ROCHELLE — The Rochelle City Council on Monday approved a Small Business Interior Improvement Grant Program for businesses in the Downtown TIF District. The program offers 50 percent matching grants up to ten thousand dollars for interior upgrades that improve safety, accessibility, or function.
Small businesses with fewer than twenty five employees can apply for permanent improvements, and projects must be finished within six months of approval. Businesses that receive funds must stay open for at least twelve months. Applications will be available in January 2026 through the Community Development Department or the city website.
The council also approved the city’s 2025 to 2026 insurance renewal through the Illinois Municipal League Risk Management Association. The change moves all risk and workers compensation coverage to the organization and is expected to reduce the annual premium by fourteen percent to about one million dollars.
A Minimum Maximum Premium Agreement sets a minimum premium of eight hundred seventy seven thousand three hundred forty seven dollars and a maximum of one million one hundred ninety three thousand five hundred forty six dollars. The package includes coverage for power generation, cyber risks, a loss fund, and semiannual claims reviews.
The city will take part in the association’s cooperative risk management program, which uses self insured retention, excess insurance, and reinsurance. A loss reserve of at least three hundred sixteen thousand two hundred dollars will be set aside for claims above the minimum fund. Estimated savings based on recent claims history total two hundred seventy three thousand six hundred eighty four dollars.
The council approved an ordinance removing limits on the sale of alcoholic beverages on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Local establishments may now follow regular hours on both days, replacing the former rules that required an early closure on December 24 and a full stop on December 25.
The council also approved two ordinances authorizing General Obligation Bonds for Technology Center upgrades and airport improvements. The measures allow up to one point five million dollars for electrical upgrades and up to three point five million dollars for a new eight unit hangar and other airport work. Both items allow for a petition referendum, and public hearings under the Bond Issue Notification Act are set for December 8, 2025.