City Council

City Council Meeting Minutes ___________________________________________________________________________________________ THURSDAY, JANUARY 25, 2024 – 6:00 PM COLUMBIA CITY, CITY HALL – 1840 SECOND STREET CITY OF COLUMBIA CITY, COLUMBIA COUNTY, OREGON AGENDA ITEM 1 CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL: CONVENED: Mayor Katrina Claridge called the Regular Meeting to order at 6:00 pm. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: Council President Gordon Thistle Councilor Rob Forman Councilor Jeff Reinan Councilor Connie Quick COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT: None ALSO PRESENT: Kim Karber, Interim City Administrator/Recorder Leahnette Rivers, Assistant City Administrator Helen Johnson, Building, Court, Planning ATTORNEY PRESENT: None A quorum was present and due notice had been published. AGENDA ITEM 2 CITIZEN INPUT: None. AGENDA ITEM 3 COUNCIL REPORTS: None. AGENDA ITEM 4 CONSENT AGENDA: 4.1 Bills paid with check numbers 34684 through 34728 during the month of December 2023. 4.2 Expense vs Budget Report for the month ending December 31, 2023. 4.3 Revenue Analysis Report for the month ending December 31, 2023. 4.4 Combined balance sheet for the month ending December 31, 2023. 4.5 Minutes of the December 21, 2023, Regular City Council Meeting. 4.6 Activity Report from the Chief of Police for the month of December 2023. 4.7 Activity Report from the Public Works Superintendent for the month of December 2023. 4.8 Minutes of the December 12, 2023, Audit Committee Meeting. 4.9 Reappoint Barbara Gordon and Suella Kovich to the Audit Committee. 4.10 Reappoint Lyle Bluhm and Kit Gardes to the Budget Committee. 4.11 Reappoint Doug Calkins and Mark Stevens to the Planning Committee. 4.12 Reappoint Gary Hudson and Frank Hupp to the Hazard Mitigation Team. 2 Regular City Council Meeting January 25, 2024 THE COUNCIL APPROVED THE CONSENT AGENDA BY UNANIMOUS ROLL CALL VOTE. AGENDA ITEM 5 UNFINISHED BUSINESS: 5.1 City Council selection of candidate to fill the open City Council position. MOVED (THISTLE), SECONDED (FORMAN) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO APPOINT CONNIE QUICK TO FILL THE CITY COUNCIL POSITION. CONNIE QUICK SWORN INTO OFFICE BY KIM KARBER. 5.2 Second reading of Council Bill No. 23-273; Ordinance No. 24-735-O: An Ordinance repealing Ordinance No. 348. The Council completed the second reading of Council Bill No. 22-273. MOVED (THISTLE), SECONDED (REINAN), AND CARRIED UNAMIMOUSLY TO ADOPT COUNCIL BILL 23-273. AGENDA ITEM 6 NEW BUSINESS: 6.1 Election of Council President. MOVED (THISTLE), SECONDED (REINAN) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO ELECT COUNCIL MEMBER ROB FORMAN AS CITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT FOR THE CITY OF COLUMBIA CITY. 6.2 Committee Appointments. MAYOR CLARIDGE ASSIGNED CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEES AS FOLLOWS: COUNCILOR FORMAN AS A MEMBER OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE, MAYOR CLARIDGE TO CHAIR THE PARKS COMMITTEE WITH COUNCILOR REINAN AS A MEMBER, COUNCILOR FORMAN TO CHAIR THE STREETS COMMITTEE, COUNCILOR THISTLE TO CHAIR THE WATER AND SEWER COMMITTEE, AND COUNCILOR QUICK AS A MEMBER OF THE HAZARD COMMITTEE. 6.3 First reading of Council Bill No. 24-974: An Ordinance amending Ordinance No. 99-548-O, an Ordinance creating a Planning Commission for the City of Columbia City; prescribing their powers and duties; and establishing the term of office of their members. The Council completed the first reading of Council Bill No. 24-974. 6.4 Council Bill No. 24-975; Resolution No. 24-1309-R: A Resolution authorizing and approving an amended Clean Water State Revolving Fund Loan Agreement between the State of Oregon acting by and through its Department of Environmental Quality and the City of Columbia City, Oregon; amending Resolution No. 23-1295-R. MOVED (FORMAN), SECONDED (REINAN) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO ADOPT COUNCIL BILL NO. 24-975 TO APPROVE THE AMENDED CLEAN WATER STATE REVOLVING FUND LOAN AGREEMENT WITH THE STATE OF OREGON. 6.5 Request for Relief of ADU charges for pre-existing structure as submitted by Carrie Tracy of 655 Franklin Street. After the Mayor and Council discussed the waiving of ADU charges they came to a consensus to do some further research on what other options there are in these circumstances and possible waiver request programs. 3 Regular City Council Meeting January 25, 2024 6.6 Intergovernmental Partnership Agreement for ePermit System and Services between The State of Oregon, acting by and through the Department of Consumer and Business Services Building Codes Division and the City of Columbia City. MOVED (REINAN), SECONDED (THISTLE) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO APPROVE THE UPDATED INTERGOVERNMENTAL PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT FOR THE EPERMITTING SYSTEM. 6.7 Ratify hiring Steven Bubar as a paid part-time Police Officer. MOVED (REINAN), SECONDED (THISTLE) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO APPROVE THE HIRING OF OFFICER BUBAR AS OF JANUARY 1, 2024. 6.8 Consideration of donation request from the GLOW Team at Columbia River PUD. MOVED (QUICK), SECONDED (THISTLE) AND CARRIED UNAMIMOUSLY FOR THE CITY TO NOT MAKE A DONATION TO THE GLOW TEAM AT THE PUD. 6.9 City Council discussion about how to move forward with filling the City Administrator position. The Council may choose to go into Executive Session in accordance with ORS 192.660(2)(a) to consider the employment of a public officer, employee, staff member or individual agent. COUNCIL WENT INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION AT 6:35 AND RETURNED TO REGULAR SESSION AT 7:07. Mayor and Council will do a review every six months for the next two years to look at the progress being made by the City Administrator. Any increases have yet to be determined. MOVED (THISTLE), SECONDED (REINEN) AND CARRIED UNAMIMOUSLY TO APPOINT KIM KARBER AS CITY ADMINISTRATOR. AGENDA ITEM 7 OTHER BUSINESS: Staff check in: Mayor Claridge would like to start doing regular check-in’s with City Staff to see if they have any concerns or items they would like to address. Councilor Forman encouraged them to come to meetings if there is something they want to discuss and to not wait. Leahnette made the recommendation that when the Council is doing the City Administrator’s six month review, they also have City Staff do an evaluation. City/County dinners: No one is receiving the email invitations for the quarterly city/county dinners. Vernonia is on the schedule to hold it for first quarter. Kim will reach out to them to see about getting everyone on the email list. Policy/Goals/Objective setting for the year: Will look at doing a workshop to set goals after getting input from the different committees. Meetings will be held at the end of February and beginning of March. AGENDA ITEM 8 ADJOURNMENT: 8.1 There being no further business to come before the Council, the meeting adjourned at 7:22 pm. 4 Regular City Council Meeting January 25, 2024 APPROVED: _______________________________________ Katrina Claridge Mayor ATTEST: ___________________________________ Kim Karber City Administrator/Recorder