Photo by Kirsten Zoellner
At the June 7 meeting, the Rushford Village Council discussed a possible extension of the garbage collection contract. Jeff Holmquist, sales manager for Harter’s Quick Clean-Up, was on hand to discuss what the village is looking for and any concerns over the current contract. “I’m here today to gather what you’re looking for and take that back to my powers that be and work something out for you,” he stated.
Per the discussion, the main concern for the village is the cost to replace the garbage carts, which they currently own, receiving a $.50 price break per cart, on the contract. Holquist noted that in a majority of Harter’s contracts, the cities do not own the carts. The village has previously noted that the automated pick-up is increasingly hard on the carts. They’ve replaced six carts recently and there are several out there with cracked lids or other issues. New carts are roughly $110 a piece.
“We stand behind you whichever way it goes. We’re pretty flexible,” noted Holmquist. “We now have Whalan and Peterson, plus Rushford, and someday again, hopefully, Lanesboro. We’re getting more saturated in this area,” he added.
Holmquist questioned how long of an extension the village would consider, noting that if contracts go out for bid, the pricing usually increases. He suggested both three- and five-year options. Councilor Bob Hart asked how fuel pricing would affect the contract should prices continue to go up or by some fate, drop.
“There is a fuel surcharge,” responded Holmquist. “It’s just been incredible. I’ve heard that from several people. Obviously, it’s a moving target.”
There is still time left on the current contract. “We would like to come up with an extension to keep everyone happy,” added Holmquist. “We have good staff and operations. They care about what they do.” The council directed Holmquist to come up with several options to address the cart ownership and possible contract extension to be ready no later than the first meeting in July.
The council also discussed the water tower in South Rushford and whether or not there was a public easement or not on the roughly 10 acres that allow access to it. The issue first came up when Zoning Administrator Jon Pettit received calls about the access area, which is backed by state land.
Directing City Attorney Joe O’Koren to look into the easement agreements, it’s been clarified that the area is not open for public access, but rather there is only a maintenance utility easement.
“Nothing says it’s public access,” stated O’Koren. “Just because it says City of Rushford Village does not mean it’s open to the public.” There is a sign posted at the bottom of the hill, but additional signs will be put up top where the easement property meets state land. It was also noted that residents that have properties abutting the easement can place signs as well. According to Overland, there are four or five properties on the Darr Lane cul-de-sac that are part of the area.
“It is not public access,” he stressed. “The easement starts where the park ends and goes uphill. It’s all maintenance utility only.”
An estimate for the chip sealing of County Line and Deep River Road for 2023, following crack sealing this year, was also discussed by the council. The estimate came in at $118,000.
“That’s a lot of money,” said Councilor Roger Knutson. “How busy are the roads? Are they busy enough to need that? A road that only has a few cracks probably doesn’t need chip sealing. I’m sure we don’t want to spend $118,000 and we can knock it down significantly.”
It was suggested that City Engineer Derek Olinger meet with Public Works/Maintenance Supervisor Trenton Chiglo to see if there are repairs that can be done. City Clerk Mary Miner noted that the 2023 budget review is coming up soon and this is the time to look at road needs.
The decision on a part-time maintenance position is also underway. Personnel Committee representative, Councilor Knutston, noted he’d spoken with the candidate to verbally offer a position and that he’s expecting an answer by next week. As for the additional applicants, they’ll be notified once the village has that answer. “If he accepts, we can thank them for applying. If he doesn’t take the job, we’ll reevaluate the remaining applicants.”
The village is close to determining the final employee reference guide, as well as pay step structure and job descriptions, according to Clerk Miner. Public Sector Human Resources Consultant Paul Ness has contracted with the village to refine both. The council is reviewing the documents now and it was asked whether or not there were any questions regarding them or recommendations from the council on how to proceed.
“Where do you start to ask a question? It’s a lot of stuff,” noted Hart. “It sounds like Paul thought we were on the right track anyway and he offered us some choices. Did he have recommendations?”
“I think he’ll give you the information and let you make the decision,” responded Miner. “He tells you why he comes to some conclusions, rationale, but as far as coming out and saying what to do, I don’t think you can expect that of him.” Both items were tabled until the next meeting.
The next regularly scheduled meeting is Tuesday, June 21, at 7 p.m., at the Village Hall. The public is encouraged to attend.
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