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Jasper council adopts late fees for unpaid fire calls, sets proposed levy and posts clerk/treasurer opening
Summary
At its Aug. 12 meeting the Jasper City Council adopted Resolution 25-224 to add late fees for unpaid fire calls, provisionally approved a 15% levy for 2026 to be finalized at a budget meeting, authorized the city to post the Clerk/Treasurer vacancy and approved several routine items including community solar subscription and Eagle Scout projects.
The Jasper City Council adopted Resolution 25-224 on Aug. 12 to add late fees for unpaid fire calls, and took a series of administrative steps as it begins preparing the 2026 budget.
Mayor Kim Lape and council members Deb Plahn, Zach Kounkel, Tim Houg and Stacie Smith voted to adopt the late-fee resolution after a brief discussion of unpaid fire-call invoices; the motion was made by Plahn and seconded by Smith and carried with all ayes. Council minutes record the city will add late fees to unpaid fire calls going forward.
Council also reviewed a proposed levy amount of 15 percent for 2026 and approved scheduling a special budget meeting on Aug. 20, 2025 at 6:30 p.m. to finalize the budget and adjust the levy as necessary. Council emphasized the 15% figure is provisional and will be adjusted once the budget is finalized.
On staffing, the council accepted the resignation of City Administrator/Clerk-Treasurer Trinidad Garcia and approved posting the Clerk/Treasurer position as a full-time 40-hour role, with applications due Aug. 29 at noon and a special meeting set for Sept. 2 at 6:30 p.m. to review candidates. The council also voted to move payroll processing to Meulebroeck to shift federal and state reporting obligations off the city’s staff.
Other motions carried included expanding the city’s community solar subscription with Geronimo Power, approving two Eagle Scout projects (installation of bat houses and a small park library), reimbursing a resident for weed-spraying supplies, and authorizing summer help to finish public-works projects. Minutes show routine approvals of prior meeting minutes and receipts/claims.
The council discussed property/casualty insurance renewal and directed departments to compile inventories (video or lists) of city-owned items for the insurer. A budget meeting was scheduled for Aug. 20, 2025. The next regular council meeting is Sept. 9, 2025 at 7:00 p.m.
Votes at a glance: Resolution 25-224 (late fees for unpaid fire calls) — motion by Deb Plahn, seconded by Stacie Smith; outcome: approved (all ayes). Proposed 2026 levy (15% provisional) — approved for further consideration and placed on the Aug. 20 budget meeting agenda. Multiple operational motions (Eagle Scout approvals, reimbursement, community solar, posting clerk/treasurer) — approved (all ayes).
