Georgetown Idaho

March 4, 2025
Those Present: Greg Kunz, Marty Nate, Tee Steadman, Mayor Steve Waechtler, Maintenance Supervisor Shane Clark, Maintenance Hadley Wright, City Clerk Lynette Smith, City Attorney, Adam McKenzie, Addison Ochsenbein of Sunrise Engineering, Sheriff Bart Heslington, Mike Neuman, Sherilyn Christensen, David Jones, Katana Sorensen
Meeting called to order: 7:00 pm Invocation: Hadley Wright
The Mayor was excused from the beginning of the meeting and conducted by Council President, Greg Kunz. The Council entertained a motion from Councilor Marty Nate to approve the added agenda item of Mike Neuman to discuss the cemetery and was seconded by Councilor Tee Steadman. All were in favor and the motion carried. Councilor Tee Steadman made the motion to approve the published agenda and was seconded by Councilor Marty Nate. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
The minutes from February 4, 2025, were read aloud by Clerk Smith. Councilor Marty Nate made the motion to accept the minutes as read and Councilor Tee Steadman seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Mike Neuman came before the council to discuss his concerns at the cemetery. His wife has recently passed away and he was told he would have to wait a few weeks for the snow to melt or be moved in order to get to where she needs to be buried. He was disappointed and felt there are things that could be done to keep the cemetery open and more accessible. He was upset to have to delay his wife’s funeral until March 15th. A few years ago, the council decided to close the cemetery on a year to year basis and dependent on the snow received and some of the challenges we face are where to put the snow and the location of the burial due to other headstones being buried in the snow and the crew doesn’t want to hit a headstone in the process. It is getting tight up there to maneuver in the older part of the cemetery due to the headstones, etc. Mike suggested having a snow blower available and Greg responded that we are looking into a new road plow also.
Police Report: Sheriff Bart Heslington was present to give his report for the month of February. They worked 60.5 hours and had 52 contacts resulting in 2 citations, gave 2 written warnings, 3 verbal warnings and made 6 traffic stops.He said he is working with his clerk to get more detailed reports to present to the council. David Jones brought up some issues he has had and was willing to sign a citation for someone speeding in front of his house and has video footage. The Sheriff responded that he could look at the video to see if it would be admissible or not. David also asked if the wage we had paid to Martinez was being used to pay for the Sheriff Department to patrol out here. The council responded with yes, we have a contract with the Sheriff Department and use those same funds that we were paying an employee.
The Audit for Fiscal year 2023-2024 was tabled until the next meeting when Matt Regen will be finished with the audit.
Addison Ochsenbein, from Sunrise Engineering came before the council to follow up on the Transportation Plan. We need to have this approved before the summer months during peak times to collect data for traffic control. We have received a grant for $30,000 to complete this study but need to approve the scope and fee of $36,000. The extra $6,000 is to cover for active transportation for pedestrians, etc. Sheriff Bart asked if Sunrise would share their findings so they can better direct their efforts. Councilor Greg Kunz made the motion to accept the Transportation Plan and fee. Councilor Marty Nate seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Councilor Tee Steadman made the motion to leave the regular meeting and go into the Public Hearing for the purpose of adopting a fee and deposit for encroachment on the roads in Ordinance #96 and increasing the fees at the cemetery. Councilor Marty Nate seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and is as follows: Marty – yes, Tee – yes, Greg – yes. Motion carried. The floor was then opened for public comment.
• David Jones started off with his figures of how many homes we have and paying $105.00 a month and how much that should be coming in per year and a lot of people live on fixed incomes and can’t afford raising rates.
• The Council responded that costs have double and tripled since COVID and we can’t afford to get a loan now to make the improvements needed from the tanks down to town. We also don’t qualify for grants based on the income of the citizens and because we don’t have meters.
• City has also been advised to raise rates by 3% every year and wastewater rates have not been increased over 13 years. Water rates did increase in 2023 by $10.
• Sunrise Engineering has looked into other avenues to update our infrastructure and how to supply water, fix leaks within the system, etc.
• Question raised if the City can invest money to earn more to offset costs, etc.
• City Attorney, Adam McKenzie, explained that the Water and Wastewater accounts in a Municipality are dedicated funds and can’t be used for anything else and also can’t be revenue raising. There are limitations on what a City can do and can’t invest like a business can. Those funds are specific for the needs of the water and sewer systems and separate from the General Funds.
• Also explained that not all homes are turned on all the time generating those monthly fees or are connected to the sewer system.
• Questions about the budgets and where to find. They are published quarterly in the News Examiner and posted in the minutes on the website monthly of what each fund has spent or is available as a public records request from the City Office at any time. The yearly budget is also published in the News Examiner in August each year.
• The new water rates will be $46.50 each month and $62.00 for wastewater to keep up with raising costs and maintaining the systems.
• Resolution #2025-03 was discussed for encroachment of roads and to increase the fee to cover the costs. Costs have increased drastically since the fee was originally set in 2018 at $800. Last year the fee to repair the road on Stringtown was $2500. The proposed new fee would be $3050 and $3000 would be a deposit and $50 would be the fee for the permit to encroach the road.
• The cemetery fees for Resolution #2025-04 were discussed. Clerk Smith called around to City’s nearby to get their going rates and we are significantly cheaper. Fees will be increased to $250 per space for Residents, $2500 per space for Non-Residents; to open and close the grave from Monday-Friday before 4:00 pm will be $250, after 4:00 pm on Friday and Saturday, Sunday and Holidays would be $400.00; the cemetery is closed on Sundays for open/closing graves; cremations are $150.00; spaces are limited to 4 spaces per household
Councilor Marty Nate made the motion to close the Public Hearing and go back to the regular meeting. Councilor Tee Steadman seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and is as follows: Marty – yes, Tee – yes, Greg – yes. Motion carried the council.
Councilor Greg Kunz made the motion to accept Resolution 2025-03 for the encroachment of the roads with a deposit and permit fee. Councilor Marty Nate seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Councilor Tee Steadman made the motion to accept Resolution 2025-04 for the new fees at the cemetery and Councilor Greg Kunz seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Councilor Tee Steadman made the motion to accept Resolution 2025-01 for the new monthly water fees and was seconded by Councilor Greg Kunz. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Councilor Greg Kunz made the motion to accept Resolution 2025-02 for the new monthly wastewater fees and was seconded by Councilor Marty Nate. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
New booklets for water and sewer for the next two years will be mailed out this week with a statement for each property owner.
Councilor Marty Nate reported that she has spoken with Tim Christensen about a new legal description for the City property on Main Street and he will base it off of the existing fence lines. The cost for doing the legal description for the old railroad right of way will be based off of the other formal legal descriptions of surrounding properties. Lynette will work on getting the maps and legal descriptions from the title company and forward on to Marty and Tim.
The Impact Area was discussed and the maps posted at the City and what the County provided are different. City Attorney, Adam McKenzie explained that the area of impact will be ran by the County instead of the City’s now and that the City can update their map to include property that they expect to annex within a 5 year period and to not split properties; either need to include or exclude the whole parcel.The County will draft an Ordinance where boundaries will be determined and they will hold another Public Hearing for each City to have it’s own Ordinance. Adam will look to see if we have an Impact Area Ordinance already drafted but the City should review the map to adjust our Impact Area and give to the County.
Councilor Marty Nate reported that she has applied for the grants for $12,500 for the crosswalk and the sidewalk came out to an estimated $100,000. Each block for concrete is about $11,000 and gravel is about $36,000. The Mayor also said he was able to find a playground for $9,500. The council agreed for Marty to apply for the crosswalk grant but to hold off on the sidewalk for this year. Councilor Greg Kunz made the motion to purchase the playground equipment at $9,500 and the City will ask for donations to help for installation. Councilor Marty Nate seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
We need to get an agreement in place with the Whitaker’s before they sell their properties for snow placement and the water line to remain open and for the garbage turnaround. Adam will draft an agreement for both parties to sign.
Maintenance Report: Hadley Wright gave their report for the month of February and stated that he and Shane have plowed snow and slush, the County came and helped with a cement barrier that got knocked into the culvert and they are working with the State for a new one. The samples were taken to the lab for the month and all came back ok. They delivered delinquent notices also. The plow truck is in rough shape and needs a new seal, pump and parts of the frame welded, tires on the back need replaced and it blows blue smoke. The council agreed we need to replace and be looking for a new one throughout the summer months and can either keep this one for a backup or sell it to put into the new one.
Office Business: There are 13 delinquent water and sewer accounts for the month of February. Lynette reported that she has a conflict with the next meeting and so it will be held on Wednesday, April 2nd instead. She will also ask Danielle Smith if the Georgetown 2nd Ward Young Women will host the Easter Hunt/May Day again this year. Katana was available to discuss plans for Twin Creek Days. It was decided to keep the day simple and do just the fireworks with a few activities and have some food vendors. Some activities suggested were the foam party, fish pond, breakfast and flag but to scale it all back.
The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Greg Kunz for the council to approve checks and vouchers for the month of February 2025 in the amount of $28,713.36 in the general fund, $10,765.17 in the water fund, and $24,748.48 in the sewer fund, with all funds totaling $64,227.01. Councilor Marty Nate seconded the motion. All were in favor and motion carried the council.
The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Marty Nate that council adjourns from the March 2025 council meeting at 9:55 pm. Councilor Greg Kunz seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Respectfully submitted,

Lynette Smith,
City Clerk-Treasurer

CITY OF GEORGETOWN
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
AGENDA

WEDNESDAY, April 2, 2025 City Hall 7:00 pm
Thursday, April 3, 2025 due to lack of quorum

MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
INVOCATION

APPROVAL OF AGENDA ITEMS:

READING AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES from March 4, 2025, regular meeting

AGENDA ACTION ITEMS OF CITY OPERATIONS AND NEW BUSINESS:

 FY 2023-2024 Audit with Matt Regen
 Payback General Fund from Water & Sewer Funds
 Sunrise Engineering – Transportation Plan
 Georgetown Irrigation Company Backhoe Agreement
 Legal Description Update for Property on Main Street
 Impact Area Map
 Spring Cleanup Dates
 Set Budget Hearing Date – September 2nd at 7:00 pm; workshop August 5th

Marty:
Tee:
Greg:
Trenton:

POLICE REPORT: Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office

MAINTENANCE REPORT:

OFFICE BUSINESS: Delinquent water and sewer accounts

SIGNING OF CHECKS AND VOUCHERS FOR MARCH’S BILLS

ADJOURNMENT

Next Meeting:
• City Council regular meeting at 7:00 pm – May 6, 2025, Georgetown City Building – 382 Main St. Questions concerning items appearing on this Agenda or requests for accommodation of special needs to participate in the meeting should be addressed to the Office of the City Clerk or call 208-847-2120.

February 4, 2025
Those Present: Greg Kunz, Trenton Morrell, Marty Nate, Tee Steadman, Maintenance Supervisor Shane Clark, Maintenance Hadley Wright, City Clerk Lynette Smith, Addison Ochsenbein of Sunrise Engineering, Sheriff Bart Heslington
Meeting called to order: 7:00 pm Invocation: Hadley Wright
The Mayor was excused from the meeting and conducted by Council President, Greg Kunz. The Council entertained a motion from Councilor Tee Steadman to approve the published agenda and was seconded by Councilor Trenton Morrell. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
The minutes from January 7, 2025, were read aloud by Clerk Smith. Councilor Trenton Morrell made the motion to accept the minutes as read and Councilor Tee Steadman seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council. Discussion on the minutes, Councilor Marty Nate will follow up with Tim Christensen for legal descriptions on the property on Main Street and along the railroad right of way.
Police Report: Sheriff Bart Heslington was present to give his report for the month of January. They worked 64 hours and had 84 contacts resulting in 7 citations, gave 9 written warnings, 17 verbal warnings and made 30 traffic stops. Councilor Marty Nate asked for follow up on getting the citation reports so the council can see what kind of citations are being issued and how much money is coming in per citation. Sheriff asked if there are different times the council wants them out here and they always try to come out during school start and release times. They are also trying to be more active and go up and down the streets vs. just staying on the highway and doing traffic control.
Addison Ochsenbein, from Sunrise Engineering came before the council to follow up on the Transportation Plan. Councilor Marty Nate asked what the extra $6,000 would cover for sure and if it was just the sidewalks because she is applying for a grant to redo the sidewalks and bridge and if we are awarded the grant we won’t need the extra $6,000 for our plan. The Council is still reviewing the Plan and not in a position to approve it yet. Addison expressed the need to have it approved before the summer months so they can be ready to get traffic counts and other things. It was decided to table the approval of the Transportation Plan until the Mayor is back for the meetings in March.
It was discussed to increase the water and wastewater fees by 3% starting April 1st. Councilor Marty Nate made the motion to increase the monthly water fee to $46.50 and the wastewater fee to $62.00. Councilor Tee Steadman seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
US Bank is closing it’s branch in Montpelier due to geographic reasons by April 17th. A municipality can’t use a Credit Union so we only have a couple of options to move the General Funds to in Montpelier. Lynette does go to this bank frequently to deposit anything that is not water or wastewater related so it would be more convenient to use a bank in Montpelier vs. traveling to Soda Springs. It will take some work to get the all of the State Funds transferred but it can be done and she would like to keep separate accounts still. Councilor Tee Steadman made the motion to move the General Funds from US Bank and open a new checking and savings account at Ireland Bank with the same signers. Councilor Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Councilor Marty Nate discussed the sidewalk grant she is applying for. She asked how much of the sidewalk we want to replace and how far it goes. It was determined to replace as much as we can and it probably stretches for ½ mile and needs to be rebuilt to 4-5 feet wide. She asked if the guys can help pop out the old sidewalk concrete but would probably need to hire to install the new one put in as the guys may not have time this summer. The shutoffs are on the East side of the sidewalk. We will need to notify citizens when replacing to avoid the construction getting in to their driveways. She could also apply for the crosswalk to be painted and lights added, etc. The grant is due by March 5th and will find out in May if awarded. She also said she will reach out to Mitch Poulsen about the Impact Ordinance for Paris and we need one for Georgetown as well.
Maintenance Report: Hadley Wright gave their report for the month of January and stated that he and Shane have done multiple repairs on the plow truck, took the water samples to the lab, completed some online training, plowed lots of snow and delivered some delinquent water and sewer notices.
Office Business: There are 18 delinquent water and sewer accounts for the month of January. Lynette reported that Gary Teuscher’s office has completed the financial statements for the Fiscal Year 2023-2024 and Auditor Matt Regen is coming tomorrow to pick up the books to complete the audit and is hoping to be at our next meeting in March to report. She also reported that the new dog tags are here and available to register dogs for the new year. Also, those that participate in PERSI Choice and contribute extra funds will now be reported through Empower and not just PERSI, because PERSI has outsourced to Empower just for the Choice funds.
The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Tee Steadman for the council to approve checks and vouchers for the month of January 2025 in the amount of $18,571.24 in the general fund, $8,257.80 in the water fund, and $22,581.80 in the sewer fund, with all funds totaling $49,410.84. Councilor Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and motion carried the council.
The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Marty Nate that council adjourns from the February 2025 council meeting at 8:15 pm. Councilor Tee Steadman seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Respectfully submitted,

Lynette Smith,
City Clerk-Treasurer

January 7, 2025
Those Present: Greg Kunz, Trenton Morrell, Marty Nate, Tee Steadman, Mayor Steve Waechtler, Maintenance Supervisor Shane Clark, City Clerk Lynette Smith, Addison Ochsenbein of Sunrise Engineering, Realtors at Budge Realty, Nathan Finney
Meeting called to order: 7:00 pm Invocation: Mayor Steve Waechtler
The Council entertained a motion from Councilor Trenton Morrell to approve the published agenda and was seconded by Councilor Tee Steadman. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
The minutes from December 3, 2024, were prepared by Councilor Marty Nate and read aloud by Clerk Smith. Councilor Greg Kunz made the motion to accept the minutes as read and Councilor Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
The realtors from Budge Realty came to the council with a Boundary Line Agreement to be signed by the City and the previous owners, Gary and Ruth Thompson. The Agreement recognizes the property the City has been using and occupying as such and is recognized by the existing fence lines. Councilor Trenton Morrell made the motion to sign and accept the Boundary Line Agreement and was seconded by Councilor Greg Kunz. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Addison Ochsenbein, from Sunrise Engineering came before the council to report on following up with including the sidewalks being fixed and it does fit into our scope for the Transportation Plan Study. It would cost an additional $6,000 to add in and complete the plan. The Grant is capped at $30,000 for the Study. The scope was emailed to the council before hand and they requested more time to review it. Addison also reported that he has a letter of interest ready to go to DEQ for the Drinking Water Loan for our infrastructure. Whether we are selected for funding or not, it is important to submit so the State can see there is a need for more funding. Addison is not real hopeful we will get funding, but he will get it submitted this week for us.
The fee increases for Ordinance #96 road encroachment fees and cemetery fees was tabled until the next meeting in February to ensure the notices get published in time for the Public Hearings.
Councilor Marty Nate spoke with Tim Christensen regarding our Boundary Line Agreement and said we will need a survey done on our piece of property next to the Thompson’s, to get a new legal description. She wondered about needing the old railroad right of way surveyed also. After discussion, most of it has probably already been surveyed in the last few years due to new owners all along there. Marty will follow up if there is a need to complete.
Councilor Greg Kunz said he spoke with Commissioner Wynn Olsen about doing the turn around up Main Canyon and he said they will follow up on it.
Police Report: Sheriff Bart Heslington was unable to attend the council meeting but emailed a report for the council to review for the month of December. They completed 63 hours and had 117 contacts resulting in 10 citations and 38 warnings and 36 traffic stops. Councilor Marty Nate said the Cities of Paris and Bloomington are looking into hiring an officer and have offered for us to join, so maybe we shouldn’t get rid of our police car just yet. We have a 5 year contract in place with the Sheriff’s Office right now. The councilors told her to look into more information about it. Councilor Tee Steadman stated he likes having the Sheriff’s Office because they are always on call and can enforce our Ordinances anytime something arises.
Maintenance Report: Shane Clark gave their report for the month of December and stated that he and Hadley have been plowing the streets. They lost a seal twice on the plow truck and it has been using a case of oil every time they use it and have replaced the hydraulic pump. They have taken the water samples to the lab and all were reported ok. They moved some piles of snow and attended online training, cleared the snow away from the fire hydrants and the ignition switch also got replaced on the plow truck. The Mayor and crew will continue looking for another snow plow.
Office Business: There are 24 delinquent water and sewer accounts for the month of December. Lynette reported that the Christmas Light Winners were 1st Place Jim & LaRae Ahrens, 2nd Place Marlin & Sandy Bartschi, 3rd Place Jacob & Angelia Kunz. Not all of the winners have came in and claimed their award yet. Lynette will get the W-2’s prepared by the end of the month. The County will be having a Public Hearing next Monday, January 13th during their Commissioners Meeting about the City Impact Area’s. At this time, their new ordinances shouldn’t affect Georgetown because our Impact Area is close enough to our City Limits, but Marty thinks we should look into including a clause in our Ordinances that the County is implementing, that states anytime someone develops or makes changes in the impact area, that the City must be notified and have approval as well. Lynette is ordering new payment booklets for the next 2 years to be mailed out to each homeowner and asked if fees are staying the same. The Mayor suggested that we should follow recommendations of implementing a 3% increase each year. It has been 2 years since we have increased the water fees and over 12 years since we have increased the wastewater fees. Less than 5% increase does not require a public hearing. Councilor Marty Nate said the citizens need to be aware that our infrastructure has some real upcoming issues that we need to be preparing and saving for to lessen a large loan for these updates. Councilor Tee Steadman made the motion to increase the water and sewer fees 3% and Councilor Greg Kunz seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council. Lynette will order payment booklets to be mailed out with water fees at $46.50 and sewer fees at $62.00 for a total of $108.50 per month.
The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Greg Kunz for the council to approve checks and vouchers for the month of December 2024 in the amount of $29,049.87 in the general fund, $21,120.68 in the water fund, and $66,159.10 in the sewer fund, with all funds totaling $116,329.65. Councilor Marty Nate seconded the motion. All were in favor and motion carried the council.
The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Greg Kunz that council adjourns from the January 2025 council meeting at 8:15 pm. Councilor Marty Nate seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Respectfully submitted,

Lynette Smith,
City Clerk-Treasurer

CITY OF GEORGETOWN
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
AGENDA

Tuesday, February 4, 2025 City Hall 7:00 pm

MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
INVOCATION

APPROVAL OF AGENDA ITEMS:

READING AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES from January 7, 2025, regular meeting

AGENDA ACTION ITEMS OF CITY OPERATIONS AND NEW BUSINESS:

 Sunrise Engineering, Addison Ochsenbein
 Increase Water & Wastewater Fees 3%
 US Bank Closing – Move General Funds Accounts

Marty:
Tee:
Greg:
Trenton:

POLICE REPORT: Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office

MAINTENANCE REPORT:

OFFICE BUSINESS: Delinquent water and sewer accounts

SIGNING OF CHECKS AND VOUCHERS FOR JANUARY’S BILLS

ADJOURNMENT

Next Meeting:
• City Council regular meeting at 7:00 pm – March 4, 2025, Georgetown City Building – 382 Main St. Questions concerning items appearing on this Agenda or requests for accommodation of special needs to participate in the meeting should be addressed to the Office of the City Clerk or call 208-847-2120.

December 3, 2024
Those Present: Trenton Morrell, Greg Kunz, Tee Steadman, Hadley Wright, Steve Waechtler, Addison Ochsenbein from Sunrise Engineering, Marty Nate
Meeting Called to Order: 7:00 pm Invocation: Steve Waechtler
The Council entertained a motion from Councilmember Tee Steadman to approve the published agenda. Councilmember Greg Kunz seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Minutes were read from the November 7, 2024 council meeting by Mayor Steve Waechtler. A correction was made to the minutes. Minutes should read “water from the splash pad is repurposed not recycled”. Councilmember Greg Kunz made motion to accept the minutes with the noted correction. Councilmember Tee Steadman seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
The Mayor thanked Sunrise Engineering for their Hickory Farms Christmas gift. He, also, informed the council the Senior Center brought cookies out expressing their gratitude for the donation the City made to the center.
Addison from Sunrise Engineering presented a copy of the transportation plan and asked the council to review the plan and if everything is in perspective, he will need to have it approved. Mayor asked when he needed it and he told him probably May or June of 2025. Mayor will have Lynette make copies for all council members and it will be reviewed possibly at the next meeting. Greg asked if the sidewalks could be part of the plan. They are in need of repair and a hazard for several citizens who use a Jazzi to move around town. It would be safer for them to be able to use the sidewalks rather than the highway. Addison told the council he would check into it.
The council reviewed the Christmas Park lighting. The night was warm and people seemed to be enjoying the festivities. Chili was donated by the Sean Bartschi family; hot chocolate by the Drue Smith family and the City provided hot dogs, chips, cookies, marshmallows and Santa. Attendance seemed to be a little bit smaller this year. Shane and Hadley did an awesome job with the lighting. Councilmember Greg Kunz suggested in the future, Lynette should try to get permission from the council to buy new Christmas lights before purchasing them.
The Mayor asked if the council wanted to continue doing the Christmas Lighting Contest that has been done in previous years. The council discussed the issue. Council member Greg Kunz made motion the council approve the Christmas Lighting Contest. First place winner will be awarded a $100.00 gift certificate, second place winner will receive a $50.00 gift certificate, and third place winner will receive a $25.00 gift certificate. Winner will be announced on the 20th of December. Flyers will be posted at the post office, City Hall, and the website.
Lynette contacted several accounting agencies to provide audit services for the City accounts. Gary Teuscher suggested Matthew Regen located in Logan, Utah. He sent a formal letter stating his services and the fee involved with them. His fee is $7900.00 for a year end audit. Gary’s fee for last year was $9600.00, but that included both portions of the audit. State law prohibits him from doing both sides of the audit. Mayor would like to know what the city paid Gary for his portion of the audit process for FY24. The council discussed the issue and the Mayor entertained a motion from Councilmember Tee Steadman the council approve engaging Matthew Regan, CPA to audit the financial statements of the City and issue a report to the City on his findings and recommendations. Councilmember Greg Kunz seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
The council discussed employee year end bonuses for the year. Councilmember Trenton Morrell made motion the council approve a $500.00 bonus each for Shane, Hadley, and Lynette with a $200.00 for Doug. Councilmember Tee Steadman seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Councilmember Marty Nate discussed the suggestion of adding some historical signage at the corner of the church on Stringtown. The area mentioned, houses a fire hydrant and some water lines. She wondered if that would be a problem to add signage there with the existing water lines and hydrant. The council discussed the issue and it was suggested to make the signage removable during the winter months and when necessary to get to the hydrant and water lines. She will continue to research it. She asked the councilmembers if they would like Adam Johnson from the Paris City Council to be in attendance at one of the council meetings to discuss and answer questions about the splash park. Everyone agreed it would be a good thing to have him here.
Tee Steadman told the council he had been in contact with Simplot and discussed the problem with the parking. They had not been aware of the issue but when contacted by the City expressing our concerns, they are working on a solution for the problem. At one time the county was looking into making another parking lot up the Main Canyon, but the county commissioner working on it had lost his seat. Greg will check with Commissioner Wynn Olsen and see if the county will pick it back up again. Tee feels the City needs to look for another snowplow. The City of Bloomington obtained one from an auction site for $11,000.00. Shane said they would start looking and wondered if there were other auction sites the City could check out.
Police Report: none
Maintenance Report: Shane told the council he and Hadley had worked on putting a drain line on Hayes Lane. That hydrant has to run all year or else in the wintertime the lines will freeze up. They trenched the line down to Whitaker’s field, installed piping and created an area where the water can accumulate. They dug a grave at the cemetery, took the monthly samples, got the plow trucks ready for winter, filled the diesel tank with #1 fuel and worked on getting the lights up in the park for the park lighting. Alice finished up her electrical project and the new lines are sweet.
Office business: There are 20 delinquent water and sewer accounts.
The chair entertained a motion from Tee Steadman the council approve and signs checks for the month of November 2024. Councilmember Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
As the evening came to halt, the boys sang “Happy Birthday” to Marty. She soaked up their stupendous voices.
At 8:00 pm, the chair entertained a motion from Councilmember Tee Steadman the council adjourn from the December 3, 2024, council meeting. Council member Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Respectfully submitted,

Councilor Marty Nate

CITY OF GEORGETOWN
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
AGENDA

Tuesday, January 7, 2025 City Hall 7:00 pm

MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
INVOCATION

APPROVAL OF AGENDA ITEMS:

READING AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES from December 3, 2024, regular meeting

AGENDA ACTION ITEMS OF CITY OPERATIONS AND NEW BUSINESS:

 Boundary Line Agreement with City and Thompson properties on Main Street
 Sunrise Engineering, Addison Ochsenbein
 To Discuss to adopt a fee and deposit for encroachment on roads Ordinance #96
 To Discuss Cemetery Plots – Increasing fees; weekend funerals

Marty:
Tee:
Greg:
Trenton:

POLICE REPORT: Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Update on Police Car

MAINTENANCE REPORT:

OFFICE BUSINESS: Delinquent water and sewer accounts, Christmas Light Contest Recap, W-2’s

SIGNING OF CHECKS AND VOUCHERS FOR DECEMBER’S BILLS

ADJOURNMENT

Next Meeting:
• City Council regular meeting at 7:00 pm – February 4, 2024, Georgetown City Building – 382 Main St. Questions concerning items appearing on this Agenda or requests for accommodation of special needs to participate in the meeting should be addressed to the Office of the City Clerk or call 208-847-2120.

November 7, 2024
Those Present: Greg Kunz, Marty Nate, Tee Steadman, Mayor Steve Waechtler, Maintenance Supervisor Shane Clark, Maintenance Hadley Wright, City Clerk Lynette Smith, Addison Ochsenbein of Sunrise Engineering, City Attorney Adam McKenzie, Councilor Trenton Morrell absent
Meeting called to order: 7:00 pm Invocation: Mayor Steve Waechtler
The Council entertained a motion from Councilor Tee Steadman to approve the published agenda and was seconded by Councilor Greg Kunz. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
The minutes from October 1, 2024, were read aloud by the Mayor. Councilor Tee Steadman made the motion to accept the minutes as read and Councilor Marty Nate seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
There are no votes to canvass from this election as it wasn’t a City Election.
Addison Ochsenbein, from Sunrise Engineering came before the council to report on his findings. DEQ has opened for accepting applications for loans, the City would like to keep applying to show we are still in need for a project. LHTAC only has sign grants available and he will look into if crosswalk signs are applicable. He is still working on putting together a scope for the transportation plan and we were awarded $30,000. Plans for safety to the school could be about $36,000. He will get a copy of the scope to Lynette and she will distribute to the council.
Our City Attorney, Adam McKenzie reported back that he has spoken with Mark Parker at the Fire District regarding our lease agreement. He said they don’t have the funds to build and don’t foresee being able to within the next 5-10 years. There is no sense in a lease agreement at this point and there is still concern about them owning the building and the city owning the land if we were to ever part ways. Councilor Greg Kunz is concerned if in 5-10 years we have a whole new council and they may not want to move forward with this if we lose the convenience of having a fire truck and such out this way. Adam recommended selling them the land to try and ensure keeping them in our area and the City could have the first right to buy back if it ever came to that.
Ordinance #96 and encroachment on the roads was discussed and Adam said if we are increasing our fees more than 5% we have to hold a public hearing and the fees can’t be revenue funding but needs to be sufficient to cover our costs. As reported at the last meeting, the last repair was nearly $2500 to fix on Stringtown. Concern about a $900 fee not being enough as costs continue to increase. Adam said that if the applicant doesn’t pay the fee or fails to make the repairs then the City would file a lawsuit. Councilor Greg Kunz is concerned about if the road repair sinks 5 years down the road and it was decided that someone like an Engineer or the City maintenance crew would need to sign off on the repairs to be sufficient with a 1-year warranty before any refunds would be granted. The maintenance crew would also supervise what goes back in beneath the asphalt and ensure it is brought back to existing conditions. A breakdown of requirements will be included with the application. It was decided that the Public Hearing will be held on January 7th with a fee of $3,050 and $3,000 being refundable within 60 days following approval and repair must be completed within 30 days. Applications will be approved by the council or in emergency situations can be approved by the maintenance guys
Fees at the cemetery were discussed. Clerk Smith did some research with some surrounding cemeteries to compare our prices. Adam suggested to better define our geographic area in an updated Ordinance which has been from Smith Lane to Georgetown Summit and Nounan. Councilor Tee Steadman made the motion to follow Montpelier’s fee schedule of $250.00 per space for residents, $2,500.00 per space for non-residents, limiting to 4 per household, opening and closing a grave will be $250 from Monday-Friday before 4 pm and $400 after 4 pm on weekends and holidays and cremations are the same price. We will have a public hearing on the same night to finalize these new fees.
The parking situation in front of the church was discussed. Adam suggested creating an Ordinance to prohibit parking in front of the church on City streets or installing a no parking zone with no overnight parking or longer than 3 hours, if violated, they would be cited and subject to towing. Councilor Tee Steadman has been in touch with a couple of the mines that didn’t realize the problem we had with their employees and contractors parking there. We will wait to hear back what they come up with.
It was brought to the councils attention that a citizen may be in violation of an agreement had about not packing a firearm in his vehicle where he can threaten people. Adam will look into our agreement to see about terms and was also stressed that when citizens see these things, they need to call in and report it.
The council approved giving a donation of $500.00 to the senior citizen center.
The council approved Keller Associates to prepare our Annual Land Application report again this year but we will shop around for next year because they weren’t very responsive when we needed their help during our sewer pond crisis.
The Christmas Park Lighting Event will be held on Monday, December 2nd and the Bartschi’s have reached out about doing the food again this year. Tee will line up someone for Santa. Lynette has had a photographer reach out about coming to the event and the council agreed that she is welcome to come but wouldn’t be hired by the City.
Councilor Marty Nate reported that for the Trunk or Treat next year she would like to offer hot dogs and hot chocolate. The trunk or treat was well attended again this year despite the cold. It was noted to either shut down the road or move off the road to the baseball field or even the church parking lot and use that pavilion for the food. She asked about fixing the entrance into the post office from 2nd Street and the hole off the highway by the sidewalk. She has done some research about the splash pad in Paris and found out the City got the cement donated from Parson’s from their leftover jobs and the water is recycled and is used to water the park. The city bought the holding tank and said they need a bigger tank but it was expensive. They haven’t had any trouble with vandalism or abuse. She wondered about using a rubber mulch instead of concrete. She will continue doing some more research.
Councilor Tee Steadman brought an idea of somehow motivating/incentivizing citizens to input a sprinkler system as a way to conserve water. He stated that we need to find a way to make improvements to our infrastructure or move in a different direction to prevent installing water meters. For example, even if we were to give a kickback to our 128 connections it could still be cheaper than getting a $2 million loan for our infrastructure.
Police Report: Sheriff Bart Heslington was unable to attend the council meeting but emailed a report for the council to review. They completed 60.5 hours and had 201 contacts resulting in 5 citations and 32 warnings and 28 traffic stops. He also said they can put the police car up for surplus auction and we just need to set a minimum price for it. The Mayor suggested a $3500 minimum with the equipment. Lynette will work with Bart for the information. The council reviewed the amounts coming in from citations each month.
Maintenance Report: Hadley Wright gave their report for the month of October and stated that he and Shane have been busy at the sewer ponds putting it back together, finalized the seepage test on the pond, serviced the backhoe and had to replace a fuel pump. Alice is almost done with the power at the park and shed, they got a new fuel storage tank, winterized everything at the land app site and all hoses, etc, and took the samples for the month.
Office Business: There are 21 delinquent water and sewer accounts for the month of October. Lynette reported that she was able to use the messaging service for a couple of messages this month and was able to send separate messages to each of the delinquents directly. Lynette has a conflict with the date of our next meeting since she will be out of town for a week. After discussion it was decided that the meeting will remain on Tuesday, December 3rd and councilor Marty Nate will take the minutes. The Mayor requested that she send out a message to citizens that UPS has the city on a deferment delivery service and will only deliver packages 2 days a week. Unless we all call customer service and complain it will be permanent as of the first of the year.
The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Marty Nate for the council to approve checks and vouchers for the month of October 2024 in the amount of $30,221.79 in the general fund, $12,816.82 in the water fund, and $34,218.90 in the sewer fund, with all funds totaling $77,257.51. Councilor Tee Steadman seconded the motion. All were in favor and motion carried the council.
The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Marty Nate that council adjourns from the November 2024 council meeting at 9:50 pm. Councilor Tee Steadman seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.
Respectfully submitted,

Lynette Smith, City Clerk-Treasurer

CITY OF GEORGETOWN
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
AGENDA

Tuesday, December 3, 2024 City Hall 7:00 pm

MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
INVOCATION

APPROVAL OF AGENDA ITEMS:

READING AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES from November 7, 2024, regular meeting

AGENDA ACTION ITEMS OF CITY OPERATIONS AND NEW BUSINESS:

 Sunrise Engineering – Transportation Plan Grant
 Recap Christmas Park Lighting Event
 City Audit Engagement Letter with Matthew Regen & Associates in Logan, UT
 Christmas Light Contest
 Employee Christmas Bonus

Marty:
Tee:
Greg:
Trenton:

POLICE REPORT: Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Update on Police Car

MAINTENANCE REPORT:

OFFICE BUSINESS: Delinquent water and sewer accounts

SIGNING OF CHECKS AND VOUCHERS FOR NOVEMBER’S BILLS

ADJOURNMENT

Next Meeting:
• City Council regular meeting at 7:00 pm – January 7, 2024, Georgetown City Building – 382 Main St. Questions concerning items appearing on this Agenda or requests for accommodation of special needs to participate in the meeting should be addressed to the Office of the City Clerk or call 208-847-2120.

October 1, 2024

Those Present: Trenton Morrell, Marty Nate, Tee Steadman, Mayor Steve Waechtler, Maintenance Supervisor Shane Clark, Maintenance Hadley Wright, City Clerk Lynette Smith, Addison Ochsenbein of Sunrise Engineering, Sheriff Bart Heslington, Councilor Greg Kunz absent

Meeting called to order:               7:00 pm                               Invocation:         Mayor Steve Waechtler

The Council entertained a motion from Councilor Tee Steadman to approve the published agenda and was seconded by Councilor Trenton Morrell. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.

The minutes from September 3, 2024, were read aloud by Clerk Smith and the Mayor. Councilor Marty Nate made the motion to accept the minutes as read and Councilor Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.

Police Report: Sheriff Bart Heslington came before the council to give their report. They completed 59.5 hours and had 115 contacts resulting in 9 citations and 13 warnings and 21 traffic stops. He reported that they have been out patrolling in the evenings and have ran into citizens out and about checking on things as well but have not been calling things in. He asked the council to spread the word to encourage people to call in and report things of importance so a record and history can be started.

Addison Ochsenbein, from Sunrise Engineering came before the council to report on the roadway projects. The project is completed and he reported on the issue at 6^th Street but it was too late to fix as it was missed during the final walk through. The Mayor needs to sign the final pay application and notice of completion. He also reported that the grant he was thinking of to fix our bridge, LHTAC isn’t doing this year so he is looking into other options. He asked for some direction on the Transportation Plan and what our top concerns are. The council responded our main concerns are with kids safety getting to and from school, the sidewalks, crosswalk, signs for a crosswalk/flashing lights, etc. Parking is another major issue. The city owns the street in front of the church but we need some guidance on how to enforce who can park there and when, because it is always full and it affects when there are funerals, church on Sundays and the school parking during the school year. Sheriff Bart recommended using citations vs. towing. Was suggested that we can put up no parking signs unless on Sundays or for a funeral or can issue permits for park and ride. Bart is going to a meeting with Bayer shortly and will bring up the parking issue and the County can put up a vehicle counter on the edge of town and Stringtown to get a better idea of the traffic we have from spring to fall. Councilor Marty Nate made the motion to sign the final pay application for Avail Valley and Councilor Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.

Our City Attorney, Adam McKenzie, recommended not holding a public hearing for the road permit fees until we can publish exactly what we’re doing. It has been discussed to charge $1,000.00 with $50.00 being for the permit fee and $950.00 being a refundable deposit if the work gets completed in a timely manner. Councilor Trenton Morrell also suggested a $500.00 fee for disturbing the right of way to be charged to whomever pulls the permit if it’s the homeowner or the contractor. The No Dig policy is from November 15^th to March 15^th. Was suggested to issue a fine if anyone digs without a permit, even to gas companies and have a way to pull the permit and pay for the fee online. It was $2,500.00 to fix and asphalt Stringtown this year so maybe $1,000.00 isn’t enough and was discussed if we could set the fee on a case by case basis. Councilor Marty Nate is concerned of how to enforce and was tabled until the next meeting and we will invite Adam to attend.

Fees at the cemetery were discussed. Funeral homes have asked if we have different fees on the weekends as other cities double fees on Saturday’s. Was recommended to say no funerals on Sunday’s or Holiday’s. Our plot fees are also super cheap compared to other areas for our residents and we need to look at increasing those fees as well. It was decided to table until the next meeting and to call around to other cities to compare.

UpAhead Messaging Service was discussed. The company did another demo with Marty, Shane and Hadley present and was able to ask more questions. The Remind messaging service that we use now is limited with how many people can be in the group and is meant for schools, at some point we will be told we can’t use the system anymore. We can use the service for water and sewer service shutoff notices and not have to use personal phones, and can use for more things if we have it, since it is more like a phone and can also log in anywhere and send a message. It was suggested to ask if the Irrigation Company would be willing to share some of the fee for use during the summer months. Councilor Trenton Morrell asked if it would be better to purchase a cell phone that can send messages, the cons to that are that no one wants to pack around an additional phone. Councilor Marty Nate made the motion to move forward with the UpAhead Messaging Service and was seconded by Councilor Tee Steadman. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.

The Trunk or Treat will be held on Halloween which is on a Thursday this year and we will start at 5:00 pm. Lynette will get flyers put up and handed out at the school.

The council discussed what to do with the old police car and that we need to sell it before it depreciates more. Sheriff Bart said he could check around if another small city needs it or we can strip all of the police stuff before it goes to auction. Lynette will send an email to Bart with the cars information, and he will report back at the next meeting.

Councilor Marty Nate reported she’s had some citizens concerned about when the cows will be coming down Stringtown from Slug Creek and Tee responded that he thinks they will truck the cows home and not trail them this year. She also said she would like to do a splash pad in the Park and wants to start planning towards that. Tee mentioned to reach out to the Mines about coming to a meeting and discuss help with funding for a splash pad and the parking issues.

Maintenance Report: Hadley Wright gave their report for the month of September and stated that he and Shane have been busy with mowing, checked on the spring, dug two graves, been helping with the power at the park and power to the shed is almost done. The service missionaries are scheduled to come on the second Tuesday of every month to help with projects. They have also been busy at the sewer ponds still and have installed a bypass line since the transfer structure is completely plugged. They will update all drawings with what they find and will tie it all in and have back to normal operating by tomorrow hopefully.

Office Business:   There are 18 delinquent water and sewer accounts for the month of September. She completed and distributed the CCR Water Report for the year. Our next meeting has a conflict with the elections and use of the building so the meeting was moved to Thursday, November 7^th.

The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Marty Nate for the council to approve checks and vouchers for the month of September 2024 in the amount of $262,792.85 in the general fund, $8,584.60 in the water fund, and $28,066.41 in the sewer fund, with all funds totaling $299,443.86. Councilor Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and motion carried the council.

The chair entertained a motion from Councilor Marty Nate that council adjourns from the October 2024 council meeting at 9:35 pm. Councilor Trenton Morrell seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried the council.

Respectfully submitted,

Lynette Smith

City Clerk-Treasurer