June 11, 2024 Meeting Minutes
- alyssaknepple5
- Jun 11, 2024
- 6 min read
SOUTH WHITLEY TOWN COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AGENDA
TOWN HALL BOARD ROOM
118 E FRONT ST
SOUTH WHITLEY, IN 46787
JUNE 11, 2024
6:30 PM
CALL TO ORDER: Meeting was called to order by Council President Randy Cokl at 6:30 pm. Members present are as follows: Council President Randy Cokl, Vice President Brock Waterson, Councilman Trey Weber, Town Marshal Mikel Vandevender, Utility Supervisor Kent Slater, Town Attorney Greg Hockemeyer, and Clerk-Treasurer Alyssa Knepple.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
ADJUSTMENTS
KATHY JOHNSON | $ 272.54 | Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the adjustment in the amount of $272.54. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0. |
CHRISTINA WATSON | $ 109.70 | Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the adjustment in the amount of $109.70. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0. |
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH | $ 205.69 | Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the adjustment in the amount of $205.69. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0. |
NEW BUSINESS
SAM POLITANO: Sam Politano’s father was present to speak on behalf of himself, Domenic Politano, and his son. They have recently purchased the house and property on 204 S Main St. They have been remodeling and through that process had to dig up the sewer line to replace it. The line went through the sidewalk, which was already uprooted and unlevel due to surrounding tree roots. Domenic has been a contractor for over 40 years and is wondering if he can be added to the list of approved contractors for the 50/50 sidewalk program. The Politano’s are wanting to do their own concrete work and then apply for the 50/50 sidewalk grant. Mr. Politano stated he has called the other approved contractors and one of them hasn’t returned their calls for a quote. Councilman Waterson said he knows the family and they do really good remodeling and construction work so he made a motion to accept Quality Carpentry as an approved contractor for the 50/50 sidewalk program. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
OLD BUSINESS
HAGEN PARK LIMB PILE: Councilman Waterson discussed the usability of the chipper stored out by the water tower. Kent stated it hasn’t run for a couple years, but they can try to get it running or use it to trade in for a new one. The council is in discussions on how to move forward with limb pick-up for residents and how to handle the current limb pile at Hagen Park. Chipping is the best option, so Kent is going to work on getting the chipper up and running.
DOWNTOWN LIGHTING: The light poles have all been delivered and are currently being wired. They should be ready for instillation within the next three weeks.
PUBLIC INPUT
THOMPSON’S: The Thompson’s live at 503 S Line St. There is a rotting tree on the side of their property that is going to fall very soon. They stated the tree sways in the wind during storms and a limb has already fallen that caused damage to one of their vehicles. The Thompson’s supplied pictures of the tree to the council. The council discussed how to handle the tree when there is an ordinance stating that the tree would be the responsibility of the homeowner, but however, because of the severity of the rot and safety issues, the council will be looking into tree services that can provide quotes. Kent said he has a tree service coming to trim around secondary electrical lines. He will have them look into the safety concerns of the tree and what it would cost to take it down.
DEPARTMENT HEADS:
PARK BOARD – DAVE WARNER: Not present
WASTE WATER/UTILITIES SUPERVISOR – KENT SLATER:
· June 17 - Hydrocorp will begin installing new remote reading water meters. Residents who need to allow access to their home for the instillation will receive a letter and make an appointment to get it installed.
· B & D’s Tree service has been hired to trim around secondary power lines. This will cost the town $4500.
· The Wastewater plant has been having issues with one of the pumps and needs to be replaced. The maintenance isn’t an issue, but the second pump will be out for a while, making the other pump work twice as hard. Kent is requesting the approval from the Council to purchase a backup pump for these types of situations. Then he can just switch them out to allow for maintenance. Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the purchase of a wastewater pump at the cost of $23,125. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
· Water Operator Position Candidate: Kent is recommending Diana Welsh for the water operator position. The council has met with the candidate and Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the hiring of Diana Welsh for the water operator position. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
TOWN MARSHAL – MIKEL VANDEVENDER:
· Whitko School Corporation would like to purchase and cover all costs of a K-9 for the SRO. The town would only need to add the K-9 to their insurance policy. Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the addition of the K-9 to the insurance policy not exceeding $350. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
TOWN ATTORNEY – GREGG HOCKEMEYER:
· Greg has finished and sent out the response letter to IDEM regarding the Hagan Park limb pile and burning of limbs.
· He is also seeking a motion for the council to accept the settlement for Officer Schimmel, contingent on all other party’s approval of the settlement. He would also like to appoint Councilman Randy Cokl to have authorization to sign settlement document on behalf of the Town. Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the settlement agreement contingent on all other party’s approval and authorizing Councilman Cokl to have signing authority of the settlement document on behalf of the Town. Councilman Weber seconded the motion. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
CLERK-TREASURER – ALYSSA KNEPPLE:
· There will be a text sent out to residents giving them the link to sign up and pay their utility bill online. The response from residents has been very positive and many have also signed up for paperless billing.
· The Clerk will be attending ILMCT conference during the next meeting on June 25th. Deputy Clerk Jenna Reiff will be attending in the Clerks’ place. Jenna is also aware of her required attendance to the meeting.
APPROVALS:
APPROVAL FOR MAY 14TH REGULAR MEETING MINUTES: Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the regular meeting minutes for May 14th, 2024. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
APPROVAL FOR EXECUTIVE SESSION MINUTES: Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept all executive session minutes from 2023 and to current date in 2024. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
APPROVAL FOR FEBURARY 2024 BANK RECONCILIATIONS: Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept the February 2024 bank reconciliations. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
APPROVAL FOR APV’s TOTALING $ 370,188.35: Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept APV’s totaling $370,188.35. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
APPROVAL FOR PAYROLL WEEK ENDING MAY 20, 2024, TOTALING $10,454.08: Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept payroll for the week ending May 20. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
APPROVAL FOR PAYROLL WEEK ENDING MAY 27, 2024, TOTALING $10,853.78: Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept payroll for the week ending May 27. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
APPROVAL FOR PAYROLL WEEK ENDING JUNE 3, 2024, TOTALING $ 10,515.64: Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept payroll for the week ending June 3. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
APRROVAL FOR PAYROLL WEEK ENDING JUNE 10, 2024, TOTALING $ 10,597.30: Councilman Waterson made a motion to accept payroll for the week ending June 10. Councilman Weber seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
ADJOURN at: Meeting was adjourned at 7:04 pm by Council President Randy Cokl.
· Meeting was reconvened at 7:04 pm because of Town Trustee Jim Yeager wanting to discuss the fire department conducting a feasibility survey to help decide if the Cleveland Township Fire Department will participate in a fire territory with surrounding townships. Trustee Yeager would like to share the cost of the survey with the Town, which would not exceed $9,000. Councilman Weber made a motion to allow the Town to pay half of the cost of the survey with the cost not exceeding $9,000. Councilman Waterson seconded. Motion passed with a vote of 3-0.
· Meeting was adjourned for the second time at 7:17 pm by Council President Randy Cokl.
APPROVALS:
ATTEST: