The Hampton City Council met on Tuesday, January 14, 2014 at the Hampton City Hall for a special meeting and the regular meeting. Present were Mayor Skog; Council Members Jennifer Budrow and Amanda Jensrud. Council Members Endres and Knetter were absent. Also present was Cory Beinfang with Bolton and Menk.
Special Meeting Called to Order - Mayor Skog called the Special Meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. The reason for the special meeting was to discuss Resolution 2014-01 Setting salaries, fees, licenses and permits, etc.
Mayor Skog asked for discussion regarding the fees and said that he had looked them over and felt that they were sufficient. Council Member Jensrud questioned which staff members received raises last year. Council confirmed that the Deputy Clerk and the City Treasurer received a wage increase at that time. Skog stated that until Hampton saw some building going on that no further raises should be considered. Skog confirmed that a charge for the ball field should be set in place as a fee had been charged last summer. Council decided to set a fee of $75.00 for non-residents and other teams than the Hampton Cardinals but agreed to leave church and youth groups exempt from the charge. Budrow requested that the Clerk add the information to the ball field reservation form. City Clerk, Wendy Carpenter pointed out that due to an election year and Veteran’s Day that two City Council meetings would be held on a Wednesday in 2014.
Council Member Knetter arrived at 6:36 p.m.
Knetter requested that the City Treasurer be considered for a wage increase as he does an exceptional job at keeping the books in order and managing the City’s money and every city audit is always spot on. Knetter stated someone filling a position such as this is typically paid quite a bit more. Skog stated that after a city audit “we will see if he’s up to par.” Knetter confirmed that a city audit was conducted every year. Skog said that those were internal audits and that an outside audit was needed and he could force one as he wanted to find the missing money from the water and sewer funds and that to get the books in order, a full blown audit was necessary. Knetter stated that the books were straight and asked what Skog’s concerns were. Skog said that the Clerk was moving money around and the water and sewer funds were off. Knetter said the issues with the water and sewer were due to software problems that were corrected with Banyan. Jensrud suggested that this discussion wait as it was on the agenda at a later point.
Budrow confirmed that the Treasurer received a partial raise last year. Jensrud agreed that if indeed a partial increase was given last year, that it wouldn’t be out of line to finish what was planned. Skog said that there was no growth but that the Council kept increasing wages. Knetter stated that mowing and plowing services were addressed every year and that if the City didn’t recognize their employees, they wouldn’t be able to retain them.
The Deputy Sherriff asked if the Council had any concerns.
Council agreed to increase the Treasurer’s wage by one dollar an hour. Knetter suggested a one to two percent increase to the City Clerk’s wage as she hadn’t received a raise since she took over for the previous Clerk. Skog said he was not in favor of a Clerk’s increase as her performance could be better and that neither County nor State employees have received wage increases. Knetter stated that raises had in fact been given out and asked Jensrud if she could confirm that. Skog said that Jensrud was not state employed. Jensrud confirmed she was a state subdivision. Budrow said that she would like to see an increase in the Clerk’s wage to be in conjunction with her review in July. Jensrud recommended moving the Clerk’s evaluation to the end of the fiscal year so compensation can be discussed at this annual meeting. Skog agreed to an increase this year but for the record would not be in favor of any raises next year if there is not one building or any growth in Hampton. Knetter confirmed that there was indeed a new home and a major street project completed this past year. Motion by Knetter seconded by Jensrud to increase the City Clerk’s wage by .50 an hour. Knetter, Skog, and Jensrud voted in favor. Budrow opposed. Motion passed 3:1 Budrow questioned if the designations of departments would stay the same. Jensrud offered to assist with the Street’s Department. Skog stated that all designations could stay the same.
Adjournment - Motion by Jensrud seconded by Knetter to adjourn the special meeting. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0. The special meeting adjourned at 7:03 p.m.
Regular Meeting called to Order - Mayor Skog called the Regular Meeting to order at 7:04 p.m. Present were Mayor Skog; Council Members John Knetter, Jennifer Budrow, and Amanda Jensrud. Council Member Endres was
Hampton City Council Special and Regular Meeting Minutes for January 14, 2014
absent.
Disclosure of Interest – None
Approval of December 10, 2013 Public Hearing and Regular Scheduled Meeting Minutes – Motion by Jensrud seconded by Knetter to approve the December 10, 2013 Public Hearing and Regular Scheduled Meeting Minutes. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.
Approval of Disbursements – Knetter requested a breakdown of the snowplowing performed within the City and questioned the amount as there had only been approximately four snowfalls. Carpenter said that it was difficult to compare the cost to recent years as the City had paid nothing for services the last two years. Knetter suggested that equipment used be considered in the future when approving quotes. Motion by Knetter seconded by Budrow to approve the January disbursements. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.
Public Comment – None
Petitions, Requests, and Communications - Carpenter confirmed the insurance dividends received on behalf of the City for $1,468.00 and on the behalf of the Fire District in the amount of $687.00.
Budrow extended her appreciation for the well wishes in the event of her father-in-law’s passing.
Ordinances and Resolutions
Resolution 2014-01 - Setting salaries, fees, licenses and permits, charges for services, schedules, appointments and annual designations. Motion by Knetter seconded by Jensrud to approve Resolution 2014-01 with amendments to salaries and ball field fees. Knetter, Skog, and Jensrud voted in favor. Budrow opposed. Motion passed 3:1.
Reports of Officers, Boards, and Committees
Engineer Report – Cory Beinfang with Bolton and Menk provided an update on the well project stating that they had located a water main pipe, followed it and believed it to be a service pipe from the municipal well to the main on Lincoln Street. The project will be put on hold for more exploratory excavation outside on the south end of the old city hall until spring. Beinfang explained that out of the $25,000.00 grant money available, $11,000.00 had been expended and that he had verified that post-poning the completion of the project would be acceptable. Knetter confirmed that there would be enough funding left to rehabilitate the floor of the building. Cory also stated that
additional grants are available to seal the well when found and that he would begin collecting quotes after the well was found and the City can see exactly what steps would be necessary. Skog confirmed with Cory that the well was still assumed to be on city property. Motion by Knetter seconded by Budrow to approve the initial payment of $11,110.00 for services to date. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0. The City is to be reimbursed the full amount. Beinfang stated that the Block Grant application was completed and due January 15. With $34,000.00 dedicated tomsmall rural communities, the City was requesting $10,000.00 funding for a Capital Funds update and $5,000.00 funding for a GIS infrastructure data-base. Cory explained that there is no guarantee of a full award but perhaps the City would receive some assistance. Any money awarded would need to be used between July of 2014 and June of 2015. Beinfang suggested holding a workshop to discuss Capital Improvements including lift station rehabilitation, water tower needs, infrastructure updates, and seal coating issues as well as addressing the comprehensive plan for other city needs as updates are ongoing. Cory explained that a GIS database would be beneficial to the City as well.
Knetter confirmed that the City would own and update the database after an initial set-up and stated that a mapping of infrastructure is absolutely necessary, however was not completely sure about the update to the Capital Improvements fund. Jensrud confirmed that if any money was awarded that there would be other uses available as options. Skog thanked Beinfang for his efforts. Motion by Knetter seconded by Jensrud to apply for the Block Grant. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.
Water / Sewer Report - Knetter confirmed that the fence had been completed at the sewer ponds.
Park Report – Budrow stated that the ice rink had been plowed off a couple of times now and thanked Paul Steinbruckner for his assistance with the rink. Jensrud questioned the time line of how soon after a snowfall that the residents could plan on having the rink plowed. Budrow explained that she has it plowed as soon as she can and has been using whoever she could get out to the rink the soonest as Ehlers had been difficult to reach. Knetter suggested using the leftover material from the rink repairs on tables in the park.
Street Report - Knetter requested that the snowplowing contractor clean out the snow around the fire hydrant on the North West corner of Main and Water Streets.
Unfinished Business – None
New Business - Fire Department Medical Contract - Brian Edwards with Northfield Hospital addressed the Council stating that they had developed a contract strictly between the hospital and Fire Department that automatically renews annually to continue training. Edwards confirmed that although the Cities need to approve it, there is no cost to either City as the Fire Department pays all costs involved with the contract. Motion by Knetter seconded by Jensrud to approve the medical contract. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.
Randolph / Hampton Fire Department Contract - Jim Heiman provided information to the Council and confirmed that there was no increase in the cost of service and that the contract would be in the amount of $10,774.00 through 2016. Budrow questioned if after 2016 the City could expect a large increase. Heiman explained that with the gambling revenue and assistance through grants available, hopefully the increase would be acceptable. Motion by Knetter seconded by Jensrud to approve the Fire Department contract. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0. Heiman mentioned that the Fire Department was planning to put on a Burger Fest in Hampton during the month of May and requested that the Clerk provide the necessary paperwork to hold the event and obtain a liquor license for the day.
League of Minnesota Training - Budrow explained that the League of Minnesota was providing training to elected officials January 31 and February 1. Motion by Knetter seconded by Skog to send up to two Council Members to the LMC training. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.
Planning Commission Appointments - Motion by Jensrud seconded by Knetter to appoint Steve Hamilton, David Luhring, and Teresa Dambowy per their interest forms to the Planning Commission. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.
Pay Equity Report - Carpenter explained that a Pay Equity Report was required every three years and that there was not a lot of change from 2011. Motion by Jensrud seconded by Knetter to submit the Pay Equity Report. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.
City Audit - Skog said that there were discrepancies with the water and sewer billing and he felt it necessary to have a firm conduct an investigation and a full audit. Knetter confirmed that software issues have been corrected and that a city audit was conducted annually. Carpenter stated that due to the software miscalculations, multi-unit rentals may be the most affected and would work with Banyon, along with the Deputy Clerk, to determine the extent of any miscalculations. The City Clerk explained that the accounts that were input as commercial verses residential were not affected unless the properties went over the initial base charge as there is only a different amount charged after the base. Knetter stated that since the change made to coincide with the code, he has had comments on how the utility bills were being rounded up to the next thousand gallons. Skog stated that he had obtained a quote for services and that for $1,200.00 the City could have someone come in for a day and decide which direction to go. Jensrud suggested following the City Attorney’s advice and recommended working on any issues internally first. Skog said that money was missing and he wanted to know where it was going. The City Treasurer confirmed that this was a software issue and stated that the books were in order and that the City has a segregation of duties and more checks and balances that other cities a lot larger than Hampton. Meyer explained that a Meter Reader reads the water meters and inputs all information, a Deputy Clerk or City Clerk enters all receipts and payments into the system, and he himself personally deposit’s the funds after matching up each check with the payment entered. The Treasurer confirmed that there were multiple people checking figures and it was an excellent system. Jensrud commented that she had been a part of the city audit last year and that everything was “spot on” and unless there were discrepancies, and outside audit should not be required.
Adjournment - Motion by Jensrud seconded by Knetter to adjourn the meeting. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0. The meeting adjourned at 7:55 p.m.
Respectfully submitted, Wendy Carpenter, Hampton City Clerk