CITY COUNCIL MINUTES DECEMBER, 2021

Date Posted: 01/12/2022

CITY OF GASSVILLE, ARKANSAS
MINUTES FOR THE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING
DECEMBER 21, 2021

A regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Gassville, Arkansas was held on Tuesday, December 21, 2021, at the Gassville Community Center following a budget meeting that convened at 5:00 PM. Mayor Braim led those in attendance in saying the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag and he offered a word of prayer. The meeting was then called to order at 6:00 PM by Mayor Jeff Braim, Presiding Officer.

Upon the calling of the roll, those in attendance were Council Member Ernest Adkins, Council Member Tim McFarland, Council Member Anita Seaman, Council Member Naomi Lassen, Council Member Kenneth Smith, Mayor Jeff Braim, and Recorder-Treasurer Jeff Lewis. Council Member Ralph Bird was absent. Department Heads in attendance were Police Chief Tim Mayfield, Fire Chief Michael Glotzl, and Water and Street Superintendent Michael Dewey.

The minutes from the November 16, 2021 regular meeting had been provided to each Council Member. Council Member Adkins moved to approve the minutes as presented. This motion was seconded by Council Member Seaman. There were no additions or corrections asked for, whereupon the Mayor called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the motion was declared to be passed.

The financial report for the month of November, 2021 was presented to the City Council. Council Member Lassen moved to approve the financial report as presented. This motion was seconded by Council Member McFarland. Mayor Braim called for comments or corrections, then for a vote to approve the report. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the motion was declared to be passed.

Police Chief Mayfield gave the police department report for the month of November, 2021. It was accepted into the record without objection.

Fire Chief Glotzl gave the fire department report for the month of November, 2021. It was accepted into the record without objection. The members of the fire department elected the following volunteers as officers for 2022:

Assistant Fire Chief - Garrett Tucker
Fire Captain - Andrew Jackson
Fire Captain - Patrick Campbell
Fire Lieutenant - Jonathan Roller
Secretary - Christy Baker

Chief Glotzl asked the City Council to vote to confirm the officers who were elected. Council Member McFarland moved to approve the officers as listed. This motion was seconded by Council Member Lassen. Upon the Mayor's calling for the vote, Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the motion was declared to be carried.

Mayor Braim gave the building inspection report for the period of November 18th through December 11th. It was accepted into the record without objection.

Council Member Lassen gave a brief report from the Gassville Planning and Zoning Commission. A copy of the minutes of its last meeting are attached hereto.

Council Member Seaman stated that the Cotter-Gassville Joint Sewer Commission did not meet in December due to lack of an agenda.

Under unfinished business, the City Council took up approval of the 2020 Water and Wastewater Audit that had been prepared by Mr. Brian Haas, CPA, and which had been previously distributed to the City Council for its review. Council Member McFarland moved to approve the audit report as submitted to the City Council. The motion was seconded by Council Member Adkins. The Mayor called for discussion, then for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried.

The City Council next took up consideration of Proposed Ordinance 2021-04 on its second reading. The ordinance contained amended and additional language that the City Council agreed upon after the first reading last month. Council Member Adkins moved to place the proposed ordinance on its second reading by title only. The motion was seconded by Council Member Seaman. Mayor Braim called for discussion, then for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried. Thereupon, Recorder-Treasurer Lewis read aloud the title of the proposed ordinance entitled:

"ORDINANCE NUMBER 2021-04 TREE ORDINANCE".

The City Council then moved on to new business. The first order of new business was consideration of Proposed Ordinance 2021-05 that would modify the City Council ward boundaries. New ward boundaries became necessary as a result of the recently finalized 2020 census.

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Council Member Seaman moved to place the proposed ordinance on its first reading. The motion was seconded by Council Member Adkins. The Mayor called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried. Thereupon, Recorder-Treasurer read aloud the proposed ordinance in its entirety entitled:

"ORDINANCE NO. 2021-05. AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING NEW WARD BOUNDARIES WITHIN THE CITY OF GASSVILLE, ARKANSAS, DECLARING AN EMERGENCY TO EXIST AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES."

Council Member Lassen then moved to pass the proposed ordinance after this first reading. The motion was seconded by Council Member Seaman. The Mayor called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried. Mayor Braim then asked the City Council to consider suspending the rules and advancing the proposed ordinance to its second and third readings because of the need to get the new ward boundary information to the County Clerk for election purposes.

Council Member Adkins then moved to suspend the rules and place the proposed ordinance on its second reading by title only. This motion was seconded by Counciil Member McFarland. Mayor Braim called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried. Recorder-Treasurer Lewis then read aloud the title of the proposed ordinance. Council Member Adkins then moved to pass the proposed ordinance after this second reading. The motion was seconded by Council Member Lassen. The Mayor called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried.

Council Member Seaman then moved to further suspend the rules and place the proposed ordinance on its third and final reading by title only. This motion was seconded by Council Member McFarland. The Mayor called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried. Recorder-Treasurer Lewis then read aloud the title of the proposed ordinance.

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Council Member Adkins then moved to adopt the proposed ordinance in its entirety, together with the emergency clause contained therein. This motion was seconded by Council Member Seaman. Mayor Braim called for discussion, then for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays. Mayor Braim declared the motion carried and Ordinance No. 2021-05 to be passed and adopted, including the emergency clause.

Following the passage of this ordinance, the City Council next took up consideration of Proposed Ordinance 2021-06 pertaining to the employee wage scale. Superintendent Dewey asked that this proposal be amended to include language modifying the authorized number of certificate pay adjustments for city employees and the manner in which they can be given or awarded. This modification to the language was made before the proposed ordinance was placed on the first reading.

Council Member McFarland moved to place the proposed ordinance on its first reading. The motion was seconded by Council Member Smith. The Mayor called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried. Thereupon, Recorder-Treasurer Lewis read aloud the proposed ordinance in its entirety entitled:

"ORDINANCE NO. 2121-06. AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 2014-02, ESTABLISHING THE MINIMUM SALARIES PER POSITION IN THE CITY OF GASSVILLE, ALLOWING FOR A SCALE FOR THE MAYOR TO HIRE WITHOUT COUNCIL APPROVAL, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES."

Council Member McFarland then moved to suspend the rules and place the proposed ordinance on its second reading by title only. The motion was seconded by Council Member Lassen. The Mayor called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the motion was declared to be carried. Thereupon, Recorder-Treasurer Lewis read aloud the title of the proposed ordinance.

Council Member Adkins then moved to further suspend the rules and place the proposed ordinance on its third and final reading by title only. This motion was seconded by Council Member Lassen. Mayor Braim called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion to be carried. Thereupon, Recorder-Treasurer Lewis read aloud the title of the proposed ordinance.

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Council Member Lassen then moved to pass and adopt the proposed ordinance as read. This motion was seconded by Council Member Seaman. Mayor Braim called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried and Ordinance No. 2021-06 to be adopted.

The next order of business was consideration of a CPA firm to perform a single federal compliance audit for the City of Gassville. Mayor Braim stated he had been in contact with several CPA firms regarding this matter. He recommended that the City Council authorize him to enter into an agreement with BKD CPA firm out of Rogers, Arkansas for the purpose of conducting said audit. That firm estimated the cost of the audit to be between $10,000 to $15,000, depending on the condition of city records. The Mayor indicated that $2,500 from AEDC funds can be put toward the cost of the audit, while $3,000 from ARPA funds, possibly more, can be put toward the audit costs. Council Member Lassen moved to authorize the Mayor to enter into an engagement agreement with BKD CPA firm for the purpose of the single federal compliance audit. This motion was seconded by Council Member Adkins. The Mayor called for discussion, then for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried.

The matter of extending paid COVID leave for city employees was then discussed. The current resolution providing this extended paid leave expires on December 31, 2021. Proposed Resolution No. 2021-08 would extend paid COVID leave benefits for city employees through May 31, 2022. Council Member Adkins moved to have the proposed resolution read. This motion was seconded by Council Member Seaman. Mayor Braim called for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried. Thereupon, Recorder-Treasurer Lewis read aloud the proposed resolution entitled:

"RESOLUTION 2021-08. A RESOLUTION PROVIDING RELIEF FOR CITY EMPLOYEES FOR COVID RELATED PANDEMIC ISSUES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES."

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Council Member Adkins suggested extending the additional paid leave through December 31, 2022. Council Member Smith stated he preferred reviewing the matter every six months to see if it is still needed. After further discussion, Mayor Braim asked the City Council to vote on approving the resolution as it was read. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted to adopt the resolution. There were no nays. The Mayor declared the motion passed and Resolution 2021-08 to be adopted.

The matter of adopting an operating budget for calendar year 2022 was then brought up for consideration. Several budget meetings had been held, and a final budget proposal was up for consideration. This budget included an appropriation for a new part time firefighter position, with wages and fringe benefits included for that position. The issue of a part time firefighter position had been supported by some members and opposed by others. Council Member Smith moved to approve the 2022 budget with the part time firefighter position included. The motion was then seconded by Council Member Seaman. Council Member Smith then indicated he wished to withdraw his motion, as he had thought the proposal was for adopting a budget without a new part time firefighter position. The motion was declared to be withdrawn. Council Member Adkins then moved to approve and adopt the 2022 budget with the part time firefighter position included. The motion was seconded by Council Member Seaman. The Mayor called for discussion, then for the vote. Council Members Adkins, Seaman, and Lassen voted for the motion. Council Members McFarland and Smith voted against the motion. The motion was declared to have failed, and thus the budget was not approved. Mayor Braim stated the matter would be on the agenda for the January, 2022 meeting, when it is hoped that all six members of the City Council will be present to decide the question.

The date of the next meeting was then discussed. Mayor Braim stated he would be out of town on the regular meeting date, and he asked the City Council if it would consider moving the date of the January meeting to either January 11th or January 25th. By consensus, the City Council agreed to meet on Tuesday, January 11th at 6:00 PM.

Mayor Braim then asked for a motion to move from regular session into executive session for the purpose of discussing a promotion. Council Member Seaman moved to go into executive session for that purpose. The motion was seconded by Council Member McFarland, with all members voting in favor. Executive session then began at 7:02 PM. The City Council then returned to regular session at 7:11 PM, after which Council Member Seaman moved to promote city employee Donald Marler to the position of Building Inspector, with the compensation as set for the position in the 2022 budget.

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The motion was seconded by Council Member Smith. Mayor Braim called for discussion, then for the vote. Council Members Adkins, McFarland, Seaman, Lassen, and Smith voted for the motion. There were no nays, and the Mayor declared the motion carried.

Prior to adjournment, Mayor Braim updated the City Council on various matters, to-wit:

1. Gassville has been awarded a Recreation Trails Grant in the amount of $50,000 for Lancaster Park from the state highway commission.

2. The old pavilion at the city park has now been torn down and mostly removed. The contractor for the replacement pavilion has advised that the "royal blue" color for the roof is no longer available. Council Members decided on "hunter green" instead for the roof color.

3. The Arkansas Division of Legislative Audit has still not given final approval to Gassville's most recent audit for 2019 and 2020.

4. The City Hall will be closed for Christmas on December 23rd and December 24th and will be closed on December 31st for New Years.

There being no further business to come before the City Council, the meeting then adjourned at 7:17 PM upon motion of Council Member Seaman, seconded by Council Member Lassen, with all members voting in favor.

Submitted by: /s/ Jeffrey Lewis
Recorder-Treasurer

Approved by: /s/ Jeff Braim
Mayor

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