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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Minutes 06.01.1999 MIN!3TES OF THE CITY COIJNCIL OF ! klJREL June 1, 1999 A regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Laurel, Montana, was held in the Council Chambers and called to order by Mayor Chuck Rodgers at 7:00 p.m. on June 1, 1999. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: Dirk Kroll Gary Temple Ken Olson Miles Walton Gay Easton Norman Orr Bill Staudinger COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT: Bud Johnson MiNUTES: Motion by Alderman Kroll to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of May 18, 1999, as presented, seconded by Alderman Olson. Motion carried 7-0. CORRESPONDENCE: a. MT Department of Commerce: Letter regarding Fiscal Year 1999 Montana CDBG Technical Assistance Matching Grants. b. 1999 Legislature Back to the Beginning and Beyond. c. Montana Taxpayer ~ May 1999. CONSENT ITEMS: a. Claims for the month of May in the a~nount of $299,047.41. b. Committee Reports. --Budget/Finance Committee minutes of May 17, 1999 were presented. --Budget/Finance Committee minutes of May 18, 1999 were presented. --City Council Committee of the Whole minutes of May 18, 1999 were presented. --Joint Ambulance, Fire and Police Committee minutes of May 24, 1999 were presented. --Budget/Finance Committee minutes of May 25, 1999 were presented. c. Resolutions. 1) Resolution No, R99-23: Resolution approving a one-year moratorium on the drainage requirement for parking lots. RESOLUTION NO. R99-23 RESOLUTION APPROVING A ONE-YEAR MORATORIUM ON THE DRAINAGE REQUIREMENT FOR PARKING LOTS. 2) Resolution No. R99-24: A resolution approving the bid from T & E Equipment Company for $23,312.00 for a Skidsteer. RESOLUTION NO. R99-24 A RESOLUTION APPROVING THE BID FROM T & E EQUIPMENT COMEANY FOR $23,312.00 FOR A SKIDSTEER. The mayor asked if there was any separation of consent items. There was none. Council Minutes of3une 1, 1999 Motion by Alderman Kroll to approve the consent items as presented, seconded by Alderman On'. Motion carried 7-0. SCHEDULED MATTERS: a. Confirmation of Appointments. Yellowstone Historic Preservation Board: Mayor Rodgers appointed Dr. Don Woerner to the Yellowstone Historic Preservation Board to complete the term vacated by Patrick Gubbins which expires on December 15, 2000. Motion by Alderman Staudinger to confirm the appointment of Dr. Don Woemer to the Yellowstone Historic Preservation Board to complete the term which expires on December 15, 2000, seconded by Alderman Orr. Motion carried 7-0. b. Request by Laurel Volunteer Fire Department to display fireworks on July 4th. Fire Chief Jim Stevens requested permission for the Laurel Volunteer Fire Department to display fireworks on July 4m. The fireworks will be displayed in the high school football field. A one million-dollar insurance policy has been obtained through Insure Tech. The insurance policy also covers the car show that will be held on the Ricci's lot on July 3rd and 4th. Motion by Alderman Orr to grant the Laurel Volunteer Fire Department permission to display fireworks on July 4th, seconded by Alderman Walton. Motion carried 7-0. c. Julie Jones - Update on Housing and Water Projects. Julie Jones informed the council that the Homebuyer Assistance Program has currently assisted 29 homebuyers, and the 30th home is scheduled for closing in August. There are enough funds available to assist one more applicant with a maximum of $10,300. Homebuyers have been assisted with an average of $14,500:$4,714 for closing costs, $3,365 for rehabilitation and $6,421 for down payments. The response to the program has been overwhelming. The goal of the project was to assist 30 homebuyers, and 31 homes will have been purchased when the project is completed. The first house was purchased in August 1997. Because of the overwhelming response to both the rehabilitation program and the homebuyer program, Julie suggested that the City of Laurel should consider reapplying to either or both the HOME and CDBG programs for additional assistance. Since the last Community Needs Assessment Survey was done in 1993 and a Housing Plan was done in 1995, it would be necessary for both of those items to be updated in order for an application to be competitive. Program Income Funds received by the city could be used to have these items updated. HOME applications are due on th t October 16 and the CBDG applications are due on October 5 h. The Water Project Status Report distributed to the council stated that the water treatment facility is nearly complete. The loan has over $900,000 available to be drawn. At this time, Double-Tree is anticipating invoices, including the final payment to the contractor, of just over $100,000 to complete the project. Upon receipt of the final invoices, a decision needs to be made regarding the remaining loan amount of $800,000. The city has the option of not borrowing that amount and would then be responsible only for the debt payment on the actual cost. The city could also utilize the remaining funds in another manner. If the city chooses to attempt to use the remaining funds, approval must be obtained from SRF and all appropriate procedures must be followed. The general contractor and subcontractors have submitted all payroll reports. All errors and omissions that were discovered throughout construction have been corrected. As of June 2"d, copies of all submitted payroll reports will be on file with the City of Laurel. Mayor Rodgers asked Julie Jones if Jason Rittal could present a full review report of the water project at a future council meeting. Julie will inform Jason of this request. Mayor Rodgers ~ 2 Council Minutes of June 1, 1999 suggested that the committee should review reapplication for the housing project programs after the closing on the last house. Mayor Rodgers thanked Julie Jones for her presentation. d. Lions Club - Update on South Pond Project. Ken Miller presented the update on the South Pond Project. Last December, the Lions Club had a contest in the elementary schools tbr the purpose of choosing a new name for the South Pond park. Ken introduced Derek Morris, the winner of the contest, and presented him with $100 in Laurel memhant dollars from the Chamber of Commerce. Derek submitted the name "Laurel Lions Family Park" as the winning entry. Ken mentioned that Lions Club members Fred Wennemar, Steven Kops and Terry Keller also attended the council meeting. Ken Miller said that the Lions Club is still on track with the South Pond Project, in spite of the recent vandalism. The park portion, under the CTEP Grant, has been submitted to the state for their review and will be put out for bids after it is approved. The CTEP Grant would approve the sprinklers, the restrooms, the lawn, the pathways within the park, and the parking area. The Lions dredged the pond and removed about 10,000 cubic yards of fill out of the bottom of the pond. Some areas of the pond will be up to fifteen feet deep and Jim Darling, Fish Wildlife and Parks, thinks that it will be a big improvement for the fish. Mr. Darling is testing to see when fish can safely be put back into the pond. Before the vandalism, the Lions Club had planned to remove the fingers that are in the pond area. Now they plan to finish them off and leave them in place. One has been finished with concrete to prevent the water from washing it away. The gravel that was removed from the pond will be used to make a good roadbase, and some type of fill will also be necessary. They are negotiating for the shavings of asphalt that were removed from the highway to use as fill. More concrete will be brought in so the remaining work can be finished. The Lions Club is considering what type of shelter should be built in the park. They want to have a big shelter, perhaps in an octagon shape. They plan to do some fundraising for the materials and will use volunteer help to construct the shelter. Volunteer work and donations will also be used to finish the pathway around the pond. Over 200 trees have been planted in the area, and many commitments have been received to provide additional trees this year. People have asked Ken when this project will be completed. He stated that the Lions Club feels that it will never be complete, as there will be an ongoing need to provide additional improvements to the park. He mentioned that residents are anticipating being able to use the Laurel Lions Family Park. Gay Easton expressed confusion regarding the approach of the Lions Club as this being their project to do and to finalize. Ken Miller stated that the Lions Club signed an agreement that the club would have certain responsibilities of maintenance in the future. Ken understood that the agreement was a partnership between the Lions Club and the City of Laurel. He agreed that it would always be a city park, as the Lions cannot own the land, but the Lions Club has accepted certain responsibilities as defined in the contract that was signed. They have put in matching dollars for the CTEP Grant portion. Cal Cumin clarified that the CTEP Grant for $114,000 is for the park area. This grant process is currently being reviewed by the state, awaiting approval of the detailed plans and specifications. When they are retumed, bids can be accepted. The $10,000 Trails Grant received from Fish, Wildlife and Parks is a much looser grant. The match for that grant is the work being done by the Lions Club and Larry McCann's donated time. The grant will be used to develop the trail and add some fencing around the park. Cat mentioned that these are two different projects. The maintenance agreement states that the Lions Club would be responsibile to do specific things at South Pond. Gary Temple expressed concern similar to that of Gay Easton regarding the work being done at South Pond. Although Gary likes the approach of the f'mger wings, he questioned who approved the plan for keeping them. He observed a lack of sloped shoulders going into the pond and thinks that some of the deep holes should be filled in. Gary expressed concern about the safety issue involved Council Minutes of June 1, 1999 with the finger wings and the drop-offs. Gary asked that the Lions present the council with a plan for South Pond. Gary also questioned whether Fish mad Game would approve using the asphalt shavings as filler. Ken has talked with Jim Darling and Roger Perkins regarding it, and a final decision has not yet been made. Ken said that Fish, Wildlife and Parks has been very supportive of the project. Jim Darling has installed a water temperature device to monitor the temperature of the water. Everyone wants his or her favorite fish in the pond, but it needs to be determined which fish can survive in this habitat. Fish and Game is collecting data to address those concerns. Gary expressed further concern that the beach needs to be sloped and that people need to be able to wade into the water. Ken explained that no work has been done on the beach yet. He also said that the drop-offs would have to remain off the fingers. Gary questioned who would be responsible for the possible liabilities caused by the drop-offs and sloped areas at the pond. Ken stated that the Lions Club is open to suggestions and has attempted to keep communication open with Larry McCann. Mayor Rodgers asked if the engineer has initiated the changes to the project. Ken said that, other than the fingers, everything has remained the same. The mayor asked if they had a schedule for the completion of the fingers. Ken said that the concrete needs to be on the fingers before the water gets much higher, and it should be done within the next several weeks. Some of the gravel that was removed from the pond will be used on top of the concrete. Part of the gravel has been sold, and the excess gravel will also be sold at the completion of this part of the project. Gay Easton said that the council is not being informed about what is being done. The city's insurance company will be liable, and if the council has not carefully considered the project, it would leave them in a vulnerable situation. Gay emphasized that the lack of communication has not been anyone's fault, but the council must be informed about the project. He asked that the council be informed in writing about the decisions regarding the project so that the progress is documented. Ken Miller said that he agrees completely, and he asked for direction as to who the Lions Club should communicate with regarding the project. The Lions Club's Pond Committee would be willing to meet with a city committee. Miles Walton said that work is being done in many different areas at South Pond, but he does not have a clear picture as to who is doing what and who is making the decisions how any of this is getting done. Miles explained that the council needs a clear, concise idea of where the dollars are being spent and who says they are going tO be spent. This needs to be done with the city in a clear manner. Mayor Rodgers asked Gay Easton, as Chairman of the Public Works Committee, to select three members to serve as a liaison committee with the Lions Club. The liaison committee would be responsible to report to the council. Mayor Rodgers mentioned that this is a community project and good communication is necessary to make it work. UNSCHEDULED MATTERS: Ken Olson artended the Memorial Day service presented by American Legion Post 123. He was impressed with the service and Wanted to recognize those that participated in it. Mayor Rodgers thanked the employees who worked to improve the appearance of the cemetery in preparation for the Memorial Day service. Bill Staudinger mentioned that the cemetery grounds looked the best that they have in several years. There being no further business to come before the council at this time, the meeting was adjourned at Council Minutes of June 1, 1999 Approved by the Mayor and passed by the City Council of the City of Laurel, Montana, this 15th day of June, 1999. ~arles G. Rodj~'f~ge~'s,~TMayor~~ ~ Attest: ~mbleton, Clerk-Treasure~