Sustainable Environmental Advisory Commission — Skokie, IL
Date: 2024-04-30

Village of Skokie
 Sustainable Environmental Advisory Commission
 AGENDA

 April 30, 2024
 7:00 pm
 Village Hall Room D/E
 Public Comments: sustainability@skokie.org


  I. Approval of minutes

 II. Old Business

III. New Business
 a. Event Recaps
 i. CUB event: “Navigating Solar Options” and “Home Decarb
 101”
 ii. Composting Presentation at the Boards & Commissioners
 Appreciation Reception
 iii. Residential Sustainability Awards
 iv. Spring Greening April 14
 v. Clean Green Skokie March 18 – April 19
 vi. Arbor Day Tree Planting, April 26
 b. Waste Management Sub-Committee Report
 c. Environmental Sustainability Plan: Quarter 1 Report
 d. Important Dates/ Upcoming Events/ Volunteer Request
 i. International Composting Awareness Week

IV. Other business

 V. Public Comment

VI. Next meeting:

 a. May 28, 2024: Transportation & Mobility

VII. Adjournment




Document Number: 511765

Memorandum
Public Works Department - Administration Division

TO: Sustainable Environmental Advisory Commissioners

FROM: _____________________________________________
 Liz Zimmerman, Assistant to the Public Works Director

DATE: May 7, 2024

SUBJECT: April 30, 2024 Sustainable Environmental Advisory Commission (SEAC)
 Meeting Minutes

Meeting was called to order at 7:03 pm in Village Hall Meeting Room D/E.

Present: Chairman Jennifer Grossman, Chris Buccola, Lisa Gotkin, Michael Gershbein, Alma
Likic, Oliva Mahoney, Emily Okallau, Charlie Saxe, Sustainability Coordinator Lisa
Sanzenbacher, and Assistant to the Public Works Director Elizabeth Zimmerman.

Absent: Commissioners Andrew DeCanniere, Jim McNelis, Rick Moscovitz, Bob Render

 I. Approval of minutes –Unanimously approved.

 II. Old Business -
 C. Saxe recapped the CUB presentation at Sketchbook. It was a good event, but
 acoustics can be a challenge at that venue.

 C. Buccola gave a brief summary about the compost presentation given at the
 Boards and Commission Reception, he liked the simple messaging and thought
 the presentation was engaging. C. Grossman liked the slide quiz on the length of
 time it takes a cabbage to decompose in the landfill and would like to see more of
 that type of education.

 O. Mahoney reviewed the Spring Greening event, stating she was impressed by
 the high school volunteers. The event can be challenging to work in heat. C.
 Gershbein recommended better signage at the corner of Golf and Lavergne to
 direct cars. S.L. Zimmerman said she had already forwarded that on to the Park
 District.

 C. Gershbein and C. Saxe recapped the residential sustainability award program.
 There were four winners and all the winners were different, so it was nice to get
 diversity in the applications. One award winner attended the Board meeting.

 S.L. Zimmerman summarized the spring litter pick-up initiative. Thirty-three
 groups participated and the Neatniks (Greenbergs) are the winner of the raffle
 tree. Staff is working with them to select a public site for a fall planting.

 S.C. Sanzenbacher reviewed Arbor Day and stated that the Beautification and
 Improvement Commission has been very active in promoting tree planting.
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III. New Business

 Chair Grossman presented the Waste Management update. There has been a lot of work
 dedicated to education and outreach. This includes composting at Backlot Bash, the
 Rotary Pancake breakfast, Pumpkin composting, and garbage truck artwork contest in
 which there were over 30 entries.

 Staff has started to explore options to increase Construction and Demolition material.
 There have also been efforts to increase composting.

 S.C. Sanzenbacher provided Q1 2024 progress updates to the Sustainability Plan. For the
 Transportation and Mobility Sector there is a meeting scheduled with CMAP regarding
 bike and pedestrian technical assistance. Additionally, in the rebate program rolled out
 which offers $50 to homeowners that have purchased electric leaf blowers. C. Grossman
 recommended that the rebate be extended to other gas-powered lawn equipment. There is
 a municipal fleet electrification study that is being conducted. S.L. Zimmerman added
 that the EV’s that will be added to the fleet in FY25 are expected to save around 9,000
 gallons of gasoline annually, which matches the gallons of diesel fuel saved from the
 transition to once a week refuse collection.

 In the Buildings and Energy sector, Skokie received an ACEEE technical assistance for
 energy equity for renters to improve energy efficiency. They are working with Faith in
 Place and they are looking for communities and places of worship to message. C.
 Gershbein suggested the Humanist Society. Thirty-four properties joined community
 solar following a mass postcard mailing. Staff began benchmarking Village facilities.

 For the other plan sectors, Skokie joined the Wasted Food Action Alliance to help
 facilitate food to food pantries. Tree advocates are needed for the Greenspace sector.
 Staff is working on updating the Cook County Hazard Mitigation Plan. The Green
 Economy Task Force (GETForce) will start up again to help implement the proposed
 Skokie Green Business Recognition Program.

 S.C. also provided an overview of upcoming events which included Friends of the
 Chicago River clean-up, an open house at MWRD, the community-wide garage sale, and
 others.

 IV. Other Business
 C. Saxe is participating in housing discussions through a sub-committee of the Plan
 Commission. More information is on the website. There is a focus on housing
 flexibility, diverse options, reasonable standards, reinvestment, and maintenance.

 V. Public comment
 A representative of Go Green Skokie asked for the name of the energy cohort that
 Skokie is participating in. C. Sanzenbacher stated it is Clean Energy to Communities

 VI. Next Meeting is May 28th. The Transportation and Mobility Sector will present.
 VII. Meeting Adjourned at 8:30 p.m. with a motion from C. Okallau and seconded by
 C. Mahoney.

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