NEW WHITELAND TOWN COUNCIL
FEBRUARY 21, 2006
MEETING MINUTES
Town Council President John Perrin opened the
meeting at 7:00 p.m. with the pledge to the American flag. Council members
present were Scott Alspach, John Perrin, Don Harris and Terry Spencer. Also present were Attorney Stephen Watson and
Clerk-Treasurer Maribeth Alspach along with Department Heads Jim Lasiter, Mary
Facemire, Brian Hedrick and Office Manager Cindy Yates. Councilman Noonan and Marshal Withers were
both absent. Lt. Stephenson was present
representing the Police Department.
Councilman Perrin offered the opening prayer.
MINUTES
Member Alspach moves to approve the minutes
of the previous meeting. Motion seconded
by Councilman Spencer. Vote 4 affirmative.
OLD
BUSINESS
2006 Budget
Alspach states that we are still waiting on
the final budget order reducing the 2006 budget by an additional
$21,943.00. Council tables this item and
asks that it be placed on the March 7th agenda.
Utility Deposits
Attorney Watson states he and Attorney
Robbins discussed this item and will draft legislation when the council has
reached a consensus on the changes they want to make. Clerk-Treasurer Alspach states that the
utility office prepared a list of rental properties in New Whiteland. It appears we have 92 landlords with one or
more properties each. 86 of those
landlords hold residential properties while 6 are commercial landlords. Alspach adds that we do not have complete
mailing addresses on many of the property owners and we are unsure how accurate
the information we have is as some dates back several years. Discussion follows regarding ways of
notifying landlords to advise them of a public meeting and subsequent policy
changes. Amount(s) of deposit(s) needs
to be determined – deposits should cover at minimum a one-month bill. When the changes affecting deposit amounts
and property owner responsiblity would take place is
also discussed. Should changes be
effective immediately or as each existing account changes? Contacting each current customer and
requiring that the account be transferred into the property owner’s name would
be an option or the change could take place when the existing customer moves
out causing the new account to be in the property owner’s name. Clerk-Treasurer Alspach recommends a
provision allowing the new deposit amounts to be charged on any existing
account when the account becomes delinquent or has an arrears balance. There is discussion about allowing property
owners to maintain the same deposit on a property and not having to come into
the office each time someone moves in or out. Office Manager Yates reminds the
council that every time the meter is read to close out one account and set up a
new one there is a $30.00 fee that the property owner would have to pay. Property owners will have to provide a copy
of their driver’s license and proof of ownership in order to establish an
account. Attorney Watson states we could
require that they bring a copy of their title or sign an affidavit that they do
in fact own the property. President
Perrin directs all council members to submit their recommendations for the
changes to this policy in writing so that they can be reviewed and a decision
on the changes can then be forwarded to the attorney.
Streetlights
Clerk-Treasurer Alspach presents a report on
the number of streetlights the town currently pays for as requested at the last
meeting. Currently we have 284 outdoor
lights. The cost in January for those
lights was $2,141.44, which is an approximate annual expense of $25,697.28.
Fire Department Take Home Vehicles
Fire Chief Hedrick asks if the council has
reviewed the letter he distributed at the last meeting? Hedrick states that there has been discussion
of doing away with the staff and command vehicles in
Town Council
Page Two
February 21, 2006
the past.
Hedrick states the New Whiteland gets ISO points for having those 2
vehicles. Hedrick also asks about the
option asking the Town to consider leasing his personal vehicle for $1.00 a
year allowing him to put lights and decals on it and use it as a take home
vehicle / Chief’s car. President Perrin
states that some questions regarding creating additional liability for the town
have arisen. Perrin asks
Clerk-Treasurer Alspach to meet with our insurance agent to discuss this option
and bring a report back to the council.
Hedrick asks permission to return to a policy
allowing the on-call officer to take home one of the staff vehicles. Hedrick states the reason for the policy
would be to guarantee that someone could respond quickly to a medical
call. Both vehicles are equipped with
air packs and basic life support equipment.
The vehicles would be used as a first responder vehicle. Council asks if there are written guidelines
for the use of these vehicles? Chief
Hedrick says that there are, but they are old.
He states no family members would be allowed in the vehicles at any
time. Vehicle could not be driven for
personal use only on authorized fire business or responding to a call. One exception is discussed which would allow
the on-call officer to drive the vehicle to dinner within the designated and
approved area. Vehicle would remain at
the officers home and would be available, as would the officer, to respond to
any fire business or call. Councilman
Spencer states he would rather allow the 2 existing vehicles to be used in this
manner than add a 3rd vehicle.
Spencer notes the $1,300.00 for the light package for the new / leased
vehicle could be better used on gasoline.
Council directs Chief Hedrick to draft
written policy on command / staff vehicle use and an on-call officer policy and
make copies available for the council to review prior to the next meeting. President Perrin asks that the on-call
officer log on and off duty with mileage reports through the NWPD
dispatcher. Hedrick says that would be
fine and they will continue to maintain a written log book within each vehicle
noting dates, time, mileage used, who used the vehicle and why, and locations
to which the vehicle was driven.
Chief Hedrick adds that he is still working
on a presentation detailing the Fire Station proposed expansion / remodel as
well as the purchase of a new engine along with financing options.
NEW BUSINESS
Compensatory Time
Councilman Harris asks the Clerk-Treasurer to
explain the accumulated comp time for certain employees. Harris is questioning the report issued at
the end of January and believes that the hours listed were earned in 2006. Clerk-Treasurer, council, and other employees
explain that these are hours that have accumulated over the last several months
due to a variety of reasons.
Clerk-Treasurer Alspach adds that those figures are nearly a month old
and many have changed since the report was first issued. Harris states that he is not allowed to
accumulate time at his job and all time has to be used within 28 days. Other council members point out that New
Whiteland does not have the number of employees that Harris’ employer does and
making that requirement would not be practical here.
LEGISLATIVE
Ordinance 2023
Clerk-Treasurer
Alspach reads the amendment to the zoning ordinance in title only on 2nd
reading. Motion to adopt Ordinance 2023 by Councilman
Alspach and seconded by Councilman Harris. Vote 4 affirmative.
Ordinance 2024
Clerk-Treasurer Alspach reads the transfer
ordinance on 1st reading and explains. Motion to adopt Ordinance
2024 by Councilman Harris and seconded by Councilman Alspach. Vote 4
affirmative.
Councilman Alspach moves to suspend the rules
and consider this ordinance on final reading tonight. Motion seconded by Councilman Harris. Vote 4 affirmative.
Clerk-Treasurer Alspach reads the transfer
ordinance in title only on final reading.
Motion to adopt Ordinance 2024 by Councilman Harris and seconded by
Councilman Spencer. Vote 4 affirmative.
Town Council
Page Three
February 21, 2006
OPEN TO THE
PUBLIC
Wallace Burnell,
317 Sawmill wants to make payment arrangements on his current water bill in the
amount of $465.00. Burnell states the
bill is due today and he can’t pay it.
He has a leak and the bill keeps getting larger but he can’t afford to
get it fixed. Burnell ahs spoken with
both Office Manager Yates and PW Supt. Lasiter and is here to ask about payment
arrangements. Burnell states his bill
last month was $350.00 and the month before it was $300.00. Supt. Lasiter states that the leak is between
the meter and the house and that he has provided Mr. Burnell with the names of
some contractors to contact. Lasiter
states that we could adjust the overage on the wastewater for the last 2
months, which would bring the bill down to $65 - $70.00. Lasiter has advised Mr. Burnell to contact
someone to fix the leak and make payment arrangements with them to prevent
future excessive bills. Burnell states
he is in serious financial difficulty.
Council authorizes adjustment of $400.16 on the current bill and will
also authorize wastewater overage adjustment on the March bill allowing Mr.
Burnell time to get the problem fixed.
Fire Chief Brian
Hedrick states that the Fire Department grant for the new engine was denied in
November 2005. He will get copies of the
notice to the council.
Being no other
business the meeting was adjourned at 8:19 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
____________________________
Maribeth Alspach, Clerk- Treasurer
Approved: _____________________________
John Perrin, President