August 3, 2009

The Groton City Council met on the above date at City Hall at 7:00pm for their regular first monthly meeting with the following members present: Brotherton, Nyberg, Hamilton, Anderson, Heitmann, and Mayor Olson presiding.

The minutes were approved as read on a motion by Brotherton and seconded by Nyberg. All members present voted aye.

The financial report was approved as read on a motion by Hamilton and seconded by Anderson. All members present voted aye.

The following bills were allowed for payment on a motion by Hamilton and seconded by Heitmann. All members present voted aye.

Executive Payroll 415.58 salaries
Administrative Payroll 5662.68 salaries
Public Safety Payroll 9523.61 salaries
Public Works Payroll 20567.85 salaries
Rec & Cultural Payroll 14630.49 salaries
Wells Fargo 14,185.96 ss & wh
City of Groton 631.28 postage, savings, refunds
Consol Fed Cred Union 1,500.00 emp savings
SD Supp Retirement 625.00 emp retire
Office of Child Support 231.00 child support
US Post Office 146.14 postage
Aflac 506.36 emp ins
Wellmark Ins 9,159.63 health ins
Abdn Appraisal 1,166.00 appraisal
Avera Queen of Peace 58.50 drug test
Capozzoli, Jeanne 113.11 overpmt ref
Foster, Sue 50.00 dep ref
Grau, Al 1,000.00 fund raiser prize
Harris, Amy 116.08 dep & overpmt ref
Heartland Cons Power Dist 25,026.83 power
Krause, Opal 175.78 overpmt ref
Kurth, Travis 66.00 mileage
May, Joanne 42.38 dep ref
Norton, William 11.32 dep ref
NW Energy 187.67 nat gas
TIC Wy 48.20 dep ref
United Accounts 50.00 emp sav to pmt
United Lease & Finance 495.00 lease closing costs
WAPA 22,823.33 power
4 Seasons Coop 268.28 weed killer
Associated Pools 147,517.00 pool const
Bahr, Loren 430.00 bus labor
Bjerke, Jerry 37.10 laminating
Chase Visa 4,880.64 helmet, prog, hotel, books
City of Groton 2,000.00 yc change
City of Groton 40.00 bus util
CWD Food Service 379.00 cleaner, tp, food
Dairy Queen 61.20 ice cream
Dakota Brush 51.71 bags
Dakota Electronics 52.20 pager repair
Dakota Kennels 816.00 animal care
Dakota Press 261.55 publishing
Dakota Pump & Control 1,133.91 service call
Dakota Supply Group 557.50 pvc pipe
Daly, Diane 317.17 bus bkkpng
Discover 87.18 books
Doeden, Arlis 2,024.16 bus salary, postage, paper
Duane's 2,330.34 gas, dsl, oil, propane
Ecolab Pest 83.00 pest control
Ellwein Bros Inc 5,644.65 beer
Evergreen 37.50 argon
Fordham Signs 3,941.10 signs
Galls 70.95 gloves
Grand Slam Computers 59.00 switch
Groton Independent 181.07 publishing
Groton School District 1,054.19 bus parts
Groton Senior Citizens 150.00 cc cleaning
Groton Vet Clinic 13.60 gloves, syringes
Harry Implement 24.88 parts
HD Supply Waterworks 931.43 hydrant repair
Heartland Cons Power Dist 1,537.34 breaker loan
Heartland Waste 4,967.78 garbage hauling
Hendrickson, Deanna 148.33 curtains
Hub City Radio 750.00 advertising
James Valley Tele 1,030.73 phone, internet
JDH Construction 28,803.90 pool construction
Johnson, Drew 1,525.00 legal services
Johnson Bros Famous Brands 6,364.98 liquor
Ken's Food Fair 3,464.37 gas, food, cleaners
Kesslers 12.68 food
Kiefer & Assoc 38.85 CPR masks
Kramer, Dale 46.31 wristbands
Locke Electric 779.96 chg outlets, install LM
Lori's Pharmacy 71.85 1st aid, supplies
Menard's 100.56 supplies
NW Energy 19.82 natural gas
NWPS 2,074.02 power delivery
Olive Grove Golf Course 990.00 tourn greens fees
Paints N More 816.66 bus dispatch, phone
Pepsi 996.00 pop
Porter Dist Co 1,596.50 beer
Quill 77.70 paper
RDO 54.58 blades, belts
Red Horse 175.00 bus food
Republic Bev Co 4,049.25 liquor
Runnings 159.94 trimmer, line
S&S Lumber 669.98 supplies
Sanitation Products 86.69 sweeper parts
Sanford Clinic 40.00 drug test
SD Dept of Health 36.00 testing
SD Retirement 5,818.01 retirement
SD State Treasurer 8,141.53 sales tax
Serocki Excavating 5,873.64 asphalt
Share Corp 1,301.70 deodorizer, soap disp
Sombke, Bev 19.50 bus cookies
Sperry Stump Removal 650.00 stump removal
Swenson, Christi 10.56 game parts
Trail Chevrolet 375.63 repairs
Walmart 530.62 supplies, food
WEB Water 11,099.13 water
Wright & Sudlow 137,807.89 c&g construction
Zoll Medical 27.05 cable

Department reports were given.

Congratulations were offered to the baseball teams (Teeners going to State Tournament; Legion going to Regional Playoffs and getting 2nd place at the State Tournament; and Jr. Teeners placing 4th in the State Tournament).

John Lendry came before the Council to request repair of the potholes on 4th St since the 4th St reconsctruction has been delayed again. Gravel will be delivered.

Plans for the Grand Opening of the Swimming Pool on August 9, 2009 were discussed.

Richard Krueger came before the Council to discuss the parking on the valley gutter and sidewalk on the south side of the United Methodist Church. A white painted line will be applied at the curbline.

April Abeln and Paul Kosel came before the Council to discuss the proposed wellness program suggested by Wellmark Insurance for the employees. Permission was given for morning stretching, walking during coffee breaks, and occasional fruit breaks. Smoking in all City buildings and in City vehicles will be prohibited on a motion by Brotherton and seconded by Hamilton. All members present voted aye. A free stop smoking program will be presented by the insurance company.

Discussion was held on the agreement with the school for the opening of 2nd St, enlarging the storm sewer, and combining the libraries. Moved by Hamilton and seconded by Brotherton to approve an agreement contingent upon school approval which would hold the City responsible for the street and materials for the residing of the well house; and hold the school responsible for enlarging the storm sewer and labor for residing the well house. Combining the libraries will be tabled until more study is done. All members present voted aye.

Moved by Brotherton and seconded by Anderson to transfer $1,000 from General Fund to Youth Center Fund for the summer program. All members present voted aye.

At 7:30pm no one appeared to speak for or against the final acceptance of the swimming pool lease. Moved by Nyberg and seconded by Heitmann to proceed with the Lease of the Swimming Pool from United Lease and Finance of Fargo. All members present voted aye.

The curb & gutter project was discussed. The bond from Wells Fargo included a closing fee of $10,000 for the 4.17% interest or the interest rate would be 4.56%. Council decided that the bond closing fee should not be assessed as part of the curb & gutter project, but the interest rate should be adjusted to reflect the cost of the money. Moved by Nyberg and seconded by Hamilton to pass the following resolution for the curb & gutter special assessment bond resolution. All members present voted aye.

RESOLUTION NO. 09-803

A RESOLUTION PROVIDING FOR THE ISSUANCE AND SALE OF CITY OF GROTON, SOUTH DAKOTA, SPECIAL ASSESSMENT BONDS, SERIES 2009, IN THE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $570,000; FIXING THE FORM AND SPECIFICATIONS OF THE BONDS; RATIFYING AND AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION AND DELIVERY OF CERTAIN RELATED INSTRUMENTS.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GROTON, BROWN COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA:

Section 1. Ratification of Prior Actions and Declaration of Necessity. All actions heretofore taken (not inconsistent with the provisions of this Resolution) by the Council and by the officers of the City directed toward the issuance of the bonds are hereby ratified, approved and confirmed. The City hereby declares a necessity to issue Special Assessment Bonds, Series 2009.

Section 2. Issuance of Special Assessment Bonds. To provide funds to pay the costs of the improvements, the City shall issue, without a vote to its electors, its registered bonds, in an aggregate principal amount not to exceed $570,000, to be issued in full conformity with the provisions of SDCL 9-43-62 and 6-8B. The Bonds shall be issued in lieu of Special Assessment Certificates and shall be payable solely from special assessments made against property benefited from the Improvements. The bonds do not constitute a debt within the meaning of Article XIII Section 4 of the Constitution of the State of South Dakota.

2.1. Date and Denomination of Bonds. The bonds will be dated in 2009 and shall also bear the date of authentication, shall be in fully registered form shall be on such terms and conditions as are determined by the Mayor and Finance Officer, shall be numbered 1 and upward, and the bonds shall become due and payable as determined by the Mayor and Finance Officer.

2.2. Interest and Principal Payments. The bonds shall bear interest at a rate not to exceed 4.17% from their date or from the most recent interest payment date to which interest has been paid or duly provided for, until the principal amount of the bonds is paid, such interest (computed upon the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months) being payable as determined by the Mayor and Finance Officer. Interest on each bond shall be paid by check, draft or wire transfer of the Finance Officer, Groton, South Dakota, hereby designated as the Bond Registrar and Paying Agent, payable in lawful money of the United States of America, to the person in whose name such bond is registered at the close of business on the last day of the month next preceding the interest payment date. The principal of the bonds shall be payable in lawful money of the United States of America at the principal office of the Bond Registrar.

Section 3. Redemption. All Bonds are redeemable prior to maturity in whole, not in part, at the option of the City. All bonds are redeemable pursuant to SDCL Chapter 6-8B. Prior to any redemption date, the City shall deposit with the Bond Registrar an amount of money sufficient to pay the redemption price of all the bonds or portions of bonds which are to be redeemed on that date.

Section 4. Authentication. All bonds shall have thereon a certificate of authentication substantially in the form hereinafter set forth duly executed by the Bond Registrar as authenticating agent of the City and showing the date of authentication. No bond shall be valid or obligatory for any purpose or be entitled to any security or benefit under this resolution unless and until such certificates of authentication shall have been duly executed by the Bond Registrar by manual signature, and such certificate of authentication upon any such bond shall be conclusive evidence that such bond has been authenticated and delivered under this resolution. The certificate of authentication on any bond shall be deemed to have been executed by the Bond Registrar if signed by an authorized officer of the Bond Registrar, but it shall not be necessary that the same officer sign the certificate of authentication on all of the bonds issued hereunder.

Section 5. Registration of bonds; persons treated as owners. The City shall cause books (the "Bond Registrar") for the registration and for the transfer of the bonds as provided in this resolution to be kept at the principal office of the Bond Registrar, which is hereby constituted and appointed the registrar of the City. The City is authorized to prepare, and the Bond Registrar shall keep custody of, multiple bond blanks executed by the City for use in the transfer and exchange of bonds.

Section 6. Form of Bond. The Bonds shall be prepared in substantially the form on file with the Finance Officer.

Section 7. Sale of Bonds. The Mayor and Municipal Finance Officer are authorized to sell said bonds upon terms and conditions not inconsistent with this resolution to Wells Fargo Brokerage Services, LLC or their designee. The Finance Officer shall deliver upon receipt of the purchase price therefore; the Bonds to said purchaser. The bonds shall be purchased for a price not less than 100%.

Prior to the delivery of any of the bonds, the Municipal Finance Officer shall execute a certificate describing the improvements (by number) which are to be financed by the proceeds of the bonds being delivered, stating the amount of unpaid assessments for such improvements, and stating that said assessments have been appropriated and pledged to the bond fund hereby created.

Section 8. Creation of Bond Fund. The proceeds of the bonds, including accrued interest thereon, upon receipt thereof, shall be deposited promptly by the Municipal Finance Officer and shall be accounted for in the following manner and are hereby pledged therefore:

8.1. Accrued interest received for the bonds shall be deposited in the Special Assessment Bonds, Series 2009, Bond Fund (the "Bond Fund") which is hereby created for the payment of the principal of and interest on the bonds. The accrued interest and funds deposited by the City at the time of the delivery of the bonds, shall be used for the first installment of interest on the bonds; and

8.2. The balance of such proceeds shall be credited to the improvement account created by the Finance Officer to pay the costs of, or reimburse the City for the costs of, the improvements.

Section 9. Covenants of Tax Exemption. The City hereby covenants for the benefit of each holder of the bonds that:

9.1. Bond proceeds and other sums credited to the improvement account shall not be invested in such manner as to result in the loss of exemption from federal income taxation of interest on the bonds;

9.2. The City shall make no use of the proceeds of the bonds which, if such use had been reasonably expected on the date of the issue of the bonds, would have caused them or could cause the governmental obligations of any subsequent issue to be "arbitrage bonds" under Section 103(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code") and the applicable regulations thereunder; and the City and its officer, employees and other agents shall take appropriate action so that on the basis of the facts, estimates and circumstances in existence on the date of issue of the bonds it is reasonably expected that the proceeds of the bonds will be used in a manner that will not cause the bonds nor the governmental obligations of any subsequent issue to be such taxable "arbitrage bonds"; and

9.3. The City certifies the following:

9.3.1. The Bonds are being issued for a valid essential governmental purpose and are not "private activity bonds" as defined by the Code. None of the proceeds of the Bonds will be used to make or finance loans to any person. The City does not anticipate issuing more than $5,000,000 in tax exempt obligations during the current calendar year. The Bonds are "qualified tax exempt obligations" as described by the Code.

9.3.2. The covenants in this Section impose an obligation on the City to comply with the requirement of Section 103 of the Code, and such income tax regulations; but

9.3.3. The proceeds of the bonds may be otherwise invested if and when the Code and Regulations thereunder permit the investment to be made in the manner made without causing the bonds or the governmental obligations of any subsequent issue to become such taxable "arbitrage bonds".

9.3.4. The Bonds are hereby designated for the purposes of 265(b)(3)(B)(i)(III) to be qualified tax-exempt obligations.

Section 10. Pledge of Special Assessments. The Special Assessment Bond Fund 2009 (hereafter "Bond Fund") is hereby created. For the purpose of providing the necessary funds to make required payments of principal of and interest on the bonds, the City hereby irrevocably pledges all amounts derived from special assessments for all improvements and all moneys in the Bond Fund. No moneys may be transferred out of the fund until all obligations which are or may be charged against the Bond Fund have been discharged.

10.1. Deposit of Assessments into Bond Fund. Such assessments as created by Resolution 2008-108 passed by the City on January 7, 2008, when collected and received by the City, shall be deposited immediately into the Bond Fund. In the event the amount in the Bond Fund is insufficient to pay all principal and interest when due, such amount shall first be used to pay any past due interest and then in pro rata payment of current interest. Any balance shall be paid on bonds issued hereunder in order of serial numbers; provided that no bondholder shall be compelled to accept partial payment on any bond.

Section 11. Event Constituting Default. In event of nonpayment of principal or interest on any of the bonds, such action shall constitute a default as to all bonds and shall enable the holders of any or all outstanding bonds, whether or not the same shall be due, acting individually or collectively, to take such action as they may deem necessary to protect the security of their bonds.

Section 12. Registered Form. The City recognizes that Section 149(a) of the Code requires the bonds to be issued and to remain in fully registered form in order that interest thereon is exempt from federal income taxation under laws in force at the time the bonds are delivered. In this connection, the City agrees that it will not take any action to permit the bonds to be issued in, or converted into, bearer or coupon form.

Section 13. List of Bondholders. The Bond Registrar shall maintain a list of the names and addresses of the holders of all bonds and upon transfer shall add the name and address of the new bondholder and eliminate the name and address of the transferor bondholder.

Section 14. Authorization to Furnish Information. The Municipal Finance Officer is authorized and directed to furnish to bond counsel certified copies of all proceedings and records of the City relating to the bonds and to the improvements financed thereby and to the right and power of the City to make the assessments securing payment of the bonds and all said certified copies and certificates shall be deemed representative of the City as to the facts therein stated.

Section 15. Authorization to Take Action. The Mayor and Finance Officer of the City are hereby authorized and directed to take all other action necessary or appropriate to effectuate the provisions of this resolution, including without limiting the generality of the foregoing, negotiating the final terms of the sale, the printing of the bonds, and the execution of such certificates as may reasonably be required, including, without limitation, certification relating to the signing of the bonds, the tenure and identity of the City's officials, the exemption of interest on the bonds from federal income taxation, the receipt of the bond purchase price and, if in accordance with the facts, the absence of litigation affecting the validity thereof.

Section 16. Resolution Constitutes Contract. After the bonds have been issued, this resolution shall constitute a contract between the City and the holder or holders of the bonds, and shall be and remain irrepealable and unalterable until the bonds and the interest accruing thereon shall have been duly paid, satisfied and discharged.

Section 17. This resolution shall become effective immediately upon its passage.

Since most of the swimming pool guards will be leaving for school, the closing date for the swimming season was set for August 26, 2009.

Policies on utility expansion of only providing services to new developments of six lots or more were reviewed. No changes were made.

Moved by Hamilton and seconded by Brotherton to authorize Olson, Heitmann, Hamilton, Gilchrist, and Harrington to attend the Aug 13 Heartland Consumer Power District customer meeting in Aberdeen. All members present voted aye.

Moved by Nyberg and seconded by Hamilton to accept the resignation of rubble site Monitor Pat Stroeber. All members present voted aye.

Moved by Hamilton and seconded by Brotherton to adjourn into executive session to discuss personnel and legal matters at 8:05pm. All members present voted aye. Council reconvened into regular session at 8:20pm

Finance Officer Lowary presented the proposed 2010 budget. Discussion was held on all programs. Moved by Nyberg and seconded by Hamilton to give 1st Reading to Ordinance No. 657, The 2010 Appropriation Ordinance. All members present voted aye.

Moved by Anderson and seconded by Nyberg to change the rubble site hours by eliminating Fridays. All members present voted aye.

Moved by Heitmann and seconded by Nyberg to hire Robert Jay Howard as part-time rubble site monitor. All members present voted aye.

Meeting adjourned.


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Roy L. Olson, Mayor Anita Lowary, Finance Officer