Special Meeting
March 13, 2007
The
Mayor and Council of the City of Fairbury met in special joint session with
the Board of Public Works in the Council Chambers, 612 D Street, Fairbury,
Nebraska, on the 13th day of March, 2007, at 7:00 p.m. Mayor E.M.
Mueller called the meeting to order for the City Council. Board of Public
Works (BOPW) Chair Shirley Howell called the meeting to order for the BOPW.
Notice of meeting was given in advance thereof by publication in the
Fairbury Journal News, Fairbury, Nebraska, the designated method of giving
notice, as shown by affidavit of publication. The Open Meetings Act is
posted in the Council Chambers as required by law.
Roll call found the following Council Members present: Brown, Phillips,
Byrd, Trimm, Nelson, Bender, Fry, and Polson. BOPW members present: Howell,
Schacht, Preston, Richards. Absent: Schultis.
Fire
Hydrant Systems and their systematic flushing and repair were discussed.
Fire Chief Eric Voss informed the Council and BOPW that broken hydrants are
commonly discovered during testing and requested replacement and repair
parameters. Assistant Superintendent of Utilities Larry Naiman requested
Voss report back to himself and the BOPW so that they can keep track of
where they are at with hydrant repair/replacement and costs thereof. Voss
stated he preferred the Fire Department being in charge of hydrant testing;
Naiman agreed that it would be appropriate for the Fire Department to
oversee testing. Richards suggested an agreement be put into place between
the BOPW and Council detailing who is responsible for what in regards to
hydrant testing. City Attorney Tim Noerrlinger stated he would draft such
an agreement to be placed on the March 20th council agenda for
consideration.
Sharing of
City Administrator salary expense was discussed. Citizen Pam Schroeder
stated that if the City could not afford the Administrator’s salary, they
should terminate him. Discussion followed regarding how salary distribution
is handled in other communities with city administrators. All agreed
research should be done as to how other communities fund city administrator
salary expenses.
Discussion
regarding compensation from the BOPW for utility payroll processing done by
the Deputy City Clerk took place. Ferneau stated the Deputy Clerk spends
approximately 8 hours in an 80 week period performing utility payroll
functions and that a per hour reimbursement is being considered. Mayor
Mueller stated historical data needed to be established and reviewed over
time. Howell stated that the sharing of equipment, man, and hours needed to
be documented to study what is actually being done by whom.
Combining
of the utility office and clerk’s office staffing and operations was
discussed. Ferneau stated that discussions had taken place internally of
having the two offices combined and centrally located in order to facilitate
cross training and adequate staffing levels during times of employee leave.
Naiman stated he would like to take into consideration the input of those
now doing the work to determine the best ways to combine the two offices.
Naiman also stated he wants to have direction before actually combining in
order to design what would work best. Naiman stated he did not want to see
a reduction in current utility office staff; Howell stated that is not where
they are headed.
Naiman
informed the BOPW and Council that he has contracted out for computer
networking and technical support. Naiman stated the contracted individual
provides 2 hours of tech support at a cost of $100 per month with additional
hours billed at $50 per hour. Ferneau stated some of these costs will be
shared by the BOPW and Council, as the previous full-time computer tech
fixed problems on the City side as well as the Light & Water side.
Boiler,
property, and casualty insurance were discussed. Naiman stated it is time
for the BOPW to renew its boiler insurance, but that no estimates are
available to discuss at this time. Howell stated some of the BOPW’s
concerns were with what would happen if the City lost its power plant and so
they were trying to determine how much it would be to insure it at
replacement cost; the BOPW has since been informed this can’t be done. The
power plant as an asset was discussed as well as plant repairs and related
costs. Howell concluded the discussion by stating the BOPW’s boiler
insurance has expired but that they have a binder and are currently paying
for coverage by the day.
Gas
distribution possibilities were discussed. Ferneau stated Superintendent of
Utilities Mike Beachler has had tentative discussions with other communities
on doing a feasibility study on communities taking over their gas
distribution systems. Naiman cautioned that if the City agrees to having
the feasibility study performed, they have to commit to do that if the study
is favorable. Naiman stated they are not asking anyone to make a commitment
at this time. Howell stated she believed this is something to discuss in
order to be proactive rather than reactive.
Discussion
of a request from Endicott Clay for a refund of primary metering charges and
for off-peak usage data from new meter as well as information on future
off-peak billing practices was conducted. Noerrlinger advised this matter
not be discussed, as the City and BOPW are not prepared to render a response
on the matter; furthermore, any comments could be used in later litigation.
Noerrlinger cautioned Council and BOPW members not to provide a basis for a
future claim that could be filed against the City. Mayor Mueller concurred
with Noerrlinger. Ryan Parker, Vice President of Finance for Endicott Clay
Products, provided information regarding dates and claims being made.
Parker concluded by requesting a response from the City by March 21, 2007.
Phillips
made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Motion seconded by Byrd.
On roll call, Brown,
Phillips, Byrd, Trimm, Nelson, Bender, Fry, and Polson voted “yes.” Motion
carried. Meeting adjourned at 7:59 p.m.
E.
M. Mueller, Mayor
ATTEST:
Tami Arnold, City Clerk
