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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublic Works Committee Minutes 04.12.1999 MINUTES JOINT PARKS, PUBLIC UTILITIES, STREET AND ALLEY COMMITTEES APRIL 12, 1999 7:00 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS PRESENT: Gay Easton Mark Mace Bill Staudinger Ed Steffans Norman Orr Ken Olson Miles Walton Jeanette Koch Larry McCann Andy Loebe Bud Johnson OTHERS PRESENT: Tom Vaughan Levi Britton LuAnn Engh Levi Britton - Garbage complaint. Levi Britton purchased a small ranch up Canyon Creek a few years ago. He stated that a lot of garbage collects along the highway as everybody leaves town and heads toward the container site. He feels that the majority o£the garbage is blown out of vehicles as they are headed to the container site. When the wind is blowing or vehicles pick up speed, garbage tends to fly out of a vehicle when the load is uncovered. Levi suggested that the council needs to pass an ordinance requiring that all loads transported to the container site must be covered. The City of Billings requires all loads to be covered, and citations are written at the Billings Landfill when loads arrive uncovered. Levi offered to pick up the garbage, but he knows that it would only be a short-term solution unless loads are required to be covered. Mr. Britton mentioned that, when the container site is not open, people omen dump their garbage loads within the half-mile just past the site. He asked for authorization to take the garbage to the container site after he picks it up. Bud asked about the possibility of allowing Levi to take the garbage to the container site, since he is not a Laurel resident. Larry said that it would be possible, but that the city has to pay for every load that is transported to the Billings Landfill and he does not want to start cleaning up for the county. Miles asked if the state has an Adopt-A-Highway program that would allow Levi to bag the garbage and leave it for later pickup. Gay said that the road is a state secondary road and it belongs to the county for maintenance. Gay said that having an ordinance regarding covering of loads in town would allow citations to be written out at the site, and he suggested that this matter should be discussed further with the county commissioners. Levi mentioned that some mile markers are missing along the highway. Miles suggested that them should be a sign posted at the city limits informing the public of the requirement that loads to the container site must be covered. He also suggested putting stuffers in the water bills to help educate residents when the ordinance is in effect. The city clean-up day is scheduled for Saturday, May 1st and all entrances to Laurel will be cleaned up. Garbage bags will be distributed at Fimmen's Park at 9:00 a.m. Motion by Miles Walton to have Joe Leckie look into preparing an ordinance to require tarping of loads to the container site, seconded by Norm Orr. Motion carried. Miles suggested having Joe look into the liabilities and what would be involved to cooperate with the county in an Adopt-A-Highway program in that area. Gay mentioned that there are littering laws in effect on the state highways. LuAnn Engh - Use of Murray Park for soccer. Tom Vaughn asked the committee for permission for the Soccer Club to use Murray Park all day every Saturday until June 1st. The soccer games usually begin at 10:00 a.m. and are completed by 5:30 p.m. They have installed a snow fence by the ditch and asked for permission to leave it up for the season. Larry does not have a problem with the snow fence. A port-a-potty has been installed near the pump house, and it will be cleaned once a week. The club asked for permission to install a steel box to store the soccer nets and other equipment. Larry does not have a problem with allowing the club to keep a steel box at the field during the soccer season, but he does not want it to be left there when the season is over. Larry will review the situation. Tom said that there is a small tree on the east side of the field that is not in good shape. He asked if the tree could be removed, as they feel that it presents a safety issue for the children. Miles does not want to start cutting down or moving trees unnecessarily. Ken asked if the Soccer Club would be willing to share the cost of moving or transplanting the tree or be willing to plant another tree somewhere else in the park. The club would be willing to do so. Larry will look at the situation. Miles explained that the parks are public parks. The committee can give permission to use the parks and we will not give permission for another club to use them at the same time. But we cannot give permission that would allow them to keep the public out of the park. Tom acknowledged that they understand the situation. Miles questioned how the soccer field is painted. Tom said that the paint does not kill the grass, the grass continues to grow, and the field has to be repainted about every three weeks. Ken explained that the paint does not kill the grass, but since the sun cannot get to the grass, it will die off. However, the new grass will gro~v right below it, especially after it is cut. The Soccer Club has their own insurance, and the committee requested proof of the insurance. Miles also requested a list of their board of directors, including names and phone numbers. The committee discussed the watering schedule for Murray Park. Andy said that the park was watered every day from midnight to 7:00 a.m. last year. Motion by Bill Staudinger to allow the Laurel Soccer Club to use Murray Park every Saturday until June 1~t, realizing that it is a public park, seconded by Gay Easton. Motion carried. Peggy Miller- YMCA. Larry said that the YMCA is still possibly interested in leasing the park at Fir and Eighth. He said that our Park Board needs to make a recommendation to the Yellowstone County Park Board. Joe Leckie will need to work on this. They are willing to have a lease agreement that specifies that the park will revert back to the City of Laurel if the YMCA relocates away from the park. Since we administer the park but do not own it, Larry is unsure how the lease would work. Larry suggested scheduling a meeting with the YMCA Board to understand their plans and goals regarding the park. Jayne Barnes -Recreation Program for Summer 1999. Since Jayne Barnes was not at the meeting, Larry explained that she is working on an impressive program for this summer. There will be plenty of activities for Laurel youth this summer, including riding horses, hiking, and soccer games. She is also working on providing a horse care class and hiking trip in Red Lodge. Either we can hire their bus and their driver under our terms, or we contract with them for a certain amount, allowing the children to be under the school district's insurance during transportation. The details will be worked out soon. Many of the activities will require parental releases, and Larry thinks that she will be efficient in completing all the required details. Jayne is preparing a brochure for the summer program. Fourth of July. There will be no baseball tournament this year, so the corurnittee has been seeking some entertainment for the park. The school district and the Ministerial Association are both interested in providing some entertainment throughout the day. The Fire Department will also be sponsoring a Classic Car Show. The next Fourth of July meeting is scheduled for April 22na at 7:00 p.m. South Pond. The Lions Club lined up two giant excavators for use at the South Pond project, and they are looking for operators. Some of the work that has been done will probably be made into walkways which go out into the center of the lake. There are some insurance issues regarding handicapped access, railings, etc. Larry's goal for the Lions Club now is to stop and clean up the mess they have created so that a contractor can begin working on the restrooms, watering system, lawn, etc. Truck Quotes. The truck quotes for a ½ ton pickup track have been received. Fichtner Chevrolet bid $15,485.67; Archie Cochrane Ford bid $13,664.50; Laurel Ford bid $14,111.00; and Montana Dodge bid $14,540.00. Larry recommended accepting the low bid received from Archie Cochrane. Duke Nieskens will use the truck, Duke's present truck will be used at the Sewer Plant, and the Sewer Plant's dump bed truck will go to the cemetery. Skidsteer Bids. Larry budgeted for a tractor in this year's budget, but the crew has been investigating the possibility of purchasing a skidsteer instead. Most of the attachments that can go on a tractor can go on a skidsteer. A skidsteer would also be useable in the streets or wherever it is needed. Milling machines can be rented and attached to the front of a skidsteer. The bids for a skidsteer should be around $20,000.00, and $40,000.00 was budgeted. The bid would include a broom for the front of the skidsteer and a hammer for cutting pavement. Millin~ First Avenue. At the April 6th meeting, the council approved a resolution for $53,000 to overlay the streets. Larry is dealing with the state regarding their participation from Main to the middle of the block between First and Second Streets on First Avenue. This money will come out of the Street Maintenance Fund, and Larry wants to do it even if we have to pay for it. Overlay will also be done on the two blocks west on First Street. The cost to do the Highway Department's section would be $27,440. Main Street East end of City - MDT putting on project schedule. Larry is dissatisfied with the area at Main Street east of Alder Avenue where the grade up the edge of the road gets really steep. They have replaced some drive cuts and alley cuts and done the handicapped access at the comer. Larry feels that a greater hazard has been created than what was originally there, and he informed the MDT about it. A meeting has been scheduled with Brace Barrett on April 21st at 8:00 a.m. in his office. Because of our issues with this project, Brace informed him that the city has been entered in the next round of the Highway Department's projects. The highway will be tom out, new base put in, and the road will be rebuilt. UNSCHEDULED MATTERS. Signs at Thomson Park. Bill Staudinger thanked Larry and Andy for installing the new signs in Thomson Park where there has been a problem with cars parking in the area where grass will be planted. The Legion, Little League and Laurel High School were called and told that no parking is allowed in that area. Garbaae Rate Study, Larry budgeted $7,500 for a garbage rate study. After making some phone calls about it, he received a quote from DoubleTree for $3,500 and a quote from Morrison-Maierle for $7,500. Larry will compile an RFP for the garbage rate study and put it out for quotes. He plans to have the study completed by July 1st. Rules and Regulations. Larry has received the Rules and Regulations back from Morrison-Maierle. During that effort, they met with the City of Roundup, City of Big Timber and the City of Columbus and went tbxough the roles and regulations of almost every city in this state. First they selected a generic set of roles and regulations, and then they got more specific. Each city now has a document which outlines their roles and regulations for various things, such as digging in streets. Conrad, Cut Bank and Shelby have formed a Tri-City Interlocal Agreement and Larry has a copy of their bylaws. There is some interest in forming a similar agreement with Roundup, Big Timber, Columbus and Laurel. We have to remember that we are the biggest of the four cities. Larry can see some real advantages in forming this type of agreement. Equipment such as a chip spreader, a tree chipper, and sewer cameras could be available with this type of agreement. The public works directors would direct the agreement, and it would be necessary to form a committee made up of members from each council to run this non-profit corporation. It would become a cost to each city. Conrad, Cut Bank and Shelby each contribute $20,000 per year towards their agreement. Then each city can request the group to purchase certain equipment. If the equipment cannot be driven on the highway, it would be necessary to purchase a trailer and a vehicle for towing. Larry thinks it is a viable option to consider before the 2000-2001 budget. Motion by Norman Orr to allow Larry to progress on this schedule and to report back to the committee, seconded by Bill Staudinger. Motion carried. Corp of Engineers. The Corp of Engineers is ready to start the project at the water intake. Rod and Gun Club. Bill attended the Rod and Gun Club meting last Wednesday. The club would like permission to remove the shed at the rifle range where clay pigeons are shot since hunters do not like to shoot towards a building. Bill said that the south part of the building has not been used for a long time. If the building cannot be removed, they would like a permit to build a new shooting area south of the edge of the building so that it is completely away from the building. Gay asked when the leases would be renewed. Larry said that the leases are due now and Joe is preparing them. MMIA has not yet provided event insurance, but Larry is hoping they will still do so. It would be possible to renew the leases for this year with the liability exposure, but it would be no different than it has been for the last twenty years. Gay said that this really affects two different clubs and suggested that the clubs should be brought together to discuss the issues. Fox Lumber. Larry said that Fox Lumber has been generating three or four 30-yard containers of sawdust a week. Larry, Tom Fox and Boris Kerzack of the City of Billings are investigating the feasibility of a private- public partnership to develop a compost program. This would benefit Fox Lumber and provide a way for the cities to dispose of their sludge. A meeting will be scheduled soon to discuss the requirements and possibilities. The meeting was adjourned at 8:26 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Cindy Alien City Council Secretary