The following are the unapproved minutes from the Hines Common Council meeting held Tuesday, Oct. 27. These minutes were edited for clarity and length:

During the department head reports, City Administrator Kirby Letham reported that:

• the West Hanley paving project is complete;

• copies of the density test results were included in the council’s packets;

• copies of the first-quarter expense report were also included in the council’s packets. Letham will provide a detailed report during the next council meeting;

• three pieces of equipment were purchased for the skate park. Two of the pieces are being fabricated, and they should ship in a couple of weeks;

• DEQ Day was Saturday, Oct. 31, and household hazardous waste was collected.

•••

Discussion continued concerning billing and finance software for the water project.

The council received quotes from Caselle and Black Mountain and information from Chaves (the city’s current vendor). The council also received a matrix showing the strengths and weaknesses of each option.

As part of its ongoing water project, the city will be upgrading its water meters to a brand called Neptune. Neptune expressed concern about whether the city’s current software (Chaves) will be compatible with its meters and suggested switching to vendors like Caselle or Black Mountain.

After speaking to other small Oregon cities about their uses and needs, Caselle adjusted its quote from $42,000 to about $26,000 with an annual maintenance cost of about $25,000.

Black Mountain doesn’t currently have a presence in Oregon. They quoted $47,125 with an annual maintenance cost of $8,180.

The estimated initial cost for Chaves would be $2,500 with an annual maintenance cost of $6,000. However, at this time, there is no guarantee that Chaves can work with the Neptune water meters.

Other cities noted that Caselle’s customer service is excellent and immediate.

Mayor Nikki Morgan discussed the value of immediate customer service and noted that Chaves may not work with the new system. She added that the council should be forward thinking in its software selection, as the platform needs to fulfill the city’s needs in the future.

Councilor Raymond Breshears expressed concern about the annual cost difference. Letham attributed the difference in cost to the difference in customer service.

Councilor Marsallai Quick said the city should purchase the package that city staff is most comfortable with.

Councilor Misty Shepherd asked whether the budget covers the cost of the purchase.

Letham replied that the new software was built into the budget for the water project. Funds were also allocated in the city’s 2020-2021 budget.

Councilor Ron Williams noted that, with the new system in place, the public works department will no longer have to drive around the city to read the meters. This will give the department more time to work on other projects.

Additional discussion ensued.

Quick made a motion to transition to Caselle, and Shepherd seconded it. Quick, Shepherd, Beers, and Williams voted in favor of the motion, and Breshears was opposed. The motion carried.

•••

Letham provided an update on water meter rates and billing.

He explained that there are two issues.

The first is that the current meter reader is failing to capture all the meter reads and/or has been transmitting bad data.

The second is that some of the new water meters were already installed. With the failure of the old system and the addition of the new meters, the decision was made to average the usage from the same billing cycle for the previous two years.

Quick asked how long the transition to the new system is expected to take, and Letham said it will probably take until the end of next summer.

Audience member Tom Choate asked how many of the meters are no longer working and how long they’ve been failing.

Letham said the last time that the city was able to get an accurate read was in June 2020. The meter reader did not pick up more than 100 meters in August, and the public works department had to manually read those meters. As a result, usage will be averaged for the month of October.

Choate said he thinks the city should form a citizens water advisory board, as the council may not have as much time to research topics. Morgan, Breshears, and  audience member Donna Richardson agreed that an advisory board would be useful.

Letham told Choate that Anderson Perry put together five different billing options for the city to choose from. Morgan added that the council chose the rate plan that would be easiest/fairest for all citizens.

The city received a loan from IFA/Biz Oregon for the water project. Since the base rate of the water bill will be used to pay back the loan, the city must get approval from the lending agency to change the water rates.

Richardson asked how long the city has had failures. Letham said some meters failed years ago. When they were replaced with brand-new meters, the new meters seemed to fail within a couple of months. That is one of the reasons to change from Master Meter to Neptune.

Richardson asked whether historical usage on each bill can be shown. Letham explained that the new system will make this possible.

Additional discussion ensued.

•••

Letham reminded the council about Ty Volle’s request to exchange a piece of land near the water tower for a piece of land that he owns on South Hilltop.

The city sent out a notice of hearing to local neighbors before realizing that a couple of decisions need to be made first.

The city must first decide whether it needs the land and whether it is willing to complete the exchange. If the answer to both questions is “yes,” the city would proceed with the process as outlined in Code 3.08.040.

Volle purchased the land on South Hilltop for $3,000 in July. The land is less than a quarter acre, and one of the main water lines from the water tower to the city runs through it. There is an easement on each side of the water line that essentially makes the land unusable for private use, as no permanent structure could be installed in the easement.

Shepherd asked if Volle checked with Amerititle when he purchased the land. Volle did a deed purchase with the seller and did not get a title report.

Letham explained that the city can choose to exchange land, purchase the land from Volle, or do nothing.

Williams asked about the land swap process.

Letham explained that the council must first decide whether the city has land that it no longer needs and is willing to exchange.

The second step would be to survey and appraise the land. The value of the city’s land must be equal to or higher than Volle’s land. If the city’s land is valued higher, Volle would have to pay the difference.

After the appraisal, there would be a public hearing. After the public hearing, there would be a final vote as to whether the city wants to move forward with the exchange.

Audience member Bob Krauel, who lives across the street from the water tower, expressed confusion about the size of property that the city is considering exchanging. He added that, as the city looks toward the future, it may need the full acreage by the water tower for additional water storage. He suggested swapping a different piece of city-owned land. Otherwise, he is opposed to the exchange.

Choate said he sees no value to the city in exchanging land, and the city needs to consider the general population, not one resident.

Audience member Eric Nichols said he believes the city would be penalized if the exchange goes forward.

Richardson said the property on the hill is “prime real estate,” and it should not be exchanged in this manner.

Morgan and the council  decided to table the matter.

•••

In other business, the council:

• approved Resolution 2296, which accepts certain identified unanticipated revenues in the form of CARES: Covid Relief Fund Grant distributed by the Oregon Department of Administrative Services to be added to the General Fund and authorizes its expenditure;

• reviewed a draft of the CARES grant application.

Hines businesses that can show that they were impacted by COVID-19 can request an application and turn it in to city hall for presentation to the council.

The council accepted the CARES grant application as written;

• accepted Matt and Misty Shepherd’s livestock permit for chickens. Councilor Shepherd abstained from the vote;

• was addressed by Brian Needham, president of the Valley Golf Course board, regarding building a lean-to-type equipment shed.

The golf course did not need a building permit from the county. However, they neglected to contact the city for approval. Needham apologized to the council and asked for permission to continue building the shed.

Breshears made a motion to allow the continuation of the building, and the motion carried.

•••

During mayor and councilor comments:

• Quick thanked Letham and all involved for their work on the water project;

• Beers said he was approached by a couple of residents regarding pressure regulators between the new meters and their houses.

He learned that these are not pressure regulators. This is equipment to prevent back flow;

• Morgan thanked the audience for attending and said she hopes people will keep coming.