--- date: "2007-12-12" title: "Council Meeting Minutes 2007-12-12" source: "2007-12-12-minutes-council-monthly.pdf" --- CITY COUNCIL MEETING December 12, 2007 Attended: Stan Horrell, Mayor Roger McKinley, Councilor Pam Woodworth, Councilor Jim Munyon, Councilor Frank Primozic, Councilor Tim Coe, Councilor Georgia Patterson, Public Works Bob Titus, Public Works Brad Baird, Anderson Perry Members of the public per the attached sign in sheet Mayor Horrell called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. The roll was called, Bill Harington being absent. The pledge of allegiance was recited. The minutes of the November 28 and December 4 meetings were considered. MSP: To approve the November 28 minutes as written, Tim Coe/Pam Woodworth. All members voted in favor. MSP: To approve the December 4 minutes as written, Jim Munyon/Frank Primozic. All members voted in favor. Mayor Horrell reminded everyone that there is a process for getting on the agenda. He stated that anyone wishing to be on the agenda for a meeting must fill out an agenda request form and submit it to the City Recorder by the Wednesday prior to the meeting they wish to be recognized. The Council recognized Kevin Dahlen who expressed concern that there hasn’t been a clear answer on how much the slow sand filter project is going to cost the City. Dahlen said he thinks the comparison of options presented to the City wasn’t a fair evaluation. There was discussion of water rights and one citizen claimed that the water right purchased from John Forrest doesn’t exist. Concerns were voiced that the City will not have enough water if they continue with the same source and others were concerned that the galleries are or will be contaminated by the landfill. Melanie DeJong said she is drilling a well and wants to know if the City would be interested in it. She said she would be willing to deed the property it is on to the City. It was not determined, however, if the water had even been tested and whether or not the well would meet State requirements for municipal use. Brad Baird was again asked to recap the options available to the City. Baird responded to the accusation that he had presented a biased comparison to the City and maintained that either option would work for about the same amount of money. He said that in fact, it would be more lucrative to Anderson Perry if the City chose to go with wells instead of sand filtration because there is no design in place yet and much work to be done. He said there are a lot of pros and cons with each option, an also said that Dahlen had been overlooking many things with regard to the cost of developing wells. Minutes December 12, 2007 Dahlen basically wanted to know what sold the Council on slow sand filtration and asked what it would take to change their minds. He volunteered to be part of any discussions and asked the Council to take some time to look at the options again. It was again noted that the original project approved for financing was for slow sand filtration and the development of at least one additional well to augment the water supply. Because the City decided to change the scope of the project and develop wells instead, the financing has been put in jeopardy. The crowd was reminded that the City must use borrowed money for the bulk of the project and that many strings are attached to that money. It was noted that the State dictates what has to be done and when. And when utilizing loan funds, the City has to follow certain rules. Many of the hoops the City has to jump through have been cleared with the SSF project, but if they choose to go with wells they will have to start over which will be very time consuming. There was concern that when the City chose to drill wells on private ground it was done without getting landowner agreements in place for access and site leases. It was noted that another engineering firm had been engaged for the project, not Anderson Perry. There were statements that wells have recently been drilled in town that yield fair amount of water and speculation that the City should drill in town somewhere. Baird said he has heard that kind of talk for 11 years, but has yet to see these high producing wells. He said that if the City can find one, it would certainly be much cheaper than bringing water to town from the wells drilled miles away. He stressed however, that unless the City drills on their own property this time, they absolutely must get landowner agreements in place before doing any work. The Council discussed various locations that might work for drilling. MSP: To take 30 days to decide where to put exploratory wells on property in town, Jim Munyon/Frank Primozic. All members voted in favor. 7:40 p.m. The Mayor called for a break. 7:55 p.m. Landfill: Tim Coe noted that he has yet to see a landfill report at any of the meetings. Bob Titus gave a verbal report. Public Works: Bob Titus said the crew has been working on vehicles. He said they need some sanding rock and that it would be nice to have it under cover of some kind. Titus gave the Council a copy of his comments on an email to them from Anderson Perry. Titus was asked if he had any estimates for leak detection services from the companies he was supposed to contact. He said he had one bid and only knew of one outfit. He was instructed to find and contact more companies. He was asked how long there has been a leak on Johnson Street but he said he didn’t know. Councilman Munyon expressed frustration that known leaks are allowed to go unfixed. Titus said they can dig it up and fix it with a “band aid.” He was asked if there are any other leaks the Council should know about and instructed that leaks should be fixed as soon as he becomes aware of them. Minutes December 12, 2007 Accounts Payable: MSP: To approve the payables, Frank Primozic/Roger McKinley. All members voted in favor. Abatement: Roger McKinley said he had been working on the property but needs to get someone to accept responsibility for over powering the culverts below it. Bob Titus said the City will accept responsibility, however the Council did not make any commitment. McKinley was asked if he had prepared a written plan as directed in the abatement letter. He said no, and that he was not going to. He said he plans to put in another culvert and would get something done before next mosquito season. There was then a lengthy discussion about whether or not Public Works should replace culverts on 9th Street and who has liability for the ditches. Someone thought the Ditch Association is liable. The conversation then switched to sanding gravel. MSP: To OK the purchase of sanding gravel, Roger McKinley/Jim Munyon. All members voted in favor. Police Services: It was noted that if the Council plans to place an ad for a Police Chief the City should first establish a job description and decide what they want the position to do; i.e., decide what kind of coverage they want and still keep the hours limited to 40 per week. The Recorder said they need to also decide on a pay scale and minimum qualifications. Job Descriptions: The Recorder and Mayor said they had not yet received the final versions of the job descriptions to review for signing. Other Business: The Council was asked to consider the approval of an application for a liquor license submitted by the new owner of the Branding Iron. MSP: To approve the application, Jim Munyon/Roger McKinley. All members voted in favor. The Council was reminded that Fire Chief Sullens would soon be retiring and they were asked if they had decided on a gift. It was agreed that a gift certificate for an ocean fishing trip would be appropriate. The Recorder said she had checked the websites of some charter boat companies and that prices varied depending on what type of trip (crabbing, salmon, bottom fish or halibut.) It was agreed that the certificate should be enough to allow for a trip for two. MSP: To authorize up to $500 to purchase a gift certificate for a charter fishing trip in recognition of Jim Sullens’ retirement, Jim Munyon/Roger McKinley. Munyon also said Sullens would have to take a spin around town in the fire truck upon receipt of the gift. 9:00 p.m. MSP: It was moved and seconded to adjourn. All members voted in favor. Respectfully submitted: ___________________________ Diane Clingman Approved this Date: ________________ _________________________________ Stan Horrell, Mayor Minutes December 12, 2007