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City Council Approves Amended Meter System Contract

The Beloit City Council voted at their meeting Tuesday night to approve the amended contract on the Automated Meter Reading System the City is purchasing from Mueller Systems, LLC.

The amended cost of the system is $63,625. The additional installation cost of the new system will be funded through a $515,000 loan from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) through their Kansas Public Water Supply Loan Fund.

On February 6, 2012, the City was approved for funding from KDHE for the purpose of purchasing the water portion of the system from Mueller Systems LLC. On March 20, 2012, the city council approved this purchase as presented by City Administrator Glenn Rodden.

Administrator Rodden told the council he inaccurately assumed they could use the KDHE loan to fund all water meters and computer software. For this reason he thought funding would not be available for installation and that work would have to be performed by City staff which would require an estimated completion time of 7 to 9 months of steady work.

However, in a letter dated April 20, 2012 the Bureau of Water, a division of the Kansas Dept. of Health and Environment, informed the City only part of the $515,000 loan would be eligible for reimbursement by the Kansas Public Water Supply Loan Fund and the rest of the contract costs could go to the electrical utility infrastructure. This change opened up funding of $76,885.60 but left an unfunded balance of $1,329.40 so it was initially thought the balance would have to come from water department funds.

Since that time Mueller Systems has provided an updated price quote for the installation of the water meters in the amount of $63,625 due to the City reducing the actual number of meters to be purchased and installed. This makes the total amount of the Kansas public Water Supply loan $501,739.40.

Therefore, Administrator Rodden requested the Council approve the amended contract that would allow Mueller Systems to install the water meters in an estimated 45 days. Rodden said it would probably take about a month after that to get all the bugs worked out of the system. The whole system for the water and electricity meters can all be connected to one transmitter. After discussion the Council voted 8 to 0 to approve the amended contract as presented.

Request for Exception from Ordinance No. 1710

Todd and Roxanne Kimminau came to the council meeting to request an exception from City Ordinance No. 1710 which states that citizens are permitted to discharge or explode fireworks on July 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th. The Kimminau's have traditionally hosted a block party during the 4th of July celebration but this year their party would fall outside of the period allowed for shooting fireworks because of how the calendar falls this year. There is no weekend, particularly a Saturday in that time period. Administrator Rodden recommend that the council allow this variance from the city code to permit fireworks to be shot off on Saturday, June 30th. This would be a one-time exception to the ordinance.

Councilman Bob Petterson objected to this action. Petterson said he had talked to Fire Chief Rugg and he has not been contacted about this subject. The City Ordinance and also the State Ordinance and the State Fire Marshall all say fireworks can't be sold until July 1 so these would have to be illegal fireworks,. It would also pave the way for more requests to go against the city ordinance in the future, he said.

Councilman Matt Otte suggested they let the Kimminau's speak. Roxanne Kimminau explained what takes place at their Neighborhood Block Party and the precautions they take to insure safety. They have been doing this for nine years and have never had a problem with anyone getting hurt, she said.

Petterson said if this request for exception passed the Fire Chief has to be told before hand. As a long time fireman himself, he said more firemen would have to be kept on duty an extra day in case of a problem. Kimminau said they always get a permit from the city to block off that area and the Fire Chief, the EMS, and the Beloit Police Department all have to sign off on the permit. After discussion the council approved the one time exception to Ordinance No. 1710 with the stipulation that all the necessary entities sign off on the permit. The vote was 7 to 1 with Councilman Petterson casting the negative vote.

Administrator's Report

In his Administrator's Report Rodden addressed the following issues: The new Swimming Pool will open Saturday, May 26, as planned. He thanked the council and the pool committee for their help and support in getting this project done.

The NRCS still hasn't contacted them about the issue of the riverbank stabilization in Chautauqua Park. The city wants to start work as soon as they can so they can get all of the park area open again. Some of the dirt taken from the pool area will be used for this project. This will be an extensive plan to help prevent flood damage in the area in the future.

On the issue of the Mill Street flooding, Rodden said Fouts Insurance has not heard back from their company as to what their final decision will be or if they will agree to cover this damage. The investigators have finished their inspection but it is not known how much they will decide the city was at fault in this situation. We are just waiting for this decision, he said.

The area some people have been asking about on the North Campus is not for a road. It is the area where the walking trail will be when it is finished. The Cooling Towers at the Power Plant have been moved over into place by big cranes this week.

The Library Board is looking for volunteers to help them move their books and equipment into their new building. Administrator Rodden reminded council members the Council Retreat has been set of the evenings of June 20 and 21.

Councilman Rick Brown asked about the road in the Ackerman Addition. Rodden said it has been completed. Brown asked if the Zimmer Addition would be next. Rodden said they also have two parking lots at the North Campus that need to be done and this can all be worked on until the Mill Street project is ready to go.

Work Session

The only item for discussion during the work session was the Water Rights Permit the City applied for about a year ago. Stuart Porter, from Schwab-Eaton Engineering, was present to update the council on the progress of the permit that was submitted to the Division of Water Resources in order to Appropriate Water for Beneficial Use.

Porter gave a brief overview of what David W. Barfield, Chief Engineer of the Division of Water Resources, said the City of Beloit needs to update their water permits. He explained how the city needs to proceed and what needs to be done to comply with present regulations. He said the State is starting to regulate water usage much closer than in the past. While the city has the option of not doing anything in case of a water shortage the State would could technically shut off their water supply if need be.

Porter said this is a very complicated discussion at this point. The sky is not falling but common sense tells him it makes good sense to pursue this plan to insure the future utility needs of the city. While it is true this is not a crisis we want to do everything we can to get the permit in order and get it approved, he said. The council agreed that this needs to be done. No action was taken, as this was a discussion only item.

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Beloit, KS 67420, USA