Regular Meeting

City of Elko ) County of Elko ) State of Nevada ) SS February 28, 2023 The City Council of the City of Elko, State of Nevada met for a regular meeting beginning at 4:00 PM, Tuesday, February 28, 2023. The meeting was held in the council chambers, 1751 College Ave., 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, City Clerk Technician II Jan Baum, City Manager Jim Foster, Airport Manager Cathy Laughlin, City Planner Candi Quilici, Accounting Manager Michele Rambo, Development Manager Susie Shurtz, Human Resources Manager Dave Stanton, City Attorney 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 James Johnston, Fire Chief Lowell Black, Financial Services Director III. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 1 of 14  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 There were no public comments. V. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Approval of Minutes - 2/14/2023 Regular Session The minutes were approved by general consent. VI. PRESENTATION A. Presentation of a plaque to Shelby Knopp in recognition and appreciation for seven years of service to the Citizens of Elko, and matters related thereto. INFORMATION ONLY - NON ACTION ITEM Mayor Keener presented Shelby Knopp with a plaque. Shelby Knopp thanked City Council for the opportunity. She had six great years with the City. She has learned so much that she will take with her. B. Presentation of a retirement plaque by Mayor Reece Keener to Lieutenant Mike Palhegyi in recognition and appreciation for his seventeen years of service protecting and serving the citizens of Elko, Nevada, and matters related thereto. INFORMATION ONLY - NON ACTION ITEM Mayor Keener presented Lt. Mike Palhegyi with a plaque. Mike Palhegyi said it seems just like a short while ago when he started in Law Enforcement. Working for the City of Elko has been great. He appreciates all the support and everything he has experienced. It is bittersweet but he is looking forward to the next chapter. Chief Trouten said 16 plus years ago he recommended to Chief Smith to not hire Mike Palhegyi. He is glad Chief Smith didn't listen to him because Mike Palhegyi has been an outstanding officer. He has done a lot of things for the Department and re-wrote their policy manual just before he left. C. Reading of a proclamation by the Mayor in recognition and appreciation of the Elko Community Concert Association, and matters related thereto. INFORMATION ONLY - NON ACTION ITEM February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 2 of 14  Mayor Keener werlcomed Bill and Ann Nisbit to the podium, and explained to them how much he has enjoyed the Elko Community Concert Association. He read the proclamation and presented them with a copy and a key to the City. Ann Nisbit said a few words about volunteering and all the people behind them, helping them in the organizations. She expressed her appreciation for all the support the community has given them. D. Reading of a proclamation in recognition of the Elko High School Wrestling Team, and matters related thereto. INFORMATION ONLY - NON ACTION ITEM Mayor Keener stated this item will need to be tabled until the next meeting. VIII. PERSONNEL A. Review, consideration, and possible approval of appointment to the position of Fire Chief, effective February 28, 2023, and direct Staff to prepare an offer letter for Mr. Johnston’s consideration, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The City Council, at the February 14, 2023 meeting, approved moving forward with Option 1 as presented, to appoint the Fire Chief. Option 1 included a direct appointment of an internal (or external) candidate. James Johnston was recommended for the position. Mr. Johnston has demonstrated the necessary job-related and essential qualifications required for the Fire Chief position, and has been acting Fire Chief while the position has been vacant. SS Susie Shurtz, Human Resources Manager, explained this is the formal appointment of Chief Johnston. Mayor Keener called for public comments without a response. ** A motion was made by Council Member Stone, seconded by Council Member Morris to approve the appointment of Mr. James Johnston position of Fire Chief, effective February 28, 2023, and direct staff to prepare an offer letter for Mr. Johnston's consideration. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) VI. PRESENTATION (Cont.) E. Oath of Office for incoming Fire Chief James Johnston, matters related thereto. INFORMATION ONLY - NON ACTION ITEM Mayor Keener called James Johnston to the podium and administered the Oath of Office. Chief Johnston thanked everyone for the opportunity and he is excited about the future. February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 3 of 14  VIII. PERSONNEL (Cont.) B. Employee Introductions: 1.) Annette Robinson, City Clerk Technician, Clerk's Office 2.) Rick Pancoast, Parks Maintenance Tech I, Parks and Recreation Department Both new employees were present and introduced. VII. CONSENT AGENDA A. Review, consideration, and possible approval of the Part-Time City Clerk Technician I position description, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The Full Time City Clerk Technician I position description was approved by Council at the City Council Meeting on February 14, 2023. This is essentially the same position, except in a part-time status. We are requesting approval of the updated job description, to be consistent with the approved full-time City Clerk Technician I job description. SS B. Review, consideration, and possible approval of minor revisions to the position description for Part-Time Laboratory Technician, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The Part-Time Laboratory Technician position description has been updated with minor revisions to more accurately reflect the duties and requirements of the position. SS ** A motion was made by Council Member Simons, seconded by Council Member Stone to approve the consent agenda. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) IX. APPROPRIATION A. Review and possible approval of General Warrants, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION ** A motion was made by Council Member Simons, seconded by Council Member Puccinelli to approve the regular warrants in the amount of $959,654.29. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) B. Review and possible ratification of General Hand-Cut payments, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION ** A motion was made by Council Member Simons, seconded by Council Member Puccinelli to approve the hand-cut checks in the amount of $233,367.58. February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 4 of 14  The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) C. Review, consideration, and possible authorization for Staff to purchase a new engine and torque converter rebuild for the Landfill Caterpillar MST5 Water Wagon, from Cashman/Empire Southwest Equipment Company, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION This is a sole source purchase. This is a CAT Reman engine that is only available from Caterpillar Equipment Company. SF Shane Fertig, Landfill Superintendent, explained this is an engine torque converter rebuild for the water wagon. The landfill took receipt of the wagon in 2015. Cashman recommended they rebuild the torque converter and the engine to extend the life of the machine for a few more years. Staff recommended approval. Mayor Keener asked how much would a new machine cost now. Mr. Fertig answered around $450,000. ** A motion was made by Council Member Morris, seconded by Council Member Puccinelli to authorize staff to purchase a new engine and torque converter rebuild with installation for the Landfill Caterpillar MST5 Water Wagon from Cashman/Empire Southwest Equipment Company. This engine will have the standard one-year unlimited hours warranty. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) X. NEW BUSINESS B. Review, consideration, and possible approval of a Deed of Dedication for a Public Utility Easement, on City owned property, on APN 001-660-106, the Elko Regional Airport, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION This easement was considered and approved by the City Council on December 13, 2022. Prior to recording the approved easement, the Surveyor for the project realized some errors on the approved deed and exhibits. The matter is back before the Council with a revised deed and exhibits. This public utility easement is being created at the request of Anthem Broadband, to run fiber optic cables to some existing equipment at the Elko TV District lease area. BT Bob Thibault, Civil Engineer, explained there were some technical errors on the previous easement. The corrections were made. February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 5 of 14  ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Stone to approve the public utility easement on City owned property, : 001-660-106. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) A. Review, consideration, and possible approval of an Agreement for Professional Building and Fire Plan Review Services between the City of Elko and West Coast Code Consultants, Inc. (WC3), and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The Building Department currently uses WC3 for Building and Fire Plan Review Services and is looking to approve an agreement for such services. The previous agreement between the City of Elko and WC3 was entered into on April 18, 2017. The Agreement needed to be updated to reflect current requirements. JF Scott Wilkinson, Assistant City Manager, went over the changes to the agreement from the previous agreement. Overall, we have been pleased with the work WC3 does for us. ** A motion was made by Council Member Morris, seconded by Council Member Puccinelli to approve the Agreement for Professional Building and Fire Plan Review Services between the City of Elko and West Coast Code Consultants, Inc. (WC3). The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) C. Review, consideration, and possible action to authorize City Staff to give a Landfill voucher to adult volunteers that participate in the “Take Pride in Your Community Cleanup, Greenup, Recycle Event and Prescription Drug Roundup”, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION This year's "Take Pride in Your Community Cleanup, Greenup, Recycle Event and Prescription Drug Roundup" is scheduled for Saturday, April 22, 2023. In the past, the City Council has provided one voucher to the adult volunteers that were engaged in cleaning public property/right-of-ways. The voucher concept was very popular with the volunteers and affords them the same opportunity to remove waste from their personal property and dispose of it without having to pay a tipping fee at the Landfill. In order to provide these volunteers the same opportunity as other citizens, these voucher would be good for one day. Shane Fertig, Landfill Superintendent, explained we do this every year. The voucher is good for one day and they have a week to use it. ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Morris to authorize City Staff to give a landfill voucher to adult volunteers that participate in the "Take Pride in Your Community Cleanup, Greenup, Recycle Event and Prescription Drug Roundup," that will be good for one week. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 6 of 14  D. Review, consideration, and possible approval of a Letter of Understanding for the possible construction of a community recreation/events center, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION On April 12, 2022 City Council approved a Letter of Understanding for the possible construction of a community recreation/events center and the information of an advisory board between the parties. This letter was sent to Elko County and Boys & Girls Club of Elko for signature. There were revisions to the letter by Elko County therefore the revised Letter of Understanding is being presented to Council for approval. For Council’s review the original Letter of Understanding and revised Letter of Understanding (signed by Amanda Osborne, Elko County Manager) are included. JB Jan Baum, City Manager, explained this letter was approved April 20, 2022 by Elko County. She went over the items that were changed from the letter City Council approved. Mayor Keener noted the changes were material enough to come back to Council for approval. Lee Hoffman, 1085 Barrington Ave., noted the underlined sentence about an oversight board, was there partially because of comments he has made during meetings. He would like some clarification on if the oversight board would be subject to the open-meeting law. The City will be giving public funds to the pool. The Boys and Girls Club is a private entity but the oversight board should be treated like a public entity, subject to the open-meeting law. This would be the one opportunity for the public to give input. Dave Stanton, City Attorney, said NRS 241 does have a provision that requires a body that provides advice on the expenditure of public funds to be subject to the Open Meeting Law. In this case, if City Council, County Commissioners and other public bodies are ratifying this organization, there is a likelihood it would be subject to Open Meeting Laws. Councilman Stone asked who the members of the oversight board are. Rusty Bahr, Boys and Girls Club, answered, from City Council we have Clair Morris and Giovanni Puccinelli. From the County Commissioners we have Rex Stenninger and Delmo Andreozzi. Peter from Nevada Gold Mines. We have Cathy Laughlin representing Silver State Stampede. From the Boys and Girls Club we have Randy Ridgeway and Casey Gallagher as the chair. We don't have a problem going with Open Meeting Law. ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Morris to approve the Letter with changes as submitted, as made by the County, to be signed by the new City Manager, Jan Baum. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) Councilman Stone stated he felt the oversight committee should follow Open Meeting Law but understood it could not be part of the motion. February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 7 of 14  E. Review, consideration, and possible action to initiate Ordinance No. 881 creating Elko City Code Title 8, Chapter 22 (Revocable License to Occupy City of Elko Property), and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The City of Elko has been issuing Revocable Permits for many years now. However, the City of Elko Code does not currently include any formal procedures or regulations for these permits. Proposed Chapter 22 of Title 8 will officially put in place a set of requirements, a process for approval, and a set of findings required to be met for each application. MR Michele Rambo, Development Manager, explained we need something in the code to formalize the revocable permit process. She went over some of the main points of the proposed ordinance. ** A motion was made by Council Member Stone, seconded by Council Member Simons to initiate Ordinance No. 881, creating Elko City Code Title 8, Chapter 22 (Revocable License to Occupy City of Elko Property). The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) F. Review, consideration, and possible approval for the City of Elko, Nevada, a municipal corporation, by and through the Elko Police Department to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Elko Police Officers Protective Nevada Association of Public Safety Officer Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO, LOCAL 9110, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION The purpose of this MOU is to append the current labor contract between the Elko Police Officers Protective Nevada Association of Public Safety Officer Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO, LOCAL 9110 and the City of Elko to create a new unit known as Crime Suppression Unit (CSU). TT Chief Trouten explained we ran an experiment last year. The tests were successful and now we would like to make this a permanent part of the Police Department. The MOU has been signed by the labor union. ** A motion was made by Council Member Morris, seconded by Council Member Stone to approve the City of Elko, Nevada, a municipal corporation, by and through the Elko Police Department, to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Elko Police Officers Protective Nevada Association of Public Safety Officer Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO, Local 9110. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) G. Review, direction, and possible action on distributing a new Request for Proposal for the Ruby View Golf Course Food & Beverage Concessionaire, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 8 of 14  On February 14, 2023 the City Council accepted the recommendation from the RFP review committee for the City to enter into negotiations for the Ruby View Golf Course Food & Beverage Concessionaire Agreement with JD’s Golf Management. Staff and JD’s Golf Management were not successful in negotiating an agreement. The RFP indicated “The percentage fee shall be no less than twenty percent (20%) of gross income in exchange for restaurant and bar facilities (rent), utilities, kitchen equipment, refrigerators, freezers, tables, chairs, etc.” The RFP proposal received from Karr Enterprises did not meet this requirement and cannot be considered. Consequently, the City needs to issue a second RFP. The new RFP will not include the “no less than twenty percent (20%) of gross income” requirement. Included in the packet is a red-line version of the prior RFP. In addition, the new concession agreement will include a lease consistent with NRS 268.064, which is applicable to leases of building space or other real property that is less than 25,000 square feet. Staff Seeks direction from the Council on the RFP due date, the concessionaire’s minimum qualifications, and any other objective criteria the Council considers appropriate for selecting the concessionaire. JB Jan Baum, City Manager, felt the description was self-explanatory. We would like direction from City Council for a due date for the new RFP. Jon Karr said he will rebid on this. He will make some corrections on his proposal before turning it in. There will be very few people that will be able to bid on this and he thought just a couple of weeks on the bid will be sufficient. Councilwoman Simons said every single comment she got about this item last time was they would love to see something more than sandwiches and fries. Mr. Karr stated he does not want to compete with the Star but he has some creative chefs now. Kelly Wooldridge, City Clerk, asked Dave Stanton, on NRS 268, don't we need to do a resolution. Do we do it before or after? Dave Stanton, City Attorney, answered they can be done at the same time. There was some discussion about the timeline of the process. Mr. Stanton explained the RFP is for a concessionaire and not subject to the same requirements as in NRS 332. Council will have some flexibility but you can't award it just because you like this person better. There has to be some criteria. The 20-day requirement is coming from the lease part of this. The concessionaire agreement includes exclusive use of a certain piece of City property, which makes it a lease. The NRS provision requires this to be published at least once in a newspaper, a notice of the property to be leased, hold a public hearing and then it can be leased on such terms and conditions the City Council deems proper. February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 9 of 14  Ms. Wooldridge asked for clarification. We do the RFP, then at least 2 weeks later publish the public hearing? Mr. Stanton felt some of these can be done concurrently. Councilman Puccinelli didn't think we should change the qualifications on this. We have some time to get this done because we won't be golfing for a while. ** A motion was made by Council Member Morris, seconded by Council Member Puccinelli to direct staff to prepare a Request for Proposal for the Ruby View Golf Course Food and Beverage Concessionaire, including a lease consistent with NRS 268.064 and be in the process of advertising and publishing in accordance with the statutory requirements. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) H. Review and possible designation of an independent auditor to prepare the annual audit for the City of Elko for Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2023, pursuant to NRS. 354.624, and matters related thereto. FOR POSSIBLE ACTION Each year the City is required to designate an independent auditor prior to March 31 of the year in which the audit is to be conducted. The City put out Requests for Proposals for auditing services for a period of five years in February 2022, and awarded the RFP to HintonBurdick, PLLC. The City of Elko is in the second year of the 5 year contract. LB Lowell Black, Financial Services Director, explained we are required to designate the auditor no less than 3 months before the end of the fiscal year. Mayor Keener called for public comment without a response. ** A motion was made by Council Member Puccinelli, seconded by Council Member Morris to approve HintonBurdick, PLLC as the City of Elko's independent auditors for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, in an amount not to exceed $61,425. The motion passed unanimously. (5-0) XI. REPORTS A. Mayor and City Council Mayor Keener stated there is an Elko County Recreation Board Meeting this Thursday at 10:00 am. He asked Mr. Hoffman if they are still doing the legislature meetings on Thursdays. Lee Hoffman answered yes and said all the information can be found at: Elkonvgop.org February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 10 of 14  Mayor Keener said he will be on vacation in March. Mayor's Day and Elected Official's Day at the Legislature will be on March 20th, while he is still on vacation. There will also be a meeting with the Governor, a luncheon held at the museum. There is also another meeting he will miss; NGM first quarter meeting March 13 at 7:30 am. There is a badge pinning tomorrow at the Police Department for Lt. Moore. There is a meeting on Friday for the AB58 Airport Bill. Jan Baum explained further about the AB58 meeting. It is a phone call with the League of Cities. We will be working on our bullet points. Chip Stone said he will be taking the VIP tour at NGM. Last week he was on the call with the legislative updates. Today at ECVA, they awarded just over $66,000 for 13 or 14 entities to help with their marketing. B. City Manager Jan Baum wanted to recognize the Street Department, the Parks Department and the Airport for all their work shoveling snow. We are busy following the legislature and she thanked Kelly Wooldridge for her work on that. We are working on the budget and the next meeting we will have the general fund presentation. Amodei's office presented us with a grant application that is due March 10. Some projects were chosen for it. Council will have to ratify the application at the next meeting because it is due so quickly. C. Assistant City Manager Scott Wilkinson reported on the cold weather declaration. There was one individual that refused to check out and caused some issues. Mayor Keener saw a report in the newspaper regarding the flooding. Mr. Wilkinson said he was quoted in the newspaper but he was never interviewed. We adopted a river corridor maintenance program but the City cannot prevent a flood. We follow our maintenance program which includes monitoring the outfalls, ensuring the flap valves are working the best they can (when we can access them), and some grazing and mowing in that area. The flap valves do not prevent flooding. They are not watertight and there is groundwater in that area. We are doing what we can and we are monitoring it with NOAA. Public Works will be able to help provide sandbags to citizens. D. Utilities Director No report. E. Public Works Absent. February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 11 of 14  F. Airport Manager No report. G. City Attorney Dave Stanton reported there is no word on when Tom Coyle will return to the office. They have a new attorney in the office handling the traffic and civil cases. H. Fire Chief Chief Johnston thanked everyone. I. Police Chief Chief Trouten reported that the Polar Plunge is coming up March 18. He spoke about the shooter report we had last week and what they took away from the incident. We will be getting a new app that can get information out to the public called Police App. J. City Clerk Mayor Keener asked about legislative bills. Kelly Wooldridge answered this is her first time ever seeing the legislature close for 3 days due to snow. Bills are coming out really slow right now. There isn't anything big we need to worry about. Mayor Keener stated the Agenda To Go app worked great this time. Ms. Wooldridge thanked him for his input but noted we had some hiccups with our media tonight. Her mother has expressed her frustrations on trying to watch meetings from home. K. City Planner Mayor Keener said a letter came in from Thelma Homer. Cathy Laughlin said she and Scott completed a response. L. Development Manager Mayor Keener asked about the residential complaint on Silver Street. Are they in compliance? Michele Rambo answered they have been removing the cars. M. Financial Services Director No report. February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 12 of 14  N. Parks and Recreation Director James Wiley reported there was an issue with the boilers at the swimming pool. Upon further inspection, that boiler is done. We will need to replace it. We are down to one boiler and the good news is that the Police Chief will truly experience a Polar Plunge. He hopes to direct that one boiler to the indoor pool and have it open next week. Mayor Keener thought it was remarkable that it failed after only 7 years. Are we working them too hard? Mr. Wiley answered no; we don't work them too hard. They are not built like they used to be built. There are hairline cracks in the system that leak gas. A new boiler will be between $80,000 and $100,000. The pool is at the end of it's life and it doesn't make sense to keep putting money into it. Councilwoman Simons said we will not take down the ball fields until the new ones are built. Where are we on the ballfields? Mr. Wiley said we are approaching 90% completion on the drawings. It will be shortly after that we will have the 100% drawings. Jan Baum thought we will have 100% of the design cost and a resolution for the Bonding at the March 28 meeting. We will also apply for grants from Pennington. Mr. Wiley reported SnoBowl was a bit of a disappointment. We worked hard on the lift but other issues have come up. It is late in the season and we were closed for a while. There is not ski patrol available. The road to SnoBowl is deteriorating quickly. We have big projects planned for this summer that will hopefully take care of most of the electrical issues. The ski season is over. O. Civil Engineer Bob Thibault reported the FEMA maps are now finalized. The new maps go into affect May 23rd. We are putting together a public outreach meeting to go over the changes, on April 19th. P. Building Official Absent. XII. 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 February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 13 of 14  Councilman Stone said at the ECVA that they are replacing the light system in the auditorium. It was almost done but they discovered they need to go out to bid on some more items. Also, the sign that the ECVA gave to the City, they would like to take it back if they can. Nothing has been done with it and they would like it back if they can. Ms. Baum said she got a call from Annette Kerr earlier about it and she will call her back. Lee Hoffman congratulated the City for not being put off by some snow. The school board postponed their meeting until Monday. April 22nd Clean Up Green Up, you may want to delay to May or June with this weather. Lincoln Day Dinner invites are going out to everyone for Friday, March 31st. There being no further business, Mayor Reece Keener adjourned the meeting at 5:56 p.m. Mayor Reece Keener Kelly Wooldridge, City Clerk February 28, 2023 City Council | Minutes Page 14 of 14