Special City Council Meeting
City Hall, Cherokee, Iowa
July 7, 2009 – 5:30 P.M.
A special meeting was called to order on this date by
Mayor Pierce. Present: Council Member Peck, Leach, Mallory, Burkhart,
Stieneke, Administrator Eikmeier, City Attorney Miller, Clerk-Treasurer Taylor.
Administrator Eikmeier reported
that one of the Park Department’s mowers has experienced engine problems. This
mower was
purchased with 300 hours on it and now has 1500 hours. Duane Mummert, Park
Supt., said that at budget time he told the
council that they like to replace the mowers when they reach 1000 hours, but the
replacement of this mower was not
budgeted. Options are to replace the engine at a cost of approximately $4,500
or to purchase a mower. The council
reviewed the following bids on a new mower: Frederick Welding-$8,581.30;
Midwest Honda Suzuki Kubota-$9,800;
Builders Sharpening & Service-$10,994; Siouxland Propane-$11,495. The
Administrator asked to defer any action on the
bids until next week’s meeting so they can research the equipment on the low
bid. He did indicate that another option
would be to finish out the mowing season with the equipment they have and rebid
the replacement next season. However,
this would mean that a new mower probably wouldn’t be purchased until July 1,
2010. This also puts more hours on the other
mowers so it may not be a feasible option. Mallory is concerned about the
budget and that they really need to watch the
money, as next year won’t be any better. Stieneke asked whether the Water
Dept.’s mower could be used? Eikmeier said
this would also be evaluated during the next week. Burkhart said they should
also look at the extra manpower that would
be needed by using smaller mowers. A motion by Leach, seconded by Burkhart,
tabled this matter until the July 14th meeting.
Motion carried.
Administrator Eikmeier reported
that the Park restroom roof was damaged during a recent storm. Insurance will
cover the
cost to replace the roof as well as the clean up of the tree debris. Bids were
received as follows for roof replacement:
Screenbuilders-steel roof-$4,360, 3-tab shingles-$4,336, 30-yr. shingles-$4,645;
Menke Construction-steel roof-$4,157,
shingles-$3,980; Tom Mummert & Son Construction-tin roof-$3,298,
shingles-$4,209. The Administrator is recommending the
low bid from Mummert & Son for a steel roof at $3,298. They will, however,
check to be sure he is bidding the same gauge
steel as requested. Stieneke questioned why City employees are going to do some
of the work when they have plenty of
other things they need to do. Why not bid out all the work if it is covered by
insurance? A motion by Stieneke, seconded by
Peck, accepted the low bid from Tom Mummert & Son Construction for a steel roof
at $3,298. Motion carried.
Administrator Eikmeier will get
quotes on doing the additional vent work on the building, and if necessary, will
bring it back
to the council at next week’s meeting.
Steve Casey, Wastewater Supt.,
was present to review needed improvements to the industrial wastewater aeration
unit.
There are holes in the bottom of the unit that are corroded and plugged. The
sludge needs to be removed in order to clean
out these holes. City employees have attempted to clean them, but the
environment is an unsafe work zone. The estimated
cost of this project is $16,000-$20,000 and will be paid from the industrial
wastewater fund. Bids are being solicited for this
work and will be available for the July 14th meeting. Steve also
reported that the other side of this aeration unit would have
to be rebuilt in the near future.
The Administrator provided the council with copies of the
recent inspection reports for the city’s 9 bridges. Points are assigned
to each bridge with 100 being the best. The highest rating the city received
was 85 with the lowest being an 18 for the Birch St. bridge.
Council member Stieneke
addressed the council about the way a couple of his inquiries regarding the pool
were handled. After
asking an adult employee in the concession stand whether they do any type of
inventory, he received a call from Administrator
Eikmeier indicating that he should not be questioning employees. Stieneke then
called the Administrator regarding some graffiti
at the pool and was told that he should have pointed it out to the pool
manager. Why the difference? Administrator Eikmeier
said that the difference was in addressing an “employee” over a “manager”. He
also indicated that there were other instances
where Stieneke was overstepping, but wasn’t sure this was the time or place to
discuss the matter. Stieneke then left the
meeting. Mallory feels the council should address problems and suggested that
this matter be discussed in closed session with
the people involved if they so choose. Leach feels the Administrator, Mayor,
and City Attorney should handle this. The only
reason he was notified about the matter is because he is the Park Dept. council
liaison. Burkhart said the council is a policy
board and they don’t do personnel. The Mayor and Administrator will take the
advice of the City Attorney and will keep the
council updated on the matter.
Council member Peck reported
that in talking with Jerry Menke at Tyson, there will be workers coming from the
Oklahoma
plant that will need housing. Tyson has hired about 70 employees since the
first of the year. The Mayor reported that a packet
of information was put together for potential workers and includes information
regarding housing options.
On a motion by Leach, seconded by Mallory, the meeting was adjourned at 6:10 p.m. Motion carried.
News media – Nikki Thunder, KCHE.
Pam Pierce – Mayor
ATTEST:
Debra Taylor, CMC
City Clerk-Treasurer