January 18, 2012
The regular meeting of the Randall City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m. with all members present except Councilman Turner.
Four members of Boy Scouts Troop 38 were present to observe the meeting.
The minutes of the December 2011 regular and Truth in Taxation meetings were approved as presented.
Motion by Adamski 2nd by Carter to pay the bills for the month. Carried
Utility Rates: The utility rate board presented their proposal for rate increases in the Electric, Sewer and Water funds. The base rate in each fund would be increased by .50¢ and approximately a 5% increase on the rates. The average customer will see an approximate increase of 5% on their monthly bill. The board briefly discussed increasing the Natural Gas rates also, but did not have a proposal for the meeting however, it was the consensus of the council that this would be the time to increase the gas rate along with the other rates. The council decided a .05¢ increase on the city’s mark-up would be sufficient at this time.
Motion by Carter 2nd by Andres to increase the natural gas rate by .05¢, the base rates of the electric, sewer and water by .50¢ each and increase the regular rates of electric, sewer and water by approx. 5% each, effective immediately. Carried
From time to time, a customer will ask if the service charge for the natural gas will ever go away. The service charge helps pay the bond payment for the natural gas system and that bond will not be paid off until 2020, therefore, the service charge will stay in place until that time for sure and may never completely go away but perhaps be decreased.
Appointments for 2012: The following recommendations were made: the planning and zoning has recommended Tom Jacobson to replace Ken Salber on its board. Chuck Strack replaced Bill Vanden Avond on the Civil Defense Board, add the Bank of Zumbrota to the City Depository list, change the utility board members to Jerry Peterschick, Jerry Carter and Charley Andres, remove John Cole and Bob Sanders from Roads, Streets and Bridge Board with no replacements.
Motion by Adamski 2nd by Andres to approve the 2012 appointments, including all changes. Carried
Community Services: Motion by Carter 2nd by Adamski to approve the annual donation to Little Falls Community Services for $4,000.00. Carried
Off-Premise Gambling License: The Randall-Cushing Lions are seeking approval from the city for an off-premise gambling license for the Vision Randall raffle to be held at the Randall VFW on January 31st.
Motion by Adamski 2nd by Andres to approve the off-premis gambling license for the Randall-Cushing Lions for a raffle held at the Randall VFW on January 31, 2012. Carried
IT Services: The council was given two proposals for IT services for the city. One from CTC IT for a monthly fee of $350 and the other from Norski and Sons (Dan Noss) for a monthly fee of $300. Both proposals are very comparable and would include backup, security, maintenance and monitoring of all city computers and programs. At this time the council would like to do some more research and check with some outside resources to see if this is something the city really needs at this time. This item has been tabled until a future meeting.
Planning & Zoning: Randall VFW-Veteran’s Memorial – Cement foundation and Veteran’s Park sign.
Motion by Carter 2nd by Andres to approve the permit. Carried
Delinquent accounts: Delinquent accounts were reviewed and disconnects will be strictly enforced. Customers are NOT to come to the city manager to discuss payments plans but are to contact city hall to make an appointment with the utility board to discuss their account. It is not part of the city managers’ job to make payment arrangements with customers. Customers only contact the city manager to make an appointment with the utility board.
The council is going to look into to the possibility of increasing prices at the liquor store after the 2011 financial audit is presented at the February meeting.
Wendell and Dan are now finished cutting the trees out of the power lines in the city. There is one tree that is in a difficult area that the city is going to have to hire a professional company to come in and take down.
The battery in the squad car has been drained the last couple times the chief has come to work. It has been tested and discovered that with all the equipment in the car that is a constant draw on the battery. A module is being installed to remedy the problem.
The Mayor asked all council members to please contact city hall if they know they will not be able to attend a council meeting.
The Randall-Cushing Little Elk Lions spent a portion of two different days deep cleaning the park building a couple months ago. A thank you will be sent out to them.
Reminder to all councilmembers to turn in job performance reviews for the City Manager.
EFT Designee: The council needs to designate who is allowed to perform Electronic Fund Transfers for the city and have that information kept of file with the bank.
Motion by Carter 2nd by Adamski to appoint the City Administrator and Administrative Assistant as the designated personnel to perform Electronic Fund Transfers for the City of Randall. Carried
Out-of-State Travel: If the city does not have a policy in place stating when reimbursement for out-of-state travel by city officials is appropriate it must have a statement on file with the following: At this time, any expenses for out-of-state travel by council members of the City of Randall will not be reimbursed.
Motion by Andres 2nd by Riitters to not allow reimbursement for out-of-state expenses by council members of the City of Randall. Carried
The council would like a copy of the minutes of the Joint Advisory Fire Board meetings each quarter.
It was decided to ask David Drown to look at the city’s bonds and see if there are any better interest rates available.
The Vision Randall has accrued $14,000.00 towards the Warning Siren so far. They have been planning the community update dinner to be held on January 31st at the Randall VFW. The raffle drawing will also be that evening. Tickets are available at the city hall and various businesses throughout the city.
Meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m.