City Council

CITY OF BRITT – BRITT IOWA – NOVEMBER 19th, 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 19th day of November 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 for approval with a few changes. First, he will swear in Karrie Wallen immediately following the approval of the agenda and second Resolution 21-2019 will be moved to the December 17th, 2019 meeting. It was moved by Swenson and seconded by Gast to approve the agenda as presented by the Mayor Arndorfer. Motion carried by unanimous vote Mayor Arndorfer swore Karrie Wallen in to perform duties as a City Council Member as set forth by local and State ordinance. It was moved by Verbrugge and seconded by Luecht 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 11/05/2019 Council Meeting b. Approve Minutes of the 11/14/2019 Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting c. Claim list in the amount of $58,884.21 A roll call vote was had which was as follows: Ayes: Swenson, Gast, Wallen, Verbrugge and Luecht Nays: None The motion carried, and the Consent Agenda items were approved and adopted. Katie Sterk and Wes Brown from Bolton & Menk were present to discuss the plans for the new Water Treatment Plant. Sterk informed Council she is working on a report that will review our entire water treatment system to find out if we have any deficiencies. Discussion included the overall age of our wells (80-years old and 107-years old), concerns about the size of pipe on 3 blocks of Center St (current 4” needs to be 10”), possible recommendations to consider installing a water softener to help combat the city’s hard water issues, and a reverse osmosis system that will assist in meeting future requirements from the DNR and EPA. She invited the council to join her and Vance Hagen, Public Works Director, when they tour some existing facilities that operate water softeners and reverse osmosis components as part of their water treatment plant. They also spoke of doing a rate study based on current usage numbers. The last survey was based on approximately half of the current use we have at this time. They hope to have the full report completed by end of year.  As Mr. Hill was not present Mayor Arndorfer reviewed the outcome of the Planning and Zoning meeting held 11/14/19. It appears the final plat submitted to us by V&K had some differences when compared to the paperwork Mr. Hill had. Those differences included: One of the streets was labeled “Lot A” and our paperwork had a different number of lots. The current amendment now matches the actual plat that was submitted by the engineers. The Mayor presented Resolution 20-2019 Amending the Final Plat & the Approval of the Dedication of Burgardt Commercial Park. It was moved by Luecht and seconded by Verbrugge to approve Resolution 20-2019 Amending the Final Plat & the Approval of the Dedication of Burgardt Commercial Park. A roll call vote was had which was as follows: Ayes: Swenson, Gast, Wallen, Luecht and Verbrugge Nays: None The motion carried. Board members from the Britt Golf Course were present to speak with the City Council in regard to the current fiscal health of the golf course. The board was present for two reasons. First, they asked if the City would support the Britt Golf Course by providing them with $5,000 to assist with financial obligations they have for the month of December 2019. If the City is not be willing to assist them, they would more than likely have to close their doors. The second request was to ask if the City would be willing to take ownership of the golf course. If the City is unable assume ownership the golf course will more than like have to close their doors. When discussing the viability of the golf course the board felt it was more successful after the made some changes to the food aspect of the golf course. What hurt them financially is the old debt they are carrying. Mayor Arndorfer stated he had been approached prior to the meeting and has had a chance to reach out to several communities where the municipality has taken over the golf course. Arndorfer feels our situation closely resembles how the City of Garner became involved in their golf course. With the exception that we don’t have as much maintenance needed on our course. Arndorfer further stated he does not like the idea of Britt losing amenities. Eric Newton of First State Bank noted the land in which the golf course sits on is an asset. If the City took over the property and found it was not able to run in the black, we would have the option of selling the land to pay off any debt the City accrued. It was moved by Swenson and seconded by Luecht to provide the $5,000 to support the Britt Golf Course while we explore further options. Motion carried by unanimous vote. The City Administrator presented her report. Sawyer presented the Council with Resolution 18-2019 Establishing a Residential Sidewalk Reimbursement Program. We currently have one in place, but the resolution makes some positive changes to the current program. It was moved Verbrugge and seconded by Swenson to approve Resolution 18-2019 Establishing a Residential Sidewalk Reimbursement Program. A roll call vote was had which was as follows: Ayes: Swenson, Gast, Wallen, Luecht and Verbrugge Nays: None The motion carried. Sawyer presented the Annual Finance Report for FY 2018/2019. This report is very similar to the budget report we submit to the State each year. The difference is this report provides the State with actual figures for the FY 2018/2019. It was moved by Swenson and seconded by Gast to approve the Annual Finance Report for FY2018/2019. Motion carried by unanimous vote.  Mayor Arndorfer presented his report. Vance Hagen, Public Works Director was present to discuss the need for a fourth member of his team. A position opened up after a member of the team accepted a position elsewhere. It was determined the need for a skilled water/wastewater operator is needed. It was moved by Gast and seconded by Luecht to approve the posting for a skilled water/wastewater operator for the Public Works Department. Motion carried by unanimous vote. Sawyer and Hagen will work on a posting. Lastly, Chief Anderson was present to make his recommendation for the new police officer. Anderson stated they held interviews and he feels that Lara Cram would fit nicely in our department. Cram has worked part-time for department for approximately 2 years. She is also a certified officer and will be paid at a rate of $20.75, the current rate both Officer Holbrook and Officer Williams are being paid. She accepted the offer, based on contingent on council approval, and gave a start date of January 1st, 2020. This will give her time to give proper notice to her current employer and find a place to live in Britt. It was moved by Swenson and seconded by Wallen to approve the recommendation of Chief Anderson to hire Lara Cram. Motion carried by unanimous vote. With no further business it was moved by Luecht and seconded by Gast 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 CONTRACT CLEANING $495.00 AGSOURCE LABORATORIES TESTING $2,138.00 ALLIANT ENERGY UTILITIES $8,564.16 ARAMARK SERVICES $348.22 AXON ENTERPRISE INC TASER/HOLSTER $1,129.00 BASE CAFETERIA $30.00 BOLTON & MENK PRELIM ENGINEERING RPT $4,330.00 BRITT FOOD CENTER SHOP SUPPLIES $6.98 BROWN SUPPLY INC REFLECTIVE HYDRANT POLES $225.00 CARD SERVICES LIBRARY $825.89 CARLENE MEYER REIMBURSEMENT/SIDEWALK PROG $125.95 DOLLAR GENERAL-CHARGED SA OFFICE SUPPLIES $22.95 DON HILBERT REIMBURSEMENT/SIDEWALK PROG $165.75 EARL HILL IMAA SEMINAR DUES $226.00 EFTPS FED/FICA TAX $4,817.34 GERALD ANDERSON REIMBURSEMENT/SIDEWALK PROG $134.46 GREAT AMERICA FINANCIAL LEASE PYMT/PRINTER/COPIER $154.59 HANCOCK CO CLERK OF COURT GARNISHMENT $219.50 HANCOCK CO HEALTH SYSTEM FIRE FLU SHOTS $420.00 HOLIDAY INN AIRPORT GWORKS TRAINING/S.BALL $235.20 IOWA PRISON INDUSTRIES SIGNS $190.75 IOWA RURAL WATER ASSOC IRWA DUES $275.00 KIOW PUBLISHING $111.59 MAXYIELD COOPERATIVE GAS/DIESEL $2,435.29 MCKINNES EXCAVATING REPAIR JOINT ON STWR SWR SYSTEM $1,910.00 MCNEESE TIRE SERVICE CALL $125.39 NATIONWIDE RETIREMENT DEFERRED COMP $20.00 NEXT GENERATION TECH INC SYSTEM SUPPORT $231.40 NORTH IOWA MEDIA GROUP PUBLISHING $1,151.41 PAT TRULSON REIMBURSEMENT/SIDEWALK PROG $89.25 PAYROLL CHECKS PAYROLL CHECKS ON 11/06/2019 $13,939.54 PSI ENVELOPES $393.77 SANDRY FIRE SUPPLY FIRE SUPPLES $695.60 SHIRLEY TEGTMEYER REIMBURSEMENT/SIDEWALK PROG $244.23 STATE HYGIENIC LABORATORY TESTING FEE $485.50 VERIZON PD PHONE $331.55 WASTE MANAGEMENT SANITATION $11,639.95 CLAIMS TOTAL $58,884.21