City Contracts with New Natural Gas Company (Preview)

by Carrie Moritz, Gazette

The March 2, 2020 meeting of the Garretson City Council had some concerns for the proposal to increase snow removal fines, approved a new company for natural gas management, and approved a day-use site in Split Rock Park that eliminated a campsite.

The meeting began with the approval of natural gas prices, which went up one cent last month but had not yet been received for March.

However, later in the meeting, the council approved a motion to enter into a 2-year contract with Clayton Energy to provide natural gas. Currently, the City is contracted with Centerpoint Energy, and they are subject to the rise and fall in prices that are seen throughout the winter and summer months.

Clayton Energy had been on the agenda for February but was discussed in executive session and closed to the public.

After a request for clarification from the Gazette, Mayor Greg Beaner explained that the company, based out of Nebraska, purchases long-range amounts of natural gas for municipalities and manages it. This allows the company to buy in bulk, lowering prices overall. It also allows pricing to be stabilized, similar to how the “average energy bill” works for Xcel Energy, since amounts are averaged over a period of time. This means it is much less likely for the community to see increases of 7-10 cents per unit during January and February, such as it has seen in the past with Centerpoint.

“He’s never come into South Dakota,” said Mayor Beaner. “They have places all over in Iowa that they manage. We checked references, we visited with him.”

After the meeting, the mayor also assured the Gazette that they had checked references not on the company’s list, and found nothing but positive reports. Clayton Energy is also looking to contract with other municipalities in the area such as Crooks.

If the city is satisfied with the performance over the next two years, a longer-term contract of five years would be sought at renewal.

Campsite Eliminated for Day Use Site

In Committee Reports, the Garretson Park Advisory Committee presented a request to install a day use site on Campsite 21 at the northernmost end of the park, eliminating that campsite. It had been brought to the Park Board at their last meeting by council member Tom Godbey, who was willing to spearhead and pay for the project.

This would see a small shelter built over a single picnic table and a standing grill, which would allow park visitors and families to have a smaller space for picnics. This project will be separate from the larger picnic shelter planned next to the playground.

While the Park Board brought the campsite up for recommendation, it also recommended consideration of the knoll across the road from the water spigot in the electrical camping area, as it would be more visible. After a discussion regarding what the day use area would look like, campsite use, parking, vandalism, and space, the council voted to change campsite 21 to a day use site. Further day use sites will be considered by the Parks Board in their long-range planning.

The council then approved a setback change request for 604 Canyon Ave. The original house had a devastating fire a few years ago, which required it to be torn down. Tim Mader had purchased the property with the intent of building a new home, but the width of the new house required an extra 9 inches toward the alley. The council approved the variance.

Request for Proposals to be drawn up by Mayor, Uhl

Moving on, the council looked at several examples and templates for Requests for Proposal for the community center. The preferred template by Mayor Beaner was an example from Custer State Park, which spelled out what they were looking for.

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