The 2022 Caucus Spring Meeting was held on Tuesday, March 29, 2022
from 7-8pm at Gorton Center, Stuart Room

Thank you to all who attended this semi-annual update on the work of the Caucus Committee.  The meeting presentation can be found here.

Agenda

• President’s Report – Kim Pfahl, Caucus President, presented an update on current Caucus Committee activities, including recruiting for City Boards and Commissions.
• Treasurer’s Report – Lauren Hara, Caucus Treasurer, provided an update on the financial condition of the Caucus.
• 2022-2023 Caucus Officers were elected

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Thank you!

Caucus’ Aldermanic Candidates Endorsed
Annual Meeting Recording

Thank you to everyone who braved the cold weather to come out to vote and attend our Annual Meeting on Tuesday, January 25th.  The Caucus’ Aldermanic candidates for the June 28th municipal election were endorsed!

At the Annual Meeting, Kim Pfahl, Caucus President, presented an update on current Caucus Committee activities, including recruiting for City Boards and Commissions.  Lauren Hara, Caucus Treasurer, provided an update on the financial condition of the Caucus.  Finally, our 4 Aldermanic candidates introduced themselves and addressed the Community, providing an overview of their qualifications and their relationship with Lake Forest.  The three incumbents discussed some of their recent term experiences and accomplishments.

Again, thank you to the Community members who voted at the Annual Meeting and all of you who support volunteerism.  A special thanks to all the City board and commission member volunteers, and all members of the Caucus Committee who donate their time to help make Lake Forest such a great place to live!

PPL Committee

• Contributed to the purchase of the Joytime property by promoting fiscal responsibility and not overpaying for the site.

Chair of the Civic Beautification Committee

• Helped enforced the term limits of the Garden Club representatives to encourage fresh ideas and new input. In CBC, we have been working on the Deer Path Streetscape Project as well as the construction area near the golf course and the on and off ramps of 41.

Environmental Sustainability Committee

• Since joining, I have helped prioritize the committee’s initiatives such as community awareness through communications:partnering with summer camps (recycling campaign), hopefully into the schools this year – looking at solar panels on City owned buildings when infrastructure needs replacing, and looking at converting mowed areas to natural areas where appropriate. I am bringing forth some of these initiatives to the CBC committee for Garden Club input and review as well.

Community Engagement

• I have attended many community events to show support such as the ribbon cutting at the renovated South Park, Dedication of “The Grove” at the West Lake Forest Train Station, the groundbreaking of “The Lawn” a short game practice area at Deerpath Golf Course, the Dedication of the Hughes Clubhouse and Kiely patio at DPGC, Lake Forest Day parade, Police Foundation awards, etc.

Timely email and phones responses and follow-ups to Citizens’ inquiries on issues and or requests

Prepared for and Attended Bi-weekly City Council Meetings

Additional Community Involvement

• Teaching at Elawa Farm, Programming Assistant for the Junior Garden Club of Lake Forest, and serving on the School of St. Mary Advisory Council.

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Chairman of the Public Works Committee

• Worked with Department Leadership to retool sub-committee meeting agenda around four key topics 1) Highlighting Existing City Infrastructure and Services, 2) Brief Status Update on Inflight Projects, 3) Review of New Projects and Recommendations, and 4) Updates on any Innovation and HR Efforts
• Facilitated productive sub-committee meetings, while reducing the average time of each meeting from 3-4 hours in the past to 1-1.5 hours

Member of the Environmental Sustainability Committee

• Worked with Assistant City Manager on how best to engage with an outside consultant and to help prioritize and evaluate potential new CLF sustainability initiatives thru new process
• Helped facilitate conversation among committee members on key priorities given survey feedback from City Council and staff bandwidth – GHG Emissions baseline, Ravine Management and Solar Panel Installations on City Buildings projects being investigated as a result

Meeting Facilitator and Alderman Sponsor for the Lake Forest Collaborative for Environmental Leadership

• LF Open lands, 115 and 67 School Districts, and Lake Forest College, and the CLF are members – Purpose of the collaborative is to share best practices and leanings on how we can positively impact our community’s environment
• Worked with City Staff to develop Agenda for quarterly meetings
• Facilitated quarterly Zoom meetings among leaders from all organizations
• Rebalanced the discussions of sustainability among the group from just what the City is doing to what ALL member organizations are doing and how we can help each other

Member of the Finance Committee

• Encouraged Finance Department Chair to investigate and pursue existing bond refinancing options
• Net results from recent bond refi will be savings of up ~$1.6m from lower interest payments over a ~20 year time frame to taxpayers

Additional Community Involvement – IT Innovation and Strategy for the CLF

• Worked with Jim Shaw Director of IT and Innovation to plan and conceptualize what an IT Strategic Planning Project could look like for the City
• Shared approaches and best practices and project plans from past IT Strategy Projects I’ve worked on
• Discussed the general business case for change for IT Transformational Plans for organizations, the critical success factors, and typical approach and staffing needs to be successfully

Timely email and phones responses and follow-ups to Citizens’ inquiries on issues and or requests

• Special efforts made to communicate to citizens and businesses before and during the BLM protest in Market Square on 1st amendment rights and what the CLF Police Department / has in place to ensure public safety
• Special efforts to receive feedback from Citizens on the Library Capital Improvement Plan and work with Mayor and City Manager to refine approach

Prepared for and Attended Bi-weekly City Council Meetings

• Ask staff and City Managers any questions ahead of time
• Limited my comments or questions during CC meetings to those that benefited the public or helped key council deliberations
• Thanked staff during meetings for their contributions to various projects when appropriate
• Focused on the best long term interests of the CLF when making any decisions or voting on petitions

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Council Contributions

Finance Committee

• Review and recommend funding for all operational priorities of the City, including but not limited to the Annual Operating Budget, Annual Appropriation Ordinance, Annual Tax Levy Ordinance, and other policies and procedures applicable to the financial health and systems of the City.

Public Works Committee

• Regularly assess its inventory of land, buildings and related improvements to determine whether enhancement or disposal of assets are appropriate as well as to determine whether acquisition of additional assets is in the public interest.
• The City Council also has a responsibility to manage and utilize public lands, buildings and other assets of the City in a manner that serves the public interest, protects the health and safety of the community, enhances the quality of life, and preserves the character and traditions of community.

Property and Public Land Committee

Previously served on Personnel Compensation & Administration

City Matters Supported

• Public safety, public works (roadwork, ravines, stormwater, etc), efficiencies (mobile app, tech infrastructure), and finance (bond rating, refinancing, etc)
• Timely email and phones responses and follow-ups to Citizens’ inquiries on issues and or requests
• Prepared for and Attended Bi-weekly City Council Meetings
• Additional Community Involvement – Lake County Community Foundation Board
• Encourage City to support local business success and attract new ones
• Helping local manage through pandemic (financially and provide outdoor dining solution – ie. Food trucks & park upgrades)

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Open City Boards/Commission Positions

The City of Lake Forest has positions open on the following boards, committees, and commissions in 2022 – 2023.  Please register your interest in serving on one of these boards, committees, or commissions by completing a Volunteer Profile Sheet or emailing [email protected].

• Board of Trustees Fire Pension Board
• Building Review Board
• Historic Preservation Commission
• Library Board
• Plan Commission
• Zoning Board of Appeals

There is more information on a board, committee, or commission on the Committee Description page.

Open Elected Positions

• Caucus Committee – All Wards