Algonquin Township trustees on Wednesday night tabled the adoption of an intergovernmental agreement with the highway department.
Trustee Melissa Victor voiced her disappointment that the IGA – a source of recent controversy that included Highway Commissioner Andrew Gasser announcing that he would abandon many services the Algonquin Township Road District had been handling for years – had been pushed back again.
“When is this IGA going to be ready?” Victor asked.
“I wish I could answer that better,” Supervisor Charles Lutzow said. “It’s very stressful.”
Gasser did not attend the meeting. Trustee Rachael Lawrence said she disapproved of his absence Wednesday and his absence at a previous special meeting to address the IGA.
“This was all done at Commissioner Gasser’s request, and at the expression of his urgency to get this done at the expense or the potential expense of losing vital services that many [constituents use],” Lawrence said. “It is disappointing.”
A draft of the agreement asks the highway department to pay rent, split the recycling costs with the township and consider duties around the property, including snow removal and bingo setup.
As of Friday night, the road district and township had not come to an agreement on a final draft.
In an Aug. 3 email, Gasser announced: “Effective immediately the Algonquin Township Highway Department will no longer be participating in the following functions ... ”
That list included bingo setup, emptying recycling dumpsters, scheduling of new bus rides after Aug. 17, maintenance of township buses, fueling of the township bus and paying bus drivers.
The subject of the email was “Lack of IGA.”
The Northwest Herald could not reach Gasser for comment on this story.
