Consultant recommends modernized engineering manual to streamline village development

Rhett Rosenart of the Mannequin Smith Group told the council the village should move its engineering standards into an administratively managed manual to keep references current and allow staff to apply modern material specifications without amending ordinances for every technical update.

"My name is Rhett Rosenart. I work with the Mannequin Smith Group," he said in his introduction. Rosenart said the manual concentrates village oversight on stormwater management and roadway standards and uses updated material specifications (noting many code references still cited early‑2000s editions).

The proposed approach would allow staff to reference the most recent editions of technical standards rather than requiring a council ordinance for each technical change. Rosenart and the village's consultant team said the manual also provides a clarified flowchart of submittals to make the development review process more predictable for applicants.

Council members generally supported the modernization and asked clarifying questions about the manual's administrative update process and coordination with the fire district and village engineers. Rosenart said the manual was developed with staff input and would be brought back for additional review and adoption steps.