CITY of ELGIN
COUNCIL MINUTES FOR JULY 13, 1999
COUNCILORS PRESENT- Glenn Clark
Pat McMullen
John Stover
John McElravy
Joe Estes
John Braughton
Berta Churchill - Mayor
Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 7 PM by Mayor Berta Churchill
Approval of Minutes
The Mayor called for approval of the minutes of the meetings of June 8 and June
22,1999. Councilor Clark moved to approve the minutes as presented, with
Councilor McElravy
as second. The vote was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Citizens to Speak
Kathy Gifford was present to report on Elgin EDGE. Ms. Gifford presented
the business development report that was prepared for the Business Recruitment
Committee by EOU students. She reported that Elgin EDGE is registered as a
non-profit organization with the State of Oregon. She also noted that EDGE has
submitted a grant to the Ford Foundation with the help of the Regional Services
Institute of EOU. The grant is for development of a business incubator program.
Supervisors Reports: The Mayor called for the supervisors reports.
Police- Chief Sibley submitted a written report.
Public works- Kyle Boylen submitted a letter concerning the placement of school
zone signs and þfines doubleþ signs. After a brief discussion Councilor Stover
moved to table the matter until the August meeting, with Councilor Clark as
second. The vote was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Hearing:
The time of 7:10 having arrived Mayor Churchill re-opened the hearing to
vacate the alley in the 300 N. Block between 15th & 16th.
Nick Pallis, an adjacent property owner was present. He informed the
Council that he had not had an opportunity to discuss the matter further with
Rick Smith, the petitioner. He noted that at the present time he would have
to use the alley as a driveway during the winter months as both of his
driveways are steep and are difficult to negotiate when they are icy. He
noted that if he could purchase the adjacent property, he could then provide
an alternate safe drive, but at present he has no other option. Mr. Smith
was not present at the meeting. No one else was present to speak on this
matter. Mayor Churchill closed the hearing.
After discussion among the Councilors, Councilor Stover moved to
abandon the vacation proceedings, with Councilor Braughton as second. The
vote was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Supervisors Reports continued.
Library-
Sandra Good reported that the summer reading program had over 100
children signed up. She noted that the library was uncomfortably hot due
both to the summer heat and the number of computers that are constantly
running in the room. She would like the Council to approach the Parks board
to determine the possibility of installing the air conditioner that the City has
budgeted.
Last month, library policy changes were presented to the Council for
review. Mrs. Good asked the Council for comments regarding these policy
changes. After a brief discussion Councilor McMullen moved to approve the
policy changes as presented, with Councilor Braughton as second. The vote
was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Fire- Chief McDonald; absent, no report.
Ambulance- Carla Hubbard; absent, no report.
Municipal Court-
Ralph Howell reported that Court has resumed in July with the return to
work of the Court Clerk, Vicki Weaver.
Recorder/Administrator-
Joe Garlitz reported on the progress of equipment purchases for Hunaha
Park. He also requested the Councilþs permission to be absent at the August
meeting, since he has scheduled his vacation in Turkey for the 2nd and 3rd
weeks in August.
Citizens to Speak
Mary Wise was present to request information on knapweed control. She
has sprayed the weeds several time with the herbicide provided by the
County but the weeds do not appear to be affected. Similar comments have
been made by others. It seems that some have had good success in killing
the weed while others have had little or no success.
Committee Reports
The Mayor then called for the committee reports.
Administration: Councilors McMullen and Estes reported that they had reviewed
the bills.
Public Works: Councilor Braughton noted that the County road crew had
patched the potholes in the streets.
Public Safety: Councilor Clark reported that the new police reserves were
continuing their training and that Officer Perry was citing litter and animal
ordinance violations.
Old Business
Railroad crossing repairs; INPRR proposal, ODOT compliance order.
Idaho Northern RR has proposed to the Mayor that the City public
works department remove the Baltimore crossing planks and open the
approaches. The INRR would then repair the rail ties and the City could then
reconstruct the crossing with asphalt or concrete.
It was noted that ODOT has presented INRR with a compliance order to
repair all the crossings within 30 days. It was further noted that the
railroad has an obligation to maintain and repair the crossings across the rail-
bed and two feet beyond either side of rails.
After a discussion concerning liability and responsibility, Councilor
Stover moved to deny the Railroadþs proposal and insist that they proceed as
ordered to repair the crossings at their expense without the assistance of the
Cityþs equipment or personnel, with Councilor Estes as second. The vote was
unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Bid to patch Opera House stairway
Gary Anderson has submitted a bid to patch-repair the Opera House
steps for $3,197.50. After consideration of the amount budgeted for repairs
and the cost of replacing the steps, Councilor Braughton moved to accept the
Anderson bid as presented, with Councilor Clark as second. The vote was
unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Ordinance 132, vacation of alley in block 22 between 14th&15th (Maria
Dalton);1st reading
Ordinance 132 vacating the alley in block 22 of the North Elgin
Subdivision was presented and read for the first reading. The ordinance was
scheduled for the second reading at the August meeting.
Review comments from ODOT re. Transportation Plan (TSP)
Hanley Jenkins and Dara Decker were present to review comments from
ODOT regarding the Elgin TSP. Mr. Jenkins identified the changes made to
conform to the ODOT comments. He noted that Ms. Decker, Mr. Garlitz and
he had reviewed the comments with Mike Buchanan of ODOT. They have
agreed to the changes proposed.
After a discussion of the plan, Ordinance 131 amending the land use
plan, zoning and subdivision ordinances, and adopting the Transportation
System Plan was presented for the first reading. The ordinance was then
scheduled for the second reading at the August meeting
New Business
UCEDC membership dues
UCEDC is soliciting voluntary contributions for its current year
operations. They have recently hired Karen Owen as administrative director.
They are expanding their development program to be County wide. It was
noted that the City had contributed $250 last year. After discussion noting
that UCEDC could be a valuable tool for the Elgin areaþs economic
development, Councilor Clark moved to approve $250 for UCEDC, with Councilor
Estes as second. The vote was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
OLCC permit application, Byrnes Chevron
Sam Byrnes owner of the Elgin Chevron is making an OLCC application
for a package store licence. After discussion, Councilor Stover moved to
recommend approval of the OLCC application, with Councilor Braughton as
second. The vote was five for approval, with Councilors McMullen and
McElravy voting in opposition, motion carried.
Resolution 1065, setting Sewer Rates
Resolution 1065 setting sewer rates for 1999/2000, with an increase of
$1.50 per month was presented for approval, noting that the approved budget
requires a rate increase to meet the anticipated expenditures. Councilor
Stover moved to approve Resolution 1065 as presented, with Councilor Clark as
second. The vote was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Resolution 1066,setting wages for City employees
Resolution 1066 providing the wage rates for the City employees for
1999/2000 fiscal year was presented for approval. Councilor Braughton moved
to approve resolution 1066 setting the employee wages to the 1999/2000
budgeted amounts, with Councilor McMullen as second. The vote was
unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Correspondence
ODOT has submitted a grant application for the small cities street
improvement grant. After discussion Councilor Stover moved to submit a
grant to repair the east end of Baltimore, with Councilor Clark as second.
The vote was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Good of the Order
Councilor Estes moved to approve the bills as presented, with Councilor
McMullen as second. The vote was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
After discussion of the need to designate school zones, Councilor Stover
moved to authorize Chief Sibley to define school zones for the highschool and
locate the appropriate signs, with Councilor McMullen as second. The vote was
unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Councilor Stover moved to adjourn, with Councilor Braughton as second.
The vote was unanimous for approval, motion carried.
Minutes respectfully submitted;
Joe Garlitz,
Recorder/Administrator