Regular meeting of the mayor and council was held March 19, 2018, 5:00 p.m., at city hall. Mayor Justin Towery presided. Council members present: Jane VanDonge, Evan Joy, Devin Renken, and Tonya Kuhn. Absent: John Bisnette. Others in attendance: Bruce Berkley, Terry Gradig, Ron Duran, Vickie Oviatt, Jerry Knouf, Gary Doane, and Glenys Doane.
Mayor Towery called the meeting to order and led in the flag salute.
Devin moved, seconded by Evan, to approve the minutes of the March 5, 2018 meeting. Carried.
Gary Doane presented information on the Steve and Annie Chapman concert, scheduled at the memorial hall, July 14, 2018. Gary requested that fees be waived. He also noted that they would like to use the balcony if that would be possible. Evan moved, seconded by Devin, to waive the fees for the memorial hall, July 14th, for the Steve & Annie Chapman concert. Carried.
Jerry Knouf, Deputy, was present at the request of the council regarding the nuisance vehicle investigation. Jerry reviewed past procedures, and noted that the city is the complainant, not the Sheriff’s department. He said that Sheriff Miner has advised that they are turning this back to the city. They would still be willing to assist in the process by running VIN’s, trying to find owners, and delivering the long forms. There was discussion. Evan suggested using the two signed complaints process.
Ron Duran reviewed animal control activity. Regarding the party with three dogs, Ron said that there are now two dogs on Railroad, and two at the residence.
Ron said that the Lions Club White Elephant Sale will be held the 13th day of April at the memorial hall. Devin moved, seconded by Jane, to waive the memorial hall fees for the Lions Club white Elephant Sale, April 13th. Carried.
Evan moved, seconded by Devin, to have city wide cleanup, April 15-22, with ads in the newspaper for two weeks and Facebook. Carried. Tonya said that the Community Cleanup grant request includes community involvement. Organizations are encouraged to choose an area or park to clean up.
Terry reported that he had visited with Doug Lantz, with Scoular Grain about the ballfield lease. Terry will clear the south ballfield, then if someone wants to use the north field, they could contact Doug. Devin moved to give Scoular a 30-day notice that the city will not renew the lease on the ballfield. Tonya seconded. Carried. Bruce will notify Scoular, terminating the lease.
Terry had attended the Cawker City council meeting. They are checking with engineering firms.
Terry presented the bid from Miller Welding to replace a mower. Council would like additional bids for comparison in the future. Following discussion, Evan moved to accept the bid from Miller Welding with the discount and trade in, at a cost of $5,159.20. Devin seconded the motion. Carried.
Terry has applied for the grant for the ballfield fencing and improvements. He also reported on a leak in the memorial hall roof. He will check on the clinic moisture levels since the rain on Monday.
Tonya moved to pass Ordinance #986. Evan seconded the motion. Carried.
Municipal Judge Kenneth Lee arrived at the meeting. He presented a short run down of 2017 cases handled in municipal court. He also discussed the ordinance regarding disorderly conduct and noisy conduct, responding to a comment that Downs did not have a noise ordinance. He also commented that all are treated the same in municipal court. Judge Lee is registered to attend the Judicial Training in April.
As a private citizen, Mr. Lee expressed an opinion regarding the south ballfields. He would rather grow the community rather than take away. He also commented on his opinion of keeping the dog limit to two.
Tonya moved to approve special use permits #18-17 through #18-21. Evan seconded the motion. Carried.
Regarding nuisance vehicles, Bruce had obtained the League’s model code and prepared a draft ordinance for review. Devin presented a few possible amendments. There was discussion. City Attorney advised council to think it through before implementing any changes. Council noted the city fine schedule is from 2013 and possibly needs updated.
Tonya reported that the sorority will apply for a grant for street signs, directing where services are located. This was a suggestion proposed by the First Impressions presentation. Council agreed for the city crew to help install the signs.
Jane suggested council take another look at the memorial hall upstairs room for cleanup progress.
Vouchers and payroll were reviewed. Devin moved, seconded by Jane, to approve the vouchers and payroll as presented. Carried.
At 7:07 p.m., Tonya moved to adjourn. Jane seconded. Carried. Meeting adjourned.
