Daniel Town Council Meeting
Monday, July 11, 2011 at 5:30 PM
Wasatch County Services Building, Room 126
55 South 500 East, Heber City, UT
Quorum present: Mayor Michael Duggin, Council members Eric Bunker, Kasey Bateman, Jon Blotter, and Chip Turner were present at 5:35 PM when Mayor Duggin called the regularly scheduled meeting to order. Recorder Merry Duggin was present to record the minutes. Treasurer Sherri Price was also present.
Members of the public in attendance: Kim Norris, Ryan Taylor, Lambert Deegan, Gary Walton, Tom Rawlings, Chris Anderson, and Shelly Bunker.
1) PUBLIC COMMENT CONCERNING ANY ISSUE NOT ON THE AGENDA.
There was no public comment.
Council member Bunker presented a business license application for American Soda Stripping on Cobble Creek Lane. This business is similar to sand blasting but uses sodium bicarbonate. After questions were answered, Council member Blotter moved to accept and approve the application. Council member Turner seconded the motion. The Council then voted unanimously to approve the application for the new business license.
2) APPROVAL OF MINUTES FOR JUNE 20, 2011 MEETING
Council member Blotter asked if he “really” made the motion to approve the 2011 bond. He was assured by the other Council members that he did in fact make the motion. Council member Bunker then moved to approve the minutes as presented. Council member Bateman seconded the motion, and the Council approved the minutes.
3) PLANNING DEPARTMENT REPORT
Council member Bunker reported that Planning has been very busy. A deck determined to not need a permit is now under construction at the home of Phil Thacker.
The Council then discussed whether our current Municipal Code has an adequate definition of a “deck”. Council member Bateman believed that a deck with a cover or not built on the ground could be a problem. Council member Blotter stated that Daniel does not at this time have any liability for a deck, and the Town should not be responsible for approving all the decks built in Daniel. Council member Bunker reported that the Town currently reviews setbacks and whether a deck plan will alter the outside structure of a home. Planning is not currently requiring a permit for an added deck and recommends that the homeowner follow National Building Code if a deck is added to a home after initial construction.
Council member Turner asked if the County Health Department had inspected the septic systems for the trailers located on South Field Rd. Mr. Bunker reported he was not aware of anything going on there at this point and the trailers had been there before the Town incorporated. Mr. Turner believes that the use has increased since that time, and he thinks that the Health Dept. should be involved.
Council member Bunker also reported that Mr. Jaime Aguirre on Daniel Rd. has started working on his house again, but he has not continued the work or asked for an extension of his permit (which has expired). Mr. Ryan Taylor, town engineer, reported that the inspector has looked at the construction this spring and has passed the construction so far.
The Todd Johnson property has been inspected and closed out the permits reported as pending in our last meeting.
4) DANIEL MUNICIPAL WATER ISSUES
Mr. Kim Norris informed the Council of excessive water usage by some customers over the winter months, and he suggested a new policy of billing those who are using excessive water (over the 20,000 gallon per month allotment) next year. He would like to send out a letter to inform the customers of the new policy and show them what their water usage has been which will allow ample time for the users to fix any problems that they have in their lines during the summer months before the winter. Council member Bunker and Mr. Ryan Taylor informed the Council that the lateral lines have been buried deeper when possible as the construction has replaced the main waterlines, but laterals could possibly freeze if customers don’t use their water in the winter months. Mr. Gary Walton suggested that as soon as one house freezes Daniel Municipal Water could put out the word to ask customers to allow their faucets to drip during the extreme cold weather periods. The Council supported the idea of sending a letter to customers informing them of the new policy and thus allowing them an opportunity to fix their problems before the winter months. It seemed to be the consensus of the Council that once informed of the problem, the customers should be responsible for their usage and pay for overuse.
Mr. Kim Norris informed the Council that he would like to proceed on replacing the meters on the new water lines. Mr. Gary Walton noted that he has a contractor that would like to bid on the new meters and indicated the new meters should be approximately $60.00 each, but we are still considering whether we will have the money available. Mr. Norris also noted that the Fisher Spring screen is clogging with roots and needs to be cleaned frequently. Mr. Walton suggested that we need to dig up the spring and fix the problem. We also need better access to the spring and suggested a door access is necessary. Mr. Ryan Taylor suggested running a camera up the spring pipe to assess the problem, and he will monitor our construction funds to see what might be available for work on the spring at the completion of the water line replacement.
Mr. Norris would like to proceed with location flags on the fire hydrants before winter snow falls.
5) RECORDER’S OFFICE: WARRANT APPROVAL, ETC.
Recorder Merry Duggin presented the warrants sent to the Town of Daniel for the month of June.
Council member Bunker questioned a warrant of $800 presented by Wasatch Property Maintenance for redirecting drainage at the intersection of Daniel Rd. and Teancum Rd., and he felt that we should not be hiring a contractor unless he is licensed and/or bonded with the Town. Mr. Kim Norris felt that the charge was reasonable for the work accomplished, but he felt the work might not have been authorized properly. Mayor Duggin and Council member Bunker agreed that they would like to see this not happen again.
After discussion, Council member Bateman moved to approve the warrants. Council member Blotter seconded the motion, and the Council approved the payment of the warrants. Council member Bunker voted nay.
6) ADJOURN
Council member Turner moved to adjourn. Council member Blotter seconded the motion, and the Council voted unanimously to adjourn at 7:00 PM.
Merry Duggin,
Recorder