Goessel council hears street concerns

The Goessel City Council listened during its April 20 meeting to Goessel residents express concerns about B Road, which is one block long and is a block south of Main Street near the city building.

Residents said B Road is used as a short-cut for drivers who are leaving the city building.

Resident Louanne Soukup suggested it should be a legal city street. Currently, it is privately owned, and Soukup expressed concern that no one takes care of it.

City Attorney Keith Collett explained that B Road is ?not really a public street…. It would be a narrow street,? he said. He suggested having a surveyor prepare a description of it.

Councilor Rick Freeman asked about making B Road a one-way street since it is so narrow. Soukup did not think that would be workable since sometimes B Road is the only access for homes in that area; sometimes A Road is blocked for 15 to 20 minutes by delivery trucks.

Mayor Peggy Jay said, ?It?s going to take some time? to find solutions. She offered to put the B Road issues on the agenda for the next several months so the council will discuss it further.

Other concerns for B Road were mentioned, such as children playing in the street. Residents are encouraged to keep their children off of city streets for safety reasons.

On another matter, Police Chief Joe Bases reported that the department had investigated one identity theft case, one building alarm, criminal damage to property, two drug cases, two suspicious activities complaints, and multiple inoperable vehicles.

The department had issued one warning for improper turning, one warning for an improper tag on a vehicle, one warning for driving against license restrictions, multiple equipment warnings and two warnings for speeding.

They also assisted the emergency service department on one call and the Marion County sheriff's office with one fatality accident and one car/deer accident. They were involved with the K-9 unit?s inspection at the high school

The Goessel Police Depart?ment cooperated with other departments and individuals to provide a drunk driving simulation at the high school. Police cars, ambulances and a life-watch helicopter were used in the simulation.

The police department also participated in firearms training in Marion, storm-watchers training and gang awareness training.

Base said they picked up the 2003 Dodge Intrepid police car from the North Newton Police Department; the city of Goessel recently purchased the car.

In other business, the council:

— heard Jay report that Larry Schmidt and Larry Lindeman had been re-elected to the council.

— re-elected councilor Larry Schmidt as council president.

— discussed poison ivy in town. City Clerk Anita Goertzen said, ?Poison ivy is a noxious weed…. It?s hard to eradicate.? Public works director Karen Dickerson said she had spent $500 some time ago in an effort to get rid of it.

— discussed city streets and the ?wash-board? effect, even though the streets had been graded after the recent rain.

?I need a different grader,? Dickerson responded. She also said different street material would help.

— heard that the city has been replacing more water meters, lids and pits.

— heard that more work has been done on ditches in town.

— heard that Dickerson had replaced the drinking fountains at the city park.

— listened to resident Terry Soukup?s suggestion of attaching reflective tape to fire hydrants. Dickerson agreed. ?I?m on it,? she said. ?It would be great.?

— heard that the city?s mower had been repaired for $600.

— viewed lettering options for the Goessel sign that is near the highway.

— approved a lease agreement with Doug and Cathy Evering?ham for a city well to be drilled on their property.

— listened to Jan Nolde of Swindoll, Janzen, Hawk and Loyd. She presented the audit report, commending the council for their policy manual and suggesting possibilities for improvement. She said there were no cash or budget violations.

— heard court clerk Paula Flaming report on the recent court conference she had attended.

— heard Goertzen report that the community room carpet would be cleaned the next day.

— heard that the city had purchased a heavy-duty vacuum cleaner for $503.95.

— changed the date of the May meeting. Instead of the third Monday, the council will meet the second Monday, May 11.

— listened to concerns presented by resident Anton Epp. Epp stated his opposition to the requirement that residents must be sponsored by a council member in order to speak at city council meetings. He did not think residents should be limited on how much time they are allowed when speaking to the council. Collett responded that he found no violations of the First and 14th amendments, to which Epp referred during his comments.

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