By Jason Crane
At the Aurora city government City Council meeting Tuesday, through the Zoom video conference platform, the City Council unanimously approved $1.2 million dollars for Aurora businesses struggling as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The resolution authorizes Marty Lyons, Aurora’s chief financial officer/city treasurer to disburse payments to eligible businesses recommended for award as part of the City’s Coronavirus Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) program.
The most recent direct relief program created by the city government of Aurora utilizes local financial and business data and practices to determine qualifications and eligibility and is not subject to Federal regulations that have impacted the outreach of prior programs.
The $1.2 million comes from the City’s general fund, $200,000 of which is already provided in the 2021 adopted budget. Payments to qualified businesses will be distributed as a one-time grant.
The City received a total of 266 applications by the March 3 deadline.
The first phase of awards will be to 110 businesses. A second phase will be coming to a future Council meeting for review and approval due to the flurry of applications on the last day which requires more time to review.
• Unanimously approved was a resolution establishing the maximum number of Class D: Fox Valley Entertainment District licenses, with Self-Service, Strolling and Package Sales Endorsements, (unofficially related to the application from Final Stretch Events, LLC d/b/a Tapville Social – Fox Valley, at the Fox Valley Mall.
The petitioner submitted a liquor license application for the purposes of opening a business concept that is new to Aurora. Tapville Social – Fox Valley proposes to open a self-service kiosk in the Fox Valley Mall that will allow patrons to walk freely around the Fox Valley Mall with their purchased beverage.
After an identification check, customers will be provided with a Tapville Social – Fox Valley wristband and beer, wine, or cider will be dispensed in a cup that specifically identifies Tapville Social – Fox Valley as the source of the beverage. Staff members will continuously monitor all customers as they operate the self-service dispensers, and, if necessary, customer access to the dispensers can be automatically deactivated.
Although customers only will be able to purchase one drink at a time, and will be allowed to purchase a limited, cumulative amount of alcohol, staff members will be trained to guard against underage service as well as over-service. Video monitoring of the devices will be in place when the establishment is open to the public.
Patrons will not be allowed to exit the Fox Valley Mall with an open alcoholic beverage.
• Unanimously approved was a resolution authorizing execution of a rollover agreement between the city government of Aurora and Aurora Fire Officers Association for the period of January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021.
Aurora Fire Officers Association’s collective bargaining agreement expired December 31, 2020.
In consideration of the uncertainties still looming due to the pandemic, the parties agreed to a one-year rollover which was ratified by the union February 25. Notable terms include a 2% wage increase, an employee insurance contribution increase to 16.5% and a $250 increase to the high deductible health plan employer contribution.
• Unanimously approved was nearly three-quarters of a million dollars for a critical incident intelligence center at the Aurora Police Department (APD).
City of Aurora government documents show the city government is looking to invest in a new real-time critical intelligence incident center, hereinafter referred to as The Center to more effectively deploy and utilize police resources.
The money is set to be used for renovation of existing office space at the Aurora Police Department, and for the purchase and installation of the equipment necessary to accommodate The Center for an amount not to exceed $747,342.92 including contingencies.
The Center was developed to serve as both a hub of information within the Police department, and as a real-time crime center. The Center gathers, reviews, and disseminates the following information within the Department: Crime tips, crime trends, and statistics, crime and terrorism bulletins from various federal/state/local law enforcement agencies and social media information.
The Center serves as a point of contact for outside law enforcement agencies which need to refer or pass along information about criminal activity occurring in Aurora and assists them in identifying and finding residents of Aurora who are suspects in incidents that occurred in their jurisdictions.
The Center monitors hundreds of cameras that cover various intersections throughout the City, including cameras that monitor the City’s key infrastructure including water and sewer, Fire Station 8, City Hall, APD, the City’s Development Services Building, downtown parking facilities, RiverEdge Park, commuter parking, water treatment, and storage facilities.
The Center has access to camera systems at many non-government facilities throughout the City such as malls, schools, housing authority, apartment complexes, gas stations, and private residences who voluntarily allow the police access. The Center has the ability to monitor police drone video, when they are being used.
The ability to live monitor these cameras has helped in directing officer’s response efforts to crimes and crashes that have just occurred and/or are in progress.
The Center would integrate the ability to live view body camera footage as the body camera program rolls out, as another means to direct the response of officers, to active incidents such as the Henry Pratt shooting and other active situations.
The Aurora Police Department modernization including the addition of the video wall would enhance the Department’s ability to monitor these cameras and to help guide the Department’s response to incidents throughout the City.
• Unanimously approved was an ordinance approving a text amendment to the historic districts and landmarks guidelines to modify certain portions being B.2.6 existing garages, carriage houses and outbuildings; B. 2.7 gutters and downspouts; B.2.14 satellite dishes, antennas, and solar panels; B.2.18 windows; B.2.19 wood siding; B.3.3 new garages and outbuildings; B.4.1 fences and walls; and B.4.5 parking.
The Aurora Preservation Commission was established by the City Council in 1979 to preserve properties that reflect Aurora’s historical, cultural, artistic, social, and ethnic heritage. In October of 1982, the City Council approved the first historic districts and landmarks guidelines to provide rehabilitation and restoration guidelines for properties within the then locally designated historic district(s) (R82-1043). Those guidelines have been updated from time to time with the latest revision being approved by City Council in 2012 (R12-236).