[0:00] 6:00 on August 17th will come to order.

[0:03] May I have a roll call, please?

[0:06] » Cheeseman

[0:06] » Here.

[0:07] » Gilbertson

[0:08] » Here.

[0:08] » Hellwick

[0:09] » Here.

[0:10] » Jenna Wine

[0:11] » Here.

[0:11] » Lever

[0:12] » Here.

[0:12] » Lias here.

[0:14] » Mura

[0:15] » Here.

[0:15] » Taller

[0:16] » Here.

[0:17] » Major O Kelly

[0:18] » Here. Will you please join me for the

[0:20] pledge of

[0:20] » Allegiance

[0:24] to the flag of the United States of

[0:26] America and to the republic for which it

[0:29] stands. One nation under God,

[0:32] indivisible, with liberty and justice

[0:35] for all.

[0:36] » Thank you very much.

[0:41] So, we've all received the minutes for

[0:43] the three meetings we've had since the

[0:44] last time we met. Has anybody have had a

[0:46] chance to read them? have any comments,

[0:48] corrections, revisions to the minutes of

[0:50] the last three meetings, including the

[0:52] one the orientation meeting

[0:56] » And move approval.

[0:57] » Move approval. I have a move to a motion

[0:59] to approve. Do I have a second?

[1:01] » Second.

[1:02] » All in favor of accepting these minutes

[1:03] indicate by saying I.

[1:05] » I.

[1:05] » Opposed? Nay.

[1:07] » The minutes are adopted. Uh the adoption

[1:10] of the agenda. We've all had a chance to

[1:12] see the agenda. Does anybody have any

[1:14] additions, revisions, or corrections to

[1:16] our current agenda?

[1:19] If not, I would entertain a motion to

[1:21] approve the the agenda as written.

[1:24] » Second.

[1:25] » Very good. Thank you. I got it. You got

[1:27] it. Okay. Thank you very much. All in

[1:28] favor of approving the agenda as written

[1:30] in campus saying I

[1:32] » Opposed. Nay. The agenda is adopted.

[1:36] So, uh, do we have any visitors to be

[1:38] heard on items not on the agenda?

[1:41] Members of the public may speak on any

[1:43] topic and remarks are limited to to five

[1:46] minutes and no decision will made at

[1:47] this time by the city council. Public

[1:50] testimony on items on the agenda.

[1:52] There'll be an opportunity for those as

[1:53] we go through the agenda. Okay. Are

[1:57] there any visitors to be heard on any

[1:59] items not on the agenda?

[2:04] Okay. Very good. We will move on to our

[2:07] public hearings.

[2:13] There we go. Um, so the first one is the

[2:17] resolution authorizing application for

[2:18] financial assistance for the Cotton Park

[2:20] parking lot. Jim,

[2:22] » Good evening members of the council. Uh,

[2:25] background here. The Cotton Park parking

[2:27] lot was built in around 1980 and was

[2:29] held up well over the years um through

[2:31] multiple water or flood events. However,

[2:34] the flood event in June of 24 caused

[2:37] significant damage to both the pavement

[2:39] and underlying base, resulting in

[2:41] buckling, crumbling, and rapid

[2:43] deterioration of the parking lot. At the

[2:45] same time, the Cotton Park parking lot

[2:48] has been getting heavily used with the

[2:50] new addition of the courts down there,

[2:53] uh the dis the disc golf course, the uh

[2:56] new shelter that we have in there, and

[2:57] still stands as kind of the parking lot

[2:59] main area for the hike bike path area.

[3:02] Um, the item that you have before you

[3:04] tonight is a required public hearing

[3:05] associated with the USDA rural

[3:07] development grant application. This

[3:09] hearing gives residents the opportunity

[3:10] to learn about the project, ask

[3:12] questions, and provide feedback before

[3:15] the city submits its application. The

[3:17] project was identified in the city's

[3:19] 2026 CIP with an estimated cost of

[3:22] $450,000.

[3:24] Based on the discussions with the USDA

[3:26] rural development, grant funding could

[3:28] possibly cover half the construction

[3:30] costs with the city's anticipated share

[3:32] coming from the second penny. The

[3:34] parking lot details, just a quick

[3:35] overview. Um, we're going to keep the

[3:37] parking lot within the same size or

[3:39] footprint that it is at now. Replace the

[3:41] existing asphalt with concrete just for

[3:44] longevity and and a better surface um to

[3:47] resist flooding or other possible future

[3:49] flood events. parking capacity of about

[3:51] 63 stalls and widening the entrance from

[3:54] 20 feet to 36 feet. Uh at this time, the

[3:58] only cost is associated with this is the

[4:01] the uh publication of the required

[4:03] public hearing notice. The grant

[4:04] application will be submitted this fall

[4:06] and if funding is awarded, construction

[4:08] would begin in early 2027. Staff is

[4:11] recommending approval of the resolution

[4:13] so the city can move forward with the

[4:14] USDA rule development grant application

[4:17] process. Um, tonight I have Clinton

[4:19] Christensen who has helped from SECOG

[4:21] which has helped or write this grant for

[4:23] the city. Um, and we'd be open to

[4:25] entertain any questions that council or

[4:27] the public may have.

[4:30] Thank you very much. Are there any

[4:31] members of the public wish to comment on

[4:33] this matter?

[4:37] How about members of the council? Gary.

[4:39] Oh, sorry. Gary was a little Go ahead.

[4:41] You go Gary first, then Jay. So Jim,

[4:43] when I read this this afternoon, I

[4:44] you're you're going to be putting

[4:46] concrete down instead of asphalt. I get

[4:48] that, but I also know concrete cracks,

[4:50] too. Uh is this going to be some kind of

[4:53] a special concrete to help withstand the

[4:57] the virtues of that river or what's the

[5:00] plan there?

[5:00] » That's a great question. And to help me

[5:02] answer that question, [laughter]

[5:05] I have an assistant with me tonight who

[5:07] also can kind of give you a little bit

[5:09] more details on that.

[5:10] So, the plan we're going to be using

[5:13] concrete. Uh, the concrete's going to be

[5:14] jointed. So, hopefully that's going to

[5:15] take care of most of the cracking. Um,

[5:18] that you typically might see if it's not

[5:20] jointed. Uh, in addition to that, the

[5:22] base of it is going to be reinforced.

[5:24] We're going to be using uh we're going

[5:26] to be using some uh my gosh, it's

[5:28] escaping. Um,

[5:31] sorry. We're going to be reinforcing the

[5:33] base. uh regardless of that. And then

[5:35] we're also going to be uh adding some

[5:37] fabric to make sure that all the fines

[5:39] and all the gravel stays underneath the

[5:41] concrete road. So all of these items put

[5:43] together will be uh hopefully

[5:46] prohibiting the the concrete to fail the

[5:48] same way that the asphalt did.

[5:51] » Thanks, Jake.

[5:53] » Uh maybe you don't know, Jose. You might

[5:54] know this as much as anybody, so don't

[5:56] go anywhere. Thank you.

[5:57] » Uh does the county still plan on like

[5:58] wrapping that river down there somewhere

[6:00] or are we sure? So, the the county uh we

[6:03] did speak with the county um I'm going

[6:05] to say about a month month and a half

[6:07] ago regarding that. Uh I believe that

[6:09] they're still planning on that. Uh they

[6:11] haven't uh the project their project

[6:14] hasn't gone out to bid at this point. Uh

[6:16] they are aware that we have this project

[6:18] coming up uh early next year more than

[6:20] likely uh and that they're going to be

[6:22] working at that point. They're going to

[6:24] be working around our schedule. Uh so we

[6:26] they have been made aware of it. I think

[6:28] right now they're trying to uh maybe uh

[6:31] have their uh their site for equipment

[6:33] and so forth on the east side of the

[6:35] river. So they're outside of the parking

[6:37] lot and the closure of the parking lot

[6:39] if it's necessary or will be necessary

[6:41] hopefully coincides when they're

[6:42] working. So then we can uh minimize the

[6:47] impact to the public as much as we can.

[6:51] » Yeah. just concerned and I'm sure if

[6:53] we've got a somebody doing planning this

[6:55] whole thing done it but there's a lot of

[6:59] river water bottom on that land and is

[7:02] are we already doing soil testing to

[7:03] make sure we're getting down deep enough

[7:04] to stabilize the ground before we start

[7:06] putting all the concrete in there.

[7:08] » So the it was we did actually did I

[7:11] think two borings two soil borings on

[7:13] the parking lot itself. Uh the geotech

[7:15] already did the design for the for the

[7:17] subbase. Uh and we're going to be using

[7:20] that as far as

[7:21] » So they've given you some statistics

[7:23] what what to use on the base then.

[7:25] » Yep. Yeah. That was required for the

[7:26] grant application as well.

[7:29] » Yes.

[7:31] » Uh why are we widening the driveway from

[7:34] 20 to 36 feet?

[7:36] » So right now there are some issues. Uh

[7:39] if whenever you have two cars there

[7:40] where they're and they're turning, uh

[7:42] you tend to have a little bit of uh uh

[7:45] vehicles uh getting stuck, not stuck,

[7:47] but they just take their time. So we

[7:49] don't want to we don't want to have cars

[7:50] stopping on Dakota Street waiting for

[7:53] somebody to turning out of the parking

[7:54] lot. 36 ft will allow hopefully for two

[7:57] vehicles to to get out whether they're

[8:00] going north or south and space for a car

[8:02] to come in at the same time.

[8:07] Thank you. I go to Cotton Park pretty

[8:09] regularly and I was glad to see that

[8:11] that you're widening that because it is

[8:12] it is an issue. Sometimes you have to

[8:14] stop and you're in the way. But may I

[8:16] ask how you came up with the number of

[8:18] parking spots you want? I rarely see

[8:20] more than two or three cars there at one

[8:21] time. Why do we need 66 or whatever

[8:23] parking spots?

[8:26] » Yours.

[8:27] » So So the the parking layout, as Jim

[8:31] mentioned, we are using the same

[8:32] footprint. uh we just went ahead and put

[8:35] as many as we could that met our

[8:37] standard of 9 by8 and 63 was what we

[8:41] came with. Uh there there isn't in this

[8:43] instance we didn't actually have a

[8:45] formula to go uh to go through. We just

[8:47] tried to at least have the the same

[8:49] amount that we had prior uh which I

[8:52] think was 558.

[8:54] Uh and then uh we just put as many as we

[8:57] could but we tried to not go below that

[8:59] number.

[9:01] I I get that that was clear in the memo,

[9:03] but uh there's I mean I've I don't think

[9:06] I've even for parties I bet I've seen 10

[9:08] there maybe somebody had a birthday

[9:10] party down there.

[9:11] » I can say that when I personally have

[9:14] gone pickle to play pickle ball. Uh I

[9:17] have probably seen about maybe half to

[9:19] 3/4 of that parking lot full. And it's

[9:22] not with just people that play pickle

[9:23] ball. We also have people that go and

[9:25] maybe are using the the shelter or

[9:28] taking their kids over to the playground

[9:30] equipment or playing frisbee golf. So, a

[9:32] lot of these things tend to come at the

[9:35] same time. But

[9:37] » I'm with you. It's probably rare, but we

[9:38] want to have the capacity for the

[9:40] » Yeah, cuz otherwise they don't have a

[9:41] place to park, right? Where are they

[9:42] going to park?

[9:43] » Don't allow parking on Dakota Street.

[9:45] » Very good. And if I may, I think you're

[9:47] only going to see Cotton Park being

[9:49] expanded down there as as um there's a

[9:51] new playground going to go down there

[9:52] hopefully within the next couple years.

[9:54] Um once the pickle ball courts really

[9:56] get used and and found out about, I

[9:59] think you're going to see heavier

[10:00] heavier traffic down there. So, we want

[10:01] to prepare for that as well.

[10:03] » Fair enough. Any further questions or qu

[10:06] comments from the city?

[10:13] » Nope. Uh the staff recommends adoption

[10:16] of this uh resolution. There's no

[10:18] financial consideration. Do I have a

[10:19] motion to adopt this or to approve this

[10:22] resolution?

[10:24] » Second.

[10:25] » All in favor indic.

[10:27] » I post nay. Passes. Thank you very much.

[10:30] Jim.

[10:38] » Don't go. There you go. There you go.

[10:39] Don't go too far away. First reading of

[10:41] the uh uh blue stem trail edition

[10:43] resoning for the co-ousing project. Yep.

[10:46] Jose,

[10:47] » Thank you. Uh so the city has been

[10:48] working with the owner of this property

[10:50] since 2024. Uh this property is located

[10:52] on the east side of Crawford Road. Um oh

[10:55] where is it? Here it is.

[11:00] All right. So this property is uh

[11:02] located on the east side of North

[11:03] Crawford Road and about 400 ft north of

[11:06] East Maine. Uh it's about uh 15 acres in

[11:09] size. As you can see, some of this

[11:11] property is uh within the R2 residential

[11:14] district, which is this pink area. Uh

[11:16] and then also within the NRC uh natural

[11:20] resource conservation district. Uh the

[11:22] R3 district does uh touch or is

[11:26] adjoining the property in question by

[11:28] this little strip right here. Uh this uh

[11:31] property was annexed into the city in

[11:32] March 2026. Um as such uh the property

[11:36] owner uh has a process to follow for uh

[11:40] for reszoning. Uh and this process the

[11:43] the the fact that some of it was already

[11:45] within city limits and another portion

[11:47] was actually annexed at a later time

[11:49] makes that process a little bit uh

[11:51] different than typical uh for anything

[11:53] that's already within city limits like

[11:55] this R2 area. uh for that to be

[11:58] resoneed, the property owner would

[11:59] actually be required to acquire

[12:02] signatures or petitions from uh property

[12:04] owners within 250 ft of that area. But

[12:07] then the area that was recently annexed,

[12:10] so essentially this uh shaded area or

[12:13] the NRC area, well, he's not required to

[12:16] do that. Uh so what staff uh did was to

[12:20] essentially remove the requirement to uh

[12:23] to file an application and to pay the

[12:25] reszoning fee but still was required to

[12:29] to acquire all the signatures as far as

[12:31] the petitions and all the notices and

[12:33] all the letters. All of that was still

[12:34] sent to the property owners. Uh based on

[12:37] that u the owner's plan is to develop

[12:39] the area for residential uses. Uh the

[12:42] intent is to have uh

[12:47] the intent is to actually have Oh, let

[12:49] me sorry

[12:52] it's on the other side.

[12:57] The intent is to actually have uh some

[13:01] town homes on the north side and on the

[13:03] west side and then this large area here

[13:06] would be uh the co-ousing area. uh that

[13:09] co-housing area uh looking at it right

[13:12] here uh would then be actually composed

[13:15] of uh several I think it's 26 units uh

[13:19] and then a larger u house I guess if you

[13:23] want to call it that where they would be

[13:24] able to have more shared meals and a

[13:27] space to share maybe have some get

[13:29] togethers and so forth along with some

[13:31] green spaces. Uh all of these uh shared

[13:34] uses would be available to the to the

[13:37] residents of this co-housing project uh

[13:40] this uh this staff uh after talking to

[13:43] the with the owner uh we propose that

[13:45] this area should actually be resone to

[13:47] the R3 district rather rather than the

[13:50] R2 uh choice the the reasons for that is

[13:53] that the uh a lot of the the items that

[13:56] would actually be considered uh

[13:59] essential for the co-ousing uh some of

[14:01] the the driveways private roads. Uh the

[14:03] lack of frontages for each of these

[14:05] individual properties would make it

[14:07] difficult to be in the R2. So again, the

[14:10] R3. In addition to that, then you also

[14:12] had the size of the development. Uh the

[14:15] R2 sets a max uh of 16 bedrooms. Uh this

[14:20] development would have somewhere between

[14:22] 52 and 54. Uh so again, that's that's a

[14:25] larger number that would have actually

[14:26] been allowed in the R2. Uh so all of

[14:29] these items put together then uh would

[14:32] benefit or would point to this area

[14:34] being reszoned to the R3 district if

[14:36] possible. Uh this item was considered by

[14:38] the planning and zoning commission on

[14:40] August 10th. Uh at that meeting uh one

[14:42] individual did uh talk in favor of the

[14:45] proposed project and and recommended or

[14:48] said that the item should be approved by

[14:50] the PL by the city council. Uh after a

[14:53] brief discussion, the commission

[14:54] recommended unanimously A to Z for the

[14:56] city council to approve the reszoning uh

[14:59] the resone as proposed by staff.

[15:01] Administration and the planning

[15:02] commission recommend that the city

[15:04] council advance the ordinance uh to a

[15:06] second reading on September 8th.

[15:09] » Thank you very much. Are there any

[15:10] members of the public who have a comment

[15:12] about this proposed ordinance?

[15:17] » No. How about members of the city

[15:19] council? Any comments or suggestions?

[15:21] Would Lindsay beat you yet? Gary

[15:24] Lindsay,

[15:25] » Um, can you I'm a little confused by

[15:28] some of the roads that are note are

[15:31] notated on these maps. Should we take

[15:33] that I mean to heart. For example, Clark

[15:36] Street. Is that is that going to be

[15:39] Clark Street?

[15:40] » So Clark Street right now is there's a

[15:44] cutout for Clark on this side.

[15:47] Right. I don't know if you can see that

[15:49] little

[15:52] I don't want to say trust me but trust

[15:54] me Clark Street is right there right now

[15:57] the the remainder of that would be

[15:58] platted if Clark Street would be

[16:00] continued west of that point it would uh

[16:03] connect to the Clark Street at Norbec.

[16:06] So the proposal is to extend that uh

[16:08] further east and then on this

[16:11] development here then that would turn

[16:13] north and uh follow the 16th line at

[16:17] that point.

[16:19] » It's at least close enough to get a

[16:20] little angle and connect the other side.

[16:22] » No, it's right across it. There's no

[16:25] angle. [laughter]

[16:27] » Gary, did you have a comment?

[16:29] » Yeah. Am I going to assume that uh I

[16:31] read this in here, but uh a lot of the

[16:33] uh communal housing in there is going to

[16:35] be for seniors?

[16:36] » My understanding is that all of it is

[16:38] going to be for

[16:39] » All of it's going to be for

[16:40] » And we're talking about this this area

[16:42] here, the the area that's the co-housing

[16:45] portion of it,

[16:46] » But not the town homes.

[16:48] » No, the town homes, anybody can move

[16:50] there is my understanding. Again,

[16:54] » I'm certainly happy to hear that. I

[16:56] think one of the things that of course

[16:57] we've been discussing is a need for

[16:59] senior housing.

[17:04] » Anybody have any questions? I I have a

[17:07] question that I don't remember the

[17:10] parking rules by heart the formulas but

[17:13] is how about the R3 off streetet parking

[17:17] uh formula. Does this meet that the

[17:19] requirements of zoning?

[17:21] » So it will

[17:22] » There is there is one, right? I'm sorry.

[17:24] There is one there is a formula for

[17:25] » Yeah, there is uh we we haven't looked

[17:28] at that at this point as much uh just

[17:31] because we're just talking about

[17:32] reszoning. Uh but through conversations

[17:34] with the developer and the owner, uh my

[17:37] our understanding is that all of these

[17:39] units is going to they're going to have

[17:40] enough space within the driveway

[17:43] » Uh to account for their parking. They're

[17:45] they're also going to have a one-stall

[17:46] garage. So the ordinance also allows for

[17:48] the one stall garage to account for

[17:50] that. Uh and then they're also going to

[17:52] be having parking spaces in front of the

[17:54] the larger house uh as well. So that

[17:57] also accounts can be used for that

[17:59] formula.

[18:00] » I understand that question might be

[18:01] premature at this point.

[18:02] » Yep.

[18:05] » All right. So any other comments or

[18:08] questions for Jose?

[18:11] Well, I would entertain a motion to uh

[18:14] advance this to a second reading on

[18:16] September 8th if anybody was so willing

[18:18] to move that.

[18:20] Is there a second? Second.

[18:22] » All in favor of moving this uh planning

[18:25] zoning commission or advancing ordinance

[18:28] 1573 to a second read September 8th.

[18:30] Please indicate saying I.

[18:32] » I oppose. Nay.

[18:35] Motion passes. Thank you.

[18:41] One question. No comments yet from our

[18:44] This is very good.

[18:45] » Uh okay. Item seven, consent agenda.

[18:49] Uh any item listed on the consent agenda

[18:51] may by the request of any single council

[18:53] member be considered a separate item

[18:55] under the new business section of the

[18:56] agenda. If a member of the public would

[18:58] like to discuss any consent agenda item,

[19:00] please notify the well me during the

[19:02] public comment period to have it

[19:03] considered a separate item. Does anybody

[19:05] have any questions or comments on or

[19:08] anything removed from the consent

[19:09] agenda?

[19:12] I don't know if you were standing up to

[19:13] come forward. You're you're good. Okay.

[19:15] Anybody on the city council have any

[19:17] items they want remove from the consent

[19:18] agenda and move to new business?

[19:23] If not, I would entertain a motion to

[19:24] approve the consent agenda items.

[19:28] » Is there a second?

[19:30] Second.

[19:31] » All in favor of approving the consent

[19:33] agenda items indicate by saying I. I.

[19:36] » Opposed? Nay. Consent agenda passes.

[19:49] Okay, old business. We have none. No old

[19:51] business. Moving on to new business.

[19:53] Mid-American, please come forward.

[19:57] » This is my first year of meeting you.

[19:59] So, if you can remind me of your name

[20:00] and

[20:02] » Great uh Sam Wagner, business and

[20:04] community development manager with uh

[20:06] Mid-American Energy. So, mayor, good to

[20:09] meet you from the other side of the

[20:11] room. practically. Um so, hey, uh

[20:15] members of the council, uh John, it's

[20:17] good to see you again. Um as part of

[20:20] our, uh franchise agreement with with

[20:22] the uh city of Vermillion, um you're

[20:25] blessed on an annual basis to have me

[20:27] come and tell you about uh all the great

[20:29] things Mid-American is doing here, uh in

[20:31] Vermillion. Um and so uh you know

[20:35] honestly last year was kind of a light

[20:37] year in terms of uh uh new projects uh

[20:40] new services uh within the within the

[20:42] city. Um it was um sort of I don't have

[20:46] the exact figures but in terms of like

[20:48] the number of projects it was down a

[20:50] little bit this year. Um but we've had

[20:52] some uh uh some residential services uh

[20:55] that we've run a couple of new services

[20:58] over at the ICU everywhere these days.

[21:02] I don't know if that's a good thing or

[21:03] not. Um, uh, couple of projects, a

[21:07] couple of new services at the, uh,

[21:09] University of South Dakota, uh, that,

[21:11] uh, that were wrapped up. Um, and then,

[21:15] uh, in terms of, uh, coverage, um, the,

[21:19] uh, staff coverage that we have for the

[21:21] city of Vermillion, uh, to cover these

[21:23] things. Uh, primarily, um, our

[21:25] engineering staff is based out of, uh,

[21:27] Sou Falls. Um, so we have uh our uh our

[21:32] lead tech uh for Vermillion uh Tim Forch

[21:35] uh who's actually done this presentation

[21:37] uh on occasion in the past. Uh Tim

[21:39] continues to uh chase down projects and

[21:42] uh uh deliver on those uh designs uh for

[21:46] uh new services uh commercial and

[21:49] residential and and industrial when they

[21:51] come up. So he continues to cover

[21:53] Vermillion. We have a couple of uh field

[21:55] guys uh that are based uh here in

[21:58] Vermillion. Um that has not changed. Um

[22:02] and all of that is backed up by

[22:04] operational teams out of Sou Falls and

[22:06] Sous City. And uh if we need to, we'll

[22:09] go tap the few guys up in Yankton as

[22:11] well to come down if there's any kind of

[22:13] emergency. So Vermillion really does

[22:15] kind of sit in a in kind of a sweet spot

[22:17] in terms of uh available resources from

[22:20] uh the engineering, design, and

[22:21] operational standpoint.

[22:24] um uh had them run some uh on that

[22:28] operational side um leaks uh you know

[22:32] gas leaks on occasion. So uh we had

[22:35] within the last 12 months we've had 167

[22:39] uh reported leaks uh within uh

[22:41] Vermillion. Usually that's just like you

[22:43] know you know within homes and

[22:45] residences and and small businesses. Uh

[22:48] nothing major, nothing super dangerous,

[22:49] but it's something that we hop on very

[22:51] very quickly. So out of that 167 uh

[22:54] number 165 of those leaks were addressed

[22:57] and dealt with within 60 minutes. Uh the

[23:00] remaining two went over that 60-minute

[23:02] mark primarily because of weather. So,

[23:06] um,

[23:07] uh, mainly, uh, oh, and the other thing

[23:10] I want to point out is, uh, in recent

[23:12] years, we've gotten on to, uh, kind of

[23:14] a, uh, annual, uh, rotation, uh, to meet

[23:17] with, u, uh, John and his staff, uh, to

[23:21] review upcoming projects. Um, that

[23:23] meeting is coming up. We need to

[23:24] schedule that. Um, but, uh, we we do

[23:27] that at least on a on an annual basis.

[23:29] Looking forward to doing that again. Um,

[23:32] next time I think we should have that

[23:33] meeting before I address your council.

[23:35] Give me better material.

[23:36] » Okay.

[23:37] » So, um, but with that I'll take any

[23:40] questions you might have.

[23:41] » Thank you. Thank you very much, Sam.

[23:43] Does any member of the public have any

[23:44] questions for a mid- American?

[23:48] » Okay. Al,

[23:49] » Well, just when you said 167 leaks, I'm

[23:52] went that may not be much to you, but to

[23:54] me it sounds like a lot.

[23:55] » Sure.

[23:56] » Would Would the majority of those be

[23:57] things like pilot light went out, they

[23:59] just had to relight it? I mean, or gas

[24:02] leak going into the house. And what

[24:03] would you how would you paraphrase?

[24:04] » Yeah. Yeah. Um, it's it's a lot of pilot

[24:07] light stuff. Yeah, it's a lot of pilot

[24:09] light. Um, there uh we've had no major

[24:13] leaks uh in Vermillion during that time.

[24:15] So, yeah, that number I think can be a

[24:17] little uh a little alarming when you see

[24:19] it. Um but uh you know that's part of

[24:23] what we do when managing our system is

[24:24] if if we have a molecule of gas that's

[24:27] leaking out that we're that we're made

[24:28] aware of, we jump on it. And um you know

[24:31] each one of these systems and homes of

[24:33] varying varying ages and and um uh

[24:37] conditions and so on does present a lot

[24:39] of opportunities for that and so we

[24:41] chase those down as quickly as we can.

[24:43] So yeah, nothing major.

[24:47] » I think Jay was first. I can help you a

[24:49] little bit with that, Al. Um, I did have

[24:51] to call you guys this last year.

[24:52] Something simple as I got a new gas

[24:53] range and the coupler that came with it

[24:55] to catch the old gas pipe, there was

[24:58] like a a coupler head versus a flathead

[25:00] or something, whatever it was. I had the

[25:02] wrong one and it was just slightly

[25:03] leaking,

[25:04] » But the guy who came was very very

[25:05] helpful and very friendly and he he

[25:07] pulled out his little scanner deal and

[25:09] say, "Yeah, there's a slight leak back

[25:10] there and told me exactly the one to get

[25:12] and got it and fixed it up."

[25:14] » Yeah.

[25:14] » So, it's just simple stuff like that was

[25:16] like 10 15 minute fix.

[25:19] Lindsay, would you Oh, no, sorry, Julia.

[25:22] » Well, I guess it's a little unfair if

[25:23] you haven't met with John yet, but I

[25:25] just want to see with our new expansions

[25:27] and developments, you know, especially

[25:29] as we are not just building new homes or

[25:32] apartments, but sort of expanding

[25:33] outside of uh previous limits, do you

[25:35] all feel properly informed and prepared

[25:38] for such expansions?

[25:39] » Yeah. Yeah, we do. And um uh yeah, we're

[25:42] well familiar with the uh with the

[25:44] growth patterns um and some of the

[25:46] annexation plans that the city of

[25:48] Vermillion has. And so part of that

[25:50] coordination is just um allowing us to

[25:53] kind of see what's coming so that we can

[25:55] half the half the phone is keeping up

[25:57] with you guys. Um so yeah, I think we're

[26:00] in a pretty good spot there. Um there's

[26:02] nothing even, you know, even the uh uh

[26:04] proposed development that was described

[26:06] earlier, that's not a particular concern

[26:08] of ours. And we've also had a number

[26:10] over the last couple of years um uh

[26:14] several uh like infill uh infill

[26:17] projects um that has kind of allowed us

[26:20] to kind of reconfigure our system and

[26:22] take advantage of those infill projects

[26:24] to uh prepare for future growth and

[26:28] understanding where the annexation

[26:29] patterns are are are headed are

[26:31] incredibly important to us. And so

[26:33] coordinating with John and his team has

[26:35] been very helpful.

[26:38] Any other questions for Sam? I have a

[26:41] question. A couple of weeks ago, we lost

[26:43] we had a burst water pipe. You know, I

[26:46] mean, these things happen. How are your

[26:48] pipes? Are they maintained? You have a

[26:50] replacement schedule. What kind of shape

[26:51] are they in? Are they 20 years more life

[26:53] or how do you manage your pipes?

[26:54] » Yeah. So, we go through we go through,

[26:56] in fact, we just wrapped one up, I

[26:58] think, a couple of years ago. We we'll

[27:00] we'll focus on the town and do a full uh

[27:03] full review of the pipes underground.

[27:05] And I want to say I'm kind of going off

[27:07] of memory here, but I want to say we did

[27:09] something uh for Vermillion a couple of

[27:12] years ago. Um so um that sort of

[27:15] proactive maintenance, if you will, um

[27:17] is part of our overall maintenance plan

[27:20] uh for our, you know, for our system. We

[27:22] can't do everything all at one time.

[27:23] That's an awful lot of pipes. So we do

[27:25] concentrate on certain areas um and then

[27:28] come back to them um in a in a rotation

[27:31] and then as problems come up um as they

[27:34] like your burst water pipe for example

[27:36] sometimes you know nature has other

[27:38] plans for us uh we'll respond

[27:40] accordingly but we do have a proactive

[27:42] maintenance plan all across our entire

[27:44] system.

[27:44] » Thank you. That's comforting and we

[27:46] appreciate that.

[27:47] » Y

[27:49] » Are there any other questions for Sam?

[27:51] In that case, thank you very much and

[27:53] we'll see you next year after you meet

[27:54] with John.

[27:55] » Yep, that's true. Oh, and uh we have a

[27:58] franchise coming up. So, uh the

[28:01] franchise agreement for uh the city of

[28:03] Vermillion comes up in I believe the end

[28:05] of February uh I want to say. So, um yet

[28:08] more opportunities to uh to work with

[28:11] the city of Vermillion and put that

[28:12] agreement in place for the future.

[28:14] » Okay.

[28:15] » Thank you very much.

[28:16] » Thank you.

[28:19] » Uh where are we at? So item B, request

[28:22] to close down uh the road for a

[28:24] fraternity sorority party. Is that you,

[28:26] Alex?

[28:27] » Thank you. So we have a request from the

[28:30] USD sorority and fraternity life. Uh we

[28:32] have some representatives here from them

[28:33] as well. Uh they would like to close

[28:35] East Cedar Street from North Pine Street

[28:37] to North Plum Street on September 17th,

[28:39] 2026 from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. for a

[28:42] block party. Um the actual event itself

[28:44] will be from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. That

[28:46] additional time from 5:00 to 6:00 and

[28:48] from 7:00 to 8 or 8:00 to 9:00 will be

[28:51] for setup and takeown of the event. Um

[28:53] for the event itself, there will be

[28:55] three food trucks there. Um and it as

[28:58] the applicants have told me, it will be

[29:00] a dry event. Um additionally, they will

[29:02] have a team of five individuals who will

[29:04] clean up the streets after the event and

[29:06] in in front of the respective houses if

[29:08] those were to get dirty. Um everything

[29:12] is included in the packet. Our street

[29:13] police fires departments did not have

[29:15] any issues with this closure. Um

[29:17] administration recommends that the city

[29:18] council approved their request to close

[29:20] East Cedar Street from North Pine Street

[29:22] to North Plum Street on Thursday,

[29:23] September 17th, 2026 from 5:00 p.m. to

[29:26] 9:00 p.m. for the USD sority and

[29:27] fraternity life block party.

[29:30] » Thank you. Are there any members of the

[29:32] public who'd like to talk about this

[29:33] subject?

[29:36] Come on.

[29:39] No. Okay. So, uh I'm glad you told me it

[29:43] was a dry event because we don't start

[29:44] driving the bus until 10 o'clock on. All

[29:46] right. So, I'm not said about that. Yes,

[29:50] Julia.

[29:52] » Well, first of all, I'm super excited

[29:53] that you all are celebrating

[29:54] Constitution Day. So, well, um

[29:57] [laughter] but then I'm just wondering

[29:59] if there will be an associated um you

[30:02] call that um noise um exemption planned

[30:06] for this as well or if you're not um

[30:10] anticipating exceeding noise levels.

[30:13] » I can also assist with that question as

[30:15] well. With the new noise ordinance that

[30:17] we passed um with September, it would

[30:19] need to start at 8, but since they're

[30:21] cleaning up from 8 to 9, we didn't

[30:22] believe that they needed a noise permit

[30:24] for it. Okay.

[30:25] » We also don't plan on using anything.

[30:29] » Hi, I'm Emma. I'm one of the

[30:31] representatives from student sorority

[30:32] and fraternity life. Um, we don't plan

[30:34] on using anything bigger than like a

[30:36] normal standard size speaker. Um, so we

[30:38] don't anticipate it getting super loud

[30:39] and will be cleaned up hopefully by 8:30

[30:42] at the latest.

[30:44] » Thank you. Why don't you hang out for a

[30:46] minute, Emma, in case people have

[30:47] further questions. Okay. Anybody have

[30:50] any questions for Emma?

[30:55] Okay. Uh so I would entertain a motion

[30:58] to approve this uh request to close East

[31:01] Cedar Street from Alpha FE to PYI

[31:04] uh on September 17th.

[31:09] » It has been moved. Do I have a second?

[31:12] » All in favor of allowing the street

[31:14] closure indicate by saying I

[31:16] » Oppose? Nay.

[31:18] Motion passes. We'll see you at 10:00.

[31:22] Thank you.

[31:27] » All right. So, the first reading of

[31:29] ordinance 1564 about a our cable

[31:31] franchise agreement with Midco. Uh John.

[31:34] » Sure. Thank you, mayor. Uh in 2016, the

[31:36] city council entered into a 10-year

[31:38] franchise agreement with Midco or

[31:40] Mid-Continent Communications. Uh as you

[31:42] might do the math, that is coming to an

[31:44] expir here um in the coming month.

[31:46] Actually, it expires in October. We did

[31:48] receive a proposal from Midco to extend

[31:50] the existing terms and conditions for an

[31:52] additional 10 years. Uh the only two

[31:54] changes that they are noting is instead

[31:57] of having a rate card that they would

[31:58] provide to the city to have on file each

[32:01] time a rate changes, they would uh

[32:03] maintain a website that continually has

[32:05] the rates available. The second one

[32:07] really has to do with um FCC order 621.

[32:11] It really has changed how quote free

[32:13] cable has worked. Um when this ordinance

[32:17] uh was the last ordinance 1345 was

[32:19] adopted in 2016, there were a list of

[32:21] buildings that would receive uh free

[32:23] cable service as part of the franchise

[32:24] agreement. This FCC order basically

[32:27] eliminated um the requirement for cable

[32:30] companies to do that and instead um what

[32:33] free cable means is that they don't bill

[32:36] us for the cable, they take it out of

[32:38] the franchise fee payments that we would

[32:40] receive. So, um, Midco and I had a

[32:44] little discussion as to what really free

[32:45] cable was if you're charging us for it.

[32:48] Um, but so that is what free cable means

[32:51] now. Instead of, um, literally being

[32:53] free, it it comes out of our franchise

[32:55] uh, fees they would otherwise receive.

[32:58] Um, and there are three buildings that

[32:59] we have that receive um, this anymore.

[33:01] When we this order went into effect

[33:03] about two years ago, there was a lot of

[33:05] different buildings in the community. um

[33:08] uh our schools, uh senior center, um a

[33:11] lot of different places that did receive

[33:13] it and those um pretty much all uh were

[33:15] eliminated from being eligible for free

[33:18] cable. And now we have three city

[33:20] buildings that continue to receive um

[33:22] this city hall here uh building, our

[33:25] service center, and the fire EMS. Um the

[33:28] rest of the golf course is handled

[33:30] separately because that has more of a

[33:31] public viewing than what those other

[33:33] buildings do. So they literally receive

[33:35] the same bill as somebody would at home.

[33:37] Um I would note that the 5% franchise

[33:40] fee that's paid on eligible services uh

[33:43] last year in 2025 that amounted to

[33:45] $56,112.

[33:47] So that is revenue that comes uh to the

[33:49] city from that. Um administration would

[33:51] recommend that ordinance 1564 to extend

[33:54] the cable franchise agreement with Midco

[33:56] uh for an additional 10 years be

[33:58] advanced to a second reading on

[34:00] September 8th.

[34:02] » Thank you. Are there any visitors we

[34:03] heard on this subject?

[34:06] Members of the coun members of the

[34:08] council.

[34:13] Well, I have a few questions. Is this 5%

[34:15] normal uh among cities? This is a normal

[34:18] rate that uh people pay.

[34:20] » Yes, the 5% is the highest that is

[34:23] allowed um by the [clears throat] FCC

[34:25] and it's pretty typical with most

[34:26] cities.

[34:27] » Very good. And my other question was

[34:29] that of the

[34:31] establishments that used to get free

[34:32] cable that ended two years ago.

[34:35] » I believe it was 2 years ago that there

[34:40] um yes it seemed like not the intern

[34:42] last summer, the intern year before put

[34:44] all those letters together and we

[34:46] notified those entities and I think um

[34:48] it probably ended around September or so

[34:51] um when it actually took effect. Well,

[34:54] well, my question is, should those

[34:56] continue to have free cable? I mean,

[34:58] they're charging. It's not free anymore,

[35:00] right? They're they're they're charging

[35:01] us, so you're subtracting it. Are there

[35:02] should we, the city, be subsidizing some

[35:04] of these places for their quote unquote

[35:07] free cable, or did we have that

[35:09] conversation two years ago?

[35:11] » I don't know. I don't know that it came

[35:13] before the council. Um I think we viewed

[35:15] it as um is it city's cost to provide

[35:19] those? And so that's why we we pulled

[35:21] that back and eliminated we eliminated

[35:23] several city buildings that had there

[35:24] was um I know it was in 2024 because

[35:27] they had sites listed that were no

[35:29] longer active such as Jolly School um

[35:32] Austin school were listed on there. So I

[35:34] know it was in 2024. So part of us

[35:35] cleaning up their list um but we yeah I

[35:40] there were some that we approached that

[35:41] were on the list that said we didn't

[35:43] even know we had it and they were never

[35:45] hooked up to it or they were using it

[35:47] for the internet piece.

[35:49] piece with the school and the main

[35:50] street center and some of those that are

[35:53] public good. I mean they're paying now

[35:55] out of their own pocket for cable. I

[35:57] assume they all have cable obviously.

[35:59] » Yeah, that I don't know. We haven't

[36:00] followed up to see if they still have

[36:01] cable or not. Um I know Damon Albby and

[36:04] I had a conversation about it because I

[36:06] think some of our school buildings had

[36:07] more interest in it than others.

[36:10] » Okay.

[36:13] » Any questions for John about Yes. Go

[36:15] ahead, please, Jeff. John, there's no

[36:16] other companies that want this business

[36:20] other than Midco.

[36:22] » Good question. It is not exclusive. So,

[36:25] um, Blue Peak, uh, their their

[36:27] predecessor, but now Blue Peak, you can

[36:29] receive television, um, services through

[36:32] Blue Peak that qualify as cable. So, if

[36:35] another cable company comes along and

[36:37] wants to provide, uh, television

[36:38] services, it's a non-exclusive

[36:40] franchise. And so, that's why we're one

[36:42] of the few that has two of these. in uh

[36:44] Blue Peak. We've scheduled them for

[36:46] their annual report just like Sam just

[36:48] did with Mid American. I think that's in

[36:50] October they're coming, but they'll come

[36:53] before the city council do their update.

[36:55] » And I should say MidCo's I believe Midco

[36:58] will be here at our next meeting uh to

[36:59] present their annual report.

[37:03] » Thank you. Thank you for clarifying

[37:04] that. Any other questions for John about

[37:06] this uh franchise?

[37:10] I would entertain a motion to advance

[37:12] ordinance 1564 to a second reading on

[37:14] September 8th.

[37:16] » Moved seconded. All in favor of

[37:18] advancing the second reading indicate by

[37:20] saying I.

[37:21] » I oppose. Nay. Motion passes.

[37:27] » Uh historical presto historic is it

[37:29] historic or historical? Historic

[37:31] preservation commission appointments. We

[37:33] have two reappointments. uh when we had

[37:36] no further no additional applications.

[37:38] So I would re I recommend with your

[37:41] consent that we approve Susan Keith Gray

[37:43] reappoint Susan Keith Gray and Carson

[37:45] Murwan to their posts on the historic

[37:47] preservation commission.

[37:52] Oh, sorry. Thank you. Thank you. Any

[37:54] members of the public have a comment on

[37:56] this these reappointments?

[37:59] Thank Thank you very much. I'll get it.

[38:01] I'll get it. Five members of the council

[38:03] have comments.

[38:07] » Second.

[38:07] » All in favor of reappointing Susan Keith

[38:09] Gray and Carson Murkw historic

[38:11] preservation commission appointment,

[38:12] please indicate by saying I. I

[38:14] » Oppose. Nay. Appointments are are done.

[38:17] Very good.

[38:19] Um

[38:21] what about this? Do we discuss this?

[38:24] » You certainly can. So if you want me to

[38:26] start off.

[38:27] » Yeah, please go ahead. So, at the last

[38:28] city council meeting, uh there's a

[38:30] question about uh broadcaster press and

[38:33] how best to handle that. And what we had

[38:35] suggested um at that point in time is

[38:37] that we would listed as an open account

[38:38] claim. So, the next agenda item says

[38:40] open account claim uh broadcaster press

[38:42] for $2,323.34.

[38:45] Periodically, once to maybe both

[38:48] meetings each month due to legal notices

[38:50] we place um other ads and those

[38:52] respective publications, the broadcast

[38:54] or plane talk, we receive a a bill at

[38:56] least once a month. And so, um, there's

[38:58] a question with Mr. Lias, um, had, uh,

[39:01] worked full-time for broadcaster press

[39:03] organization, um, whether or not that

[39:06] was a conflict. And so, the proposal was

[39:08] that we would just list as an open

[39:10] account claim rather than under invoices

[39:12] payable. So, it'd be easier, uh, for Mr.

[39:14] Lias to abstain um, uh, from voting on

[39:17] that versus not being able to vote on

[39:20] all of the other um, uh, other bills and

[39:22] invoices payable. So we list it under

[39:25] invoices payable and it's noted that

[39:27] it's under new business and then we list

[39:29] the respective account claim here and I

[39:32] would suggest that if we have and we do

[39:34] from time to time a city council member

[39:35] travels on behalf of the city there's

[39:37] reimbursement um for those items that

[39:40] those would be listed in a similar

[39:42] manner. Um uh the city attorney did

[39:45] provide guidance after we kind of set up

[39:47] the system um and I'll let Mr. Hinds if

[39:50] you wanted to uh explain it from a more

[39:52] legal manner that um as I understand it

[39:55] that it wouldn't necessarily need to be

[39:57] handled this way. It may be a matter of

[39:59] um the message that the city council

[40:01] wants to communicate or the transparency

[40:02] that you want to communicate with how

[40:04] you handle this. Right? So generally

[40:06] speaking a direct financial interest

[40:08] would be someone who is an owner uh of a

[40:11] specific entity. If someone were merely

[40:13] an employee of that entity we wouldn't

[40:16] consider that necessarily a direct

[40:17] interest. Um that being said, it is a

[40:20] responsibility of every individual

[40:22] member to determine if they have a

[40:24] conflict where they would want to

[40:26] abstain from voting. Um this in this

[40:29] particular instance, I don't think it's

[40:31] critical. Uh but the member could always

[40:34] decide to abstain from the appearance of

[40:36] having any sort of direct or indirect

[40:39] interest.

[40:42] » Thank you.

[40:43] » Um Council Member Elias did abstain from

[40:45] voting on this item.

[40:48] Very good. So, uh, we discussed this at

[40:52] our noon meeting. I don't have any

[40:54] further questions. Anybody else have any

[40:55] further questions regarding this issue?

[40:58] Well, I would entertain a motion to pay

[40:59] the broadcaster 23234.

[41:03] So, move

[41:04] » Second.

[41:05] » All in favor of paying them paying our

[41:06] bill say I.

[41:09] » Oppos? Nay.

[41:11] Thank you very much and thank you,

[41:12] David, for being uh so considerate. Uh

[41:16] the last the next item rather is uh the

[41:20] bid opening for our electrical

[41:21] transformers.

[41:22] » Thank you. Um so light and power

[41:24] department requested bids on electric

[41:26] transformers uh to both replenish our

[41:28] inventory and to stock up and get ready

[41:30] for specific projects in the future. Uh

[41:32] this year we requested bids on a total

[41:34] of 16 transformers varying at seven

[41:36] different sizes. Um bid documents were

[41:38] sent out to 17 potential um biders. Uh,

[41:42] out of those 17 suppliers that we sent

[41:44] those out to, we received six bids. Um,

[41:46] however, only five of those bids

[41:47] included proper bid security. Um, and

[41:51] then two of those five actually included

[41:53] bids on transformers that were on the

[41:55] the acceptable uh manufacturers list.

[41:58] So, those two were the only two that we

[42:00] evaluated. Um, for the transformers, the

[42:03] evaluation process that we look at is is

[42:05] we look at the operating losses over the

[42:07] life cycle of the transformer. Um so on

[42:10] the bid tab you'll see the total base

[42:12] price which is the initial cost of the

[42:14] transformers up front and then you'll

[42:16] see the total evaluated cost which is

[42:18] the cost of the transformers through

[42:20] their entire life cycle. Um using this

[42:22] process we resco out of Morhead

[42:25] Minnesota uh was the lowest bid with a

[42:28] base price of $146,959

[42:31] and the evaluated price of $210,4520.

[42:36] Uh these transformers have an estimated

[42:38] delivery of 12 to 13 weeks which would

[42:40] put the delivery here in 2026, excuse

[42:43] [clears throat] me. Um this purchase was

[42:45] not fully budgeted for so a revision

[42:47] will be necessary to cover the cost of

[42:48] these. Um however we do have sufficient

[42:50] funds in the reserve account for the

[42:52] light and power department. Uh with that

[42:54] administration recommends awarding the

[42:55] bid to resco with an initial purchase

[42:57] price of $146,959

[43:00] and a total evaluated price of

[43:02] $210,4520.

[43:06] Thank you, Shane. Do any members of the

[43:08] public have any comments about this bid?

[43:11] » Just like explaining what's the the

[43:13] evaluated price. What's what's that

[43:15] mean?

[43:15] » So, so when a transformer is operating

[43:18] and the electricity is it's doing its

[43:20] job, there's going to be some losses,

[43:21] right? It's not 100% efficient. So when

[43:23] they supply their their their bids to

[43:25] us, they give us a couple numbers that

[43:27] we plug into an an equation that tells

[43:30] us this is how much electricity is going

[43:31] to be lost through this thing's lifetime

[43:33] while it's operating out in the system.

[43:35] And so the more efficient, the cheaper

[43:37] it is over the next 30 years, right? And

[43:39] so we evaluate that when we're looking

[43:41] at these. And so we don't look at just

[43:42] what does it cost us up front. We look

[43:44] at what is this really going to cost us

[43:45] once it's out in the system for for 30

[43:47] years.

[43:48] » So you want to so we want to lower

[43:50] » Exactly

[43:50] » Outside revenue. Okay.

[43:52] » Yep. Thank you.

[43:53] » Yes, Jay.

[43:55] » So, this looks like about 25% different

[43:57] from the total base to that um evaluated

[43:59] cost. We don't have a 25% loss in energy

[44:03] at that point, do we?

[44:05] » No.

[44:06] You're getting pretty deep into the

[44:07] weeds when you start getting into that

[44:09] that that equation. Um and so, um I

[44:12] can't speak to the guts of it. I can

[44:13] just kind of tell you where I take the

[44:15] numbers. You know, that's electrical

[44:16] engineers kind of give us those numbers

[44:18] and we we we go with them. Um, but no,

[44:20] we do not get a 25% loss on our

[44:22] transformers.

[44:23] » As I understand it, what that means is

[44:25] they expect say $65,000 worth of

[44:27] electricity is going to get lost in form

[44:30] of heat

[44:31] » Over the lifetime of these transformers.

[44:33] » Yeah, 30 plus years.

[44:34] » And uh what is the life of these

[44:35] transformers here?

[44:36] » Uh so most of them I think are around

[44:37] that 30-year mark. Kind of averaging

[44:39] right in there.

[44:40] » How many do we have? We're replacing

[44:41] » The system.

[44:42] » Yeah. I mean

[44:43] » Uh so Oh, you got to put me on the spot.

[44:45] I want to say that we have like 800

[44:46] transformers out in the system. Don't

[44:49] quote me on that. I will get that number

[44:50] » First year, but is this a normal thing?

[44:52] 150 grand a year for transform places

[44:54] every year.

[44:55] » Say that one more time.

[44:56] » Is this a normal thing then replacing?

[44:58] » Absolutely. Yep. Yep. So that's it's

[44:59] been a year or two since we've got this

[45:00] is a little bit larger larger bid

[45:02] package, but yeah, every year we usually

[45:04] buy some.

[45:04] » How do you know which ones need to be

[45:06] replaced, Shane?

[45:07] » Uh so we have the our AMI system and our

[45:10] smart health map. um it actually can

[45:12] tell us loads and stuff. And so now

[45:13] everything's so smart, we can really

[45:15] kind of pull up a map and it can show us

[45:17] which transformers are overloaded, which

[45:19] ones are underloaded. Um if we have, you

[45:21] know, they're running all kinds of tests

[45:22] all the time to just look for

[45:24] efficiency. If there's anything that's

[45:25] out of whack, we can go in and look at

[45:27] it. And so over the last couple years

[45:28] since we got our AMI [clears throat]

[45:29] system up and going, um I think that's

[45:31] made life a lot easier on our electric

[45:33] department on really pinpointing those

[45:34] issues before they become a big issue to

[45:36] where we got outages and things like

[45:38] that. So older transformers have lower

[45:40] efficiency, we'll lose more electricity

[45:41] and maybe overheat,

[45:43] » Right?

[45:44] » Okay. Y

[45:46] » John, and I just add, correct me if I'm

[45:48] wrong, Shane, this is also for growth,

[45:50] too.

[45:51] » Yeah, this is for potential growth. So

[45:52] like that blue stem is out there. This

[45:54] is transformers to build that. This is

[45:55] looking at different things like the the

[45:57] Munger property out there is getting

[45:59] that out there developed and having

[46:00] transformers out there. And then also

[46:02] just kind of restocking some of our

[46:04] supplies in case things do go bad. Some

[46:05] of these larger ones can have larger

[46:07] lead times sometimes like this one's 12

[46:09] to 13 weeks. We've seen lead times in

[46:11] the past that were years and so having

[46:14] them on stock is is important in case

[46:16] something goes down we can get it fixed

[46:17] right now instead of having to wait.

[46:20] » Very good. Yes. Gary

[46:22] » Shane, how many are we getting?

[46:24] » There's 16 of them.

[46:30] » Any other electricity guys here? Did you

[46:32] have a question? Mike,

[46:34] » I was glad to see the 12 to 13 weeks cuz

[46:36] since I was on been on the council

[46:38] starting in 2022,

[46:40] » It it's gone down from 2 years or more.

[46:43] » Oh, yeah. I think I think the last time

[46:44] I was in front of you, we were at like

[46:45] 84 weeks was the delivery day. So, it

[46:48] has gotten supplies have uh come back

[46:50] around, but

[46:50] » Yes, that's I'm very glad to see that.

[46:55] » Any other questions for Shane regarding

[46:57] these transformers?

[47:00] I would entertain a motion to award the

[47:02] bid to Resco for $146,959.

[47:06] So move.

[47:07] » Is there a second?

[47:09] » Second.

[47:09] » All in favor of awarding this bid

[47:11] indicate by saying I.

[47:13] » Oppos? Nay.

[47:14] Bid is approved.

[47:17] » Thank you. Shane,

[47:20] you're leaving before the city manager's

[47:22] report. [laughter]

[47:23] » Okay. Very good. Over to you.

[47:28] I

[47:30] Thanks Shane for your support. Um just a

[47:34] couple of different items uh for mayor

[47:35] and council here. Uh couple the next

[47:37] meeting is on Tuesday September 8th. Uh

[47:40] with the way that August is structured

[47:41] in the Labor Day holiday on Monday,

[47:43] September 7th. Uh city office is closed

[47:46] in Labor Day. Uh the next meeting is on

[47:48] Tuesday, September 8th. Before that

[47:50] meeting, our planning and zoning

[47:51] commission meets on Monday, August 31st

[47:53] at 5:30 5:30 p.m. They have um two basic

[47:57] items on their agenda. One is a

[47:59] conditional use permit for 426 East

[48:01] Cherry Street. Uh that's the former

[48:03] Steuart Oil property uh over there in

[48:05] East Cherry. And then they will be

[48:07] continuing uh their discussion on the

[48:08] ordinances related to data center. So

[48:10] those are the items uh that we know of

[48:12] right now for the planning zoning

[48:13] commission on Monday, August 31st. And

[48:16] then our human relations commission is

[48:17] set to meet at 5:15 p.m. on Thursday,

[48:20] September 3rd. That's in the Paul

[48:22] conference room here at city hall.

[48:25] A couple reminders on street closures.

[48:27] Uh this coming Friday is USD's movein

[48:29] day. So Rose Street from Coyote Village

[48:31] north to Dakota Dome. Uh that one closes

[48:34] at 5:00 a.m. and that lasts until 4 p.m.

[48:37] on Friday, August 21st. And then uh

[48:39] North Plum Street from East Cherry

[48:41] Street to Highway 50. that closure is

[48:43] from 6:00 am to 4 pm uh to help

[48:46] facilitate the traffic related to move

[48:47] into the north complex. So uh watch for

[48:50] some additional traffic in the community

[48:51] this coming Friday the 21st. Uh just a

[48:54] reminder the last two Thursdays on the

[48:56] plats are coming up. We didn't have it

[48:57] last week with the fair. Uh so August

[48:59] 20th and 27th. Um the street closure is

[49:02] from 400 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. to allow for

[49:04] the setup and the tear down. And it is

[49:06] Main Street as it ab butts the plats

[49:08] east through the Prospect Street

[49:10] intersection. uh Prospect Street south,

[49:12] excuse me, Prospect Street for one half

[49:15] block north of West Main and then Market

[49:16] Street as it abuts the plat. So those

[49:18] two uh events for the balance of this

[49:21] year coming up, we do have several open

[49:23] border commission seats. Um one I'll go

[49:26] through the list here, human relations

[49:27] commission. Uh that is a one-year term

[49:30] for our postsecondary uh student. Uh so

[49:33] that term uh began in May and would go

[49:36] until next May. We have not had any

[49:38] applicants for that. Uh but you do need

[49:40] to be a post-secary student um to fill

[49:42] that slot. Uh business improvement

[49:45] district number one um that is the

[49:47] business the board that works with the

[49:49] $2 per night preoccupied hotel fee. We

[49:51] do have a three-year term available in

[49:53] that board. That seat is for either an

[49:55] owner or manager of a lodging property

[49:57] in within the uh district here in the

[49:59] community. Uh that one's a little been a

[50:01] little bit tougher to fill. And then the

[50:02] Vermillion Housing Authority, they do

[50:04] have one uh 5-year term that remains

[50:06] available. Uh there are no requirements

[50:08] on that other than you do need to um

[50:10] live I believe just within Klay County.

[50:12] I think you can uh definitely within uh

[50:14] you know what I you have to live within

[50:16] the city to serve in that role. Um so we

[50:18] do have one 5-year term on the

[50:20] Vermillion Housing Authority available

[50:21] for any board or commission openings. Uh

[50:23] there's an expression of interest form

[50:24] that we ask applicants to fill out that

[50:26] goes to city council to help make that

[50:28] appointment. Um so those are available

[50:30] on the city's website. You get them here

[50:31] at city hall and dismit those to city

[50:33] hall for the city council to consider.

[50:35] Then coming up in uh September and

[50:37] October, we were going to have regular

[50:39] seats on bid number one, the hotel one,

[50:41] bid number two, which is our downtown uh

[50:43] district, and then also the tree board.

[50:45] So, there'll be more opportunities to

[50:47] serve. And uh just a reminder, the

[50:49] mausoleiums at the Bluff Cemetery,

[50:51] they've been nominated for inclusion on

[50:52] the National Register of Historic

[50:54] Places. The State Historical Society

[50:56] Board of Trustees will be considering

[50:58] this nomination on Friday, September

[51:00] 11th at their meeting in Sou Falls. If

[51:02] anybody has any comments, please submit

[51:04] those to the city through this Friday

[51:05] the 21st, so we can forward those on to

[51:07] the state. Uh the nomination is

[51:09] available through the city's website.

[51:11] And then finally, included in the city

[51:12] council packet was one raffle

[51:14] notification. Uh the Vermillion Rotary

[51:16] Club is selling their Monday Night

[51:18] Football uh books. Uh basically the

[51:20] final digits in the score of each team.

[51:23] I won't say anything about Vikings,

[51:24] Packers playing and what that might that

[51:26] score might be, but hypothetically. Um,

[51:28] whatever the last digit in the score of

[51:30] that uh that any game on a Monday night,

[51:32] that's used to determine the winning

[51:34] book number for that week. The cost of

[51:36] the book is $25 for the season. The

[51:38] winner each week receives $50. Um, the

[51:42] money which doesn't go to the winners

[51:43] goes to Rotary to help with their

[51:45] charitable work in the community. That's

[51:47] all I have. Mayor,

[51:48] » Thank you. Any questions on any of those

[51:50] items for John?

[51:52] I did have one question. So, how do we

[51:54] find the uh grad student to be on the

[51:56] human relations commission? How do we

[51:58] find them?

[52:00] » Um those are posted or do we reach out

[52:03] to the grad school office or

[52:06] it's worked different ways um over the

[52:09] years. The commission was created in

[52:11] 2018. Sometimes it has been maybe the

[52:13] student who's going off suggested to

[52:15] some friends of theirs to apply. Um, we

[52:18] can certainly reach out maybe to the

[52:19] student government association and see

[52:21] if they might be able to help get the

[52:23] word out. Um, it's

[52:24] » I got the grad students come in and they

[52:26] don't they're not necessarily plugged

[52:28] in. Oh, sorry, Gary.

[52:30] » Uh, one of I have a suggestion. Uh, they

[52:32] teach human relations courses in the

[52:34] school of education. We could contact

[52:36] school of education, have them make a

[52:38] recommendation through their professors.

[52:41] » Thank you.

[52:42] » Yeah, that that makes sense.

[52:44] [clears throat] Thank you. Just want to

[52:45] help out. All right. Any other items for

[52:48] the good of the order? If not, I would

[52:50] entertain a motion to adjurnn.

[52:53] » Second.

[52:56] » All in favor of adjourning indicate. All

[52:59] oppose. Nay. Sorry about that.

[53:03] Although we just found out we don't need

[53:05] a

2026-08-17 City Council

Agenda

Transcript