(Unofficial)

City of Hampton

5265 238th Street East • P.O. BOX 128 • Hampton, MN 55031 • United States of America • 651.437.8846

Hampton City Council Meetings Happen Every Second Tuesday of the Month.

BRIDGING THE PAST INTO THE FUTURE.

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Hampton City Council Special Meeting and Regular Meeting Minutes for January 10, 2017

The Hampton City Council met on Tuesday, January 10, 2017 at the Hampton City Hall for a special meeting and the regular scheduled meeting. Present were Mayor Knetter; Council Members David Luhring, Jerry Huddleston, Victor Anderson, and Kati Evertz-Garcia. Also present were Chris Meyer, City Treasurer; and Cory Bienfang, City Engineer. 

Special Meeting Called to Order - The purpose for the special meeting was to discuss Resolution 2017-01 Setting salaries, fees, licenses and permits, charges for services, schedules, appointments and annual designations. Mayor Knetter called the special meeting to order at 6:34 p.m. Huddleston mentioned that in the past, key city employees were given a cost of living increase of 3% and would be in favor of that this year and addressed the designation of appointments that were needed. Luhring recommended the ordinance violation fee of $40.00 become an escalating fee after 30 day increments to help enforce compliance. Knetter said that he hoped to be able to work with residents and would be in favor of the fee per letters sent out in 30 day increments verses having the City Attorney become involved initially and also felt that the Deputy Clerk should receive a wage increase based on what she had been told at the time of her hire and said that she should be compensated for the diligent work she provides for the City and recommended a wage of $16.00 per hour. 

Adjournment -Motion by Huddleston seconded by Luhring to adjourn the Special Meeting. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. The Special Meeting adjourned at 6:53 p.m. 

Regular Meeting called to Order - Mayor Knetter called the Regular Scheduled Meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. Present were Mayor Knetter; Council Members David Luhring, Jerry Huddleston, Victor Anderson, and Kati Evertz-Garcia. 

Disclosure of Interest – Knetter stated an annual disclosure that he was a part-time employee of the City. 

Approval of December 13, 2016 Public Hearing and Regular Scheduled Meeting Minutes – Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to approve the December 13, 2016 Public Hearing and Regular Scheduled Meeting Minutes. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. 

Approval of Disbursements – Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to approve the January disbursements. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. 

Public Comment – None. 

Petitions, Requests, and Communications - Wendy Carpenter, City Clerk requested the Council add Signature Updates to the agenda. Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to add Signature Updates to the agenda. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. 

Ordinances and Resolutions 

Resolution 2017-01 - Setting salaries, fees, licenses and permits, charges for services, schedules, appointments and annual designations. Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to approve Resolution 2017-01 with changes to salaries and fines as discussed in the Special Meeting and changes to appointments as follows: Acting Mayor-David Luhring; Parks-Kati Evertz-Garcia; Safety Coordinator-Victor Anderson; Sewer and Water Administration and Water Meter Maintenance as well as Media and Community Relations-Jerry Huddleston; Tree and Weed Inspector-John Knetter. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed. 5:0. 

Reports of Officers, Boards, and Committees 

Engineer Report – Cory Bienfang, City Engineer addressed the 47 and 50 Street Improvement project planned by MnDOT, now scheduled for the summer of 2018, and stated that the same hydrant at that area that had been leaking needed to be relocated. MnDOT had offered to cost share the expense and Bienfang recommended accepting a lump sum from them to assist in funding a larger project to repair and improve the hydrant with the leaking valve gate and the water main at that point that had issues in the past. Cory stated the main from 47 to Water Street was a four inch, at best considering its age, and this would be an opportunity to upgrade to an eight inch which would be beneficial to the Heights of Hampton’s service as well. Knetter questioned if the previous water main breaks there were due to the corrosive soil and if anything different could be done to prevent the wearing of the pipe. Bienfang felt that a combination of both the age and build up affecting the pipes as well as the corrosive soil contributed to the breaks and stated that the replacement pipe would be made of a different plastic material that would be more resistant to corrosive soil. Cory felt with MnDOT’s participation, the cost to the City would be approximately $96,000.00. Knetter confirmed with the City Treasurer that the funding was available in the City’s water and sewer funds. Huddleston said that as the City has to repair the hydrant, this would be an opportunity to save if the main was replaced and repaired at the same time. Council agreed with Bienfang’s recommendation. Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to accept the lump sum contribution from MnDOT. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. Bienfang stated that he would confirm with MnDOT and provide more information at the February meeting. The City Engineer provided the completed CIP update which the City had received a grant for as well as information on an update to Hampton’s GIS web base and explained that one of the biggest improvements was that information would now be accessible from mobile devices. 

Water / Sewer Report - Knetter stated the only item he wanted to mention was the leaking hydrant previously discussed. 

Park Report – Huddleston said that the ice rink was in fair shape and thanked all the residents that stepped up and volunteered their time and effort to improve it. 

Street Report - Luhring confirmed that he was working with the snow plower to make sure the contract was being satisfied and mentioned that there were no issues with the recent patching and that it looked great. Knetter requested that city sidewalks on Main Street be included in the plowing agreement. 

Unfinished Business – None 

New Business - 

Planning Commission Appointments - David Luhring agreed to continue on the Planning Commission one more year as it was unclear on his term’s expiration. Motion by Huddleston seconded by Luhring to appoint Steve Hamilton to the Planning Commission for a second term. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. 

City of Hampton Logo – Evertz-Garcia confirmed with the City Clerk that the City did not have a copyright on the current logo. Knetter invited residents to submit their ideas to develop a new city logo that would be a more original design and could be used exclusively by the City. 

Newly Elected Official’s Training - Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to approve training for Anderson and Evertz-Garcia as their schedules permit. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. 

Discussion of Utility Payments On Line - Knetter said that he would like to facilitate payments online for utility bills and felt that working through the banks security may be beneficial. Council agreed that it was a good idea and that the City should check into options available and any fees involved. Anderson recommended that the Council could consider passing any fees along to residents that may be interested. 

Pay Equity Report - Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to approve the Pay Equity Report and allow the City Clerk to submit the report electronically with the Mayor’s signature. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. 

Signature Update - Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to update the signature cards to show John Knetter as the current Mayor. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. 

Adjournment - Motion by Luhring seconded by Huddleston to adjourn the meeting. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 5:0. The meeting adjourned at 7:58 p.m. 

Respectfully submitted, Wendy Carpenter