Beecher Looking for Half a Mil

By Jeff Vorva

Beecher Mayor Marcy Meyer met with the potential new fire inspector and came away with a good feeling.

She didn’t name the inspector, who is from SAFEbuilt, a community development service company. But she told the board on May 22 he appears to fit the bill after the village severed ties with the Beecher Fire Protection District’s inspections.

Recently, board members received complaints from businesses about how they were treated by the previous fire inspector, who worked independently of the fire district.

The board and fire district could not work out an agreement, so the village vanquished an intergovernmental agreement and went in a new direction.

“He has 35 years of experience and is very mellow,” Meyer said of the potential new inspector. “He said he looks for compliance rather than a punishing kind of intent.”

She said he lives in Westmont and works full time, which will limit his availability, but Meyer said this could work.

“He could come out twice a month, which is kind of what’s happening now,” the mayor added. “He could just blast through when he comes out. We were counting maybe 80-to-100 businesses to be inspected. So, if we have a regular schedule, we can get through them pretty quick.”

She said if there are businesses in constant violation and he has to come back more than twice a month, those businesses would be fined to cover the village’s cost.

“There is no reason we should cover the inspector just because somebody refuses to do what they are supposed to do,” Meyer said.

SAFEbuilt’s services cost $125 per hour.

Looking for half a mil

Village administrator Robert Barber is looking ahead, and a future water main project on Dixie Highway has him concerned.

“I just heard at 4 p.m. today from the county that we have $500,000 for the Dixie Highway water main,” Barber said. “That project is going to come in at about a million, so my job is to find $500,000.

“We have $275,000 on account, so we will have to look to see what we can transfer, because I don’t feel like borrowing money right now in this economy. In the next 30-to-60 days, we have to figure out how to finance Dixie.”

Barber said the Dixie Highway project should not be started until the Penfield Street project is completed.

“That could be a disaster,” he said.

Appointments

Meyer announced her appointments as the new board held its first full meeting.

The mayor pro-tem is Todd Kraus, who will also chair the Finance and Administration Committee.

Joe Tieri will chair the Public Safety Committee, Roger Stacey will chair the Public Works Committee, Ben Juzeszyn will head up the Economic Development and Community Relations Committee, Joe Gianotti will chair the Buildings and Properties/Parks and Recreation committee, and Eric Gardner will oversee the Planning/Building and Zones committee.

Gardner is the board liaison for the Historic Preservation Commission, Juzeszyn will be the go-between for the Youth Commission, while Meyer and Kraus will be liaisons for the Fourth of July Commission.