Gunnison City Council Meeting and Work Session Minutes

Wednesday, May 10, 2017, 6:00 PM

Gunnison City Hall, 38 West Center

Gunnison, UT 84634

Present: Gunnison City Mayor Bruce Blackham, Councilmembers: Robert Andersen, Shawn Crane, Blake Donaldson, Andy Hill and Blane Jensen, City Recorder Janell Braithwaite, Public Works Supt. Donald Childs, Parks Cemetery Supt. Matt Reber, Pool Manager Kevin Havey, Gary Keddington with Keddington & Christensen, Robert Stevens with the Manti Messenger and Daniela Vazquez, and Pool Committee Members: Terry Eyre, Dallas Overly, Melissa Judy and Kent Larsen

Presiding: Mayor Bruce Blackham

Work Meeting

6:00 p.m. Discuss 2018 Tentative Budget ~ Gary Keddington, Keddington & Christensen, LLC

6:20 p.m. Gary reviewed the Tentative Budget that had been worked through with all of the department heads and Councilmembers over those departments. The details of each department were reviewed with special attention paid to the equipment and the different options available for the backhoe as well as a rotation plan for the different maintenance vehicles. Gary noted the $200,000 received from the State was still in the General Fund. The expenditures for capital outlays were discussed ie. councilmember tablets to keep all of their information on, new copier for the front office and a new computer server. The School Resource Officer agreement was discussed with Gary explaining this would need to be redone with the Police Dept. as their own entity now. Mayor Blackham reported this agreement had been discussed at the last GVPD Board meeting, and would be taken to the School District as well as the County by some of the Board members. All of the rest of the budgets were reviewed with the reserves noted for the water bonds as well as the transfers that will need to be made from the water fund. The storm drain project was discussed with Gary explaining he would be leaving the revenues and expenses out of the budget due to the uncertainty of the project at this point in time. He pointed out the budget could be opened up at any time in the future if this project was completed. The sewer project on Main Street was mentioned with Gary stating it wouldn't really matter if it was completed in this budget year or the next. The budget comparisons were reviewed for the 2015-2016 actual and 2016-2017 estimates. Gary explained he would like to go down each item during a work meeting in about three weeks and answer all of the questions before settling on a final budget.

The Council discussed the sewer ponds that are shared with Centerfield City, and who is responsible for any costs that may be incurred when repairs are needed. The discussion ensued regarding the ponds and usage.

6:47 p.m. Councilmember Shawn Crane arrived

Gary noted the current backhoe contract is good until April of 2018 which will allow them some time to figure out what avenue is best for the backhoe, leasing or purchasing. Gary also pointed out the expenditure for salaries from the Street Fund hadn't been distributed as accurately as they should be so the wages had been reallocated to more accurately reflect the time spent.

6:55 p.m. Robert Stevens and Daniela Vazquez arrived

The Council continued to discuss the funding and payments of the backhoe and a possible new dump truck for the next year. Gary stated these costs had been allocated throughout the departments that utilize the equipment. The B&C Road Funds were mentioned noting those funds could be used to purchase this type of equipment as well, and the benefits of utilizing those funds.

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7:00 p.m. Matt Reber, Terry Eyre, Dallas Overly, Kevin Havey and Melissa Judy arrived and Shawn Crane and Gary Keddington left

Councilmember Hill brought up the fact that some other communities budget money each year to put into their sidewalks. The Councilmembers voiced their opinions of approval for this with Mayor Blackham agreeing with this type of city improvement.

7:10 p.m. Council Meeting

Invocation: Councilmember Andy Hill

Update on Progress of Splash Pad ~ Pool Manager, Kevin Havey

Manager Havey updated the Council on the progress of the construction of the splash pad noting it was currently about two weeks behind schedule and the reasons why. The features were reviewed with drawings handed to each Councilmember. He thanked Barclay Mechanical for the work they have been doing on the features, and stating they were moving right along. He voiced his approval for the quality of work they have done. He felt the splash pad was doing pretty well so far cost wise mentioning he was really trying to keep it under budget. Manager Havey explained and he was still unsure about the costs of the fencing and sprinklers, and had some volunteers that would be helping with the plumbing.

7:15 p.m. Kent Larsen arrived

Councilmember Donaldson reviewed the costs associated with the different types of fencing they were looking at. He noted they would need about 300' of fencing. Pool Committee member, Dallas Overly, thanked Manager Havey for the work he has done in putting this together. The costs of some other splash pads were discussed, and Dallas pointed out how much Manager Havey has saved the City during the construction process. Councilmember Hill questioned if a decision had been made on whether to charge a fee or not. Manager Havey answered, yes, they would charge to get into the pool giving them access to use the splash pad. He reported they would be holding a grand opening at which time there would be no charge for that specific event. He pointed out all of the services the patrons are receiving with the cost to get in ie. freshly circulated water, first aid services, restrooms, etc. Councilmember Andersen exclaimed the City would always regret it if they didn't do it all right the first time. Dallas reported the Pool Committee was trying to get sponsors from different businesses for the features in hopes of generating more money that way. Manager Havey thanked Supt. Reber for moving most of the dirt and getting it leveled, and Councilmember Donaldson for his help in this as well. Councilmember Donaldson informed the Council there hadn't been one thing ordered for the construction that Manager Havey didn't get a discount on, and thanked him for doing such a great job. He verified they are still planning on June 15th for a completion date. Manager Havey estimated the cost at just over $60,000 for completion. It was pointed out later in the discussion this was in addition to the $25,000 already received from the 4th of July auction for this project. Mayor Blackham stated how pleased he was for the community effort on this project, and thanked the Pool Committee for all of their hard work. Melissa Judy questioned the Council on their plans for the $200,000 received from the State. Mayor Blackham noted they had been waiting for the water rates to come in to see how things were and that the money was still in the general fund. He would like to see more input from the community on the usage of this money as well as some priorities listed from the Council by the budget hearings scheduled for June.

Proposed Approval to Hire Part-time Pool Employees ~ Pool Manager, Kevin Havey

Manager Havey presented the names of Allison Wilkins and Andrea Wilkins as part-time front desk workers for the pool. These positions would be minimum wage.

Councilmember Donaldson made the motion to approve Allison Wilkins and Andrea Wilkins as part-time front desk workers at the pool for minimum wage. Councilmember Jensen seconded the motion. The motion carries with a 4-0 vote.

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Review and Proposed Approval of Gunnison City and Clair Otten MOU ~ Councilmember Donaldson

Councilmember Donaldson explained the MOU agreement had been set up and reviewed some of the details of the agreement. He stated he would like the approval of the Council prior to presenting it to Clair.

The specifics of what the Council would like to see in the agreement was discussed at a previous council meeting, and had been put together in this MOU.

Councilmember Jensen made the motion to approve the MOU between Gunnison City and Clair Otten. Councilmember Donaldson seconded the motion. The motion passes with a 4-0 vote.

Update on Spring Clean Up Plans ~ Councilmember Hill

Councilmember Hill reported he had organized three houses for the students to work on service projects for G-Day, and Melissa Judy explained they had projects in other cities as well so the three houses should be plenty for Gunnison. Councilmember Hill reported the G-Hill could always be cleaned up if they needed more areas to work on. He will get the list of homes to Melissa so they can get those on the schedule. Councilmember Hill reported Supt. Reber and Treasurer Taylor went to the nursery yesterday to pick out flowers for Main Street, and found out Julie, at Skyview Nursery, hadn't had time to get the hanging pots planted, and wondered if someone could go out and help get them planted. Melissa reported the city has had good responses to that in the past. Councilmember Hill stated he would set up a time with Julie at the nursery and let everyone know. Kent Larsen wondered if a family could adopt a planter box and take care of it throughout the summer like some other cities have done, with good results. The Council voiced their approval for this.

Proposed Approval of 2018 Tentative Budget, Resolution 2017-2

Councilmember Andersen made the motion to approve Resolution 2017-2, 2018 Tentative Budget. Councilmember Jensen seconded the motion. The motion passes with a 4-0 vote.

7:40 p.m. Kevin Havey and Terry Eyre left

Update on NRCS Storm Drain Project ~ Councilmember Andersen

Councilmember Andersen reported Lars with NRCS, who had originally come to Gunnison City with some eligible funding information for a storm drain project had recently retired so John had had to contact someone else to discuss the problems the City was seeing with the project. He reported NRCS would like to get together to have a meeting, and he will let everyone know when it is scheduled. Councilmember Andersen voiced his frustrations in the project, and Mayor Blackham felt the project just wasn't going to work at this time. The Storm Drain Budget was discussed as well as the funds that are set aside monthly for this purpose. Councilmember Andersen will follow up on this.

Future Items

Spring Clean Up: The discussion turned back to the Spring Clean Up, and the city's enforcement code and how to deal with non conforming yards within the city. Recorder Braithwaite questioned how the Council would like to handle this as now is the time the complaints will start coming in.

7:47 p.m. Kent Larsen, Melissa Judy and Dallas Overly left

Councilmember Andersen suggested a proactive method be taken and would like to see an article put in the newspaper explaining that the city takes pride in the community and would appreciate everyone's cooperation and help. It was also suggested a letter go out with the budget notices for this purpose as well. The Council continued to discuss the non conformities seen throughout the city with Councilmember Andersen feeling the city could also offer some help with some items. Mayor Blackham would like to see

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a beautification committee put together again to help with these efforts. Supt. Reber remarked how often the flags are changed throughout the city noting the big one at the park would be changed just before Memorial weekend. He explained how difficult it is to keep them looking good with all of the traffic and trucks going through town.

7:55 p.m. Robert Stevens and Daniela Vazquez left

Water: Councilmember Donaldson updated the Council on the recent problems at the Christensen Well. He explained the pump had gone out shortly after the accident occurred that knocked the power out around the city, and the city would be filing a claim with the insurance company. He announced there were two back up motors for the Bartholomew Well, and he would like to have this one rebuilt so there will be a spare for the Sorensen and Christensen Wells since they both utilize the same type of pump.

7:58 p.m. Councilmember Shawn Crane returned.

Sidewalks: Mayor Blackham would like to see the Council budget $1,000-$2,000 each year for sidewalk improvements, and help those who ask and are willing to participate in the cost of getting new sidewalk. He stated the amount would need to be capped off at the budgeted amount if the Council chooses to do so. Councilmember Andersen would like the Council to find a way to get this done if the people are willing to do the work, and it could be on a first come first serve basis. Supt. Reber reported on the current price of concrete and what specs the sidewalk should be. Councilmember Andersen would like to see the front sidewalk done at Mr. Harris's this year per his request, and felt that would be reasonable for now. The exact amount to be budgeted for was discussed with the amount increased throughout the discussion for those willing to help participate in the cost. This will be put on a future agenda to make a decision and vote on. The sidewalk on 500 South was discussed in regards to the safety of the students going to school and utilizing this roadway. The usage throughout the day was pointed out, and the placement of the proposed sidewalk was discussed further. Mayor Blackham expressed his concerns for the public's safety on this street, and would like to get the application put in to CIB for assistance on a Safe to School Sidewalk Project. The Council concurred with him.