It seems that, when Brookfield’s village government budgets to make an overdue infrastructure repair at village hall, the system is guaranteed to break.

It has happened twice in recent months. 

First the back-up generator went kaput. That the generator was at least 30 years past its predicted useful life should have been a clue that a problem was looming. Interim fixes were, not surprisingly, deemed “unreliable.” So the village waived its usual bidding process to expedite installation. It also, wisely, added more wiring to loop in additional portions of public-safety sections of village hall that will now be supported by the new generator.

Meanwhile the elevator, which makes the lower level of village hall accessible, has been steadily deteriorating. It overheated in December and has been on the fritz ever since. 

A repair crew found issues with a key system that required replacement parts. Temporary repairs had failed and the village went out for a foreshortened bidding process and chose a vendor who came in at half the cost. 

Michael Garvey, village president, pointed out that both upgrades were budgeted. And it turns out that both fixes will come in under those budgets.

Brookfield continues to slowly grow into a better-managed village government. Years of neglect in infrastructure, at village hall for sure, are being overcome by prudent investments. We’ll know they have accomplished the goal when key systems don’t break down in the months between passing a budget and making the fixes.

More pot, earlier in the day

We understand the concerns of the Riverside Planning and Zoning Commission that its members were asked for a recommendation without being given enough hard information on which to base that decision.

The issue at play is an informal inquiry from the owner of the Star Buds cannabis dispensary, asking to open an hour earlier each day. Currently the dispensary is allowed under existing zoning to open at 9 a.m. The owner says he estimates the Harlem Avenue shop leaves $2,000 to $3,000 on the table every day if it cannot open at 8 a.m.

Members of the commission and some staff said they had no way to verify if those estimates were accurate. Commissioners said the estimate was not precise enough to extend the hours.

With the large pot of sales taxes the village’s single pot shop is generating, we assume members of the village board will do the math before it ultimately makes the decision on extending the hours. 

So far, this long-hoped-for new business has been a boon to Riverside. Perfectly placed along Harlem Avenue, and so largely removed from residences, it is a money machine for Riverside.

And we’d ask the zoning commission to allow Star Buds to widen its driveway off Harlem. That would be a practical upgrade.