City Council

Regular Council Meeting July 9, 2018 1. Mayor Scott Schultz called the meeting to order at 7:30. Present were Council members Kale Dankenbring, Amanda Milne, Roger Jensen, Dara Carmichael, and Larry Finley. Also present were City Superintendent JR Landenberger, Police Chief Darrell Thomas and City Clerk Lila Whitmore. Attorney Mike Day was absent. 2. Minutes from the June 25th meeting and the June 27th special meeting were distributed and read. There was one correction. It was moved by Amanda and seconded by Larry to approve the minutes as corrected. Motion passed. 3. Consent Agenda – It was moved by Roger and seconded by Kale to approve the following items on the Consent Agenda: Permission for Clerk to pay insurance at time of billing; Permission for Clerk to pay utilities at time of billing; Permission for Clerk to pay utility incentives before the 25th of the month; Permission for Clerk to pay theater bills when due; Permission for Clerk to pay Payment Service Network bills when due. Motion passed. 4. Visitors – None 5. Police Report – a) Chief Thomas shared the stats for June. b) Mikayla was not in class last week and she and Jon have both been patrolling in the evenings. Makayla will graduate from KLETC on August 10th. c) One computer battery backup in the police department needs a new battery at $100 and Darrell also needs to purchase two other battery backup units at about $350. Nothing has been ordered yet. d) The windshield on the 2015 Charger has been replaced and Darrell is waiting to hear from the insurance company before scheduling the other repairs. Clerk Whitmore indicated she had just received a letter and a check from EMC Insurance today. e) Darrell has additional training scheduled for the end of July and also the end of August. f) The Sheriff’s office has given the police department a cage that can be put into the Expedition. g) Amanda asked if there is a work schedule for Jon and if there is an on call schedule that can be provided to dispatch. Larry indicated that dispatch had asked him about a schedule. Darrell replid that Jon is not yet ready to be on his own so he does not have a set schedule. Darrell is covering most of the on call. Matt Grogan has provided an updated schedule with his availability to work but Darrell has not had an opportunity to see how it coincides with the departments coverage needs. It was moved by Kale and seconded by Amanda to accept and file the Police report. Motion passed. 6. New Business: a. Alan Russ was present to request a trash waiver for the building he uses for storage located at 315 S. College. A motion was made by Roger and seconded by Kale to approve the waiver. Motion passed. b. Charter Ordinance 2018-2 – After some discussion, this topic was tabled for the next meeting when Attorney Day will be present. c. Clerk Whitmore shared the engagement letter from Adams Brown Beran & Ball for audit and budget preparation services which specifies the following fees: audit fees will not exceed $12,935 for 2018, $13,320 for 2019 and $13,720 for 2020. The fees for the Public Building Commission audit will not exceed $1,300 per year for 2018, 2019, and 2020. The budget preparation will not exceed $1,535 for 2020, $1,580 for 2021, and $1,625 for 2022. A motion was made by Amanda and seconded by Larry to approve the engagement letter. Motion passed. d. Two proposals were received for the Website Content Manager. After some discussion the Council decided to table a decision until the next meeting to give all Council members an opportunity to review the proposals and consider their options. 7. Old Business: a. Property Cleanup – There were no updates. There was some discussion about the Empire Motel. b. Projects Pending – a) JR reported that the electric pedestals are installed at the Courthouse Park. Cement still needs to be poured. b) Roger reported that the sign for the Roadside Park is in production. Building and setting it should cost less than $500.00 c) JR met with the County Commissioners about the curb and gutter along the parks. The Commissioners requested JR provide an estimate of cost so that this can be included in their budget planning. d) Amanda met visited with other members of the Washington street beautification committee, Robyn Raile and Carla Lampe, and they will be working on a plan. 8. Theater Report – Amanda reported that there have been problems with the AC unit. The part to repair it has been ordered. The problem with the marquee sign has been fixed by Commercial Sign. The theater has hired one new employee. It was moved by Dara and seconded by Larry to accept and file the Theater Report. Motion passed. 9. Pool Report – Larry reported that chairs have been ordered to replace the ones that were broken in the storm. There is a small hole in the slide from the hail storm which will be repaired. It should not be a safety concern. There was further discussion about a shade structure. Roger shared a picture of a cantilever type shade structure at the Imperial Nebraska pool. He will check into vendors and costs. Roger also indicated there is a need for some more trash cans. JR will look into it. It was moved by Amanda and seconded by Dara to accept and file the pool report. Motion passed. 10. Building Permits – none 11. Superintendent Report – a) The power plant generated for 4 hours on Tuesday June 26 to clean an insulator. b) Due to weather delays the work on College Street will begin after the fair. c) JR met with the Commissioners to discuss the airport improvements and to ensure the city and the county are on the same page. d) JR updated the Council on the Keller Pond project. He will be meeting with Brock McAtee to get the trail signs and benches installed. Tom Keller has requested an estimate on the cost for maintenance of the pond. e) A motion was made by Roger and seconded by Amanda to approve the purchase of a plate compactor for street repairs/excavating at a cost not to exceed $2000. Motion passed. f) JR has analyzed the billing from KMEA and Prairie Land with regards to the cost of electricity compared to the previous year and determined that no increase is necessary for the 2019 budget other than the normal 2% increase. g) The insurance adjuster has looked at all of the buildings following the hail storm. Most are ok. However, although there does not appear to be significant damage, he requested that Eagle Urethane look at the roofs of city hall and the building on College Street. h) JR explained the cash reserve. The City currently has $500,000 in CDs. The remaining funds are working funds for the operation of the City. It was moved by Amanda and seconded by Larry to accept and file the Superintendent report. Motion passed. 12. Attorney Report – none 13. Clerk Report – a) A motion was made by Larry and seconded by Kale to pay the Cheyenne County Development Corporation the balance of the grant funds that had been received from the Hansen Foundation in the amount of $1247.85. Motion passed. The money is being used to purchase brochures. b) Clerk Whitmore requested clarification on overtime pay for employee travel time. The Council confirmed that travel time for work/training that falls outside of an employee’s regular working hours, even if traveling as a passenger, will be paid as time worked/overtime. c) The Council decided to hold a special meeting on Tuesday July 17 at 7pm to review the 2019 budget. d) Lila asked what type of events should be included on the City website calendar. The Council decided that any event which is intended for the community at large would be ok to post on the calendar. It was moved by Kale and seconded by Amanda to accept and file the Clerk report. Motion passed. 14. Council Comments: Kale – indicated he would like to have a beer garden at the motorcycle rally on September 1. He may be absent from the next meeting, Amanda – none, Roger – none, Dara – a few citizens have expressed concern about the condition of the access road. It is not a city maintained road. Dara might be absent from the next meeting, Larry – citizens have expressed appreciation for the city crews filling pot holes. 15. Mayor Comments – none 16. All bills on ordinance #1016 were reviewed. It was moved by Kale and seconded by Amanda to approve the bills in the amount of $178,833.38. Motion passed. 17. Adjournment: A motion was made by Amanda and seconded by Larry to adjourn the meeting. Motion passed. ___________________________________________ City Clerk