(Spirit Lake)—The Spirit Lake city council has a new member. The council voted unanimously last (Tues.) evening to appoint John Chappas to the seat left vacant last month when councilman Steve Balm resigned. Chappas is no stranger to the council, having served on the body in the past. Chappas will fill the position up until the November general election at which point he could opt to run for a full term. Mayor Blain Andera expressed his gratitude to five others who showed an interest in the seat…(click here for comment.)
Meanwhile, anyone opposed to the appointment can still file a petition calling for a special election.
In other business, the council approved the first reading of a proposal to increase rates for water and sewer service. It calls for four percent increases effective this coming July 1st, with another four percent increase July 1st, 2014. City Administrator Mark Stevens told the council the increases are necessary to keep up with inflation and to keep the water and sewer funds viable. Stevens added the council may be forced to increase various fees as well. He says the water department needs to cover the cost of ordering new water meters to replace current ones that contain lead…(click here for comment.) No action was taken on that, however the council directed Stevens to put together a resolution with the proposed increases to be presented at the next meeting.
The council also last (Tues.) evening approved an agreement with Shamrock Recycling for residential recycling pickup. City officials say residents won’t see any changes in the service in the onset, atleast.
The council approved an architectural services agreement with the SEH firm that’s not to exceed $114,950 for the city hall project; and they approved an amended engineering agreement with Beck Engineering for the 15th Street reconstruction project, which is scheduled for next year.
