Finance Committee Requests for Funds Highlights Savanna City Council Meeting

By Michael Miller, For The Prairie Advocate

SAVANNA ­ A flurry of requests for funds for various city organizations took up the majority of the June 9, 2009 Savanna City Council meeting.

Members and city employees present at the meeting included Mayor Larry Stebbins, Councilmen/persons Jack Fosdick, Lois Hunsaker, Bill Grummitt, Gail Bowman, Rosalie Hansen, Merle Long and Bill Robinson, City Clerk Paul Hartman, Comptroller/Treasurer Cheryl Sipe, Police Chief Michael Moon, Fire Chief Shawn Picolotti, and Public Works Superintendent John Lindeman.

Leading off the meeting where committee reports, first of which was the Water/Sewer/Streets and Alleys report from Bill Robinson. He reported that during the meeting Superintendent Lindeman provided an overview of the five responses to the request for engineering services for a DCEO grant application to produce a Wastewater Facility Plan and a Capital Improvement Plan. Committee members were provided with a copy of the QBS (Quality Based Selection) Guide for qualifications based selection of architects and engineers. The committee is required to use this procedure for selecting an engineering firm to prepare the Facility Plan and Capital Improvement Plan. This item was tabled by Chairman Robinson and the committee was given time to review the materials for later action.

Lindeman revealed that the Savanna Park District had been contracted with the Carroll County Highway Department to seal coat Wayne King Drive and offered to seal coat Randolph Street between Main Street west to the railroad tracks, with the Savanna Park District accepting the costs. The committee elected to recommend to the general City Council to accept this offer, and to have Lindeman convey the Council's wishes to the Park Board.

The newly assembled Webpage Committee report was up next, with Mayor Stebbins reporting that the committee was be renamed the "Info Tech Committee". Stebbins also said that the city's website now has a working calendar of events and that the site's meter reader function is up and running. Various city department heads now have new email addresses which are available at the site, and accessing the old site will redirect you to the new one. Stebbins said that the cost of the ".gov" domain is $125.00 a year and that the software for the calendar program is easy and that the calendar was up to date for each department. Other new features of the site include the availability of committee minutes in .pdf format.

Fosdick reported for the finance committee that materials relating to the Webpage committee had been turned over to Sipe and that approval of payment to Triple R Technologies had been made. The finance committee report entailed a lengthy list of funding requests. Fosdick read a request for funds for the Administrative Department for a scanner, printer and two monitors, for a total of "up to" $700.00. Another request came from the Police Department for eight digital recorders for around $500 (at half the price budgeted for them) and for chairs for less than $1100.00, for a total of "up to" $1600.00. Next up was a request for an incubator for the Public Works Department for $2101.00 plus shipping. This item was not budgeted, so a "super majority" was needed for the purchase. The Fire Department needs a security box for the bay doors, the price of which was not to exceed $2400.00, and also a bench and tool chest, not to exceed $1600.00. The committee also requested ladder equipment and remote control for the Fire Department, the total price of which was not to exceed $13,000. Fosdick also announced that the committee would be seeking bids for a one ton truck with plow and spreader for the Public Works Department, and for a shed at the city garage.

All of these requests for funds were unanimously accepted by the Council.

Warrant #2, covering City bills for the month of May was approved unanimously as well, One addition was made to the total of the warrant; the addition of a payment to Palatine Oil for the amount of $5,099.43, making the grand total of the warrant $248,625.66.

Chief Moon then gave an update on the problem of graffiti defacing properties in Savanna. Moon said that he had spoken with local businesses that sell spray paint, including Dollar General (which already has a rule in effect denying the purchase of spray paint to those under 18 years of age), True Value, Pamida and NAPA. He said he might offer a weekend for the police to remove graffiti once, after which it would become the responsibility of the particular business to remove it. He said he noted that 18 businesses currently had graffiti, most of it over two years old.

Two ordinances were passed relating to graffiti, #1913 and #1914. #1914 stipulated that selling spray paint to individuals under the age of eighteen was illegal, that it is likewise illegal to deface public or private property through use of graffiti, and that the owners of buildings so defaced would have seven days to remove the graffiti, after which fines between $25.00 and $100.00 might be levied against them.

Chief Moon also gave an update on the issue of excessive speeding in certain areas of town. He said that on June 24th the State Police will deliver a speed sign which would be available to the City for a period of three weeks. He said that plan is to locate it for one week in Portland Avenue, one week on Bowen Street and one week in an as yet undecided upon area.

Moon also reported that due to a recent court ruling, train cars can now block the railroad crossings for as long as they want, except in cases of emergency. He said this ruling will no doubt affect affect the marina and grain trucks.

The meeting then went into executive session, dealing with the appointment, employment, discipline, compensation, performance or dismissal of specific employees and to review and approve closed session minutes.

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