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Portal City Council conducts routine business, hears infrastructure and finance updates
Summary
At its Dec. 3 meeting, the Portal City Council approved minutes and financials, authorized a retail liquor license for Rosie’s Cantina and considered motions on a police contract and ARPA funds; council heard updates on CDBG and sewer project bidding and city water use.
The Portal City Council met Dec. 3, 2024, at the Community Center in Portal and handled routine municipal business, including approvals of meeting minutes and financial statements and discussion of local infrastructure and payroll funding.
Mayor Lisa Smith called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m. Council Member Kenneth Evenson moved to approve the Nov. 12, 2024 minutes; Tamara Rudland seconded and the council recorded “All in favor, motion carried.” Council Member Lorie Fitchner moved to approve the presented financial statements; Rudland seconded and the council recorded “All in favor, motion carried.”
The council considered a Police Service Contract for 2025. Deputy Chris Almilie reported that policing has been going well; Council Member Kenneth Evenson moved and Lorie Fitchner seconded a motion to approve a 2025 contract for $4,800 with the Burke County Sheriff’s Department. The motion is recorded in the minutes and the transcript notes Deputy Almilie left the meeting at 4:05 p.m., but the record does not show an explicit vote or final outcome for that motion.
City-affiliated projects and grants were also discussed. Patrick Samson reported the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) gas project is out for bid with a bid opening set for Dec. 18, and said the CDBG sanitary sewer project will be advertised in January. He added that the state Department of Environmental Quality will begin a second round of Lead Service Line inventory work soon.
Council approved a retail liquor license for Rosie’s Cantina for Jan. 1–Dec. 31, 2025; Lorie Fitchner moved, Tamara Rudland seconded, and the council recorded “All in favor, motion carried.”
Auditor Kaydee Smith reported operational details for November: the city used 333,500 gallons of water; Pump 1 ran about 20 hours and Pump 2 ran about 17.2 hours. She said the snow pusher for the backhoe has arrived and that the dump ground is closed for the season.
On budget items, Auditor Smith discussed use of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. Tamara Rudland moved, seconded by Lorie Fitchner, to transfer ARPA funds to the General Fund to replace revenue for payroll for city employees and council members; the motion is recorded but the minutes/transcript do not show a recorded vote or explicit outcome for that motion.
The council reviewed bills for November and December as listed in the minutes, and fixed Jan. 7, 2025, at 4:00 p.m. at the Portal Community Center as the next regular meeting. Kenneth Evenson moved to adjourn at 4:19 p.m.; Tamara Rudland seconded and the council recorded “All in favor, motion carried.”
The minutes are signed by Auditor Kaydee Smith and Mayor Lisa Smith.
