##VIDEO ID:V-8dEnnXz_g## this conference will now be recorded ready we are ready J all right we'll call the first meeting of 2025 to order our first order of business will be saring in of the recently elected council members often council member working all right Raise Your Right hands you can look at those if you want to I say it's your name hi Jody Wimer do solemly swear swear to support the Constitution of the United States to support the Constitution of the United States the Constitution of the state of Minnesota the constitution of the state of Minnesota and to discharge faithfully and to discharge Faithfully the duties of the office of council member the duties of the office of council member of the city of the new of the city of New Richland of the city rich in the county of Wasa in the county of Wasa in the state of Minnesota state of Minnesota to the best of my judgment of ability to the best of my judgment and ability so help me go so help me go congratulations now all right all finds mayor Ferguson and council member economy was called away on an emergency absent uh let the record show that a quorum exists and I'll stand for the Pledge of Allegiance I pledge aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible liy and justice for all are there any additions or deletions to the agenda um I would like to add one thing in new business number two under new business that Eda grant that we talked about the last meeting or Eda meeting okay um and then I think due to the lack of counil mbers we have we should strike number two uh the council meeting discussion off of the unfinished business we talk about that when they're when all of us are here all totally agree need a motion to approve I'll makeing a motion a second have a motion a second all in favor say I I opposed motion carries consent agenda sorry I didn't understand makeing a motion for the content agenda I'll make a motion for that AC it I second it have motion to Second all in favor say I I I opposed motion carries public comments anyone wishing to speak okay go down ordinances resolutions resolution 25-01 all right so the first resolution that you have in front of you is resolution 25-01 this the resolution adopting an updated fee schedule the two items on there are updating our our annual update for the ambulance service rates um this is due to a service uh South Central EMS did a survey of all of the services around us and this is based off of that information from uh that survey so this is the middle of the road um of that survey so there is still Services charging more than this this is the middle of the road so as you can see we for like our base rate was $400 than the middle of the road service in our area of what we were charging so this is to bring us back in line to basically everywhere else that's in our area for service charges uh that's the first part of this second part of this is to bring into the line the $5 month storm Sewer Department charges for our storm sewer uh charges that were recently added for our storm certifi what is the Medicare approved rate is that is that what we used to go on Medicare only only pays what Medicare pays it doesn't matter what we build so the reason we the reason the reason we did that was because then we always get paid um this way basically we we the people who had or the people we're building who have normal Insurance that's not Medicare insurance are going to be paying those bills and they're going to pay the full Bill the Medicare is only going to pay what Medicare only pays sounds reasonable okay so anybody want to move to adopt the resolution I move to adopt resolution 25-01 resolution adopting updated fee schedule I'll second that we have a motion of second all in favor say i i i p motion carries and the second resolution is 25-2 authorizing a new member in the regional safety group so as we approved last year uh we are now part of the regional safety group as with the league Minesota cities this is just the resolution authorizing us to be part of that group it's required in order for them to add and that's you and or you and Jody right uh well this is just a sign just to sign it that that just signatories that is nothing to do that's just to sign it this just is just just this just says that the city's going to be involved in the in the group and we already proved that this is just the signature part of it to to combine the groups into one so they yeah all right I'll make a motion that we accept resolution 252 for members of the regional safety group I'll second it okay we have motion a second all in favor say I I opposed motion carries resolutions adopted amulance report all right uh I thought Sarah was in here but she is not so um Laura's working on the refresher um they're going to be getting me some information for the bills for that um Jennifer had her first round of chemo had a double myectomy in January 6th all went well and she looks to be back around the middle of February okay um the money for the uh or the ear EMS came through um with that Sarah's been working with uh vendors to look at CS monitors s chair to replace some of the high ticket items that have been towards the end of their service life um so they that's what she's working on currently what was that again a little over $86,000 yeah nice um working on a training scheduled for this year and we done ear monthly meetings the Second Sunday of each month with that um I've been working with emmc this is the new train or new billing Consultants that I've been looking at going with um in talking with them very impressed with with them in the three or four other uh ambulance places that I've talked with these are this is the company that everybody migrated to and saw an immediate uh increase in revenue and uh a lot of the problems solved from expert billing um um currently we're paying U $19 per call um as available um their rate would be $21.50 how much we had because I thought that 21 yeah so compared to now no it isn't based on based on the last few years of of data that from Sarah um the increase that it would cost us over the whole entire year would be approximately $300 well if we can recoup $300 I mean it's kind pretty much a no-brainer to to try to go with them so I would like approval to seek um a new contract with emmc or is emmc um and there is some I think we have to give a 60-day notice to expert there's some challenges with with how that's going to work out but I would like the council to approve um Sarah and I to uh work out the transition from expert to emsm right it'd be nice to know him that that transition time how many bills are out there hanging out right you know yeah and they emmc will not take on expertise stuff no I don't I don't blame that right so um but they have a lot of a lot she T she was very knowledgeable um one of the crazy things that she told me that that really threw some lights on is that with EMS billing once the insurance company agrees to the bill they still want so once they once the insurance company gets a letter and agrees to the bill and they send everything through they want a conf they want a confirmation seven days later well a lot of times expert doesn't always send that confirmation letter so that's a lot of times how their stuff gets messed up well they do their stuff is all digitally done so they have an automatic 7day thing built into their system so after seven days it automatically generates that letter sends it back to the insurance company everything's done online also with this company every person that anybody goes with our ambulance gets their own billing window so they go to the website they go online they see what their account is what their ambulance bill is what their current date is what their insurance is paid what's due right now it's a mess of what anybody gets from expert he building so well I see here on a chart they had one was like four something one was 6% one was 7% up in collection so if that gives ours any indication then it's worth going over too they're going to get more collections off them right yeah and they would handle they would there would be no payments that would come to us anymore everything would go to them and be one electronic transaction into our bank and didn't doesn't this relate to that line item on the budget of collections that sometimes we used to write off it would it would hopefully minimize that or or start to bring that down yeah okay yeah cool you said you need a yeah I need approval for that and then we need approval for the emls report after that I'll make a motion that we approve the contract for the EMS MC is stated here I will second that okay we have a motion and second all in favor I opposed motion carries I'll make a motion that we accept the ambulance report I'll second that motion and a second all in favor say I I opposed motion carries fire department report self explan all right yep uh zero fire calls one medical one lift assist for two calls uh confined space rescue they did for training 37 calls for the year they also assisted s and Mrs Claus visit the kids before Christmas yes where did they do the um confin space training uh they usually bring a trailer in and then they did it at cargo this year oh yes you're right they did okay they went El cargo this year but you but if they don't do it there they have a confin based semi that they bring in or a or a one of those box trailers all they do is drop somebody in a place they can't see so yeah um and then with that um excuse me the uh fire department has decided on a specification for their Wildland brush truck that they're looking for so that is attached here um there was a price on that was there no because we have to put it out for bids that's I thought so um we're just saying we want to bid it yep so this is this is what it is here so uh the bid is attached to this I would recommend to the council that they publish the bid specs in the city's website and then on the star Eagle bids due to the city administrator's office by 12 o'clock noon Friday the 7th of February and then we would review those bids the February 10th Council Maybe and then you guys can either choose to award a bid or make some other decision didn't they say at the last when somebody was standing there the fire department that might take over a year to get this yeah after it's ordered it could take up to a year to get the I think price I heard is about 200,000 roughly yeah probably be more but I'll make a motion that we uh put this out for bids in the paper I will second it we have a motion a second all in favor say I I hi opposed I'll make a motion we accept bid we accept the fire department uh monthly report I'll second it have motion a second all in favor say I I hosed motion GES Police Department live person uh we responded to 128 calls for service for the month of December bringing our total call for 2024 2,134 calls um obviously up from 2023 from 1323 the only thank the Lord December was slower than previous months because we needed a break um we paid the second half of the county attorney's fee um and that's all I have on that uh Joel please stand you take pictures please huh what uh repeat after me I Joel jant I Joel jant do solemnly swear do solemnly swear to support the Constitution of the United States to support the Constitution of the United States and the state of Minnesota and the state of Minnesota and to discharge faithfully and to discharge Faithfully the duties of police officer the duty of police officer for the police department of the city of New Richland of the city of Police Department of New Richland to the best of my knowledge and ability to the best of my knowledge and [Applause] ability congratulations I make a motion to accept we need to do a few other things um so with with Joel's movement to the full-time status per requires a resolution um saying that he is at least 250% of his duties as a full-time police officer so we need to adopt resolution 25-3 which is a resolution of police officer declaration which allows him to be on police and fire retirement I'll make a motion adopt resolution 25-3 resolution of police officer declaration I'll second that now we have a motion in second all in favor opposed motion carries secondly um this is the drug task force joint Powers agreement so this is the joint Powers agreement for the drug task force this is all of the agencies that are in the drug task force this is also an investigation agreement so God help us if there's ever some major crime that happens in the city of New Richland rather than us paying each agency hourly wages and everything this is just we get there up for free um it's a onetime deal whether it's a whether whether it would cost us $2,000 to have the whole drug task force here and swapped and everything else it's just $37.50 there's a lot to read there yeah so this is just our annual contract with them and so and that's this is not just drug task force and swad it's if if we were to have a homicide or something like this they could send investigators to help this is all roles into that scenario so that's what this is and it's the same price it's been for the last yeah it hasn't years and you're our representative right Den e to Y to the board yep we meet by monthly every couple months every couple months um we hear from the different basically all of the cleos are the Chiefs um and our County attorneys meet um at a central location and copy and donors uh usually our County attorney is fantastic and she makes us like Special K bars or oh wow Puppy Chow she makes she has a treat every time she's trying out a new treat tomorrow I'm really excited excent excent but we get together and we talk about things that are going on in our communities and Secret Squirrel business that we need to keep our eyes on and stuff like that so okay so that's just we just need a motion to approve the I'll make a motion to approve the jpa drug task force I'll second that I have a motion in second all in favor opposed motion carries and then finally the record staff for the police department uh we rely on two individuals one's retired uh Sheriff's Office records person one's a current Sheriff's Office record person um problem with records for the police department is that there's so much difference between public private data what can be released what can't be released um and things are changing at the state and federal level so much that it is impossible for tenise or any of the officers to to have to undergo the constant training that that takes and so we rely on those people to release our records for us um they have not had any changes to their salary since I was the chief of police they do other towns too they do Jamesville and the Sheriff's Office and the sheriff's office so and are they they getting that training yes we don't pay for that train no know but they're doing that on a daily basis that's their job they know what how to handle it they have not had a pay increase since I was a cheap here so um looking into it with the amount of hours that they that they do um moving them 2 an hour the maximum cost impact of the police department budget would be $1,000 for the whole entire year to bring that up to to the salary so officer or chief myself make the recommendation that Mo that I'll make a motion that we have the PD record staff wage increase I'll second it and we have a motion and a second all in favor I I opposed motion carries they got pay all right that's all Department I'll make a motion we accept the police department report second motion of second all in favor I opposed motion carries report accepted next order of business uh unfinished business approve the uh law enforcement local 2526 contract our contract was presented as you guys did it and they accepted everything so it just needs to be accepted as um presented I was looking at the the wages on the last I think it's one of the last pages and it 15 yeah page 15 um I thought we agreed on a 4% yep but this one says increases a 5% General wage increase no one says for no not mine oh mine no for this for 2025 for 2025 is 5% yes and for 2026 four yep for 2026 is 4% yeah is that what we yeah 2025 was already set in the budget for 5% that's what it was for everybody that was that was what was the that was what was budgeted for at the dur yeah because 4% kind of just sticks in liary yeah 4% is what we discussed for the I see that on page 16 yeah okay I get that next yeah but I thought it was 4% for this year no no no because that was already that was already budgeted in passed so 4% was know that's what we agreed on and that's what it was I'll make a motion that we accept the labor contract for the law enforcement labor Services I second we have a motion a second all in favor I I opposed motion carries new business triny Lutheran Church wants an additional handicap parking stall yep um they would like to do an additional stall but this time on the east side of the building okay so there is a resolution attached uh resolution 25-4 which authorizes that handicap I'm looking at that map where's North on that map North North on the top I know where North is yeah so then that would be the West side where they got that's East they have one Ash Avenue goes or north and south right if you said north is on the north then that would be on the west side of the road right but if you read what it says it says on the northwest side of the block so I thought you said East well it's on the east side of the church east side of the church got okay yeah it's right there little bit [Laughter] that big yellow blob yeah gotta I'll make a motion to we accept there request I'll second it we have a motion a second all favor I oppos so we have to we have to have to adopt the resolution is that what you're yeah that's what and that's all right I'm sorry I didn't record it right resolution adopted okay next we have the Eda Grant Pi up Grant for the this is just one yeah okay going up for the $3,000 correct yep I think I've already seen it but yeah what approved at BD me okay but it needed to wait till after the first of the year that's right yeah I've seen this one yep I've seen it work all right so we need a motion to approve the fix up Grant for the Panther Powerhouse I'll make a motion that we accept the request for the grant for the V power of $3,000 I'll second okay we have a motion a second all in favor I opposed motion carries gr approved you want give me that to tell me yep anybody have anything any miscellaneous administrator's report um worked with Houston engineering on some final and some Grant documents um I believe we're present or we're sending that here shortly um contract offer we care that tonight work with Bolton and mink on some final items are going to come do some coring core drilling for the project working on the year end activities beginning of activities through banking services and accounting um completed payroll for count for outgoing council members final sales tax submission for 2024 continue to work on preliminary audit audit items for ABDO um you need to work on Safety Committee obligations for lead Minnesota cities we have our first safety meeting actually Wednesday over in Mapleton um employee anniversaries car during five years for the PD Eric Hendrickson maintenance 11 years clean Howard 5 years for the PD all right I'll make a motion to accept the C City administrator's report second have motion a second all in favor I opposed report accepted anybody have anything else I don't I don't today I'll entertain a motion to ajour no I'll just entertain it I mean it's one of you guys got it oh I'll make a motion during the meeting I suppose I'll second it we have a motion second all in favors oppose meeting adjourned