It’s time to mark your calendar for the 2025 Feed My Starving Children food packing event at the Suter Company.  Suter employee and Rotarian Phil Meyers says a Rotary timeslot is reserved for Saturday, November 15, from 9 to 11 AM.  Here we see Phil displaying the food packing event’s 2025 T-shirt available for purchase for $30.  The goal is to pack 1.4 million meals.  A sign-up sheet has started and will continue to be available at upcoming meetings.

Sycamore City Manager Michael Hall gave a civic lesson on municipal budgets, zoning, and planning for the future during this week’s Rotary Meeting.  Hall is in his fourth year as City Manager and has been in municipal government for 20 years.  He also spent ten years in the private sector.  City Finance Director Kristian Dominguez joined him.  Hall talked about balancing all three parts of the city’s needs to achieve a growing, vibrant community.  Hall said 90% of the city budget is dedicated to police, fire, and public works expenses.

City Manager Hall said property taxes always come up when discussing city finances but really make up the smallest portion of revenue (10%).  Put another way, Hall said the average property tax bill per month paid to the city is $26 and compared this to an average internet bill per month of $70 and average cell phone bill per month of $140.  Hall explained that other taxing bodies such as schools and the park district are much more dependent on property tax revenue.  Hall put the extent of the city’s infrastructure maintenance in perspective by noting there are 86 miles of roads (equivalent to a trip to Six Flags Theme Park in Gurnee), 115 miles of water pipes (equivalent to a trip to Galena) and 103 miles of sewer line (equivalent to a trip to Gary, Indiana).

City Manager Hall gave an overview on what development issues the city has control over (and which ones they don’t).  The major items in city control relate to zoning, permits and inspections, planning, and economic development incentives.  Absent a need to request a change in these parameters, private land owners and businesses control decisions about  selling, renting, and development; developers look at their own criteria when choosing where to locate; and consumers ultimately determine the success of a business operating in the city.

The planning component for the future can be most exciting says Hall.  He brought up the example of the new fire station being built near the intersection of Borden Avenue and South Prairie Drive (with no construction debt thanks to reserve funds built up over the years).  Hall said an added concept for the fire station site is a “Safety Town” that can be used to teach youngsters how best to avoid an accident or respond to an emergency.  He said training for fire and police can also be incorporated into the site.  The city is preparing to launch a $500,000 fundraising drive so a Safety Town can be built next to the new fire station.