The Rochelle City Council voted 6-1 on May 11 to increase and extend its utility tax structure that it uses funds from to pay for sidewalk improvements.
The move was made due to no increases in the rate structure for the past five years while construction costs have increased each year at rates ranging from 3-15%, Interim City Manager and City Engineer Sam Tesreau said.
The utility tax was extended through December 2032. In November 2021, the council approved a utility tax extension through December 2028. Under the new structure, the increase will begin in January 2027.
The initial increase in the municipal electricity tax, beginning in 2027, is estimated to produce another $84,000 over the 2025 revenues of $420,000. The change represents a $1.34 increase, on average, for residential customers per month.
The council also approved an increase of .5% in the municipal gas tax beginning in January 2027, estimated to produce another $16,000 over the 2025 revenues of $260,000.
Utility tax funds are allocated each year for various projects, including sidewalk repair, replacement, new construction within city right of way and/or easements and other street improvements in areas lacking curb and gutter and sidewalks, accessibility ramps and other professional and engineering services related to those projects.
Utility tax funds have been used for decades in Rochelle for sidewalk work, and since 1997 over 1.3 million square feet of sidewalks, accessibility ramps and pedestrian paths have been constructed or replaced throughout the city, Tesreau said.
Tesreau said the increase was necessary over the next few years to sustain the quality and quantity of infrastructure replaced or constructed through 2032 due to potential for cost sharing in state-funded grant opportunities, upcoming state/local projects and ever-increasing material and labor costs.
“Our construction costs increase each and every year,” Tesreau said. “If it’s not approved, what would suffer is the quantity of infrastructure work we can do year over year. I think it’s necessary going forward to consider a slight increase every year so we’re more in line and it’s more palatable. Right now we’re trying to make up for a few years, but we’ve also kept it down for five years.”
Mayor John Bearrows was the vote against the utility tax change, citing not wanting to put more burden on Rochelle residents and businesses amid current economic challenges.
“I can’t support this at this time,” Bearrows said. “Our real estate tax bills just went out to every resident. The city’s property tax rate went down, but tax bills overall went up 7-10 percent. I’m not sure why this is coming to us now when it doesn’t expire for another two years.”
City Councilwoman Kate Shaw-Dickey voted in favor of the utility tax change Monday.
“The hard part is, no one wants taxes to increase,” Shaw-Dickey said. “However, this is what happens when we don’t manage that properly. If we put it off for two more years, the increase is going to be much larger. There’s never a good time to do something like this. My opinion is that it has to be done very thoughtfully and with the least impact to consumers as possible.”
Traffic control device changes
The council unanimously approved two traffic control device changes at the meeting. The first was the installation of an all-way stop at the intersection of North Main Street and Fifth Avenue in Rochelle’s downtown area.
The Rochelle Fire Department and four municipal parking lots are located at the intersection. Previously, stop signs were only located on Fifth Avenue for east and west traffic. The annual average daily traffic count at the intersection is over 1,600 vehicles.
Several construction projects are currently taking place in the area of the intersection, including a new structure with public restrooms and an entertainment stage and new parking lots. The move was made with the belief that the improvements will bring additional vehicles and pedestrian traffic to the intersection, City Public Works Director Tim Isley said.
The council also approved raising the speed limit from 40 miles per hour to 50 miles per hour on Creston Road from Caron Road east to the Interstate 39 overpass. That stretch of Creston Road sees an average of over 2,200 vehicles per day, mainly truck traffic.
In recent years, the city completed $1.3 million in improvements in the area, such as base and surface removal and replacement, new hot mix asphalt road shoulders, stormwater drainage improvements and thermoplastic pavement markings. After the improvements, an engineering and traffic survey was conducted to find the most appropriate speed limit to facilitate the orderly movement of traffic and yielded the 50 miles per hour recommendation.
Change orders
The council unanimously approved two change orders for ongoing city projects.
The first was for an estimated $178,000 in additional work on a North 14th Street storm sewer improvements project.
The original project, approved by the council in October 2025, was planned to be completed by the end of May 2026. City staff identified “essential critical” pavement resurfacing needs earlier this year along streets in the area and within the city’s Lawnridge Cemetery along Eighth Avenue.
The city worked with the project’s contractor, Martin and Company, on additional hot mix asphalt surface improvements. The project is now slated to be completed by June 30.
The second change order was for $41,234 for a recently completed Well 8 iron filter plant project. After the completion of the project, the Rochelle Municipal Utilities team worked to start the existing six-year-old pump and discovered it had experienced a motor failure. A new motor was purchased and pump modifications were made for the pump to receive the new motor.
Truck purchase
The council unanimously approved a $48,531 bid from Jeff Perry Chevrolet of Rochelle for a pickup truck for the Rochelle Fire Department. The bid was the lowest of three.
The truck will replace a current 2012 pickup truck that is used daily by the RFD shift supervisor as a response vehicle as well as a tow vehicle for the four trailers the department utilizes.
RFD Chief Dave Sawlsville said Monday the new truck will still need to be outfitted with items, such as a topper and radios that will require additional cost.
Proclamations
Bearrows read three proclamations at the meeting. The first was in observance of Mental Health Awareness Month in May and was presented to Mindful Matters Therapy owner Loni Nolte. The second proclamation was in honor of Police Week from May 11-17 and was presented to Rochelle Police Chief Pete Pavia and Sgt. Elvis Baneski. The third was in honor of Public Works Week from May 17-23 and was presented to city public works staff.