Mayor Tom Naasz called the Beloit City Council meeting to order Monday night with all council members in attendance in attendance except for Councilman Rick Brown, who was ill, and Councilman Frank Delka.
Mayor Naasz thanked the city workers who worked on street clearing, and those who helped to put up and tear down decorations across town for the Christmas season. Councilman Lloyd Littrell said that the Isle of Lights was great this year, and Councilman Bob Petterson said that the VFW served a great meal and had an impressive 300-person turnout.
City Administrator, Glen Rodden, said that Blue Cross Blue Shield lowered costs for the city 4.8%. Upon questioning from Councilman Littrell asked if the city would lower the premiums for the employees due to this change. Administrator Rodden said that he was unsure, and that it may reduce individual costs.
Rodden also added that there is no city ordinance for snow removal on sidewalks. He said that some people have been asking him, and that it would be hard to enforce. Councilman Bob Richard echoed that, adding that it would be unfair when some people have sidewalks on their property, and others don't. Councilwoman Struble expressed concerns for senior citizens having the responsibility of shoveling that, or paying someone to. Mayor Naasz called on able-bodied citizens to help those who cannot.
Rodden also said that when the city is working on clearing the street, the snow sometimes piles up at the end of people's driveways. He said that it is not something that the city will clean up, and that they are doing what they can to keep the street clean of snow.
Mayor Naasz then moved to appropriation, which included Schwab Eaton Engineering's bid of $68,000 for the city's Geometric Improvement Grant. Councilman Richard made a motion to accept the bid, and Councilman Matt Otte seconded.
Watts and Son Plumbing was the only company to bid for the HVAC/Heater for the council room. They bid $8,900 for the job, and the council accepted.
The council then began their work session, which started with discussing the Comprehensive Plan for Beloit, which was discussed at the last meeting. The council looked at an example of what Beloit could have. Councilman Kent Miller inquired about the cost of a similar plan. Rodden said that it would be well over $50,000, and would take about 18 months.
Councilman Miller asked if a class from Kansas State University or the University of Kansas could do the job. Rodden said that he is unsure of the process, but that he knows Kansas State has a class project, but he knows that they are limited in what they can do. Miller said that if a university could do this, he would rather pay them a stipend than paying $50,000 for a company to do it, but that he thinks a plan is necessary. Mayor Naasz asked Rodden to go ahead and look for bids from businesses, but in the meantime, check out if colleges offered programs.
Councilman Otte said if the city is going to pay the money, they need to follow through. Rodden said that it is a long-term project, and that he will take time to find the right service. He also said that the people of Beloit must be excited about it. He said that all city administrators, leaders and council members are responsible for carrying it through.
The council then moved to the Fee Resolution portion of the agenda. Councilman asked what the Level 1, 2 and 3 offenses mean in the fee schedule. Chris Jones, Zoning Director, said that it is subjective, but the higher the number, the worse the offense. He also said that he eliminated warnings and raised the offense fees per the council's request.
Lynn Miller, Parks and Recreation Director, said that she is looking to change the fees for pool parties, among other things on the fee schedule. The new fees would be $200 for a party of 50 people or less, $250 for a party of 50-100 people, and $300 for a party of over 100 people. There will be no specific fees for co-ed sports at this time, depending on the number of teams who play.
Rodden will send all fees not included at this meeting to the council, and vote at the next meeting.
Tom Naasz then called for the council to adjourn, and the meeting ended.