June 1 will mark the day that Naperville City Council returns to a fully in-person public meeting. All council members and city staff will be in council chambers and speakers from the public will be required to attend in-person as well. Those who are fully vaccinated will not be required to wear face coverings. A press release from the city states that those who are not fully vaccinated against COVID-19 must wear a face covering if they cannot socially distance from other individuals.
First Fully In-Person Meeting in Over A Year
Council has been meeting at least partially over Zoom since April 7, 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic made it unsafe to meet in-person. Exactly one year later, the group moved to a hybrid model, where some council members were in attendance and others participated virtually. At the most recent meeting, all council members were present, but spaced out on the dais and tables usually reserved for press and city staff.
Those interested in speaking at the meeting will need to sign up online prior to 4 p.m. on the day of the meeting.
Some things will remain from the virtual system. Citizens can still submit written comments or position statements either supporting or opposing a given item. Those statements will be published with the agenda, but not read into the record during the meeting.
Moser Tower
Naperville City Council will discuss construction bids submitted for repair work on Moser Tower. A 2015 assessment of the tower revealed unexpected structural deterioration and in March 2020, council agreed with the Riverwalk Commission that the city should have the structure repaired rather than demolished.
City staff combined the Moser Tower repair work with handrail repair work that needs to be done on the Naperville Riverwalk.
The city budgeted $1.6 million for Moser Tower repairs in the 2021 budget, and $166,000 for the handrail repairs. The difference between the budgeted amount and the low bid of $2,092,152 will be made up with underspend from other capitol projects.
Naperville News 17’s Casey Krajewski reports.
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