On April 10, the Rushford Council held the first of its two monthly meetings. While general business had several minor items, including various approvals for upcoming festivities and fundraising events, the council approved two other notable items.
The first was approving an Assistant Director/EMS Training Coordinator job description. Accordion to the agenda, the position is intended “to add continuity to the volunteer department and provide additional EMS daytime response.” In addition, the description indicates the person chosen will assist the director with technical and clerical work related to daily operations and management and implementation of training programs.
Ambulance Department members reviewed the positions, and the union supported the 25-hour-per-week position. The document also indicates, “responding to ambulance calls during the established work week is considered to be within the scope of the regular work hours. In the original draft, responding to calls was not considered not part of the workday. However, City Clerk Kathy Zacher stated the crew felt that the arrangement would need to be revised and that the city would get few applicants.
“That’s the beauty of this job. It’s very flexible,” added Zacher. “You can come in to get the rest of your time or get your job done if you need to.”
The budget for the position comes solely out of the ambulance budget. It will be posted internally for current city employees for five days and then advertised externally.
The council also briefly discussed and approved the Public Works skid loader trade-in. After two quotes, the department recommended the bid from Ziegler Caterpillar for $48,134. The current unit will be traded in, including the bucket, but all other attachments will stay within the department for use on the new machine. The funding for the purchase will come from the levee fund, as a large portion of the work will be for ongoing levee maintenance and other public works areas.
The lengthiest portion of discussion during the meeting occurred during Reports/Updates and related to the proposed lighting system layout for Creekside Park tennis/pickleball and basketball courts. A recent design quote from Viking Design, coordinating with NES, came in with a price tag estimate of $60,369.
Project co-coordinators Kayla Volkman and Rushford Peterson Valley Chamber of Commerce Director Jen Hengel are seeking and applying for grants and preparing to approach groups and individuals for donations. Mayor Terri Benson requested the council look at what the city could offer, in-kind, towards the project.
While the council agreed that lighting would add additional amenities to the park, the scale and cost of the project are in the early stages. The courts were initially planned and installed with state and federal funds, so the city is limited by how much things can change.
The current plan, designed using computer modeling for the best light output, calls for 10 poles with two lights each. Electrical would be bored underground from either the area by the Veterans Memorial Park or the former skating rink.
Benson suggested the city could commit to an amount to give project coordinators a starting point. City Administrator Tony Chladek suggested funding sources could be leveraged over the next several years. Zacher suggested getting a new bid with fewer poles/lights. Councilor Jim O’Donnell suggested a verbal commitment to show the city’s support but noted that what the city wants is still under consideration.
“You have to start the conversation somewhere. Everybody has a different amount of money and idea of what it should be used for,” said Councilor Leigh Volkman.
With the project only happening next year at the very earliest, there is time to work on the scope of the project and funding opportunities. Project coordinators applied for a BK5K Grant for new basketball hoops and should have the results soon.
The next regularly scheduled council meeting is Monday, April 24, at 6:30 p.m. at city hall. The public is encouraged to attend.
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