ELY CITY COUNCIL
REGULAR MEETING
Mayor Dale Stanek called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Council members present: Mark Banowetz, John Smith, Kris Tharp, Kevin Meskimen and Tom Winkowski. Guests included: Marie Miller, Jim Miller, Bill Grove, Millicent Cozzie, Craig Charpar, Patty Ballard, Gary Whittom, Ron Andreatta, Connie Kunkel, Duane Kunkel and Tom Rohner. Deputy R. Crosser of the Linn County Sheriff’s Office also attended.
Tharp, second by Winkowski, moved to approve the agenda. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Tharp, second by Smith, moved to approve the minutes of the April 10, 2006 regular City Council meeting as presented. Motion carried - 5 to 0.
Tharp, second by Banowetz, to approve the Treasurer’s Report for the period ended April 30, 2006. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Treasurer’s
Report (summary) for the period ended April 30, 2006
|
|
Receipts |
Disbursements |
Ending Balance |
|
General |
102,688.72 |
22,515.58 |
152,044.91 |
|
Road
Use |
7,268.8 |
4,618.79 |
3,520.60 |
|
TIF
Fund |
76,706.99 |
|
410,098.07 |
|
Debt
Service |
25,442.07 |
|
33,707.71 |
|
Other
Projects |
|
|
150,211.19 |
|
Library
Project |
|
|
3,169.70 |
|
Water
Utility |
12,343.98 |
5,790.70 |
92,297.57 |
|
Water/Sewer
Reserve |
|
|
25,000.00 |
|
Sewer
Utility |
15,876.44 |
11,463.48 |
125,676.82 |
|
Sanitary
Utility |
4,24.04 |
4,716.90 |
56,096.86 |
|
PR
Clearing |
8,758.10 |
14,825.17 |
2,624.41 |
|
Totals |
253,709.14 |
63,930.62 |
1,054,447.84 |
Meskimen, second d by Tharp, moved to approve payment of bills listed for June 2006. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Meskimen, second by Tharp, moved to approve advance purchase orders for May 2006. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Communications:
Deputy Crosser of the Linn County Sheriff’s Office presented the Monthly Activity Report.
Citizen Requests. Jim Miller asked what would be on the wall behind the Mayor. Mayor Stanek suggested contact with Clary Illian of the Ely Historical Society.
Duane Kunkel asked to discuss his request for annexation and zoning and to consider scheduling a work session with the City Council regarding this request. Mayor Stanek stated this is a non-agenda item and the City Council may not act on items not included on the agenda, but could be included as a discussion item after other agenda items are complete.
Request for Approval of Outdoor Service Area for Class C On-Premise Liquor Permit, Wink’s Tap Inc, dba Odies Bar N’ Grill, 1650 Dows Street. The City Council reviewed information regarding outdoor service areas and discussed the request for outdoor service area with Tom Rohner, representing Odies Bar N’ Grill. Mr. Rohner stated Odies would include the following for the outdoor service area; a sign stating entry only from the inside, no exit except emergency, no speakers would be allowed, a security camera, that the outdoor area would only be open in conjunction with the kitchen, closing at 9:30 pm week days and 10:30 pm on weekends; and that the service area would be designed to accommodate two off-street parking spots. The City Council also discussed the option of temporary approval of this request; the request to be re-considered after the City Council considers an ordinance to regulate liquor permittees outdoor liquor service areas similar to Iowa City’s ordinance. Clerk-Administrator Anderson presented correspondence from Bonnie Levien regarding this matter.
Meskimen, second by Winkowski, moved to approve the request for an Outdoor Service Area for Wink’s Tap Inc., dba Odies Bar N’ Grill, 1650 Dows Street through July 11, 2006. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Tharp, second by Winkowski, moved to direct the Clerk-Administrator to draft an ordinance similar to Iowa City’s outdoor liquor service area ordinance and schedule a public hearing regarding that ordinance for June 12, 2006. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Proposal and Agreement for Mowing Services. Clerk-Administrator Anderson reported Berns Brothers Mowing stated they would accept a contract to mow city property for $275 per occurrence for through 2008. The City Council discussed this matter, items discussed include: impact on budget, provisions for offsetting the cost of the mowing contract, and whether accepting the proposal and agreement would be beneficial for the City. Meskimen, second by Smith, moved to table this matter until the June meeting for more information to be gathered. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Resolution No. 06-0508-11, Approving Contract for Preliminary Engineering, Brain Engineering – Hillcrest Highland Project. This resolution would approve a contract with Brain Engineering to provide preliminary engineering services for the Hillcrest/Highland project, per the City’s Request for Proposals and their proposal, for an amount not to exceed $5,400.00. Meskimen, second by Winkowski, moved to approve Resolution No. 06-0508-12, Approving Contract for Preliminary Engineering, Brain Engineering – Hillcrest Highland Project. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Resolution No. 06-0508-12, Scheduling Public Hearing re: SRF Planning & Design Loan for the Wastewater Treatment Plant Project. This resolution would schedule a public hearing regarding a no-interest loan from the Iowa Finance Authority’s State Revolving Fund to cover planning and design costs for the Wastewater Treatment Plant project for 7:00 p.m. June 12, 2006. Meskimen, second by Smith, moved to approve Resolution No. 06-0508-12, Scheduling Public Hearing re: SRF Planning & Design Loan for the Wastewater Treatment Plant Project. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Revise Water System Consultant Services Agreement with Jared Vogeler, dba Hydrants Unlimited. Clerk-Administrator Anderson reported Patty Ballard had achieved the Water Distribution and Water Treatment certifications required by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to qualify as the certified operator for the Ely water system. Mr. Anderson reported the City could revise its contract with Jared Vogeler, dba Hydrants Unlimited, by removing services related to serving as the City’s certified water operator. Tharp, second by Smith, moved to revise the City’s contract with Jared Vogeler, dba Hydrants Unlimited, by not including services related to serving as the City’s certified water operator. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Clerk-Administrator Anderson requested the City Council authorize an increase in Patty Ballard’s compensation to reflect the increase in responsibility as the City’s certified water system operator equivalent to the decrease in contract cost with Hydrants Unlimited. The City Council discussed this matter including: expectations when Ms Ballard was originally hired, whether compensation should be increased immediately or after acceptable performance, and comparability of the proposed compensation.
Tharp, second by Smith, moved to increase Patty Ballard’s compensation $2.26 per hour, effective May 9, 2006. Motion failed – 2 to 3; Tharp and Smith in favor, Banowetz, Meskimen and Winkowski opposed.
The City Council discussed this matter further. Tharp, second by Smith, moved to approve increasing Patty Ballard’s compensation by $1.13 per hour immediately, and authorize the Clerk/Administrator to increase her salary an additional $1.13 per hour after 90 days upon reporting to City Council all reports and paperwork related to being Ely’s certified water operator are completed and filed properly and on time. Motion carried – 5 to 0.
Discuss and Schedule Public Hearing re: Proposed Special Assessment Policy. The City Council discussed the potential for a general policy regarding use of special assessments to pay for capital improvement and reconstruction projects, including possible special assessment for the Hillcrest/Highland project. Items discussed include: whether special assessment is viable and acceptable method of paying for capital projects, how a general policy would be applied, and how the amount assessed to each benefited property might be calculated. It was the general consensus of the City Council to direct the Clerk-Administrator to research this matter further, including examples from other cities and discuss this matter again at the June 12, 2006 meeting.
Appointments to City Boards and Commissions. None
Discussion Items. Duane Kunkel discussed his request for Ely to voluntarily annex roughly 22 acres on the north side of Banner Valley Road and designate it an R-2 zoning district. Mayor Stanek stated this is a non-agenda item and the City Council may not act on this time. The items Mr. Kunkel discussed include: asking the City Council members for their thoughts related to this request; that his engineer confirms the sanitary sewer through Southbrook does not have adequate capacity to serve this proposed project and Southbrook when completely built out; asked the Council what responsibility the City would have to extend sanitary sewer capable of serving this property, and requested a work session with the City Council regarding this request.
Banowetz, second by Tharp, moved to adjourn. Motion carried – 5 to 0. The meeting adjourned at 8:32 pm.
Dale Stanek, Mayor
Attest:
Aaron Anderson, Clerk/Administrator