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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-24-2020 Council Minutes CITY OF FAIRFAX SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 24, 2020 A special meeting of the Fairfax City Council was held March 24, 2020. In order to help stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus, this special meeting of the Fairfax City Council was held electronically. Chapter 21.8 of the Iowa Code does permit an electronic meeting where all members participate remotely when an in-person meeting is impossible or impractical, which is certainly true during this crisis. On March 19, 2020, Governor Reynolds issued a Proclamation of Disaster Emergency which included a suspension of Iowa laws that would prevent the use of electronic meetings or the limitation on the number of people present at an in-person meeting site. Therefore, only Mayor Frieden and City Clerk/Treasurer Cynthia Stimson were present at Fairfax city hall at 300 80th Street Court. The agenda and the City's social media had this message posted more than 24 hours in advance to give instructions on how others could participate in the meeting: Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the City of Fairfax will be holding this special city council meeting electronically via a conference call_ If you would like to participate, just before the meeting start time, you must call 425-436-6370 and enter this access code: 759797. Only staff are allowed in city hall. Mayor Frieden called the meeting to order at 6:00 PM. Council members present electronically: Travis Otto, Mike Daly, Kate Pacha, Nick Volk, and Marianne Wainwright. Other city staff present: Cynthia Stimson. Motioned by Otto, seconded by Pacha to approve the agenda. Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. Mayor Frieden opened the public hearing at 6:02 PM. No oral or written input was received at city hall. Cindy Anderson asked questions about the time frame, look of the tank, and other additional costs. The project should begin in about a month, the look of the tank is in the POI, and all projects have change orders, so there may be some costs adjustments, but nothing out of the ordinary is anticipated. JoAnn Beer asked that the project be postponed until a study can be done regarding the financial impact of the COVID-19 crisis and the anticipated increase in the water fees to pay for this project. Mayor Frieden closed the public hearing at 6:06 PM. The bids were reviewed. Kleiman Construction, Inc, was the lowest at$2,278.183.54. Motioned by Daly, seconded by Volk to approve RESOLUTION NO. 2020-30,A RESOLUTION FOR THE AWARD OF THE 2020 PUMP HOUSE & SITE IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT. Roll call vote: Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. Mayor Frieden declared RESOLUTION 2020-30 duly adopted. Mayor Frieden discussed the plan to possibly add more stop signs to try to slow down the traffic cutting through Fairfax due to the IDOT's road projects. He also mentioned that the City plans to place some speed tables, which we received free from the City of Cedar Rapids. Motioned by Wainwright, seconded by Pacha to introduce and approve the first reading of ORDINANCE NO. 41, AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE FAIRFAX CODE OF ORDINANCES OF 2017, OF THE CITY OF FAIRFAX, IOWA, BY AMENDING CHAPTER 65 STOP OR YIELD REQUIRED REGULATIONS. Roll call vote: Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. Motioned by Daly, seconded by Pacha to suspend the rules requiring an ordinance be voted on for passage at two council meetings prior to this meeting with respect to ORDINANCE 41. Roll call vote: Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. Motioned by Daly, seconded by Pacha for final approval and adopting ORDINANCE NO. 41, AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE FAIRFAX CODE OF ORDINANCES OF 2017, OF THE CITY OF FAIRFAX, IOWA, BY AMENDING CHAPTER 65 STOP OR YIELD REQUIRED REGULATIONS. Roll call vote: Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. Extensive discussion was held regarding controlling the large truck traffic that is still cutting through Fairfax during the IDOT project. Mayor Frieden stated he contacted the Linn County Sheriff's Department and found out IDOT Enforcement is required to issue a ticket because scales are required and that some of the streets are designated as Farm to Market. This will make issuing tickets more difficult. Businesses should be informing their delivery trucks to use different routes to avoid the road project. The City will place more embargo signs. Three quotes for a compactor roller for the skid loader were reviewed. Brian has arranged that this can be delivered as soon as possible and they will wait for payment until after the new fiscal year. Motioned by Volk, seconded by Wainwright to accept the quote of$11,990 from Altorfer Caterpillar, with the stipulation the City will make this payment in July of 2020. Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. The recommendation of the hiring committee for the office assistant position was reviewed. Motioned by Otto, seconded by Pacha to hire Tina Rosekrans as the new full-time office assistant for $15.00 an hour. Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. Motioned by Daly, seconded by Volk to approve RESOLUTION NO. 2020-31,A RESOLUTION APPROVING WAGES FOR CITY EMPLOYEES. Roll call vote: Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. Mayor Frieden declared RESOLUTION 2020-31 duly adopted. Mayor Frieden informed the City Council that he and the city clerk are keeping informed by participating in a daily meeting with Linn County EMA, the hospitals, schools, municipalities, United Way, and others. He stated the City's essential staff are the maintenance staff and city clerk. Discussion was held regarding the City's action concerning COVID-19. Steps have been taken and plans are in place to help protect the public and staff. The City will follow federal requirements for required leave. Discussion was held regarding utility shut offs. Due to the possible financial burden from COVID-19, the City will suspend late fees and shut offs for March. Customers not shut off must set up a payment plan. This situation will be reviewed each month the crisis continues. Mayor Frieden asked if the City Council members wanted to discuss the email received. Marianne Wainwright said no since it is full of innuendo and items she would take issue with. No one else wanted to discuss the email. The clerk informed the City Council the she received a call from Republic Services this morning. They are having to take the following actions due to COVID-19: 1. They will not be starting yard waste collections until further notice. 2. They are suspending bulky item, appliance, and e-waste collections until further notice. 3. They will only be collecting items in their carts. No items beside the carts will be collected. 4. If they are forced to shut down their recycling center, items will be taken to the landfill. This information will be in the next FACTS. Information will be sent to future room renters about the possibility of having to cancel their rental. A statement will be added to the city-wide garage sale day and clean-up day flyers about the possibility of having to cancel the event. Nick Volk asked about burning yard waste. Motioned by Pacha, seconded by Daly to adjourn the meeting. Ayes: Otto, Daly, Pacha, Volk, and Wainwright. Nays: None. Motion carried. Mayor Frieden adjourned the meeting at 6:59 PM. Mayor Burnell G. Frieden City Clerk/Treasurer Cynthia Stimson Disclaimer: The foregoing minutes are not official until approved by the City Council.