The next Naperville city council meeting (May 7) will see two new council members at the dais (Patrick Kelly and Theresa Sullivan) while two departing members (Becky Anderson and Rebecca Boyd-Obarski) will become fading memories. However, issues will carry over.
Some issues have been tabled, others have been ‘kicked down the road’, and some have been somewhat ‘resolved’ only to inevitably resurface in the future. Loose ends include:
- Affordable housing
- Alcohol delivery
- Bearcat police vehicle
- Carillon and Moser Tower
- Car washes on Ogden Avenue
- City Of Naperville Employee bonus program
- Conflict-of-Interest guidelines
- Electric rates
- Fire station consolidation
- Fifth Avenue Development
- Fuel filling stations
- Gas sales tax down
- Hazardous waste facility
- IMEA (Illinois Municipal Electric Agency)
- Leaf pick-up program
- LED lights and frost/snow build up
- Ogden Corridor development
- Pet stores and puppy mills
- Pour-your-own bars
- Recognition for the police and fire departments
- Recycling
- SECA
- Sidewalk cafes
- Street scape
- Traffic congestion
- Vacant store fronts
- Water meters / elevated lead
- Another bee in a birdbath (oh the horror of such a sight)
These are just a few of the many issues carrying over, with undoubtedly many new issues to surface. Overall the Naperville city council has done a good job, but when better is possible, then ‘good’ is not enough. Just as issues will become more numerous and more intense, the ‘new’ city council will need to ‘up their game’ and become more decisive and creative.
