September 2023 Council Meeting

COLBY COMMON COUNCIL September 5, 2023 Page 1 The regular meeting of the Colby Common Council was called to order at 6:30 P.M. by Mayor James Schmidt. On roll call: O’Brien, T Schmidt, Baumgartner, Hesgard, Hederer and Lindeman. Also present were Mayor James Schmidt, Clerk Connie Gurtner, DPW Higley and Engineer Mike Voss. Agenda was posted by the clerk. The agenda will stand as the order of the meeting. Minutes of the August 1st meeting minutes were pre-read and reviewed. Motion was made by Schmidt, seconded by Hesgard to approve the minutes as presented. Motion carried with a voice vote. Financial Statement and Bills were discussed. Motion was made by Hederer, seconded by Lindeman approve the financial statement and bills. The amounts approved are as follows: General Fund $82,763.21; Capital Fund $10,979.55; Water Department $34,459.62; Sewer Department $28,960.65; Net payroll $36,698.32. Motion carried with a voice vote. Colby/Abbotsford Police Commission met on August 14th. Minutes and Expenditures were approved by the commission. Discussion/Action on Municipalities Financing Options: A report (attached) prepared by President Schmidt with information provided by Colby City Clerk Connie Gurtner and Chief Bauer was presented. It was noted that the subject had not been reviewed since the CAPC was formed on May 1, 1969. Motion was made by Hesgard, seconded by Hederer to approve Option D as presented. Roll Call vote: Hesgard, Yes; Hederer, Yes; Diedrich, No; Rachu, No; Weideman, No; Schmidt, Yes. Motion failed. Motion was made by Hederer, seconded by Hesgard to approve a CAPD budget funding split of 60% Abbotsford/40% Colby, to be reviewed in 5 years. Discussion points: Chief Bauer said it makes no sense to split up the CAPD. He said the department is working great, and that the partnership between the municipalities shows that both sides want to work together and be fair. Rachu said he wanted additional information, including the cost of remodeling the building and maintenance costs. Hederer said the Abbotsford City Council wanted the building and didn’t want it located in Colby. Hederer suggested a 5 percent increase in Abbotsford's funding share could be phased in, 2.5% in 2024 and 2.5% in 2025. Weideman asked Chief Bauer for budget projections moving forward past 2024. He said increases would be seen in vehicle replacement costs and health insurance premiums. Hederer withdrew his motion and Hesgard withdrew his second. The issue was tabled until the September meeting. Chief's Report: Chief Bauer said the K-9 was deployed twice in July resulting in two arrests. He said July was a pretty calm month. He said the Abbotsford School District would like to have a full-time School Resource Officer (SRO). He COLBY COMMON COUNCIL September 5, 2023 Page 2 said a discussion will be held with the Colby School Board regarding the SRO issue. He said preliminary costs are being discussed. In the end, Chief Bauer said the cost to the CAPD would be no more than the current 25% for one SRO Officer. There were 772 total CAPD activities reported for the month of July, 2023. There have been 4,573 total CAPD activities reported for the first seven months of 2023, compared to 5,701 activities for the first seven months of 2022. The remainder of the meeting was held in closed session to discuss an update on police chief search. Central Fire & EMS District met on July 20th. Nancy O’Brien reported on the meeting of Central Fire & EMS. The total proposed 2024 budget is $699,400 with the City of Colby portion being $53,493.56. It is about a 2% increase in total budget, but the city’s portion is down $337.00. Motion was made by O’Brien, seconded by Schmidt to approve the 2024 proposed budget as present. Motion carried with a voice vote. Parks/Rec/Recycling Committee met on August 17th, September 5th. Comments from Public: Wade Oehmichen came to the meeting and expressed his appreciation for all the work that the city has done to make the volleyball courts at South 6th Street Park and inquired if a couple of lights could be replaced to shine opposite ways to eliminate a shadow created. They are looking at purchasing a 15 lb or 36 lb net at 15 feet high to prevent the volleyball from sliding under the pine trees. Potential Story Walk Location: There are limited areas in Colby that would make an effective location for the storybook pages without potential damage and neglecting persons with disabilities. The board provided various other ideas such as another nearby community or to include on a potential trail if the railroad removes the existing tracks. Nancy will bring this information back to the library board. Items reviewed for the 2024 budget: Ball field spraying at $1,400; Picnic table replacement at $1,250; Blast and repaint the shelter across from the post office $2,000; 3 additional lights at S 6th St park $2,000; gravel for bleachers area in S 6th St $1,190; Merkel Electric quoted 10 LED ballpark lights/polls at $17,160. These items total $25,000. The committee voted to recommend these budget items to the council for the budget. Public Works Committee met on August 22nd. COLBY COMMON COUNCIL September 5, 2023 Page 3 Fee for Water/Sewer Lateral Connection: The committee voted to go with today’s moving prices for water/sewer lateral connection. The ordinance will be updated to reflect the change. N 2nd Street/Community Drive Project: There was a certified letter mailed and emailed on Friday August 18, 2023 to Jim Melvin requesting a list of time frames of when the 2nd Street project will be completed prior to the due date of September 1st. Jim Melvin hand delivered a letter to Mayor Schmidt in office on August 22nd with an apology indicating that workers will be on 2nd Street to work on the punch list starting on Monday August 28th. Mike Voss will work with Melvin on turf restoration. A new letter with corrections and adjustments will be composed by MSA Voss and sent to Melvin. 2024 Budget: Wish List - Basket Truck, ($215,000 -$220,000); DPW ¾ ton work truck ($50,000); Road from Community Drive through Venzke property to Hwy 13 ($484,000) or just complete the utilities this year; Concrete pile crushing ($40,000); GPS digital utility layout mapping ($32,000); Air Compressor ($5000); Mill and Resurface Adams Street ($68,500 -City would be responsible for $34,250). $895,250 total Mayor Schmidt: Mayor Schmidt reported on his meeting of the Clark County Economic Development Corp. Clerk Gurtner: Clerk Gurtner reported on her training in Appleton. The city has implemented a new online payment service called HeyGov. DPW Higley: The following building permits were issued: Craig Lieders, 508 Terrace St, shed; Matthew Siewert, 303 S 5th St, wider driveway; Brian & Tammy Ottersen, 219 S 1st St, roof repair, cover sinkhole; Wolly Schorer, 407 W Broadway St, re-roof garage; Scott Seeman, 317 N 7th St, new siding; Loos Machine & Automation, 205 W Washington St, storage shelter. DPW Higley reported on the precipitation and flows for August 2023 at the STP. He also reported on the pumpage of water for August 2023. North 7th Street chip seal project is complete. The cold storage building by the shop is complete other than the incorrect overhead garage doors need to be replaced. Operator’s License: Motion was made by Hederer, seconded by Hesgard to approve the operator’s license for Kimberly Hanson, 215 S 2nd St, Colby. Motion carried with a voice vote. Picnic License – Knights of Columbus, Fall Festival 9/10/23: Motion was made by Hesgard, seconded by Hederer to approve the picnic license for the COLBY COMMON COUNCIL September 5, 2023 Page 4 Knights’ of Columbus for the Fall Festival on 9/10/23. Motion carried with a voice vote. Committee meetings for September: Colby-Abbotsford Police Commission will meet on September 18, 2023 at 7:00 P.M. at the Police Department. Central Fire & EMS District will meet on September 21, 2023 at 7:00 P.M. at Station 2. City Planning Committee will meet on September 13, 2023 at 6:00 P.M. and September 27, 2023 at 5:30 P.M. October council meeting will be Monday, October 2, 2023 at 6:30 P.M. with Finance Committee prior a 6:00 P.M. Personnel/Labor Relations Committee will meet on Wednesday, September 27, 2023 at 5:00 P.M. CLOSED SESSION Motion was made by, seconded by to go into closed session per State Statute 19.85(1) deliberating or negotiating the purchase of public properties, the investing of public funds, or conducting other specified public business, whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session. Purpose: Discuss funding of the Colby Abby Police Department and split with City of Abbotsford. Adjourn in Closed Session: Motion was made by Hederer, seconded by Hesgard to adjourn in closed session at 8:24 P.M. Motion carried with a voice vote. Approved _____________________ James W Schmidt, Mayor Attest _________________________ Connie Gurtner, Clerk