The Village of Park Forest will hold its first Rules Meeting of the month on Monday, May 5, at 7 p.m. in Village Hall.

The meeting will begin with the Pledge of Allegiance and roll call. Following this, Trustees Theresa Settles, Maya Hardy, and Erin Slone will be sworn in for their new terms, having been re-elected for four more years. After the ceremony, there will be a pause for approximately 20 minutes to allow for photographs and light refreshments before the meeting resumes.

There are three items on the agenda. The first item pertains to the introduction of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025/2026 budget. In a memo to the Park Forest Board of Trustees, Finance Director Mark Pries noted that he would be introducing the budget during the meeting. Review sessions are scheduled for May 6, 7, and 8 at 6 p.m.

Pries stated in the memo that the proposed budget is balanced and currently reflects a general fund surplus. It addresses several financial challenges, including service prioritization, cost control, infrastructure needs, and the continuation of ongoing initiatives.

Board members are encouraged to annotate their draft copies for any corrections, which staff will collect after the review sessions. A clean final version will be distributed or made available online following the budget's adoption. Pries also mentioned that draft budgets are accessible on the Village website, at Village Hall, and at the Park Forest Public Library.

The other agenda items relate to the Department of Public Works. Public Works Assistant Director Nick Christie submitted a memo to the Board explaining that on April 25, the department opened two bids for the FY 2026 Motor Fuel Tax (MFT) Street Sweeping Maintenance Contract. The lowest bid, totaling $37,420, was submitted by Lakeshore Recycling Systems LLC of West Chicago, Illinois. The bidding process included extensive outreach, such as publication in local and state bulletins and direct notifications to minority, women, and veteran-owned businesses.

Christie noted that the contract covers three village-wide street sweeps, two parking lot sweeps, two bike trail sweeps, and emergency sweeping services for the fiscal year. A budget of $50,000 has been allocated for this work. Although Lakeshore Recycling has not previously worked with the Village, they have provided references and all required documentation.

Christie will request that the Board award the contract to Lakeshore Recycling Systems LLC, which also includes a contingency for an additional village-wide sweep at a cost of $11,400. This will bring the total amount to no more than $48,820. Additionally, he is asking the Board to authorize the village manager to enter into a contract with Lakeshore Recycling Systems LLC for this work.

In another memo, Christie explained that the Village must submit two forms to the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT)—a Municipal Estimate of Maintenance Costs (BLR 14222) and a Maintenance Resolution (BLR 14220)—to allocate $311,536.50 in Motor Fuel Tax (MFT) funds for FY 2026. These funds will be used to cover material and contractual costs for snow and ice control, lighting, signage, pavement maintenance, traffic signals, street sweeping, herbicide application, pavement marking and patching, new lighting, and engineering inspections for the Thorn Creek Bridge.

It is important to note that village staff labor and equipment costs are not covered by MFT funding and are instead charged to the General Fund. Christie mentioned that the Department of Public Works aims to reserve more MFT funds for capital projects and contracted services.

Christie recommends that the Board approve both required IDOT forms to appropriate the $311,536.50 in MFT funds.