EVANSTON — Following the routine start of the Evanston City Council meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 20, with the pledge of allegiance, roll call with all members present, and the approval of the agenda, Mayor Kent Williams thanked the 150th Anniversary Celebration committee for a successful event.  

The current list of bills to be paid was approved unanimously with no discussion. The council then moved to the items on the public hearing/special orders agenda.

Mayor Williams asked the council to approve Dan Wheeler to fill the vacancy on the Economic Development Board due to Amy Grenfell’s recent departure. There were no other nominations, and Wheeler was approved unanimously.

The next item was the application of BK Management LLC, for a Retail Liquor License in the building located at 1932 Harrison Dr., adjacent to the Quality Inn. City Attorney Dennis Boal conducted a public hearing on the liquor license application and asked for any public concerns. There were none stated and the mayor then asked for a motion to approve the application for the license to BK Management, located at 1932 Harrison Dr. The motion was made and passed.

Following that license approval was the public hearing on the application to transfer the ownership of that retail liquor license from BK Management LLC, to Mick Kindler. Kindler testified that the square footage of the building at 1932 Harrison Dr. allowed for expansion to include a retail liquor sales and package store. Wyoming state statutes allow one year to become operational and Kindler stated the first phase would be completed in six to seven months.

He said he feels the new business would be of value to the community and he looks forward to the opportunity. There were no concerns or comments from the public attending and the motion to approve the transfer of the retail liquor license was approved.

The parade route for the Jingle Bell Jaunt 5K Fun Run/Walk on Saturday, Dec. 8, was the only item on the consent agenda. Jane Law of the Urban Renewal Agency said the event would start at 9 a.m. at the Strand Theatre and go to the Roundhouse and back to the Strand for refreshments. She said last year the event raised nearly $4,800 and she hopes that this year will be as successful. The parade route was unanimously approved.

Six resolutions which had previously been discussed at public meetings and considered at work sessions were to be voted on at last week’s meeting.

First on this agenda was the vote on the resolution of the road access for the Sulphur Creek boat club. An agreement was made with Roy Lester of the Sulphur Creek Ranch to convey to the City of Evanston a permanent access easement to the leased property in return for a quit-claim deed interest to the parcel of land which contains the vacated county road.

The city will be responsible for improving and maintaining the road, and it will be available for the use and benefit of the city and all its assignees. Resolution 18-73 was unanimously approved.  

One public comment was made by Larry Chisolm who thanked the council and then stated, “It will be important to the boat club that the road remains open and maintained.”

Tree Board Chair DuWayne Jacobsen addressed the council regarding Resolution 18-74 authorizing the submission of an application to the state forester for the City of Evanston to be officially recertified as a Tree City USA for the Year 2019. Jacobsen reminded the council of the four conditions to be a Tree City and that Evanston does meet those requirements.

Those conditions are that the city maintains an active tree board, the city has a community tree ordinance, maintains a tree budget and it celebrates Arbor Day. Jacobsen then gave council members copies of the new edition of Evanston Tree Guide that was produced with a grant from the Wyoming State Forestry Division.

He also said the Evanston Parks and Recreation department had recognized the Tree Board with a plaque to thank them for their support. The council then approved Resolution 18-74.

Evanston Police Lt. Mike Vranish asked the council to approve Resolution 18-75 to ratify the application for a Selective Traffic Enforcement Grant from the Highway Safety Program of the Wyoming Department of Transportation. This grant assists in paying for holiday overtime for the department. The resolution was approved.

Resolution 18-76 authorized the City of Evanston to accept and approve a renewal offer with Delta Dental of Wyoming to provide dental insurance for city employees. City Treasurer Trudy Lym said the insurance has increased by approximately 4.5 percent; however, she had already estimated an increased amount in the 2019 budget so it will be covered. Resolution 18-76 was approved.

Evanston Director of Public Works Allan “Oop” Hansen spoke about Resolution 18-77, which would authorize the city into a SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) service agreement renewal with WETCO, Inc. to continue to provide maintenance service for the SCADA system in the waste water treatment plant.  Hansen said the city has been with WETCO for almost six years and there have been no problems. The cost for the annual agreement is $5,000, and personnel are in contact online with the equipment on a daily basis. They also provide a quarterly visit to address any equipment repairs or need for replacement. The council voted to approve the renewal agreement and the resolution passed.

The last resolution on the agenda was 18-78, which would authorize a cooperative agreement between the city and the Wyoming Department of Transportation for the preparation of a planning study of the corridor alignment and improvement options for Crestview Drive in Evanston.

City engineer and planner Dean Barker said it would be a low-cost feasibility study and would be worth doing. There was an extension included in the cooperative plan agreement and a match of $5,255 of project funds was included in the city’s 2019 budget plan. WYDOT will provide a maximum of $50,000 in federal-aid funds for the completion of this study. The council unanimously approved the resolution.