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HomeMy Public PortalAboutMinutes_City Council Work Meeting_05242022 CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING IONA CITY HALL MAY 24,2022 6:00 P.M. PRESENT: Mayor Dan Gubler, Council President Rob Geray, Council Member Michael Thompson, Council Member Peter Wadsworth, Council Member Evan Mann, City Attorney Andrew Rawlings, Public Works Director Zech Prouse and City Clerk/Treasurer Keri West. ABSENT: None. VISITORS: Rebekah Brinkerhoff. ITEMS OF BUSINESS: Discussion of Barnes & Denning Intersection — Mayor Gubler stated there have been recent complaints about the intersection of Barnes Way and Denning Avenue regarding speeding and cars not stopping at the stop sign. He continued and stated the complaints started when the construction on Iona Road detoured cars through the subdivision. Mayor Gubler stated this is a busy intersection for elementary students traveling to and from Iona Elementary and those complaining have expressed concern regarding the children's safety. Council President Geray asked if we had received complaints prior to the construction, or if this situation was only caused by Iona Road being closed. Deputy Randall stated he had received a couple of complaints prior to construction pertaining to this situation. Council President Geray stated he is not averse to doing something, but if the problem didn't exist before the construction, he suggests letting it play out now that the construction is complete. Mayor Gubler suggested a lighted stop sign. Director Prouse stated they are attainable, but his recommendation would be a crosswalk, as a continuation of the pedestrian corridor on Denning Avenue from Iona Elementary. Council Member Wadsworth asked if it is feasible to install the lighted crosswalk signs. Director Prouse stated it is feasible, but much more expensive and a lot more infrastructure. He continued and suggested starting with a painted crosswalk and flags like other crosswalks on Denning Avenue. Council President Geray stated if the other crosswalks have shown to be effective, he would agree with Director Prouse. Mayor Gubler and all Council Members agreed to this course of action. Discussion of FY2023 Property Taxes — Clerk West stated she is currently working on the budget for Fiscal Year 2023 and needs the Council's input on the property tax portion. She continued and stated the City is able to increase property taxes up to 3% each year. If the City chooses not to increase by 3%, it can affect the levy rate and may cause it to decrease. Clerk West continued and stated a 3% increase equates to an approximate total increase of $9,400. Council Member Wadsworth asked if we would receive that much of an increase with the new construction alone. Council President Geray explained the overall amount the City receives is spread over the total number of properties. Which means if the City does not increase the percentage, the levy rate actually decreases with growth. Council Member Wadsworth stated he understands the concept, but said his property taxes showed a huge increase this year. He continued and stated he doesn't think anyone will notice a $9 difference in their property taxes from this year to next year. Clerk West clarified the $9,400 does not include the new construction amount. She continued and stated the City will get more than a $9,400 increase in IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING—MAY 24, 2022 PIN property taxes next year when the new construction amounts are included. Clerk West also stated the City has $8,400 in the forgone account that the City can choose to take if they feel it is needed for a project, etc. Mayor Gubler explained the forgone amount has not been taken from the taxpayers yet and would be added to each property owner's bill the year the City chooses to receive it. Clerk West agreed and asked the Council what percentage they would approve for this year's tax increase. Council President Geray suggested staying with the 3% to ensure the City has funds to keep up with expenditures and to keep reserving the forgone amount for future use. Mayor Gubler and all Council Members agreed. Review Fiber Internet Responses to the Request for Proposal (RFP) — Mayor Gubler expressed frustration that the City only received one proposal for fiber from Silver Star. Council discussed specific items in the proposal from Silver Star such as their expected take rate of 60%, total investment by the City of$350,000 and the connection fee of$450 per household. Mayor Gubler stated in their proposal the City would be responsible for covering the additional cost if their take rate was less than 60%. He continued and expressed concern over that item and stated he does not want to tie the City to that type of fee. Mayor Gubler also stated this proposal allows for the City to begin negotiations with Silver Star before signing a contract. Council began discussing Direct Communications and their reasons for not submitting a proposal after discussing this project with the City for the past year. Council Member Mann suggested going back to Direct Communications to discuss the RFP specifically and why they chose not to submit a proposal. Attorney Rawlings stated legally the City can talk to Direct Communications, but if we allow them to submit a proposal, the City would need to publish a new RFP and send it to all interested companies. Council Member Thompson stated he would hate to exclude Direct Communications because of specific requirements in the RFP that the City feels are negotiable. Council President Geray expressed curiosity over how Fybercom is able to offer fiber installation for a one-time $150 connection fee, forgoing a $3,000 fee at a later date. Director Prouse agreed and stated he doesn't understand how Fybercom received the fiber monopoly for Bonneville County. Council President Geray suggested the idea that Bonneville County may have also received American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds that are offsetting the cost of installation. Discussion then continued regarding the RFP and if negotiable items were misunderstood with the way the RFP was written, such as ownership requirements and maintenance. Council Member Wadsworth stated the two options he sees are to either start negotiations with Silver Star or re-write the RFP to gather more proposals. Director Prouse agreed but also stated a third option to contract with a sole source provider and enact a franchise fee. Mayor Gubler stated he does not like the fact that the residents are the ones that end up paying the franchise fee. Council then discussed ownership options and what best fits the community. Council President Geray asked if the City can legally meet with Silver Star and Direct Communications together, to get feedback on the language needed to draft an updated RFP. Attorney Rawlings stated if the whole City Council wants to be present it would need to be a public meeting. However, if 2 or less Council Members attend it does not need to be a public meeting. Attorney Rawlings continued and suggested having the City Engineer and Director Prouse at the meeting. Clerk West suggested having at least one Council Member there to help portray the vision the Council has discussed for the fiber system. Director Prouse agreed and asked what the sticking points are at this point on the RFP. Council Member Mann stated the City is willing to compromise on ownership. Council President Geray stated minimal connection fee to the consumer. Mayor Gubler stated the $450,000 investment by the City should be used to forego the connection fee for consumers. Council President Geray stated the infrastructure should be installed to allow easy 2 IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING—MAY 24, 2022 future connections to homes that are sold and the new owner chooses to connect. Mayor Gubler stated he is willing to go to the meeting if he is in town. Council all agreed the next course of action is to meet with Direct Communications and Silver Star in a private meeting with the City Engineer, Director Prouse and 1-2 Council Members regarding an updated RFP. General Water System Discussion—Mayor Gubler said the new well and tank are going online tomorrow. He continued and stated it has been tested and has passed all the necessary tests. Director Prouse stated they have been exposed to the water system already and there have been no issues. Meeting Adjourned: 6:54 p.m. COUNCIL APPROVED: June 28, 2022 Dan Gubler, Mayor ATTEST: 111 eri West, City Clerk/Treasurer 3