City Council

Regular Council Meeting March 27, 2023 1. President Amanda Milne called the meeting to order at 7:00. Present were Council members Kale Dankenbring, Amanda Milne, David Butler, Dara Carmichael, and Larry Finley. Also present were City Superintendent Dan Blair, City Clerk Leann Lee, City Attorney Lauren Reyelts, and Sheriff Cody Beeson. Mayor Scott Schultz was absent. 2. Council meeting minutes from the March 14th, 2023, were distributed and read. Amanda informed the Council of a few minor corrections that have been revised prior to the meeting. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by David to approve the minutes. Motion passed. 3. Sheriff Report • The Sheriff’s department has been addressing the issue of the dirt bikes being ridden on the city streets. They are hopeful that through citations that it will cease happening. • There was an abundance of dog at large incidences this month. The Sheriff’s department was able to catch and find the owners of the animals that were loose. One citation was issued to a dog owner for their 2nd offense. • The Council discussed the possibility of implementing a noise ordinance with both Cody and Lauren. Cody has informed the Council that most of the citizens will cease the noise disturbance when asked; however, they do not have a way to enforce the issue such as using decibel meters. Lauren has stated that she would require proof of the incident, using either body cam footage or a printout from a decibel meter, to be able to prosecute in court. Cody and Lauren believe the noise ordinance should have a time frame. Further discussion was had on different aspects regarding the issue and possible resolutions. Lauren will put together a draft of a noise ordinance to review with Cody to make sure the Sheriff’s department can enforce it and then bring it to Council for review. The Council has tabled the discussion until the ordinance draft is ready to proceed further. A motion was made by Dara and seconded by Kale to accept and file the Sheriff’s report. Motion passed. Sheriff Beeson left the meeting. 4. New Business: • Penny Raile and Janet Carmen presented the Council with a St. Francis logo design. Penny created the design that 202 on Washington may use for marketing purposes. She has offered the City the ability to use the design if they choose, free of charge. • The Council reviewed a Bandshell Rental Application from the Alumni Association for the Alumni celebration and concert. Larry has requested clarification from Kale Yonkey regarding the streets requested for blocking off. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by David to approve the Bandshell Rental Application upon clarification of streets to be blocked. Motion passed. • The Council was presented with a trash waiver renewal application and a revised trash waiver application for the Cheyenne Food Pantry. A motion was made Kale and seconded by Larry to approve the trash waivers: J.R. Landenberger for 100 E. Washington; Flippin GZ’s for 405 S. Lorraine. Motion passed. 5. Old Business: • Property Cleanup a. Lauren has sent Mr. Morris the Quit Claim Deed regarding his property on 4th Street but have not received it back. She will follow-up in May if the City does not receive it before then. b. Lauren has sent a follow-up letter to Mr. Howard regarding his property on 3rd Street. City Hall received a packet from Mr. Howard addressed to Lauren. The property owner on record, Clifford Howard, passed away many years ago and the estate had gone through probate in Colorado, but nothing was done in Kansas. Clifford’s estate executor has requested information on how to correct the ownership and to make the property code compliant. Dan  has provided a letter pertaining to bringing the property into compliance, per Lauren’s request. Lauren will review and reformat the letter before sending to the estate’s executor. c. Lauren has suggested the Council possibly divide the city into sections or quadrants for ease and timeliness of processing the pictures and letters, as well as giving the community an answer pertaining to why certain properties have been addressed and others not when pursuing property cleanups. The Council discussed the suggestion of quadrants, with the exception that if a property is outside the current quadrant being reviewed and is requiring attention, that the property be handled as well as the current quadrant. Further discussion was had to confirm the schedule of procedures at City Hall. d. Amanda has brought up the property at the corner of Fourth and Frances. Dan has not been able to obtain the pictures for the Council to review yet. The Council has approved Dan to submit pictures to City Hall and to send a letter to the property owner. • Projects Pending a. Diamond Stucco & Remodels has provided a formal quote for the Bandshell and water fountain repairs of $16,162.00. The scope of work is estimated to be completed in 8 working days. Amanda will contact the Mayor and Greg Kite to confirm that the City may move forward without repercussions from the Historical Society. The Council has tabled the discussion until confirmation. b. The Council will need to recess into executive session to discuss the crossovers later in the meeting. • Streets Project a. The Council was provided with copies of the bid time extension request, bid time extension approval for 1-month, and the stormwater permit for general review and knowledge. There are no Council required motions regarding the documents. 6. Pool Report • The pool board currently has 3 applicants and is not sure if the pool will be able to open. They believe it may be due to wages and other causes. Larry will discuss the wages in an executive session later in the meeting. The board has extended the application deadline until April 7th in hopes to acquire more applicants to justify opening of the pool. A motion was made by Larry and seconded by Kale to recess into executive session at 7:55pm for 5-minutes for non-elected personnel for compensation and hiring with Council, City Superintendent, City Clerk, and City Attorney. Motion passed. • The Council resumed from executive session at 8:00pm and no decisions were made. • Larry will keep the Council updated and hopes to have more news in the next couple of weeks. The 3 applicants have prior experience working at the pool and Larry believes they will not have a problem finding someone that may cover other responsibilities of a supervisor. • The Alumni Association has asked if the City would consider donating the Saturday swim from 1pm-5pm as it has previously done for alumni weekend. The Council has approved the request without a motion. A motion was made by David and seconded by Kale to accept and file the pool report. Motion passed. 7. Superintendent Report • Dan has followed up with T&R Electric on the transformers that were ordered in October 2022 and are estimated to be delivered in September or October 2023. • Dan has emailed Vicki Killingsworth regarding the property West of City Hall pertaining to Travis Jensen and the request for increased electrical. She has responded to the email giving her consent to the electrical upgrades if the materials are paid in full before the work is completed. • Dan requested confirmation on the procedures for supplying and installing new water taps since a new water meter is approximately $1,000. The ordinance states the City shall charge for all parts and labor with an additional 20 percent and tax. The City will be charging customers as the ordinance reads.  • Dan has informed the Council that the recycling of cardboard is becoming a larger issue. The current option available is to take it to the landfill. David has presented the idea of obtaining information and a quote for an EPA friendly incinerator. Dan will look into obtaining quotes per David’s suggestion, and still has several emails out to different recycling facilities as well. The Council held further discussion on the topic regarding foreseeable issues and other alternative options. • Dan has followed up with the company for the new water control system that was approved. Atlas Automation has agreed to honor the price that was quoted and approved; however, no time frame for completion was given. • Sanitation Products has received the payment for the purchase of the trash truck. The company noticed something wrong with the breaks, so they took it to get it fixed before turning over ownership. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Larry to accept and file the superintendent report. Motion passed. 8. Attorney Report • An email was sent through the Municipal Attorney Listserv warning of scammer emails that may be going around as the construction season is upon us. If anyone is to receive an email asking to change anything with billing procedures, including remit to addresses, it is recommended to contact a known individual at that company to verify. • Lauren has sent an email to the County Attorney regarding the damaged power pole incident. She received confirmation from Kelley that the County Attorney has received the City’s request for damages and restitution. • Lauren has still not received a response from Fathom regarding their movie contract and the City’s questions pertaining to it. • A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Dara to approve Ordinance No. 645: AN ORDINANCE MODIFYING THE IMPOUNDMENT, FEES, NOTICE, AND RECORD PROCEDURE OF THE CITY OF ST. FRANCIS, KANSAS BY AMENDING SECTION 2-116 OF ARTICLE 1 OF CHAPTER 2 OF THE 2015 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF ST. FRANCIS. David – yes; Kale – yes; Amanda – yes; Dara – yes; Larry – yes. Motion passed. Lauren requested Leann to submit the ordinance for publication. • Lauren reiterated the information regarding having a singular court cost of $158 for a citation, to the Council, for the City’s Municipal Court. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Dara to accept and file the Attorney report. Motion passed. 9. Clerk Report • The Council was presented with a fireworks display application that was created by Jen using the City ordinance. The application was requested for the Concert in the Park. Lauren requested to circle back to this topic so she may review. • Leann informed the Council that the Groundwater Management District 4 would be holding an open discussion at the Cheyenne County Fairgrounds on March 30th, Thursday, between 10am and 12pm to discuss the status of the aquifer with the community. • KMIT has performed their annual evaluation of the City’s risk management for workers’ compensation insurance and safety procedures. The City scored a 90 percent and gold star status that the City has maintained for many years. • Troy with Western State Bank contacted City Hall again regarding the CD that was being offered. Leann apologized to the Council for not having all the information at the previous meeting as the promotion ended the previous Friday and did not run through the whole month, or until WSB reached the 500 customers, as was previously thought. • The Council was presented with an updated price from Underground Vaults & Storage. Council had previously approved using the service to remove and destroy records that are no longer required to keep under the records retention. A motion was made by Larry and seconded by David to approve ordering totes to continue clean up. Motion passed.  • Lauren finished her review of the fireworks application. The Council had further discussion in which part of the ordinance was read. Larry has voiced a concern with the fireworks application requiring the liability insurance at 500,000. The Council discussed the issue of fireworks and what had previously been required. The Council has tabled the review of the ordinance until additional information can be obtained. Lauren advised the Council to motion to approve the application form as it coincides with the City ordinance currently and can later repeal the form. A motion was made by David and seconded by Kale to approve the current revision of the application. Motion passed 3 ayes and 1 nay. • Leann presented the Council with the information for the annual insurance renewal from Neitzel Insurance. The annual renewal was roughly assumed to have increased $30,000. The policy renewal for 4/1/2023 is $109,222.00. This insurance covers the City’s properties which will be further explained to Leann when she meets with Kelly and Roxie. The Council has requested Leann to reach out to possibly obtain another quote to compare rates. A motion was made by Kale and seconded by Dara to accept and file the Clerk report. Motion passed. 10. Council Comments: David – As the City gets closer to going a different direction with the trash, it may be a good idea to start think about compensation for hiring to get an adequate person; Kale – None; Dara – None; Larry – None; Amanda – requested an executive session. 11. A Motion was made by Amanda and seconded by Kale for the Council, City Superintendent, City Attorney, and City Clerk to recess into executive session for 5 minutes to resume at 8:50pm for attorney-client privileged communication. Motion passed. The open meeting resumed at 8:50pm and no decisions were made. 12. Adjournment: It was moved by Kale and seconded by Dara to adjourn the meeting. Motion passed. ___________________________________________ City Clerk