Budget appointments, council stipends and a housing survey were among the items discussed at this week’s Creswell City Council meeting.
In the Mayor’s Report, Creswell Mayor Richard Zettervall announced that the Creswell Budget Committee appointments were made. Mayor Zettervall appointed Dave Stram; Councilor Misty Inman appointed Robert Jackson; Councilor Kevin Prociw appointed Clark Kent; and Councilor Judy Drago appointed Shaymond Nickelson. These are three year appointments. The terms on the Budget Committee expire in 2021.
In other business, city council also voted to amend the stipend policy to nix a wait period and a sunset clause on the document at Monday’s meeting.
A stipend is a predetermined amount of money that is provided periodically to help offset expenses, and can be used as an enticement to volunteers, the stipend policy reads.
The current stipend policy requires all newly elected officials to wait three months to be eligible for the stipend, but council noted in January that the wording of the policy created several questions.
Some of the questions raised regarding the stipend wait period were if a re-elected councilor is considered to be ”newly elected” and if a councilor that takes on the duties as mayor or council president should be subject to the three-month wait period.
Council agreed the wait period should be removed as it seems arbitrary and open to various interpretations, and voted unanimously to remove the eligibility period.
Council also discussed the sunset clause, which provides that the law shall cease to have effect after a specific date unless further legislative action is taken to extend the law. They noted that the stipends seem to be working well and are generally accepted by the community, so there is no need for the sunset clause.
The mayor receives a stipend of $150 per month, the council president $100 per month and the rest of the councilors $75 per month. Additionally, stipends also include a $75 technology stipend to offset the costs of maintaining home internet access via computer, phone or tablet.
CODE ENFORCEMENT, OTHER BIZ
There has been some work done at the charred Whistle Stop building at 213 S. Mill St. as the the damage from the November 2017 fire rendered the building a complete loss and a safety hazard.
Code Enforcement Officer Shelley Humble noted in her report that that in the month of January, the remaining interior walls on the second story were removed, the exterior south, north and east walls were removed and the debris continues to get cleaned up.
In other code business, the monthly report stated that there are currently three abandoned or foreclosed homes in Creswell, including 101 W. D St., 785 S. 2nd St. and 143 N. Front St.
As far as permits issued, in January there were six structural, plumbing and mechanical building permits issued; two construction permits issued; 12 electrical permits issued; one sign permit issued; and three fence permits issued. There were no permits issued for special event, new single family dwellings; new garages; shops or storage or commercial buildings.
A year-to-date (YTD) permit tally notes that there have been a total of 79 building permits issued; a total of 18 construction permits issued; a total of 45 electrical permits issued; one sign permit; six fence permits; four special event permits; and a total of 10 new single family dwelling permits issued. No YTD garage, shops, storage or commercial building have been issued.
City staff has been working with the LCSO to implement a secure Law Enforcement Data System (LEDS) portal through Lane County that will allow court staff the ability to run the court’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) records. Currently LCSO runs DMV records for driving infractions that are being seen in Municipal Court.
City Recorder Roberta Tharp said that staff is ready to begin Security Awareness Training and LEDS certification, and a policy needs to be put in place in order to do so. Council voted unanimously okayed the policy.
The next city council meeting will be a work session on Monday, Feb. 25, 6 p.m. at City Hall. The public is encouraged to attend.
