The maintenance report was next. They announced there has been $1,436.03 used so far this year, with $110 unaccounted for water. Budach Implement is holding a filter sale this year and in years past the maintenance department has bought all the filters for them, the fire department, and the ambulance trucks for the year. Ryan Nissen asked permission from the council to do that again this year with it coming to $380. The council approved this purchase, seeing as how it would be cheaper to buy the filters during the sale than other time during the year.
The next report was the fire department report. Two applications were looked at, Kurtis Pederson and Caleb Jacobson, and it was agreed to hire them pending background checks. Jeremy Parpart then talked about the grant for training they will complete later in the year. The city will have to pay for the training, but will get reimbursed from the state after the training is done.
The council then talked about the pay raise for the ambulance and the benefits and consequences of doing this. They talked for a good deal about if paying 25 cents more an hour will bring in new people, and they decided to table it until the next meeting until Martens, who sat down and talked to the ambulance crew about it, could be at the meeting.
The last order of business was that the maintenance department organizational structure was discussed. It was decided that the department commissioners would meet to discuss further.
The next meeting of the New Richland City Council is Monday, Feb. 25 at 6:30 p.m.
