Council Meeting Minutes 3-20-17

REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING

March 20, 2017

     The City Council of the city of Fayette, Iowa, met Monday, March 20, 2017 at 7:30pm in the Fayette City Hall pursuant to law and rules of said council, Mayor Wenthe presiding.

     Roll call: Present - Council members Kragnes, Larson, Nefzger and Wulfekuhle. Absent – Tucker.

     Moved Kragnes, seconded Nefzger, to approve the consent agenda consisting of the regular meeting minutes of 3/6/17, claims list of 3/7/17 – 3/20/17, and the February 2017 Treasurer’s/Clerk’s Report & Budget Report. Roll call, all ayes, carried.

     Treasurer's Balance for Fund Accounts as of February 28, 2017: General $232,487.91; Streets $202,872.43; Debt Service $1,706.89; Water Utility $339,337.94; Water T&A $25,505.64; Sewer Utility $264,848.75; Landfill/Recycling $839.49; Yard Waste $14,309.20; Bolger Fund $183,054.71; TIF $42,741.39; Local Option Tax $65,770.85; Storm Water $9,085.66; Downtown Project ($28,485.99); Franchise Fees $43,844.87. February Receipts by Fund: General $17,234.44; Streets $16,107.34; Debt Service $54.34; Water Utility $4,737.20; Water T&A $450; Sewer Utility $5,413.95; LF/Recycling $1,031.35; Yard Waste $209.10; Bolger $1,115; TIF $32.30; Local Option $8,178.72; Storm Water $159. Total Receipts $54,722.74. February Disbursements by Fund: General $46,666.39; Streets $19,975.76; Water Utility $2,991.58; Water T&A $675; Sewer Utility $26,852.68. Total Disbursements: $97,161.41. Investments: $1,285,455.25. Bank Balance $2,683,032.74. Balance with Library Funds $2,772,251.03.

     Moved Kragnes, seconded Wulfekuhle, to approve the agenda as presented. All ayes to approve, carried.

     Administrator/Clerk McGrane reported to the council that he attended the Fayette County Tourism meeting on March 7th in West Union and should have water bills finished and mailed out within the next week.

     Moved Kragnes, seconded Nefzger, to discuss an update on the CDBG Water/Sewer and Community Facilities and Services grants. McGrane informed the council that Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission had not heard yet if Fayette has been awarded or denied these grants for the downtown and Water Street improvements. The city should be notified this month, that way if we are denied, we can reapply again. The deadline to have applications in for the next round is April 1, 2017. Moved Kragnes, seconded Wulfekuhle, to reapply for both grants and submit the applications prior to the April 1, 2017 deadline, if the city is denied before March 31. All ayes, carried.  

     Moved Nefzger, seconded Kragnes, to discuss the Fayette Community Library Board minutes from February 8, 2017. After discussion, moved Kragnes, seconded Larson, to approve. All ayes, carried.

     Moved Kragnes, seconded Nefzger, to discuss a request to construct a map kiosk displaying a stretch of the Volga River at Klock’s Island Park. Sam Freitag, a Life Scout who is working on his Eagle Scout project which will consist of a kiosk that will be placed at Klock’s Island Park down by the river, explained the project. The map will include the Volga River from Klock’s Island Park to the edge of the Volga Recreation Park. Along the river, Freitag will be placing numbered signs that will have solar lights. There will be GPS coordinates for each numbered sign that local 911 dispatchers will have in case of emergencies. Freitag is currently raising money for the project, which is estimated to cost $1,500. Freitag had already met with Public Works Director Jerry Hildebrand to discuss the structure of the kiosk and the location it will be installed at Klock’s Island Park. Nefzger thought it was an excellent project and thanked Freitag for doing it. Moved Larson, seconded Wulfekuhle, to approve Sam Freitag’s request to construct the map kiosk at Klock’s Island Park. All ayes, carried.

     Moved Nefzger, seconded Kragnes, to discuss increasing municipal citation fees. Chief Pisanti suggested the council raise municipal citation fees in Chapters 62.12 and 63.12 in the City of Fayette Code of Ordnances. Pisanti explained to the council the intent of the municipal citations is to correct bad behavior, but if the fees are too low, it doesn’t correct the problem. Pisanti said the current state of Iowa citation fines range anywhere from around $180 to over $250. The City of Fayette’s base citation is currently $50. Pisanti recommended raising the $75 and $50 fees in Chapter 62.12 to $100. These fines would include stop sign violations, expired insurance, not wearing a seat belt and other violations in Chapter 62. In Chapter 63 - Speeding Regulations, Pisanti recommended increasing the fees for the following speeds over the posted limit: 1-10 miles per hour (mph) would go up from $75 to $100; 11-15 mph would go up from $85 to $110; 16-20 mph would go up from $95 to $125. Moved Kragnes, seconded Wulfekuhle, to have Administrator/Clerk McGrane increase the rates as suggested by Chief Pisanti in Chapters 62 and 63 in the City of Fayette Code of Ordinances and present it at a future council meeting. All ayes, carried.

     Moved Kragnes, seconded Larson, to discuss a RFP for City Attorney’s. McGrane provided two different examples of RFP’s to the council members. After discussion, moved Kragnes, seconded Larson to move forward with the two-page RFP with a deadline of April 24, 2017 and to forward the RFP to the Iowa State Bar Association, the Iowa League of Cities, Upper Explorerland as well as posting it on the City of Fayette’s website. All ayes, carried.

     There being no further business, moved Nefzger, unanimous, to adjourn at 7:56pm.

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