South Central Reporter

Village of Aviston Village Board met May 3.

Here is the minutes provided by the board:

The regular meeting of the President and Board of Trustees was held at 7:15 pm in the Village Hall. In attendance were Village President Mike Kampwerth, Village Clerk Jennifer Jansen, Village Treasurer Steve Goestenkors, Trustees Gary Litteken, Kurt Schmitz, Kevin Eversgerd, Matt Kohnen and Curt Albers. Employees present included Gary Rakers, Dave Trame, Mike Kuhl and Henry Bergmann. Guests included Mary Lee Jansen, Keith Nordike, Kim and Tyler Peek, Mike Buscher, Jim and Elaine Kampwerth, Emily Strieker, Maisie Kampwerth, Kim and Lucas Haukap, Katie Smothers, Theresa Richards, Kelly Kampwerth, Mike and Dana Toeben, Terry Richards Lisa & Duane Niemeyer, Dennis Rakers, Denise Zurliene, Marcis Kampwerth.

Mike Kampwerth amended the agenda to fill the Village Board vacancy. Mike appointed Kim Peek to complete the Village Board. Jennifer Jansen then swore her in as Trustee.

1. GUESTS:

Mary Lee Jansen was present to address drainage issues on Oak Street in front of her mom’s house. It was stated that Hollenkamps, next door, will be closing in their ditch which could possibly contribute more issues to this area.

Dennis Rakers was present to inform the Board that he is the newly elected Park District President and Troy Kapp was brought on as a new park board member.

2. COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS:

A suggested committee appointment list was passed out for all to review. Final revisions will be made at the Special Meeting on May 17th.

3. POLICE REPORT:

-Benevolent Organization – Mike Kuhl asked the Board to consider this outreach program. -Social Archive – Mike informed the Board that this is something that other local municipalities use to help archive social media accounts in real time. The Board will review the information for future reference.

-CAD – Mike informed the Board that the new network being used by the County is in place. This will cost an estimated $3400/year for the Village.

-Noise Ordinance – Mike stated that there is confusion on the noise ordinance when dealing with the park, residences, bars, etc. and would like to get something more uniform in place for ease of the officers.

-FOP – Mike stated that Clinton County law enforcement is joining the FOP lodge in St. Clair County. The cost is $65/officer/year for legal funding for all officers. He will provide more information at the June meeting on this.

Mike asked if the Board would consider the department changing their patch. A picture of what the officers chose was in packets for all to review. The cost of changing this is $60. A motion to approve this was made by Gary Litteken, second by Kevin Eversgerd. Motion carried 6-0

4. AMI REVIEW:

The Village Board reviewed the AMI project early in the meeting as Aaron with Irby was teleconferenced in. Aaron stated that all equipment has been ordered and should ship by July 7th. 200 meters have already been delivered and he came out for an on-site visit to review the tower on April 27th. He is expecting approval from the FCC by mid-June and ReadY has been installed on the office computer and the shed computer. Scheduling training can begin as soon as all android devices are ordered, received and the JUS contract is signed.

5. VILLAGE CLERK:

A copy of the report was available in everyone’s packet for review.

Jenny reviewed a few of the items in detail and stated that a hard copy of the ordinance book should be ready for the June meeting.

6. PARK DISTRICT:

The Park District minutes were in everyone’s packet for review. It was said that Bob Schiefer was given a 40-year plaque at the last meeting. Dog park fencing has been ordered and Village employees will assist in taking down some playground equipment in the area.

7. CURRENT PROJECTS:

-AMI – The revised employment terms were present for all to review. A motion to approve these terms and forward to Mike and Michael Sullivan was made by Kurt Schmitz, second by Kevin Eversgerd. Motion carried 6-0. A motion to approve the JUS contract was made by Kurt Schmitz, second by Gary Litteken. Motion carried 6-0.

-Drainage Permit Ordinance – This was tabled until the June meeting and moved to committee.

-Municipal IT – This has also been moved to committee for review.

8. VILLAGE ADMINISTRATOR REPORT:

-TIF – Kurt Schmitz stated he has been working with Moran Development regarding the finalization of the letter. The next step is setting meeting dates.

-Property Maintenance – Public Property committee will start reviewing this. 

-Potential Business – Jenny stated she has not heard back from John Kues regarding the current status of this and that all information the Village Board has was also sent to the Zoning Board.

9. ZONING ADMINISTRATORS REPORT:

Zoning Board minutes of the April meeting were available for all to review.

10. DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS REPORT:

-WW#4 – Gary stated they will start drilling in a few weeks. JULIE has already called in for the test holes.

-Handheld Radios – A quote was included in everyone’s packet for new handheld radios, compatible with the truck radios. The quote consisted of $380/radio. The Board asked to get a quote for 4 radios. A motion to approve 4 radios, NTE $1600 was made by Kurt Schmitz, second by Gary Litteken. Motion carried 6-0.

-New home meter costs – Gary stated that there are construction companies that want the meter set but do not want it installed because they don’t want to pay the $23/month charge for the meter. The Board stated to install the meter and begin charging.

-MFT Resolution – The MFT Resolution was reviewed. A motion to approve this was made by Curt Albers, second by Kurt Schmitz. Motion carried 6-0.

-RACO fees – This invoice is for contract renewal for the lift stations. It was stated to include this with the bills to be paid.

-Water bill – Jenny mentioned a water customer that had a running toilet; however, the house has been vacant and the meter has been estimated for the last 3 months. The Board agreed to only bill for 1/3 of the usage for both water and sewer.

11. FINANCIAL REPORT:

Steve reviewed the financial report. A motion to approve the financial report was made by Curt Albers, second by Matt Kohnen. Motion carried 6-0.

A motion to amend the approval to pay all bills, to include the RACO and Custom Camera bills was made by Kevin Eversgerd, second by Gary Litteken. Motion carried 6-0.

12. OLD BUSINESS:

Kevin Eversgerd mentioned the informational packet for everyone to review regarding the hiring of a full-time officer. This will be added to the June meeting.

13. NEW BUSINESS:

-Summer Help – Kevin Eversgerd stated the employee committee met before the meeting to review all 10 applicants. Kevin stated the committee recommended the hiring of Marcis Kampwerth, Collin Toeben and Luke Pingsterhaus. A motion to offer employment to these three was made by Curt Albers, second by Kim Peek. Motion carried 6-0.

-Mike Kampwerth stated he would like to order new shirts for the Village Board. Jenny will get in touch with Dawn Heimann to see what is offered.

-The Board discussed Village email addresses for all Village Board members to avoid using personal emails any longer. Jenny will get with Techknow Solutions to get this set up. Mike Kampwerth stated that in speaking with Henry Bergmann, Henry has agreed to stay on as our attorney until a new attorney is retained.

Special meeting date is set for May 17th at 7pm.

A motion to adjourn was made by Kevin Eversgerd, second by Matt Kohnen. Motion carried 6- 0. Time was 8:59PM.

https://avistonil.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/mi050321-2.pdf