11-6-08 Minute Summary

The regular meeting of the City Council was called to order by Mayor Bob Schabert in the Courtland Community Center on Thursday, November 6, 2008 at 7:00 pm. All council members were present.

Bents made a motion to approve the amended agenda to include homes in disrepair. Poehler seconded the motion. The motion carried with all in favor.

Schwartz made a motion to approve the written minutes of the October 2, 2008 regular city council meeting with the addition of Heather McCallum as an attendee. Bents seconded the motion. The motion carried with all in favor.

Poehler made a motion to approve the bills for the month of October. Schwartz seconded the motion. The motion carried with all in favor.

Gulden reported that the water tower had been cleaned and that hydrants will be flushed soon, to get rid of the sediment. He also stated that the fire department has requested that hydrants close to the fire barn be flushed more frequently to avoid sediment in the tanks of the fire trucks.

Gulden reported that the filter at the water plant has a leak at the top. It has been welded several times already. He will research the repair and replacement cost and report back at the December meeting. He said that in the near future we will have to take a hard look at replacing it with a bigger capacity system.

He also reported that the pump in well number one went out and had to be repaired. Schaefer Well found a hole in the pipe and replaced it. Total bill for the work was $4,431.60. Also a grinder pump needed to be repaired at a cost of $850.00. The utility department will look into another brand of pump to see if they are any better or less costly.

McCallum reported that she had been working on a summary of the Right-of-Way Ordinance to be published. She stated that she is working on personal policies for the Tri-Cities. She attended a workshop on basic and intermediate government accounting and the LMC regional meeting in Westbrook.

The utility committee has been looking into the cash flow for our water department. Bents stated that we are not taking in as much money on our usage as is needed to cash flow the department. Poehler stated that the auditor is always telling us that we need to raise our rates because we are not taking into account depreciation. The residents that are not hooked up to city water are not paying anything for fire protection. The committee stated that they would have a recommendation ready for the next meeting.

Schwartz as the city representative on the board for the community center read a letter from Brenda Thorson as to the changes that would need to be done to convert the meeting room into city offices. The letter is included with the packet for the city council meeting for November 2008. Schabert stated that a committee would be formed to come up with possible ideas for changing the meeting room. The committee would consist of two members from each entity. He suggested that Ron Kollmann, Al Poehler, Corey Hulke, Dave Uble and Tim Harmening be on the committee. The committee would need to find another member.

Schwartz made a motion to approve Resolution 08-108 Authorizing Execution of Sub-Grant Agreement. Poehler seconded the motion. The motion carried with all in favor.

Schwartz made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Poehler seconded the motion. The motion carried with all in favor.

The meeting closed at 9:00pm.

A signed copy of the written minutes is on file in the office of the city clerk.

Respectfully submitted,

Bonnie J. Hubert

City Clerk