City Council — Naperville, IL
Date: 2025-10-28

400 S. Eagle Street
 City of Naperville Naperville, IL 60540
 http://www.naperville.il.us/


 Meeting Agenda

 City Council

Tuesday, October 28, 2025 6:00 PM Council Chambers


 Budget Workshop II



TO WATCH OR LISTEN TO THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING LIVE: • Watch on WCNC
GOVERNMENT ACCESS TELEVISION (Ch. 6-Astound, Ch. 10 - Comcast, Ch. 99 – AT&T
U-verse) • Watch online at https://naperville.legistar.com

TO PROVIDE PUBLIC COMMENT:

The public may choose to provide public comment in any of the following ways:

1. Address the City Council live during the City Council meeting in-person in City Council
Chambers. Individuals wishing to address the City Council during the meeting must sign up
online at www.naperville.il.us/speakersignup by 5:30 p.m. on October 28.

2. Individuals can also have their name added to the speaker list by calling the Community
Services Department at (630) 305-5300 by 5:30 p.m. on October 28.

3. Submit a written comment to the City in advance of the City Council meeting by 3 p.m. on
October 28. Written comments will be compiled and posted with the electronic meeting
agenda on the City’s website prior to the start of the meeting. The cumulative number of
comments will be announced during the City Council meeting.

4. Submit a one-word statement of “SUPPORT” or “OPPOSITION” regarding a specific
agenda item by 3 p.m. on October 28. The names of participants who submitted position
statements will be compiled and posted with the electronic meeting agenda on the City’s
website prior to the start of the meeting. The cumulative number of position statements will be
announced during the City Council meeting.

There will be no on-site speaker sign up permitted.

A. CALL TO ORDER:

B. INTRODUCTION:

C. PUBLIC FORUM:

D. PRESENTATION:


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City Council Meeting Agenda October 28, 2025


1. 25-1389 Annual Budget Workshop #2: 2026 Annual Operating Budget


E. ADJOURNMENT:
 Any individual with a disability requesting a reasonable accommodation in order to
 participate in a public meeting should contact the Communications Department at least
 48 hours in advance of the scheduled meeting. The Communications Department can
 be reached in person at 400 S. Eagle Street, Naperville, IL., via telephone at
 630-420-6707 or via e-mail at info@naperville.il.us. Every effort will be made to allow
 for meeting participation.




City of Naperville Page 2 Printed on 10/24/2025

400 S. Eagle Street
 City of Naperville Naperville, IL 60540
 http://www.naperville.il.us/

 Meeting Minutes - Final

 City Council


Tuesday, October 28, 2025 6:00 PM Council Chambers

 Budget Workshop II

TO WATCH OR LISTEN TO THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING LIVE: • Watch on WCNC
GOVERNMENT ACCESS TELEVISION (Ch. 6-Astound, Ch. 10 - Comcast, Ch. 99 – AT&T
U-verse) • Watch online at https://naperville.legistar.com

TO PROVIDE PUBLIC COMMENT:

The public may choose to provide public comment in any of the following ways:

1. Address the City Council live during the City Council meeting in-person in City Council
Chambers. Individuals wishing to address the City Council during the meeting must sign up online
at www.naperville.il.us/speakersignup by 5:30 p.m. on October 28.

2. Individuals can also have their name added to the speaker list by calling the Community
Services Department at (630) 305-5300 by 5:30 p.m. on October 28.

3. Submit a written comment to the City in advance of the City Council meeting by 3 p.m. on
October 28. Written comments will be compiled and posted with the electronic meeting agenda
on the City’s website prior to the start of the meeting. The cumulative number of comments will be
announced during the City Council meeting.

4. Submit a one-word statement of “SUPPORT” or “OPPOSITION” regarding a specific agenda
item by 3 p.m. on October 28. The names of participants who submitted position statements will
be compiled and posted with the electronic meeting agenda on the City’s website prior to the
start of the meeting. The cumulative number of position statements will be announced during the
City Council meeting.

There will be no on-site speaker sign up permitted.

A. CALL TO ORDER:

 Mayor Wehrli called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.




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City Council Meeting Minutes - Final October 28, 2025

 Present: 9- Mayor Scott Wehrli
 Councilwoman Mary Gibson
 Councilman Ian Holzhauer
 Councilwoman Supna Jain
 Councilman Patrick Kelly
 Councilman Josh McBroom
 Councilman Ashfaq Syed
 Councilman Benjamin White
 Councilman Nathan Wilson




 Also Present
 City Manager Doug Krieger; Deputy City Manager Pam Gallahue; City Attorney
 Mike DiSanto; Assistant to the City Manager Marcie Schatz; Police Chief Jason
 Arres; Director of Finance Raymond Munch; Director of TED Jennifer Louden;
 Director of Community Services Melanie Marcordes; Director of Human
 Resources Helga Oles; Deputy Director of Finance Traci Marrocco, Budget
 Analyst Nick Krueger; Budget Analyst Braeden Smith; Sr. Communications
 Specialist Kelley Munch

B. INTRODUCTION:

 City Manager Doug Krieger began the workshop by outlining the evenings
 agenda.


C. PUBLIC FORUM:

 SPEAKER
 Marilyn Schweizer (Naperville) - thanked staff and Council for publicly
 presenting budget. Presented four points to Council: dollars should not be
 programmed if staff lacks capacity, the city website should include an open data
 portal and help center, staff should commit to 5th Avenue for the special area
 study, and the SECA cap should not be raised until the program is reviewed.


D. PRESENTATION:

1. Annual Budget Workshop #2: 2026 Annual Operating Budget

 Finance Director Raymond Munch provided a broad overview of the General
 Fund budget; the City focused on maintaining a balanced General Fund while
 navigating financial challenges such as moderating revenues and the state ’s
 grocery tax change. The City continues to invest in core services and
 infrastructure while preserving its strong financial position and stability for
 residents. Munch went on to highlight the importance of revenue diversification
 in maintaining financial stability, ensuring Naperville isn ’t overly dependent on
 any single revenue source. Furthermore, the City’s property tax levy request
 has steadily been funding city services at a greater amount over time as less
 goes into debt service.


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City Council Meeting Minutes - Final October 28, 2025

 Council inquired about the magnitude of the City’s electric use tax error that was
 corrected during the 2026 Budget development process. Commercial
 customers were charged the ComEd rate rather than 5% of gross receipts as
 intended. Munch stated losses are significant but unknown at this time.

 Deputy Finance Director Traci Marrocco began her portion of the presentation
 by covering General Fund revenues, which are projected at nearly $ 174 million,
 driven largely by utility taxes, higher natural gas prices, and the new local
 grocery tax. On the expense side, total costs are rising 4.5%, primarily due to
 increases in employee compensation and health insurance. 2026 will be the
 first year of the City’s new compensation structure with modest cost-of-living
 and performance-based adjustments, while public safety employees see
 continued wage increases before returning to normal levels in 2027. Pension
 funding remains steady, with slight adjustments across the Fire, Police, and
 IMRF contribution plans to support long-term sustainability. Lower growth
 compared to prior years can be attributed to no new positions and departments ’
 continued efforts to limit operating spending.

 Council asked if the City is successfully funding the fire and police pensions .
 Doug Krieger stated the City’s pensions are among the best funded in the State
 and the City has been very disciplined in that respect. Council then asked about
 the nature of the health insurance increase and whether the City had any
 options to mitigate that. Munch elaborated by stating that Naperville was under
 the average rate of increase for years and pharmaceutical costs and health
 conditions have been driving costs recently. Ultimately the trend is impossible to
 predict. As it relates to alternatives, Munch stated health insurance pools with
 other municipalities would be another option, which comes with its own
 advantages and disadvantages.

 Deputy City Manager Pam Gallahue began to discuss the three new budget
 requests for 2026. First, the Police Department’s Drones as First Responders
 program, expanding the city’s current drone operations to allow drones to
 respond to 9-1-1 calls within minutes. The program aims to improve response
 times and provide real-time intelligence to officers while maintaining strict
 privacy and security standards. Next was a redesign for the City’ s website,
 implementing a new hosting solution and content management system that
 meets upcoming federal accessibility standards, strengthens cyber security,
 and improves user experience. Finally, a special area study focused on
 strategic redevelopment, with the two options being the I-88 Corridor or 5th
 Avenue. Staff will be seeking Council direction on which project to prioritize in
 the future. Gallahue proceeded to briefly cover the declining cash balance in the
 Commuter Parking Fund,  which will require  restructuring  to remain
 self-sustaining moving forward.

 Council asked whether a 5th Avenue study would affect commuter parking.
 Doug Krieger stated adjustments would still need to be made to the fund .
 Council then asked if the cost for the City website redesign was all inclusive .
 Senior Communication Specialist Kelley Munch stated content management
 and hosting/security is included in the cost, and the City is in middle of RFP

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City Council Meeting Minutes - Final October 28, 2025

 process so the cost is an estimate. Council proceeded to discuss the Drone as
 First Responder program, mainly surrounding privacy and how it compares to
 the current drone program. Police Chief Jason Arres stated privacy is dictated
 by state law and FOIA, and the program will align with that. Furthermore, Arres
 stated more pilots would be available under this program and the Police
 Department would be able to triple its count of missions utilizing the drone .
 Arres noted the cost of $150K would be reoccurring and covered the entirety of
 the program, and similar programs could be seen in Oak Brook and Rockford

 Next, Doug Krieger outlined budgetary requests from community partners DNA,
 NDP, and NCTV17. Krieger briefly described what each organization does and
 then outlined major components of their 2026 request. Notably, NCTV17
 requested $200K in perpetuity for operating support, which the City
 recommended to be part of a SECA City Obligation. Funding in such a way
 would require a revision of the SECA cap and municipal code, which was also
 discussed. Council spoke favorably of NCTV17. Six members of Council voiced
 support in favor of raising the cap to accommodate the additional spending .
 Three members voiced a desire to limit the amount the SECA cap would be
 raised by, given the impact it would have on grant dollars going out. Council
 proceeded to discuss NDP’s operations. First, whether the $150K shifted from
 I-88 Corridor Marketing to the Economic Development Grant was set aside for
 I-88 and if that would affect the City. Doug Krieger stated it was not specifically
 set aside for I-88 and that it would not disrupt the special area study. Second,
 Council held a discussion on the viability of print guides and the amount of
 money spent on them under the Restaurant Marketing Grant. Council
 suggested focusing on digital alternatives.

 The presentation was then turned over to Dave Della Terza from Naperville
 Public Library. Della Terza provided highlights of some of the library's 2025
 accomplishments and their goals for 2026. Della Terza concluded his portion of
 the presentation by discussing the proposed 2026 budget for the library. Council
 wanted to know the digital vs. physical breakout of circulation. Digital is at 25%
 and gaining and is seeing more investment on the library ’s part. Council asked if
 the library is receiving less money with the property tax rate going down. Since
 EAV has been increasing, the library does not lose money.

 Naper Settlement was covered next, with Rena Tamayo-Calabrese similarly
 outlining accomplishments from 2025 and goals for 2026. Tamayo-Calabrese
 then provided an overview of the proposed 2026 budget for Naper Settlement.
 There were no additional questions. Doug Krieger then outlined the rest of the
 budget process.


E. ADJOURNMENT:

 Budget Workshop #2 adjourned at 8:37 p.m.




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City Council Meeting Minutes - Final October 28, 2025

 /s/ Braeden Smith
 Braeden Smith, Budget Analyst




City of Naperville Page 5 Printed on 12/3/2025