Alva Mayor Kelly Parker held a volunteer Labor Day workday to improve the city’s appearance. He said during Tuesday’s city council meeting that 15 to 20 people came out for the event with ages ranging from 10 years to older adults. The group tackled weeds and grass growing along sidewalks and streets around the downtown square. He said they also “made a dent” in six overgrown properties. Parker said he still has concerns about a number of weedy, overgrown properties in Alva.

Street and Alley Committee

The mayor outlined current and coming events that will make Alva a busy place in weeks to come. He mentioned the county fair this week, the mud run on Saturday, the Big Cruise and Car Show next week and homecoming events at the local university and high school.

Reporting on the Aug. 15 Street and Alley Committee meeting, Dunham said he told them the city will soon complete the asphalt street work for this year. He listed Flynn Street and Maple Street as the final asphalt projects. Then the street department will tackle some chip and seal overlays of streets.

Finance Committee

Finance Committee Chairman Wes Miller said his committee discussed some utility billing issues and corrections. He said the automated meter reading system is now working after training and software updates.

The committee also talked about water rate changes coming soon for governmental entities like the schools. The city delayed implementing the new water rates for them because their budgets were based on the old rates. With new budgets coming out on July 1, the city will be working with them to start using the new rates.

Miller said the committee also discussed moving to electronic delivery of the multi-paged council handbooks. He said the handbooks currently consume many hours of staff time. Electronic delivery would conserve paper and be faster for employees to put together.

Manager’s Report

City Business Manager Joe Don Dunham said the city received on Tuesday the replies from Integris on questions submitted about their application for a clinic in Alva. The Alva Planning Commission was scheduled to meet Sept. 8 to make a recommendation on the permit application. After that, the matter will be submitted to the city council on Sept. 19 for a final decision.

The Alva Recreation Board is advertising for bids for mowing and maintenance of the softball and baseball pods. Bid opening is set for Sept. 9. Councilmember Steve Valencia asked why they were looking for outside help instead of having employees handle the work. Dunham said they are “trying to improve the fields to a higher level.” The recreation complex does not have the equipment needed, and it would be less expensive to contract out the work instead of buying equipment and hiring more employees.

The recreation board also approved advertising for bids for operation of the concession stands with bids to be opened Sept. 23. Dunham said the concession stands provide very limited income. Last year they made about $2,000 over the cost of goods. More than that was paid out in salaries to run the concessions.

City staff members are preparing bid documents and specifications for construction of the foundation and ramps for the recently purchased T-hangars at the airport. The T-hangars are slated to be built in December.

Currently the city is advertising for a full time paramedic, both full time and part time EMT basics, a sanitation worker I and an auto mechanic.

City Employees Recognized

Dunham said he wanted to recognize two “standout employees” of the city. Fire Marshall Bryan Miller has been asked to serve on the Oklahoma Fire Marshall Board for a three year term. Dunham said the position will provide valuable contacts and experience.

Alva Police K9 Officer Pat Hawley has been certified as a CLEET K9 evaluator. He will be able to certify Oklahoma K9 teams meaning the local department won’t need to send K9 teams out of town to be recertified. Dunham said it will also provide some income for the city since Hawley can hold training sessions for other law enforcement agencies in the area.

New City Auditor

Alva was told by their longtime auditor Pat Carroll that his firm could no longer handle the city’s audits. He said Alva had “outgrown them.” The city advertised asking for quotes to handle the audit and opened those Aug. 26. Dunham said the city received quotes from seven very reputable firms.

The accountants had been asked for a five year cost proposal. After evaluation, the firm of Angel, Johnston and Blasingame, P.C. from Chickasha was chosen as the best bid. Dunham said they had the only bid giving a firm price on travel. Others had estimated travel on lower bids.

The council approved hiring the firm for $19,850 for this year. The council can’t commit to a longer period by law.

Fogging the Campus

The city council voted to sign a memorandum of understanding with Northwestern Oklahoma State University to provide fogging or spraying for mosquitoes and other insects prior to events held at outdoor facilities. The equipment for the fogging was recently donated to the city.

Other Business

The council voted to allow two former employees, Cheryl Diefenbach and Rocky Fox, to withdraw amounts contributed to the municipal retirement fund in a lump sum.

Bryce Benson was the only council member absent.

The council approved minutes of the last meeting, claims of $251,857.36 and payroll expenses of $134,702.10.

During the Alva Utility Authority meeting that followed, board members voted to approve minutes of the last meeting, claims of $116,098.15 and payroll expenses of $35,194.47.

In the Alva Economic Development Authority meeting, board members approved minutes of the last meeting, claims of $33,063.07 and payroll expenses of $7,318.43.