Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-08-18 MINUTES OF COUNCIL AUGUST 18, 2020 The Batesville City Council met in regular session on August 18, at 5:30 pm at the Batesville Community Center. Mayor Rick Elumbaugh presided over the meeting. Utility Office Manager Nick Baxter gave the invocation. Upon roll call, the following Councilmembers answered present; Scott Fredricks, Julie Hinkle, Paige Hubbard, Fred Krug, Doug Matthews, Pete Musgrave and Chris Poole. Also present were the City Clerk Denise Johnston and City Attorney Tim Meitzen. Councilmember Thomas Bryant was absent. Councilmember Fredricks moved to approve the minutes from the previous meeting. Councilmember Hinkle seconded and all voted for. Councilmember Hinkle moved to approve the prepared agenda. Councilmember Hubbard seconded and all voted for. CITIZENS COMMENTS None UNFINISHED BUSINESS None NEW BUSINESS A) POLICE DEPARTMENT REPORT Police Chief Alan Cockrill addressed the council for his monthly report. Chief Cockrill said because of the COVID-19, he has not been in the office to prepare his monthly report. He asked the council if they had any questions for him, which there were none. B) ENGINEER’S REPORT City Engineer Damon Johnson addressed the council. Mr. Johnson said the Eagle Mountain water tower job is completed and back in service. Contract Section III plans are currently at the Health Department for review. He said he hoped to have the approved plans back soon, however, some possible tweaking to the document may need to be made before it is put out for bids in late fall or early winter. Both plants are running well. Mr. Johnson said the Street crew is working on the Railroad crossing, in conjunction with the Missouri/Pacific Railroad company, to repair the crossing on Central Avenue. Mr. Johnson also informed the council that a resident on Josephine Drive received damage to their home from a sewer back- up that was caused by a utility line. The estimates were $11,273.00. Mr. Johnson explained that any damages over $10,000.00 have to be approved by the council. He said the estimates seemed very reasonable to him. Councilmember Matthews moved to approve to pay for the damages. Councilmember Fredricks seconded and all voted for. Councilmember Poole asked Mr. Johnson who was responsible for cleaning debris from the Central Avenue Bridge. Mr. Johnson said since it is a State highway, the State does the sweeping. Mr. Johnson said he would notify the highway department that the bridge needed sweeping. C) CONSIDER AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE CITY PARK HOURS OF OPERATION Mayor Elumbaugh asked Parks Director Jeff Owens and Police Chief Alan Cockrill to address the council and explain the reason for the proposed ordinance. Chief Cockrill, who said he has been an advocate for the kids to gather in the city parks, said over the last 6 months, things have gotten out of control. He said a few months ago, the kids moved from Kennedy Park to the Community Center parking lot. The kids were trashing the parking lot with trash and broken bottles, therefore, the Chief asked Mr. Owens to barricade the parking lots when the facility closes. That, he said, sent the kids back to Kennedy Park. He said on any given night, there will be approximately 300 cars at the park. The kids are again trashing the parking lot and are obviously not observing the social distancing and mask wearing during the COVID pandemic. Mr. Owens agrees that all the parks should be closed at 10:00 pm. The ordinance does not, according to Mr. Owens, limit the time for City sponsored or approved events or for walking, jogging, usage of the boat ramp or fishing. Chief Cockrill said with the number of vehicles that are gathering there at night, the boat ramp is not even accessible. Councilmember Fredricks introduced the ordinance. Councilmember Fredricks moved to suspend the rules and read the ordinance by title only. Councilmember Hinkle seconded and the electronic roll call was 7 for and 0 against. Mr. Meitzen read the ordinance by title only. Councilmember Fredricks moved to further suspend the rules and waive the second and third readings. Councilmember Hinkle seconded and the electronic roll call was 7 for and 0 against. Councilmember Hinkle moved to adopt the ordinance and Councilmember Krug seconded. The electronic roll call was 7 for and 0 against. The ordinance was given #2020-08-01. Councilmember Fredricks moved to adopt the emergency clause. Councilmember Hubbard seconded and the electronic roll call vote was 7 for and 0 against. D) CONSIDER A RESOLUTION TO SEEK GRANT FUNDING FOR RECREATION FACILITIES IMPROVEMENTS Councilmember Matthews introduced a resolution authorizing the Mayor to apply for an outdoor recreation matching grant from the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. Councilmember Matthews moved to suspend the rules and read the resolution by title only. Councilmember Fredricks seconded and the electronic roll call vote was 7 for and 0 against. Mr. Meitzen read the resolution by title only. Councilmember Matthews moved to adopt the resolution. Councilmember Hubbard seconded and the electronic roll call vote was 7 for and 0 against. The resolution was given #2020-08-01-R. E) CONSIDER A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE SALE OF TWO-ACRE LOT ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE BATESVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT Councilmember Krug introduced a resolution to authorize the sale of a two-acre lot on the West side of the Batesville Police Department property. Mayor Elumbaugh said Bad Boy is currently leasing the property from the City and approached him about the possibility of purchasing the property. The Mayor said he visited with the Police Chief and he agreed to sell the property. Councilmember Fredricks moved to suspend the rules and read the resolution by title only. Councilmember Matthews seconded and the electronic roll call vote was 6 for, 0 against and 1 (Hubbard) abstained. Mr. Meitzen read the resolution by title only. Councilmember Matthews moved to adopt the resolution and Councilmember Poole seconded. The electronic roll call vote was 6 for, 0 against and 1 (Hubbard) abstained. The resolution was given #2020-08-02-R. F) EXECUTIVE SESSION Councilmember Fredricks moved to go into executive session to consider several appointments. Councilmember Hinkle seconded and all voted for. Upon returning from executive session, Councilmember Fredricks moved to appoint Ms. Lisa Dame to the Housing Authority. Ms. Dame will be filling the unexpired term of her late husband, David Dame. Councilmember Hubbard seconded and all voted for. Ms. Dame’s term will end May 27, 2024. Councilmember Hubbard moved to re-appoint Ms. Julia Nail to the City Tree Board. Councilmember Matthews seconded and all voted for. Ms. Nail’s term will end September 8, 2022. Councilmember Matthews moved to re-appoint Mr. Zack Mobley and Mr. James Boothby to the Batesville Appeals Commission. Councilmember Hinkle seconded and all voted for. Mr.’s Mobley and Boothby’s terms well expire September 8, 2024. G) PAID BILLS REPORT The council was given a copy of the July, 2020 paid bills report for review. MAYOR COMMENTS th Mayor Elumbaugh asked the council if September 15 is good for the next council meeting. Councilmember Matthews so moved and Councilmember Fredricks seconded. All voted for. th The Mayor said he is rescheduling his council retreat for October 14. He asked all council to mark their calendars and try to attend. Mayor Elumbaugh said he and the City Clerk, deputy clerk, Donna Smith, and his administrative secretary Jennifer Corter met with Ms. Susan Fredricks, the ESL coordinator for Batesville School District and Mr. Jose Balderas, C.R.E.A.R organizer with Lyon College, regarding a plan to get the hard to count citizens to participate in our 2020 Census. He said that Jose and several others are going to set up at a couple of Mexican grocery stores and restaurants on Saturday and Sunday to try to get a better Hispanic count for the census. The city received a grant to help with the census and with the last of those funds, the city is going to offer a $10.00 cash incentive to those who will take the time to register for the census. Currently the City is at 63.6%, which is not acceptable. The Mayor said of course he would like to get 100% participation, however, he knows that is unlikely but would love to get well into the 90 percentile. LIAISON REPORTS None COUNCIL COMMENTS Councilmember Fredricks said a citizen called him regarding the speeding on E. College Street. He asked if additional speed limit signs could be placed on the Street. Also, Mr. Fredricks said he has been asked about making a 3-way stop at the th intersection of 30, Neeley and Josephine Streets. The intersection is very busy due to the Senior Citizens Center, Assisted Living facility and Nursing home on Neeley, the large neighborhood of College Heights and also this area is common for the back roads to Walmart and Home Depot. Mayor Elumbaugh asked the council to go look at the intersection and be ready for a recommendation at the next meeting. Councilmember Krug asked the council to remember the family of Mr. Ron Beckman who recently passed away from COVID-19. Mr. Beckman was a long-time resident of Batesville and his father was a Councilmember many years ago. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Councilmember Matthews moved that the meeting be adjourned. Councilmember Fredricks seconded and all voted for. The meeting was adjourned at 6:20 pm. __________________________ RICK ELUMBAUGH, MAYOR ______________________________ DENISE M. JOHNSTON, CITY CLERK