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January 27, 2020 The regular meeting of the Yerington City Council was held in the Council Chambers at 10:00 a.m. with the following present: Mayor John Garry Council Members Jerry Bryant, Shane Martin and Terceira Schunke City Manager Robert Switzer City Attorney Chuck Zumpft Public Works Director Jay Flakus Administrative Director/Interim City Clerk Sheema D. Shaw Absent: Councilwoman Catalano and Chief of Police Darren Wagner Guests: Chief Scott Draper of the Mason Valley Fire District, David Ray, Chris Garry, Brad Douglas, Brianna Sanchez, Gracie Aguilar, Alejandra Cervantes, Kaydence Hernandez, Cloe Wilkinson, Kylee Reizenstain, Frank Pizzo, Jason Sanderson, Analysa Berumen, Natalee Hurt Jennifer Vargas, Josie Mattice, Jamie Moreda, Anastasisa Aiazzi and Madeline Hull-Taylor Public Participation Mayor Garry stated that he was pleased that the Yerington High School Varsity Volleyball team with us today. They have brought our community a great deal of pride by bringing the 2-A to our city. Mayor Garry congratulated the team on their win and presented each team member with a rose. Agenda Approval City Manager Switzer noted a correction in spelling on item 11 of the agenda and requested that Discussion on the Strategic Planning be moved to after the Department reports. Councilman Bryant made a motion to approve the agenda with the correction, seconded by Councilwoman Schunke. Mayor Garry asked for public comments, there were no comments and the motion carried unanimously. Minutes Councilwoman Schunke made a motion to approve the minutes of January 10 2020 Strategic Planning Meeting and the January 13, 2020 Regular meeting seconded by Councilman Martin. Mayor Garry asked for public comments, there were no comments and carried unanimously. ---PAGE BREAK--- Business Licenses The following business license applications were presented for review and approval: A. Kevin J. Quilici dba Quilici Construction Co., Inc., Mobile, Underground Excavation for Utilities, 7465 Longley Lane, Reno, Nevada B. James Schreiber dba Farmers Insurance – Schreiber Agency, Insurance-Home, Auto, Health, Life, 113 N. Main Street, Yerington, Nevada Councilman Bryant made a motion to approve the business license applications as presented, seconded by Councilwoman Schunke. Mayor Garry asked for public comment, there were no public comments and the motion passed unanimously. Appointments to the Mayor’s Committees. Mayor Garry stated that we have 3 volunteers for the Mayor’s committees; Amy Miller and Deb DeGrendele for the Administrative Committee and Dave DeGrendele for the public works Committee. Interim City Clerk Shaw stated that we still have two vacancies on the Police Committee and one on the Public Works Committee. Councilwoman Schunke made a motion to approve the appointments to the Mayor’s Committees, seconded by Councilman Martin. Mayor Garry asked for public comments, there were no comments and the motion carried unanimously. List of City of Yerington Items to Auction City Manager Switzer stated that we have discussed auctioning surplus items for some time now and have a list of what those items are. As an example of the items, there is a backhoe and several new pumps. Auctioning these items is something that we have been trying to do for years. Councilman Bryant made a motion to approve the list of City of Yerington items for auction, seconded by Councilwoman Schunke. Mayor Garry asked for public comments, there were no comments and the motion carried unanimously. Donate 3 Vehicles to the Mason Valley Fire District; CY11 2001 Chevrolet Astrovan, CY101 2003 Ford F-250 Superduty Utility Box and CY72 1996 Chevrolet 1500 Utility Box City Manager Switzer stated that we would like to donate these vehicles to the Fire Department for training as they have passed their service years for the city; however, they would be of value to the Fire Department for training purposes. ---PAGE BREAK--- Councilwoman Schunke made a motion to donate 3 vehicles to the Mason Valley Fire District; CY11 2001 Chevrolet Astrovan, CY101 2003 Ford F-250 Superduty Utility Box and CY72 1996 Chevrolet 1500 Utility Box, seconded by Councilman Martin. Mayor Garry asked for public comments, there were no comments and the motion carried unanimously. Design Agreement with Sierra Pacific Power Company d/b/a NV Energy (“NV Energy”) PID [PHONE REDACTED]; E-Yerington Lift Station-F/P-COMM-E-City of Yerington; Design Initiation Agreement (Agreement No. 60923) (“DIA”) City Manager Switzer stated that this is part of our water/sewer project. This agreement is Nevada Energy’s contribution to the project and is for design work to be done for this lift station. There is a total cost of $4,000 Councilwoman Schunke made a motion to approve the Design Agreement with Sierra Pacific Power Company d/b/a NV Energy (“NV Energy”) PID [PHONE REDACTED]; E-Yerington Lift Station-F/P-COMM-E-City of Yerington; Design Initiation Agreement (Agreement No. 60923) seconded by Councilman Martin. Mayor Garry asked for public comments, there were no comments and the motion carried unanimously. Airport Hangar #404 Assignment of Lease from Donn Boren to Terry Scott City Manager Switzer stated that our ordinance states that council approve all assignment of leases and recommended approval. Councilman Bryant made a motion to approve Airport Hangar #404 Assignment of Lease from Donn Boren to Terry Scott, seconded by Councilman Martin. Mayor Garry asked for public comments, there were no comments and the motion carried unanimously. Shut Down the RV Dump Located by the Buck Aiazzi Baseball Field. City Manager Switzer stated that we are having odor issues at the sewer ponds. The city had the ponds dredged last summer and we should not be having issues, but we are. City Manager Switzer stated that it is possible some dumping of chemicals is occurring at the RV dump and it is going into our ponds. If the balance of the ponds is disturbed it will cause issues, which lead to the smell. This item is being proposed to see if closing the RV dump helps. Public Works Director Flakus stated that we are making this request based on a recommendation from our engineers. RV’s use antifreeze, which dumps into our ponds; this would be a temporary closure. Councilman Bryant stated that as someone who spends a lot of time at the baseball fields, this closure would be appreciated. Public Works Director Flakus stated that we have tried in the past to trace issues back to the source with no luck. We will need a little time to see how the ponds react. ---PAGE BREAK--- Councilwoman Schunke asked if closing the RV dump corrects the issue, will we reopen the RV dump. City Manager Switzer stated that if the RV dump were a major source of the issue we would have to make a decision in the future. Public Works Director Flakus stated that if we constantly have complaints we must have the air quality checked by the state. Councilwoman Schunke asked how long it would be shutdown. City Manager Switzer stated at least 90 days. Councilman Bryant made a motion to approve shutting down the RV dump located by the Buck Aiazzi Baseball Field, seconded by Councilman Martin. Mayor Garry asked for public comments. Mr. Larry Reynolds stated that the county dumpsite is full most of the time. The county uses a septic tank and perhaps the city should look into something like the county uses. Mr. Scott Draper, speaking as an avid baseball field user, stated that he would be in favor of closing the site at the field and moving it to another location. Public Works Director Flakus stated that the current configuration is very unsanitary. NDEP would not allow us to put in a septic tank, perhaps we could move the location further out. Public Works Director Flakus stated that he does not know if that would fix the issue. Councilwoman Schunke asked if the Public Works Director could look into the cost of moving the site. Mayor Garry asked for further comments, there were no comments and the motion carried unanimously. Review Bills Previously Submitted for Payment Bills, Salaries and Vouchers: Accounts Payable Checks 1-6-2020 31869 through 31908 1-15-2020 31916 through 31958 Payroll Vouchers 12-30-2019 01022001 though 01022019 1-13-2020 01162001 through 01162021 Payroll Checks 12-30-2019 31864 through 31867 1-13-2020 31909 through 31915 Transmittal Vouchers 12-30-2019 12301901 1-13-2020 01132001 Transmittal Checks 12-30-2019 31868 ---PAGE BREAK--- 1-13-2020 31913 Councilwoman Schunke made a motion to approve the bills as submitted, seconded by Councilman Martin. Mayor Garry asked for public comments, there were no comments and the motion carried unanimously. Public Participation Chief Scott Draper stated that the Fire Department had received a donation from friends of the Mayor and it was appreciated. Mr. Brad Douglas stated that he has concerns regarding the fireworks and drag races. Mr. Douglas stated that he would like to know whom he should address his concerns. City Manager Switzer stated that Mr. Douglas could address his concerns directly to the council or, if he would prefer, City Manager Switzer would meet with Mr. Douglas and address them. Mr. Douglas stated that he would like to meet with the City Manager. Department Reports City Attorney Zumpft reported that title work for the water/Sewer project is completed and we need to secure easements on a few properties . Public Works Director Flakus reported that we are trying to protect the plane at the airport that is up for auction. People taking parts off it are damaging it. The police Department will not take a report because it is not our property. Public Works Director Flakus stated that we have considered moving it; however, we have nowhere to move it. Mr. Douglas stated that most of the damage occurs late at night. City Manager Switzer reported that we have a potential candidate for the Police Department in the final stages of background. We also know of someone in POST that will be applying as soon as he graduates, perhaps just a couple of weeks. City Manager Switzer reported that he is setting up a meeting to discuss the transfer of the armory to city. We are waiting on the cost to pay for the loan. Council approved $232,000; however, he expects the amount to be less. City Manager Switzer reported that we have an FAA grant for $300,000 to update the Airport Master Plan. The last update to the Master Plan was in 2007. This will allow us to seek grant funding. Councilman Bryant stated that the second annual First Responders Gala is coming up and he would like to see the Yerington Police Department involved. The money raised goes toward those departments for training. Last year $14,000 was raised. The event will be held April 18th. ---PAGE BREAK--- Mayor Garry stated that the prior city council had a goal to find a new city hall. Mayor Garry congratulated City Manager Switzer for opening discussions with the Nevada Division on Lands regarding the armory and the possibility of it becoming the new city hall. Strategic Planning for the City of Yerington City Manager Switzer stated that on January 10th we met to plan ahead for 3 to 5 years. One item that came up in that meeting was a vision and mission statement, while they are not required, they do help to inforce what our city will be like in the next 3 to 5 years. Mayor Garry stated that this is a creative process. City Manager Switzer asked council to consider what we have already discussed; we have found more weaknesses than that is normal, but how do we want to address them. City Manager Switzer asked council what we could do to help our downtown area. Mayor Garry stated that businesses close at 5:00 p.m. City Manager Switzer stated that we need a reason for family’s to come downtown, a place where people can go. Without activity, there is no economic development. We need to get businesses downtown. Councilwoman Schunke stated that more events would attract families. City Manager Switzer asked what would happen if we closed down a side street and put up a bounce house. Mr. Chris Garry asked how many events were currently downtown. City Manager Switzer stated not enough. Councilman Martin stated that we use to close down Main Street all the time. Mayor Garry stated that a core group had recently watched a video by Roger Brooks. This video showed how people used to go downtown and then a new concept, called the suburbs came along and with them malls. Today online shopping is the new trend. We need to get people back downtown. City Manager Switzer stated that one of the “Threats” we had discussed was mine closures. We will benefit as the mine expands; however, if it slows down and goes away, we want to have activates that are not attached to the mine. Councilman Bryant stated that in regards to “weaknesses” some of the ideas brought forth are more tangible than actionable. We need to focus on the ones we have some control over. Mr. David Ray stated that many small communities are going to public access TV to get the word out; however, the cost might be prohibitive. Councilman Bryant stated that Carson City has its own morning show. City Manager Switzer stated that social media is the main means of getting information out there now. Mayor Garry stated that the first goal is to create an activity on Main Street that attracts 50 attendees. Councilman Martin stated that child related events would encourage families to attend. City Manager Switzer stated that in Ely they started with a snow cone stop, added some ---PAGE BREAK--- local musicians and over time, the event grew; with no money from any government agency. Mayor Garry stated that we should not have empty buildings on our Main Street. City Manager Switzer stated that we need to encourage local restaurants to bring tables outside. Our sidewalks are wide enough that we can put things on them, bring in small mobile vendors. Councilman Martin suggested bringing in food trucks as other areas do. City Manager Switzer stated that the Yerington Chamber of Commerce and City Staff would bring forth a proposal to close streets and bring activates to our downtown. There being no further business the meeting was adjourned. Mayor of the City of Yerington ATTEST: Administrative Director/Interim City Clerk