REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
December 6, 2021
The City Council of the City of Fayette, Iowa, met Monday, December 6, 2021, at 6:00 pm in the Community Room at the Fayette Community Library pursuant to law and rules of said council, Mayor Wenthe presiding.
Roll call: Present - Council members Post, Potratz, Tenney, Tucker and Wulfekuhle.
Moved Potratz, seconded Post, to approve the consent agenda items consisting of the regular meeting minutes of 11/15/21, the claims list of 11/13/21 - 12/3/21 and correspondence from Mediacom. Roll call, all ayes, motion carried.
Moved Tenney, seconded Wulfekuhle, to approve the agenda as presented. All ayes, motion carried.
City Administrator/Clerk McGrane advised the council he attended the Iowa League of Cities Budget Workshop on 11/16. On 11/17, McGrane met with some Fayette business owners to introduce themselves and start working on local promotions and events. On 11/17, the city started emailing out the utility late/shut-off notices to customers who currently receive their utility bills by email. McGrane indicated it took him around 20 hours gathering and providing all the necessary information to the auditor for the annual city exam. Almost all the documentation was electronic and sent via 60 emails. The on-site city exam visit was on 12/3 and everything went very well. The annual TIF Renewal paperwork was completed and submitted to the Fayette County Auditor.
Moved Tenney, seconded Wulfekuhle, to discuss directing the City Administrator/Clerk to publish and set a Public Hearing for 12/20/21 on the proposed adoption of an ordinance granting to ITC Midwest LLC a 25-year non-exclusive electric transmission franchise. Moved Wulfekuhle, seconded Tenney, to direct the City Administrator/Clerk to publish and set a Public Hearing for December 20, 2021, at 6PM in the Fayette Community Library on the proposed adoption of an ordinance granting to ITC Midwest LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of ITC Holdings Corp., a 25-year non-exclusive electric transmission franchise. All ayes, motion carried.
Moved Tenney, seconded Tucker, to discuss and consider hiring Mark Jencks as a full-time City Maintenance Worker. Jencks will join the other 3 full-time Public Works (PW) employees. Moved Potratz, seconded Post, to approve hiring Mark Jencks as a full-time City Maintenance Worker at an hourly wage of $20.005. All ayes, motion carried.
Moved Tenney, seconded Tucker, to discuss and consider moving Jacob Palmer from an hourly wage of $20.42 to $21.10. PW Director Jerry Hildebrand explained by offering Jencks a higher wage than we normally would, the current PW employees will need a pay increase to keep things fair. Moved Wulfekuhle, seconded Tucker, to approve increasing Jacob Palmer's hourly wage from $20.42 to $21.10. All ayes, motion carried.
Moved Post, seconded Tenney, to discuss and consider moving Adam Hildebrand from an hourly wage of $26.06 to $26.76. Moved Tenney, seconded Wulfekuhle, to approve increasing Adam Hildebrand's hourly wage from $26.06 to $26.76. All ayes, motion carried.
Moved Tenney, seconded Tucker, to discuss and approve partial pay estimate number 2 to Dave's Home Improvement for CDBG Rehab project. Moved Tucker, seconded Potratz, to approve partial pay estimate number 2 to Dave's Home Improvement for CDBG Rehabilitation project at 605 S. Main Street in the amount of $9,018. All ayes, motion carried.
Moved Tenney, seconded Potratz, to discuss Resolution 2021-34. McGrane explained that Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission (UERPC) has advised they will not be able to complete the sixth and final house of the CDBG Rehab grant before the grant expiration date in January of 2022. McGrane has been in contact with the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) and indicated his frustration with the administration of the grant by UERPC. IEDA is giving the city of Fayette an opportunity to terminate the grant administration and technical services contract/agreement with UERPC and hire a new grant administrator before the grant expires. At that time, they will consider extending the grant expiration date to complete the sixth house. McGrane has reached out to another company who would be interested in applying to become our new grant administrator if we choose to terminate the contract/agreement with UERPC. Moved Potratz, seconded Post, to adopt Resolution 2021-34 authorizing the termination of its contract with Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission for CDBG Grant Administration and Technical Services as of 12/17/21. Roll call, all ayes, motion carried.
Moved Tenney, seconded Tucker, to discuss and consider directing the City Administrator/Clerk to publish the Notice for Grant Administration and for Technical Services for Housing Projects. McGrane advised this would be the next step the city must take to hire a new grant administrator and handle the technical services for the CDBG Rehab grant to complete the sixth home. Moved Tucker, seconded Post, to direct the City Administrator/Clerk to publish the Notice for Grant Administration and for Technical Services for Housing Projects. All ayes, motion carried.
Moved Tenney, seconded Post, to discuss Resolution 2021-35. McGrane advised we need to change First State Bank to Northeast Security Bank and increase the maximum balance amounts for the city of Fayette depositories. Moved Potratz, seconded Post, to adopt Resolution 2021-35 updating the city of Fayette depositories from Resolution 2016-10. Roll call, all ayes, motion carried.
Moved Tenney, seconded Tucker, to discuss Resolution 2021-36. McGrane advised this update is suggested by the auditor because the Iowa Code Chapter has changed. Moved Tucker, seconded Wulfekuhle, to adopt Resolution 2021-36 amending Resolution 2014-14, Investment Policy for the City of Fayette, Iowa, at the suggestion of Auditor Rachelle Thompson to change Iowa Code Chapter 452 to Iowa Code Chapter 12B. Roll call, all ayes, motion carried.
Moved Post, seconded Tenney, to discuss and consider taking the next steps for purchasing a Homes for Iowa home. McGrane advised the city will have approximately $101,500 in the TIF LMI (Tax Increment Financing, Low to Moderate Income) fund that must be spent on assisting low to moderate income residents. The city is able to use the money to purchase the Homes for Iowa home as long as the home is sold to a low to moderate income person/family. McGrane suggested the city needs to start taking the steps to look for a contractor to prepare the lot for the home, if the council chooses to move forward. The home is scheduled to be delivered in July of 2022. Moved Potratz, seconded Tucker, to start taking the next steps for the Homes for Iowa home. All ayes, motion carried.
There being no further business, moved Potratz, unanimous, to adjourn at 6:30 pm.
