ELLIS — Water issues were discussed throughout the Ellis City Council meeting Monday night.
Hays City Manager Toby Dougherty reviewed the proposed R9 Ranch water development project, telling council members it can be a “regional solution for a long-term water supply.”
The council will consider writing a letter of support after the April 1 election.
Ellis will host a community Water Festival April 27 with information for adults and children about water conservation.
Council members also voted to accept a $1,800 bid LiquiVision Technology Services for the underwater cleaning of the storage tank at the water treatment plant.
The police department has hired a new officer, Chelsey Hachmeister, to fill the vacancy in the department. Hachmeister is scheduled to begin the 14-week KLETC program either March 31 or June 2.
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The complete minutes follow.
DRAFT COPY NOT OFFICIAL UNTIL APPROVED BY COUNCIL
ELLIS CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING Minutes March 17, 2014
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Lyle Johnston called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. Present were Council members Jeff Wolf, John Walz, Jolene Niernberger, Loran Gottschalk and Terry Redetzke. Also present were Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman, City Clerk Amy Burton, Police Chief Taft Yates, and City Attorney Olavee Raub.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG
AMENDMENTS TO AGENDA
City Clerk Amy Burton requested the addition of a presentation by the FHSU 310 Leadership Team regarding the upcoming Water Festival under Special Order. Mayor Lyle Johnston struck the appointment to the Board of Health under New Business. It was the consensus of Council to accept the modifications to the agenda.
PUBLIC PRESENT
Adeline Henderson, Tanner Yost, Brian Spano, Niki Bartlett, Becky Rorabaugh, Chris Rorabaugh, Becky Kiser, Pamela Dietrich, Kris Bollig, Dennis Bollig, Alberta Knoll, Bill Ring, Ivan Kuhn, Toby Dougherty, Jim Ross, John Kreutzer, Mary Kreutzer, Joy Fischer, Jessica Shank, Millie Karlin, Mike Corn, Shaun Musil, Ron Mellick, Brian Raub, Dave McDaniel, Glen Keller, Chelsey Hachmeister, Ryan Augustine, Kimbely Voeller, and John LaShell.
CONSENT AGENDA
Council member John Walz moved to approve the consent agenda containing the Minutes from Regular Meeting on March 3, 2014 and Bills Ordinance #1945. Council member Jeff Wolf seconded the motion. The Council approved the consent agenda unanimously.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
Bill Ring, Ellis County Emergency Management, shared a proclamation signed by the Ellis County Commission on March 17, 2014, declaring Ellis County a State of Local Disaster Emergency and prohibiting all outdoor burning. This includes trash barrels, fire pits, trash pits, ornamental fire chimneys, fields and any other form of open burning.
PRESENTATIONS OF AWARDS, PROCLAMATIONS, REQUESTS & PETITIONS (HEARINGS)
Mayor Lyle Johnston read the National Service Recognition Day Proclamation and thanked those volunteers present for their service. Mayor Johnston then read a Proclamation Celebrating 46 Years of Fair Housing.
SPECIAL ORDER
Water: Special Project – Water Festival
Kimberly Voeller, FHSU Leadership 310 Team Member, informed those present of the team’s semester project of holding a Water Festival and Rain Barrel Event on March 27, 2014.
Police: Personnel
Police Officer candidate Chelsey Hachmeister introduced herself to Council and provided a background of her qualifications.
General Government: Contracts
Ivan Kuhn, Wildflower Telecommunications, discussed with Council a proposed franchise agreement with the City to connect fiber through town for a wireless provider. Section 5 outlining a franchise fee to be paid to the City does not apply because Wildflower Telecommunications is a wholesale provider; there are no end user access lines. City Attorney Olavee Raub suggested that Section 5 of the proposed agreement be modified to reflect why no payment will be made to the City, and a provision added that if at some point in the future Wildflower Telecommunications does provide utility service to end users in Ellis, the franchise fee per access line would apply. Mr. Kuhn will make modifications to the proposed agreement for further consideration. This item will be tabled until the modifications are reviewed.
Sewer: Repair/Maintenance – Wilson & Co.
Brian Spano, Wilson & Co., discussed with Council the new KDHE requirements for the reissuance of the City’s wastewater permit. A Schedule of Compliance must be completed and submitted to KDHE by September 30, 2014. The City will then have until March 2016 to complete the project design and construction. Mr. Spano believes the City may need anywhere from $500,000.00 to $1,000,000.00 of improvements to the wastewater facility in order to be in compliance with the new KDHE regulations. Council reviewed an Agreement for Professional Engineering Services from Wilson & Co. for the preliminary engineering report. It was the consensus of Council to table consideration of the Agreement until the April 7, 2014 meeting in order to have more time to review the document.
Water: Special Project – City of Hays
Toby Dougherty, City Manager, City of Hays, was present to discuss the City of Hays’ project of pursuing a long-term water source with the R9 Ranch in Edwards County, and to ask the Council to authorize Mayor Johnston to sign a letter of support for the project. After further discussion it was the consent of the Council to table this item until the April 7, 2014 meeting.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Streets: Policy
Council reviewed a draft of an ordinance establishing Emergency Snow Routes in the City. Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman stated the Emergency Snow Route designation throughout certain areas of town would save the City considerable money in labor and machine hours. It would also increase safety for both the employees and the citizens as the streets would have less traffic while the Department is clearing snow. Mr. Scheuerman would like for City Attorney Olavee Raub to modify the streets included under the definition of an “Emergency Snow Route”. Council member Jolene Niernberger would like to revisit the existing ordinance on clearing sidewalks as well. Council member Terry Redetzke stated that he is not in favor of establishing Emergency Snow Routes in the City. The proposed Ordinance will be revisited once the modifications have been made.
Sanitation: Special Project
Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman reported there will be a City-Wide Cleanup from November 3rd – 7th. He will distribute more information as the event nears.
NEW BUSINESS
Fire: Financial
In regards to the early payoff of the fire truck lease purchase, Council member John Walz amended his previous motion to correctly state that the annual lease purchase payment of $28,658.06 should come out of the Special Machinery Fund, as budgeted, and the remaining Purchase Option Price of $125,277.12 should be paid out of Old Electric monies. The previously motion had both the annual lease purchase payment and the Purchase Option Price being paid out of Old Electric monies. Council member Terry Redetzke seconded the motion. Motion carried 5-0.
Water: Repair/Maintenance
Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman presented a bid to get the main power board repaired at Well #11. It appears a power surge knocked out the board. Council directed Mr. Scheuerman to check to see if the board is covered under the City’s insurance policy. Council member John Walz moved and Council member Loran Gottschalk seconded a motion to authorize the repair of the main power board by Innovation Automation & Controls in the amount of $2,532.00 with funds to come from the Water Utility Fund. Motion carried 5-0.
Street: Special Meeting
Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman would like a representative from PMSI to present an informative discussion on the best practices and importance of regular street maintenance. It was the consensus of Council to wait until after the election to hold the special meeting.
REPORTS FROM CITY OFFICIALS
Public Works
Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman presented the Comparative Water Report for January.
Water: Repair/Maintenance
Mr. Scheuerman presented a bid from LiquiVision Technology Services for the underwater cleaning of the storage tank at the water treatment plant. Council member Loran Gottschalk moved to approve the bid of $1,800.00 from LiquiVision Technology Services for the cleaning of the storage tank with funds to come from the Water Utility Fund. Council member Jeff Wolf seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously.
Public Works: Special Project
Mr. Scheuerman informed Council of the dates he has scheduled the inmates at the Stockton Correctional Facility to come assist the Department with various projects.
Streets: Repair/Maintenance
Mr. Scheuerman reported that parts are no longer being made to fix the engine of the 1991 Ford tandem axle truck, nor can a re-manned engine be located. Switching to a different engine will also require the transmission to be changed, thus costing the City more money to fix it than the truck is currently worth. It was the directive of Council to drive the truck until it dies.
Sewer: Repair/Maintenance
In January, Mr. Scheuerman reported that the Department had cleaned out several of the ditches and corrected the flow height. At that time, Council directed Mr. Scheuerman to obtain bids from local contractors for the re-seeding of the ditches. Mr. Scheuerman received a bid from the National Resources Conservation Service for $263.00 to reseed the ditches. He inquired of two local contractors to see if they could beat that price and both declined to bid. Council member John Walz moved to accept the bid from NRCS for $263.00 for the re-seeding but then rescinded his motion because the bid is within the authority of the Department Head to act without Council approval, per the Purchasing Policy.
Water: Special Project
Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman would like to set up a meeting with Brad Vincent and Council. It was the consensus of Council to have Mr. Vincent attend the April 7, 2014 regular council meeting.
Police
Police Chief Taft Yates presented the Monthly Activity Report for February.
Personnel: Entry
Chief Yates then asked for approval to hire Chelsey Hachmeister to fill the vacancy in the Department. Ms. Hachmeister would start the 14-week KLETC program either March 31st or June 2nd. Council member John Walz moved to approve the hiring of Chelsey Hachmeister at a probationary wage of $14.08 per hour effective March 22, 2014. Council member Jolene Niernberger seconded the motion. Upon a call for discussion, Council member Jeff Wolf inquired if Ms. Hachmeister was the most qualified for the position, as Chief Yates informed Council that one candidate was already a certified officer. Chief Yates responded that the certified candidate withdrew his application the night before interviews. Upon a call for a vote, the motion carried 4-1, with Council member Jeff Wolf opposed.
City Clerk
City Clerk Amy Burton gave Council an update of the sessions attended at the annual Spring Clerk’s Conference she recently attended.
General Government: Insurance
Ms. Burton reviewed with Council the invoice from Romme Agency, Inc. for renewal of the City’s commercial insurance package. This item will be further reviewed at the April 7, 2014 Council meeting.
General Government: Contracts
Ms. Burton reviewed a request received from Verizon Wireless for modification of the antenna lease with the City. Upon review, several errors were noted in the Consent for Modifications, and Council would like Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman to verify the modification will not cause difficulty in the normal course of conducting City business. Due to the short timeframe to return the Consent form as requested by Verizon Wireless, Council member John Walz moved to approve the Consent to Modifications to the Lease Agreement with Verizon Wireless contingent upon the lease agreement date and location being corrected, and verification from the Public Works Director that the modification is acceptable. Council member Jeff Wolf seconded the motion. Motion carried 5-0.
Swimming Pool: Fees
City Clerk Amy Burton reviewed the proposed increases in the Daily Swim Passes for the 2014 swimming pool season. Council member John Walz moved to adopt the 2014 Swimming Pool Rates as presented. Council member Terry Redetzke seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously.
General Government: Special Project
City Clerk Amy Burton reported that she has received several responses for ideas for the website. The responses will be compiled and then distributed to the Governing Body.
Attorney
City Attorney Olavee Raub reported that she has received the legal description of the City’s property located at the practice field at the Old High School. The property contains 1.22 acres. Ms. Raub will prepare a Quit Claim Deed to USD 388 for consideration at the April 7, 2014 meeting.
MAYOR/COUNCIL
Mayor Lyle Johnston and Council member Jolene Niernberger gave a brief update of the Town Hall meeting on March 8, 2014, with Senator Ralph Ostmeyer, Representative Sue Boldra, and Representative Travis Couture-Lovelady.
Mayor Johnston, Council member Jolene Niernberger, and Public Works Director Alan Scheuerman then gave an update from the Governor’s Water Vision Meeting on March 10, 2014. At that meeting it was reported that 85% of the State’s water use is agricultural, 7-9% is municipal, and 3-5% is industrial and commercial use.
Council member John Walz noted that the City needs to consider the replacement of the media at the Water Treatment Plant during budget time. The life expectancy of the equipment is ten years and they were installed seven years ago.
Council member Jolene Niernberger inquired of the timing of the budget work sessions and noted that there is a bill under consideration limiting the increase in flood insurance premiums to 15%. There were reports in previous meetings that residents’ flood insurance premiums were increasing several hundred percent.
ADJOURNMENT
Council member Jeff Wolf moved and Council member Terry Redetzke seconded a motion to adjourn the meeting. The motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:55 p.m.