Alva Review-Courier -

With the threat of severe weather looming Thursday evening, the Alva City Council moved quickly through their meeting agenda. The regular meeting on June 19 was canceled since both the mayor and president of the council would be absent. A special meeting was held on Thursday, June 15, at 5:30 p.m.

As president of the council, Daniel Winters presided over the meeting in the absence of Mayor Kelly Parker. Other council members present were Garrett Lahr, Taylor Dowling, Gail Swallow, Sadie Bier, Joe Parsons and Greg Bowman. Councilmember Troy Brooks arrived about 15 minutes late.

Because Alva was under a tornado watch and there was a threat of hail, the dedication of the new city fire truck and ambulance was postponed. The vehicles were moved back under cover.

With no citizens present to speak, councilmembers moved into the agenda. They approved the OMAG worker’s compensation aggregate deductible plan invoice for $26,146.00. The annual premium is due July 1.

A truck route for wheat harvest was approved. See the separate story and map.

The Homestead Pond

There was discussion about the one bid received for installing the Homestead pond liner. ETM Lining Company bid $11,700. Parsons wanted clarification on which Homestead costs are paid by the city and which by the managing entity. The Homestead is owned by the city, but the Alva Hospital Authority (AHA) has a contract to manage the retirement facility. Winters said the city is responsible for the upkeep of the physical plant.

Parsons said the pond liner was a cosmetic issue that would benefit The Homestead residents. He objected to the expenditure because it is for a few people. He said with the streets needing repair and other needs in the city, he didn’t think it was responsible to spend that much money on the pond.

City Business Manager Steve Ford said it might be possible to get the work done for less. Because the cost is less than $25,000, it is not necessary to take bids for the project. The city took bids to try to find the cheapest vendor.

Bowman said the city either needs to fix the pond or fill it in.

Dowling said the management agreement with AHA should be coming up for renewal. He would like to delay a decision until after that agreement has been updated.

Dowling made a motion to table the matter to wait for the updating of the management agreement. Parsons seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.

Airport Project, Grant

Three items on the agenda were actions taken by the Alva Airport Commission that needed to be approved by the city council.

The council approved the bid for rehabilitation of Runway 18/36 lights and PAPIs (pilot approach path indicators) to Williams Electric Clinton, LLC in the amount of $400,060. Williams had the low bid, and it was less than the engineer’s cost estimate. A story in the Friday, June 16, Alva Review-Courier provides more details on this project.

The council approved Amendment No. 5 to the agreement between the airport and Parkhill for professional services. The lighting project was an addition to the original contract.

The council also approved the submission of a Federal Aviation Administration grant application to partially pay for the project. The application is for $467,187 with the city providing a match of $51,910. The motion included the clause that the council also approves accepting the grant upon receipt from the FAA.

Other Business

In the consent agenda, the council approved minutes of the May 15 regular meeting, minutes of the June 7 special meeting, claims of $267,026.85 and payroll expenses of $290,421.66.

An executive session was held at the end of the meeting to discuss contract negotiations with the union representing city firefighters. The contract discussed is for FY23-24. No action was taken on the contract when the council returned to open session.

Agreement on Share Trust Funds

During the Alva Economic Development Authority (AEDA) meeting, the trustees who are also the council members discussed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Charles Morton Share Trust.

Ford explained that Share Trust would like to turn over matching funds for the swimming pool now. Share Trust pledged to match up to $1.5 million for the reconstruction project on the municipal swimming pool. The MOU explains how the distribution of the $1,030,000 from Share Trust is to be handled. The money is to be distributed to the AEDA to be invested in a certificate of deposit (CD). The money and its proceeds (interest earned) are to be restricted for construction of the swimming pool.

If the AEDA has not signed a construction contract by Nov. 30, 2024, as required by the original Share Trust pledge, the funds are to be transferred to the Alva Arena Authority.

In September 2022, the city applied for a grant for the swimming pool project. They have been told it will take about a year for the grant to be decided. Ford said the mayor is also looking at the possibility of financing about $2 million for the construction of the swimming pool.

City Attorney Drew Cunningham said the MOU clarifies the original pledge and gives the money to the city. He said having the money transferred to the AEDA is a big benefit. Otherwise the city would not receive the money until the start of construction.

Bier made a motion to approve the MOU with Share Trust, seconded by Bowman. The motion passed unanimously.

AEDA trustees also approved the consent agenda including minutes of the May 15 meeting, minutes of the June 7 special meeting, claims of $74,869.98 and payroll expenses of $23,457.77.

The Alva Utility Authority also held a brief meeting. The trustees approved the consent agenda which included minutes of the May 15 regular meeting, minutes of the June 7 special meeting, claims of $110,360.38 and payroll expenses of $75,588.52.

A video of the meeting may be viewed at http://www.AlvaReviewCourier.com.