REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING – DRAFT ONLY
May 27, 2008
CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Michael Echanove called the Council Meeting to order at 7:01 PM.
ROLL CALL: Council members present were: Mark Bailey; Mike Milano; Jeff Snook; and Rick Wekenman. Absent were: Darcie Bagott, Andy O’Neill, & Norm Schorzman. Also present were: Clerk-Treasurer Joyce Beeson; Public Works Superintendent Dwayne Griffin; Police Chief Jerry Neumann; Building Inspector Dan Gladwill; and Deputy Clerk Ann Thompson. Public present were: Tom Wolny.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Councilmember Milano MOVED to adopt the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of May 13, 2008. Councilmember Snook seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.
OPEN FORUM : The Mayor states that the council will not entertain any comments regarding personnel issues of city staff.
PUBLIC WORKS REPORT: Superintendent Dwayne Griffin reported he attended a water certification course in Spokane. The second coat of paint has been done on the pool locker room floor. Strom Electric installed the VFD on the booster pump. We were using 65 amps, now were using 30-35 amps, so we’re using half the electricity. They still have 5 or 6 days left on Whitman Street. A & R did some blasting. The city may have to amend the dollar amount charged for hooking up, due to the extra amount of rock.
We had a pre-construction meeting last week for Whitman Street. The start date is June 7th. They’re starting with the railroad track. According to WSDOT, the line can be down for 11 days at the most. The south side of West Whitman will be used as a staging area for the 400’ length of old and new rail. Mary Street will have to be barricaded for no more than 4 or 5 days. Due to the rise in the cost of steel, there has been talk of trading some in-kind work on the proposed rose garden tier to offset their costs.
POLICE DEPARTMENT REPORT: Chief Neumann reported that the Garfield contract is going smoothly. They gave away 25 helmets at the Palouse school as part of the bike safety program. Chief Neumann met with personnel committee chairman, Jeff Snook, for the ongoing officer hire. They’re still working on that. The Rat Rod show and graduation are this weekend. They will barricade and direct traffic, ensuring good flow for the local businesses.
BUILDING INSPECTOR REPORT: Building Inspector Gladwill reported that it’s that time of year where things are picking up. He will not be participating in the FEMA flood training as hoped but he’ll apply again next year.
OLD BUSINESS:
MH Park Update: Mayor has discussed recycling with three people. The tipping fees don’t offset the costs of transportation and waste. We received one quote for removal, based on five homes. Ace Elliot will give us a bid for the homes. Each home is going to be a unique situation to remove.
Resolution 2008-05 – A resolution adopting the Palouse Parks, Trails, and Open Space Plan. Councilmember Milano explained that this is a living document that we can update and change any time we want to. It will be nice to have on file with the state to show the need. Councilmember Snook MOVED that we adopt Resolution 2008-05. Councilmember Bailey seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.
COMMITTEE REPORTS/REQUESTS:
PARKS, CEMETERY & BUILDINGS: Councilmember Milano is still trying to organize a meeting between the Little People’s Park committee and Public Works regarding the playground equipment and installation. They’re ready to move forward.
POLICY & ADMINISTRATION: Councilmember Bailey proposed a junk vehicle ordinance. He ran it by Attorney Bishop whose only suggestion is that we exempt vehicles that are screened by fencing. The only remaining thing to determine is how many days we need to wait between notification and removal; we want to do it in as short as time frame as possible but you have to allow for people who may be out of town, etc. Council advised Councilmember Bailey to move forward with it. Councilmember Bailey also included information regarding noise ordinances in regards to the last council meeting. Cindi Leper is no longer working at the county. As far as the chipper, we’re still shooting for July 1st.
PERSONNEL & POOL: Councilmember Snook spoke with Kasey regarding the pool. The lifeguards are hired. She has been planning for swim team, etc.
JFB REPORT: We had a total of 6 fire calls this year, 8 EMS calls last month for 27 this year. The blood drive was successful. There was talk of a request to have a street name change and readdressing on Fairview Avenue. There is confusion with some of those addresses. The suggestion is to change it to North River Road just as we did with South River Road. Streets and Sidewalks Committee may have to meet for discussion and approval. Steve Dyson, radio engineer for the county, put together a plan through Motorola to do a trunk radio system, spread out over the county. The hope is that it will all be paid by the 1/10th of 1% sales tax initiative. The plan is that when the time comes, all the agencies will essentially give all their radio equipment to the county. This county radio division will provide all the agencies with the same radios and be compliant with current deadlines. This initially starts with fire and safety, and eventually growing out to PW, school districts, etc. The further down you venture, the less applicable the 1% is. He wants to be done in five years for police, fire, and EMS. The only budgeting we would have to account for would be when PW wants to go which are 5 or 6 years down the road.
MAYOR’S REPORT : Last Friday we received our Brownfield’s assessment from EPA, Region 10. When working with EPA on a cleanup site there are three requirements: 1. assessment (which we have already done); 2. clean-up; and 3. Re-use with either private enterprise or a municipal use. This is going to require public input and direction.
We received the renewal notice for the Palouse Tavern’s liquor license. There were no objections so the license is renewed by default.
June 5th, TIB will be holding a dinner in Palouse at the museum. The Mayor will be giving a presentation.
Clerk Beeson said that the Annual Report has been reviewed and is now complete.
ALLOW PAYMENT OF BILLS: Councilmember Snook MOVED that the bills against the city be allowed. Councilmember Milano seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.
ADJOURN: Councilmember Milano MOVED to adjourn. Councilmember Wekenman seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. The council meeting adjourned at 8:28 PM.
The following vouchers/warrants are approved for payment:
Claims Paid
Claims Paid
Payroll Paid
APPROVED: ________________________________ ATTEST: ________________________________