1.11.21 REGULAR BOARD MEETING
VILLAGE OF ORFORDVILLE
Regular Board Meeting
Amended Minutes
Monday, January 11, 2021 7:00 P.M.
Orfordville Village Hall
Main Board Room
CALL TO ORDER
President Gary Phillips called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Present were President Phillips, Tina Suiter Meyers, Chuck Boyce, Beth Schmidt, Terry Gerber, Nikki Tuffree, and Jason Knox. Also present were O’Malley Lomax & family, Officer Jeremiah Burdick, Craig O’Leary, Zach Knutson, Attorney Tim Lindau, Chief Brian Raupp, Librarian Sarah Strunz, DPW Director Nick Todd, and Clerk Sherri Waege.
AGENDA VERIFICATION
Clerk Waege verified that on January 8, 2021, copies of the agenda were delivered to the President and Trustees; and posted at the Village Hall, Library, and the Orfordville Post Office. There were no additions made to the agenda.
MINUTE APPROVAL
Motion by Knox, seconded by Gerber to approve the December 28, 2020 minutes. Motion carried.
CITIZENS WISHING TO BE HEARD
Dennis Burtness was present to thank the Public Works Department on the good job that they did removing snow. Burtness said there was a lot of snow and felt that they did a good job with a new crew.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
None.
NEW BUSINESS
Draw Names for Spring Election. Craig O’Leary drew names for Village Trustee for the April 6, 2021 election. The names will appear in the following order: 1. Beth Schmidt 2, Cami Myers, and 3. Nikki Tuffree.
Introduction and Swearing in of Officer O’Malley Lomax. Chief Raupp explained the hiring process of the new full time officer due to securing a contract with the Village of Footville. Chief Raupp explained that O’Malley Lomax excelled in the interview and the follow up testing. Clerk Waege administered the Oath of Office to Officer O’Malley Lomax. Lomax’s girlfriend pinned the Orfordville Badge on Officer Lomax. Officer Lomax was congratulated by the Village Board and those in attendance.
Attorney Fees for NG Mill Valley Land LLC. Attorney Tim Lindau was present and explained that the Developers Agreement requires that attorney fees for the subdivision be reimbursed. Attorney Lindau explained that there was an error in the billing as the fees were calculated on Knutson’s hourly rate instead of the Village’s hourly rate which is lower. Attorney Lindau explained that a credit was issued to the Village and that Clerk Waege adjusted the bill to Mill Valley Land LLC accordingly. Attorney Lindau explained that Knutson was concerned with the high costs of the fees and questioned if all the fees were related to his project. Attorney Lindau explained that the fees charged were reasonable and appropriate for the work that had to be done. Zach Knutson wished everyone a Happy New Year and explained that he wanted to get a dialog going on the cost of the fees. Knutson explained that the Developers Agreement was signed in August and he thought he would be paying for costs from when the Developers Agreement was signed. Attorney Lindau explained that most of the work was done before the Developers Agreement was executed. Schmidt asked Knutson if he was requesting a specific amount to be reduced. Knutson said that he did not have a specific amount. Schmidt asked if the Village would have incurred the expenses without the project. Attorney Lindau explained that we would not have. President Phillips explained that there were a lot of meetings and fees that Knutson was not charged for when discussion was being held on an expansion of Countryview Estates. President Phillips explained that a lot of changes were made to ordinances, at the request of Knutson, which incurred legal expenses. Attorney Lindau explained that those ordinance changes were specific to Knutson’s project. Attorney Lindau further explained that there will be additional fees billed to Knutson for final plat approval expenses. Knutson explained that the Developers Agreement required that he provide $10,000.00 to the attorney in an escrow account to cover fees in the event that they were not paid. Knutson requested that the $10,000.00 be released so it can be used towards the bill for fees. Attorney Lindau explained that he felt that was acceptable with the terms of the Developers Agreement as long as it was included in the minutes. Motion by Knox, seconded by Tuffree, to leave the fees as they were billed on the amended bill and to direct the Village President to authorize Attorney Lindau to release the $10,000.00 money in escrow to be used towards the reimbursement payment from Knutson for the attorney and engineering fees billed to date. Motion carried.
Resolution R-2021-01 to borrow $250,000.00 from the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands. Motion by Tuffree, seconded by Suiter Meyers to adopt Resolution R-2021-01 to borrow $250,000.00 from the Board of Commissioners Public Lands to be used for public improvements in the NG Mill Valley Subdivision. Motion carried with Boyce voting against the motion.
DEPARTMENT HEAD REPORTS
Knox asked if the Public Works Department will be doing additional snow removal on N. Main Street near Dollar General on the North Side of the Street. Knox explained that the road gets narrow between the intersection of Old Highway 11 and Highway 11 due to the snow on the side of the road. Knox explained that the curve in the Business Park by Burtness has the same situation. DPW Director Todd explained that he will take a look at it and remove the snow with the tractor. Motion by Tuffree, seconded by Schmidt to approve the Department Head Reports. Motion carried.
VOUCHERS
Motion by Tuffree, seconded by Gerber to approve the vouchers. Motion carried.
ADJOURN
Motion by Gerber, seconded by Knox to adjourn at 7:34 p.m. Motion carried.
Submitted by,
Gary Phillips
Village President
Sherri Waege
Village Clerk