OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Joliet Pre-Council Meeting - February 2, 2026

Meeting PortalMonday, February 2, 2026
BodyJoliet, Illinois
SessionMeeting Portal
DateMonday, February 2, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 37:01

Transcript — Verbatim
5:54

Welcome everyone.

6:01

At 5 30.

6:03

Mike's not out.

6:06

We'll be leading the group.

6:09

All right, thank you.

6:14

Thank you.

6:16

Okay, we'll begin with roll call.

6:18

Mayor Darcy.

6:19

Here.

6:19

Councilman Cardinals?

6:20

Here.

6:21

Councilman Clement?

6:22

Councilman Hug?

6:23

Eric.

6:23

Councilwoman Abarra is absent.

6:25

She did let me know she would not be in attendance this evening.

6:28

Councilman Moreno?

6:29

Here.

6:30

Councilman Mudrin.

6:31

Here.

6:31

Councilman Quillman?

6:32

Here.

6:33

Councilman Ruordan.

6:34

Here.

6:36

First, we have a presentation.

6:38

Peregrine Technologies presented by Deputy Chief Bolton.

7:08

All right.

7:10

Good evening, Mayor, Council members.

7:12

I'm here with representatives from Peregrine Technologies to represent a data integration platform to help the Joel Police Department, the city, and our residents to get more value from the technology we already own.

7:24

The goal of this recommendation is straightforward to connect our existing systems into a single operational view, allowing us to solve crimes faster, improve transparency and accountability, and to better support officer wellness.

7:39

The recommendations come after closely reviewing how we operate today, uh where we lose time and how we can better leverage the city, leverage the city's current investments.

8:28

To be clear, we currently do not have any system that allows us to do this.

9:28

Now these connections are made in seconds, helping us identify the leads faster in improving the state's attorney's I'm sorry, provide the state's attorney with organized court ready evidence.

9:48

Currently, we lack the ability to visually to visualize crime trends in real time without manual reporting.

9:55

With Paragram, we can view crime data by council districts, NLPT areas, specific neighborhoods, using live data.

10:03

This allows us to respond more effectively to residents' concerns with accurate real-time information.

10:10

This assists us strategically, specifically with redistricting our sectors and NOPT boundaries.

10:16

By analyzing the data, we can ensure that our patrol sectors are balanced and efficient.

10:22

This assures that we are assigning officers exactly where the workload demands rather than relying on historical guesses.

10:31

Internally, the system also supports officer wellness through an early intervention system by monitoring data points like critical incident exposure, internal affairs data, and sick time usage.

10:41

Leadership can identify risk trends early and provide support before these issues escalate, helping us prevent burnout and reducing liability.

10:50

This is not replaced supervision or policy.

10:53

It simply provides earlier visibility.

10:56

Kind of an example is you know, in law enforcement, we see a lot of things.

10:59

You know, we see the worst of things, we see crashes, you know, or you know, babies, you know, um you know, pass away or children, you know, even our recent um tragic incident that we had.

11:11

You know, these officers are sitting there going there day to day and they see this, and it affects them.

11:16

We've done uh a tremendous amount of work to sit there and make sure that we take care of our officers.

11:20

Um but sometimes they're not getting the help they need, and you know, we need things to sit there and kind of track what they're doing.

11:26

So part of this wellness thing is very important because we're now we would be able to track the type of calls that certain officers have gone on compared to their sick bank if they're calling a lot of time, even to their discipline to the fact that maybe they're not dealing with what they've dealt with over time.

11:41

So, again, this is gonna be a very, very helpful tool.

11:45

And kind of going back, and I know I'm kind of going off the script here, but even going back to this data mapping here, uh looking at how we visualize data within the city, crime calls or service, we'd be able to do this in a very visual format, and we'd be able to answer questions about what's going on in neighborhoods in a more reliable and more uh up-to-date fashion, you know, without having to sit there and rely on someone else to pull the data for us.

12:10

We'd have it readily available to us.

12:13

I'm going uh back to this.

12:18

So, from an executive level, command staff can make evidence-based decisions in real time using role-based dashboards.

12:24

Um, access is strictly controlled and permission-based, ensuring that information is only available to those who need it.

12:29

Again, from a command staff standpoint, having data at our fingertips is essential.

12:34

Um, we have so many databases right now that we have to sit there and pull the information from.

12:38

We can't do a lot of our own stats, like trying to figure out the average response time, you know, to certain calls or certain areas.

12:46

Um, it takes a lot of manpower, a lot of work to do that.

12:49

This would allow us to do it pretty much instantaneously through the data integration.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Technology and Innovation████████████████████████████28%
Public Safety██████████████████18%
Utilities and Infrastructure█████████████████17%
Procedural████████████12%
Public Engagement█████████9%
Noise Pollution Control██████6%
Zoning And Land Use█████5%
Procurement Practices█████5%
Summary of Proceedings

Joliet Pre-Council Meeting - February 2, 2026

The Joliet City Council held a pre-council meeting on Monday, February 2, 2026, at 5:30 PM in City Hall Council Chambers. All council members were present except Councilwoman Suzanna Ibarra. The meeting included a presentation on a police data integration platform, a citizen's comment opposing a CenterPoint Intermodal Center phase, and review of numerous consent agenda items, ordinances, and resolutions scheduled for the next regular council meeting.

Consent Calendar

  • Items read by the City Manager for placement on the consent agenda of the February 3, 2026 council meeting, including: contracts for overhead door repair ($51,735), vehicle purchase ($65,000), dump bodies ($120,463.18), Peterbilt chassis ($805,748.92), electrical maintenance change order ($75,000 plus payment), wastewater treatment plant emergency repairs ($34,044.18), water metering equipment ($350,000), replacement sluice gates ($43,468), water main project time extensions, and amendment for engineering services ($223,400). The contract for Peregrine Technologies (item 98-26) was held and moved to the next meeting.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Cathy Garthus spoke against Council Memo 108-26 (CenterPoint Intermodal Center Phase 28). She detailed a long history of alleged misconduct by CenterPoint, including bribery attempts, a false conviction, and noise pollution from a Mars Candy/DHL warehouse that she claimed contributed to her mother's death. She urged the council to stop approving CenterPoint projects.

Discussion Items

  • Peregrine Technologies Presentation (Item 98-26): Deputy Chief Botzum presented a data integration platform proposed for the Joliet Police Department, costing approximately $200,000 per year (fully funded in the 2026 budget). The system would connect existing databases to provide real-time crime analytics, improve officer wellness tracking, and streamline investigations. Council members asked about demonstrations, training time, and integration. After discussion, the council decided to delay the vote to allow a live demonstration, and the item was moved to the next meeting. The City Manager noted it should also go to the CTIS committee.
  • Prairie Landing Subdivision Amendment (Item 107-26): An ordinance to add two one-story house models (with eight elevations) to the approved planned unit development. Councilman Hug clarified that no lot sizes or other plan elements are changing, dispelling rumors of condos or apartments. The item is for council consideration.
  • CenterPoint Intermodal Center Phase 28 (Item 108-26): Ordinances to split an undeveloped lot into two lots, separating floodplain/wetlands from buildable area. A CenterPoint representative stated approximately 16 million square feet have been built, with about 8 million square feet remaining. Councilman Clement asked follow-up questions.
  • Truck Maintenance Facility Special Use Permit (Item 109-26): An ordinance for a truck maintenance facility at 3501 Channahon Road for Interstate Freights. The City Manager explained trucks are out on the road for 2-4 weeks and would come to the site for maintenance.
  • Lift Assist Fees Ordinance (Item 110-26): Fire Chief Carey explained that House Bill 2336 allows the city to charge nursing homes and assisted living facilities for lift assist calls. Lift calls increased from 1,500 to 3,000 per year as facilities avoid liability. The ordinance imposes fees to discourage unnecessary calls and recoup costs.
  • Memorandum of Understanding with Will County Sheriff's Office (Item 112-26): Resolution to authorize an MOU for proper disposal of narcotics and substances using the incinerator.
  • Drone Grant (Item 113-26): Resolution to accept and implement a grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity under Public Act 103-0006.

Key Outcomes

  • The Peregrine Technologies contract (Item 98-26) was held and will be placed on the next meeting's agenda to allow for a live demonstration.
  • All other items discussed were reviewed for the next regular council meeting on February 3, 2026, with no votes taken at this pre-council meeting.
  • A motion to enter closed session for personnel, collective bargaining, land acquisition, or pending litigation was made by Councilwoman Sherri Reardon, seconded by Councilman Juan Moreno, and passed unanimously (8-0, with Ibarra absent).

Meeting Transcript

Welcome everyone. At 5 30. Mike's not out. We'll be leading the group. All right, thank you. Thank you. Okay, we'll begin with roll call. Mayor Darcy. Here. Councilman Cardinals? Here. Councilman Clement? Councilman Hug? Eric. Councilwoman Abarra is absent. She did let me know she would not be in attendance this evening. Councilman Moreno? Here. Councilman Mudrin. Here. Councilman Quillman? Here. Councilman Ruordan. Here. First, we have a presentation. Peregrine Technologies presented by Deputy Chief Bolton. All right. Good evening, Mayor, Council members. I'm here with representatives from Peregrine Technologies to represent a data integration platform to help the Joel Police Department, the city, and our residents to get more value from the technology we already own. The goal of this recommendation is straightforward to connect our existing systems into a single operational view, allowing us to solve crimes faster, improve transparency and accountability, and to better support officer wellness. The recommendations come after closely reviewing how we operate today, uh where we lose time and how we can better leverage the city, leverage the city's current investments. To be clear, we currently do not have any system that allows us to do this. Now these connections are made in seconds, helping us identify the leads faster in improving the state's attorney's I'm sorry, provide the state's attorney with organized court ready evidence. Currently, we lack the ability to visually to visualize crime trends in real time without manual reporting. With Paragram, we can view crime data by council districts, NLPT areas, specific neighborhoods, using live data. This allows us to respond more effectively to residents' concerns with accurate real-time information. This assists us strategically, specifically with redistricting our sectors and NOPT boundaries. By analyzing the data, we can ensure that our patrol sectors are balanced and efficient. This assures that we are assigning officers exactly where the workload demands rather than relying on historical guesses. Internally, the system also supports officer wellness through an early intervention system by monitoring data points like critical incident exposure, internal affairs data, and sick time usage. Leadership can identify risk trends early and provide support before these issues escalate, helping us prevent burnout and reducing liability. This is not replaced supervision or policy. It simply provides earlier visibility. Kind of an example is you know, in law enforcement, we see a lot of things. You know, we see the worst of things, we see crashes, you know, or you know, babies, you know, um you know, pass away or children, you know, even our recent um tragic incident that we had. You know, these officers are sitting there going there day to day and they see this, and it affects them. We've done uh a tremendous amount of work to sit there and make sure that we take care of our officers. Um but sometimes they're not getting the help they need, and you know, we need things to sit there and kind of track what they're doing. So part of this wellness thing is very important because we're now we would be able to track the type of calls that certain officers have gone on compared to their sick bank if they're calling a lot of time, even to their discipline to the fact that maybe they're not dealing with what they've dealt with over time. So, again, this is gonna be a very, very helpful tool.

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