Several ordinances, brought to the public in a hearing before Monday’s council meeting, April 10, were approved by the council during the meeting. The ordinances set water operation fees, created procedures to handle blighted properties and abandoned vehicles and increased court costs and LACE pay. No comments were made by the public during the hearing held prior to the meeting.
Water fees were set by the first ordinance. Deposits would be $100, tap fees set at $350 with additional costs for boring to be incurred by the homeowner and connection fees would be $125. Reconnect fees would be set at $50; transfer fees at $25. Meters downloaded would be $25 and reimbursable if the meter is not correct. Fees for damaged or new meters would be charged if necessary, and even criminal charges could be incurred. Councilman Chris Davis made the motion. Councilman Gary Marcantel gave the second, and the council approved it unanimously.
The second ordinance dealing with blighted properties and abandoned vehicles set the process of identifying them, labeling them and then pursuing the cleanup or imposing fines and penalties when necessary. Councilman Abraham McCleon, councilman at large, asked about vehicles parked on the side of the road. It was explained once identified and considered junk, they would be removed.
Mayor Larry Alexander said notice would be given to all. Councilwoman Janice Simon motioned first, and Ryan Rozas gave it a second. It was a unanimous decision.
The third ordinance, unanimously approved by the council, increased the town’s court costs from $85 to $120. Last month Simon and Davis reported back to the council after studying court costs in the area. Rozas made the motion and McCleon gave the second before the motion passed.
The fourth ordinance involved increasing LACE pay for officers to $30 an hour. Before the topic was discussed, the mayor reminded the council they had went back and forth on this subject for the last two months. He said this is about the town’s police officers and not its chief of police. The mayor pointed out officers are spending extra time working traffic and writing tickets on their days off. He said, “They (officers) were coming in and doing the extra work.” He believed this would be a great opportunity for the town to reward officers for working extra hours.
Councilman Rozas did ask about a step-increase plan which he had discussed at the last meeting. The mayor explained he did not believe it would work legally. He also said the council could come back and make changes when necessary. Simon made the motion and McCleon gave the second. It passed unanimously.
