Belvidere eyes comprehensive business regulation program

By Bob Balgemann

REPORTER

City officials are working up an extensive business regulation program to complement efforts by law enforcement to target local establishments that are involved in criminal activity.

Members of the committee of the whole got their first look at such a proposal during their Monday, Nov. 14 meeting. More discussion is planned for December.

City Attorney Mike Drella said he had received inquiries about regulating massage parlors, as is being done in the nearby Village of Machesney Park.

However, his idea was to work up a comprehensive business registration program, rather than target massage establishments.

He recalled how the state in 2003 adopted Public Act 92-880, a comprehensive licensing scheme regulating massage therapists, and requiring a state license to engage in massage therapy.

Many municipalities, including the City of Belvidere, repealed their massage regulations in the face of Public Act 92-880. Others ignored it; some left it in place as a regulatory scheme. They regulated massage parlors rather than the masseuse.

Attorney Drella said he believed that approach was ineffective.

After repealing its ordinance, he recalled that the city learned some local establishments were advertising massages. A cease and desist order was issued, to which those businesses claimed they were not offering massages at their establishments. They claimed the ads were erroneous; that they actually were offering “relaxation techniques.”

Recently, he said at least one of those establishments had license massage therapists on staff.

In short, the attorney said a business only needs to claim it is not offering massages to “avoid any massage regulatory scheme we may create.”

The answer, he said, was to reopen under new management and claim a new and different business, unrelated to massage and operate until caught again.

His solution is to adopt “a much more regulatory scheme that requires all businesses in the City of Belvidere to obtain a business license registration, at no cost. It makes it illegal to operate a business without having a free registration license.”

He said that would create a system by which the city may revoke or suspend a license for certain ordinance and criminal violations, including prostitution.

Also on Monday, Nov. 14, the committee recommended spending up to $15,000 to have a contractor grind up the branches collected during the city’s annual clean-up program.

Public Works Director Brent Anderson said that “due to the success of our annual spring and fall branch pick-up program, our branch pile needs to be reduced.”

The current budget has $15,000 for that purpose, and he said he had received a proposal from Bill Miller Logging to grind up those materials at $650 an hour. Director Anderson said that’s the same rate that has been charged since 2013.

In addition, the committee recommended increasing the threshold for competitive bidding from $10,000 to $20,000.

Public Act 94-0435 was signed into law in 2005, which allowed municipalities to purchase up to $20,000 in goods and services without seeking bids.

However, Director Anderson said the city had remained with the $10,000 figure over the past 11 years.

He initially recommended increasing the threshold during a recent committee meeting, and the matter came up for discussion on Monday, Nov. 14.

Part of his reason for supporting the change was the cost of doing business had increased to the point that it doesn’t take much to reach the $10,000 ceiling.

“Matching the state guidelines will simplify the procurement process for commonly used materials, such as valves, hydrants, water main pipes, sanitary sewer pipes, hot mix asphalt, aggregates, fuel and oil, without affecting bidding on larger projects and procurements,” he said.