Minutes of City Council Meeting

CITY COUNCIL
Meeting Minutes

August 8, 2007

LOUISVILLE, NE

A regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Louisville was held on Thursday, August 8, 2007, at 7:00 p.m. at the City Hall. Present were Mayor Alan Mueller, Council Members Roger Behrns, Clete Petrzilka and Bob Derby. Steve Sherman was absent. Also present were City Attorney Roger Johnson, City Supervisor Dan Henry and several guests.

Notice of the regular meeting was given in advance thereof by publication in the Plattsmouth Journal and by posting in three (3) public places as shown by the certificate attached to these minutes. Notice was simultaneously given to all council members. Their acknowledgement of receipt of notice and the agenda is attached to these minutes. All proceedings thereafter were taken while the convened meeting was open to the public.

Mayor Mueller called the meeting to order, stated that the Open Meetings Act is posted at the rear of the room and asked the council to review the consent agenda. Petrzilka moves, Behrns seconds to approve the consent agenda with the exception of the Derby Heating/Air and the Eriksen Construction claims. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

There were no reports.

The council reviewed an e-mail from Doug Johnson containing a tourism video update. The council encouraged the filming of as much footage as possible including inside businesses, the fire department, school, senior center, etc. The clerk will pass on the suggestions to the film crew. Some stills from the car show could possibly be added.

An e-mail was distributed to the council from Bob Hrbek of jagWireless. The lease agreement with jagWireless for use of the water tower for wireless internet access expires on December 22, 2007. Bob e-mailed with a proposal for future business. So far nothing has been installed on the tower and no payments have been received on this agreement. Future Technologies has also shown interest for the use of the tower. The council has learned from this experience to require payment up front for this sort of agreement. Future Tech has verbally agreed to that. An alternative is to run a notice that the city is taking bids on the use of the tower. Petrzilka moves, Derby seconds to not entertain the proposal that jagWireless made in the August 8, 2007 e-mail and inform them that the council will put the use of the water tower up for bids and he is welcome to place a bid if he agrees to terminate the current lease. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

Mayor Mueller reported that he had spoken to a representative from A & D Farms and was told they would entertain the assignment of option on the property that was studied for a business park. Their only concern was the environmental impact of the use and Mayor Mueller told them those would be city concerns too and they would be handled with zoning restrictions. City Attorney Roger Johnson suggested getting the consent in writing from A & D Farms to assign the option. Roger J. also stated that the state statutes aren’t very clear on how you deal with an option but he will come up with a check list for steps to take.

The Cedar Creek rescue agreement renewal was discussed. 13% of the calls made by the rescue department were to Cedar Creek. This has been very consistent for the last five years. 13% of the total operating cost for the last year is $5845.19. These operating costs include supplies, fuel, insurance, wages of city employees making the calls, a portion of the bond payment on the building, training, etc. The upcoming year’s expenses will include payments on the new squad. Behrns moves, Petrzilka seconds to set the price at $5,850.00 to continue the agreement with Cedar Creek for rescue service. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

Don Maxon was present with concerns about the wording of the noise ordinance in the city code because it only pertains to noises “within the city limits.” His concerns stem from an issue with a neighbor who has a dirt bike race course on his property within the city’s one mile jurisdiction. He said it hasn’t happened recently, but he wanted the city to be aware that something annoying could happen just outside the city limits that could affect the residents and that there might be a flaw in the wording of the ordinance. Roger Johnson stated that the issue could be dealt with through the zoning ordinance and the permitted use of the property possibly by limiting the recreational uses of property. The problem with nuisance ordinances is the measuring of noise. This issue will be brought before the planning commission at their next meeting.

The next agenda item was public comment on water rates. Steve Meisinger was present with concerns about the tiered rates. He asked if the object was to pay off the debt for the new improvements or is the object to force the citizens to conserve. Mayor Mueller stated the rates are to service the debt. Steve stated that if the object is to service the debt then the city would want to encourage consumption and perhaps the current rates are doing the opposite. He believes the graduated rates are contrary to all other towns. Mayor Mueller stated that the rates were adjusted that way because the high end users are the ones putting peak demand on the system. Steve said he realizes that there are improvements that have to be made to the water system that cause debts and he admits he doesn’t know what the options are. City Supervisor Dan Henry gave a report on the water improvements including history of the project stating that the village board back in the late 90’s agreed the current well is a temporary fix and the state required the city look for a permanent solution. Every year that solution becomes a more expensive improvement by as much as 20%. The solution couldn’t wait any longer and the cost needs to be spread over the customers the city currently has. If a wholesale buyer is found in the future, rates would be adjusted. Other options include an additional ½ cent sales tax that would be earmarked specifically for debt service on the water improvements. Steve reiterated that he understands the improvements have to be made, but is concerned that the rate structure is going to backfire on the city by discouraging usage with the higher rates for higher usage. Everyone agrees that it’s a bitter pill to swallow, but the costs of the improvements justify the rates at this time. Mayor Mueller invited Steve to make any suggestions for consideration the next time rates are adjusted.

There is an unused balance on the state revolving fund tower loan that DEQ is wanting to close out. There is approximately $26,000 available that can be used for any water improvements. DEQ just needs a copy of an invoice for that amount to drawdown the remaining amount. It was agreed to fully advance that loan and utilize those funds when DEQ is ready to close.

Petrzilka moves, Derby seconds to approve pay application #1 for Eriksen Construction in the amount of $19,800.00. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

There was a discussion on the consideration of a ½ cent increase in sales tax to specifically service the debt of the water improvements. The city attorney said it would take a vote of the residents for an increase. It was also pointed out by the city attorney that any change of the present allocation of the current sales tax funds would have to be approved by a vote of the people. An approximate cost of a special election is $6,000. The potential income would be around $4,000 to $5,000 monthly. The council feels this would be very beneficial and asked the attorney to proceed with outlining the necessary steps to accomplish the election.

A letter of resignation was accepted from Randy Payne.

Dan would like the replacement for Randy to become water/sewer certified and put the new employee into the weekend on-duty rotation. The employee would also be required to get a CDL license. Mayor Mueller would like to advertise in the Plattsmouth Journal, Omaha World Herald and the League of Nebraska Municipalities magazine. Dan emphasized he has a certain amount of work left to accomplish this summer and early fall and he listed those activities. Ads will go into the listed publications immediately.

The preliminary budget was discussed. The budget is based on a 3% increase in wages and an increase in health insurance benefits. Also included are backhoe, mower and bobcat trades. The benefits of equipment upgrades were discussed. The Care Center budget was also reviewed and explained. At the second regular city council meeting of August, the valuations from the county will be in and final numbers will be available.

The senior center carpet is in desperate need of replacement. There is money budgeted this current fiscal year. Pat Schliefert has agreed to get estimates for the carpet and installation and the council said to go ahead and get estimates for the tile and installation in the kitchen as well. Dan suggested she go to McKeen’s and Kelly Carpets for the estimates. Pat plans to ask Ash Grove for a donation for a part of the cost. Petrzilka moves, Behrns seconds to approve the carpet and tile replacement at the senior center as a regular maintenance item. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

Behrns moves, Petrzilka seconds to transfer excess bond funds #32 to general fund in the amount of $17,985.14 with any future tax funds automatically deposited into the general fund. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

Behrns moves, Derby seconds to transfer excess sinking funds #08 to general fund in the amount of $24,095.55 with any future tax funds automatically deposited into the general fund. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

Derby moves, Behrns seconds to approve the street closing on 2nd Ave. Cr. on August 25, 2007 from 6:00 p.m. to midnight for Eastwood Block Party. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

Petrzilka moves, Derby seconds to adjourn the meeting at 9:23 p.m. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote of those attending.

I, the undersigned clerk, hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the proceedings had and done by the Mayor and City Council of Louisville. To the best of my knowledge, the agenda was kept continually current and available for public inspection; and the minutes were in written form and available for public inspection within 10 working days. The minutes are published in summary form. Upon request a complete copy is available at City Hall.

Dee Arias
City Clerk