Regular Meeting

City of Elko ) County of Elko ) State of Nevada ) SS January 10, 2023 The City Council of the City of Elko, State of Nevada met for a regular meeting beginning at 4:00 PM, Tuesday, January 10, 2023. The meeting was held at the Elko Convention & Visitors Authority, Ruby Room #3, 700 Moren Way, Elko. This meeting was called to order by Mayor Reece Keener. The public can watch the meeting by phone, tablet, laptop, or computer by going to the link provided on the agenda. Questions can be sent to cityclerk@elkocitynv.gov. I. CALL TO ORDER The Agenda for this meeting of the City of Elko City Council has been properly posted for this date and time in accordance with NRS requirements. II ROLL CALL . Present: Reece Keener, Mayor Mandy Simons, Councilwoman Chip Stone, Councilman Clair Morris, Councilman Giovanni Puccinelli, Councilman City Staff Present: Diann Byington, Recording Secretary Jan Baum, Financial Services Director Curtis Calder, City Manager Jeff Ford, Building Official Jim Foster, Airport Manager Cathy Laughlin, City Planner Candi Quilici, Accounting Manager Michele Rambo, Development Manager Susie Shurtz, Human Resources Manager DJ Smith, Computer Information Systems Coordinator Jack Snyder, Fire Chief Dave Stanton, City Attorney Dennis Strickland, Public Works Director Bob Thibault, Civil Engineer Ty Trouten, Police Chief Scott Wilkinson, Assistant City Manager Kelly Wooldridge, City Clerk James Wiley, Parks and Recreation Director Dale Johnson, Utilities Director January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 1 of 27  III. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE IV. COMMENTS BY THE GENERAL PUBLIC Pursuant to N.R.S. 241, this time is devoted to comments by the public, if any, and discussion of those comments. No action may be taken upon a matter raised under this item on the agenda until the matter itself has been specifically included on a successive agenda and identified as an item for possible action. ACTION WILL NOT BE TAKEN Cami Ann Gerber, Boys and Girls Club, invited everyone to their upcoming Elko Community Concert Association concert, Saturday, January 21, 2023. Bill and Ann Nesbit have served as President and Treasurer of the organization since 1969 and they have asked her and Travis to take over their position. They are excited to do this and will be able to hold it in the High School's new Performing Arts Building. Mayor Keener thanked Cami for inviting everyone. He already had his tickets. V. PRESENTATION A. Reading of a proclamation by the Mayor in recognition of the month January 2023 as "National Radon Month" in Elko, Nevada, and matters related thereto. INFORMATION ONLY - NON ACTION ITEM Mayor Keener read the proclamation. B. Reading of a proclamation by the Mayor in recognition of the Elko High School Wrestling Team, and matters related thereto. INFORMATION ONLY - NON ACTION ITEM Mayor Keener stated we were expecting to present another proclamation to the Elko High School Wrestling Team but we are waiting for some details that did not come in. We hope to have this item at the next meeting. VI. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Approval of Minutes December 13, 2022 Regular Session The minutes were approved by general consent. VII. CONSENT AGENDA A. Review, discussion, and possible approval of the City Council of the Elko Police Department's notice of intent. The Elko Police Department will NOT request any controlled property nor uncontrolled property through the military 10-33 program, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 2 of 27  The Elko Police Department is required per Presidential Executive Order to notify City Council of their intent to, or not to, apply for property through the military 10-33 program. B. Review and possible approval of an agreement between the City of Elko and William Wright, D.V.M., for the provision of independent contractor services on behalf of the City of Elko Animal Shelter, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The City of Elko and Dr. William Wright desire to renew the Veterinarian Contract through December 31, 2023. Under this contract, LASSO reimburses the City of Elko for all fees paid. CC C. Review and possible approval of an agreement between the City of Elko and Hannah Rodriguez, D.V.M., for the provision of independent contractor services on behalf of the City of Elko Animal Shelter, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The City of Elko and Dr. Hannah Rodriguez desire to renew the Veterinarian Contract through December 31, 2023. Under this contract, LASSO reimburses the City of Elko for all fees paid. CC ** A motion was made by Council Member Simons, seconded by Council Member Stone to approve the consent agenda. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) VIII. PERSONNEL A. Election of Mayor Pro-Tempore, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION Mayor Keener explained we do this each year. Councilwoman Simons has indicated she is willing to continue in that role. ** A motion was made by Council Member Stone, seconded by Council Member Morris to elect Councilwoman Mandy Simons as the Mayor Pro-Tempore. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) B. Mayoral designation of City Council members to specific "Liaison" positions within the City of Elko, and matters related thereto. NO ACTION BY COUNCIL REQUIRED 1. Police Department Liaison 2. Public Works Department Liaison 3. Waterworks and Sewer Liaison 4. Fire Department Liaison 5. Airport and Public Property Liaison 6. Parks/Recreation Department Liaison 7. Building Department Liaison 8. Animal Shelter Liaison January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 3 of 27  9. Landfill Liaison 10. Redevelopment Advisory Council (Board Member) 11. Stormwater Advisory Board 12. ECVA (Board Member) 13. NNRDA (Board Member) 14. Elko County Commission Liaison 15. Elko County Water Planning Commission Liaison 16. Elko County Fair Board Liaison 17. Elko County Debt Management Commission (Board Member) 18. Elko County Recreation Board (Board Member) 19. Arts and Culture Advisory Board Liaison 20. Other Departments Not Listed Mayor Keener said he polled the board and everyone was satisfied with their current positions. There will be no changes. C. Employee Introductions: 1.) Anthony Barnes, Animal Shelter Worker, Animal Shelter 2.) Shane Perkins, Laborer, Water Department Anthony Barnes was not present. Shane Perkins was present and introduced. D. Review, consideration, and possible authorization to co-designate Bryan Drake, as Municipal Judge of the City of Elko pursuant to NRS 5.020, or possibly be designated as a Municipal Judge Pro Tempore pursuant to NRS 5.023, effective January 10, 2023, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION Recently elected Elko Township Justice of the Peace Bryan Drake replaced Elias "Choch" Goicoechea, who served as a City of Elko Municipal Judge Pro Tempore since 2017. Elko Township Justice of the Peace Randall Soderquist will remain as the City of Elko Municipal Judge, as he was previously appointed by the City Council in 2021. A letter from Judge Soderquist has been enclosed in the agenda packet for review. CC Judge Soderquist explained there is a quirk in the City Charter where it designates a Municipal Court Judge, singular. After the creation of the second Justice of the Peace, there was some question about whether or not to change the Charter. He serves as the Municipal Court Judge for the City of Elko but the duties that they have in the Municipal Court and Justice Court are shared between him and Judge Drake. The hope is that the Council will be willing to appoint him as either a Municipal Court Judge Pro Tem, which is what we did with Judge Goicoechea, or possibly have some sort of other designation. Curtis Calder, City Manager, said when this occurred in 2017, the reason Judge Goicoechea was appointed as Judge Pro Tem was due to the fact he lived in the County and not the City. That was the difference between being co-designated and a Judge Pro Tem. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 4 of 27  Dave Stanton, City Attorney, said we are safe appointing him the Judge Pro Tem. There is a question about us having more than one Municipal Court Judge. It is an open question and his advice is to appoint him as a Judge Pro Tem. We ought to take another stab at amending the Charter. It was written for a different time when the organizational structure of the Justice Court was different. Mayor Keener asked Judge Drake if he had anything to add. Judge Drake just wanted to clarify that he lived in the City. ** A motion was made by Council Member Simons, seconded by Council Member Morris to appoint Bryan Drake as a Municipal Judge Pro Tempore, pursuant to NRS 5.023, effective January 10, 2023. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) E. Review, consideration, and possible authorization to designate the following individuals as City of Elko Municipal Judge Pro Tempore(s), pursuant to NRS 5.023, effective January 10, 2023. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION • Carlin Township Justice of the Peace Dee Primeaux • Wells Township Justice of the Peace Kenneth Calton • Eastline Township Justice of the Peace Kenneth Quirk Elko Township Justice of the Peace Randall Soderquist will remain as the City of Elko Municipal Judge, as he was previously appointed by the City Council in 2021. A letter from Judge Soderquist has been enclosed in the agenda packet for review. CC Curtis Calder, City Manager, explained there are occasions when the Municipal Judges are unavailable due to travel, sickness or vacation. In the past, historically, these other township justices have been appointed Elko Municipal Judge Pro Tems and have been able to fill in, keeping the court running. Judge Soderquist said that under Chapter 4 that governs Justice Courts, Justice of the Peace can invite other sitting JP's to serve on their behalf to fill in for them. Under Chapter 5, the City Council needs to designate a sitting JP as a Municipal Judge Pro Tem to allow them to do that. In this last legislative session, AB424, requires that we now hold court on weekends and holidays. The way we work it out is we cover for each other with a rotating schedule. ** A motion was made by Council Member Simons, seconded by Council Member Puccinelli to designate Carlin Township Justice of the Peace Dee Primeaux; Wells Township Justice of the Peace Kenneth Calton; and, Eastline Township Justice of the Peace Kenneth Quirk as Elko Municipal Judge Pro Tems, pursuant to NRS 5.023, effective January 10, 2023. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 5 of 27  IX. APPROPRIATION A. Review and possible approval of General Warrants, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Simons to approve the regular warrants in the amount of $579,541.53. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) B. Review and possible ratification of General Hand-Cut Checks, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Morris to approve the hand-cut checks in the amount of $684,486.86. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) C. Review, consideration, and ratify the Elko Police Chief applying for, and review, consideration, and possible approval to accept a Nevada Department of Emergency Management/Homeland Security (DEM) grant in the amount of fifty-six thousand, nine hundred and ninety-seven dollars and twenty cents ($56,997.20). This grant would be used to cover costs associated with the purchase of x-ray equipment for the operation of the Elko Bomb Squad, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The Elko Police Department applied for, and was granted, a Nevada Department of Emergency Management/Homeland Security (DEM) grant in the amount of fifty-six thousand, nine hundred and ninety-seven dollars and twenty cents ($56,997.20), to cover costs associated with x-ray equipment to bring the Elko Bomb Squad equipment up to date. Chief Trouten begged for forgiveness for not coming to Council for the application process. There are four accredited bomb squads within the State and they work together. Each year, one of the bomb squads applies for a grant under this overall federal group, Department of Emergency Management/Homeland Security (DEM). They are using it to standardize the equipment and bring all bomb squads in the state up to date on things. This year was our turn. We were successful in obtaining the award. With this, we will be able to modernize our X-Ray equipment. Mayor Keener was surprised to learn how much this gets used. The current equipment is old school, uses the old X-Ray film and it is getting increasingly difficult to get that film. This is well in order. Councilman Morris said the current equipment was bought when he was part of the Police Department. It is old. ** A motion was made by Council Member Stone, seconded by Council Member Morris to ratify the Elko Police Chief's action to apply for a Nevada Department of Emergency January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 6 of 27  Management/Homeland Security (DEM) grant in the amount of $56,997.20, and to approve the acceptance of the DEM grant and approve the Elko Police Department entering into an MOU with the Nevada Department of Emergency Management/Homeland Security, as a requirement of the grant. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) D. Review, consideration, and possible award of the bid for the Hospital Second Source, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION Council directed Staff to solicit bids for the Hospital Second Source on June 14, 2022. Initial Bids were received on October 6, 2022 and opened at 2:00 pm. All bids were rejected due to errors within the bid docs. The project was re-bid on November 30, 2022. Four compliant bids were received December 29, 2022 at 2:00 pm. Canyon Construction was the low bidder in the amount of $2,575,869.27. DJ Dale Johnson, Utilities Director, stated Canyon Construction was the low bidder. Staff recommended awarding them the bid. Mayor Keener thought it was encouraging to see something that had been bid and then come back and be lower. This is the first infrastructure project that we are doing with the ARPA funds. It will have a lot of benefits for users. ** A motion was made by Council Member Morris, seconded by Council Member Puccinelli to award the bid for the Hospital Second Source, in the amount of $2,575,869.27, to Canyon Construction. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) X. NEW BUSINESS A. Review, consideration, and possible acceptance of an easement for utility purposes from Ash St Village LLC., along the southeast property line of APN 001-067-017 & 001-067- 018, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION As part of Vacation 4-22 and Resolution No. 32-22 to vacate a portion of Ash Street right- of-way, the City of Elko has conditioned the vacation that an easement over the area being vacated be granted as a public utility easement as requested by the public utility companies. CL Cathy Laughlin, City Planner, explained later in the agenda is a public hearing for a Resolution to finalize the Vacation of Ash Street. This is part of a townhome development that is being proposed at 5th and Ash. Part of that, they did request the Vacation of Ash Street but we did condition that vacation on an easement going over the entire area we are vacating. There is a current water line in that area and there is fiber in that area. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 7 of 27  ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Simons to accept the Grant of Easement for Utility purposes between Ash St Village LLC and the City of Elko as the Grantee, APN 001-067-017 & 001-067-018. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) B. Review, consideration, and possible approval of Revocable Permit No. 6-22, filed by The United States of America for and on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, to occupy +/-16,915 square feet of Jennings Way Right-of-Way and +/- 5,855 square feet of the Rocky Road Right-of-Way adjacent to their parcel located at 3602 Jennings Way to accommodate landscaping for their proposed development of a Veterans Cemetery, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The applicant is requesting the revocable permit for the landscaping along the right-of-way frontages of the proposed development. CL Ms. Laughlin explained this is our standard revocable permit for landscape. The difference is in the license agreement. Mr. Stanton and she, added a paragraph to page 3, paragraph 4.C. We added that so the City of Elko can reduce the area of this license agreement if deemed responsibly necessary for installing curb, gutter & sidewalk or expanding the width of Rocky Road. They were denied a curb, gutter and sidewalk waiver and the VA has stated that they do not want to install the curb, gutter and sidewalk along this frontage. That will be another topic we will discuss. This license agreement is necessary for the area between their property line and what is the existing roadway for their landscaping and entry. Mayor Keener asked if we were to approve this, what happens to them fulfilling the part of curb, gutter and sidewalk? Ms. Laughlin answered that will be a whole different discussion and agenda item to be brought to Council at a future date. We added that paragraph to the agreement is because the area is really wide. We will be able to reduce the area in order to develop that area. ** A motion was made by Council Member Stone, seconded by Council Member Simons to approve Revocable Permit No. 6-22 subject to the execution of a Standard Revocable License Agreement between the applicant and the City of Elko. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) C. Review, consideration and possible acceptance of an easement for utility purposes from Elko Ruby Vista, LLC., adjacent to the existing 60' Drainage and Utility Easement and Ruby Vista Drive in the northerly corner of APN 001-564-040, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 8 of 27  As part of Vacation 6-22 and Resolution 31-22 to vacation all of the Access, Drainage and Utility Easement and a portion of the 60' Drainage and Utility Easement, the City of Elko has conditioned the vacation that a new easement be granted for public utility purposes. CL Ms. Laughlin explained we had the petition on this vacation several meetings ago. It has gone through Planning Commission and it is a public hearing today. With that resolution, there is a condition that they grant us a new easement. When they did the addition to their facility, it was built over an existing easement. They rerouted the drainage and utilities around the new addition but they did not finish the paperwork and get a vacated easement and grant us a new easement. This is a public utility and drainage easement. ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Morris to accept the Grant of Easement for Utility purposes from Ruby Vista LLC, adjacent to the existing 60' Drainage and Utility Easement and Ruby Vista Drive in the northerly corner of APN 001-564-040. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) D. Review, consideration and possible action to initiate Ordinance 878 amending Elko City Code Title 8, Chapter 7 (Street Vacation Procedures), and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION Title 8, Chapter 7 (Street Vacation Procedures) within the City of Elko Code does not conform to current NRS Section 278.480 when dealing with the process for vacating city rights-of-way or easements. For example, the City Code requires multiple hearings at both Planning Commission and City Council, while the NRS only requires one hearing at City Council. Staff feels that the current city process is unnecessarily cumbersome and should conform with the simpler process outlined in the NRS. MR Michele Rambo, Development Manager, explained this current section of City Code does not match the corresponding NRS section. City Code was approved back in 1978. The last time it was amended was 2000. NRS was last updated in 2021, at the last legislative session. In this proposed amendment, a lot of it refers back to the NRS, so if the NRS changes again we don't have to come back and change it every time. We also simplified the process a little bit. Mayor Keener was worried this will take some work away from Planning Commission. Ms. Rambo felt this would not change the Planning Commission workflow. It will just simplify the process for everyone. City Council can refer items back to Planning Commission for review if they want to. Dave Stanton, City Attorney, said he would like that written into the ordinance if Council wants to seek advisory opinions from the Planning Commission. That way it will be clear. Ms. Rambo said we can add that in and include it for the first reading. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 9 of 27  ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Morris to initiate Ordinance No. 878 amending Elko City Code Title 8, Chapter 7 (Street Vacation Procedures), adopting the changes presented by staff and the ones we just discussed. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) E. Review, consideration, and possible action to accept the 2023 Planning Commission Work Program, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The Planning Commission considered a draft 2023 Work Program at their meeting January 3, 2023. They took action to approve the Work Program and forward it to Council for acceptance. CL Cathy Laughlin, City Planner, explained there was a copy of the work program in the packet. The Planning Commission did review and forwarded a recommendation for approval. ** A motion was made by Council Member Stone, seconded by Council Member Simons to accept the 2023 Planning Commission Work Program. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) XI. RESOLUTION AND ORDINANCE A. Review, consideration, and possible approval of Ordinance No. 875, An Ordinance Amending Title 4, Chapter 6, Section 10 Allocation and use of Transient Lodging Tax Funds, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION On September 27, 2022, City Council approved a 1% increase the transient lodging tax and reallocating .5% of the ECVA Marketing transient tax allocation to the ECVA facility fund. The Council directed City Staff to complete a Business Impact Statement pursuant to NRS 237.090. On December 13, 2022, the City Council determined that that the increase in Transient Lodging Tax by 1% does not impose a direct and significant economic burden on a business or directly restrict the formation, operation or expansion of a business and to conduct the first reading of Ordinance 875. KW Kelly Wooldridge, City Clerk, put a chart on the overhead that went out with the Business Impact Statement that helped explain where the money has been going and where it will go to now. She asked for a change in the motion to state the increase will start the month after approval of the ordinance. Councilman Stone asked why not make that change retroactive so the ECVA can get the funds. Ms. Wooldridge answered this is a 1% increase, going from 14% to 15%. She had previously heard some public comments that our room tax is at 19% but that is incorrect. The reason it needs to be the month after Second Reading is because the hotels have not been collecting the 15%. They won’t have it. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 10 of 27  Mayor Keener called for public comment without a response. Councilman Stone disclosed he is the liaison for the ECVA and the Chairman for the Marketing Committee as part of his Council duties but he did not see a reason to abstain from the vote. ** A motion was made by Council Member Simons, seconded by Council Member Morris to approve the first reading of Ordinance No. 875, noting it will begin the month after approval of the second reading, and direct staff to set the matter for public hearing, second reading and possible adoption. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) B. First Reading of Ordinance No. 879, an amendment to the City Zoning Ordinance, specifically an amendment to Title 3, Chapter 2, Section 12 of the Elko City Code entitled “LI, GI Industrial Districts”, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION On November 22, 2022, City Council approved initiation of Zoning Ordinance Amendment 2-22 and directed Staff to refer it to the Planning Commission for their consideration. The Planning Commission reviewed the ordinance at their January 3, 2023 meeting and forwarded a recommendation to City Council to adopt Ordinance 879, which approves Zoning Ordinance Amendment 2-22. CL Cathy Laughlin, City Planner, summarized the proposed changes to the zoning ordinance. Mayor Keener asked about public comments on this. Ms. Laughlin said she has not received any public comments yet but there will be one more meeting where they can make comments. Mayor Keener called for public comments without a response. ** A motion was made by Council Member Morris, seconded by Council Member Simons to conduct first reading of Ordinance No. 879, and direct staff to set the matter for public hearing, second reading and possible adoption. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) XII. PETITION, APPEAL, AND COMMUNICATION A. Review, consideration and possible action to give direction to Staff on a ”Petition to Government” requesting that the Elko City Council place an advisory question on the ballot at the next general election regarding the possible destruction of City park facilities for a proposed Events and Recreation Center Project, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 11 of 27  On December 13, 2022, Jeff Kump presented a Petition to Government to the City Council stating as follows: “In accordance with our right under the First Amendment to the US Constitution, the undersigned registered voters within the City of Elko hereby petition the Elko City Council to adopt a resolution: (a) placing an advisory question on a ballot at the next possible general election or general city election pursuant to NRS 295.230 asking the advice of the registered voters with the City of Elko the following question: Should the Elko City Council allow the destruction of existing public park facilities for the placement of the proposed Events and Recreation Center Project within the entire Elko City Park/greenbelt area (bordered by Golf Course Road, Flagview Drive, and Country Club Drive, Moren Way, College Avenue, Idaho Street, and VFW Drive)?; and (b) putting a moratorium on the Project until such advisory question is answered as such election. Pursuant to NRS 295.230, the City Council may, at any general election or general city election, ask the advice of the registered voters within its jurisdiction on any question which it has under consideration. To place an advisory question on the ballot, the City Council must adopt a resolution containing specific provisions, including an explanation of the question and its anticipated financial effect on the City. The result of the voting on the question does not place any legal requirement on the City. Council may, in its discretion, (1) determine that it does not wish to seek the advice of the voters on this matter, in which event Staff will take no further action on the ballot question and will continue to work on the Project; (2) in the alternative, direct Staff to prepare one or more possible resolutions for further consideration meeting the requirements of NRS 295.230; and/or (3) direct Staff to take no action in furtherance of the Project pending the outcome of the vote on the advisory question. KW Mayor Keener read a statement into the record (attached to agenda and minutes). Kelly Wooldridge, City Clerk, explained prior to public comment, she wanted to clear up a couple of things she has heard. As the agenda item stated, the Kumps submitted this petition under 295.230, which is regarding advisory questions. Under that law, a petition is not required. The Kumps chose to do a petition, which was their right to do, but it was determined because a petition was not required, that she did not vet the signatures on the petition. The petition submitted had 599 signatures, some she could not read, some were people in the County and some were from the Colony. She consulted with the County Clerk and our City Attorney. That petition was not vetted because it wasn't needed. There is NRS 295.205 that deals with petitions submitted to local governments, City Councils, etc. That is a petition regarding an ordinance or something against an ordinance. That petition would need to be sent to the County Clerk to be vetted for signatures and forwarded to the State. She noted there are about 30 people on the GoToMeeting and public hearing is at 5:30 pm. Mayor Keener thought public hearing could be pushed to 6:00 pm. Dave Stanton, City Attorney, stated if the public hearing is scheduled for 5:30, then we need to have it at 5:30. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 12 of 27  Jeff Kump said they were aware in drafting the petition this way was to show there is support for this. It is not about the Kumps. There are a number of people in the community that do not believe this is in the best interest. We don't agree that the park should be given to the Boys and Girls Club. That was the purpose of the petition. We realize it wasn't legally binding on Council. We are aware that you will have to come to a resolution at some point. The resolution has to find that it is in the best interest of our community to make this conveyance. We heard at the last hearing that there has not been a conveyance like this; that has been contested. That should draw some question in your mind. It is his understanding that this is in direct conflict with the City Master Plan, that this did not go before the Parks and Rec committee, there has been no feasibility study at this point. In our opinion, there has been no due diligence in order for you to find or make a resolution to say that this is in the best interest of the community. It also flies in the face of a number of people that have come forth and signed that petition. There is also a strong equitable estoppel issue that he hopes we don't have to address. That is something that was just brought to his attention and we are looking into it. Councilwoman Simons asked about the equitable estoppel. Dave Stanton, City Attorney, said that Mr. Kump was getting at was a lawsuit with a possible injunction to stop this. Mr. Kump continued he had Len Holdren's notes and read some of them. In 1955, the City designated an area of city property for the purpose of a Babe Ruth park. His grandfather worked on that field. He and other people in the community volunteered and built that field. His grandfather worked on that field for over 40 years. In doing so, the City benefited from that. The community benefited from that. That is the crux of it. Casey Gallagher, Boys and Girls Club, said this not a meeting about support. We already had a letter of intent from the City and the County, expressing their support of these projects. This is not a meeting about location. We have an agreement to convey that we discussed December 13th. This is a meeting about the petition. There will always be opposition to big ideas. We did our own petition last summer and collected around 3200 signatures in support. Councilmembers are elected officials who have been put in office to work at the best of the City and do what is in the best interest of the City. You have shown through our past meetings and discussions that you believe and have confidence in these projects and think that the Boys and Girls Club is best suited to do this. We talked at length at the previous meetings about the project. It has been in front of the City, the County, on social media and on the radio. It has been out there for everyone to see. He didn't think there could be any more conversations about transparency or what the intents and purposes of the projects. You voted unanimously to convey these parcels for this project. Regarding this petition, if this were to pass and go to a ballot two years down the road, we would remove our support from the Events Center and step away from that project. We do not have the luxury of time. Pushing out the Aquatic Center will put a bigger burden on the City with maintaining the existing City Pool. Shelley Smith stated she was born and raised in Elko. She remembers watching Councilman Puccinelli play baseball with her brothers on Kump Field. She is a graduate of Elko High School and a proud citizen of Elko. She attended the December 13th meeting and she was certain that citizens left in shock and disappointment after our elected City Council members unanimously voted to "initiate the conveyance for both the aquatic recreation center and the events center." Per the 12/13/2022 agenda January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 13 of 27  and minutes, City Council was scheduled to proceed with possible action to initiate the conveyance of one project site, two project sites. Rusty Bahr read a statement regarding his vision. She could not find those on the agenda or the minutes. Fourteen other citizens, seven appear to be affiliated with other City, County or other entities, spoke in favor of the project. Sixteen citizens spoke in spoke in opposition of the event center location. Thirteen were private citizens with no outside affiliations. One of these speakers was Mr. Jeff Kump. He was the third speaker and he did present the petition that we are addressing tonight, and he requested a moratorium on the project. Jeff Kump also cited a specific NRS statute pertaining the City Council's ability to "table possible action and request an election." That election can be any time. It was her belief it did not have to wait for two years. After Mayor Keener closed off public comments again, he commented, "this is a deal breaker if we don't convey the land." He went on to state that his impressions "were little to no opposition to the conveyance of the land for the aquatic and recreation center" and was hearing concerns with giving up Kump Ball Fields. She concurred with Mayor Keener and wondered why City Council could not have just voted to move forward on the aquatic center only. She was guessing this was one of the largest audiences to ever attend a City Council Meeting, with a considerable amount of public comments and questions on the table. Why didn't the City Council do the right thing and table or postpone their vote until after they could discuss the opposition which was presented on the 13th. Chuck Petersen, 2395 Khoury Lane, said he was at the last meeting on this. To him this is a no-brainer and common sense. He makes a lot of decisions in his life off the Ben Franklin Weight of Reasons. Everyone has heard of that. You weigh the pros and cons. There are no cons really. With this big of a project, no one is losing. The taxpayers aren't having to pay for it. We are going to get extra ball fields in the community, more than we have now. We are going to be able to use a facility year-round and not just a few months out of the year. Today and tonight, with our weather right now, what can be used out there? More of the community will enjoy it than the people that play on the ball fields. He grew up here and played football. He loves the Kumps. Moyle was his coach and he was there the last time Elko took state. This is for the betterment of the community. He hoped Council will stick to their guns on the way they voted on the 13th and get this thing done. It is a great blessing for our community and it is for the betterment of the community. Rex Steninger, County Commissioner, said he was one of the five County Commissioners that voted unanimously last summer to join the City in support of this project. It is an ambitious project that will provide up a first rate recreation center and event center. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity as far as the County goes, to have the money to do this. He was present to ask City Council to decline the petition and not allow this to go another 2 years at the general election. That will threaten the project. The opponents to the project have been relentless and vociferous and many of them are well liked and respected members of our community. But the cold, hard fact of the matter is, the supporters greatly outnumber the opponents. Between the County and the City, we have had 4 public meetings to discuss this project. Today is the 5th. Every time we have met, the Free Press has carried front-page stories about the project. It is ludicrous for people to say we have not been open and public about this because we have. It is that the supporters outnumber the opponents. The project has been actively discussed for nearly a year now. On April 12th of last year, City Council did a letter of support for it. If this needed to be on a ballot, it should have been on the ballot at the last election and not the general election in two years. Having a vote is not really what these people want. These people want us to abandon this project. They have tried everything they can but they cannot get the public support to do that. They have tried this last ditch stall tactic to kill the project and get their way. He didn't think January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 14 of 27  Council should allow that. We have been very open in this discussion. We have carefully weighed the pros and cons but at some point, we have to make a decision and move forward. That time is now. With the argument that we ought to turn this over to the voters is a hard argument to beat but it is a good time to remember that we are not a peer democracy in this country. We never have been. Peer democracy allows a public popular vote and every decision. That is a very dangerous and inefficient way to do things. That is what allows two bulls and a sheep to vote on what's for supper. It doesn't work. Our government was established as a representative republic. The voters elect leaders like you and us to make the hard decisions for them. Patricia Herrera, 2065 Golf Drive, said her father is Leonard Herrera. He's the one that got the softball field named after him. One of you was at his side helping him build it. She keeps hearing about this going over the election in two years but they don't want it to because they want to start this in two years. Is the softball fields, the new ones, a total of five, not only going to be built but will they be safe to play on? At the last meeting we found out they were not safe to play on. If not, then what are the Boys and Girls Club going to do? Are they going to come back and bully us some more to make sure those fields are destroyed before the new ones are built? Don't let them bully you. There are a lot of people that are for the Herrera and Kump fields. It is not a fact that we don't want these other buildings. They would be great to have. We are just saying not right there. Because before long you are going to want more and more parking spots. They had to build this because the other one got too small. When is enough, enough? Start it where you have the room to grow and expand without tearing up our nice areas now. Just for the record, when and if that ballfield is torn down, we would like the plaque and the sign from there. We don't want it over there. Mayor Keener called for a break. XIII. 5:30 P.M. PUBLIC HEARING A. Review, consideration, and possible action to adopt Resolution No. 32-22, a resolution and order vacating a portion of Ash Street Right-of-Way, consisting of an area approximately 1,725 sq. ft. abutting APN 001-067-017 & 001-067-018, which is located within the City of Elko, Nevada, to the abutting property owner Ash St Village LLC., filed and processed as Vacation No. 7-22, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION Planning Commission considered this agenda item at their regular meeting December 6, 2022 and forward a recommendation for City Council to adopt a resolution which conditionally approves Vacation 7-22. CL Cathy Laughlin, City Planner, explained this is the final step in the Resolution for our vacation of Ash Street. We just accepted the Deed of Dedication for the easement. Mayor Keener called for public comments without a response. ** A motion was made by Council Member Morris, seconded by Council Member Stone to adopt Resolution No. 32-22 which contains conditions as recommended by the Planning Commission. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 15 of 27  The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) B. Review, consideration, and possible action to adopt Resolution No. 31-22, a resolution and order vacating all of the Access, Drainage & Utility Easement and a portion of the 60' Drainage & Utility Easement, consisting of an area approximately 14,130 sq. ft. bisecting APN 001-564-040, which is located within the City of Elko, Nevada, to the abutting property owner Ruby Vista LLC., filed and processed as Vacation No. 6-22, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION Planning Commission considered this agenda item at their regular meeting December 6, 2022 and forward a recommendation for City Council to adopt a resolution which conditionally approves Vacation 6-22. CL Ms. Laughlin explained in the packet was the display map that shows the hatched in area that we are vacating. That is the area they built the building over. This is clarifying the addition they did on their facility. This is the final step in vacating that existing easement. Mayor Keener called for public comments without a response. ** A motion was made by Council Member Stone, seconded by Council Member Puccinelli to adopt Resolution No. 31-22 which contains conditions as recommended by the Planning Commission. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) XII. PETITION, APPEAL, AND COMMUNICATION (Cont.) A. Review, consideration and possible action to give direction to Staff on a ”Petition to Government” requesting that the Elko City Council place an advisory question on the ballot at the next general election regarding the possible destruction of City park facilities for a proposed Events and Recreation Center Project, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION (CONT.) Leonard Herrera said he was not going to argue pros and cons because he felt it was going to happen whatever they say. If we take a vote you might lose so it won't go there. We were told nothing would be done there until the new fields were done. It has been over three years for three fields. We will be watching. They said if you don't vote on this now it won't happen. How can they start if they haven't finished the new fields? He didn't know how many people they plan to bring in for their rodeos and whatever, but let's say 6000. He heard they will have 1000 parking spaces. Every car that parks there better have 6 people if they are going to build it. How are these people going to get there. We have one flight coming in out of Salt Lake that holds 50 people. They will have to fly 20 flights to bring in 1000 people. They will never get here. He didn't think that many people are going to drive that far. This has a lot of problems before you even think about it. Mostly it better not start until the fields are finished. He tells people there is nothing he could do about it. Mr. Steninger is a friend of his but they don't agree on everything. He agreed with his dad more than with him. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 16 of 27  Jon Karr, Council Commissioner, said he is a longtime resident. You guys have already heard what has been said and nothing has changed since the last vote. He hoped they didn't see a reason to change their vote. One thing that was brought up, he would like someone on an upcoming agenda about what you are doing about the softball fields by the river. He wants to see more on the timeline and what they are going to do to fix that. That is the only part he is skeptical about. As for this project, it has been vetted and heard. Council made the right vote and he didn't see any reason to change it now. Collette Wickersham wanted to point out to the board and public that in addition to the petition being discussed this evening, on April 22nd, an additional petition opposed to the location of the event center was presented to this council with over 260 votes. That was presented by Mr. Vern Hatch. It was a completely different group of people and completely different organizations that have a similar petition prior to theirs. We aren't the first petition that has come to council against the proposed sites and against tearing down our parks. Mr. Steninger was incorrect. We want to see this go to a vote. If after the City votes that these parks should be removed, then we absolutely would be in favor of that. A special election, wait for 2 years, whatever you would like to do, we absolutely would like to see this go to a vote. She could not imagine why we wouldn't want to hear what the people say. Ryan Hoene spoke in favor of the recreation and event centers. We have already heard the numbers and the economic benefit it will bring to our community. He spoke at the last meeting and offered support to the Kump family, understanding that Mr. Kump was an amazing human. He brought change and opportunity to a community when it was sorely needed. It is now 2023 and our community is in desperate need of that same change and opportunity. It is his humble opinion that Mr. Kump would not want to prevent growth and opportunity for generations and thousands in our community in the name of sentimentalism. He believes we can remember Mr. Kump and even memorialize him while building these two centers. He felt he would want them built. He grew up here but later moved away to play baseball in California and college football at the University of Utah. He is now back for 16 years. What has been most surprising is that now as an adult, he is using the same dated and broken facilities that he did as a kid some 30 years ago. Both of his daughters are very active in sports. He has to beg the bishop of his church so he can have a key so he can practice with his girls in the gym. There simply isn't anywhere else to go within city limits. A recreation center would bring incredible opportunities for basketball, volleyball players, cyclists, swimmers, rock climbers, triathletes and pickle ball players. It provides somewhere for kids and adults alike to go that don't have a home gym. He would also like to speak in favor of the event center. The last several weeks he has heard incredible dramatizations of what the event center would bring. He is going to speak plainly: there will be nothing but heavy metal concerts with drugs pilfering out the doors and suddenly there will be a child predator on every corner. Concerts will be a part of future scheduling, he thinks more along the line of basketball, volleyball and gymnastic tournaments. Rodeos and cowboy poetry, pickle ball and other tournaments. Maybe even motocross. He is incredibly tired of having to leave town for most everything he mentioned previously. It would be so wonderful to bring people into our town to show off our city and our beloved Ruby Mountains. He has also heard repeatedly that the fields will move to the edge of town giving the impression that we live in Phoenix and takes an hour and half to get there. This is Elko. It literally takes 5 minutes to cross town. What is the edge of town for some is closer to home for many on that side of the city. When the city builds the fields properly, future generations will thank you for getting the fields and facilities into this location. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 17 of 27  Michelle Smith, President of Swim Team, wanted to let Council know that the swim team was present representing earlier but they had to leave to get back to practice. Regarding the parking issue, the Mine Expo hosts 8000 people every year and we manage to do that without any increased parking. She had been a resident of the City of Elko for almost 30 years. She was on the City's Park and Recreation Advisory Board for 4 years. This was when the sports complex was just beginning. At that time, the aquatic center was the number one priority for the City of Elko, but there was a strong push from the baseball and softball community to have the sports complex built first for the reason being that we could use the existing fields for the new facility. Back then some of the strongest opposition from the baseball and softball community were the ones that pushed for the fields to built over there so the new facility could be built on the existing baseball location. She felt that was overlooked. The Council represents the community and the community's best interest and that is where we need to go. Just finish what has been started. Galen Christean said how he felt at the December 13th meeting. He left early because he knew where it was going. He went home and thought cancel culture was not around in Elko, Nevada. It's not that we don't agree with the thoughts on the event center, we don't agree with the location. There are better locations to choose from. He wasn't sure if other locations were ever considered. He knew they wanted that area for a long time. He worked at the fairgrounds 50 years ago. They are 100 years and there are a lot of things that need to be done there too. The Boys and Girls Club has done great work getting the grant money lined up. It is not easy getting grants. How much is the County and the taxpayers going to be paying to fix things at the fairgrounds? To him, you have guaranteed that the college is landlocked now. No potential to expand ever. You have locked into the fairgrounds with this. He has worked with kids for over 50 years. You think he doesn’t care about kids? He volunteered the whole time and he loved it. He will be going to the Kid Rock concert when it comes. John Watson said he is a 23 year resident of Elko. As far as this being the best interest of the City, he thought it was and the can should not be kicked down the road any longer. Most of the 23 years he has been here, there has been talk about a rec center and a talk about a pool, and this and that. It just keeps going away. Now we have an excellent opportunity to bring something to the community that will truly benefit it. It will benefit more than just one select group. He supports it and thought the Council should deny the petition to put this to a public vote. One of the main things he looks for when he votes for someone is whether or not they will take responsibility and act on it. Tossing this to a general election is just continuing to kick the can down the road and taking the burden of our decision off Council. Robert Leonhardt, 303 Rolling Hills Drive, said he is a business owner. He spoke in support of the Boys and Girls Club project. We always talk about kids not having anything to do here in Elko and this is a great opportunity for them. We need to keep moving forward and not be so small-town minded and look at what this can do for our grandkids and great grandkids down the road. It can do a lot for our businesses, our motels, hotels and we can definitely benefit from this. He has a son that plays soccer and he has to travel to Adobe Middle School every day for practice. Saying the baseball fields is a big issue, we all suffer and we all make sure our kids get to sporting events. This can be huge for Elko. Cami Ann Gerber, Boys and Girls Club, said after the last meeting, she thought if anyone, Mr. Brent Stokes could relate to these great families the most. She had also thought of putting herself in their January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 18 of 27  shoes, she was reminded of an incident in Utah where she is from originally. At the time, she was working as an intern in the Historic Sites Department for a major organization well known in the State of Utah and throughout the world. It was the department's mission to preserve the past for the purpose of inspiring the future. On the night of December 17, 2010, one of our iconic historic structures in Provo, built in 1885, caught fire due to an electrical accident. It was a human error. The custom hand- finished millwork went up like matchsticks. Within minutes, the vintage furnishings, the Victorian decor and the irreplaceable one-of-a kind artwork were ash. The building once hosted US Presidents, dignitaries and religious leaders but now it was nothing but a shell. We grieved. It had been beautiful before the fire. There was no way to justify the cost of putting the building back the way it was and it couldn't be done. There was too much damage. There was a heart-breaking consensus that the building had served it whole purpose and it had been beneficial to many. It was decided then to serve a larger population for a greater vision, funding would not be used to restore the building but rather repurpose the space with minor knots to elements to its past. It was a practice for everyone in the community in letting go and looking forward. She told that story as a metaphor. The space wasn't significant because it was rebuilt. It was significant because of the stories we chose to tell about it going forward. We kept the heart of it alive by sharing its history and through the loss there was rebirth. Mr. Kump and Mr. Herrera have left a fabulous, great legacy to this community. The issue at this point is a fear of a family's efforts and investments of money and time being overlooked or forgotten. That is far from true. Their legacy will not be forgotten because of a relocation or repurposing of a space if their story is told. Larry Hire, 245 Ash Street, said he knew about the recreational park center and he knows about the Convention Center. Will the Convention Center take out the City Park? Mayor Keener answered what we are discussing right now is two projects brought to us by the Boys and Girls Club for an Aquatic/Recreation Center which will be more on the east side of Flagview Drive, and then to the west of that, an Event Center. These two facilities would then occupy the footprint of the Herrera Complex, as well as, the Kump Fields. It would all be operated by the Boys and Girls Club. It would not involve the Convention Center. Mr. Hire asked if there would be any reason down the road that you would take out the VFW or the Girl Scout Club or any of these properties. Mayor Keener answered no. He closed off public comment and opened it up for Council deliberations. Everyone knew where he stood on this and he has been consistent all along. He thought back to his early days on the Council in 2014, we had a contentious number of hearings regarding the Police Station. We had people on both sides of it. We had arguments over the location. We had arguments over the contractor selection. It was extremely trying time. Because of the fact that we did not have money for the project, it necessitated getting bonding. Because of the controversy, we felt we could not go out to the public for the 20-year bonds so instead we did the shorter-term 10-year bonds and snagged them for 2.25%, which is a dream finance rate right now. We pushed forward despite the opposition and now we have a state of the art police station. He has not heard any complaints since that time. It was necessary at the time. He felt this is another case in point. There are downsides and we heard about the importance of having this facility where it is proposed. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 19 of 27  Councilwoman Simons said she loves the idea of having advisory questions on elections because it makes their job much easier. However, it is not feasible to do that every time. We are a representative democracy and the founders probably saw wisdom in that. Every time we have a tough situation or a situation that requires a lot of funds or land, going out to vote would create more problems. As nice as it would be, it is not feasible to run any kind of government like that. The good thing is that we do have a small sense of what that might return. There have been several petitions on both sides passed around. That can give us an idea. She gets calls, emails or someone just stops her and they tell her their opinion. If you look at the petitions, and just look at who has contacted her, it is probably about 6 to 1 in favor. Depending on what circles you run in, that is probably not true for everyone. If she is saying what the community want, they want the event center. Not because they don't like the ball fields but because this is where we are at. That is the way she was leaning. Having an election would be nice but it is not feasible to work that way. Councilman Morris stated he has not changed his opinion. We have an opportunity to get two facilities worth $50-$60 million with very little impact to the taxpayers. If we were to go out to a bond to finance these, they would never get built. We have this one-time chance between the County, the City and the Boys and Girls Club. Without them it would never get built. You have to look at their track record. They built the Boys and Girls Club here. When they opened the doors it was paid for. When they did an addition, it was paid for. They did one in Wells and it is paid for. They did one in Spring Creek and it is paid. When these two facilities are open, they will be paid for. We have an obligation of about $400,000 to run the pool but that is minimal compared to what we are paying to run the pool now. That pool was built when he was in high school. It is worn out and needs to be torn down and rebuilt. This event center will bring in more sales tax, room tax. In his eyes, it is the best option for the taxpayers and the City of Elko. We need to do this and do it now. Councilman Stone said he is in favor of both projects. The item on the agenda is not about if we have the project or don't have the project. It is whether we put it out to a vote in two years. That is what we are here today talking about. He didn't think two years out is a wise decision. As he has been in discussions most of the day, there is no particular way to do an official City Election now. That being said, he spoke with the Kumps and a bunch of people. He wondered if there was a way to take 30-60 days to hire a company to do a poll to see what the constituents that live in Elko City want. He wanted to talk about why we wouldn't do that. It would not be an official election but it would be a poll and this is what people want. Maybe then, those in opposition may be more accepting of the event center. Mayor Keener asked Dave Stanton if they could deliberate on that or not. Dave Stanton, City Attorney, answered the topic of going out and hiring some sort of a consulting firm to conduct a poll is not on the agenda tonight. We can agenda that on a future meeting but we can't really deliberate on a decision tonight. The issue can be brought up but Council cannot deliberate. Councilman Puccinelli said we are here to bring up the petition part of this. As an elected official, we are put here to make these decisions. He equates sitting up there to refereeing basketball or baseball. No matter what call you make, you are going to make someone angry. It is the nature of the beast where they sit. Just like moving the police station, the City took a lot of heat for that, but now if you think about it, what is sitting there now is a gorgeous building that will help a lot of people. To him this is similar. We have an opportunity and this is a perfect storm. We are supposed to do the best for January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 20 of 27  the City. We need to take out the emotion and look at the big picture and figure out what is best for the City. This is an opportunity to stay with this. He was not accepting the petition and Council should make the decision. ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Morris to reject the petition and move on with the projects. Councilman Stone voted aye but wanted to see a poll done at some point. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) Mayor Keener thanked everyone for being here this evening and going through this process together. He wanted to particularly thank the students that are still here and were here earlier. This is probably the first time they have attended a City Council Meeting. He invited them to come back and attend more meetings. There might be some future leaders amongst them. XIV. REPORTS A. Mayor and City Council Mayor Keener said a lot has happened in the last few weeks. We had a long break since our last meeting. We had a promotion at the Police Department. He congratulated Corporate Brian Olvera. He met with some volunteers that are interested in a community garden in Elko. They are engaging with other stakeholders to see where things go. The Charter School bought the old Barrick building on West Main Street. We also had the Mayor's Arts Awards and it was great to be able to recognize some of the artists within our community. He thanked the other board members to being at the swearing in. Councilman Puccinelli said he enjoyed the Arts Awards. B. City Manager Curtis Calder reminded everyone that there is a Special Meeting scheduled for Thursday, January 12th at 2:00 p.m. This will be the NPIAP Board Governance and Ethics Training. That will be about a 2 hour meeting conducted by Wayne Carlson. On the same day at 8:00 a.m. we have the California Trails Advisory Board Meeting. We haven't had those for a long while. Mayor Keener asked if there was a date set to start vetting the Golf Pro submittals. Mr. Calder answered a score sheet was sent out to the committee members. We are still looking for a day and time we can get together to have our first meeting. Mayor Keener said we had a request to put the Sports Complex issue on a future agenda. Please ensure that it happens. Also, Cami Gerber made an announcement about the Community Concerts coming up. He and his wife have been a member for years. Bill and Ann Nesbit have been great volunteers in January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 21 of 27  the background. He felt it would be appropriate to have a Mayoral Proclamation at the next meeting to recognize the work they have done over the years. C. Assistant City Manager Mayor Keener said he heard from an aid at Congressman Amodei's office regarding our talks with the Railroad. They would like to get on a conference call with us. He asked Scott Wilkinson to send him a reminder so it doesn't slip through the cracks. Scott Wilkinson said we will probably want to do that after he gets some information from Mr. Stanton regarding his request about an action on a the property. He had a conversation with Amodei's office regarding that request and they were going to look into which federal agency has ownership of that property. Mayor Keener said as far as the cold weather sheltering, we had a number of days that was triggered. Mr. Wilkinson stated we rented 6 rooms over a period of three days. That was the only cold weather spell we had a declaration on. We have been fortunate with the temperatures staying up a bit. D. Utilities Director No report. E. Public Works Director Absent. F. Airport Manager Absent. G. City Attorney No report. H. Fire Chief No report. I. Police Chief No report. J. City Clerk January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 22 of 27  Mayor Keener saw on the payables a pretty big sum for the license fee for GoToMeeting. Have they been responsive on the glitches we have had? Kelly Wooldridge answered we are working through those and making progress. It was the OnBase Agenda Management and not GoToMeeting. Our agreement was sold out to a larger company called Naviante. It is much bigger and handles Agenda Management for several other cities around the country. We may have finally figured out between their IT and our IT, how to keep the meetings going. We have had several meetings with Naviante. They are working out a way for us to do the Room Tax forms online. K. City Planner No report. L. Development Manager No report. M. Financial Services Director Jan Baum reported we have an offer out on a Financial Services Director position. N. Parks and Recreation Director Joe Carr said his crews are working hard helping with SnoBowl and snow removal. They are also working on getting their tables revamped and ready for summer. Councilwoman Simons asked how many days the SnoBowl has been open. Mr. Carr answered four. Last Saturday was super busy. Sunday was equally as busy. The snow has been great and a lot of people up there having a good time. James Wiley reported we opened the SnoBowl earlier than we ever have before this year. We always get calls to open during Christmas Break but it is a lot of work just to get it to run on Saturdays and Sundays. On top of that the staff has their normal job to do. We are tentatively planning on opening on Monday at SnoBowl. The big factor in that will be how much snow we get on Sunday. We are planning on opening on the following Friday too. They had a record-breaking weekend at the SnoBowl this last weekend. They just finished the 70% drawings for the second phase at the Sports Complex. Staff has met with the High School to go over specifics on the baseball field. They are pleased with it and they have a wish list they would like to have. We have looked at that list and we have been fair with them on it. We got an estimate based on the 70% drawings and it is a favorable estimate. We hope when we go to bid that estimate is accurate. There is a little issue at the pool. The roof situation at the pool, it is not the roof itself; it is a humidity and moisture and temperature issue. We do not have the air circulation to handle very cold outside temperatures with very warm inside temperatures. The building sweats and it is very unsightly in there. The beautiful white paint job we did a couple of January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 23 of 27  years ago is now stained with black tar. It is sweating into the roof, and the tar in the roofing materials is working it's way into the pool area. There is a non-mandatory meeting at the Clubhouse at 10:00 a.m. for any interest parties that want to tour the facility. Mayor Keener said he had a call from a constituent that asked why the City doesn't put covers on the pool. They saw steam coming off. He told them there has to be a logical explanation. Mr. Wiley agreed it is not a bad idea and he actually recommends it. We should have covers but we don't. They are very expensive to install. That would be more money thrown at an old facility. It made more sense when they were on the geothermal system. Now we are on boilers. There have been so many issues at the pool that covers have always been pushed back. We will continue to spend money on the pool. There will be an item on the budget to re-plaster the outdoor pools and it will not be cheap. Our goal right now is to keep the doors open. Mayor Keener asked regarding the Sports Complex, he would hope some lessons were learned in phase one. He asked if Bob Thibault designed the big footings for the lights. Mr. Thibault answered no. Mr. Wiley said they hired a local engineer design those for us. Councilwoman Simons said they keep hearing about how unsafe the grass is down there. Haven't they played baseball in grass for a long time? Mr. Wiley answered they are generalizing quite a bit. People trip and twist ankles, etc. It is a sport. The turf down there is not ideal. One field is probably in poor condition and the other two are fair. We have struggled a lot trying to grow grass. The infield material that was brought up as being very loose, well we had not played on those fields at all. The material was loose. As soon as we heard that complaint, we ordered material to firm those fields up. That has been placed and it will firm it up. We do all we can to keep those fields safe and maintained. Plus, they get groomed every day. He is not dismissing any of the complaints. We have high standards for the Sports Complex and we will get there. Councilman Stone asked if the turf works well, would we have the option to change the grass to turf on the other fields. Mr. Wiley answered it is an option but it takes resources. There is one field that is a good candidate for turf but the other two fields are improving. O. Civil Engineer No report. P. Building Official January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 24 of 27  Mayor Keener asked that in looking at the year-end report, we are down quite a bit on the single family residential. He wanted to find out what he attributes that to. Is it supply chain issues? Jeff Ford answered it is interest rates and mortgage rates and the price of houses. Mayor Keener said there have been a few apartments in play. Has anything been pulled on those permits? Mr. Ford answered no. Mayor Keener asked if there was anything big in the pipeline. Mr. Ford answered nothing. XV. COMMENTS BY THE GENERAL PUBLIC Pursuant to N.R.S. 241, this time is devoted to comments by the public, if any, and discussion of those comments. No action may be taken upon a matter raised under this item on the agenda until the matter itself has been specifically included on a successive agenda and identified as an item for possible action. ACTION WILL NOT BE TAKEN Lori Gilbert, Elko Broadcasting Company, requested that Mr. Stanton, at a future meeting, advise the status of the Citizen Advisory Committee for the Boys and Girls Club's projects. She has heard conflicting reports and if there is a committee formed. If there is one, did the City form it? Or the County? Either way, it is her impression as a member of the media that it could be subject to Open Meeting Law; if it is decision making or advising for decision-making capacity. She does know it will be steering public resources. If there are going to be appointed members, she recommended the media be invited to attend. It would be noticed if it were subject to Open Meeting Law. She also strongly advised that a member of the media serve on the committee. Dave Stanton said he has not had much to do with this advisory board. He heard a little bit about it. In general, if it is created by the City, County or a combination of both, and it is advising either entity on the expenditure of public resources, then it is subject to Open Meeting Law. Lee Hoffman, 1085 Barrington Ave., said he tried to sit on his hands. He was not going to comment tonight but he couldn't help himself. When you got to the deliberation on the main item tonight, he didn't want to slow that down. He takes exception to Mr. Stone's suggestion of a poll. He hopes they don't consider running a poll to make their decisions. It is a representative form of government. You sit here and take public comment and that is entirely appropriate. Then you have to make the tough decision. A poll is not a good idea at all for a number of reasons. It will involve cost. The 2000 people you sample will not have been sitting her listening to the input and they won't have the same information you have. Council is responsible for making those decisions. This is not in support or against the project. This is just about how our government is supposed to work. There are some shortcomings with polls. You never really know how that selection process works out. The School Board was trying to run a poll of the teachers and the businesses about a 4-day school week. We are struggling to get responses. He felt Council made the right decision to not go to a vote. While he was January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 25 of 27  on Council for 16 years, he never tried to make a decision based on polling. You have to make the decision and if the public doesn't like it they fire you. That is the way it is supposed to work. Dave Stanton wanted to clarify his earlier remarks to Ms. Gilbert. Regarding these advisory committees, community groups can get together and form advisory committees on their own, independent of any sort of governmental action. They are not subject to Open Meeting Law. The question is whether or not the City Council, or some other public body, has taken some sort of formal action to create this advisory board. If that happens, that triggers the Open Meeting Law. He wanted to make sure he is clear. If it is a community group, a bunch of people who just organized and decided to come and present their opinions, that is not subject to open meeting law. Lori Gilbert appreciated that. It had been suggested in earlier meetings that there would be an advisory committee of citizens. The County requested the same. She didn't know if that was reflected in the Memorandum of Understanding between the City and County. Curtis Calder, City Manager, said it is reflected in that MOU. Ms. Gilbert said she has read so many documents and it has been exhausting. She is trying to do a good job and help the community understand what is happening. The more information she can get from this body would be really helpful. Mayor Keener asked how Tom Coyle is doing. Mr. Stanton answered he has had slow and steady progress. He is not ready to work yet. It will be a long road. Judy Hire, 245 Ash Street, wanted clarification on the petition. The wording of the petition made it sound like it encompasses the entire Main City Park and the Ball Fields. Mayor Keener agreed it sounds like everything is being removed from the interior of the City Park. The area we are focused on is to the north of Country Club Drive, bordered on the east by Flagview Drive, and then on the west by Golf Course Road. It will not be the whole of the entire city park as published on the petition. Councilwoman Simons said that was what the authors of the petition wrote, not what the City was talking about. Ms. Hire said she signed the petition against. She doesn't like where it is going. She is for the Rec Center but she is not for the Event Center and she doesn't like where it is going. She wished it would go someplace else. There being no further business, Mayor Reece Keener adjourned the meeting at 6:47 p.m. January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 26 of 27  Mayor Reece Keener Kelly Wooldridge, City Clerk January 10, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 27 of 27