Snyder City Council Meeting July 7, 2008

The City Council met in chambers beginning at 5:30 pm with prayer by Mayor Noah followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. Council members in attendance were Mayor Noah, Vernest Tippens, John Reed, Terry Martin, Bill Harris, City Manager Merle Taylor, City Secretary Jeanne Johnson. Stephanie Deucheneaux was absent. Visitors introduced themselves.

Mayor Noah introduced and recognized the Employee of the Month David Nicholson. He was praised for his hard work and dedication on the job to the City of Snyder.

Minutes from previous meetings on June 2 and June 16 were approved unanimously by the council.

Insurance benefits were discussed at length by the council. Blue Cross Blue Shield; TML; and
R H Administrators, Inc were represented. After the presentations were made the council voted to use Blue Cross Blue Shield as the employee insurance company.

Old business item concerning "The Colortyme/Hodges Burnout" drew discussion on how to best benefit the city. Paperwork with the county has been filed to meet the necessary guidelines to sell the property. The Council voted to accept sealed bids with stipulations that will insure the property will be developed/maintained. A minimum bid of $5,000 was agreed upon and assurance that the new owner will provide construction plans and proof of loan application in a time frame of 3-6 months. Any construction will have to meet all city building codes. This information in a formal and legal presentation will be brought back before the council.

Motions were made and passed to approve the quarterly investment report; Hazard Mitigation Action Plan; and the City of Snyder to accept credit card payments for fines, fees, court costs and other charges and assess a service charge that will be authorized by the City Manager to contract encumbrance of credit cards, make deposits of fees and services to the City's General Fund.

A resolution prohibiting on street parking at the locations described as the East bound right of way of the 1800 block of Huffman Avenue; and the North bound right of way of the 700 block of N. College Avenue (S.H. 208) was passed.

The council approved Resolution R080707C that will execute a Memorandum of Understanding between the City of Snyder and The Housing Authority (located in Big Spring) to collaborate efforts in providing affordable housing opportunities to the citizens of Snyder.

Personnel Policies, Section 4.2 J Compensation Plan was amended and passed to include a "On Call/Stand--By Pay for two employees in the Street, Water Distribution, and Sewer Lines departments at a rate of $12.00/day. The designated employees should respond within 20 minutes of notification of concern.

Sue Mercer, ONCOR, presented information in support of Resolution R080707D that allows the city to suspend the Augusts 8, 2008 effective date of ONCOR's requested rate change. This will allow the city time to study the request and to establish reasonable rates. This also approves cooperation with ONCOR cities steering committee to hire legal and consulting services, to negotiate with the company, and direct any necessary litigation and appeals. This resolution was discussed and passed by the council.

At this time a brief recess was taken by the council and visitors.

The council then moved to the monthly cash disbursement report which was reviewed, discussed and passed.
The monthly personnel report shows there are 5 vacancies and no applications at this time.

Motions made by Reed and Harris were made to adjourn at 8pm.
The next regular City Council Meeting is set for August 4, 2008 at 5:30 pm in City Council Chambers.