Soldier Township approves 5-year lease for fire tanker, OKs office gate and readies new fire station groundbreaking

Soldier Township trustees approved a five-year lease purchase to finance a new fire tanker and handled several operational items during their May 12 meeting.

Administrator Audree Guzman recommended the five-year lease purchase option with Silver Lake Bank for Tanker 71, describing an annual principal payment of $135,050 and confirming the township budget can accommodate the payment. Clerk Mike Mathes moved to approve the five-year option; Treasurer Jerry Glasgow seconded the motion, which carried.

The board also voted to replace the main office gate. Guzman presented two bids from Kansas Fence: a manual sliding gate for $7,641 and an automated gate for $17,284. Treasurer Jerry Glasgow moved to approve the manual sliding gate at $7,641; Mike Mathes seconded and the motion carried.

Road Superintendent John Tipton brought a constituent request for an entrance permit at NW 35th Street and Spring Brooke Drive. Tipton said current Shawnee County policy does not permit the requested entrance; Clerk Mike Mathes agreed with Tipton’s recommendation to deny the permit. No formal recorded motion or roll-call vote on that recommendation was noted in the minutes.

Tipton also reported on road department work in April, saying crews focused on asphalt repairs ahead of planned chip sealing and spent a week responding to flood-related damage after a mid-April weather event.

Fire Chief Chad Lady told the board the department responded to 416 incidents in April and sent personnel to national training conferences, including FDIC. He said the new fire station’s 100% design plans are complete, the project is out for subcontractor bids, and the groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for May 29 at 11:00 a.m., with construction expected to begin the week of June 8.

Guzman provided administrative updates including a planned bond sale on the June board agenda with funds expected to be deposited July 1 and a contract GMP amendment planned for the June meeting. She reported the township paid off a CAT mill and two fire trucks a year ahead of schedule and listed the stated interest savings for those payoffs. Guzman also noted she completed Fire 1 and Fire 2 certifications and is enrolled in HazMat training.

During the meeting Clerk Mike Mathes moved the board into a 10-minute executive session to discuss an individual employee’s performance under the non-elected personnel exception, K.S.A. 75-4319(b)(1); Legal Counsel Todd Luckman, Administrator Guzman and Chief Lady participated. The open meeting resumed with no action reported from the executive session. The board adjourned at 2:55 p.m.

Votes at a glance: the minutes show (1) consent agenda (April minutes, accounts payable, April bank reconciliations) approved on a recorded 3-0 vote after a motion by Mike Mathes and second by Jerry Glasgow; (2) Kansas Fence manual sliding gate purchase approved after a motion by Jerry Glasgow and second by Mike Mathes (motion carried); (3) five-year lease purchase option for Tanker 71 approved after a motion by Mike Mathes and second by Jerry Glasgow (motion carried). Other items were discussed and recommendations recorded (entrance permit denial recommendation, mower purchase deferred) but no formal roll-call votes were recorded in the minutes for those items.

The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 9, 2026, at 4:00 p.m.