You want to keep it clean, you want to keep it neat, so people continue to rent it.”

Alderperson Mark Fitzsimmons

Construction season will soon be here, and the Stanley City Council is gearing up for the 2nd Avenue project to begin. At the February 5th meeting council members motioned to accept the lowest bid from Haas Sons Inc. for the 2nd Avenue Project as recommended by Ayres Construction at their base bid amount of $491,583.61 with Alderperson Josh Seidl abstaining. Alderperson Mike Henke recommended inviting the 2nd Avenue Stanley residents or landowners to an informational open house meeting concerning the 2nd Avenue Project in March and suggested getting bigger maps to be laid out for residents to see. “In the past we did that, and it was always a nice idea that way the residents know what we are doing before we start cutting trees and ripping the dirt up,” Henke said and mentioned that residents may want to put new waterlines into their houses.
The council discussed increasing the rental price for the Stanley Community Center to cover the costs for building operation and maintenance since the cost wasn’t being covered by the income generated from the rentals of the building. Alderperson Mark Fitzsimmons inquired about the cost of the garbage service at the Community Center and wondered if a dumpster was needed year-round. “We paid $165 a month for garbage service for that building. Do we have any other option?” he asked.
When Mayor Haas asked if it could be downsized, city administrator Nicole Pilgrim said that the dumpster is needed for larger events like the Stanley Rodeo in June.
“It just seems like a lot per month for a few events,” Fitzsimmons stated. He went on to question why the electric bill was so high for the winter months when there are only a few usages of the building at that time. “I know we got talked into that three phase which was a bad situation, but it just seems awful expensive,” he said. “It’s very high for the minimal usage.”
As the council discussed reasons why the utility bills may be so high, they decided to look further into the situation and see what could be adjusted.
Fitzsimmons added, “And you want the building to just pay for itself. It’s not there to make money. It’s just to maintain and take care of.”
Alderperson Mike Henke asked if they should use money from what the organizations donated to cover the additional costs.
Fitzsimmons said, “I think we need to raise the rate. We’re the cheapest nice facility around. You can’t rent a nicer facility for anywhere near that money. I would not be opposed to even raising the rate up $50 per each half side or $100 for the whole center just for the fact that you want to keep it a nice facility. You want to keep it clean, you want to keep it neat, so people continue to rent it.”
As the Community Center has already had bookings for the current year, the council unanimously decided to raise the rate for the Community Center Building rate $50 more for a half side at a total rental cost of $450 and $100 more for a whole building rental price of $900 beginning in 2025. Anyone who already entered into a rental price agreement will be grandfathered in. The council also decided to pay the cost shortage from the donation fund.
Alderperson Jason Meyer spoke out referencing the open job position with the Stanley Water Department.
“At the last meeting I had a question regarding the internal posting for the water treatment position that was issued last fall. I think I am incorrect about Dean asking for a higher wage than what was posted, so I am requesting a copy of the documents Dean submitted for the internal job posting so I can verify exactly what Dean requested for a wage. In addition, I would urge any city employee who is interested in working in the water department to submit an application to the currently published external job posting. The last position filled in the water department was filled at a wage level that was higher than posted. It is probable that in order to hire a qualified candidate the posted wage may need to be exceeded.”
The council unanimously renewed the two-year 2024 contract with HydroCorp.
In an effort to simplify building permit usage, the council decided to look further into simplifying building permits in order to make it easier for residents to obtain them. Stay tuned for updates to follow as the Council finalizes costs and information.