Gas council grants cleanup extension for 118 N. Wall, asks attorney to research solicitor ban; KDHE finds no water deficiencies

The City of Gas council on Sept. 9 granted residents more time to clean up the property at 118 N. Wall and asked the city attorney to research whether the city can bar solicitors from offering services to residents.

Visitors Brett Erickson and Lisa Cloud appeared to request additional time for cleanup; the council agreed to revisit the matter at the October meeting. Under New Business, council members asked City Attorney Ross Albertini to review neighboring-city ordinances and report back on whether a local solicitor ban is legally permissible.

Council members also discussed city software and cybersecurity. The council decided it would not pay extra for maintaining 2025 software history because office work is preserved as PDFs; the minutes note that a new firewall (replacing an installation from 2018) has been installed but a schedule for new software deployment has not been provided.

Jason Schultz of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported the tri‑annual sanitary survey of the public water system found no deficiencies, although KDHE provided recommendations. City Superintendent Brad Kress listed recent maintenance work including repairs to a park swinging bridge and zipline, weed control, and patching S. Main Street. Zoning and City Clerk reports were recorded as "nothing to report."

The council approved the consent agenda (payment of bills, Aug. 12 minutes, and the August treasurer's report) by a 3-0 vote. The council also noted that letters were sent to applicants for a maintenance position and that filling the position will be reconsidered in February.