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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBudget/Finance Committee Minutes 10.02.2012 MINUTES BUDGET/FINANCE COMMITTEE OCTOBER 2, 2012 5:30 P.M. COUNCIL CONFERENCE ROOM MEMBERS PRESENT: Chair - Mark Mace Doug Poehls OTHERS PRESENT: Shirley Ewan Mayor Ken Olson Kat Stokes Chairman Mace called the regular meeting of the Budget/Finance Committee to order at 5:45 p.m. Kat Stokes was the only public in attendance. Ms. Stokes addressed the Committee in regards to East Railroad Street,. She has spoken with Nick Padden at Wal- Mart and he prefers not to get involved with the speed limit on that street. Kat knows that several ladies from Wal- Mart walk home on Railroad Street late at night. It was mentioned that during the winter, the gravel path does not get cleaned off and this could be a concern in regards to pedestrians that walk that route. The Mayor stated that the State will dictate the speed limit on that street and the only way the City can control it, is if the entire street was annexed into the City. He reiterated that there is nothing in the budget this year to address the path, but the City can look at it in the next budget cycle. Mark inquired as to the possibility of Wal -Mart contributing the materials and the City crew do the path. The Mayor stated that presently the City does not have enough employees to get the job done, just like there's not enough crew to work on the sprinkler system at the Cemetery. The Mayor feels that both projects will have to be bid out. The Mayor thinks it would be a good idea to partner up with Wal -Mart, if the City can come up with the additional funding. The Committee needs to realize that the funding for the project will have to come out of the General Fund. The minutes of the September 18, 2012 meeting were presented and approved via motion by Doug, seconded by Mark, and passed unanimously. Doug made a motion to approve the claims, in the amount of $720,400.01 for Council consent; Mark seconded the motion, all in favor, motion passed. There was one purchase requisition presented to the Committee. The purchase requisition was for ice slicer to be purchased through Brentag Pacific Inc. in the amount of $5,005. The Public Works Department would like to have this on hand for the winter. The Committee agreed that now would be a good time to get it and approved the purchase requisition. The Comp /OT reports for PPE 9/16/2012 were reviewed by the Committee. There were no questions. The Payroll Register for PPE 9/16/12 totaling $166,108.02 was reviewed by the Committee. Motion was made by Doug, seconded by Mark, to recommend council approval of the payroll register. Motion passed. Clerk/Treasurer Comments: IRS Phone Compliance Review Update: Shirley let the Committee know that the phone compliance review with the IRS went well. She is not sure if the City will be audited at this time. The Compliance Review agent will be sending the City a letter letting us know if there will be an audit following the review. SID #114 Update: Shirley has contacted Yellowstone Bank and Western Security Bank in regards to obtaining a loan for the SID 114 project. Both banks are willing to loan the money to the City at 3.25 -3.95% interest over 5 years. Shirley informed the bank that, if the City chose to obtain the loan from a private bank it would not be until the spring of 2013. Both banks said the rates would probably not go any higher by that time. Shirley is still waiting to hear from Louise at 1 Budget/Finance Committee October 2, 2012 Intercap to find out why they are not willing to loan the money to the City, because of one owner owning most of the property. Dan Semens at Dorsey and Whitney said this must be a new policy and he would be inquiring about it also. Mayor's Comments: The Mayor had nothing. Other: Mark asked how the water intake was doing at the river. The Mayor stated that last he heard the water was 9 inches over the intake valve. The Mayor stated, not only is the City concerned about the depth of the river but is also concerned about the width and migration of the river to the south. The drought that the State has been experiencing over the summer is not the cause of the depth problem. The scour of the river, during the flooding of 2011, has changed the depth and migration of the river. He has been informed that there is no problem with the Billings intake, as they were not affected as badly as Laurel by the migration and scouring that occurred. Wednesday will be the next conference call with FEMA. The City has passed the qualification process and will now be moving towards the funding of the project, which means that the City will no longer have Charlie Baird as our representative with FEMA. The City would like to be in the river in November or December to prepare for the spring runoff. Due to the fact that the City has passed the Emergency Funding Resolution, the City will not have to go to bid for the construction. For next agenda: No new items have been requested. The next regular Budget/Finance meeting will be Tuesday, October 16, at 5:30 p.m. The meeting adjourned at 6:22 p.m. Respectfully submitted, /i C � i_. l L L I (( t, Shirley Ewan, Clerk/Treasurer 2