Florence council wrestles with police problems
Police department staffing problems continue to plague the Florence City Council. At its meeting Monday night the council heard that the man they previously had hired to serve as chief of police did not clear a background check.
On July 27, the council unanimously voted to hire Tim Wolfe, former Argonia police chief. At Monday's meeting, Mayor John Lehman informed the council that Wolfe's check was unsatisfactory and that the city would continue looking for a suitable candidate.
The council also went into a 30-minute executive session with attorney Keith Collett for the purpose of discussing personnel and police issues.
Upon return to open session, a motion was made by Councilman Dan Ludwig to permanently suspend Duane McCarty from the Florence police force. McCarty has been serving the city as a part-time police officer. The motion was seconded by Tim Parmley and passed on a 3-1 vote, with Rick Turner voting against it.
In a related matter, the council also denied a request by acting Police Chief James Parmley to purchase a bullet-proof vest for $349. Councilman Tim Parmley moved to allow the purchase, but the motion died for lack of a second.
Chief Parmley then requested an executive session with the council at the end of the meeting. No action was taken when the council returned to open meeting.
The council heard a report from Trayce Warner about the annual Labor Day celebration. Warner requested the council's permission to use Veteran's Park, install a heavier electrical service at the park, and move picnic tables from Grandview Park to Veteran's Park.
She also requested extra dumpsters and extra trash pickups during the celebration, and permission to barricade various streets in the community for the events of the weekend.
A request for the city to cover part of the cost of the portable toilets for the three-day celebration was tabled until the budget hearing. All other requests were approved.
Mary Maloney was present from the Hillsboro Saddle Club to ask the council's permission to have Florence as the destination of a Labor Day trail ride her group would like to promote.
Maloney said participants will ride their horses from Marion to Florence on the Saturday before Labor Day and have supper in Florence at a hog roast planned by the fire department. She requested permission to park trucks and horse trailers south of the dike and for the group to ride under the Cottonwood River bridge and along the dike before coming into town.
The council approved the provisions for Maloney's group.
Paul Morrison gave a presentation on a "cashless" ATM machine that could be installed in the city building to assist customers who wish to pay their bills with a credit card.
The machine would be installed and maintained at no cost to the city, but the city would get a small percentage of each transaction. Morrison said the machine would not accommodate cash withdrawals. It would merely add another option for paying utility bills.
Council members expressed interest in Morrison's plan, but felt they should give the new city clerk more time to get accustomed to her job before implementing changes.
City Superintendent Stuart Funk reported water plant improvements are moving forward. He said the floor for the clear well had been laid and the construction company was on schedule.
The subject of the intersection at U.S.-50/77 was brought up during public comment and many of the two dozen people in attendance voiced their opinions. It was noted that Kansas Department of Transportation appears to be going ahead with the implementation of a four-way stop at the intersection.
The city of Florence has not been officially notified there will be any change at the intersection although it has been reported by the media and a crew installed posts for signs on the highway on Monday.
Council members had received a copy of an e-mail petition with 100 signatures of people opposed to the creation of a four-way stop. The council will receive additional copies each time another 100 names are registered on the petition.
During the discussion it was noted that part of the highway is within the city limits and several people thought the city itself could impose a lower speed limit. Councilman Mills proposed that the city contact its attorney and have the city and state statutes researched.
The council moved on to other topics, taking no action at this time on the KDOT proposal.
In other business, the council:
— approved warrants totaling $42,255.88.
— approved an electrical and plumbing license for Reliance Energy.
— voted to donate $50 to the Marion County Sheriff's Department for the National Safety Council Program for Marion County children.
— reviewed and approved city work priorities.
— heard a request from Fire Chief Travis Parmley to review the burn ordinance. The council agreed to review the ordinance before the next meeting and discuss it with Parmley at that time.
— agreed to consider proposals for the lease-purchase agreement for the new fire truck after the budget hearing Aug. 18.
— again tabled the proposal to run water and sewer lines to Jim Steele's new building west of Johnson's General Store until survey results and easement clarifications are available.
— expressed its appreciation to Ed Robinson, Harvey Wells, John Lehman, and Randy Mills for their volunteer efforts mowing, trimming, and cleaning public areas.
