White, South Dakota

The regular meeting of the White City Council was called to order on Monday, November 7^th, 2016 in the McKnight Community Center at 7:00pm by Mayor Terry Wright. Roll Call was taken: present –Chris Wilts, Wayne Kelm, Martha Brandt and Deborah Hopfinger.

Finance Officer, Melanie Haber, asked to add an item under Finance Office Update for Holiday Events. With that addition added to the agenda, motion was made by Kelm, seconded by Hopfinger to approve the agenda; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.

Julie Westberg was present and asked to fill a vacant spot on the City Council for Ward 3. She was advised that the spot was hers until May 1, 2017. At that time, she would need to get a petition filled out and signed by members of the community to approve her current term on the council. If at that time, she runs uncontested, the spot will become hers permanently. Motion was made by Hopfinger, seconded by Wilts to approve adding Westberg to the Council effective immediately; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.

Westberg proceeded to read the official oath of office for the City of White.

The meeting minutes were read from the October 3^rd regular meeting and the October 25^th special meeting. Motion was made by Wilts, seconded by Kelm to approve the minutes as read; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.

The following bills were presented for approval:

Wilts asked about Servall’s charges and why they are not picking up the mop heads. It was decided that the mop heads the hall currently has are not Servall’s and we don’t get charged for them. Haber was asked to contact Servall to ask if they would have mop heads for purchase and what the cost would be. Motion was made by Hopfinger, seconded by Kelm to approve payment of all bills; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.

At 7:05pm, the Council welcomed Todd Westberg who had submitted a variance request regarding his property at 104 North Wilson Ave in White. There is an existing storage shed that is sitting 4.5 feet over his property line into the City easement for alley access. He asked that the Council approve his request to leave the shed in its current location as it has been there over 15 years. The bank is requiring a variance for the home to be refinanced. Motion was made by Wilts, seconded by Hopfinger to approve the variance; roll call vote taken as follows: Hopfinger – Yes; Kelm – Yes; Wilts – Yes; Brandt – Yes; Westberg -Abstain; with a vote of 4-1, motion was carried.

The Council then welcomed representatives with the Brookings Area Singles Club regarding renewing their 2017 contract for renting the McKnight Hall all year. The contract allows the club to rent the hall on the 3^rd Saturday of each month except for the 4^th Saturday in July for a rate of $1,800 per year. Motion was made by Hopfinger, seconded by Kelm to approve the contract; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried. Contract was signed and rent was paid by the club.

The 2017 Liquor Licenses were reviewed for the following organizations: White Community Club, Lefty’s Sports Pub & Six Mile Creek Golf Course. Westberg asked about the process of issuing a new license to The Centre if the restaurant wants one. Haber and Wright explained that the City does have 1 extra license to be given, so the owner would need to apply for the license and the City would need to approve at that time. Motion was made by Kelm, seconded by Wilts to approve all 3 license applications; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.

The White Care Center/The Centre was discussed. Randy Hanson, Investment Group manager, e-mailed the City asking for another extension on the closing date of the purchase agreement to November 30, 2017. Haber advised that she spoke with city attorney, Jesse Ronning, who stated that the City should consider adding a clause into the agreement asking for the Investment Group to start paying for utility and maintenance cost. The Council agreed that if the contract is not signed by the November 30^th deadline, that a clause will be entered where the group will be responsible for maintenance costs effective January 1^st. Motion was made by Wilts, seconded by Brandt to accept the Nov 30^th deadline; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.

The Council proceeded to discuss improvements to the McKnight Hall. Hopfinger is still working on getting bids for construction work needed. It was suggested that Hopfinger contact the contractors again. The installation of the new door on the east side of the building was discussed. The door was ordered with a 6-7-week arrival timeframe. The City will need to find someone to install the door once it arrives.  Wilts also asked about the light on the west side of the building near the kitchen entrance. She will contact Amp Electric again to get this done.

The Council proceeded to discuss updates to the Policies and Procedures Handbook.

A public hearing for Ordinance 141 regarding Parking Tickets was read with the changes made at the October meeting inserted.  Motion was made by Hopfinger, seconded by Kelm to approve of the reading as is; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.

The Council entered into Executive Session at 7:52pm for discussion of 2017 wages. Council exited the session at 8:27pm. The following changes will be made to the 2017-1 Resolution for 2017 wages:

• Daniel DeYoung will receive a 3% raise totaling $39,312.87 annual salary
• Melanie Haber will receive a 3% raise totaling $15.45 per hour
• All McKnight Community Center/Park/Athletic Complex Cleaning employees will receive $15.00 per hour
• All Summer Mowing employees will receive $13.00 per hour
• Mayor will receive $125 per meeting and $50 per special meeting
• Councilpersons will receive $90 per meeting and $50 per special meeting
• Other Summer and Part-Time employees will receive $13.00 per hour

                Dan DeYoung, City Maintenance Superintendent, stated that all buildings are winterized. He will continue to work on trimming trees until the snow flies. Westberg asked about maintenance on the softball field. In the past she has gotten black dirk from Dan to fill in the ruts out in the outfield caused by the football teams equipment use during the season. This year she contacted the football coach to ask about removing the equipment. Mayor Wright stated that the football team should not be using the main softball field for practice but are allowed to use the secondary field. The Deubrook School Board will be notified.

                Melanie Haber, Finance Officer, notified the Council that both her and Dan will be gone on November 25^th. She asked if the Council would like to ask Mary Raine to fill in or if the office should be closed. Raine will be contacted and if she can work, the office will be open. Haber also discussed the upcoming holiday events that she has been putting together. They include:

• November 17 – Legion Poultry Party
• December 2-11 – 2^nd Annual Festival of Trees
• December 3– Holiday Shopping Fair
• December 10 – Country Christmas Holiday Concert and Supper
• December 11 (tentatively) – Santa Movie Day & Sleigh Rides
• December 31 – WCC New Year’s Eve Party

                Upcoming Meetings/Dates/Agenda Items included:

• November 11, 2016 – Veterans Day – All offices closed
• November 24, 2016- Thanksgiving Day – All offices closed
• December 5, 2016 - Next Regular City Council meeting, McKnight Hall, 7pm

No Old Business was discussed.

Public comments – Wilts asked about where residents can take their leaves. Cooks Wastepaper will pick up bags on recycling days but they must be in the designated brown bags. Wilts also asked about getting a recycling bin for the hall. Haber will contact Cooks to see if they have something we could use. Wilts also stated that she has been asked why the taxes in White are higher than surrounding towns including Brookings. The city sales tax is only 2% and the property taxes are usually set by the county.

Correspondence – None.

Nuisances – An update on the nuisance letters that were sent out last month were discussed with most of them being taken care of. Wilts added a couple more to the list. She also asked about unlicensed campers. There was also a complaint about wood piles attracting mice. Westberg asked if the city had any jurisdiction on getting a hall key back from a community club member. It was decided not to get involved, but discussion did take place about getting a digital key pad on the doors instead of using the keys. The cost is only big factor in doing this.

                The delinquent utility bill statement was read and discussed. Motion was made by Wilts, seconded by Hopfinger to shut all services off if past due balance is not paid by 20^th of November; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.         

The Council was presented with the financial statements for the month. Motion was made by Hopfinger, seconded by Wilts to approve of the Financial Statements; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried.

With no further business to come before the Council, motion made by Hopfinger, seconded by Brandt to adjourn; roll call vote taken with all present voting aye; motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 9:30 pm.

Terry Wright, Mayor

Melanie Haber, Finance Officer