City Council

City Council Meeting Minutes ___________________________________________________________________________________________ THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 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 Rob Forman Councilor Gordon Thistle Councilor Jeff Reinan Councilor Connie Quick COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT: None ALSO PRESENT: Kim Karber, City Administrator/Recorder Micah Rogers, Public Works Superintendent Jerry Bartolomucci, Chief of Police ATTORNEY PRESENT: None A quorum was present and due notice had been published. AGENDA ITEM 2 CITIZEN INPUT: 2.1 Jak Massey with the South Columbia County Chamber of Commerce: Jak did a six-month check-in with council and went over the 2023 year in review handout. She also let us know about their annual fundraiser which will be on March 23rd at the Columbia County Fairgrounds. AGENDA ITEM 3 COUNCIL REPORTS: 3.1 Audit Committee: Councilor Forman reported the committee went over the list from the City’s auditors about internal controls and checks and balances. 3.2 Hazard Committee: Councilor Quick said that Charles Dryden, a member of the committee, has a ham radio which can be used in the event of an emergency. It must be registered to the City through a Letter of Intent and list a designated person. Chief Bartolomucci said it has to do with the licensing and the use of the radio frequency for City services during an emergency. 3.3 Parks Committee: Chair Claridge and Councilor Reinan said there was a lot of preliminary discussion on placing more benches and picnic tables and looking at getting some volunteer groups (Boy Scouts, Eagle Scouts, Lions Club, etc.) to volunteer to work on some of the projects. The next meeting will be on March 12th. 3.4 Streets Committee: A meeting is scheduled for February 28th at 6. 2 Regular City Council Meeting February 15, 2024 3.5 Water & Sewer Committee: A meeting is scheduled for February 21st at 6. AGENDA ITEM 4 CONSENT AGENDA: 4.1 Bills paid with check numbers 34729 through 34774 during the month of January 2024. 4.2 Expense vs Budget Report for the month ending January 31, 2024. 4.3 Revenue Analysis Report for the month ending January 31, 2024. 4.4 Combined balance sheet for the month ending January 31, 2024. 4.5 Minutes of the January 18, 2024, Regular City Council Meeting. 4.6 Activity Report from the Chief of Police for the month of January 2024. 4.7 Activity Report from the Public Works Superintendent for the month of January 2024. 4.8 Minutes of the January 9, 2024, Parks Committee Meeting. 4.9 Minutes of the January 31, 2024, Hazard Committee Meeting. THE COUNCIL APPROVED THE CONSENT AGENDA BY UNANIMOUS ROLL CALL VOTE. AGENDA ITEM 5 UNFINISHED BUSINESS: 5.1 Second reading of Council Bill No. 24-974; Resolution 24-736-O: 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 second reading of Council Bill No. 24-974. MOVED (REINAN), SECONDED (FORMAN), AND CARRIED UNAMIMOUSLY TO ADOPT COUNCIL BILL 24-974 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE TERMS OF OFFICE FOR THE PLANNING COMMISSION. 5.2 Request for Relief of ADU charges for pre-existing structure as submitted by Carrie Tracy of 655 Franklin Street. MOVED (REINAN), SECONDED (FORMAN), AND CARRIED UNAMIMOUSLY TO FORGO ALL SDC FEES ON THE ADU BECAUSE THEY WERE NONEXISTANT WHEN THE ADU WAS BUILT. AGENDA ITEM 6 NEW BUSINESS: 6.1 Appointment of budget officer. MOVED (THISTLE), SECONDED (FORMAN), AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO ELECT CITY ADMINISTRATOR, KIM KARBER, AS THE CITY’S BUDGET OFFICER. 6.2 Audited Financial Report for the Year Ended June 30, 2023. Councilor Forman explained the auditors gave us an ‘unqualified’ opinion, which means they backed what was published in our budget without any qualifications or recommendations. The requested feedback was around our internal controls, which the City has several of the controls already in place and will work on getting them better documented. MOVED (THISTLE), SECONDED (FORMAN), AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO ACCEPT THE AUDITED FINANCIAL REPORT FROM PAULY, ROGERS AND COMPANY FOR THE YEAR ENDED JUNE 30,2023. 6.3 Obligation of ARPA Funding for police car and backhoe purchases. 3 Regular City Council Meeting February 15, 2024 MOVED (THISTLE), SECONDED (REINAN), AND CARRIED UNAMINOUSLY TO USE ARPA FUNDS FOR THE PURCHASE OF THE POLICE CAR AND TO NOT SPEND MORE THAN $100,000 ON A USED BACKHOE. 6.4 First reading of Council Bill No. 24-976: An Ordinance limiting liability for the City of Columbia City and other parties from private claims resulting from use of trails in a public easement or unimproved right-of-way under ORS 105.668. The Council completed the first reading of Council Bill No. 24-976. 6.5 Application for Portable Basketball Hoop in Right-of-Way Permit as applied for by Ashley Halligan of 200 Spinnaker Way. MOVED (FORMAN), SECONDED (THISTLE), AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO APPROVE THE PORTABLE BASKETBALL HOOP IN THE CITY’S RIGHT-OF-WAY AT 200 SPINNAKER WAY. AGENDA ITEM 7 OTHER BUSINESS: River’s Walk Trail: Mayor Claridge inquired about the tree that fell across the trail. PW cut a section out of the tree so people could still get through but will need to get some big equipment back there to remove it completely. They are going to wait until the ground dries out a bit more. Lignetics Meeting: Kim gave a brief overview about the meeting that was held in the Community Hall on February 13th with Lignetics and The Port. The DEQ was also invited to attend but did not make the meeting. Mike Sale from Lignetics gave a presentation about the improvements that they are going to be working on this year, but it will not be completed until after this summer. They are trying to put steps in place to try and help keep the dust down during the warmer months including water sprayers automatically turning on when the trucks are dumping material, keeping raw material inside/under cover, and enclosing the hammer mill. They are also working with The Port to move the truck entrance over to the Trestle Beach access area. Park Equipment Grant: Kim explained that the grant Leahnette was looking at applying for to replace the play equipment in Harvard Park should be postponed until next year. It is a grant that comes up every year and we would not be properly prepared if we applied for it this year. We need more time to do some planning, get public input, and public participation. Instead, she will apply for a grant for a parks master plan. Food Bank Donation: We received a letter from the Food Bank requesting an item donation for an auction they are holding or a monetary donation. After discussion we will donate some items we have on hand for the auction. Councilor Forman inquired about who the City has donated to in the past and how much they have donated. Kim will investigate and put a list together. Bids for work on City Hall and Community Hall: Micah is still working on getting bids for the work that needs to be done on the buildings. They both have areas of rotting wood that need to be replaced and then repainted. Recreational Immunity: Kim went over an email received from our insurance company, CIS, regarding recreational immunity. There are currently several different bills that are before legislation to be reviewed regarding getting something back in place for recreational immunity in Oregon. There is a bill CIS is recommending we support and suggested we reach out to our state representative, Suzanne Weber, showing support for the bill. AGENDA ITEM 8 ADJOURNMENT: 8.1 There being no further business to come before the Council, the meeting adjourned at 7:34 pm. 4 Regular City Council Meeting February 15, 2024 APPROVED: _______________________________________ Katrina Claridge Mayor ATTEST: ___________________________________ Kim Karber City Administrator/Recorder