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An overabundance of pigeons leaving their calling card on buildings and sidewalks in downtown American Falls led to a slightly humorous, but serious discussion at the American Falls City Council meeting Wednesday, April 6.
Several citizens voiced their willingness to use their shotguns to help with the pigeon problem on Idaho Street. However, American Falls Chief of Police Brandon Wilkinson vetoed that idea. Therefore, after consulting with attorney Ferrell S. “Bucky” Ryan concerning environmental and nuisance issues, the city council opted to rent humane live traps from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Each trap will cost $25 and will capture about 15 to 20 pigeons. After being trapped, the pigeons will be relocated.
Councilperson Stuart Pankratz suggested the city allow business owners to take the lead on setting and maintaining the traps due to the liability issues of city employees climbing on building roofs. The city will rent the traps, and then re-loan them to business owners.
Ryan said the traps will be baited with cracked corn to lure the pigeons. If the business owners are reluctant, the city has the option of setting the traps in the granary district.
Building Administrator Jeff Nelson told the council he already had found people who said they were willing to take the live pigeons.
Councilperson Dan Hammond asked Ryan if the bait to be used was Jimmy’s cracked corn.
Legion Baseball
Legion Baseball representative Jim Chandler asked the council for permission to use Magnuson Field for summer baseball games, and also to operate the concession stand at these games. In addition, he asked for the use of a city truck to bring pumice and clay from a different city, perhaps Jerome. The fields need replenishing because the wind blows these items away very quickly, he said. Chandler told the council the league would pay for the supplies, they just needed transportation.
Parks and Recreation Supervisor Jeremy Peirsol said several different leagues were chipping in to help pay for the pumice and clay.
Mayor Amy Wynn mentioned Chandler has had 29 surgeries thus far and expressed appreciation for his dedication to the baseball league.
“Yes, I’ve been through hell, but don’t feel sorry for me,” said Chandler. “There was a young man on the team. He didn’t do drugs or alcohol, but he went to a party.” Chandler told the council the young man’s friends persuaded him to try some pills, which he did. The young man went home, went to bed, and threw up in his sleep, then aspirated and died.
“I almost quit then, but the mother of the boy wrote me a letter,” Chandler said. In the letter, she asked Chandler to keep going with baseball because it was so important to the boys. “It renewed my spirit.” Chandler thanked the City of American Falls for supporting the program and said he would do his best to represent the city.
“Last summer, when we honored you and other All-Star Citzens during the American Falls Day parade, the volunteer choice was a no-brainer,” said Wynn.
Boy Scout questions
Nathaniel Robbins, one of the group of Boy Scouts who attended the city council meeting, stood at the podium when Wynn called for citizen comments. Robbins wanted to know who was in charge of the street lights, because some of them weren’t working.
City Clerk Robyn Herndon told Robbins every pole has a unique number on it, and when he noticed a street light that was out, make a note of the number and the street location, then call city hall. Someone from city hall would then call Idaho Power and ask them to fix the light.
Russell Adkins, another Scout, asked how the pipe near Jackson’s had broken.
Wynn explained the City of American Falls has old water lines, and when sudden pressure is applied to them, they have a tendency to break. Sudden pressure hit the pipes when the system was switched over to a well so the water tank could undergo maintenance.
Boy Scout Ethan Neibaur asked how one gets on the city council.
Wynn answered this question, too. She told Neibaur when a person is 18, an American Falls resident, and a registered voter, they fill out an application at city hall and would then be put on the ballot for people to vote. If enough people vote for a candidate, then they get to serve on city council.
Colton Adamson, the last Boy Scout, asked the council what plans were in the works for new recreation opportunities.
Peirsol fielded this question, and told Adamson he had recently come from a meeting in Boise concerning the new skate park at Lee Street, and said the community should know about the $80,000 grant in six to eight weeks. Peirsol said there is a soccer camp this summer featuring instructors from Great Britain, and he is trying to institute a 5k or 10k race. Other council members also spoke up about the annual bike rodeo and that the city is working to build tennis courts.
Councilman Norman Wright spoke to Adamson and said now that Adamson had asked what the city was going to do for him, he should ask what he could do for the city.
“If kids don’t want this skate park, let us know. Speak up,” Wright said. “We are interested in hearing from kids, and will take all the help you can give the city.”
Wynn said there are always several Eagle projects to be found at city hall. She also told the council that the skate park meeting was originally scheduled for 15 minutes; however, the grant administrators kept the meeting going for half an hour, so she feels the prospect of being awarded the grant is a good one.
Consent agenda
Payment was approved to Hunt Electric for work done on the harmonic filter of well number seven. Hammond brought the issue up as it was part of the consent agenda; councilperson Norman Wright told the council he had asked Water and Wastewater Superintendent Pete Cortez about the well filter before the meeting, and reported Cortez told him the issue was resolved with a simple reboot of the system. Payment in the amount of $10,950.35 was authorized for the work.
Three safe and sane fireworks permits were granted. Two were to previous permit holders, the Greater American Falls Area Chamber of Commerce and American Falls Lions Club, while the third was granted to a new seller, Kylan Feld. Feld will be selling his fireworks in the empty lot across from American Falls City Hall on Oregon Trail.
Other consent agenda items that were approved included the adoption of resolutions 432 and 433, authorizing the city clerk to dispose of semi-permanent and temporary records for the city and police department, the use of public improvement funds of $15,466.16 to pay for recarpeting city hall, and the use of public improvement funds of $701.74 for the purchase of wireless microphones to use with the council chambers sound system.
Odds and ends
An amendment to the golf course cart storage agreements was adopted. The revision states those who are renting a space for their carts must pay by May 1. If the deadline is not met, the space is forfeit for one year.
No dates have been set for the city-wide cleanup campaign. Street and Sanitation Supervisor Dusty Whited said his crew is working on the project at Willow Bay Recreation Area, and weather is the main factor deciding its completion. He said he was reluctant to commit resources to two large projects at the same time and would prefer to set the spring cleanup dates at a later time. The council agreed.
The city decided to donate a used copier from city hall to the women’s advocate office that is being set up. However, everything the city has copied is stored on the device’s hard drive. The council authorized $100 to replace the hard drive before giving it to the women’s advocate office.
The city is entering into a contract with SICOG for project development, grant writing, and administration of the Idaho Community Development Block Grant (ICDBG) for the downtown revitalization project in the amount of $15,000. The council authorized the mayor to execute the contract and pay the billing.
There are three easements Idaho Power needs for the wastewater treatment plant. The council gave the mayor authority to sign them. City Attorney Tippi Volyn read them and gave her approval for them to be signed.
Councilperson Kathy Robertson said a resident, Suzanna Lute, approached her with cost concerns about the crossing flags that had been put up around town. Lute felt the money would have been better spent within the school system rather than on crossing flags.
Peirsol told Robertson the flags had not been paid for with school budget money, but rather with a Safe Routes to School grant.
Robertson also said another citizen had approached her with concerns about the flags, saying she had seen children grab flags and just step out into traffic without looking. She wanted Robertson to do something to remind students that flags don’t stop traffic; they still need to wait for the light or for a break in traffic to cross.
Wilkinson said education was part of the grant, but would speak with the principal and superintendent about the problem and see if follow-up education was needed.
Wynn met with Idaho Transportation Department Chief Operations Officer Paul Steinman and Ed Bala to discuss I-86 bypass issues. They discussed installing LED-lit stop signs, rumble strips, squaring up the intersection, and reducing the speed limit to 45 mph.
Steinman said he had done his master’s thesis on the subject, and told Wynn that people drive as fast as their visual cues tell them to, not what the numbers on the sign said, so lowering the speed limit on the bypass would not work. Wynn said when she drives her Mustang to Boise, there is a long, straight, flat stretch of road and her visual cues tell her to drive 110 miles per hour. However, she drives 75 miles per hour because that is what the numbers on the sign say.
According to Wynn, Steinman dropped the subject after that. However, she said she felt the meeting went well anyway because the information has come to the attention of the state board.
Wynn also reported she has a vice-chair seat on behalf of American Falls on the statewide city insurance board.
Wright met with Keller Associates and those concerned with the wastewater treatment project and said 75 percent of the engineering would be done in 30 days, and the project is going to bid in August.
Whited reported the 2010 transportation grant had been unsuccessful, but the new application date is in December. He anticipated an improved score.
Wynn noted the city supervisors and attorneys are working very hard, and said citizens are getting excellent value. Volyn said she is impressed with the supervisors, that they are very proactive and asks questions. Wright said the prosecuting attorney told him the paperwork he receives from AFPD is very good, and said attorney Steve Mahonen agreed.
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