by Carrie Moritz, Gazette
The Garretson City Council's regular monthly meeting was on Monday, March 14. There, they fielded requests from the pool, fire department, and Sioux Metro Growth Alliance (SMGA) for an allotment of funds.
Wages to increase for lifeguards
Garretson Pool Board president Jill Stiefvater and pool manager Leah Konechne presented to the council, pointing out that wage increases in nearby communities have gone up substantially.
The Pool Board is separate from the city, but the city does pay wages and insurance upfront for the pool. The board does not usually consult the council for wage changes, as increases have followed minimum wage.
In years past, the difference was $2-3 higher in neighboring communities, which meant that with the cost of gas and amount of time it would take, most potential hires didn't consider the cost off-set worthwhile and were happy to stay in town for employment.
This year, however, the difference between minimum wage and actual pay rates would have been staggering, potentially limiting the pool of students who would apply for the position.
"Brandon, for example, has a starting wage that's $5.50 higher than ours," said Konechne. "That becomes worth it to travel."
She and Stiefvater requested a starting wage increase of $5 per lifeguard, which would possibly impact the overall total that the pool would be able to recoup and send back to the city to help pay back the wages and insurance.
Councilor Dave Bonte requested the pool attempt to absorb most of the wage increase.
Konechne stated the board plans to increase rates for concessions, season passes, day passes, and possibly swimming lessons for the 2022 season.
Final prices and amounts were not presented as they were still being negotiated. It was also pointed out that higher rates may keep some people from purchasing season passes, and that the number of days worked also impacts the amount given out in wages. For example, a rainy and cold summer like 2020's would mean fewer days worked.
While the council agreed that an increase in wages was necessary, there was disagreement as to whether a vote to allow for it was needed due to the separate nature of the pool. They later conceded that a vote would help ensure the new rate was okay, but the misunderstanding led two councilors, Bill Hoskins and Greg Franka, to vote against the motion. Four councilors voted in favor of the increase and passed it back to the board for implementation.
SMGA looks to improve economic development
Jesse Fonkert with Sioux Metro Growth Alliance approached the council with a proposition to improve economic development in both Garretson and Worthing. Unfortunately, it would include siphoning off Jessica Fueston, who started with the city in September of 2020. She transitioned to part-time economic development director as part of a full-time position with the city in June 2021, and has been integral in working towards merging several organizations under one umbrella.
However, that part of her position has been severely impacted by the change in Finance Officer employees as she took on more responsibility during the transition. The offer being made by Fonkert would move Fueston under SMGA's umbrella, who would then split her time between Garretson and Worthing as solely an economic development specialist.
Both cities would be responsible for paying a contracted rate to SMGA to cover the position, and the contract would be for three years, though if a city was unhappy with their service, they could terminate the contract after the first year.
The potential drawback to this offer, which was not brought up during the meeting, could be that the city would then have to hire another employee for billing and front desk responsibilities.
Fonkert pointed out the goal behind this idea was to make economic development efficient and effective, and that other communities who had begun this process were already seeing results. He said the main focus would not include event planning, as that is very time-consuming, but solely strategy and business attraction.
He stated that while he wasn't trying to push the council into making a decision immediately, having the decision made sooner rather than later would benefit SMGA, Garretson, and Fueston. Worthing was looking to begin their position by April 1.
Mayor Greg Beaner informed the council that Fonkert had approached him with that idea over a year ago, but at that time, "they didn't really have the staff, and we didn't either," he said. "Trust me, I've thought about this a long time, and thought about it a lot. Having somebody in that office, pitching ideas, getting ideas... I think it would be beneficial to us."
"We want to be with you along the way as you transform your community," Fonkert said. "I think having Jessica with us focusing full-time on economic development would make it advance a little bit quicker."
Council members were hesitant to make the decision that quickly, as it would be an unforeseen budget change and change in employment, and they felt they required more time to discuss and weigh out the issue. They opted to table it until next Tuesday, March 22 at a special meeting prior to the equalization meeting. The special meeting will begin at 6:00 p.m. and the Equalization meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m.
Fire Department Extra Subsidy Requested
The subsidy request from the Garretson Fire Department had been received, and the amount was $5,000 more than had been budgeted, which was due to a miscommunication, according to Fire Chief Levi Schmid.
He stated that the department had intended to request $45,000 on the budget request last fall, but somehow only $40,000 had been put down.
The reason behind the increase was mostly due to an increase in heating costs, especially the heating bill felt by the entire community last February.
Councilor Jodi Gloe requested the council wait to decide on whether the extra $5,000 was granted until the budget could be reviewed, as there were several unexpected costs that were coming up.
Councilors Bonte and Franka didn't see the increase as a problem, with Bonte pointing out that the number of service hours the volunteers put in each year was substantial. For instance, they had 1800 hours of service and volunteer time put in in 2021.
"We do pride ourselves on a really well-kept budget, so any extra money would be put to good use," said Schmid.
Despite Gloe's wish to wait on review, the motion was made to go ahead and grant the extra funds, seconded, and passed unanimously.
