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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Minutes 10.15.2013 MINUTES OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF LAUREL October 15, 2013 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 Ken Olson at 6:30 p.m. on October 15, 2013. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: Emelie Eaton Bruce McGee Mark Mace Scot Stokes Chuck Dickerson Tom Nelson Bill Mountsier COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT: Doug Poehls OTHER STAFF PRESENT: None Mayor Olson asked three guests to introduce themselves to the council. Cole Gardner, 1532 Pinyon Drive, Isaac Nielsen, 3120 Red and King Gulch Road, and Preston Gardner, 1532 Pinyon Drive, represent Boy Scout Troop 400. Mayor Olson asked Cole and Isaac to help lead the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag. Mayor Olson asked the council to observe a moment of silence. MINUTES: Motion by Council Member Eaton to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of October 1, 2013, as presented, seconded by Council Member Mace. There was no public comment or council discussion. A vote was taken on the motion. All seven council members present voted aye. Motion carried 7 -0. CORRESPONDENCE. PUBLIC HEARING. CONSENT ITEMS: • Clerk/Treasurer Financial Statements for the month of September 2013. • Approval of Payroll Register for PPE 09/29/2013 totaling $179,320.10. • Receiving the Committee Reports into the Record. - - Budget /Finance Committee minutes of October 1, 2013 were presented. -- Council Workshop minutes of October 8, 2013 were presented. - - Emergency Services Committee minutes of August 26, 2013 were presented. - - Laurel Public Library Board of Trustees minutes of June 11, 2013 were presented. -- Laurel Public Library Board of Trustees minutes of July 9, 2013 were presented. -- Laurel Public Library Boar of Trustees minutes of August 13, 2013 were presented. The mayor asked if there was any separation of consent items. There was none. Motion by Council Member Mace to approve the consent items as presented, seconded by Council Member Eaton. There was no public comment or council discussion. A vote was taken on the motion. All seven council members present voted aye. Motion carried 7 -0. /i 1' Council Minutes of October 15, 2013 CEREMONIAL CALENDAR: None. REPORTS OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS: None. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION (THREE- MINUTE LIMIT): None. SCHEDULED MATTERS: • Confirmation of Appointments. • Resolution No. R13 -84: A resolution of the City Council accepting a grant from the Montana Department of Transportation for monies to be spent on the Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) and authorizing the Mayor to sign said grant. Motion by Council Member Dickerson to approve Resolution No. R13 -84, seconded by Council Member Mountsier. There was no public comment or council discussion. A vote was taken on the motion. All seven council members present voted aye. Motion carried 7 -0. ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA: None. COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS (ONE- MINUTE LIMIT): None. COUNCIL DISCUSSION: Council Member Mace stated that the Public Works Committee went on a field trip last Monday to tour the two SID's, the work at the Wastewater Treatment Plant and the park project. He suggested "" scheduling a similar tour for the council during the next workshop, as it is interesting to see what is happening with the different items the council approved in the last couple months and the ongoing bank restoration project. Council Member Mace stated that the Public Works Director did a good job of explaining all the particulars on the projects. There was a lengthy discussion regarding scheduling a tour for the council, the extra Tuesday in October, the need to schedule the tour before it gets too dark, the suggestion to use the bus for transportation, the possibility of providing food, the suggestion to look at the county park area, the estimate that a tour would take an hour and a half, the individual council member's availability for certain dates, and the need for all council members to be able to attend. The tour is scheduled at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October 29`", prior to the regular council workshop at 6:30 p.m. Council Member Eaton mentioned that the Christmas tree recycling committee met today. In the past, the normal procedure has been that Laurel has asked for one container full of chips and those chips have been stored in the corner of South Park. At today's meeting, some frustration was expressed about the City of Laurel getting the chips last year. Council Member Eaton was charged with asking whether or not the community of Laurel wants to participate in the program this year and whether or not the city wants its annual container full of chips. Mayor Olson stated that an answer would be provided to the council. Council Member Eaton spoke regarding a matter dear to her heart. She did not want to steal the Emergency Services Committee's thunder, but there were two items in the Outlook pertaining to the animal cruelty matter. There have been studies that say that people who participate in animal cruelty end up being bullies, they start fires, they can be sexual predators, and they can possibly be serial killers. As a matter of discussion, she distributed copies of information regarding animal cruelty, including the definition of cruelty to animals from the MCA. All of her information was copied from the State. She thought perhaps the community of Laurel would want to lead in getting something on the books rather than having to revert to the State laws. The Emergency Services Committee's work will be on the next workshop, so she asked if this could be added as a discussion item. Mayor Olson thanked Council Member Eaton. Mayor Olson asked Council Members Nelson and Mace to report on the League of Cities and Towns Conference. 2 Council Minutes of October 15, 2013 Council Member Mace stated that the Bakken oil reserves and the cities that border it dominated a lot of the discussion at the seminars. Sidney, Glendive and Dickinson and other cities are certainly being strained. He thought the conference was uneventful, even though Helena has done a lot of work in the city for tours and beautification. Council Member Nelson mentioned that the conference he attended the year before last at the Holiday Inn in Billings was a much better produced workshop. The speakers spent more time on the subjects that were on the agenda and there was more time for interaction with the attendees at that conference. This year's conference was rushed and unorganized. The discussion about the Bakken and its impact was very interesting. The Bakken/Three Forks formation is believed to run from North Dakota across Montana up to and underneath the Rocky Mountains to the north tier, and the impact from that activity will migrate west as time goes on. They plan on drilling at least 50,000 wells, they have drilled 10,000 wells to date, and they expect to actively pull oil out of the ground for at least the next 20 years. The impact will most likely be seen in the future and it is possible that will be positive rather than negative. Mayor Olson thanked Council Members Nelson and Mace for attending the conference and for representing the City of Laurel. Mayor Olson was unable to attend today's phone call with FEMA. David Lucas, the only one who has not been furloughed, is the only one who can document what the City of Laurel is doing for the long -term solution. The city is actively going forward to address the long -term solution for the community. In order to insure that the city has the water rights needed, a water rights attorney was hired by the city. To date it looks like the city is safe with its water rights. Mayor Olson stated that the Public Works Department has been charged to come up with alternative areas for a bulk water station. The city is also preparing a letter to MRL indicating that the cost for the land rental is excessively high and asking to negotiate it down. The Public Works Department will have some recommendations coming forward in the near future. UNSCHEDULED MATTERS: None. ADJOURNMENT: Motion by Council Member Mountsier to adjourn the council meeting, seconded by Council Member Eaton. There was no public comment or council discussion. A vote was taken on the motion. All seven council members present voted aye. Motion carried 7 -0. There being no further business to come before the council at this time, the meeting was adjourned at 6:59 p.m. Vic.- !CGS-, — Cindy Alle ' GS , Council Secretary Approved by the Mayor and passed by the City Council of the City of Laurel, Montana, this 5 day of November, 2013. ". enneth E. Olson, j v ayor Attest: S 'hirley Ewan, Clerk/Treasurer 3