Palouse City Council
Regular Council Meeting
May 8, 2018
CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Echanove called the Council Meeting to order at 7:02 PM.
ROLL CALL: Council members present: Chris Cook; Tim Sievers; John Snyder; Mark Wilcomb; Bob Stout. Councilmembers Absent: Bill Slinkard and Rick Wekenman. Councilmember Sievers MOVED to excuse absences, Councilmember Wilcomb seconded and motion carried. Staff present: Public Works Superintendent Dwayne Griffin; Police Chief Jerry Neumann; City Administrator Kyle Dixon.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Councilmember Wilcomb MOVED to adopt the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of April 24, 2018. Councilmember Snyder seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.
PUBLIC WORKS REPORT: Supt Griffin submitted a written report. PW is working on replacing the roof on the shop on Whitman St. Also replacing a stretch of sidewalk on W Main St near the park. Once the sidewalk project is complete they will install concrete pads at the RV park.
POLICE REPORT: Fairly quiet lately. Access and Sector (report and ticket writing with updated mapping technology) training completed up in Spokane. Officer Handley is in advanced firearms training up in Spokane. Garfield May Days is coming up.
CITY ADMINISTRATOR REPORT: Awards for Whitman County Commissioner’s .09 Grants should be available any day now. City applied for funding for a riverwalk trail and green space between the Palouse river and Shady Lane. Dixon met with a land appraiser from Colfax to determine an offer to acquire land near well pump 3 that will eventually accommodate storage lagoons for the City’s updated wastewater facility plan. City will follow up with the land owner after the appraiser has completed his research. The City is encouraged by the effort shown to rehab and secure the old Palouse Arms building with the expectation that current efforts continue. Curbs on W Whitman St will be finished shortly. Subcontractor for the project shaved the curbs last fall to meet ADA standards and was not able to complete them before the weather turned. Lawn in front of Kramer Funeral Home was also impacted by the W Whitman St construction and will be rehabbed as well. City’s annual report for 2017, due May 31st, will be submitted to State Auditor’s Office next week.
OLD BUSINESS:
MFA contract for facilitation of transfer process for Brownfields site: Maul Foster Alongi are the environmental engineers the City used to decontaminate the old Palouse Producers site on Main St. They have substantial experience navigating the tedious and sometimes difficult process of transferring ownership of a Brownfields site. This will be the final step for this multi-year project to integrate the site back into the community. The fee for their services is $7,500. Councilmember Wilcomb MOVED to authorize the Mayor to sign the contract for MFA’s services to facilitate the transfer of the Brownfields site. Councilmember Stout seconded and the motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS:
Ordinance No. 970 – Budget amendment for construction of new roof of PW shop on Whitman St.: Funding for new roof provided by real estate excise tax fund (also known as Special Capital Projects Fund). Budget amendment allocates up to $30,000 for completion of this project. Councilmember Snyder MOVED to approve Ordinance 970 as presented. Councilmember Cook seconded and the motion carried.
Resolution No. 2018-02 – additional retirement funding option for PD through Dept. of Retirement Systems: Washington State Department of Retirement Systems administers the PD’s LEOFF (Law Enforcement Officers and Fire Fighters) 2 retirement program, which is a fixed contribution program. DRS also has a different Deferred Compensation Program available to eligible members, and contributions to this program are more flexible. Enrollment in this program will have no financial impact on the city. Public Works and Administrative staff are enrolled in a 457 account through Symetra that allows for contribution flexibility. Councilmember Stout MOVED to approve enrollment in program. Councilmember Sievers seconded and the motion carried.
Whitman Co. Humane Society contract renewal for years 2018-2021: Similar agreement that the City has had for several years with the Whitman County Humane Society for animal control and shelter services. Yearly dues will increase $25 per year beginning in 2019 through the end of the contract. Councilmember Sievers MOVED to authorize the Mayor to sign contract. Councilmember Snyder seconded and the motion carried.
COMMITTEE REPORTS/REQUESTS:
Personnel & Pool, Chair Cook- Still working to find lifeguards. We have 4 as of now. Still looking for lifeguard manager. If the city is not able to fully staff the pool, hours and possibly days will need to be reduced.
Streets & Sidewalks, Chair Sievers- The City was approached by the Palouse Chamber of Commerce earlier this year regarding placement of the planters along Main St. Chamber will fund planting and maintenance of planters. An arrangement has been made to move the planters closer to road and in unified fashion. Councilmember Sievers will work with PW Supt Griffin to relocate planters soon.
OPEN FORUM: Councilmember Sievers inquired about the possibility of having Cascades Computing (installing broadband fiber internet in Palouse and connecting to Port of Whitman fiber network) provide similar technology to the ambulance as has been provided to the police cars. City will discuss with Cascades Computing.
MAYOR’S REPORT: Mayor read a note thanking the city for providing draft minutes to residents of Palouse. Mayor reminded council and staff of the upcoming AWC small city connector in Palouse on May 29. Mayor attended Officer Reed’s (served with PPD from 1995-1997) funeral in Lewiston on Saturday.
ALLOW PAYMENT OF BILLS: Councilmember Sievers MOVED that the bills against the city be allowed. Councilmember Stout seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.
The following checks are approved for payment:
Payroll Paid 4/30/18 Ck. #9150-9168 & EFT $44,660.92
Claims Paid 5/08/18 Ck. #9169-9196 & EFT $38,294.65
ADJOURN: Councilmember Cook MOVED to adjourn. Councilmember Wilcomb seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. The council meeting adjourned at 7:58 PM.
APPROVED: ________________________________ ATTEST: ________________________________