LINN — At their meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 21, Linn aldermen approved Hood & Associates Certified Public Accountants (CPA) of Kansas City to complete the city’s audits. The firm estimated auditing fees of $26,500 for the fiscal year ending in April 2024, $24,600 for April 2025, $25,800 for April 2026.

City Treasurer Jeanna Monroe-Lansford explained that the city contacted 27 different firms requesting bids for the audit.

“I only received responses from two of them, and one said they didn’t have the time or manpower to deal with it,” Monroe-Lansford said. “Hood & Associates was the other company, and they sent us this estimate.”

“We are two years behind on the audits,” City Clerk Carrie Grellner said.

The last time the city had an audit done, the cost was $18,000 for an audit for one fiscal year.  The city budgeted $30,000 for the audits this fiscal year, but expected that the amount would cover two audits. Hood & Associates is scheduled to have the two audits completed by April 30, 2027.

“When I spoke with him, he was hoping to be done with them a lot sooner than that,” Grellner said.

In other business, Utilities Supervisor Aleks Rowinski reported that the city’s push camera broke while trying to clear out a blockage in a sewer line. Rowinski presented the board with a quote for a replacement push camera for $7,994.

“It is exactly what we have; it’s just an upgraded model with the same features,” Rowinski said. “The exact same accessories will fit so we don’t have to buy any accessory packs.”

Rowinski added that since the push camera only works up to 200 feet, he was also proposing that the city needed a septic crawler for blockages that were out of reach of the push camera.

“The last one we looked at was over $100,000,” Rowinski said. “That was the one that Diamond Equipment gave us a demonstration of. I talked with Inside Vision about their system, and I asked them for a quote as well. A full setup, ready to roll, is $54,148, and that will give us reach up to 600 feet. It’s something we need to consider.”

Rowinski went on to explain that the camera on the cheaper model was not as clear, but that he thought it would still be a good fit for the city.

“We need to look at purchasing the push camera ASAP, especially when we are using the jetter; we need to use the camera to make sure there are no problems,” Rowinski said. “We use our push camera quite a bit, a lot more than a lot of people realize. The camera is 16 years old, the controller was 10 years old, and we aren’t the original owners of either one.”

Monroe-Lansford asked if it was possible to order a new controller and not an entirely new unit.

“We can; however, the camera is on its last legs,” Rowinski said. “There is no guarantee the camera is going to hold out much longer.”

Grellner noted that the board would need to see two additional quotes to consider the purchase. Rowinski said that he was working on obtaining them.

“We need the push camera right away, but eventually we will need the sewer crawler as well,” Rowinski said.

He was asked if he had additional quotes for a locator, which had been run over accidentally. Rowinski presented aldermen with a quote to replace it at the last meeting.

“The quotes I presented before are still valid,” Rowinski said. “The one for $7,200 is just a locator; the other one would allow us to automatically update the information to our mapping software.”

Monroe-Lansford reported that there was $10,179 left in the budget for water and sewer equipment purchases.

Aldermen declined to decide on any equipment purchases and requested additional estimates.

Rowinski noted that he and his crew have been getting ready for winter weather and that he will need new tires for two of the city’s trucks.

“We’ll probably need both replaced before winter,” Rowinski said.

He reported that there seems to be something wrong with the ultraviolet (UV) lights at the city’s lagoons.

“We may have to replace some parts; they’ve been fluctuating pretty badly,” Rowinski said. “I think it may be a bulb issue.”

Rowinski said that if it is a bulb issue, it is easy to replace them, and that wear-and-tear is to be expected since the lights run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for a large part of the year.

Rowinski noted that backflow valves on one of the lift stations are wearing out and need to be replaced. He will get quotes and present them at the next meeting. He believes he and his crew will be able to install them.

The new pump has been installed and is working well.

The city plans to send in the new mower for warranty work on the hydraulics after the last mow of the season.

The Utilities Department will be losing an employee in the next two weeks.

Rowinski noted that his department has been busy over the past month, tearing down and hauling off the old buildings from the City Park and working to fix several severe sewer backups. Rowinski reported that as they are working and doing preventative maintenance on the sewer lines, they are noticing fewer problems with inflow and infiltration. As they are working through sewer lines, the utilities crew has also been doing manhole inspections and has found issues that will need to be addressed.

“A lot of it comes down to being proactive and getting into those areas where we know we have issues, and getting those lines cleared out,” Rowinski said.

He would also like to clean and repaint the city’s Christmas snowflake decorations and replace the regular glass bulbs with LED lights.

“Every year, we end up replacing half of them because they break,” Rowinski said. “I’m not sure what the cost would be for replacing all of the lights.”

Aldermen asked for an estimate on the cost, but thought that brightening up the Christmas decorations was a good idea.

Aldermen asked if anyone had talked to John Knollmeyer from Hometown Lumber about the garage doors for the wash bay at the City Shed. Rowinski noted that he has discussed the issue several times with Knollmeyer, with no results. Alderman Bill Turner said that he would contact Knollmeyer and see if they could get the project completed.

Alderman Chris Jaegers asked if the grass had been cut on the city property off Lee Street by the old City Shed.

“We can’t get a mower back there,” Rowinski said. “There is no way to mow it.”

Grellner noted that in the past, the grass had been mowed in that area. She assumed that retired Utilities Supervisor Larry Fredrich had used a brush hog to cut the grass.

“I tried to brush hog it and almost rolled it over,” Rowinski said.

Aldermen asked Rowinski to look for ways to clean up the area.

* Turner noted that the city has streets that are simply falling apart. Alderman Steve Boeckmann asked that board members make a list of streets that are in the worst shape and get a quote for repairs earlier in the year so there would be time to schedule the work to be done.

“You actually need to start thinking about making a list now, so that when spring happens, we can be the first ones on the list,” Grellner suggested.

Aldermen listed over a dozen streets that they believe are badly in need of repair.

“The streets need to be taken down; we can’t just keep overlaying them,” Turner said. “We need to get something done. There has to be a way to mitigate the stormwater.”

Alderman Dustin Flamm asked about the status of Ninth Street which has a metal plate over a broken culvert.

“How soon can we get repairs done?” asked Flamm, noting it’s been like that for 1.5-2 years.

Rowinski noted the city would have to coordinate with the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT).

“We don’t have the safety equipment or gear to be approved to make the repairs by MoDOT,” Rowinski said. “We’ll have to contract it out.”

Flamm asked if Rowinski could get a bid on the work. “We need to get it fixed,” he said.

* Resident Tori Eisterhold asked aldermen to enforce no parking in the city’s alleyways.

“The gentleman who owns the lot on the other side of my property is blocking the alleyway behind my house every day,” Eisterhold said.

She built a garage on her property and can’t access the garage through the alleyway because it is always blocked.

“I plan to live here for a long time, but I don’t want to have a fight with the neighbor,” Eisterhold said. “The alley is city property, and it should be up to the city to prevent parking in it.”

Retired Alderman Rick Niewald had gone to look at the alley at the request of Eisterhold and reported he saw five vehicles parked in the alleyway.

Eisterhold said that she had called and spoken with Grellner several times.

“I’ve told the police officers what is going on,” Grellner said.

Eisterhold suggested that maybe the officers didn’t realize exactly where the alleyway ran.

“I think I’ve been patient,” Eisterhold said. “I really don’t want to start a fight.”

Aldermen approved Rowinski to purchase no-parking signs with the added line that vehicles would be towed at the owner’s expense and have them put up in the alley. Grellner will also talk to the police department and let them know that the alley needs to always be open.

* Bartlett & West Project Manager Hope Drennan explained that the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) had recently informed her that the start date for construction for the Lee Mar Hills Regionalization Project was September 2027, not September 2026, as was originally thought.

“I hope that we don’t have to wait that long to begin construction, but that is what the grant money stipulates so we have a lot of time,” Drennan said. “Our goal internally is to have the construction done by September 2026.”

Drennan said that she has a meeting set up the following week with the final property owner.

“We’re meeting at their house and coordinating with the mayor to see if he can be there or not,” Drennan said. “If so, that’s great; if not, we are going to meet with them.”

Drennan outlined that after the meeting, Bartlett & West plans to finalize the plan and then start on the environmental study.

“We will have to do another cultural resource study for the Osage Nation, but this is fully grant-funded so that will be covered by the grant, and none of the money will come out of the city’s pockets,” Drennan explained.

* Aldermen granted Grellner permission to pursue going through Aurora Net for fiber-based internet services at City Hall.

“I want fiber in the office because I’m tired of Cable America going down on us,” Grellner said. “Prices are similar to what we are paying already.”

Aurora Net would like to access the city’s easements to run additional fiber-optic cable to City Hall. Aldermen would like to see specifics on how exactly the company plans to run the cables, but gave Grellner the approval to have the company work up a specific plan for approval.

* Christmas on Main will be held on Dec. 12 and 13, with the parade to be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 13, with a theme of “Christmas Around the World.”

* City Hall and the Linn License Fee Office will be closed for Veterans Day on Nov. 11.

* The new pickleball and basketball courts are finished. Aldermen commented that they liked the design on the new backboard.

The City Park bathrooms and milk barn have been torn down and hauled away. Park Board President Neil Loethen offered a special thank you to Mark Brandt for helping seed and straw the park.

Lights have been installed at Maguire Park by Jeffries Electric, along with additional electrical work for the surveillance cameras. After the last meeting, Turner reached out to several other electrical companies, and no one was able to do the work within the time allowed. All the work, including installation of the lights, rewiring, and preparing for the surveillance cameras was completed for $9,576.92. The electrical work for the surveillance cameras was completed at the City Park for $3,665.

Aldermen will hold payment for Alarm Communication Center until they finish up a few items. “There are some things that still need to be done,” Turner said. “I’m not pleased with the security cabinet in the new restrooms.”

Installers also told Grellner that someone from the company would give her training on the new surveillance system.

“They said someone would be here on Friday, but no one was here,” Grellner said.

Alderman Flamm noted that the DVR for the surveillance system was already indicating that it was full within a very short time of the cameras being installed.

“That doesn’t seem right,” Turner said. “They need to come back before we give them any money.” 

Turner will make sure areas of concern are addressed before the final payment is sent.

Loethen would like to paint the poles at the City Park and the gate across the street black so that they blend in more with the natural surroundings.

“I do not recommend we paint anything black,” Grellner said. “People have to be able to see the posts.”

Alderman agreed the items should remain white for the best visibility.

The board agreed to remove the metal-roofed pavilion at the City Park. They will also reach out to see how much it would cost to put new roofs on the smaller pavilions while the big pavilion and City Hall are being repaired.

* Aldermen approved outstanding bills totaling $209,442.75.

* Linn had the following ending account balances in their governmental fund accounts: general ($592,700.77), pool (-$84,787.92), park ($72,749.39), police training ($1,188.66), general fund-improvement and equipment (-$819.28), park-improvement and equipment (-$3663.40), and pool-improvement and equipment ($1,948.24).

* The city had the following ending account balances in its business-type funds: water ($527,393.87), water replacement ($137,008.36), sewer ($423,693.31), sewer replacement ($73,454.81), and grants ($100,620.45).

* Linn holds nine certificates of deposit totaling $1,384,592.

*  The city will hold a budget workshop on Nov. 4 at 5:30 p.m., and the next regular meeting will be held on Nov. 18 at 5:30 p.m.