On May 11, the City of Geary held its first meeting with new council members Rita Allen and Sandra Cleveland and mayor Waylan Upchego.
Council heard the library’s 2023 budget request -- $21,000 – which is slightly higher than last year. The report also notified council the summer reading program was ready to get underway, on Mondays in June.
Fire chief Jeff Choate reported there have been 42 fire runs this year. The city’s ISO rating is at 4.4. The ISO is a figure used in computing insurance rates for homes in municipalities. Choate said one of the goals the fire department set in January was reduction in the rate. To that end, he said, the firefighters have been undergoing training on a monthly schedule. There are 22 volunteer firefighters in two stations.
Choate asked to surplus a 1980 model Pierce fire engine owned by the city. It has not passed its annual pump test and the county has assisted the department with the leasepurchase of a 3,000 gallon capacity tanker. He thought the engine might bring between $5,000 and $6,000 at sale. He asked the city to consider assisting the department with making its lease payments on the new equipment after the old engine has been sold, freeing up the insurance premium the city had been paying on it.
Council agreed to the surplus of the engine. “I want to commend you on the fire on Blaine (Street). Nothing else caught,” Upchego told Choate, referencing a housefire last month. “Good work. Outstanding,” he said.
Terryl Allen, interim chief of police, told the council the department had made some 100 traffic stops in town, resulting in 62 citations. The police continue to focus on speed control on Broadway.
“I think it’s making a difference,” Allen said. “The business owners say so.” He also told council a stop had nailed a driver who was three times over the legal blood alcohol limit, in possession of a firearm. The driver was a felon and had more than $51,000 in warrants on violent crimes in Canadian County.
Allen also said there have been four applications for the open police chief position. It was a ticklish situation, he said, because would-be applicants often ask what the pay range for the job is. “I can’t answer because I don’t know,” Allen said. “Council hasn’t told me.”
The question went unanswered, in part because the city’s accounting firm, RS Meacham, was not in attendance.
“Meacham needs to step up,” said council member Rocky Coleman. “I’m not satisfied with the service, they’re seldom available and I don’t like being treated like just a payday.”
During council member comments, Coleman said he would like to
look at requests for proposals for trash services for the town.
“I’d just like to see where we’re at on our expenses. Are we too high or too low? We have to deal with staffing and an aging trash truck. I ‘m not saying discontinue it. I’m just saying look at it.
“We need to tell the residents we’re not trying to gouge you, but we need to cover our costs. It’s not fair to the residents to keep changing our rates. I just want to see some numbers.”
The city will hold a budget hearing Thursday at city hall.