The following are the unapproved minutes of the Burns City Council meeting that was held on Dec. 1. These minutes were edited for length and clarity.

Interim City Manager Dennis Davis reported the following:

• The public works department and the police department are working together to get vehicles moved off the streets to make snow plowing a lot easier;

• the Weather Bureau contacted the city to let it know that a static IP address was needed at the airport to stabilize the existing weather equipment. CenturyLink installed the equipment, and it should be up and running in a few days;

• the cabinet for the air-ground communications antenna should be arriving in the next couple of weeks. There is another antenna placed at the airport by a different company, as the two companies communicate with different airlines;

• the arch at the north end of the cemetery, donated by Jim and Elia Shepherd in memory of their son, is complete. Davis thanked the Shepherds, Steve and Matt Palmer of Palmer Excavation, Steve Hoyt of ACW, and all others involved in making this happen;

• the lease agreement for Troy Hooker’s new hangar at the airport is almost completed;

• Code Publishing is ready to update the city’s code book. The estimated cost is between $1,700 and $1,900. A consensus was given by the council to proceed with the project;

• a retirement party for Dauna Wensenk will be held from 3-6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 9, at The Pine Room. Any donations toward a gift for Wensenk would be appreciated. The council agreed by consensus to proceed with the retirement party. Mayor Jerry Woodfin stated that city hall will close at 3 p.m. on Jan. 9 so staff may attend the event.

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Public Works Director Pedro Zabala reported that a mechanic was called to rebuild the water pump on the vacuum truck. It took the mechanic 19 hours, and the estimated repair cost is between $6,000 and $8,000. According to Zabala, the mechanic said the vac truck is a very clean machine, and it would cost around $350,000 to purchase a used truck.

Zabala also reported that the department put up the community Christmas tree and collected wood for the bonfire. He thanked Harney Wood Products for donating the wood and ODOT for helping remove snow from the streets for the Christmas parade.

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Detective Robby Tiller reported that Burns police are helping the public works department remove parked vehicles from city streets before it snows again. The public works department was authorized to call for a non-preference tow if workers encounter parked vehicles on the street when they are plowing.

Tiller said the Burns Paiute Tribal Police offered two fully-equipped 2013 Ford Expeditions to the Burns Police Department at a cost of $5,000 apiece. The vehicles have roughly 60,000 miles on them. In return, Burns Police would donate one of the Dodge Chargers, with high miles, to the Tribal Police. Tiller said the Blue Book values the Expeditions at $13,000 each, so getting them for $5,000 apiece is a good deal. Burns Police has one of the Expeditions already, and expects to get the other one the first part of next year. The council voted in favor of the acquisition of the vehicles.

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Under new business, Davis discussed the intergovernmental agreement between the city of Hines and the city of Burns for judicial services. He said the monthly fee for the services would be increased from $150 to $300. The previous agreement expired back in September, and Davis said the increased fee would be retroactive to that date.

Councilor Judy Erwin asked whether Hines City Administrator Kirby Letham agreed to the increase. After some discussion, it was decided that Davis would talk with Letham before approving the new contract.

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Danny Raif, contractor, attended to discuss the Washington Park restroom project that he started in October 2018.

Raif said he intends to resume the project as soon as possible and complete it in a timely manner.

He explained that he encountered delays due to a lack of permits, surveying, and engineering plans. Raif added that he underbid himself on the project, and in order to finish it, he has had to obtain and receive payment for other jobs.

The city paid Raif half of the project cost in advance, but Raif said his costs have already exceeded that amount, and he misplaced many of the receipts related to the project.

Davis said he and the city’s legal counsel are handling the issues regarding any negotiations, changes to the contract, and extension of the project dates.

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During the councilor comments portion of the meeting:

• Davis reported that the cemetery committee ordered 40 pear trees to be planted in the spring.

• Erwin expressed concern about the old service station on North Broadway and asked about the status of removing all of the vehicles from the site. She also noted that the dumpster at Burnstown Apartments is overflowing, leaving garbage all over the ground.

• Councilor Liz Appelman asked about Chris Briels’ property on North Alder, adding that he does some of his work on the side of the street in the city right-of-way.

Police Chief Newt SkunkCap and Detective Tiller said they spoke with Briels several times, and he’s been cited for city ordinance violations. They will have another conversation with him.

• The council also discussed the status of properties owned by the Males and the Barons, and any possible ordinance violations.

Davis said he would meet with SkunkCap to discuss the properties.

• Councilor Lynda Fine noted that, during the Christmas parade, people pull up to the barricades on the side streets along North Broadway and leave their vehicles. Once the parade is over, the vehicles are still parked there, causing traffic issues.

It was suggested that a committee be formed to improve communication among all involved entities so that the event can run as smoothly as possible.

The next council meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 8, at city hall.