City Council

CITY OF BRITT – BRITT IOWA – JULY 2ND, 2019 The City Council of the City of Britt, Iowa met in pursuant to law and the rules of said Council in regular session in the Council Chambers in City Hall at 7:00 o’clock P.M. the 2nd day of July 2019. The meeting was called to order by Mayor Arndorfer, and the following Council members were: PRESENT: Stacy Swenson, Curt Gast, Karrie Wallen, Paul Verbrugge and Chad Luecht ABSENT: None The Mayor presented the agenda and asked for a motion to approve. It was moved by Verbrugge and seconded by Luecht to approve the agenda as presented. Motion carried by unanimous vote. It was moved by Luecht and seconded by Verbrugge that the following items contained in the Consent Agenda be approved and adopted: All items listed under the Consent Agenda will be enacted by one motion with a roll call vote. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a request is made prior to the time Council votes on the motion. Consent Agenda items may include any non-controversial subjects. a. Approve Minutes of the 06/18/2019 Council Meeting b. Claim list in the amount of $99,801.88 c. Approve extension of a Class C Liquor License (LC) (Commercial) for Britt Bar & Grill for Hobo Days (Eric Cox) from August 8th to August 12th, 2019 A roll call vote was had which was as follows: Ayes: Gast, Wallen, Verbrugge and Luecht Nays: None The motion carried, and the Consent Agenda items were approved and adopted. Present to be heard was Eric Newton as a representative of BIDCO to speak about the marketing plan they intend to roll out this year to advertise Burgardt Commercial Park. He explained the need for the City’s contribution to their operating budget was misunderstood when the city’s budget was being worked on. The money the City provides is the only income they receive to pay for their expenses. The money being requested will pay for the advertisement that has been approved by the BIDCO board. It was moved by Gast and seconded by Verbrugge to approve granting BIDCO the $!0,000 that was originally requested for FY2019/2020. The money will not be paid out of the general fund. The City will use the monies received from local option sales tax, as it has been set aside for economic development. Motion carried by unanimous vote. The department heads presented their reports. Linda Friedow, Library Director, reported the Bug Zoo had 77 children participate in the event. The summer lunch program has been going great. An overall average of 37 children are fed at each session. If anyone is interested in sponsoring lunch, please contact the Linda at the Library. The Mayor noted that our public works director was on vacation so he would go over his report. Arndorfer discussed the need for a larger mower that was big enough to properly mow the Industrial Park. Vance Hagen found a used 3-point mower that can be hooked up to our tractor for $700.00. This would drastically cut down on the man hours needed to keep the area mowed and looking good. It was moved Verbrugge and seconded by Wallen to purchase the 3-point mower for the commercial park in the amount of $700. Motion carried by unanimous vote. Police Chief Mark Anderson reported they were working on abatements. The police department has received numerous complaints about a large raccoon in town, so they have set out a live trap to hopefully catch it. At this time, they have caught all sorts of animals, including a baby otter, but have not caught the raccoon yet. They were going to move the trap with hopes of finally catching it. Anderson reported that he was requesting permission to order 2 new radar guns. Two of the radar guns are approximately six years old and only work when they want to. The ones we currently have only capture oncoming traffic, but the new ones capture traffic coming and going. It was moved by Gast and seconded by Swenson to purchase two new radar guns. Motion carried by unanimous vote. Proposed changes to the golf cart ordinance was discussed. Discussion included talks about the ability for those who are 14 ½ can get a school permit and drive a car why shouldn’t we allow them to drive golf carts in town. Talks included making requirements such as completion of drivers’ education and limiting the number of passengers and ages of passengers allowed. The Chief of Police stated he did not support the change from 16 to 14 years old. He explained, while he knows not all 14 -15-year-old would be irresponsible there would be those individuals who would ruin it for everyone else. When comparing it to a scooter, he believes the 14-15 year-old teenagers who drive a scooter are more apt to pay closer attention as they are on two wheels and if they mess around to much they will likely crash. The golf cart has, of course, 4-wheels and it is his opinion that there is a higher chance they will be a little more reckless. When put to council for direction it was moved by Gast and seconded Swenson to change the legal age to drive a golf cart from 16 years old to 14 years old with the requirements they follow the same rules as what is currently required for school permits, they must hold a drivers’ permit, they must have completed drivers’ education classes, and adding potential guidelines for number/ages of passengers. Ayes: Gast & Swenson. Nays: Wallen, Verbrugge and Luecht. Motion failed to pass. No changes will be made to the ordinance. Jon Swenson, Fire Chief, reported they responded to 6 calls for the month of June. The truck committee met with three fire truck manufacturers (Spartan, Pierce and Toyne) to spec out a new pumper engine. They will be meeting with the Fire Board to open bids on July 8th at 6:30 p.m. at the Fire Station. The bids will be opened but no contract will be awarded at that time. They have sent out requests to three vendors who would service this area. We would not be taking possession of the new truck until FY2021. Mike Boomgarden, Zoning Administrator, reported he issued 6 new building permits and talked with another four people about permits. City Administrator Sawyer gave her report. She presented the agreement from Bolton & Menk for professional services in the amount of $38,000 for the north watermain extension to the property owned by Alliant Energy. Additional services, if warranted, will be billed according to the schedule of fees provided in the agreement. It was moved by Luecht and seconded by Verbrugge to approve the agreement from Bolton & Menk in the amount of $38,000 for the north watermain extension to the property owned by Alliant Energy. Additional services, if warranted, will be billed according to the schedule of fees provided in the agreement. Motion carried by unanimous vote. Sawyer stated that Robbie Cook stopped in the office and would like to know if the City will allow the sale of the ½ lot (33 ft. wide) to the adjoining property owned by Al Olson. The City cannot tell any resident if they can or cannot sell a property. The City just wants both parties to be aware that the house that exists now on the ½ lot is fine. There is nothing in our ordinance or zoning regulations that stop Olson from using it as a garage if that what he wishes to do. However, if the building is removed another building cannot be built on the property as it is a ½ sized lot. Mike Boomgarden was instructed to make sure Cook and Olson knew of the rules.  Finally, Sawyer requested permission to take bills for overdue utilities that aren’t eligible to certify to the Treasurer’s office because they are rentals. We currently have one that is over $1,500 and even though the service was disconnected, somehow a huge amount of water was able to be used without our knowledge. We are not able to certify taxes against the property as it is not owner occupied. It was moved by Verbrugge and seconded by Gast to grant permission to the City Administrator to take utility bills to small claims court to attempt to recoup the money owed to the city. Motion carried by unanimous vote. For the next meeting the Council would like a list of how many shut offs were sent out this month. They would like the address for each house and all houses that are currently shut off and the date they were shut off. Mayor Arndorfer presented his report. As discussed at the last meeting, the need for bulk water exists in the city limits. Vance Hagen and Mayor Arndorfer visited a few sites that offered bulk water stations. One was located in Blue Earth, MN and is set up to pay with a credit card. You can buy whatever you need and hit a button located on the front of the building when you are done. It is set up to bill at a minimum of $10 for 1,000 gallons. The other option was located in Algona and is set up kind of like a car wash. The City of Algona built their own building and bought components they needed to complete it. The building is not heated but it’s insulated, and you would pay based on how long the water was running. This option could take cash or credit card. This option would roughly cost approximately $7,500 plus a monthly fee of $7.95. Next, Arndorfer discussed the plans we have for our water tower. As discussed at a previous meeting we were offered a couple choices on how to best go about rehabbing our silver water tower. Vance Hagen will have the bids available for the next council meeting. Finally, Arndorfer stated he was asked by a resident why we stopped allowing yard waste to be burned. Those who were on the council said the reason was the air quality had gotten so bad that residents with allergies or asthma were having problems breathing as the smoke was so thick. Arndorfer said he would relay this information back to the resident. With no further business it was moved by Verbrugge and seconded by Swenson to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried by unanimous vote. Debra R. Sawyer, City Administrator/Clerk Ryan L. Arndorfer, Mayor “These minutes are as recorded by the Clerk and are subject to Council approval at the next regular meeting.” VENDOR DESCRIPTION AMOUNT A P CLEANING SERVICES CONTRACTED CLEANING $ 555.00 ACCO LIQUID CHLORINATING SOLUTION $ 1,002.35 AFLAC AFLAC-PRE-TAX $ 42.76 AMAZON BUILD $ 2,087.18 ARAMARK MOPS/HANDLE $ 302.59 BASE MEDICAL REIMB $ 131.26 BMC AGGREGATES L.C. ROADSTONE $ 199.43 BOLTON & MENK PREP FOR CONTRACT DOCUMENTS $ 900.00 BOOK LOOK IF- BOOKS $ 270.82 BRITT FOOD CENTER SUPPLY $ 114.30 BRITT LUMBER LLC WOOD SCREWS $ 23.59 BRODART BOOKS $ 481.79 CARD SERVICES Supplies for Library $ 249.78 CARLSON DRAINAGE JET STORM SEWER RMV TREE ROOTS $ 550.00 CENGAGE LEARNING LP BOOKS $ 197.91 COMM 1 PHONE $ 684.07 COMPASS DELINQUENT NOTICES $ 586.01 DEBRA STUDER REPLACE MAILBOX $ 59.99 DELTA DENTAL OF IOWA Dental/Vision Ins/July 2019 $ 575.54 DEMCO SUM READ SUPPLY $ 44.43 DOUG WEILAND PERFORMANCE 4 BURNER $ 148.73 DUET RESOURCE GROUP MEETING RM TABLES & CHAIRS $ 5,758.00 EFTPS FED/FICA TAX $ 7,068.69 ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY LIBRARY RENEWAL $ 30.00 FIRE SERVICE TRAINING BUR TRAINING EDUCATION $ 150.00 GIFTS SEW SWEET SUM READING SHIRTS $ 244.76 GREAT AMERICA FINANCIAL CONTRACT $ 261.37 HANCOCK CO CLERK OF COURT GARNISHMENT $ 219.50 HANCOCK COUNTY SHERIFF GARNISHMENT 2 $ 309.49 HAWKINS INC. CHEMICALS $ 481.00 HEWETT WHOLESALE INC. POPCORN/BUTTER $ 147.45 HISCOCKS EXCAVATING REPAIR WATER LINES $ 593.75 IACMA 2019-2020 DUES RENEWAL $ 120.00 IMFOA/CERTIFICATIONS CERTIFICATIONS ONLY $ 125.00 IMWCA WORK COMP PREMIUM 19-20 $ 3,848.00 INTERSTATE MOTOR TRUCK REGULATOR $ 88.66 IOWA DNR WATER PERMIT $ 239.52 IOWA LEAGUE OF CITIES MEMBER DUES $ 2,341.00 IPERS POLICE IPERS $ 3,498.91 JOEL SHOWALTER REFUND FOR SWIMMING LESSONS $ 60.00 MICRO MARKETING AUDIO BOOKS $ 219.88 MIDAMERICA BOOKS NF BOOKS $ 129.65 MIDWEST PIPE SUPPLY PIPE/GRATE/HYDRANT WRENCH $ 473.11 MUNICIPAL PIPE & TOOL JET CLEANING SEWERS $ 16,785.41 NATIONWIDE RETIREMENT DEFERRED COMP $ 20.00 NEWCOM TECHNOLOGIES LICENSE SERVICE AGREEMENT $ 900.00 NORTH IOWA DESIGNS BANNERS $ 732.74 NORTHERN LIGHTS CONCESSIONS $ 936.74 PAYROLL CHECKS PAYROLL CHECKS ON 06/19/2019 $ 24,052.63 PAYROLL CHECKS PAYROLL CHECKS ON 06/28/2019 $ 905.52 POPULAR MECHANICS MAGAZINE RENEWAL $ 36.38 PRESTO-X-COMPANY PEST CONTROL $ 47.00 PSI SUPPLY $ 102.66 SANDRY FIRE SUPPLY NAME PATCH $ 58.00 STATE TREASURER STATE TAXES $ 983.00 STERLING COMPUTER PRODUCT SUPPLY $ 129.72 STEVE LANCING SUMMER REC BB EQUIP $ 53.06 SWENSON'S HARDWARE SUPPLIES $ 657.37 TRULSON AUTO OIL/FILTERS $ 126.22 UHC HEALTH-PRE-TAX $ 3,147.99 WASTE MANAGEMENT MONTHLY SANITATION $ 14,413.92 WATCHGUARD VIDEO VISTA HD $ 92.00 WOMAN'S DAY LIB MAGAZINE RENEWAL $ 6.25 CLAIMS TOTAL $ 99,801.88