---
date: "2023-08-09"
title: "Council Meeting Minutes 2023-08-09"
source: "2023-08-09-minutes-council-monthly.pdf"
---

City of Prairie City
Council Meeting
August 9, 2023

1. Attendance:
2. Mayor Scott Officer
3. Pam Gangler, Councilor
4. Chase McClung, Councilor
5. Ed Clark, Councilor
6. Candy Reagan, Councilor
7. Museum Director Bob Shive
8. Public Works Director Chris Camarena
9. Fire Chief Marvin Rynearson
10. Rob Gaslin City CPA
11. City Clerk Jennifer Kingsford
12. City Recorder Shonalie Oakes
13. Guests:
14. Storie Mooser
15. Nancy Mooser
16. Ivan Nance
17. Sue Maloney
18. Garret Hitz
19. Casey Bloom
20. Tracey Mund
21.
22. Mayor Officer called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. The pledge of allegiance

was recited and

23. Roll Call taken. Councilor Williams and Shaw were not present, their absences

were excused.

24. Mayor Officer amended the agenda to include the Greater Prairie City Community

Association.

25.
26. Minutes:

  The meeting minutes of July 12, 2023 were considered. MSP: To

approve the meeting

27. minutes of July 12, 2023 City Council Meeting with the changes on line 30 to

say “offered to

28. speak to attorney, waiting for response. Councilor McClung/Reagan.
29.

30. Greater Prairie City Community Association:

 Tracey Mund and Casey Bloom

were present to

31. represent the GPCCA in offering to take over coordinating and putting on the 4th of

July

32. Celebration. The City Council all agreed for the GPCCA to take over putting on the

celebration

33. Water Rate Study:

  Mayor Officer had requested the City’s CPA, Rob Gaslin, to

conduct a

34. “Water Rate Analysis” on the City of Prairie City’s current water rates, operating

costs, and the

35. repairs/maintenance cost. Each Councilor received a handout of the water rate

analysis to

36. review. Gaslin read it aloud, and shared details in simpler terms. Take away from

the

37. presentation: The City’s water system needs to sustain itself, at least breaking even

to cover the

38. Water System’s daily operating costs. In addition, this year’s current budget for the

Water

39. System’s fund, projects financial loss on water operations. It is good practice to

maintain surplus

40. funds for necessary future repairs and the allowance to provide for un-

anticipated emergency

41. cost for repairs that may arise. Due to inflation operating costs have gone up

substantially over

42. the last couple years, drastically raising the cost of supplies, materials, and parts,

not just for

43. Prairie City but for citizens nationwide. For the City’s Water System to be

sustainable it will have

44. to keep up with inflation costs incurred. To break even on budgeted operations

the City would

45. need to increase its water rates 38% increasing the monthly water rate to $67.62

Shonalie Oakes

46. the City Recorder, added that the City has not raised its water rates since 2018. In

2018 when the

47. City initially began seeking funding for the Faiman Well Project, Biz Oregon

required the City

48. allow them to conduct a water rate analysis from the City’s financials in order to

eligible for

49. potential funding. Biz Oregon suggested the City raise its water rates $13.87 per

EDU, which

50. would have brought the monthly water rate up to $54.87 The City did not issue the
51. recommended rate increase, and only issued an $8.00 increase per EDU, widening

the gap from

52. where the Water Rates need to be today for the Water System to maintain

feasibility. No

53. decisions were made regarding the City’s water rates but all councilors present

agreed that there

54. needs to be further discussions to find the right solution.
55. Ivan Nance:

  Wanted the Council to consider granting him permission for a

conditional use

56. permit for his vacant lot on 6th Street, with the desire to put an RV park there.

Mayor Officer

57. stated that RV Parks are not permitted in the R2 Zone. Councilor Ed Clark

reminded Ivan that he

58. already has a variance for that property to place a tiny home there. He suggested

Ivan get a hold

59. of the company that builds those tiny homes to code.
60. Comp Time:

  Comp time pay down for public works employees. The comp time

accruals are a

61. liability to the City when it’s allowed to stack up. The Council requested the City to

pay 150 hours

62. of each Utility Workers comp time and to pay down 150 hours of vacation time for

the Public

63. Works Director. MSP: To approve the pay down of 150 hours of comp time for

the Public Works

64. Utility Workers, and to pay down 150 hours of vacation to the Public Works

Director.
65. Cell Tower:

  The funds from the sale of the cell tower finally arrived. The City paid

off the water

66. Loan it had at the Bank of Eastern Oregon saving the City long-term on interest.
67. Employee Handbook:
handbook with the

 The Council voted a year ago to approve the employee

68. edits made by the City. It has been over a year and the City has not received the

handbook back

69. from the attorney with the approved edits. The Council gave the City Recorder

Shonalie Oakes

70. permission to make the edits that were previously approved by the Council to the

Employee

71. Handbook. MSP: To approve Shonalie Oakes, City Recorder, to finish editing

the City of Prairie

72. City’s Employee Handbook, to make the edits previously approved by the City

Council.

73. Councilor Reagan/Clark. All present agree.
74. City Limits:

 Mayor Officer thinks it is a good idea for the City to expand its city

limits into the

75. urban growth boundary.
76. Fire Report:

  Marvin Rynearson, Fire Chief, updated the Council that the thermal

imaging devices

77. arrived, very cool technology that detects a human or animal in a structure. Also,

Eli, (staffed

78. from the wildfire grant) has been busy with weed abatement for fire prevention

protocol. Eli

79. goes off to college in September and will be missed.
80. Accounts Payable:
appropriations and

  CPA Rob Gaslin read aloud the monthly financial overview,

81. check detail. MSP: To pay the bills. Councilor McClung/Gangler
82. PWorks Report:
Skada system for

 Public Works Director reported they are still wrapping up the

83. the Faiman Well Project. Chris also reported that there have been down trees that

got cleaned

84. up, and that the City hired tree trimming services to trim and cut down some

hazardous trees.

85. Museum:

 Museum Director Bob Shive expressed his dismay that monthly park

visitors don’t

86. contribute a dollar a day to the museum fund and demanded that the City give the

Museum a

87. dollar a day from the monthly RV Park revenue. Mayor Officer explained that the

Resolution in

88. place only allocates revenue from the nightly visitors at the Depot RV Park. That

we will look into

89. seeing what the resolution will allow and consider a new Resolution for the

Council’s
90. consideration.
91. Adjourn. MSP: To adjourn the meeting. Councilor McClung/Gangler
92.
93. Approved by the City Council this 13th day of September 2023, and signed by the

Mayor.

94.
95.
96.

 _______________________

97.
98.
99.
100.
101.
102.
103.
104.
105.
106.

        Scott Officer, Mayor

Attested:

Shonalie Oakes, City Recorder