provide History Content. • Beth Mallen will provide new Meroni barn photo. • Laura Ekstrom and Maureen Prettyman will provide Resident Info. • Vicki Kelly will follow up with the Chief. • Laura Ekstrom and Pam Cools have access to and will provide content for the upcoming Garden Faire, some of which was shared for the Newsletter. • Nikki Panos will contact Dan Lundmark about Equestrian News and get permission to link to the Village DVD on the Equestrian lifestyle. • Barbara Kemp requested content from Lou Anne Majewski, Elaine Ramesh and Kevin Colosia. • Linda Fox had to leave at 7:00 p.m.; she may be able to provide content from the Technology Committee. (Asked after meeting. BK) • Laura Ekstrom agreed to contact Mary Bradford-White to get information on the Barrington Conservation Trust and the 2008 Concours D’ Elegance Dates. • Vicki Kelly has some excellent sources from the Pony Club, and various conservation groups to share ongoing and for the content deadline. • All team members are to get content information from their sources and provide what is newsworthy in any format to Barbara and Vicki who will edit and forward to Evans for inclusion. • Linda Fox and Pam Cools – approved Newsletter to be used for Newsletter most recent page to Barbara and Vicki (after approved by Trustees.) • Police Department Photo and Content to be finalized before April 25. Sub Pages to be submitted April 22 to Evans for their Main Page. • Barbara Kemp – Initial Living Green Quote or Tip to get started (caution avoid political statement) – Laura Ekstrom can provide a link on the Resident Info to quality “Green” websites. Critical Path Dates April 18 – Photo Decisions Due – Late. April 21 - Main and Sub Pages for Architecture – Draft from this meeting attached. Vicki needs to review and concur with the goal to send April 22 to Evans, one day late. April 25 – Content draft material as promised to Vicki AND Barbara. April 28 – Content edited jointly by Vicki AND Barbara and forwarded to Evans for launch version of document. Interim site up for review by all at Evans location before cutover May 15 – Launch. TBD Training on new site; Village needs DreamWorks license. Welcome to the Village Communications –Maureen Prettyman and Laura Ekstrom Initial information will be posted to the Website and maintained via updates to Vicki and Barbara until a print medium can be funded. Living Green in Barrington Hills - Nikki Panos It was agreed than the new Website will carry a regularly updated Living Green tip on the Home page. All members are encouraged to send short topics and tips to be posted regularly by Barbara and Vicki starting in May. Such other business as may be properly presented for consideration of the Committee Nothing new was added. 6. Adjournment Nikki Panos entertained a motion for dismissal at 7:20 p.m. The next meeting is on Monday, May 19, 2008, at 5:30 p.m. Vicki Kelly motioned and Pam Cools seconded. Motion Approved (6-0-1) Meeting Adjourned Attached: Website Presentation April 21, 2008 and Draft Page Arrangements as understood post meeting for Vicki and Nikki to review and agree before sending to Evans 4/22/08. Minutes Approved as amended May 19, 2008. 5