Oneida council adopts fireworks limits, approves three-year garbage contract and approves personnel and surplus motions

The Oneida City Council adopted a revised fireworks ordinance and approved a three-year garbage collection contract at its May 2026 meeting, and took a series of personnel and equipment actions while hearing reports on street maintenance and a potential FEMA grant for a storm-shelter building.

The council completed the second reading and adopted the ordinance amending municipal code provisions on fireworks. The ordinance, as read into the record, says the discharge of fireworks within the City of Oneida is unlawful except between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. from June 27 through July 5 and between 10 a.m. and midnight on July 4. The chair conducted the final reading and the clerk recorded roll-call votes: council members Marla, Caleb, Jessica, JR, Mike and Terry were recorded as voting yes; the chair said the ordinance must be published before it takes full effect.

Council members opened two bids for solid-waste collection and accepted a proposal from BDS LLC of Miller. BDS proposed supplying a 96-gallon container for each resident with weekly pickup and providing 300-gallon containers for city dumpster locations; the city fee for a 300-gallon dumpster was discussed in the bid as $65 per month. (An alternate bid from Bitter offered residential service at $14 per month for a 96-gallon container and some commercial pricing; the council reviewed container sizes and collection logistics.) The council moved to approve the contract with BDS LLC under the terms discussed; the motion passed on roll call with Marla, Caleb, Jessica, JR, Mike and Terry recorded as voting yes. The council noted the contract language includes automatic increases and term details discussed during the bid opening.

On personnel, the council approved hiring two lifeguards, Paige Jonas and Olivia Olsen. The chair requested a motion to hire both applicants; the motion carried on roll call (Marla, Caleb, Jessica, JR, Mike and Terry recorded as yes). The council also moved to decline another applicant and approved entering executive session earlier in the meeting to address unspecified employee matters.

Public works staff told the council the cost of chip seal and fog-seal work is currently "almost 60% higher than what it was last year because of oil prices," and recommended focusing on asphalt patching, crack sealing and targeted repairs this year rather than large seal projects. Staff said the city has crack-seal material in stock and has rented a crack-seal machine to do preparatory work; they also reported acquiring a used bucket truck.

The chair described a potential BRIC (Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities) grant program through FEMA as a funding avenue for a multipurpose park building that could serve as a storm shelter, pool house and public restrooms. The chair said a letter of intent was filed and that the process typically takes about 18 months; a council member asked about the typical federal share, and the chair recalled it was "about 80%" and "up to $1,000,000 per applicant," noting that the speaker was not certain and framed that amount as approximate.

The council also approved a motion to declare several aging public-works vehicles surplus, including a 1995 Freightliner FL70 dump truck and a 1992 Ford F-800 bucket truck, and directed staff to list them for public auction on platforms such as Purple Wave or BigIron. A clerk-conducted roll call recorded favorable votes for that action.

The meeting included an announcement honoring the Oneida Public Water System: the clerk read a citation from the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources recognizing the system and its operations staff for 17 years of meeting Safe Drinking Water Act requirements; Dustin Volker was named in the recognition.

With no further business, the council adjourned.

Votes at a glance - Minutes: approved (voice vote). - Building permits (three permits): approved (voice vote). - Executive session to discuss employee matters: approved (voice vote). - Hire Paige Jonas and Olivia Olsen (lifeguards): approved (roll call: Marla, Caleb, Jessica, JR, Mike, Terry — yes). - Decline an additional lifeguard applicant: approved (voice vote). - Surplus public-works vehicles (1995 Freightliner, 1992 Ford bucket truck): approved (voice vote/roll call as recorded). - Ordinance (second/final reading) amending fireworks rules: adopted (roll call: Marla, Caleb, Jessica, JR, Mike, Terry — yes). - Contract award for solid-waste collection: council moved to accept BDS LLC proposal (motion passed on roll call).