Cambridge City Council approves putting $75,000 towards purchasing a new fire truck

The Cambridge City Council met in regular session on Monday, January 18, 2021. Council member Tony Groshong was not present for the meeting. Guests at the meeting included Jay Sayer, Blake Soucie, Maria Downer, Jessica Fisher and Morgan Farquhar.

After approving the consent agenda items, the Council appointed Colleen Vandegrift to the Cambridge Housing Authority. Other members include: Holly Mollhoff, Keith Klocke, Ken Dutt, and Carol Voss. A resident representative seat remains open.

Jay Sayer was present to give a report on the Fire Department’s report on finding a new rescue truck. Sayer said a group of two or three Fire Department members as well as a representative from the company out of Kearney will be flying to Alabama to look at possible trucks. The company the Department is working with will cover the cost of the tickets and cost to deliver the truck if the department purchases a truck through them. The plan is to look at 5 possible options and bring those back to the entire department and have the entire department decide which truck will fit their needs. Sayer wanted to confirm that the City Council budgeted $75,000 toward the purchase of the truck, and Kandra Kinne, City Clerk/ Treasurer said they had. The other $75,000 is planning to come from the Rural Fire Board, but needed approval. A motion was made and approved for the Volunteer Fire Department to use $75,000 toward the purchase of a new rescue truck.

Maria Downer was also present to update the Council about the changes happening at the library. Currently, the library has the Makerspace Studio in a room where one of the walls only reaches 3/4 of the way to the ceiling. In the proposal, they will finish the wall to the ceiling, and move a vent to the north wall of the space. The update would also provide new tables and chairs, a Glowforge Pro Laser Printer, CorelDraw graphic design software, a laptop computer and desktop computer as well as adding a 3Doodler Create + 12-Penn kit. Downer also plans to replace the lights to make the LED throughout the whole library. The total Makerspace Studio Room update would cost $23,696.96 and the library has received an anonymous $24,000.00 donation to cover the cost. A motion was made and passed to approve the updates to the Makerspace area in the library.

The Park Board also met and shared their notes as only two members were present for the meeting. The Board was updated on the Disc Golf progress and Virginia Roberts advised that Georgia Dutt had completed the annual Tree City report. Members also discussed finalizing the Pickle Ball project.

The Council then discussed the Planning Commission report. Discussion was held on rezoning. A motion was made and approved to approve the Planning Commission report as submitted.

City Utility Supervisor Dave Houghtelling reported they had been working on the backhoe. He also reported the city crew had put up American Flags along main street in honor of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. Flags were not placed along the highway because of the high winds.

City Clerk/Treasurer Kandra Kinne reported Gworks have completed an update on the Summit Software to add a layer of identification to access the software. This will protect sensitive information within the software. Kinne also invited Council members to register for the League of Nebraska Municipalities Midwinter conference. Kinne also brought up Municipal Code that Electricians are required to be licensed through the city, and the city does not require other trades to be licensed. The city does not enforce the licensing and fees. After discussion, the council agreed to have City Attorney Lisa Shifflet look into what other municipalities do.

City Attorney Lisa Shifflet informed the Council that she sent Mr. & Mrs. Sherwood a letter giving them until January 29, 2021 to fill in the basement left when they moved the house. Shifflet also informed the Council that Terry Waite an attorney out of North Platte will be handling the appeal of the Conditional use permit at Harvest Meadows. Notice of appeal will be discussed at the next meeting when Mr. Waite will be able to discuss the case with the Council.

The City Employee handbook changes suggested at the previous meeting have been sent to be revised, but the new copy was not available for this meeting.

Council also discussed the proposed contract with Twin Valley’s Public Power District. Mayor David Gunderson said he is trying to set up a meeting with Dave Houghtelling and Dave Custer from TVPPD. The disconnect policy discussed at the last meeting was not available for the meeting.

Council approved Public Records Request Resolution 2021-01-01. This resolution outlines operating procedures and fees for accessing approved open public records in the possession of the City.

In new business, the EMT roster, provided by John Knutnink was approved by Council. Members included Kristian Banzhaf, Chris Boley, Verena Farr, Cyndi Groshong, Judy Hayes, Mike Hotchkiss, Lucille Knutnink, John Knutnink, Larry Maatsch, Jeff Ommert, Nick Vargas, and Megan Vargas.

Council also discussed summer positions. Kinne will continue to advertise for additional employees to mow and someone to take the recreational director position. Council approved Ron Schelling as Park Maintenance, Lyle Calvert as Cemetery Maintenance, and Sara Calvert as Swimming Pool Manager. Sara Calvert will recommend the lifeguards to be hired at the next meeting. Wages will also be certified at the next meeting.

Discussion was also held on how to advertise for the upcoming vacancy on the city crew. Mayor Gunderson said he would look into having job descriptions created for employees so they could run the appropriate advertisements.

In Citizen’s Comments, Morgan Farquhar shared his frustration with Al Koerperich’s building being started. Farquhar stated the building being put up does not match what was submitted to the Planning Commission, that the building is a pole building rather than a steel building that was submitted to the Planning Commission. He said he and others in the neighborhood are tired of the miscommunication, misinformation, and rumors.

Jessica Fisher, Tri-Valley Health System CEO, informed Council that construction will be taking place on the front soffit outside the hospital. Foam insulation will be added and the foam must be kept above a certain temperature to cure. To do this, the hospital needed more power to run the heaters necessary. Fisher also informed the Council about Covid Vaccina-tions. She mentioned that often times Tri-Valley doesn’t have time to put information into the paper, so she suggested people watch the Tri-Valley FaceBook page, the Tri-Valley website as well as the televisions in Cambridge and in Arapahoe for the most up-to-date information. She also suggested anyone who qualifies for receiving the vaccine to sign up through the Health Department link and select the appropriate tier they belong to.

Fisher also stated they have rented another apartment at the Plaza, and that Tri-Valley expects to have their freezer here sometime this week so they can take either vaccine as they become available.

A motion was made and passed to adjourn the meeting at 7:3opm. The next regular City Council meeting will be Monday, February 1, 2021 at 6:3o pm. There will be a BIC meeting Monday, February 8, 2021 at Indianola at 6:3o pm and The Planning Commission will meet on Wednesday, February 10, 2021 at 5:00 pm.