City Council

Regular Council Meeting January 9, 2023 1. Council President Amanda Milne called the meeting to order at 7:00. Present were Council members Kale Dankenbring, Amanda Milne, Dara Carmichael, and Larry Finley. Also present were City Superintendent Dan Blair, City Clerk Leann Lee, City Attorney Lauren Reyelts. Mayor Scott Schultz and Council member David Butler were absent. 2. Minutes from the December 27 Council meeting were distributed and read. It was moved by Larry and seconded by Dara to approve the minutes as written. Motion passed. 3. Consent Agenda – It was moved by Kale and seconded by Larry to approve the following 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; Permission for Clerk to pay City Attorney bills when due. Motion passed. 4. Sheriff Report – a. Sheriff Beeson informed the Council that he has been looking into updating the Sheriff’s department with Digi Ticket an electronic ticket writing system. The system would be to replace having multiple code books, multiple ticket books and copies, as well as not ordering more tickets, and greater ease to look up a ticket. The software is presumed to interface with the court software and would just need to be updated manually when items such as court dates or fees are changed. Sheriff Beeson is proposing that the Sheriff’s department pay for the main software licenses but requests that each of the municipalities cover the system interface costs to the court software. Cody will present an updated quote as soon as one is available but mentioned that pre-COVID the system was $16,000.00. b. Sheriff Beeson has been in communication with Amanda regarding the discussion on the dog’s at large issue. Amanda presented a quote from the Republican Valley Veterinary Clinic for the rates of when a stray dog is taken to the clinic for the County or City. A lengthy discussion was had as to the length of time for boarding a stray dog, vaccination requirements, and the current ordinance 2-116 wording. Lauren pointed out to the Council that the ordinance would need to be amended for the fees, the vaccination for rabies mandate, the fine schedule for the city, and to mandate tagging the dog with the city prior to releasing of the animal. The Council also discussed that for the first offense the owner will be given a warning, but the dog owners will still need to pay for any fees incurred at the clinic. The Council has agreed to table the discussion until all rate questions are clarified by the clinic. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Larry to approve the Sheriff’s Report. Motion passed. 5. New Business: a. On behalf of Mayor Scott Schultz, Council President Milne presented the Mayor Appointments. The appointments were previously reviewed and noted that there are currently two vacancies on the Keller Pond Committee. It was moved by Kale and seconded by Dara to approve the following 2023 appointments: City Attorney – Lauren Reyelts; City Superintendent – Dan Blair; City Clerk – Leann Lee; City Treasurer – Jennifer Blair; Municipal Judge – Paula Keller; Freedom of Information Officer – Leann Lee; Fire Chief – Dan Blair; Assistant Fire Chief – Chris LaBarge; Fire Department Treasurer – Keaton Frewen; Official Newspaper – St. Francis Herald and Bird City Times; Official Depositories – Bankwest, FNB Bank, Western State Bank; Theater Board – Council member Dara Carmichael, Robert Grace, Larry Barnes, Pat Cress, Margyre Antholz, Jude Faulkender; Roadside Park Board – Council member Kale Dankenbring, City Superintendent Dan Blair, Mike Meyer, Carla Lampe, Kary Zweygardt; Pool Board – Council member Larry Finley, City Superintendent Dan Blair, Margaret Poling, Bruce Swihart, Keely Loyd, Shara Johnson; Housing Authority – Jo Ford, Keely Loyd, Bruce Swihart, Janet Jensen, Carol Larson, Carol Rogers (Alternate); Airport Commission – Dave  Yost, Rodney Bracelin; Public Building Commission – Council members: David Butler, Dara Carmichael, and Larry Finley, St. Francis Recreation Commission members: Holly Hingst and Susan Dinkel, Members at large: Kelly Frewen and Bruce Swihart; CCDC Board – David Butler; 911 Board – Amanda Milne; Cheyenne County Kansas Community Foundation – Dara Carmichael; CC4C Board – Amanda Milne; Standing Committees: Streets & Alleys – Amanda Milne, Scott Schultz; Utility – Kale Dankenbring, Scott Schultz; Parks, Recreation and Refuse – Dara Carmichael, David Butler, Kale Dankenbring; Safety –Dan Blair, Justin Gardner, Amanda Milne, Leann Lee; Washington Street Beautification Committee – Amanda Milne, Dara Carmichael, Robyn Raile, Carla Lampe, Dan Blair; Keller Pond Committee – Larry Finley. Motion passed. b. Bond Documents: The Council was presented with the initial process documents for the upcoming 2023 Series Bond, drafted by Gillmore & Bell. Leann had spoken with Courtney from Gilmore and Bell who had instructed that all that was required at this stage of the documents was a motion to adopt Resolution 2023-1. After review of the resolution, it was noted that the signature line contained Amanda’s name and would need to be corrected. A motion was made to adopt the resolution once the signature line is corrected. Motion made by Kale and seconded by Larry to adopt Resolution 2023-1: A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF ST. FRANCIS, KANSAS AUTHORIZING THE OFFERING FOR SALE OF GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS, SERIES 2023. Kale – yes; Amanda – yes; Dara – yes; Larry – yes. Motion passed. c. Miller & Associates: Leann spoke with Tyler from Miller & Associates who instructed that a motion to approve the advertisement of the notice of bond sale that is scheduled for the January 12th and the bid sale date of the January 23rd was all that was required for their company. Tyler also informed Leann that the drawings and the specifications for the project were completed but the file was too large to email, so he has sent it in the regular mail. A motion was made by Larry and seconded by Dara to approve the advertisement and sale date of the bonds. Motion passed. Amanda updated Lauren on the motions to the resolution and advertising as Lauren had stepped out for a moment. Amanda also inquired from Dan on anything to share regarding the street project. A short discussion was had on the requirement of a handicap ramp. d. Kris Oldsen informed the Council that CCDC applied for a TIFFI SEED Grant to commission three murals: one in St. Francis, one in Bird City, and one at the Thresher Grounds. They have been awarded the grant for a sum of $50,000.00. CCDC is looking to work with CC4C to find a local artist. The award of the grant does require a $5,000 match, in which Cheyenne County Kansas Community Foundation has agreed to the match grant that CCDC would need to apply for. Kris has requested permission from the Council to go through the City to apply for the grant. Council has given permission for Kris to work with Leann to submit the grant. The Council and Kris shared some thoughts on locations for the mural for St. Francis as well, but no location has been decided. e. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Dara to approve payment of the following 2023 budgeted allocations: Cheyenne County Development Corporation - $30,991.00; Senior Center - $8,800; Options Domestic Violence - $2,500; Western Kansas Child Advocacy Center - $2,500. Motion passed. 6. Old Business: a. Travis Jensen previously approached the Council about purchasing property in the Industrial Park. He presented to the Council with his newest proposal to build a structure 24’ x 30’ with footings. Lauren is going to use the information now provided, with the legal description sent to her from Amanda, to draft the purchase deed for Travis to review. Travis also requested clarification as to the time frame of the building project. The previous time frame was that the building projects in the industrial area would be completed within twelve months of purchase. Travis inquired from Dan regarding the electricity and transformers for his other project. Dan has informed Travis that he has a 208v pad mount transformer that is $6,000. Further  discussion on transformers was had and Dan is going to get a quote on a pole mounted transformer for Travis for cost comparison. Dan has informed Travis that he would need to pay for the costs of the transformer up front, as Vicki Killingsworth contacted via email regarding the project. Lauren reviewed previous purchase deeds and informed the Council that they could stipulate in the deed a completion by date and the price of the property is $.29 a square yard. Due to the long lead times of materials, Kale proposed that construction start within twelve months and be completed within two years from purchase date. The rest of the Council agreed, and Lauren is to draft the deed as such. Travis thanked the Council. The Council had further discussion regarding Travis’s project at 201 E. Washington that is owned by Vicki Killingsworth. Lauren has advised the Council since the property is a lease-to-own, that it would be highly recommended that a letter with the project details be sent to the Killingsworth’s and to request their consent of the electrical upgrade. b. Property Cleanup • Lauren brought to the Councils attention the Morris property that the owner has consented to deed over to the City. Currently though, the property taxes have not been paid. Lauren requested direction from the Council if they wanted to wait for the property taxes to be paid before the deed or to have the City pay for the taxes. The Council discussed the property and what actions have already been taken with the property and the owner. A motion was made by Larry and seconded by Kale to approve sending the quitclaim deed and paying the taxes once it is in the city’s name. Motion passed. • Lauren also inquired about a second condemnable property. The owner on record previously stated that he must discuss the options with his siblings, however it has been a month. Lauren is requesting permission to send a follow up letter giving the gentlemen until the end of January to contact the city with a decision. The Council has agreed to sending a letter. c. Projects Pending • The Mayor was in touch with Damian from Precision Impressions LLC regarding the work the city would like quoted on the Bandshell. Damian is available to come to town to physically inspect the project but requires a $500 trip fee. A motion was made by Dara and seconded by Larry to approve the fee and to schedule the inspection. Motion passed. A brief discussion was had regarding the industrial park and the property line for Rob Schiltz and Tim Raile. d. Streets Project – No additional information. 7. Visitors – Travis Jensen, Kris Oldsen 8. Building Permits – None 9. Superintendent Report • We are not able to purchase LED modules and put them on a shelf. The bad modules are being refurbished so we need to send the non-working module we currently have back. • We still do not know what is wrong with the old loader as it still will not start. • Dan has presented the Council a quote for chemicals from St. Francis Equity for $3,411.00. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Larry to approve the purchase of the chemicals. Motion passed. • Dan has brought up approving Ward Electric to start work again soon. The budgeted amount for 2023 of $200,000.00 was confirmed. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Dara to approve spending of the allocated $200,000 to Ward Electric for the next phase of the electrical upgrade. Motion passed. • The grant previously brought before the Council has changed and is not the one that Dan would like to apply for. There is another grant that is not available yet that he will be presenting  later once it has been confirmed. The previous grant was a GRID Grant structured for microgrid. • Dan presented the Council with two transformer disposal quotes for review. Solomon Corporation’s quote was for $1,485.00 and Emerald Transformer’s quote was $7,000. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Dara to approve the $1,485.00 quote from Solomon to dispose of the two transformers. Motion passed. • Johnson Sewer Service contacted Dan and is looking to be out within the next two weeks to complete the first section of town that was encumbered in 2022. They would be able to complete the 2023 phase work that was budgeted for $24,700.00 at the same time. A motion was made by Larry and seconded by Kale to approve the work for the 2023 budgeted amount of $24,700. Motion passed. • Dan is going to be looking into pricing for a small trailer to pull the snow blower for the parks. • Kale has requested that Dan still look into the purchasing of a new trash truck. The current trash contract is still valid until August 14th, 2023. • Dan has also informed the Council that WAPA electric rates have increased. He did not have the specifics at this meeting but will present more information on it next meeting. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Larry to accept and file the superintendent report. Motion passed. 10. Attorney Report – • Lauren requested 10 minutes of executive session with no other items to report at this meeting. 11. Clerk Report • Leann presented the Council with the new rates for the KMIT workers compensation insurance for review. • Leann provided the Council with an updated MASA agreement for review and approval to sign. The updated contract does not change the rates of the plan. There is a new regulation of notating a high savings account or flex spending account. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Dara to approve signing the updated agreement. Motion passed. • Leann provided the Council with the new AirMed rates for their review. The rates do not go into effect until August 2023. • FNB Bank is requiring a motion to remove JR from the signature cards. They have requested a motion be made in the meeting and the meeting minutes brought to them for removal. A motion was made by Larry and seconded by Dara to remove JR from the signature cards at FNB Bank. Motion passed. • Leann informed the Council that in the current bills there was a renewal membership for the municipal court. Amanda located the payment for The Kansas Association for Municipal Court membership renewal in the amount of $50.00. A motion was made by Dara and seconded by Larry to approve the renewal and payment. Motion passed. A motion was made by David and seconded by Amanda to accept and file the Clerk report. Motion passed. 12. Council Comments: Kale – None, Amanda – None, Dara – None, Larry – Inquired if there has been any additional update from the attorney regarding the crossovers in which Amanda was able to let him know that the Attorney is moving forward. 13. All bills on Ordinance #1070 were reviewed. It was moved by Kale and seconded by Dara to approve the bills in the amount of $155,682.04. Motion passed. 14. At 8:35pm a Motion was made by Kale and seconded by Larry for the Council and City Attorney to recess into executive session for 10 minutes for non-elected personnel employee compensation and for potential litigation communication subject to attorney-client privilege, the open meeting to resume at 8:45. Motion passed. The open meeting resumed. No decisions were made. 15. Adjournment: It was moved by Larry and seconded by Kale to adjourn the meeting. Motion passed. ___________________________________________ City Clerk