05.09.23 Council Minutes

THE STATE OF UTAH
COUNTY OF SEVIER
CITY OF RICHFIELD

At the City Council
In and For Said City
May 9, 2023

Minutes of the Richfield City Council meeting held on Tuesday, May 9, 2023, at 7:00 pm in the Council Chambers of the Richfield City office building located at 75 East Center, Richfield, Utah. Mayor Bryan L. Burrows presiding.

1. OPENING REMARKS
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
3. ROLL CALL
4. MINUTES
5. EXPENDITURES
6. PUBLIC COMMENTS
7. PUBLIC HEARING – CIB APPLICATION FOR SWIMMING POOL
8. ORDINANCE 2023-4 ADOPTED
9. ORDINANCE 2023-5 ADOPTED
10. RIVER ROCK ESTATES SUBDIVISION APPROVED
11. LOT SPLIT (SUBDIVISION) APPROVED
12. COTTONWOOD CORNER SUBDIVISION APPROVED
13. REQUEST FROM JJ LUND DENIED
14. SEWER PROJECT AWARDED TO JACKSON EXCAVATING
15. FUNDS FOR THE BIKE PATH PROJECT’S RIGHT-OF-WAY WORK APPROVED
16. MAYOR BURROWS’ PROPOSED BUDGET FOR 2023-2024 PRESENTED
17. MEETING CANCELED AND RESCHEDULED
18. OTHER BUSINESS
19. EXECUTIVE SESSION
20. RECONVENE & ADJOURN
21. OPENING REMARKS were offered by Tyson Hansen.
22. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE was led by Mayor Burrows.
23. ROLL CALL. Present: Mayor Burrows, Brayden Gardner, Todd Gleave, Kip Hansen, Elaine Street, Tanner Thompson, Tyson Hansen. Excused: Michele Jolley

Others present: Janet Siggins, George Siggins, Mary Ann Siebert, Jeanne Emett, Evan Emett, Sherene Demings, Stacy Lunsford, Brady Edwards, Keith Mogan, Ryan Savage, Mark S. Greenwood, Jake Black, Adam Albrecht, Marva Nelson, Judy Busk, Donavan Allen, Carson DeMille, Jared Barton, Micklane Farmer, Karen Worley, Michelle Olsen, Kristi Allred, Edward Nielson.

4. MINUTES APPROVED. The Council reviewed the minutes of the meeting held on April 11, 2023, and made the following changes. Motion: Approve the meeting minutes for April 11, 2023, Action: Approved, Moved by Kip Hansen, Seconded by Brayden Gardner. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.
5. EXPENDITURES APPROVED. The April 2023 Warrant Register was not included in the packet, so the Council tabled the matter until the next meeting. Motion: Table approval of the warrants for April until the next meeting, Action: Approved, Moved by Tanner Thompson, Seconded by Brayden Gardner. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.
6. PUBLIC COMMENTS. No comments were made.
7. PUBLIC HEARING – CIB APPLICATION FOR SWIMMING POOL. Mayor Burrows explained that he had been involved in this pool for 14 years. He has seen it go from one extreme to the next extreme. From remodels to rebuilds, you name it. There has been a lot of time and effort put into this. At 7:08 pm, Mayor Burrows opened a public hearing to receive comments on an application to the Permanent Community Impact Board to fund the construction of a new swimming pool. Those in attendance were as follows: Janet Siggins, George Siggins, Mary Ann Siebert, Jeanne Emett, Evan Emett, Sherene Demings, Stacy Lunsford, Brady Edwards, Keith Mogan, Ryan Savage, Mark S. Greenwood, Jake Black, Adam Albrecht, Marva Nelson, Judy Busk, Donavan Allen, Carson DeMille, Jared Barton, Micklane Farmer, Karen Worley, Michelle Olsen, Kristi Allred, Edward Nielson.

Mary Ann Seaburt spoke to the Council and said her family has been going to the swimming pool for a long time. She talked about all the different people that come and that she has become friends with by coming to the pool. The pool has been there since she was a kid and is falling apart. There are a lot of people who care about this. It has been such a good thing in her life. She believed that something needed to be done, whether a remodel or something new, and she would gladly pay her share of taxes if that were what it took.

Judy Busk stated that the pool is wonderful for her and the other older people who go there. She thinks that so much of the money people spend on Medicare or extensive physical therapy could be avoided if people did the exercises they have in the aerobics program. They also talk a lot to each other, and that is cheaper than mental therapy and psychiatrists, so think about all we are saving on mental health. She took her children there when the pool was outside and freezing cold, and she took her grandchildren there, and she hopes to take her great-grandchildren there in the future. She thanked the Council for considering this.

Marva Nielson lives in Richfield and has been doing water aerobics for 30 years. She keeps telling everybody it is the best exercise in the world. For one thing, your body is supported by the water. Standing there, you are exercising 10% of your body. She has found that most people who do not like the pool and do not want anything to do with the pool, some time in their childhood, have got either dunked by a friend who kept them underwater or they cannot swim, or somebody threw them in the water and just let them go. She has worked with women who are terrified in the water. She stated that she cannot jog outside but can jog in the pool because it supports her body.

She indicated that Judy Busk was right. It is a way to get your frustrations out and allows you to socialize and meet wonderful people. She hoped that we would get a new pool because someday we could not afford the repairs and maintenance. She made sure my kids had swimming lessons so they were not afraid of the water. She took swimming and diving lessons, and it was fun.

Councilmember Street remembered Ms. Nielson doing a flip off the diving board when she was pregnant and scared her to death.

Ms. Nielson loves the water and thinks that people need a new place. She plans to be around for a long time and wants this pool for her old age.

Evan Emett used to go to the pool when he was little, and it is still the same pool. He remembered the happiness going to that pool brought him. That is where he learned to swim. Now he goes to the pool three times a week, and he told his doctor what he does, and he says it is good. So, he has approval from his doctor for this type of exercise. He sees all these mothers and parents bring their kids there, and the kids love it. They will remember this their whole life, just like he did. He understands the plan to keep the old pool open while the new pool is being built, and he thinks that is a great idea. He hoped the Council would approve the new pool and gets it going. He believes it will be good for the community.

Jeannie Emett said the pool has been a lifesaver for her because she has a bad heart and knees. She goes to the pool three times a week, and she is not really a swimmer. She is hopefully that the Council will be able to get something new because we really need it.

Michelle Olsen stated that she just wanted to echo what everybody had said. At the library, she offers a pool party at the end of the summer reading program for all the kids, and they love it. She has watched the Council some planning for this, and she supports going forward to get the funding. Hopefully, it will work.

Mayor Burrows stated that he appreciated the comments and the support. We have surely tried to make this happen. We still have a long way to go, but he is optimistic. He closed the hearing at 7:12 pm.

Mayor Burrows reopened the public hearing at 7:45 pm to discuss funding for the pool project.

Mr. Hansen explained that the City has funds from recreation and ZAP taxes. It funds recreation and golf course parks and currently subsidizes the swimming pool. It now brings in approximately $300,000. We are using it right now. He thought we would ask the CIB for a 60/40 split.

Councilmember Thomas stated that he and Mayor Burrows have been discussing that a little more today and the possibility of a 50/50 or 60/40 split. So we probably need to work with this to determine what that is.

Mr. Hansen pointed out that the payment could be anywhere from $350,000 to $500,000 depending upon the grant and loan we can get.

Mayor Burrows hoped we could get in the 8-million-dollar area on the loan part, which would be about $357,000 a year. If we were to get a 10-million-dollar loan at 2% interest, we would be looking at $450,000 a year.

Mayor Burrows stated that if we have to bond for the whole $15 million, it
Would be an increase in property tax of approximately $11.60. At least that is what it would cost him for his house for a year. It would be a good comparison to an average home in Richfield. Hopefully, we could get a $7,500,000 loan and a $7,500,000 grant which would be wonderful. That is probably not realistic, but it would be wonderful. We really need to get some grant funding.

Tyson Hansen indicated that if we keep running in a surplus, the property tax hike will not be crazy, but there will likely be a property tax increase.

Mayor Burrows said that would absolutely be on the table. So that may happen.

Councilmember Hansen indicated that he wholeheartedly. He has been thinking about the old pool that he used to swim in and about doing this for the kids. But it is not just about kids; we are talking about expending some money and spreading that over the basis of the whole community, which obviously would benefit lots of people in the community, not just the little kids. He would feel justified to ensure that it is on the table because it is pretty universal, more so than the golf course, a baseball field, or any other recreation amenity we have in town. He thought a swimming pool was universal more than any recreation or a pickleball court. Obviously, that needs to be on the table, and he felt it would be entirely justifiable if it reached that point.

Mayor Burrows gave the example of $6 million for 30 years at 2% interest; that interest on that $6 million over 30 years is $2,036,000. So there is no way we can go to a GO bond if we had 4% or 5% interest; that is not even an issue.

Mr. Hansen felt that those interest rates would be a deal killer.

Mayor Burrows said he would like the CIB to give us at least half grant.

Councilmember Thomas agreed that we could ask for that. We will not get it if we do not ask. Usually, they will negotiate based on the available funds and how justified they think the project is. He and Mayor Burrows were at Rotary Club yesterday discussing this. It was mentioned that Richfield is taking on the full brunt of this project, which will greatly benefit the entire County. The other surrounding communities will broadly use it, and Richfield is the hub, so a little bit of it is our responsibility in some ways. Businesses are here and everything else, but Sevier County has been a very strong contributor to the CIB funds for the money they have available for the last several years. He thought we may still be the second highest producing County in the State to that fund. So Sevier County is significantly impacted and has contributed a lot of money through those mineral lease revenues and stuff, and honestly, he felt like we deserve a little grant.

Councilmember Hansen felt that packaging this request and noting that we are talking about saving the historical component of this community is important. He means that with all sincerity. What could be more historic than the fact that the pool has been in Richfield for a long time, and we are putting it back in that same place. That is not the same as saying we will build a new recreation center elsewhere. We are trying to maintain a very important historic component of our community. He thought we ought to add some passion to our application and approach it somewhat in that manner. We are trying to save something, or it will be gone. That is the reality. We are not asking them to build a new pool. We are asking them to help save a great historic component of our community.

Mayor Burrows pointed out that we have to have a strategy because if they could come back and make an offer like a 5 million grant and a 1% loan, that might be a better deal than half grant and half loan at 2% interest. So we will need to consider other funding alternatives because sometimes we can get a better deal.

Councilmember Thompson wanted to know if we have an open dialogue so we could suggest other scenarios.

Councilmember Thomas stated that we could include what we want or can afford in the application. It is especially helpful, he thought, if we could tell them what we can afford as an annual payment on a loan. Then, when we present the project, they will often go back and forth with us to try and figure out something that will work, playing with the interest rate or loan amount and that sort of stuff to get to that payment.

Councilmember Hansen noted that if we call this an aquatic center or something other than a swimming pool, we are trying to replace the historic Richfield swimming pool. That is really what this is all about. We are just trying to save that amenity. He felt that we ought to call it such. We are
not coming to ask for all these extra meeting rooms and all this extra we need to replace this very, very important component to Richfield City and the Sevier Valley in general.

Mayor Burrows stated that he has been working to get some letters of support from the hospital and the surrounding communities.

Chet Thompson asked if we are saying that with the support of the County and the surrounding communities, it could make the application more appealing. Mayor Burrows is hoping that will be the case. Mr. Thompson wondered the best way to get them enthused about this. Mayor Burrows indicated that they are willing to write letters of support.

Councilmember Thomas asked if there was something more, the County could do to help other than writing a letter of support. He suggested we ask if they would waive the landfill fees for disposing of the old pool building.

Mayor Burrows said that the County has already agreed to this.

According to Councilmember Thomas, if the County has already agreed to this, we can show that on our application as a contribution to the project.

Mayor Burrows stated that they do not want to waive the landfill fee, but they are willing to find a place for us to dump the concrete and material. They did that for Salina on their project. There are places that they own that we can backfill in a gravel pit.

Mayor Burrows stated that we do not necessarily have a plan for how we will pay for it and asked Mr. Edwards what he thought.

Mr. Edwards hoped that when you crunch the numbers, we could do the heavy lifting between the Rec tax and our ZAP tax.

Mr. Hanson stated that if the economy stays good and we are still running the surplus, we won’t have to raise taxes, but it goes in cycles, and we might be at the end. Mr. Edwards said that we do a lot with those two taxes.

Mayor Burrows stated that if we go back to our earlier discussion about impact fees, the impact fee for recreation on the apartment complex was a lot of dollars.

Mr. Edwards stated that he always comes back to the fact that we want to choose how to spend our money. He always goes to wanting to invest in our children. He felt that our approach is not just asking for a pool, as we have discussed, but we are asking for mental health, the safety of our kids, suicide prevention, etc. We want to increase activities for the youth in the community, or in five years, we are going to be back to the CIB board asking for funds for a larger police station to house more officers because we have an increase the crime. We are not just asking for recreation but overall health and wellness.

Councilmember Hansen pointed to the fact that three different High School swim teams use that facility, and these are not the type of kids typically that are going to stick with the ball kind of recreation. Some do, but they are the exception. These are kids that this might be their salvation at times. That is where they fit and belong. Those are not sales points; those are realities. That is very important.

Marva Nielson stated that Bicknell closed their pool, so we have people coming from there too.

Mayor Burrows stated that sometimes the CIB has more money to loan than they have to grant, so we have to get a feel for where they are. It just depends on what revenues that are coming in at the time. They do not want not to fund the projects coming to them.

Carson DeMille suggested running a where if you did a 50/50 grant/loan, what would be the comparable be at a lower interest rate doing more loan? That is something they tend to be interested in giving 1% instead of 2½% because they have done a lot more of that to get the same payment.

Mayor Burrows said we would like to get half of it in a grant or equivalent. So that will be our plan, but how we think about that might be different.

Chet Thompson asked who typically presents that to that group.

Mayor Burrows indicated that he, Michele, Tyson, and we usually have our engineering firm there. In the past, we had Marcus Keller, our financial advisor, who has supported us with the numbers. He was quick to tell us where we should go, but unfortunately, he was unsure if we would have that luxury anymore.

Tyson Hansen said that we do. Mr. Keller is not on board yet, but he could be. He switched employers, but he is still in the game.

Councilmember Hansen is excited to be in a community meeting right here like this in this setting and be to this point. This is neat. This is neat! This is why we do what we do.

Councilmember Thomas thought this is a bold move for the City.

Mayor Burrows was excited about it. He knows where we have been in the last 14 years with this. It is strange to be at this point because we generally stay here till midnight and never leave with any solutions. But we finally have something figured out. When he first came on the Council, we were looking at redoing the pool, which was 4 million dollars. In fourteen years, here is where it is at. He believed that if we put this off another four years, there was no doubt in his mind that we could not get the pool we are talking about now. The same pool and the same building will cost more. It has continually gone up as we have tried to save money, but we do not bring in enough money to save enough money to do this. So it is time to take the plunge and see what we can do. He totally believes that.

Edward Nielson stated that the last time he was at the pool, he could not remember. It has probably been since the ice ages. His kids have been wanting to go. The last time they went to a pool was actually a couple of months ago in Salt Lake at a hotel, and they had a lot of fun. He is for the pool. He does not have a problem paying a little more in taxes. But if we can find other ways of paying for it, he would be for that. Money is not free. If we get a new pool, it will bring in more business. People come here from other places, and he would be able to take my kids there. He knows that if we kick the can down the road, it will be a lot more in two more years than it is right now. So we have to fix the problem before spending 25 million just to put a pool in.

Mayor Burrows asked the Council if everyone wanted to proceed with this and if the support was there. If we are going to move forward, we need to move forward as a group. If we do not, the wheels will come off.

Councilmember Hansen did not sense any pushback in this room, so he asked if anyone had felt any pushback in the community.

Councilmember Gardner has gotten pushback similar to Lindy’s comment at our meeting the other night, and if we can, we will get it done.

8. ORDINANCE 2023-4 ADOPTED. The Council reviewed Ordinance 2023-4 to rezone the property at 1080 South Cove View Road, owned by Ryan Hales, from commercial shopping (CS) to multifamily residential (RM-11) as recommended by the Planning Commission. This is that piece of property just south of Jorgensen Ford. We held a public hearing on this at our last meeting. Motion: Adopt Ordinance 2023-4 rezoning the property at 1080 South Cove View Road to multifamily residential (RM-11), Action: Adopted, Moved by Tanner Thompson, Seconded by Elaine Street. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.
9. ORDINANCE 2023-5 ADOPTED. The Council reviewed Ordinance 2023-5 to rezone the property at 264 North 600 East, owned by Chase and Hope Christensen, from multifamily residential (RM-11) to high-density multifamily residential (RM-24) as recommended by the Planning Commission. Mayor Burrows asked Councilmember Thomas to explain the purpose of the rezone.

Councilmember Thomas stated that changing the zoning allowed them to go from a duplex to a four-plex on their property. They did not express any intentions to subdivide, so it would just stay a typical four-plex. This is the same property that we had the fence discussion on. Motion: Adopt Ordinance 2023-5 rezoning the property at 264 North 600 East to high-density multifamily residential (RM-24), Action: Adopted, Moved by Tanner Thompson, Seconded by Brayden Gardner. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.

10. RIVER ROCK ESTATES SUBDIVISION APPROVED. The Council reviewed a subdivision plat for property located at 642 South 100 West owned by Donavan Allen, with the recommendation of the Planning Commission that the Development Agreement be amended to require the installation of curb, gutter, and sidewalk before occupancy will be given.

Councilmember Street wanted to say something about this. She was able to look at the property, and on the property to the south, a fence needs to be taken care of. There is a lot of drainage, and it is just encroaching on that property right now really bad, and I do not know what we can do or add to this to make sure that it is done correctly to please the neighbors next door.

Donavan Allen stated that his excavator had apologized for putting the dirt too close to the fence. As you can probably tell, the fence was a little dilapidated, and they did make it worse. There is no excuse for doing that, but Mr. Allen talked to the current owner and offered to remove the old fence and replace it with a brand new one, which they planned to do anyway.

Councilmember Street asked what would be done to ensure the drainage was handled. Mr. Allen stated that they have a drainage plan that was reviewed, and they will retain 100% of their water.

Councilmember Thomas visited with Mr. Farmer about the drainage and found it had been reviewed, so it should be in good shape.

Mayor Burrows asked if the asphalt was included in this. Mr. Allen said they went with gravel by the property line to help with the drainage. Down the road, they may consider doing asphalt instead of gravel, but for now, it will be gravel.

Councilmember Thomas said that the Planning Commission had some discussion because they were concerned about this being subdivided now, so there would not be just one owner. They felt there was no way to ensure that curb, gutter, sidewalk, and asphalt would be installed down the road. They recommended that the ordinances as they stand be followed for those improvements.

Judy Busk asked if the stipulations mentioned could be included before it is approved. Councilmember Thomas thought that they were already in the approvals.

Mayor Burrows asked if there would be any lawn. Mr. Allen said they will have a little lawn just behind the homes on the north side about 16 feet wide.

Motion: Approve the River Rock Estates Subdivision located at 642 South 100 West with the improvements required curb, gutter, and sidewalk have to be installed before occupancy will be given, Action: Approved, Moved by Kip Hansen, Seconded by Brayden Gardner. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.

Mr. Allen asked about water meters and if that was ever figured out if they would need one water meter for the complex or four separate water meters. Councilmember Thomas stated that if he remembered correctly, the discussion depended on whether Mr. Allen would have an HOA or not or have CCRs. If you have one master meter, that probably pushes you to have an HOA.

Mayor Burrows asked Mr. Allen if he was going to continue to own these or if he was going to sell them. Mr. Allen stated that their plan is to continue to own them, but now that they are subdivided, they would have the option to sell if they decided to. He would like to own the property long-term and not turn it over if he does not have to.

Mayor Burrows wondered if he sold them, does that change this meter situation? Councilmember Gardner stated that Park Retreat has one or two meters, as does Centennial Park, and the HOA handles them. Mayor Burrows asked who takes care of the HOA. Councilmember Gardner stated that the HOA is run by a board typically, which is established according to bylaws. The owners usually appoint the board. A third party could be hired to oversee the HOA. That just makes it easier.

11. LOT SPLIT (SUBDIVISION) APPROVED. The Council reviewed a lot split or a minor subdivision of the property at 442 East Center, owned by Brad Garfield, with the Planning Commission’s recommendation to approve the lot split.

Ryan Savage stated that this would create a flag lot that is currently just a weed patch in the back. Mr. Garfield is unsure if he will sell the house, but both lots meet the zoning requirements.

Councilmember Thomas stated that if he remembered right, this is located in an RM-11 zone.

Mayor Burrows sarcastically stated that this would be a firefighter’s dream to go to a fully engulfed house in the middle of the block.

Councilmember Thomas noted that there was some discussion with the DRC and the Planning Commission about curb, gutter, and sidewalk requirements with this lot split and the future development of the flag lot. He thought the consensus was that there is a curb and gutter, even though it is in rough shape, and a sidewalk on the other side of an awfully wide park strip. However, Councilmember Thomas understood that there is the potential for this street to be improved and reconstructed in the future as part of a Joint Highway project, so the thought was that we leave it as is for the time being.
Mayor Burrows asked if the Council had any problem with that. Councilmember Hansen indicated that he did not have any problems with that. Motion: Approve a lot split (subdivision) of the property located at 442 East Center Street as recommended by the Planning Commission, Action: Approved, Moved by Kip Hansen, Seconded by Kendrick Thomas. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.

12. COTTONWOOD CORNER SUBDIVISION APPROVED. The Council reviewed a subdivision to be located at 1100 North 300 West, owned by Jake Black. The Planning Commission recommended approval of the subdivision.

Someone asked how many acres this includes. Mr. Black stated that there are 11 acres.

Councilmember Thomas asked if the subdivision would include 25 lots. Mr. Black said that there are 30 lots. Mayor Burrows confirmed that the roads were 60 feet wide.

Councilmember Thomas reported that we did have a DRC review of this development. There were several comments on that, and Mr. Black came to the Planning Commission and addressed those comments, so he felt that those were resolved and understood for the most part.

Councilmember Gardner said he liked the development and thought they had done well.

Mr. Black noted that it had been a long road and a tricky property, but he felt it was a great spot. He thought that this was a good outcome. It is needed and has worked out well.

Councilmember Hansen stated that he was glad that Mr. Black felt that way. He appreciates that Mr. Black continued to work on the project and thought it turned out great.

Councilmember Thomas likes this too.

Motion: Approve the Cottonwood Corner Subdivision at 1100 North 300 West, owned by Jake Black, Action: Approved, Moved by Kendrick Thomas, Seconded by Kip Hansen. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.

13. REQUEST FROM JJ LUND DENIED. The Council discussed a request from JJ Lund to allow him to pay the impact fees that were in effect in March of 2022 based on a quote he received from the City that he used to apply for his financing.

Councilmember Hansen thought we had a good discussion about this at our last meeting, and wisely leading up to this meeting, we looked at any legal ramifications. It appears to me that there is not anything that we need to be worried about, so he would move to deny the request to reduce or waive impact fees. We would resort to the current impact fee schedule that is in effect at this time.

Councilmember Thomas wanted to point out one thing from the impact fee analysis. He has spent a little bit of time looking through it. It does mention that the City reserves the right to adjust the impact fees if it can be demonstrated that there is a lesser usage of the water or whatever impact based on the type of development. Our impact fee study has a rate for single-family housing and an adjustment of .75 for multifamily housing. He did not know what this adjustment was based on. He wondered if there might be consideration of adjustment that could be made if it is justified that the multiplier is either too high or too low. He knew that Mr. Lund has some other developments that were probably very similar. He probably would have water usage information from the other projects. He suggested that we consider looking at the multiplier for him based on another development that he had that would be very similar to this is the only adjustment that I could justify.

Councilmember Hansen appreciated what Councilmember Thomas had said, but he would still stand by his motion if Mr. Lund requested that as a separate issue after the fact; that is not out of hand.

Councilmember Thompson indicated that Councilmember Thomas knows more about this issue than anyone and asked if he thought it could be justified.

Councilmember Thomas stated that he did not know. He thought it might be hard to justify something different, but JJ may be able to because he has other similar developments. We know that apartment complexes use less water per dwelling unit than a single-family house does. Cody Dieter did the impact fee analysis and gave us the multiplier. We just do not know what it was based on.

Councilmember Gardner noted that we would have some internal data, too, comparing other apartment complexes in town.

Carson DeMille indicated that it would depend on how many rooms the units have. He had not seen the plans to know if they were one bedroom, two bedrooms, or three bedrooms. It might be a legitimate argument if the units have two bedrooms. The City had made an adjustment for a laundromat because of usage documentation that was provided. If his engineer could show that they are using less water than a normal ERC, then it would be a justifiable adjustment for the City to grant.

Councilmember Hansen did not feel that should be addressed tonight, but obviously, we would welcome him to bring the matter to us as a standalone issue. However, he still felt strongly about the motion on the floor that we should not waive or adjust any impact fees.

Councilmember Gardner wondered about amending the motion to include the wording that the Council would revisit the matter if Mr. Lund could provide documentation showing his development would use less water than .75 of an ERC.

Councilmember Hansen stated that he would accept that, as an amendment to the motion, Mr. Lund could bring this issue up later.

Mayor Burrows knows that we requested the impact fee study, and then we added a fee for public safety and recreation, and there is a reason for that. We continue to grow, and it continues to require more, and we have passed that on to everybody in town for a long, long time. The impact fees were studied and justified, so he hates to go backward.

Councilmember Thompson did not think anyone was suggesting we make a concession as far as fire, police, and recreation impact fees are concerned.

Though, Mayor Burrows stated that a concession is being considered on the water and sewer impact fees.

Councilmember Thompson agrees with Councilmember Hansen, as does Councilmember Thomas. Councilmember Thomas is just pointing out that a little bit of leeway could be given.

Councilmember Hansen noted that the impact fees were done in a public meeting, so it has been out there, and Mr. Lund could know what was happening. So, therefore, he did not think we were being unfair.

Councilmember Gardner liked Councilmember Thomas’ thought process on this.
Motion: Deny JJ Lund’s request to reduce or waive impact fees with the understanding that if Mr. Lund’s engineer can justify a different multiplier, the Council would consider that, Action: Approved, Moved by Kip Hansen, Seconded by Brayden Gardner. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas

14. SEWER PROJECT AWARDED TO JACKSON EXCAVATING. The Council reviewed the bid tabulation prepared by Jones & DeMille Engineering. Carson DeMille explained that this is money left after the sewer lagoons were completed to redo some of the old clay pipes throughout the City. So we have approximately 3 million dollars left, but we have held back some of that because Mr. Mogan wants to do additional projects for the plant’s inlet works. So they recommended awarding the base bid tonight for $1,848,334 to Jackson Excavation. The other bid was from Terry Brothers, and their bid was $2,287,583. So there was a difference in the bids of $500,000 roughly.

That’s the base bid, and we have 3 million left, but we think the other project, some grit removal that Mr. Mogan would like to do, could cost upwards of a million plus dollars. So this gives us some good contingency to make the base bid. It will go through the end of this year, and Jackson probably will not even start the project until October. So it will go into the following year, and at that time, we can also potentially award additional alternates if we have a better budget come down on that plant work.

The recommendation was to award just the base bid at this point. Mr. DeMille talked about the alternatives of different lines throughout town that could be done with the remaining funds. An alternate one would be an additional $64,000. Alternate two was an additional $338,000. Alternate three was an additional $408,000. Alternate four was $96,000. Alternate five was $208,000. Alternate six was $250,000. Alternate seven was $322,000. Alternate eight was $133,000. The total for all the alternates is $3,671,949.

If we do not end up doing the inlet works station, we would have the budget to do most of the alternates, but he thought that the plant would be the priority for Mr. Mogan.

Mr. Mogan noted that he hoped we would do the base project and the project at the inlet. We would install a new grit system and a new screen system to remove the rags and the solids from the sewer and disposes of them. The grinder we have now needs to be rebuilt and the system we are looking at is a lot different. The big thing about removing the grit and the debris before it goes through our pumps is that it does not end up in the lagoons. We just spent 6 million plus and did not want them to fill up with debris. We need to do this while we have the money. With any luck, we could do the base plus alternate one and two. Mr. Mogan felt that Mr. DeMille is conservative in holding enough back until we have hard numbers on the inlet. There is a lot of concrete work to handle that new equipment.

Carson DeMille stated that we have equipment costs, just not everything else to go with it. Getting those numbers took him a while, so we are scrambling to pull that together.

Councilmember Thomas wondered how Jackson compares to the alternates that are being considered. Mr. DeMille asked if he meant compared to the other bidder. The total price of Jackson’s bid was $3,671,949, and Jerry Brotherson’s was $4,057,410. Jackson was about $600,000 less overall, and the
only schedule that they were quite a bit more expensive on was alternate one. Still, it was because, for the bore under the canal behind the hospital, they did it as just a jack bore instead of a directional bore. We told him that either could be done, but he just forgot. If he were to do that, we would let him do a directional bore, bringing him back to within the price of Brotherson’s bid on that item. That is the only bid that they were high on.

Councilmember Thomas asked if he had talked to Jackson about the difference there. Mr. DeMille stated that Mr. Jackson was there when the bids were opened, and Mr. Jackson felt confident with the bid. Unfortunately, he cannot start until this fall. Everybody is slammed.

Mr. Mogan noted that Jackson’s base project includes multiple blocks throughout town. Several blocks on 400 West will get redone ahead of the 400 West project that will be done in a couple of years. We are just trying to clean up some of these four and six-inch clay laterals that are left.

Mr. DeMille pointed out that there is also a dual line on 100 South. There is no 12-inch line and a really old 8-inch line that only has some home hooked to it and is in pretty bad shape. So we are removing the dual line and putting everything on a 12-inch line.

According to Mr. Mogan, many of the lines being dealt with have been videoed within the last couple of years; some were just a couple of months ago, and there are problems with those lines.

Mayor Burrows noted that we have used Jackson’s before, and they have done a job.

Motion: Award the bid for the sewer project to Jackson Excavating with a bid of $1,848,334 for the base bid, Action: Approved, Moved by Tanner Thompson, Seconded by Elaine Street. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.

15. FUNDS FOR THE BIKE PATH PROJECT’S RIGHT-OF-WAY WORK APPROVED. Micklane Farmer discussed the possibility of the City funding the right-of-way work for the bike path extension property before the Joint Highway funds are awarded in October. Mr. Farmer said we got another $318,000 from UDOT to put a sidewalk along Main Street from 1300 South to 1500 South.

He stated that part of the project is on the east side of College Avenue. We know of three parcels that will be affected by the right-of-way work that needs to be done. Jared Barton discussed how the right-of-way works on the UDOT side.

Councilmember Thomas declared a conflict of interest because he works for Jones & DeMille.

Mr. Barton explained that he is familiar with the UDOT right-of-way process, and he wanted the Council to understand what it takes to go through the right-of-way acquisition process. Because of this project’s funding type, the City has to follow UDOT’s right-of-way process. The bottom line is that completing that process will take four months, and that is if you have a willing seller. There is quite a commitment there because it has to go through the UDOT central right-of-way group and engineer. So we do not know how long the process will take if we do not have willing sellers.

Mr. Barton pointed out how the four months would affect the schedule as they see it. If we wait to start that right-of-way process in October when the funding becomes available, that would mean that we would not finish the acquisition until January 2024. Then they would start designing the project in February 2024, and since design takes a while, that would not be finished until August 2024. The bid opening would be somewhere around September 2024, and they think this project will take around three and a half months to construct. If you factor that in, construction will not start until October, which is late for construction, given that UDOT’s paving window ends on October 15. That means we would have difficulty doing asphalt work on the bike path or tie-ins on the roadway. If we could go forward, we would finish construction somewhere in December or January.

Mr. Barton indicated that cold weather construction has its problems. First, it is very expensive to do cold weather construction, and then he mentioned the asphalt paving. With this schedule and the impacts of property acquisition, the project may need to be pushed until the 2025 construction season.

Mr. Farmer stated that they are not trying to sway the Council one way or the other, but they wanted the Council to be aware that the UDOT process also costs a lot more money. The UDOT process right-of-way requires a right-of-way acquisition agent, which typically costs $15,000 to $20,000 for two to three parcels. That will be included in the budget.

If the City elects to go ahead and get the right-of-way with the City paying for it, we would already have that completed before October, start the design process and have it completed, and put it out for bid early next summer. That would allow us to build it next year rather than waiting until 2025. Mr. Farmer estimated that it would cost roughly $10,000 for them to go out and survey the parcels in cad to come up with a rough design to know how the properties will be affected. Then we could talk to the property owners to get their buy-off and work with a title company to get the deeds written up and the property deeded to the City.

That way, when October 1 comes, all the right-of-way will have been procured. The only portion he is envisioning surveying is from the top of 800 South on College Avenue down to 1300 South and then laying the parcels in to verify that we have the right-of-way. He believes that everything else is in the UDOT right-of-way. But, again, they are not trying to sway the Council. They are just trying to present an option that would allow the bike path to be constructed in 2024.

Councilmember Street wondered if they would take out the fences and the block wall there. Mr. Farmer stated that the farm fencing, not the block wall, would be removed.

Councilmember Gardner asked if UDOT would reimburse us for the right-of-way work. Mr. Farmer explained that the City would have to pay for it.

Mayor Burrows asked what our match would be, and Mr. Farmer said it would be 6%.

Councilmember Gardner asked about the land acquisition prices. Mayor Burrows thought we would not acquire until the following year, but Mr. Farmer stated that in order to make this work, we would have to pay for the property out of city funds before we get the funding from UDOT.

Councilmember Gardner asked if we could get reimbursed for that, but it was noted that we would not. Mr. Farmer reiterated that if we wait for the acquisition to be paid out of the funding, the project will not be done until Spring 2025, and there is the possibility that the prices will go up and the cost of the project could go up. We have seen this in the last year.

Councilmember Gardner wanted to confirm that the City’s match would be 6%, but if we proceed now, we are making the land acquisition on our own. Mr. Farmer said yes. The UDOT funding that we would not be spending for the right-of-way would be spent on the project. So we still get the same amount of funding.

Councilmember Thomas asked if they had identified anything else on the project for which the money could be used. Mr. Farmer stated that the sidewalk could be widened. He has estimated an 8-feet sidewalk in front of the Walmart property. We could build a 10-foot sidewalk instead. There is a lot we could do with $40,000.

Mayor Burrows stated that this is removing the school property from the acquisition. Mr. Farmer pointed out that he knows of two property owners but does not have the deeds for that KFC property and the one north of that.

Councilmember Gardner likes the thought of getting a jump start on the survey, but he hesitates for the City to pay the acquisition cost.

Mr. Farmer stated it is risky either way because if we do not build in 2024, who knows what it will cost in 2025? However, if we do build it now, the City has to bear the cost of the right-of-way to get it done in 2024.

Councilmember Thomas asked how Joint Highway deals with cost escalation. the City can go back and ask for more money, but he guesses that they will have a lot more applications, so we may not get any more funding.

Councilmember Thompson apologized for his naivete and asked who approached the landowners for acquisition. Mr. Farmer stated that if UDOT does it, then the right-of-way agent would. If we do it, then Mr. Farmer would probably approach them.

The question was asked about the amount of property that would have to be acquired, and Mr. Farmer answered that we would need to acquire 10 to 15 feet of the property by Park Retreat.

Councilmember Gardner wondered what would be done with the irrigation
ditch that falls in that area. Mr. Farmer noted that it would be piped. Councilmember Gardner asked if that cost would be part of the project. He felt that acquiring the property north of KFC would be challenging, and he is afraid there could be a substantial cost. Mr. Farmer indicated that we could start with a survey, go through that process, lay the parcels in, and see what it looks like. Then he could come to the Council and give what we think the right-of-way and an acre per parcel. Then we could decide how to move forward.

Councilmember Gardner thought that was a great idea.

Councilmember Hansen did not feel that there was any controversy with this project and that it is needed, so it will be great to get it done sooner than later.

Mayor Burrows could not imagine why anybody would have a problem with it because they would eventually put it on a sidewalk.

Councilmember Gardner stated that it is an asset to their property.

Councilmember Hansen pointed out that there is always one person. He has been involved with these things before. The last guy holds out and always gets more. But at the end of the day, it is what it is, and you must do what you must do.

Councilmember Thomas wondered if Mr. Farmer could give the Council any estimate on the property acquisition cost based on fair market value. Mr. Farmer thought that he could.

Motion: approve the right-of-way work for the bike path expansion with a cost not to exceed $6,000, Action: Approved, Moved by Tanner Thompson, Seconded by Kip Hansen. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.

16. MAYOR BURROWS’ PROPOSED BUDGET FOR 2023-2024 PRESENTED. Mayor Burrows asked the Council to take this home and look at it. Mr. Hansen that it was laid out this way so that there would be some spots on the side for notes, and then if anything comes up, give him a call, and he can explain it. There is a narrative attached that hits the high points. Mayor Burrows stated that there is a 3% raise for the employees, and there are some various increases in the police department, and they will see this when they go through it. There is money in the street department for a new loader and a dump truck for capital improvements.

Mr. Hansen stated that there are a lot of projects, and they are included in this. He pointed out that we are using surplus from other years to balance this budget, but we are transferring a lot out to cover the projects that we have going. Mayor Burrows said there are 11.5 million in projects, and we are getting them for 1.5 million.

Mr. Hansen noted a large transfer out of the general fund into capital projects for those matches, which is $600,000 of the prior year’s surplus. That usually is around $2 million at the end of the fiscal year. So we have a fund about general fund balance of about $2 million.

Water and Sewer funds are not in good shape; they will see that in the narrative. Mayor Burrows and staff have discussed that a rate hike is probably in play. That will be discussed in the near future.

Mayor Burrows noted that it would probably not be a huge increase. An increase in the cost of diesel fuel to $4.50 affects the City just like everyone else.

Martha Nielson wanted to thank the Council for redoing the parking lot. Every time they did the sewer, it would come up in the building. The step is a little lower for those older people who come in, so she just wanted to let them know. She appreciated the guys and made a point to tell them.

Mayor Burrows noted that doing things costs a lot of money and is difficult. He knows that Mr. Hansen tried hard to try to keep it conservative. He knows the department heads do as well. He commended all of them for their efforts. Unfortunately, we see things slowing down, so he does not know what will happen. It is a little dependent on what they do in Washington, but hopefully, we can get back to a little bit of normal.

17. MEETING CANCELED AND RESCHEDULED. The Six County AOG set a Growth Summit for Tuesday, May 23, 2023, the Council’s regularly scheduled meeting date. For the Council to attend the Summit, the decision was made to cancel the regular meeting for May 23 and reschedule that meeting for May 30, 2023, at 7:00 pm.
18. OTHER BUSINESS. Councilmember Thomas reported that he went with a group from his neighborhood that went and cleaned up the cemetery a few weeks ago. They filled up a dumpster with stakes and weeds and things. Anyway, the cemetery is looking nice. Mr. Hansen reported that we have gotten several complaints about the motel had burned down. Charles Billingsley will check with the building inspector to see where we are with this. Mr. Mackelprang stated that he had not heard from the owner and that we should move forward with the abatement process. Mr. Billingsley sent a letter, and they have until the 15th of next month to respond.
19. EXECUTIVE SESSION. At 8:52 pm, Motion: Adjourn and convene an executive session to discuss the character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of individuals to serve on the Planning Commission and the Library Board, Action: Adjourned, Moved by Brayden Gardner, Seconded by Elaine Street. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.
20. RECONVENE & ADJOURN. At 9:24 pm, Motion: Reconvene and adjourn Action: Adjourned, Moved by Tanner Thompson, Seconded by Brayden Gardner. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5). Yes: Tanner Thompson, Brayden Gardner, Elaine Street, Kip Hansen, Kendrick Thomas.

PASSED and APPROVED this 30th day of May 2022.