THE STATE OF UTAH
COUNTY OF SEVIER
CITY OF RICHFIELD
At the City Council
In and For Said City
April 26, 2022
Minutes of the Richfield City Council meeting held on Tuesday, April 26, 2022,
at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Richfield City office building located at 75 East Center, Richfield, Utah. Mayor Bryan L. Burrows presiding.
- OPENING REMARKS
- PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
- ROLL CALL
- MINUTES
- EXPENDITURES
- YOUTH CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT
- EDWARD NIELSON INTRODUCTION
- TREE PLANTING AND MAINTENANCE
- IMPROVEMENTS DELAYED AND CONSENT FOR IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT APPROVED
- BID AWARDED FOR 300 SOUTH IMPROVEMENTS
- REALIGNMENT OF 350 WEST APPROVED
- ANNEXATION ORDINANCE 2022-17 ADOPTED
- ANNEXATION ORDINANCE 2022-18 ADOPTED
- ORDINANCE 2022-19 ADOPTED
- POLICY AND PROCEDURE MANUAL AMENDED FOR JUNETEENTH
- OTHER BUSINESS
- EXECUTIVE SESSION
- RECONVENE & ADJOURN
- OPENING REMARKS were offered by Councilmember Street.
- PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE was led by Mayor Burrows.
- ROLL CALL. Present: Mayor Burrows, Todd Gleave, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Michele Jolley, Tyson Hansen, Brayden Gardner. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- MINUTES APPROVED. The Council reviewed the minutes of the special meeting held on March 22, 2022, and the regular meeting held on April 12, 2022. Motion: Approve the minutes of the special meeting held on March 22, and the regular meeting held on April 12, 2022, Action: Approved, Moved by Brayden Gardner, Seconded by Todd Gleave. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- EXPENDITURES APPROVED. The Council reviewed the March 2022 Warrant Register. Councilmember Thompson asked when the skate ramps are being installed. Mr. Hansen stated that they would be installed this summer. Motion: Approve the warrants for March 2022, Action: Approved, Moved by Todd Gleave, Seconded by Elaine Street. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- YOUTH CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT. Erin Thompson is the Youth City Council Advisor and Liz Steele is also an advisor. She talked about a few things that they did this past year. Ms. Thompson stated that she applied for 2 grants. The first was called The Teens Sphere Of Influence. It is a federally funded grant through the Department of Workforce Services and Utah State University and the purpose is to improve communities in Utah through teen councils. They received $500 to spend on their activities and their council meetings and they were allowed to go to camps free of charge throughout the year. The other grant was through the Central Utah Health Department. It was an anti-vaping, anti-tobacco grant. They received $4,800 to make an impact on our community to help reduce vaping and tobacco use among teenagers. Their target is to give these kids skills to be resilient as well as spread information through the community and bring community awareness and community together through events and activities. They used the grant for all of their activities and their travel.
Ms. Thompson told the Council that they should have all received an invitation to their Arbor Day Festival this Friday, from 2:00 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the City Park. They will be planting a tree in honor of Councilmember Kathy Christensen at 4:30 p.m. and they would like to have the Council there for that.
She also gave the Council an invitation to their banquet, which includes dinner
Hannah Steele, Youth Mayor, told the Council about the Easter egg hunt they held this year at the Rotary Park. They are divided up into different sections for different ages. They had 200 to 300 kids that attended in all of the age ranges. They had a few gift cards from a few businesses in town, but they mostly funded this event with the grants that they received.
Alvin Gomez-Perez, 1st Assistant to the Youth Mayor, talked about the Hunger Games Food Drive they did with all of the schools in the District and they collected 13,468 pounds of food. Western Ag matched the price per pound and gave a check to the Food Bank.
Dillon Barclay is a Youth Councilmember and was in charge of the Turkey Trot and the Local Officials Day. For the Turkey Trot, they held a fundraiser with a 5K and a Mile Fun Run, and for the Local Officials Day, they were able to go to the State Capital and learn about flag design and participated in some fun team-building activities.
Liesel Steele also served as a Councilmember, and she was on a committee with Gaby Bruse and Hannah Steele working on the water tank project. It was going to cost a lot of money and they were going to have a fundraiser to get the money to put a mural on the water tank. They recently found out that the price has doubled and if that was not crazy enough, they also found out that the tank will have to be repainted in a couple of years and they did not what the mural to be painted over. They postponed this project and want to see the money they raised used for other things in the community.
Shelby Sorenson is the Activities Director and she has been working on the Arbor Day Celebration. They are trying to encourage people to plant trees and better our environment. They have planned activities for the youth and will have some booths that encourage the kids to take care of our community. There will be crafts and some service booths and live bands with line dancing. She also reported that the Youth City Council went to a ropes course in Marysvale where they learned team working skills and how to better themselves with others.
Spencer Thompson stated that some of the youth went to a leadership conference. The theme was “Build Where You Stand,” and one of the workshops that stood out to him taught that you have to be confident in yourself before you can be confident in the abilities of others.
Councilmember Thompson asked if they have another project that would replace the water tank project. There will be a new Youth Council installed in June, so they were waiting until that happened before they decided on another project.
Mayor Burrows thanked the Youth City Council recognizing that this is important and they are learning things that will make them better citizens. He encouraged them to stay involved in their communities where ever they end up.
- EDWARD NIELSON INTRODUCTION. Mr. Nielson stated that he is running for County Commissioner, Seat B. He is from Monroe and now lives in Richfield. He has his own business and some rentals here in Richfield. He is married with 4 kids and he is a big supporter of 2nd amendment rights. He wants to bring in jobs that will help sustain our way of life. There must be a point with taxing that enough is enough. He wants to come up with a plan to address what will happen when the mine closes and where the miners will work. He is willing to listen and give feedback. This is not a job it’s a service.
Councilmember Thompson asked what Mr. Nielson would do to help with the housing shortage. He is not in favor of turning motel rooms into apartments. He is willing to help get developers to build more apartments. They have a lot of low-income people who use his taxi service because they do not have transportation.
Mayor Burrows asked if the government should help find an avenue for developers to build apartments. Mr. Nielson does not think that this is a good use of taxpayer funds. He does not think that our tax money should be going for housing.
- TREE PLANTING AND MAINTENANCE. Matt Christensen introduced Malyssa Hart and Ryan Johnson who work for the State of Utah. Mr. Christensen stated that he knew that people had donated money for Kathy Christensen’s tree fund. Mr. Johnson is the Urban Forester from Cedar City, Utah, and Justin Short is an Urban Forester in our area.
Ms. Hart talked about some trees that could be planted and stated that some grants are available to help with trees. Mr. Johnson stated that he is interested in helping us improve our urban forest. He has a lot of experience with trees and discussed some funding that the State provides for trees through three different grants. There is a Tree Species Diversity grant and a Community Forestry Partnership grant which has a match. Last year it was $10,000 and we had to match 50/50. It looks like they can get a better deal for us this year, so hopefully, we can increase the amount and lower the match. There is also an Outdoor Classroom grant. All three of these grants would be an amazing asset to our community.
Councilmember Thompson asked Mr. Johnson if he had time to look at any of our trees and if he had any recommendations. Mr. Johnson noted that the trees along the east side of the City Park are surrounded by asphalt right up to the trees. He stated that paving over the tree roots limits the life span of the trees because most of the tree roots grow up so they can get enough oxygen. He also saw some diseases that could be cured very easily. Mr. Johnson would like to do some outreach to the community and go through a park and look at the trees and help with pruning and tree care. He gave the Council his contact information and stated that he, Ms. Hart, or Mr. Short are available to look at issues or help in any way they can.
- IMPROVEMENTS DELAYED AND CONSENT FOR IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT APPROVED. The Council had time to look for property located at 735 N 750 E. until adjacent properties develop with a consent to participate in a special improvement district when one is created. The Council was not in favor of waiving these improvements because they felt that it would continue to perpetuate the problem. The staff explained some of the reasoning behind why this had been done in the past, noting engineering costs to design an entire road for one property and if not the drainage issues that this could create for the property owners on either side of the property. The ditch on the southwest corner was discussed in that this section of the road may never be developed because of its location. Motion: Approve the delay of improvements at 735 N 750 W until the property to either side of this parcel develops or until a special improvement district is created, Action: Approved, Moved by Brayden Gardner, Seconded by Todd Gleave. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- BID AWARDED FOR 300 SOUTH IMPROVEMENTS. Micklane Farmer of Jones & DeMille explained that we received 2 bids. Rasmussen Excavation had a bid of $48,000 and Hales Sand and Gravel had a bid of $72,000. Mr. Farmer noted that the engineer’s estimate for this project was $50,000. Rasmussen will try and get this project completed before the 4th of July. Motion: Award bid to Rasmussen Excavation with a bid of $48,000, Action: Approved, Moved by Tanner Thompson, Seconded by Elaine Street. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- REALIGNMENT OF 350 WEST APPROVED. The alignment of 350 West and how it affects the RM24, LLC development was discussed. The developer will be giving the City property to replace the property that the City has and is currently 350 West. This will make it possible for the small parcel to be developed. RM24, LLC will deed the property to the City for the realignment of 350 West and the City will deed a portion of the existing road to them in exchange. Councilmember Gardner declared a conflict of interest. Motion: Approve the realignment of 350 West and a Quitclaim deed to RM24, LLC in trade for the property needed to realign the road, subject to verifying that they have purchased the property, Action: Approved, Moved by Brayden Gardner, Seconded by Tanner Thompson. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- ANNEXATION ORDINANCE 2022-17 ADOPTED. The Council reviewed the ordinance to annex the property owned by Jared Jensen located at 590 S 100 E. Mr. Jensen has asked for the zoning of the property to be general commercial (CG) because he is developing an RV park on the property. Motion: Adopt Ordinance 2022-17 annexing property located at 590 S 100 E, owned by Jared Jensen, Action: Adopt, Moved by Elaine Street, Seconded by Todd Gleave. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- ANNEXATION ORDINANCE 2022-18 ADOPTED. The Council reviewed an ordinance to annex the property owned by Triple J LLC located at approximately 1095 W 1350 S. Councilmember Gardner declared a conflict of interest. Motion: Adopt Ordinance 2022-18 annexing the property located at 1095 W 1350 S owned by Jared Jensen, Action: Adopted, Moved by Tanner Thompson, Seconded by Todd Gleave. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- ORDINANCE 2022-19 ADOPTED. The Council reviewed an ordinance to amend the Annexation Policy as it relates to water requirements for annexation. Mayor Burrows explained that the City has decided to add this to our impact fee so that the funds from impact fees are set aside to purchase water shares. Motion: Adopt Ordinance 2022-19 amending the Annexation Policy Plan removing the requirement for the surrendering of water rights at the time of annexation, Action: Adopted, Moved by Brayden Gardner, Seconded by Tanner Thompson. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- POLICY AND PROCEDURE MANUAL AMENDED FOR JUNETEENTH. The Council discussed the recent move by the Federal Government and the State of Utah to declare Juneteenth as an official holiday. The banks will be closed that day, but there was some discussion that the County was not going to designate that as an observed holiday. Motion: Amend the police and procedure manual to include Juneteeth as an observed holiday as set forth by State law, Action: Approved, Moved by Todd Gleave, Seconded by Elaine Street. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN FUNDS DISCUSSED. The Council discussed projects identified in the requirements that these funds could be spent on. Mr. Hansen explained that there are categories and those include the replacement of water lines, which is the most flexible category. If we claim our ARPA allowance as revenue replacement, then it makes us ineligible for the matching grant from the State, this is a much easier way for us to manage these funds with fewer requirements. This year the State is only going to get $25MM for their match program and there is no guarantee we will receive any of those funds. We applied last year and did not get anything. We could use the funds as a match for a CIB application or we could do this as a standalone project. Mr. Hansen stated that he has to report this before we will know if we can apply for the State funds. Motion: Approve claiming the City’s ARPA as revenue replacement up to the standard allowance, Action: Approved, Moved by Brayden Gardner, Seconded by Todd Gleave. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- OTHER BUSINESS. Mr. Hansen explained that he has been working with a company to replace the phones we have to a voice over system. This will cut our monthly phone bill in half and save the City about $6,000 a year.
Councilmember Thompson would like to look at the sign ordinance. He sees a lot of problems with it. We do not allow signs that stand out from the buildings on Main Street.
Councilmember Gardner stated that he had some calls about Mr. Billingsley trespassing and he wanted to know if we should address this. Mr. Hansen stated that Mr. Billingsley does a great job and so did Chief Lloyd. He knows the rules and the laws very well and he only does what he can. It is a thankless job and he does ruffle feathers. Chief Lloyd said that his experience with Mr. Billingsley is that he follows the book right to the letter.
- EXECUTIVE SESSION. At 8:51 p.m., Motion: Adjourn to convene an executive session to discuss the purchase of property, Action: Adjourned. Moved by Todd Gleave, Seconded by Brayden Gardner. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
- RECONVENE & ADJOURN. At 9:36 p.m., reconvene and adjourn.
PASSED and APPROVED this 9th day of May 2022.
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