Mayor Swears in New GHPD Officer and More

The meeting took place in the Council Chambers Monday, Feb. 14. The meeting carried on without Councilmen Derek Young and Tim Payne. Public attendance was also sparse as only a handful of local boy scout members and their parents stuck around for the entire meeting.

The council members revisited the bid to select the official newspaper for the city. At the Jan. 24 meeting, the members voted to award the designation to The Peninsula Gateway. However, because of language complications stated in the proposal of whether to select the lowest bidder, the City Council members voted to restart the selection process by withdrawing the Jan. 24 decision, rejecting all candidates and re-advertising to the appropriate publications.

Mayor Chuck Hunter swore in 's newest officer, Debra Hutches. Her parents, Masuko and Jim Smith, were in attendance for the ceremony.

Afterward, the mayor, council members, city administrator and city attorney all left the chambers  for an executive session to discuss a potential litigation. The closed-door meeting lasted for about 20 minutes. City officials declined to comment further on this issue.

After the executive session, the council discussed a proposal on city employees opting out of their medical insurance plans. The City currently awards $125 per month to employees and supervisor guilds for not enrolling their dependents. The new proposal will help save about $441 every month by allowing a city employee to opt out of the health plan; in exchange, the city will pay $125 to that employee. The council approved the motion, and the mayor is expected to sign the Memorandum of Understanding.

The City Council members also reviewed the first reading of the ordinance to amend the 2011 salary schedule. The council is expected to adopt the ordinance after the second reading.

For the staff report, City Administrator Rob Karlinsey presented the Council with an update on the Maritime Pier. Although the city currently has no funding to build the pier, Karlinsey said moving forward with the maintenance option will be in the city's best interest. The project will include removing the toxic creosote-laden pilings and installing fewer environmentally friendly pilings to the pier.

Finally, Karlinsey said the 2010 budget ended about 2 percent better than anticipated. From its $10 million budget, the net benefit is estimated to be about $200,000. He credited Finance Director David Rodenbach and his staff for "nailing the budget," especially during tough financial times. 

Karlinsey said the city will determine how the money will be spent and will review a wish list of possible projects, including Rosedale Street lights and Cushman trail improvements.

He said the city also has an additional $100,000 available from the Borgen Boulevard construction 10 years ago. Karlinsey said the Local Improvement District is now paid off, and the excess funding is considered one-time money. He recommend the city to use it for transportation-related projects or to allocate it for city reserve funds.

Upcoming dates:

Thursday, Feb. 17: Operations Committee meeting at 3 p.m.

Monday, Feb. 21: Civic Center will be closed in observance of Presidents' Day

Tuesday, Feb. 22: Finance/Safety Committee meeting at 4 p.m.

Monday, Feb. 28: Boards and Candidates Review meeting at 4 p.m.

Monday, Feb. 28: City Council meeting at 5:30 p.m.