PALMER LAKE, COLORADO
Town Council Meeting - Record of Proceedings

February 14, 2008

The Palmer Lake Town Council meeting was called to order by Mayor Parker at 7:04 p.m., February 14, 2008.

Attendees:

Trustees:
Mayor Parker
Allen
Coleman
Flake
Jack
Miner
Stafford

Attorney: Gaddis
Audience: 8

Pledge of Alliance:  Trustee Miner

March Planning Commission Liaison - Trustee Stafford (March 12 and 19, 2008)
April Planning Commission Liaison - Trustee Allen (April 9 and 16, 2008)
May Planning Commission Liaison - To be determined (May 14 and 21, 2008)

Item #3:  Approval of Agenda
Mayor Parker asked to amend the agenda to include 6a - Designating Clerk Gray as the Election Official.

Trustee Allen made a motion to approve the agenda as amended, seconded by Trustee Stafford.  Motion carried unanimously.

Item #4:  Consent Items:

1. Approval of Minutes - December 13, 2007
2. Approval of Minutes - January 10, 2008
3. Payment/Ratification of Bills - Final December 2007
4. Payment/Ratification of Bills - January 2008

Trustee Flake asked that the minutes of December 13, 2007 be amended to reflect 'Officer Lenhard "made an" arrest'.

Trustee Jack made a motion to approve the Consent Items, with the changes as noted presented by Trustee Flake, seconded by Trustee Coleman.  Motion carried unanimously.

Item #5:  Monument Hill Sertoma - Ted Bauman
                Proclamation Sertoma's Freedom Week
                What Freedom Means to Me - Emily Ward
       8th Grade, Lewis Palmer Middle School.

Ted Bauman introduced Emily Ward as the winner of this year's essay contest.  Over 500 students participated in this year's contest.

Mayor Parker read a Proclamation proclaiming February 17th to the 23rd, 2008, as Sertoma Freedom Week.

Emily Ward read her essay entitled The Light of Freedom.

Item #6:  Committee Reports
Mayor Parker - Mayor's Report
 
Reminder - Petitions will be available on February 11th.  There are positions open for 5 trustees and the mayor.

Trustee Allen - Police

• We thought we had purchased a good vehicle for the Police Department.  After studying their disclaimer statement the vehicle was returned to the dealer without penalty and our search started again. Thanks to Della, Tara and Nikki for their valuable assistance.
• As we discussed last month the Monument Police Department and our Department have been engaged in a feasibility evaluation on the advantages and disadvantages of combining certain operations.  Examples are: training, report preparation, patrolling, evidence and administration.
  • Results of the Department evaluation show that our Police Department is in pretty darn good shape, better than expected.
  • However, there are some serious deficiencies in officer training.  These are certainly correctable and Monument is willing to work closely with us to rectify this problem.
  • Sgt. Berk, Monument Police Department, did have access to our Town budget.  It seems Palmer Lake must operate on a budget much smaller and more limited than theirs.  That had a large bearing on the conclusions reached in the evaluation.
• For the almost 2 years I have been on this Board it was my impression that there were serious benefits to be gained on a cooperative effort with the Monument Police Department.  All I asked was that we give it a good look to see if that was the case.  Well, we gave it a good look and that was not the case at this time.  Bottom line, it is not mutually beneficial to combine any Police operations at this time.  We have a great working relationship with Chief Shirk and his police officers.  I, therefore, recommend that, for the time being, we maintain our Palmer Lake Police Department independence and foster our excellent working relationship with the Monument Department.
• Immediate Challenges:  Have a Police Committee meeting in the very near future.  Issues to be discussed: 
  • Start immediately with the process of finding and hiring a new Police Chief.
  • Approve a job description for the Police Office Records Clerk.  Committee recommendations will then be presented to the entire Board for approval.
  • If necessary, begin immediately a search for someone to fill the Police Records Clerk position.

Trustee Allen stated that Acting Chief (Sgt) Tezak is going a good job and has put in extra hours.  That furthermore it is not normal for a Sergeant to earn the same hourly wage as a patrol officer.  With that in mind he would like to make the following motion:

Trustee Allen made a motion to increase the hourly wage for Nikki Tezak by $1.00 per hour permanently and by an additional $1.00 per hour for the duration of her position as Acting Chief, seconded by Trustee Coleman.  Motion carried unanimously.

Trustee Allen stated that Officer Joe Lundy unselfishly conducted CPR on a terminally ill woman, giving her the chance to survive. Unfortunately, the woman passed on.

Trustee Coleman - Fire
2008 CALLS:

2007 RECAP:

1. PLVFD Members volunteered more than 9,350 hours to the Citizens of Palmer Lake in 2007. On each of the 295 calls in 2007, an average of more than 5 Members were in attendance. As of 12/31/07, the PLVFD had 33 Members, including 9 Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) and 5 prospective Members.
   
   
   1. Calls - est. man-hours...............................3,150                                                  
   2. Training - est. man-hours.......................... 2,850 
      (Fire - 2,300; Medical - 550
   3. Station Duty - est. man-hours....................1,550
   4. Events - est. man-hours............................1,700+
   5. Chief's Meetings - est. man-hours................. 100+
      
      
2. The PLVFD received the following grants:
   
   
   1. Colorado State Forest Service - $608 for wildland equipment
   2. Tri-Lakes Women's Club - $1,336 for a new computer and 3 power inverters
   3. NFFF/Fireman's Fund Insurance Company - $2,650 for a multi-gas detector
      
      
3. In addition, the PLVFD received the following major donations:
   
   
   1. Donations of supplies for the Easter Pancake Breakfast.
   2. Donations of supplies and raffle items for the Chili Supper.
   3. 3 passenger vehicles for extrication training, donated by private individuals.
   4. 1 semi-tractor from King Soopers through Firefighter Mike Maier. The PLVFD is working on getting a 3,000-gallon tank for this truck for additional tender operation capabilities in wildland fires and on structure fires in un-hydranted areas. The completed vehicle will help support the Town of Palmer Lake and North Group mutual aid calls.
   5. Use of a meeting room at The Depot restaurant for 1 month for display of trains as a PLVFD fundraiser.

JANUARY 2008:

1. 19 PLVFD members were certified as Ice Rescue Specialists on January 13th. Larkspur Fire Lieutenant Chad Campagnola led the training.
2. PLVFD Members Alex Farr, Kim Polonsky, Alexa Grady, Daniel Roman, and prospective member Matt Maier passed the Hazmat Operations examination.
3. PLVFD Members Mike Maier and Daniel Roman, and prospective member Matt Maier are scheduled to graduate from the Larkspur Fire Academy on February 16th.
4. PLVFD Members will host the annual Pizza night with retired and former PLVFD members at the Fire Station on February 16th.
5. ***Winterfest???*** 
   There was discussion about the possibility of having another Winterfest on Saturday, February 23rd, but PLVFD has not been notified of any final decision and has not planned accordingly.
6. PLVFD members are currently undergoing in-house Search & Rescue training.

REMINDERS:

***Place house numbers so they are visible from the street.***
For a $20 donation, the PLVFD will install address signs for Palmer Lake residents. Call 481-2902 for appointment.

Trustee Flake - Parks and Recreation\Buildings 
BUILDINGS
No report.

PARKS & RECREATION

• The Palmer Lake Recreation Area Master Plan Steering Committee met with members of the Streetscape, Awake the Lake, and the Palmer Lake Historical Society on January 24th at the Town Hall.  Mr. Tim Wolken presented the first edition of the master plan for the Park & Lake.  This was an exciting meeting as it brought all the committees with an interest in the lake together to a common ground.  The Steering Committee will meet at least one more time before presenting a plan to the public.  There has been some conversations over email pertaining to getting the parking lot ready for a possible Farmers' Market, however, the El Paso County Parks Board recommends we see this process through to the end before any work is started/completed.

• When weather-permitting, Scenic View Landscaping and Masterbilt Homes, continue work at the ballfield.  We're still working towards a feasible option for a water source for irrigation and electricity that will suit both the fireworks celebration and the Little League children.  I would like to buy a scoreboard for the field to show the Town is commitment to the Little League and to recognize the value of the improvements being made.  Since the electrical still needs to be completed, this would be a great time for the scoreboard wiring to take place.  I would like to add a presentation to the scoreboard to honor the sponsors of the field renovation, then after a period of years, the Town can sell sponsorships on the presentation boards to local businesses to help supplement electric and water.

• Mary Meyer of ATL and PLHS is now heading up the Chautauqua Revival.  She has prepared and submitted a grant request to the Colorado Humanities and will be holding a meeting on Monday, February 18th at 7:00 PM at the Museum for any one interested in helping with this year's event.

• YEA!  WinterFest is Scheduled for next Saturday, February 23rd from 1:00-5:00 at the Lake.  The PLVFD will supply hot dogs and hot cocoa and man our bonfire!  Thanks in advance to the fire department.  Skate rental will be free thanks to the Colorado Sports and & Events Center (Soc-n-roll).  We will have a snowman contest this year that I hope will eventually spin in to a snow sculpture contest.  Snowmen have to under 4' tall and each team should bring their own decorations/supplies.  We will judge the contest at 4:30 PM and prizes will be awarded.  I was hoping that a couple board members would serve as judges!  Is any one willing to commit?   Troy Oliver of the Fire Department will be monitoring the ice safety as we enter into some warmer temps over the next week.  Weather-permitting, this event is sure to be well-attended.  I hope everyone can drop by.

Trustees Jack and Stafford volunteered to be judges for the snowman contest at Winterfest.

Trustee Jack - Roads
The following are just highlights of each month's activities. During these times, we continually maintained roads, ditches, and the equipment.

• January - Filled out and filed FEMA paperwork for a snow related "State of Emergency." We were awarded $3,035.00.
• February - Attended the annual Rocky Mountain Asphalt Conference.
• March - Assisted the Water Dept with a main break along Highway 105.
• April - Another Blizzard. Began repairing equipment from the harsh winter.
• May - Worked on the parking lot along Highway 105 and continued work on the "Safe Routes to School" grant.
• June - Rebuilt and repaved Lower Glenway.
• July - Rebuilt and graveled Thompson Place, Highland, and Hillside. (4" of rain hit the next week and washed a lot of it away.)
•  August - Hired a "Vactor" truck to clean several culverts throughout Town. We also cleaned some with our own equipment.
• September - With the Council approval of expenditures of excess monies, we began major repairs to our equipment.
• October - Lowered the intersection of Walnut @ Crescent and cut an oversized ditch through Glen Park.
• November - Prepared roads for the upcoming snow season.
• December - Attended an AutoCAD class and prepared the financial package for the new loader and backhoe.

Trustee Jack presented a preliminary job description for a Roads Maintenance Technician and asked for council's approval to proceed with placing an ad.  Applicants will be required to perform a practical skills assessment with the backhoe and front end loader.

Trustee Jack and Clerk Gray have begun working on reformatting all job descriptions and will have them available for the March meeting.

Trustee Miner - Economic and Community Development
Active discussion regarding the location of the tractor pull in relationship to the proposed location of the Farmer's Market has resulted in productive investigation of the varied uses our park and our Streetscape serve.

There is a proposal for the Farmer's Market coming to Palmer Lake for 4th of July and possibly for the entire market season.  Location is an issue to be discussed and resolved.  The amount of sales tax revenue is not significant but the marketing benefit for the town is.

Immediate enforcement of the existing sign codes is becoming very important followed by the joint meeting of  Council and Planning Commission for the continued discussion on the changes needed in the code.  Thanks to Jen Martin, who has been the driving force behind the updating of the sign ordinance.

Trustee Stafford - Water

January 2008
Water Revenue          38,770.19
Late Charges              1,560.00
Total                       $40,330.19

Expenditures   
Water Admin            37,992.15
Water Operations      21,251.81
Total                       $59,243.96

Capital Imp's
Revenue                    0.00
Expenditures            1,439.19

Trustee Stafford reported he had completed the draft of the RFP for our Water Attorney and forwarded the same to Attorney Gaddis.  He has incorporated Attorney Gaddis' recommendations into the document and will present it to council at next month's meeting.

Mayor Parker asked that Trustee Stafford be appointed as the alternate representative to the PPRWA.

Trustee Flake made a motion to appoint Trustee Stafford as alternate representative to the PPRWA, seconded by Trustee Miner.  Motion carried unanimously.

Bob Miner - Fountain Creek Watershed
Bob asked Mayor Parker to speak at PPACG and to send a letter to the Army Corp of Engineers regarding the fact that not all of the entities that had paid into the Fountain Creek Study had been represented in the draft study.  Palmer Lake, Woodland Park, Manitou Springs, Cascade and Green Mountain Falls were not included in the draft.

Jeff Hulsmann - Awake the Lake - excused

Staff:  Clerk Gray
One of the purposes of the Town Office Staff is to offer administrative support to all other departments.  We do this on a daily basis as part of our function. 

At this time I would like to acknowledge and thank Tara Berreth and Kathy VanTuinen for stepping in to help out on two different occasions that were above and beyond our normal duties.

When Steve Orcutt left us in February, Tara assisted Jeremie with his monthly reports, being there for Jeremie when he needed her, and by making weekly trips to Boulder, Fort Collins and Colorado Springs to deliver water samples.  By default, Kathy stepped in and took over some of the tasks that Tara would have normally completed.

In January, with the passing of Chief Dan Gilliana, once again both Tara and Kathy stepped in and offered assistance to Acting Chief Tezak.  At this time, Tara is still assisting the police department with activities related to the record's clerk position.  And once again, Kathy has increased her duties accordingly.

It is good to know that my staff is willing and able to go the extra mile for their fellow employees and for the good of the citizens of Palmer Lake.

Item #6a:  Designation of Election Official

Trustee Jack made a motion to appoint Clerk Gray as Election Official for the April 2008 election, seconded by Trustee Miner.  Motion carried unanimously.

Item #7:  Public Input
Bob Miner stated that Pepsi would donate a scoreboard to the town for the ballfield.
Bob Miner stated that 16% of CPR recipients do not survive.  Officer Lundy did an excellent job in attempting to save a woman's life.

Officer Caleb Vance introduced himself to the board and extended stated he wanted to thank Della, Tara, Kathy Bob for their support of the Police Department.

Item #8:  Executive Session - Personnel and Legal
Trustee Flake made a motion to enter into executive session at 8:43 pm, seconded by Trustee Coleman.  Motion carried unanimously.

Trustee Stafford made a motion to exit executive session and Return to Regular session at 9:03 pm, seconded by Trustee Allen.  Motion carried unanimously.

Trustee Allen made a motion that Cynthia Beers, Palmer Lake Police Department Records Clerk, be terminated with cause effective this date, February 14, 2008, seconded by Trustee Miner.  Motion carried unanimously.

Trustee Miner made a motion to authorize the disbursement of vacation hours earned as of December 22, 2007 and benefits money on the books and to deny Cynthia Beers' requests for any other reimbursements, seconded by Trustee Jack.  Motion carried unanimously.

Trustee Miner made a motion to adjourn at 9:08 pm, seconded by Trustee Allen.  Motion carried unanimously.

Approved as written or amended this 13th day of March, 2008.

Max Parker, Mayor
Della Gray, Town Clerk

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