SLAYTON CITY COUNCIL APPROVES 2024 PRELIMINARY BUDGET
By Jenny Kirk The Slayton City Council approved the 2024 preliminary budget with a levy amount of $1,318,318 — a 9.49% increase — at its Monday, Sept. 18 meeting at City Hall.
City Administrator Josh Malchow said a last-minute decrease dropped the preliminary percentage increase from 9.51 to 9.49. “We got out health insurance renewal,” he said. “We’d budgeted a 6% increase, but we took a 2% decrease, which is fantastic, of course. That helped to the tune of .89% in the general fund.”
In other unfinished business, the council also approved the adoption of the grading/scale structure for the compensation/ classification study that the city commissioned. Malchow said the adoption didn’t necessarily include the implementation — where everybody’s going to be placed, “X” amount of increase, that type of thing — that was discussed at a recent workshop. With the motion carried, Malchow said they can move right into negotiations with both units.
In new business, the council approved replacement pumps for both the south and north lift stations. The total cost of the purchase and installation of the new KSB pumps is $29,914 from Quality Flow Systems. “Over the last few years, we have an annual inspection done by Quality Flow at both our lift stations, and a couple of our older pumps have not been performing up to what they normally do, and it was recommended that we start thinking about replacements,” City Works Director Weston Mahon said. “(With this purchase) we’ll be getting up to date on the pumps in there, getting back to how they should be pumping.”
The purchase of an excavator bucket, using a split of 80/20 from the water/street funds was also approved by the council in the amount of $1,551.76 from Bobcat dealer Miller Sellner of Slayton. Though non-budgeted, the price was good, Malchow said.
While originally budgeted for 2024, a push for a sign at Bicentennial Park was moved up, likely with the anticipation that prices would continue to increase. The council approved the new sign for $1,265. “(Deputy Clerk) Jackie (Giesen) worked with them on it and it’s fantastic in my opinion,” Malchow said. “This would be in the vicinity of the intersection of 28th and Forrest, on the south side of the street.”
The final item of new business was the approval of lighting upgrades at the library and senior dining. Malchow explained that CEE, which works directly with Xcel Energy, did all of their lighting upgrades in 2011, from traditional style bulbs to compact fluorescents. Now, the fluorescent lights will be transitioned to LED ones. The initial cost for the library is $7,650, with a rebate of $2,100, for a final cost of $5,538. “Of that, there is $2,359 in labor,” Malchow said. “My intent is to apply for a Clean Energy Resource Team (CERT) grant to cover the labor cost of that for the library and senior center.” For the senior center part of it, there are less fixtures, so the initial cost is $1,107. With a $305 rebate, the final cost is $802, with $381 in labor expenses.
At the beginning of the meeting, two additions and one subtraction took place before the agenda was approved. Council member Blake Heronimus was absent. Then the regular meeting minutes from Sept. 5, as well as the comp/class minutes from the Sept. 11 meeting, stood as approved. After claims were approved, the council moved on to pending items. Those present acknowledged that the preliminary improvement hearing regarding Maple Avenue from 22nd Street to 28th Street has been scheduled for 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 2.
In addition to the House Bonding Committee making a stop in Slayton on Oct. 11, the Senate Bonding Committee is now scheduled to visit the community at 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 4. Malchow said the committee administrator for the Senate Bonding Committee had reached out to him after the last meeting to say they’d be in town on that day, though the time could fluctuate depending on their other visits. “When the Senate called me, they specified 34th Street, and I asked about the Operation Prairie Venture/city request for an assisted living/memory care facility on the Golden Living Center site — we had bill language introduced in both houses last year — and she didn’t have that one there, so about five or six emails back and forth and lobbying back and forth, she said, ‘Fine, if you can drive down to Worthington in the afternoon, you can present to them at lunch, your Operation Prairie Venture,’ which we’ll do because something is better than nothing.” Malchow said. “Both projects will be heard by both houses, so that’s very good.”
The next meeting is slated for 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 2 at City Hall.
