The regular meeting of the City Council was called to order at 7:00pm on Dec 3rd, 2012. Mayor Troy D. Burr officiated. Councilmen,,,, and were present., City Maintenance Supervisor,, Bird City Times Editor Norma Martinez, Century II Cathy Domsch, and Citizen Rod Klepper were also present. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. MINUTES The Minutes of the Council meeting held Nov 5, 2012 was reviewed. Clerk Ambrosier amended a quote by City Treasurer. Council moved to approve the minutes, seconded by Wright. Motion carried 5-0. WARRANTS The list of warrants was reviewed. Clerk Ambrosier verbally added claims by MW Energy, Hometown Market, Mile Saver Shopper, and TNT Storage for a grand total of $11,799.95. Councilman Wright asked about the purchase of blades for the Rhino. Wright moved to approve the warrants as amended, seconded by Carmichael. Motion carried 5-0. SHERIFF S REPORT None PUBLIC COMMENTS Strategic Plan Cathy Domsch, Century II, reminded the Council of the City s 5 year Strategic Plan from 2006. She said a town hall meeting was held in 2010, facilitated by the Mayor and herself. She asked the Council if they would like to update the Plan and continue to meet. She explained that a Housing Assessment Tool also needs to be completed for future CDBG housing grant opportunities. Councilman Carmichael said he thinks it s critical to not lose momentum on community projects. He said it s easy to forget all that s been done in the last three years. Mayor Burr said they should try to have another set of meetings and try to get more people involved. Mrs. Domsch requested representation from council members. Mayor Burr suggested setting up Strategic Planning meetings late February. Legion Hall Rental Councilman Wright asked whether new rates will be charged for rental of the Legion hall. Mrs. Domsch said the cost of renting will be $200 plus a $200 refundable deposit. BUILDING PERMIT APPLICATIONS None UNFINISHED BUSINESS Thresher Show Assn Water Meter Rod Klepper, Thresher Assn treasurer was present to discuss the water meter situation. He said he, Mayor Burr, and Mr. Schneider went and looked at the location of the water meter and considered options for relocating it off of the main line. He requested that the City tee off of the main line and move the water meter so that it doesn t also register the Carson s usage. He also requested that the City offer the Thresher Assn water and sewer at no cost for five years as compensation for billing errors going back at least twenty years. He said the Assn isn t interested in receiving a cash refund but that free utilities for five years would be a fair resolution. Sager asked Schneider for an - 1 -
approximate cost of relocating the water meter. Schneider said that they would need to dig three new wells and install three new water meters; one for the Thresher meter, one for the Caron meter, and one for the Lift Station. He estimated the cost to be $1,000 per barrel. Sager said the cost sounded reasonable. Clerk Ambrosier reminded Schneider that the City had just purchased and installed brand new 1 meters for both the Thresher Assn and the Carson s. She asked whether they needed to install a new barrel for the Carson meter since it was already teed off of the main line. Sager moved to settle the billing error with the Thresher Association by offering free water and sewer for a five year period and to relocate the Thresher Assn meter and the Lift Station meter off of the main line, seconded by Carmichael and carried 4 1 abstained by Councilman Wright. Hours Sager moved to cut the hours to part-time with City Hall hours to change to Monday, Wednesday, and Friday only, effective January 1, 2013. The Motion died for a lack of a second. Carmichael said he would like to see the hours cut but believes City hall should still remain open every day. Councilman Ambrosier said he doesn t think anyone realizes what all the does. He reminded the other councilmen that the City s annual audits and the CDBG audit and close-out showed complete compliance, and that Corina Cox, NWKP&D Commission, and Chris Miller, Miller & Assoc, both praised the Clerk on her efforts. He said everything in the office is always taken care of; making reference to a list of monthly, quarterly, and yearly routine reports the Clerk provided in the Council packets. He said he doesn t think the City Council should try to fix something that isn t broken. Carmichael said he s heard nothing but bickering for the last three years and it has to come to an end. He said all the bickering he s hearing is about little things that don t mean anything. Councilman Ambrosier asked Carmichael how cutting the s hours will help that situation. The Clerk asked Carmichael who he s heard all the bickering from because no one ever comes into her office to speak to her about any problems. She said that, as supervisors, if they re hearing complaints from another employee, they should either come to City Hall to hear both sides of an issue or they should encourage the employee doing the complaining to attempt to resolve an issue with the other employee. She said she believes that the attempt to cut her hours is punitive; not as a way to save the city money, and she said she feels that is completely unprofessional and unfair. Councilman Sager suggested the Clerk has created problems for Mr. Schneider. The Clerk asked for specific examples of what she has done to create issues. As an example, Councilman Sager accused the Clerk of refusing to allow Mr. Schneider, the City, access to written nuisance complaints received on a property located on Hwy 36. The Clerk explained that Mr. Schneider had called her on the phone asking about the complaints received. He said he was told that he shouldn t sign the investigation form because he has not personally seen the complaints. She said she told Mr. Schneider that she had the complaints in a folder at City Hall and that he could come review them anytime he liked; that she never refused Mr. Schneider access to the complaints. She said that during that phone conversation, Mr. Schneider asked her only for the names of the two people who made the complaint, to which she did not feel comfortable disclosing over the phone. Berens explained to Mr. Schneider that he did not need to receive two written complaints to perform an investigation of a nuisance violation; that he, as the Public Officer, could initiate an investigation on his own. Mayor Burr said he sees the City as a business, of sorts, and he would like to see the Clerk available every day to answer the phone calls and to be the face of the City. He said he s comfortable keeping the Clerk s hours as is. Councilman Serrano reminded the Council that the Clerk has to follow laws and policy. No further discussion. NEW BUSINESS Hometown Market CMB Application A CMB license renewal application by Brenda Johnson, Hometown Market, was reviewed. Councilman Wright moved to approve the application, seconded by Sager and carried 5-0. Ordinance #328 Scrap Metal Dealers - 2 -
The Clerk explained to the Council that she had learned that all cities were required to have a Scrap Metal Dealer s Ordinance approved. She said she sent the sample Ordinance, prepared by the League, to the for review. Mr. Berens explained the purpose of the Ordinance was to crack down on metal theft. He said the Ordinance sets regulations and fee limits on persons wishing to have a scrap metal business within the city limits and requires background checks on all applicants. He said the suggested fees are a minimum of $100 per license to $400, and annual renewal fees $25 - $50. Following brief discussion, Wright moved to approve Ordinance #328 with an application fee of $400 and a renewal fee of $50, seconded by Councilman Ambrosier and carried 5-0. Intangibles Tax Error Mayor Burr explained to the Council he had attended a County Commissioner s meeting and received further clarification on the Intangible s Tax error. He said that the county s computer software was updated and programmed incorrectly which resulted in the City of Bird City receiving approximately three times the disbursement of taxes. He said he spoke with the who suggested repaying with payments instead of allowing the County to withhold the overpayment from future disbursements. He said the Treasurer recommended paying $5,868.50 of street repair charges out of the Special Highway Fund instead of the Street fund which would free up that amount for the first payment. Carmichael motioned to move $5,868.50 from the Street fund to Special Highway, seconded by Wright and carried 5-0. Carmichael moved to approve repayment of $6,023.29 to Cheyenne County for the over-payment of Intangible s Tax, seconded by Wright and carried 5-0. Wright moved to accept the Mayor s repayment agreement with the County Commissioner s for 2013 and 2014, seconded by Ambrosier and carried 5-0. 8:15pm - Mayor Burr called a ten minute recess 8:25pm Meeting resumes COMMITTEES Equipment: Councilman Ambrosier reported that he and Mr. Schneider examined the bulk plant to find out what it would take to install a 3 hose. Ambrosier said a 3 meter is installed but that the metering device has reduced the outflow hose to 2. He said if the output could be changed to 3 by attaching a new metering device, the filling time could be cut in half for those needing water. Mayor Burr asked if they wanted to encourage a bunch of people to use the bulk plant. Serrano said if its working fine the way it is, the city shouldn t spend more money on it. Ambrosier said he and Schneider will check into the cost of a new metering device and let the Council know at a later date. ~ Councilman Ambrosier proposed looking for a new vehicle to replace the blue pickup. He said the Maintenance Department has been having some problems with the computer chip, the tires are bald, and the heater core needs replaced. He said the needed repairs could cost as much as three thousand dollars. He said it would be worth it in the long run to purchase a small, run-around, pickup for jobs within the city. He will see what he can find. No further discussion. ~ He reported the Case tractor is in need of some repairs. Mr. Schneider was instructed to take it to Ag Repair since Rod Young has worked on it in the past. Parks: Carmichael reported that the pergola at the park was almost done. He said they just need to complete some wiring. Utilities: Nothing to report Employee: Councilman Wright said the City has received six applications for the permanent Maintenance position. He will discuss the hiring of a temporary worker during an executive session. Schneider said he only needed someone to help him out for a week or two in order to get some things done. He said then he could handle things on his own until a permanent employee is hired. - 3 -
Streets: Sager said he hasn t yet completed the list of tree limb violations. He said that instead of giving the list to the as previously discussed, he would like to speak with the homeowners directly to offer them a friendly verbal warning first. Sager said he d also like to get a professional tree-trimmer to come to the City to offer their services to those he notifies. There were no objections. CITY MAINTENANCE REPORT Line Locator Quote Schneider said he had received a quote on the line locator as previously discussed at the last meeting. He said the quote was from Water Products for the amount of $3,286. He said other cities have the same locator and tell him it works great. He said he could find one cheaper, in the $1,200 range, but the cheaper ones are not very reliable. Councilman Ambrosier asked if our current locator could be calibrated but Mr. Schneider wasn t sure. After further discussion, Schneider was instructed to get more information regarding line locators and other, less expensive price quotes. No further discussion. Christmas Lights Schneider thanked Don and Councilman Wright and for their help with putting up the Christmas lights. ATTORNEY REPORT Cell Phone Use Policy Attorney Berens asked the Council if they ve had a chance to review the proposed Cell Phone Policy. He explained that the point of having a policy isn t just to create more rules for employees, but to lower the City s liability should an accident occur. Serrano moved to approve the Cell Phone policy, seconded by Ambrosier and carried 5-0. CITY CLERK REPORT Institute Clerk Ambrosier thanked the Council for allowing her attend and complete the s academy. She said she has gained an incredible amount of knowledge that has proven very useful in her position as a Clerk. Carpet Cleaning Quote Mrs. Ambrosier submitted a quote from Superior Carpet Cleaning in the amount of $245 to have the carpets cleaned at City Hall. After brief discussion, Councilman Ambrosier moved to hire Superior Carpet Cleaning to clean the carpets, seconded by Carmichael and carried 5-0. Midwest Energy Park Lights Contract Mayor Burr explained he was contacted by Les Loker, Midwest Energy, regarding the 10 year contract between Midwest Energy and the City for park lighting. Mr. Loker believed that the City has not been charged for the lighting, as agreed upon in the contract. The checked the records and found that, for years, the park lighting account payments had been recorded as Well 5. The Clerk said she notified Mr. Loker and told him that the City had been making the correct payments as agreed upon. Mr. Loker checked the accounts on his end and agreed that the payments have been made. 2013 GAAP Waiver The Clerk presented the GAAP Waiver for 2013 for approval. Mayor Burr explained that the waiver allows the City to maintain a cash basis means of accounting and that annual approval of the waiver is routine. Wright moved to approve the 2013 GAAP Waiver, seconded by Serrano and carried 5-0. MAYORS REPORT Year-End Bonus Mayor Burr proposed offering the full-time employees a year-end bonus of $250 and the part-time employee $125. The motion was made by Wright, seconded by Serrano and carried 4 1 abstention. - 4 -
Christmas Party The Mayor asked the Council if they would like to have a Christmas Party this year. A consensus agreed. After discussion, the Council agreed to have the City Christmas Party at Big Ed s Steakhouse on Weds, Dec 19 th at 6:30pm. The Mayor asked the Clerk to make the arrangements. 9:05pm Councilman Wight moved for a 10 minute executive session to discuss non-elected personnel, seconded by Carmichael and carried 5-0.Mr. Schneider, Clerk Ambrosier, and Berens were invited to stay. 9:15pm Regular meeting resumes with no decisions being made. Councilman Wright moved to hire Brent Whittington as a temporary maintenance employee at the pay rate of $10.00 per hour for up to 100 hours to be used at Schneider s discretion; pending approval by the Mayor and Councilman Wright after a background check. The motion was seconded by Councilman Ambrosier and carried 5-0. Councilman Carmichael moved to authorize the Mayor and Councilman Wright to interview up to three candidates for the full-time Maintenance position and to present their recommendations at the January meeting. The motion was seconded by Serrano and carried 5-0. 9:25 Councilman Wright moved for a 20 minute executive session to discuss legal matters, seconded by Sager and carried 5-0. Attorney Berens was invited to stay. 9:45 Regular meeting resumes with no decisions being made. Councilman Wright moved to consent to Mayor Burr s decision regarding the termination of Maintenance employee, Russell Jackson, seconded by Carmichael and carried 5-0. A motion to adjourn was made by Wright and seconded by Carmichael. On motion duly made, seconded and carried 5-0, the meeting thereupon adjourned at 9:50 p.m. (Seal) Troy D. Burr Mayor - 5 -