Government : Special Council Meeting Mayor Makes Emergency Declaration

On Tuesday evening's City Council Meeting via a Zoom call, the council met with most in attendance, Ron Hessenius, Tami Stark, Nathan Hesson, Nate Edwards and Andrew Elwick. Absent was Brian Parr. All members of the Vinton Municipal Electric Utility (VMEU) Board were present Rich Hainstock, Kim Meyer, Mike Barron, as well as the two newest members, Gerald Horst and Melissa Mosher. Also on the call were City Administrator Chris Ward, Mayor Bud Maynard, City Attorney Bob Fischer, and City Clerk Cindy Michael. Present for the VMEU board were General Manager Tom Richtmeier.

The Council approved the agenda and then had a brief discussion over procedure for combining the two entities.

Following the discussion, the Mayor made an Emergency Declaration. Making a declaration opens the city to access any funding that may come down from the federal or state government any time in the future affecting the COVID-19 emergency. The declaration reads as follows:

CITY OF VINTON, IOWA
EMERGENCY PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS, COVID-19 poses a serious threat to the public health and safety of the City of Vinton, Iowa, as outlined by the Center for Disease Control ("CDC"); and

WHEREAS, the Iowa Department of Public Health ("IDPH") has now determined that community spread of COVID-19 has occurred in the State of Iowa; and

WHEREAS, the CDC has recommended that persons do not congregate in gatherings of over ten (10) persons to attempt to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in the general public, and

WHEREAS, the Hon. Governor Kim Reynolds has recommended that all school districts within the State of Iowa close for until April 30, 2020 to help to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 within the State; and

WHEREAS, the Superintendent of the Vinton Community School District has heretofore closed the Vinton Community School District for an indefinite period, expected to be at the very least until April 30, 2020; and

WHEREAS, Section 372.14(2) of the Code of Iowa (2019) grants the Mayor powers to declare an emergency and govern through proclamation to protect the health and safety of the citizens of Vinton.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Bud Maynard, the duly elected Mayor of the City of Vinton, Iowa, do hereby proclaim the following:

1. That a state of emergency or public danger exists within the City of Vinton because of the threat of the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
2. That based upon the advice of the CDC and other public health agencies, I hereby declare that the Vinton Public Library will be closed to the public beginning upon execution of this Proclamation. Staff shall report as normal.
3. That pursuant to CDC recommendations, gatherings of ten (10) or more people are strongly discouraged until further notice.
4. That this Proclamation of Emergency may be modified and/or superseded by future proclamation of the Office of the Mayor of Vinton as future events warrant.
5. That any violation of any proclamation of the Office of the Mayor of the City of Vinton, Iowa, shall be enforceable by the Vinton Police Department and any violation of the same shall be a violation of Title 1 Section 3 of the Vinton Code of Ordinances and punishable as a simple misdemeanor.

(Title 1 Section 3 states:

The City may, except as expressly limited by the Iowa Constitution, and if not inconsistent with the laws of the Iowa General Assembly, exercise any power and perform any function it deems appropriate to protect and preserve the rights, privileges, and property of the City and of its residents, and to preserve and improve the peace, safety, health, welfare, comfort, and convenience of its residents, and each and every provision of this Code of Ordinances shall be deemed to be in the exercise of the foregoing powers and the performance of the foregoing functions.)

Following the declaration, the council and VMEU voted to approve allowing contractors to continue Installing critical infrastructure aka iVinton. Some concern was voiced by the mayor over safety of the crews and that actions by the crews posted some safety violations. Tom Ricthmeier agreed to speak to the people in charge of the crews to address the matter.

The Council also discussed late fees on utility accounts, agreeing that they would most likely vote at the next meeting to waive late fees for those unable to pay their electric bills on time through the end of June. Also agreeing that this would be a good policy the VMEU members will address it at their next meeting and vote on the proposal.

Rich Hainstock, Chairman of VMEU also addressed the discussion held over the VMEU and how they should handle accounts in the city. Explaining that any decision the board makes must apply to everyone, they do not have the authority to treat those struggling any differently than those who are not, so any decisions made will apply to everyone equally.

The council then adjourned.

To view the meeting, click here.