Beloit City Council Meeting Dec 16th

Beloit City Council

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

By Terry Bailey

The future of the Silver Fox Estates development project at the site of the former Beloit Juvenile Correctional Facility seems to have run aground at last night’s Beloit City Council meeting.

In an agreement dated May twenty-first two thousand thirteen and revised July sixteenth, two thousand thirteen, the City of Beloit agreed to sell land to Mike Cooper for the amount of two hundred sixteen thousand three hundred eighty dollars. As part of that agreement, the City was to complete utility work and street construction by December thirty-first two thousand fourteen. The City will not be able to meet the deadline for the utilities and street projects.

Two items were on the meeting agenda that impacted the progress of the Silver Fox Estates residential building project. Resolution number two thousand fourteen dash twenty-one detailed the specific street improvements to be made by the City at that site. In a roll call vote, the resolution failed. Councilors Richards, Gengler, Petterson, Littrell, Abel and Brown voted no. Councilors Otte and Miller voted yes.

A second agenda item was the Cooper Contract Addendum. This addendum contained a detailed list of actions to be taken by the City, including the forgiveness of principal and interest owed the City by Cooper for street work done on the Cooper addition on North Pine Street. Should the City agree to these actions, Cooper would not hold the City liable for their not completing the utility and street projects as specified in the July sixteenth, two thousand thirteen agreement.

Councilor Matt Otte made a motion to accept the Cooper Contract Addendum. The motion died for a lack of a second.

A public hearing was conducted as requested by Richard Padgett. Padgett had been served notice that a tree on his property had been judged to be in danger of falling onto a neighbor’s property and that he needed to have it removed within the prescribed period of time.

Padgett voiced his opinion that the tree, while it was leaning, was a relatively healthy tree and he did not believe it was liable to fall over any time soon. He understood that if he had to remove it, he could do it himself, and he asked to be given an extension of time so that he could do the work next spring when it was warmer.

After Padgett spoke Mayor Tom Naaz said, “Let’s enforce the ordinance.” If Padgett does not remove the tree within the allotted time, the City will remove it and bill him for the work.

The Council approved a bid from PowerRam for a boring machine for the amount of thirty-one thousand four hundred twenty four dollars. The current pipe boring machine was purchased in the nineteen eighties and is virtually worn out and parts can no longer be located.

A bid of ten thousand four hundred sixty-four dollars for sewer pipe from HD Supply Waterworks was approved. This was the lowest of four bids received.

A bid for underground wire in the amount of twenty-nine thousand nine hundred ninety-five dollars from Stanion Wholesale was accepted. Stanion submitted the lowest of three bids received.

Cereal Malt Beverage licenses were approved for the two thousand fifteen calendar year for: The Beloit Bowl, Casey’s East and West, Pump Mart, Shamburg Oil, the Mitchell County Fair Board, and El Puerto Restaurant.

The Cemetery Endowment Foundation has a balance of forty-four thousand five hundred twenty-nine dollars and fifty-three cents. The Council approved that this balanced be transferred to a certificate of deposit at the Beloit First National Bank.

The Council then adjourned to their work session. At the previous Council meeting a discussion was held regarding increasing electrical rates to build a cushion against expected expenses for the electrical service. It was the consensus of the councilors at that meeting that it was better to raise rates on a graduated scale over a period of time rather than having to raise rates significantly all at once. The discussion at the last meeting became bogged down because it was hard t determine whose rates would be increased the most and how each group of consumers be affected by the proposed rate increase.

To clear up the issue of rate increases and how each classification of consumers would be impacted, Scott Shreuve (Shroove), a consultant from Shreveport, Louisiana was present to address the issues.

As Shreuve’s presentation progressed it was obvious that many factors affect how each of the different classifications of electrical user’s future bills will be affected by the proposed rate increase.

Councilor Matte Otte asked, “Who are the winners and losers in this rate increase? Obviously some people’s bill will go up and some might go down.”

Shreuve responded, “It is hard to tell.”

Mayor Tom Naaz advised the Councilors to come prepared at the next meeting to take action on the proposed electrical rate increase.

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Beloit, KS 67420, USA