TOWN OF
AUGUST 20, 2007
COUNCIL MEETING
CALL TO ORDER – Mayor Richard Swart
The regular council meeting for the Town of
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
ROLL CALL – Clerk/Treasurer
Those Council members present were David Goodroe, John
Hannah, William Talbott, Walter Wright and Danielle Erickson. Others present
were Clerk/Treasurer
PUBLIC HEARINGS
PROCLAMATIONS and
PRESENTATIONS
Mayor Richard Swart read a Proclamation recognizing Constitution Week.
ADDITIONS,
CORRECTIONS, DELETIONS TO THE AGENDA
Mayor Swart requested that AWC Small Cities Consultant be added as Item #8 of New Business and Broadway Change Order for Piping be added as Item #9 of New Business.
Motion to approve the
Agenda as amended was made by David Goodroe and seconded by William
Talbott. Motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0
Abstentions.
CITIZEN’S
PARTICIPATION
Skamokawa Fire Chief Duncan Cruikshank presented the Council
with a letter requesting permission to borrow a fire truck while they determine
if the old truck can be repaired or until they get a new truck Assistant Fire
Chiefs William Faubion and Fred Johnson said that it would be acceptable to
loan the truck in the spirit of cooperation between the two Fire
Departments. Mayor Swart directed
Attorney Faubion to prepare a letter of agreement for the loan. Motion
to authorize the lending of a fire truck from the Cathlamet Fire Dept. to the
Skamokawa Fire Dept. was made by David Goodroe and seconded by William
Talbott. Motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0
Abstentions.
Citizen Dean Snyder said that he is still waiting for the town to repair damages that he said were caused by last years construction. Council Member John Hannah said that he had visited the site at the request of Mr. Snyder and that he feels there needs to be a remedy. Mayor Swart asked Mr. Hannah what remedy he had in mind and Mr. Hannah replied that he feels that Public Works Field Supervisor David Vik should go look at the problem and develop a remedy. Mayor Swart said that he would have Public Works inspect the area.
Assistant Fire Chief Fred Johnson gave a report on the progress of the new Fire Hall to the Council. Mr. Johnson said that on August 8th, 2007 Jerry DeBriae gave the Fire Dept. a letter of permission for occupancy which allowed the Fire Dept. personnel to begin moving in. Mr. Johnson said that they anticipate making the final move on or about September 8th, 2007. Johnson said that they have received donations in excess of $10,000.00. Mr. Johnson said that the contractor will stripe the area reserved for disabled persons. Mayor Richard Swart commended Assistant Fire Chief Johnson for the progress that is being made and the contributions that they have secured.
Citizen Milt Doumit commended the Fire Dept. for their contribution to the community and then presented a petition signed by 61 residents living near the old Fire Hall and business people who work in the area of the Fire Hall. Mr. Doumit read the petition in which it requested that the siren be eliminated or moved to the new Fire Hall because it is known that most of the volunteer firemen carry pagers or radios and that the siren is obsolete. Mr. Doumit went on to say that the siren startles visitors, shoppers, diners, workers and business owners in the downtown area and affects the quality of life. Mr. Doumit said that they would not object to the siren being used as a community warning system or being tested at a designated day and time.
VOUCHER REVIEW
COMMITTEE
Motion to approve the
Vouchers was made by David Goodroe and seconded by John Hannah. Motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0 Abstentions.
The Voucher Review Committee for the September 17, 2007 meeting consists of Walter Wright and Danielle Erickson. William Talbott will be the alternate.
CONSENT AGENDA
Motion to approve the
consent agenda was made by David Goodroe and seconded by Walter Wright. The
consent agenda consists of the Minutes of the July 16, 2007 Regular meeting,
the July 24, 2007 Special meeting, the August 13, 2007 WWTP Workshop and the
Treasurer’s Report for June and July 2007. Council Member David Goodroe said that
there was a typo in the Minutes of the Special Meeting of July 24, 2007. Goodroe said that the monetary figure should
have been $100,000.00 instead of $150,000.00.
Motion to correct the
typographical error of the Special Meeting Minutes was made by David Goodroe
and seconded by William Talbott. Motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0
Abstentions. Motion to approve the main
motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0 Abstentions.
ORDINANCES
Town Attorney William Faubion read Ordinance No. 495; Amending
CMC 2.05 Relating to Elected Officials Compensation for the first reading. Motion to approve Ordinance No. 495 for first
reading was made by John Hannah and seconded by Danielle Erickson. Motion
carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0 Abstentions
Council Member William Talbott asked why the Council Members compensation is set at $50.00 but the Mayor’s is not specifically set. Town Attorney William Faubion said that the Mayor’s compensation is set forth in the annual Budget Ordinance which supports it by the intent of the Council.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Mayor Swart asked
the Council to table the discussion of the purchase of Handheld Meter Reading
equipment until after a presentation to be held the following day by BIAS
Software. Council Member David Goodroe
said that the accounting software offered by Master Meters as part of the handheld
equipment package is not compatible with the cash accounting system used by
Town Hall.
Mayor Richard Swart
called an Executive Session to discuss the Acquisition of Land for the
Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The Mayor
recommended that the Council examine the ICS proposal and said that he has
prepared a draft Request for Proposals for an Independent Consultant and would
like feed back at the Special Meeting when it is called.
The Salary and
Revenue Committee said that they had no new information on their review of the
Town Development Fees. Council Member
William Talbott noted that the Committee was given two months in which to come
up with recommendations.
Mayor Swart said
that he is still consulting with School District Superintendent Bob Garrett
about the propane tank fencing at the Pool.
Motion to approve Change Order No. 1 in the
amount of $42,142.46 from the Water and Sewer fund for the
NEW BUSINESS
Mr. Charlie DeDolph was not present to discuss his protest
of his water installation fees. Motion to authorize Mayor Swart to write a
letter to Mr. De Dolph explaining why the fees charged are appropriate was made
by David Goodroe and seconded by John Hannah.
Motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0 Abstentions.
Ms. Cindy Mudge, Executive Director of Destination the Pacific, distributed packets to the Council and explained that their organization is attempting to raise funds to conduct a feasibility study to determine if our area could become a part of the Columbia Pacific National Heritage Area. Ms. Mudge said that they are asking all of the communities in the area to contribute funds towards the study. She said that they have already raised half of the $100,000.00 necessary for the study. Ms. Mudge requested that the Town contribute $500.00 and said that she will return at the September Council meeting. She said that the designation of being part of the National Heritage Area would qualify the community for federal grant money to be used for managing the area.
Motion to approve
retaining the
Motion to approve the
Annual PUD Contract contingent on approval by the PUD Board was made by David
Goodroe and seconded by Walter Wright.
Motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0 Abstentions.
Mayor Richard Swart reported to the Council that a focus group consisting of some members of the Council, local artists, Librarian Noreen Holten and others met and discussed possibilities for the renovation of the Library and Town Hall. Council Member David Goodroe said that they had discussed the possibility of moving the right side of the Town Hall office out about 6 feet towards the rock wall to create more space for the office. The discussion included ideas on how to utilize the bay space of the current Fire Dept. area and create a private restroom downstairs for the staff and another restroom for the public. The Mayor commended the group for their work and asked if they thought that the Town should hire an engineering consultant. Council Member Goodroe said that he thought the architect should be able to answer the questions that may arise after he is given the ideas from the Committee. Mayor Swart asked if the Committee has a clear idea of what they want to do before contracting with an engineer. Council Member Goodroe said that he thinks the Committee should meet again and “boil down” the minutes to come up with a more condensed version of the ideas presented at the workshop.
Mayor Swart said that the Small Cities Preservation Program
was economically implemented by the County road crew and had funds remaining to
chip seal other streets in need. The
Mayor said that County Public Works Director Pete Ringen asked the Town for
assurance that the Town would pick up any costs remaining if the street
projects come in over the remaining fund balance. Motion
to approve authorization for
Rick Beck presented the Council with an estimate from Mr. Sun Solar Company for solar heating for the Municipal Swimming Pool. The $17,800.00 estimate for the pool heater has a payback of about six years according to the Mr. Solar representative and could produce a 50% - 90% reduction in pool heating costs. Mayor Swart said that the timing of this information was “great” because the Pool Advisory Committee was recently brainstorming some projects using capital improvement funds for 2008. The Mayor said that this information will be given to the PAC for their consideration.
Mayor Swart said that he read in the Small Cities Update that AWC has been assembling some community planning teams composed of planners, managers, and facilitators to identify a problem and help to solve it. The Mayor said that the services are free with the exception of a Leadership breakfast, lunch, and mid-afternoon break. The team will then prepare a report to present to the Council with a proposed solution to the problem. Mayor Swart said that he will look into it and report back to the Council.
Motion to authorize
Change Order #’s 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, & 7 for the Broadway Project was made by
Walter Wright and seconded by John Hannah.
Motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0 Abstentions.
MAYOR REPORT – Richard Swart
A copy of the Mayor’s report is included in the Minutes.
CLERK/TREASURER REPORT – Virginia Welker
A copy of the Clerk/Treasurer’s report is included in the Minutes.
Council Member David Goodroe said that the Fire Department
Cumulative Reserve account did not have enough funds to cover an additional
$24,636.52 worth of vouchers. Mr.
Goodroe asked Assistant Fire Chief Fred Johnson if he could explain the
costs. Mr. Johnson said that the amount
is covered by donations promised to the Fire Dept. by various sources. A loan
of $10,000.00 was authorized to be repaid by 9/30/07 at 1.5% APR... Motion to authorize making $6,000.00
available for supplemental budget requests from the Fire Dept. to be paid from
the Fire Dept. Current Expense fund with unexpected wildfire revenue of just
over $7,000.00 was made by Walter Wright and seconded by John Hannah. Motion carried 5 Yes, 0 No, 0 Abstentions.
TOWN ATTORNEY REPORT – William Faubion
Attorney William Faubion presented a Quit Claim Deed for the
Town to release property located on
Attorney Faubion requested an Executive Session regarding potential litigation and said that he expects it will last for approximately ten or fifteen minutes. Mayor Swart said that Council Member William Talbott had also asked for an Executive Session regarding personnel which he expects will last approximately ten minutes. The Mayor and Council Member David Goodroe requested an Executive Session concerning real estate.
PUBLIC WORKS – David Vik
A copy of the Public Works report is included with the Minutes..
PLANNING COMMISSION –
A copy of the Planning Commission report is included with the Minutes.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
PARKS & PROPERTIES – Danielle Erickson & John Hannah
Mayor Swart said that Sam Longtain has agreed to use his
labor and equipment to grade the lot adjacent to the Fire Hall and the path up
at
POOL – Walter Wright & William Talbott
Mayor Swart said that he has a draft email to be sent that will include the solar heating option that was presented to the Council by Rick Beck.
Council Member William Talbott said that he had received a letter from the state that said there are funds available for children’s recreation including pools and skateboard parks. Mr. Talbott said that the grant requests must be in by October 1st.
PUBLIC SAFETY – Walter Wright & John Hannah
Council Member Walter Wright said that he was still hoping that the Town will have a line painted at the bottom of the drive leading up to the Post Office. The Mayor said that he will meet with Council Member Wright and look at the location that he would like to have the line painted on.
STREETS & DOCKS – Danielle Erickson & John Hannah
Council Member David Goodroe asked the Streets and Docks Committee to consider possible budget requests for next year especially since the Dock is having all of the work performed around it. He said that he had spoke with a landscaper who told him that she could give a proposal for flower boxes and their maintenance to be placed on the dock.
WATER & SEWER – Walter Wright & David Goodroe
ANNEXATION – Danielle Erickson & Walter Wright
REVENUE & SALARIES – William Talbott & David Goodroe
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT – David Goodroe & Danielle Erickson
ANNOUNCEMENTS –
Council Member David Goodroe announced that the Friends of Skamokawa will be holding their annual Wine Tasting and Silent Auction on September 8, 2007. Mr. Goodroe said that this will be his second year as co-chair of the event.
DISCUSSION –
Council Member William Talbott said that he was not pleased
with the performance of a female flagger on the chip sealing project near the
EXECUTIVE SESSION –
The regular meeting of the Town Council was recessed at 9:40 p.m. The Executive Session began at 9:46 p.m. The Executive Session ended at 10:12 p.m. with no action taken. The regular meeting resumed at 10:12.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 10:12 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Virginia L. Welker
Clerk/Treasurer