November 7, 2022 Minutes
City of Walcott
November 7, 2022
The semi-monthly meeting of the City Council of Walcott, Iowa, was held on Monday, the 7th day of November, 2022 at Walcott City Hall. Mayor John Kostichek called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Council members present: Everett Bieri, Kirk Koberg, Harry Knutsen, Lisa Mengler, and Jacob Puck. Staff present: Jeff Blake, Lisa Rickertsen, and Paul Stagg.
Approval of Agenda. Knutsen moved and Puck seconded to approve the agenda. Motion carried.
Public Comments. None at this time.
Consent Agenda. Mengler moved and Bieri seconded to approve the consent agenda including the invoices, Resolution 2022-41-Transfer of Funds, Resolution 2021-42-Obligating TIF Funds from the Consolidated Walcott Urban Renewal, and October 2022 financial reports. Roll call ayes: Mengler, Bieri, Puck, Knutsen, and Koberg. Motion carried.
Approval of Minutes from October 17, 2022. Knutsen moved and Puck seconded to approve the minutes from October 17, 2022. Motion carried with Koberg abstaining due to absence from meeting.
Fire Department Report. Joe Hahn, Korry Kraft, and Ben McKibbin were present on behalf of the Fire Department to discuss replacing the 1997 rescue truck. Kraft attended the October 3rd council meeting and was asked to obtain a second quote for a new chassis. Kraft reported the chassis prices on a Freightliner and Spartan Custom are comparable but an exact amount for a Freightliner could not be provided for another year and a truck with a Freightliner chassis wouldn’t be built for two to three years. Discussion ensued and Hahn stated the Fire Department designed a new truck and with Council’s approval they intend to distribute the bid package to five different manufacturers. He stated they typically keep trucks for 20-25 years per the National Fire Protection Association (recommendations) but trucks can be recertified each year. Mengler moved and Puck seconded to allow the Fire Department to send the truck specifications out for bid. Motion carried. The bids will be requested by December 15th so it can be placed on the December 19th council agenda.
Lincoln Street Improvements. Questions arose on the project status. Stagg reported on the upcoming plans to pour the concrete street from Downey Street east to Blue Grass Road. The contractor is still waiting on a culvert so the remaining project, from Downey Street to Main Street, will be poured next spring. Mengler moved and Koberg seconded to approve payment #5 to Needham Excavating, in the amount of $373,117.62, as recommended by the project engineer. Motion carried.
2023 Employee Health and Dental Insurance Benefits Renewal. Rickertsen reported the current health insurance plan will not be available in 2023. A comparable health plan was presented, with a premium increase of 6.81%. Knutsen moved and Puck seconded to approve the 2023 employee health and dental insurance renewal with the health plan moving to the Wellmark Enhanced Blue 1500 HMO plan. Motion carried.
Resolution 2022-43, Approving an Agreement between the City of Walcott and the Humane Society of Scott County. Rickertsen reported on the proposed three-year agreement, prepared by the Humane Society, and noted a revision to section 8, deleting the incorrect Iowa Code section number. Mengler moved and Bieri seconded to approve Resolution 2022-43, with the correction as noted. Roll call ayes: Mengler, Bieri, Puck, Koberg, and Knutsen. Motion carried.
Ordinance 531-22, Amending Provisions Pertaining to Stop Signs. This ordinance amends Chapter 65 of the Walcott City Code by adding eleven stop sign locations to the Code, where stop signs are already installed but not listed in the Code. Puck moved and Bieri seconded to approve the first reading of Ordinance 531-22. Roll call ayes: Puck, Bieri, Mengler, Knutsen, and Koberg. Motion carried. This is the first of three required readings.
Ordinance 532-22, Amending Provisions Pertaining to No Parking Zones. This ordinance amends Chapter 69 of the Walcott City Code by designating all sides of Sterling Drive as a no parking zone. Bieri moved and Mengler seconded to approve the first reading of Ordinance 532-22. Roll call ayes: Bieri, Mengler, Puck, Koberg, and Knutsen. Motion carried. This is the first of three required readings to prohibit parking on Sterling Drive.
Public Works Department Report. Stagg presented information on disposal of the 2015 GMC 1500 truck. Stagg reported the truck is equipped with a snow plow and salt spreader and he is requesting permission to list the truck for sale on the GovDeals website. He stated the truck has not been utilized for over two years and it’s not heavy enough for what the City needs for plowing. This truck will not be replaced but Stagg stated he intends to request replacing another truck at a future council meeting. Mengler moved and Puck seconded to allow the disposal of the 2015 GMC 1500 truck with snow removal equipment as presented by Stagg. Motion carried.
City Clerk’s Report. Rickertsen presented information on amending the current budget. Bieri moved and Knutsen seconded to set a public hearing date for the FYE 23 (July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023) budget amendment for November 21st at 6:00 p.m. Motion carried.
Mayor’s Report. Mayor Kostichek thanked the Fire Department for their research on the truck replacement. He also questioned the status of the West Otis Street project deficiencies. Stagg responded that he believes it is still IMEG’s intention to do a few test panels yet this year. Koberg stated he felt IMEG should pour a new street. Stagg responded that the intention on the plan from IMEG, which they brought to council (on June 6, 2022), was to do a few test panels first to make sure it would alleviate the problems before proceeding with other cracked street panels. Following further discussion, including street safety concerns, council agreed to request IMEG send a representative to the next council meeting.
Koberg moved and Knutsen seconded to adjourn at 6:46 p.m. Motion carried. All votes on motions were unanimous, unless noted.