City Council Regular Meeting

Minutes of Regular Meeting The City Council City of Richwood A Regular Meeting of the City Council of City of Richwood was held Monday, January 27, 2014, beginning at 6:00 PM in the Richwood City Hall, 1800 N. Brazosport Blvd. Richwood, Texas. I. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Clint Kocurek, Mayor and presiding officer. II. INVOCATION The invocation was given by Glenn Patton, City Manager. III. PLEDGES OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance and the Texas Pledge of Allegiance was recited by those in attendance. IV. ROLL CALL OF COUNCIL MEMBERS Roll call showed the following members present: Clint Kocurek, Mayor and presiding officer Paul Raymond, Council, Position #1 John Pitts, Council, Position #2 and Mayor Pro Tem Jarrod Beaty, Council, Position #3 Morgan Laird, Council, Position #4 Absent: Donna Lacy, Council, Position #5 A quorum was declared. Others present included Glenn Patton, City Manager, Karen B. Schrom, City Secretary, Sarah Harris, Kellie McKnight, Carmela Cancino, Anne Shepard, Melissa Blanks, Pat Griffith, and Cinda L. Puckett.  V. ANYONE WISHING TO ADDRESS COUNCIL There was no one who wished to address Council on matters not on the agenda. VI. CONSENT AGENDA On motion by Councilman Laird, seconded by Councilman Beaty, with all members present voting aye, the items on the consent agenda were approved as presented. A. Approval of Minutes of Previous Meetings 1. January 13, 2014 B. Payment of bills VII. TOWN HALL MEETING A. Discussion with public regarding electronic metering system for the City's water/sewer system to eliminate the need for manual meter reading and improve the level of service Mayor Kocurek gave a quick background on the upcoming electronic metering system. The City will be replacing the old, inaccurate meters with new smart meters which can read as small as 2 gallons. Many of our neighboring cities are moving to this system. It will cut down on the time spent reading meters as well as the number of re-reads. Since almost everything will now be done via computers, it will cut down on human error. It currently takes about a week to read all the meters in town. This will free up the Public Works Department to work on other projects. Mr. Patton stated that this is good for the city and some of our current meters are approximately 40 years old. VIII. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS A. Committee Guidelines On motion by Councilman Beaty, seconded by Councilman Pitts, with all members present voting aye, the Committee Guidelines for Crime Control and Prevention District, Keep Richwood Beautiful and the Parks and Recreation Committee were approved as presented. B. BWA Participating Customer Resolution On motion by Councilman Laird, seconded by Councilman Beaty, with all members present voting aye, it was duly adopted to approve the BWA Participating Customer Resolution as presented. C. Workshop meeting with Committees on guidelines and expectations The basic guidelines for each committee are very similar for each committee. All members must be Richwood residents and appointed by Council. Each member serves a 2 year term. They must follow Roberts Rules of Order and the Texas Open Meetings Act. The Crime Control and Prevention District must meet quarterly and was created to provide funding for the police department that is not available through city funding. Examples of Projects: • Purchase and outfit new police vehicles • Purchase equipment for police personnel • Purchase software for police programs that enhance the police functions. Keep Richwood Beautiful was created with the purpose of preserving and enhancing the natural beauty of the City and to educate and engage the residents. Examples of Projects: • Clean ups – currently hold 2 a year. • Planting beautification projects and replacing trees • Litter and graffiti prevention-education programs for our schools • Help with code enforcement by reporting potential violators • Seek out grant opportunities. Parks and Recreation was created with the purpose of developing and/or improving the parks and recreational opportunities Examples of Projects: • Planning community wide events such as Day in the Park, Christmas in the Park, and Easter events. • Seek out community events to develop community involvement such as Movie/Music night in the park or programs for seniors, adults and youth. • Recommend improvements to the parks, ball fields, trails, park play structures and community buildings • Seek out grant opportunities. The question was asked if this ruled out KRB from working on Christmas in the Park and the Easter Egg hunt. Mayor Kocurek stated that he wanted both groups to work together to insure success in all endeavors. The Committee Guidelines were in part based on the current by-laws of KRB.  D. Adopt the IRS annual standard for mileage reimbursement On motion by Councilman Pitts, seconded by Councilman Beaty, with all members present voting aye, the IRS annual standard for mileage reimbursement was adopted. IX. REPORTS A. Review of City Goals Progress for 2013-2014 Mayor Kocurek updated the City Goals progress. X. CITY MANAGER’S REPORT Mr. Patton stated that he would like to see the second meeting in March for a strategic planning workshop and begin developing a 1 to 5 year program. The industrial park project is moving along very quickly. They hope to have the first building on the ground within 90 days. The current plan is to develop the front portion first and the second within a year. Councilman Laird mentioned that the trash around the store at the corner of FM 2004 and Hwy. 288B is quite noticeable. Mr. Patton stated he would have code enforcement look into the issue. XI. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS March 1 – Open house XII. COMMITTEE REPORTS Melissa Blanks with KRB will be attending Keep America Beautiful’s convention in Charleston. KRB won a 2013 Affiliates Award for its outstanding capacity to engage individuals to improve community involvement. Councilman Beaty and Mayor Kocurek both thanked the committee for all their hard work. The City appreciates everything they do. XIII. COUNCIL MEMBER COMMENTS & REPORTS There were none. XIV. MAYOR’S REPORT  Mayor Kocurek reported that due to the inclement weather, city offices will be closed tomorrow and do not plan to reopen until 10:00 am on Wednesday. We are expecting sleet and ice with possible snow. The Open House is scheduled for March 1st. He would like the committees to be involved. A. Richwood BCCA The meeting will be held at the Center and El Toro’s will be catering. We will try to get someone from BWA to speak. XV. ADJOURNMENT With no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 6:45 p.m. APPROVED BY A MAJORITY VOTE OF COUNCIL ON FEBRUARY 10, 2014. _________________________________ Clint Kocurek, Mayor ATTEST: _________________________________ Karen B. Schrom, City Secretary