Village of Roscoe eyes final approval of road bid, special events, new police

At Tuesday's meeting, the Village of Roscoe Board of Trustees will consider several items that they previously discussed when meeting as the Committee of the Whole or as the Liquor Commission. Many decisions must go through committees before the Board of Trustees can take final action. One such item is the approval of a Class “BL” (Boutique Gaming) liquor license for Anna’s Lucky 777 at 5257 Swanson Rd. Unit 4 in Roscoe.

The Illinois Department of Transportation  helps pay for the maintenance of some of the Village's traffic control devices, so the Village Board is expected to re-authorize a 10-year intergovernmental agreement with them.

The Village of Roscoe has been been offered a donation of land between McDonald Road and Swanson Road, adjacent to Porter Park.  Resolution 2021-R29 would authorize Fehr-Graham & Associates to "provide a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment & Legal Description for a potential acquisition" of the property, which perhaps could be used as a dog park or a splash pad. Fehr-Graham provides engineering and environmental consulting for the Village, including the services of Brandon Boggs as Village Engineer.

Boggs told us that, after receiving sealed bids on Thursday, the Village will vote to award the contract for the the 2021 Residential Streets Program. Boggs said, "There were multiple bid options on this project, and if the Board decided to award all of the bids, Rock Road Companies is the lowest responsible bidder."  Rock Road Companies bid $380,976.27 to perform pavement milling and resurfacing with minor aggregate base repairs for Sheringham Drive and Promontory Trail. The work on River Street and the entrance to Riverside Park is considered "full-depth reclamation,"  including the replacement of a culvert and the removal of excess paving material.

The Village Board is likely to authorize the hiring of at least one additional full time police officer. One officer recently submitted his resignation. At their last meeting of the Committee of the Whole, several trustees wanted to hire more than one, since three officers have indicated they may be leaving in the next 6-12 months. Village Administrator Scott Spencer pointed out that in the next five years, the Police Department may be losing up to seven officers, including some of the highest ranking officers "and the knowledge those officers carry with them...  This is no reflection on the department whatsoever... Already we are stretched pretty thin as a department" because of training and vacation. The department currently has 12 patrol officers, including four sergeants, plus Chief Jamie Evans and Deputy Chief Sam Hawley.

Kitto's Automotive at  5397 Edith Lane and D & S Marine at 5350 Edith Lane want to pave their parking lots without having to add curb and gutter. Their neighbor Straightline Moving received similar approval last month. All three businesses are in a light industrial area west of 251, off the main road, and in May, Village staff said the quality of North Kinnikinnick Creek wouldn't be affected by requiring gutters.

The Village Board is also making final decisions on special event permits for the Roscoe Lions Club for the 111th Annual Fall Festival on September 10-12, which includes use of Leland Park, fireworks, and street closure for a parade, and for the Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful (KNIB) Mud Volleyball at Riverside Park on Saturday, August 7.  The event's sponsors include the cities of Rockford and Loves Park, as well as Winnebago County. Organizers plan to pump water from the Rock River to get the volleyball court to the right consistency. Afterwards, they are supposed to pay the Village to return the park to its original state.