PHILIPSBURG TOWN COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
August 16th, 2022
7:00 P.M. Philipsburg Town Hall
Council in Attendance: Mayor Daniel Reddish, Scott Lyons, John Laigaie, Gary Fujinami, Carl Sundstrom (video), and Jason White. Council absent: DuWayne Ulrich. Others in attendance: Town Clerk Reed Speegle, Grant Writer Maureen Connor , Larry Holmes, Pam Soares, and Gwyneth Hyndman (video).
Minutes of Prior Meetings
Councilman Lyons made the motion to approve the minutes from 8/2/22 with edits from Councilman Sundstrom, Councilman Fujinami seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
Bills Payable
Mayor Reddish discussed a previously outstanding invoice from Great West Engineering that he got clarification on. Councilman Fujinami made the motion to approve Great West invoice #26883, Councilman Laigaie seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
Councilman Lyons made the motion to approve the bills payable, Councilman Fujinami seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
Journal Vouchers
Councilman Lyons made the motion to approve the journal voucher, Councilman Fujinami seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
OLD BUSINESS
Sewer Lagoon Update
Mayor Reddish said he had signed the contract with Republic Services and that the sludge hauling was set to begin soon. Maureen Connor discussed a second round of testing on the sludge that Republic was satisfied with. Councilman Lyons talked of the possibility of desludging the other cell in the future. Mayor Reddish stated that Great West had procured a satisfactory bid for the SAGR system but would need to rebid the UV component for the upcoming project. There was a brief discussion of overall costs of the project.
Growth Plan Update
Councilman White reported on the historic district inventory. Progress was being made but there was still more buildings to review. Councilman Laigaie talked about the process for compiling the data. Maureen Connor said that the wildfire protection portion had slowed down as a result of the contractor being pulled away to other fire situations. The infrastructure mapping in town was almost complete. Councilman Laigaie brought up the issue of many houses not having their addresses posted.
Water/Sewer Policy
Mayor Reddish read some language he thought should be discussed at the new water and sewer meeting. The next meeting was scheduled for August 19th at 11:00 a.m.
Amended Resolution Horton Street Abandonment
Mayor Reddish told the Council that the wrong map had been filled as an exhibit with the resolution and that this needed to be amended. Mayor Reddish read the amended resolution. Councilman Lyons made the motion to approve the resolution, Councilman Sundstrom seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
NEW BUSINESS
Triple Tree Agreements Fred Burr Line
Mayor Reddish talked of a task order with Triple Tree to begin work on the Fred Burr line. Maureen Connor discussed a grant possibility that could cover this expense in the future but that the Town would not know about until later in the year. Reed Speegle said that this expense had been budget in preliminary budget conversations. Councilman Fujinami made the motion to approve the task order, Councilman White seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
Councilman Ulrich Resolution
Mayor Reddish read the resolution. Councilman Lyons made the motion to approve the resolution, Councilman Fujinami seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously. A thank you letter was to be send to Councilman Ulrich thanking him for his service.
Job Description Council President
Councilman Sundstrom had prepared a new job description for the role of Council President. Councilman Lyons currently served in this role. There was a brief discussion as to how this would function going forward. Councilman White made the motion to accept the new job description, Councilman Fujinami seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
NX Filtration Contract
Mayor Reddish explained the pilot test contract for approximately $23,000. Maureen Connor explained that this was preliminary work in the bigger ARPA 2 water project and that these expenses could be reimbursed in the future. There was a discussion of schedule and logistics of the pilot test. Mayor Reddish said the attorney had reviewed it and found it satisfactory. Councilman Lyons made the motion to approve the pilot test, Councilman Laigaie seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
Republic Services Sludge Disposal Contract
This had been discussed earlier in the meeting.
ARPA Sewer Contract
Maureen Connor distributed preliminary budgets for the project to the Council. The ARPA contract was for $2,069,579 towards the overall project. This would allow the Town to work on getting under contract for the other funding sources. There was a conversation about the overall project and timeline moving forward. Councilman Lyons made the motion for the Mayor to sign the contract, Councilman Fujinami seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
NON AGENDA ITEMS
Council
No comment.
Public Comment on Matters within the Town Council’s Jurisdiction
No comment.
Councilman Lyons made the motion to adjourn at 8:32, Councilman Fujinami seconded the motion, and it was approved unanimously.