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Soldier Township board names Chad Gerhardt presiding officer, approves GAAP waiver and equipment purchases
Summary
At its Jan. 14 meeting, the Soldier Township Board named Trustee Chad Gerhardt presiding officer, approved Resolution 25-01 (a GAAP waiver), authorized buying a replacement truck for the fire chief (not to exceed $65,000) and a tractor rear blade (not to exceed $8,500), and heard reports on a major snowstorm and building-construction issues.
The Soldier Township Board on Jan. 14 appointed Trustee Chad Gerhardt as Presiding Officer and approved several administrative and procurement items, including Resolution 25-01 (a GAAP waiver) and two equipment purchases intended to support emergency response and winter road work.
Mike Mathes, clerk, moved to approve the consent agenda — which included the Dec. 10 minutes, accounts payable and the December 2024 bank reconciliations — a motion seconded by Trustee Chad Gerhardt and carried by the Board (the meeting minutes do not record roll-call tallies). Mathes then moved that Trustee Chad Gerhardt be named Presiding Officer, with Mathes as backup; Jerry Glasgow, Treasurer and presiding officer for the call, seconded the motion and it carried.
The Board approved Resolution 25-01, a GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) waiver for 2025; Mathes made the motion and Glasgow seconded. The board also authorized purchase of a replacement truck for the Fire Chief, not to exceed $65,000, and approved buying a rear blade for the township tractor, not to exceed $8,500. The motions as recorded in the minutes were seconded and described as "motion carried," but the minutes do not include vote tallies.
In departmental reports, Fire Chief Chad Lady told the Board the department had run a total of 1,101 calls through the end of December 2024. He said the chassis switch for unit B73 is complete except for programming the light patterns and that onboarding for the ESO records/dispatch system has begun; the department anticipates ESO will be live by April 1, 2025.
Road Superintendent John Tipton reported the Road Department completed shoulder repair on NW Button Road in December and prepared equipment and materials for the winter season. He said a Jan. 4 storm produced 3/8" of ice followed by 14.5" of snow — which he described as the "third largest snowfall at one time in Kansas" — and that the crew worked long hours to keep roads open for EMS and residents. Tipton reported multiple slide-offs and limited equipment failures but said there were no serious injuries.
Administrator Audree Guzman reviewed administrative items: a draft of the updated employee handbook has been completed and is under legal review and is expected to be presented to the Board in February; the north approach concrete for the new road maintenance building failed the 56-day PSI test while the south approach passed, and staff will require a five-year warranty on concrete approaches and has directed Senne company to complete the remaining punch list before occupancy; an RFP for bond counsel and a design/build team for a new fire station is being developed for presentation in February; gWorks accounting setup and training should be fully operational by early 2025; the annual financial audit is scheduled for Jan. 21, 2025; website domains have been transferred to GoDaddy for centralized ownership; and a new governing body orientation packet was compiled for incoming members.
With no further business, Trustee Chad Gerhardt moved to adjourn; Jerry Glasgow seconded. The meeting adjourned at 12:45 p.m. The Board scheduled its next regular meeting for Feb. 11, 2025, at 12:15 p.m.
