Woodstock City Council Meeting - April 15, 2025
Woodstock City Council Meeting - April 15, 2025
The Woodstock City Council met on April 15, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers. The meeting covered approval of a consent calendar with several items pulled for separate discussion, including amendments to purchasing authority, massage establishment licensing, a lease agreement, the Real Woodstock website redesign, and hotel/motel tax disbursements. The council also entered executive session for the City Manager's performance evaluation.
Note on date discrepancy: The agenda and transcript consistently record the meeting date as April 15, 2025, which is used here. The user-provided timestamp (2025-04-22) does not match the source material.
Consent Calendar
- All consent calendar items (A through D13) except D3, D4, D8, D11, and D12 were approved unanimously under a single motion. Items D6 (Unified Development Ordinance professional services agreement) was discussed briefly; Councilman Gordy recommended creating a searchable database of zoning variations, and staff noted this could be part of the contract. The consent calendar as amended passed 7-0.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No members of the public spoke during the floor discussion or on any agenda item except one resident spoke in favor of D11, noting the potential to link the Real Woodstock website to the Opera House endowment fund for tax-deferred donations.
Discussion Items
- Item D3 – Purchasing and Contracting Authority Amendment: Councilman Nearman removed this item from consent. The ordinance raises the threshold requiring formal bidding from $25,000 to $50,000. Nearman expressed concern about reduced due diligence. Staff explained the change increases efficiency, maintains the requirement for multiple quotes on projects under $50,000, and aligns with state statutes. The ordinance passed unanimously (7-0).
- Item D4 – Massage Establishment Licensing: Nearman removed the item after hearing concerns from existing providers who felt the ordinance compared them to illicit operations and was a “money grab.” Chief of Police explained the ordinance was developed with stakeholder input to combat human trafficking. The final version waives the $50 initial fee for existing establishments and imposes no renewal fee. The ordinance passed unanimously (7-0).
- Item D8 – Lease with Leadership Greater McHenry County (LGMC): Councilwoman McMahon removed this item, opposing the five-year lease for office space in the Old Courthouse Center. She argued the building should be reserved for community use, especially during rec center construction. Other council members supported the lease, noting LGMC’s track record, the flexibility of a five-year term with market-rate renewal options, and the synergy with nearby tenants. The lease was approved 6-1 (McMahon opposed).
- Item D11 – Real Woodstock Website Redesign: Councilman Nearman removed the item, questioning the $96,000 total cost (one-time $24,999 implementation plus three annual $21,675 fees) for a new website with CRM capabilities. He argued the current site is sufficient and the investment would not yield adequate return for a community that is not tourism-dependent. Staff and several council members countered that the upgrade would enable targeted marketing, improved analytics, better event promotion (e.g., Opera House ticket sales), and support for business development and Route 47 businesses. The item was approved 6-1 (Nearman opposed).
- Item D12 – Hotel/Motel Tax Tourism Grant Disbursements: Councilwoman McMahon recused herself due to her involvement with two beneficiary organizations. The motion authorized $110,200 in grants to local nonprofits and government entities. Councilman Flynn asked about future revenue from the new hotel, with staff estimating an increase of $80,000 to $160,000 annually. The item passed unanimously 6-0.
Key Outcomes
- Approved unanimously (7-0): Consent calendar as modified, D3 (purchasing threshold), D4 (massage licensing).
- Approved 6-1: D8 (LGMC lease, McMahon opposed), D11 (website redesign, Nearman opposed).
- Approved 6-0: D12 (hotel/motel tax grants, McMahon recused).
- Executive Session: Council moved into closed session under 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(1) for the City Manager's performance evaluation, with a planned completion by May 1, 2025.
- Future Agenda Items: Noted the April 29 City Council meeting at 5:00 p.m. and the May 20 meeting (Councilman Tebow will be absent).
Meeting Transcript
Well good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I'd like to welcome you to this evening's meeting. This is not a legal item of the Woodstock City Council. A few brief announcements before we get started. First is that the um agenda for the meeting will be shown on the screens in the room. City of Woodstock operates under what's called a consent format. Consent format means that all items for the action this evening will be considered under a single motion and a single vote. If a council member wishes to have an item separately removed and considered and separately considered and voted upon, they may make that request and that item will be removed for separate consideration voting. If a member of the public wishes to have an item removed separately removed for consideration voting, uh member of public may make that request, and if agreed to by a member of the Woodstock City Council, that item two will be removed from the consent calendar and considered separately with a separate vote. There are two opportunities this evening for public comment. The first being at the start of the meeting, under floor discussion, members of the public may come to the podium in the middle of the room. If they're willing to do so, state their name and address for purpose of the record. Feel free to make comments to the Woodstock City Council on any items not on this evening's agenda. Second opportunity is that when we have items for action, members of the public will have an opportunity to provide comment on those items prior to any vote. Any questions on those announcements before we get started? All right. Hearing none, I'll go ahead and call this April 15th, 2025 meeting of the Woodstock City Council to order and ask the clerk to please call the roll. Councilman Flynn. Here. Councilwoman McMahon. Here. Councilman Nearman? Here. Councilman Seegers. Here. Councilman Tebow? Here. Councilwoman Ziemba. Here. Mayor Turner. Here. The record reflect that all seven members of the Woodstock City Council are present this evening. Jane, would you please confirm that the agenda this evening is the same as the true and published agenda? Yes, it is. Thank you, Jane. That lady uh that being the case, ladies and gentlemen of the council, the people's business is duly inappropriately before us. First item this evening under floor discussion is public comment. At this time I invite members of the public to come forward to the podium in the middle of the room. If they're willing to do so, state their name and address for purpose of the record. Feel free to make public comments to the Woodstock City Council on any items not on this evening's agenda. Second opportunity, members of the public under floor discussion, public comment to come forward to make comments to the Woodstock City Council. Final opportunity, members of the public, to come forward under floor discussion. Hearing no requests from public for comments, I will turn to members of council. Ask if there's any comments that council wishes to make under floor discussion this evening. No. No. All right. Hearing nothing from members of council, that takes us to the next item on this evening's agenda, which is the consent calendar. Consent calendar consists of all items A through D13. A motion for concurrence would be in order.
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