by Carrie Moritz, Gazette
On Monday, September 11, the Garretson City Council met in regular session, where they passed the 2024 budget.
Much of the budget had already been hammered out in meetings held in July and August, and showed the municipality is healthy, though there are some large projects on the horizon that will be needing consideration.
Overall, it is estimated that the municipality will have a total revenue of around $2,364,540.00. Of that, $934,540 will go towards supporting the city, $875,813 is allocated for natural gas, and $275,000 each are allocated toward water and sewer costs.
In city support expenses, $314,380 will be slated for government expenses such as salaries and building maintenance. $164,700 will be slated for public safety, which includes the sheriff's department and the fire department, and $43,000 will go towards health and welfare, which includes the ambulance services. $150,095 is budgeted for streets, maintenance, and snow removal, and other items such as the pool and parks will have a total budget of $238,065.
The budget was passed unanimously without further discussion and without comment from the public in attendance at the meeting. (Editor's Note: The full budget can be found here.)
One of the large projects slated for 2024 is an overhaul of 4th Street, and is part one of three for that area. Last December, councilors heard the results from a water survey conducted by engineering firm Infrastructure Design Group, which showed that the infrastructure under that street was in dire need of replacement. At the time, the council and maintenance department were aware the area was approaching its end-of-life, and had been planning to proceed with construction in the next 1-2 years. The water study was to help with the process of acquiring grants and subsidies.
In part one, the street from Center Avenue to Rose Avenue will be demolished, and new water and sewer lines will be placed. Once those are in place, homeowners should notice a marked improvement in their water and sewer services. Parts two and three, which includes the rest of 4th Street and 5th Street along with the connecting streets, are slated to be done in 2025 and 2026.
During the meeting, City Maintenance Supervisor Ryan Nussbaum stated he plans to put the first part of the project out for bid by the end of the year with the goal of having a start date in early-to-mid 2024.
Other items of note during the meeting:
Kelli Schleuter asked the council to approve a decorating contest for Main Avenue, which will be held during the month of October. Local groups and businesses are encouraged to create and display a scarecrow on Main. Schleuter asked the council to formally approve the decoration of the light poles along the street within the business district, which the council agreed to.
LeRoy Austin, owner of The Sports Cabin, requested a street closure for September 23. The Sports Cabin will be holding Octoberfest with the Larry Olsen Band playing from 6:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m., and will be hosting games from 3:30 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. Austin stated the band will be playing under the awning, and was intending to have the games on the street. He pointed out that he was not wanting to go any further south than the post office, and that 4th Street would still be open. The council agreed to the half-block closure.
Patrol Captain Adam Zishka of the Minnehaha County Sheriff's Department was in attendance, and much like Capt. Bosman in August, took responsibility for much of the break in communication that had occurred between the city and the sheriff's department over the past year. He noted that he intends to do a better job on communication, and appreciates hearing regularly from city hall. A consistent program of checking in with one point person has been re-established, with City Finance Officer Paetyn Dreckman appointed as the contact person and Capt. Zishka taking lead on communication.
"I like mediating problems," Capt. Zishka said. Later, he noted that he doesn't want to "band-aid things" and will ensure that any issues brought to his attention are taken care of as soon as possible.
Mayor Greg Beaner pointed out to the council that any issues they see should go to Dreckman, who will be responsible for passing the information along to the department captains.
Councilor Bruce Brown stated that he had noticed more activity from the patrol officers in the past month, and appreciated the increase.
Later in the meeting, the council approved the use of the water tower for emergency radio equipment installation. Emergency communication is undergoing some changes as Metro Communications will be looped under the purview of the City of Sioux Falls instead of the county, but Capt. Zishka assured the council that it will not impact the equipment lease. The equipment will improve radio communication for the whole area, he said, and it will not be the city's responsibility to maintain it.
Starting in October, regular meetings will be on the first Monday of the month. The next meeting will be held on October 2nd at 6:30 p.m. at the Legion, and the public is always invited to attend.
