Page 14 - Flathead Beacon // 9.30.15

NEWS
CITY BEAT
LIBBY
Union Negotiations Spill into Public View
While union negotiations between the city of Libby and its employees tradition- ally take place in private, the back and forth between the two sides spilled into public view during a recent city council meeting.
During the Sept. 8 meeting, union member Kenny Rayome Jr. told the council that Mayor Doug Roll was “tell- ing the union one thing and the city council another” and negotiations had stalled. Roll called the public comments by Rayome “highly unprofessional” and said negotiations were proceeding by the books. The issue arose during the city meeting because the council was voting on employee salaries, which was passed, even though the contract had not been negotiated yet.
The city employees’ current contract expired on July 1 and since then the union employees, represented by the American Federations of State, County and Munic- ipal Employees, and city officials have not agreed to a new contract. Among the union’s proposals is that they work under a three-year contract instead of one year and that they receive raises to account for cost-of-living increases. However, there is confusion over who the union should
FLATHEAD
District Court Judge Will Not Seek Re-Election
District Court Judge David M. Ortley has decided to not run for re-election in 2016.
Ortley, 59, was first elected to the dis- trict court in 2010 and prior to that served as Flathead County justice of the peace for more than a decade. Ortley was raised in Minnesota and received an undergrad- uate degree in law enforcement from Mankato State University before grad- uating from the Hamline School of Law in 1983.
Ortley told the Beacon he decided to announce his decision now so that it gives potential candidates time to decide if they want to run for the seat. He also said that he didn’t want his decision to step down to be seen as a reflection of the Gov. Steve Bullock’s upcoming deci- sion on who to replace Judge Ted O. Lym- pus, who announced his retirement ear- lier this year.
“I look forward to completing the final year of my term in 2016 and to the oppor- tunities ahead after 17 years of service as a judge in Flathead County,” Ortley said.
Ortley’s replacement will be elected in November 2016. District Court judges serve six-year terms.
be negotiating with. Roll said as mayor it is his job to broker a deal before taking it to the city council for a vote. But some members of council and union members, including Rayome, said it should take place with the negotiation committee. All sides hope to sort through the issue this week so negotiations can continue.
WHITEFISH
Council Candidates to Discuss Issues at Forum
Candidates for Whitefish City Council will share their thoughts on issues facing the city at a public forum Sept. 30 at the Whitefish Community Center.
Five candidates are campaigning for three open seats on the council.
Incumbents Richard Hildner and Frank Sweeney are vying for re-elec- tion to seats challenged by candidates John Repke, Katie Williams and Barton Slaney.
Mayor John Muhlfeld is running unopposed for re-election.
Mail-in ballots will be sent out Oct. 14 for the Nov. 3 election.
The forum is co-sponsored by the Whitefish Pilot and the Whitefish Cham- ber of Commerce.
Forum questions will be posed by a panel including Pilot editor Matt Bald- win and Chamber executive director
FLATHEAD
Community Meeting About Future of Lakeside Green Box Site
Flathead County will host a commu- nity meeting about the future of the Lake- side green boxes, potentially preventing the closure of the popular waste-disposal site.
The meeting will take place Oct. 21 at 6 p.m., at the Lakeside QRU building on Bills Road. During the meeting, the Flat- head County Solid Waste Department and its board will hear input from the Lakeside community on the options and proposals for continue operation of the green box site.
These options and proposals, which came to light during the board’s Sept. 22 meeting, would prevent the closure of the green boxes in a manner similar to that which has occurred in Bigfork. They include:
1. A special tax district could be imple- mented and property owners within its boundaries would be assessed an annual fee to keep Lakeside open. This fee is in addition to the current $80.73 annual tax paid by all Flathead County property owners, whether they use a green box site or not. The boundar- ies of the Lakeside district have been set and approved by the board. Find a
Kevin Gartland. Candidates also will field questions from the audience.
A meet-and-greet event with the can- didates kicks off the evening beginning at 6 p.m. The forum will take place from 6:30 to 8 p.m.
This is a free event open to the public.
The Whitefish Community Center is located at 121 East Second St.
WHITEFISH
User Groups to Manage Stumptown Ice Den
City staff and user groups have faced off this year over management of White- fish’s Stumptown Ice Den, the reins of which are now poised to be turned over to a private entity this fall following approval of a management agreement.
The Whitefish Parks and Recreation Department has managed operations at the Stumptown Ice Den since it was built in October 2003.
City parks and recreation director Maria Butts said Ice Den user groups recently requested the opportunity for a management agreement.
The city received one application, which Butts described as a combination of user groups working together.
John Kramer and Murray Craven represent the Whitefish Sports Facility Foundation, which Butts said represents
map of the district on the Documents page of the Solid Waste website: http:// flathead.mt.gov/waste/downloads. php. The proposed Lakeside District contains 1,535 fee-paying parcels/ households.
2. The Department and Board are pro- posing to run the converted site for a year before setting the annual fee based on the actual cost of a year’s operation.
3. Lease of additional land from Montana Department of Transportation was successfully negotiated adding 120,000 square feet to the Lakeside site. The county will pay the lease costs.
4. Capital improvement costs, (fencing, road improvements, etc.) will be paid for by the county. The fence will have green slats like the Somers site and the fence will be electrified – these are requirements from state agencies with which the Solid Waste Department must comply.
5. Cost for maintenance of the physical site will also be paid for by the County. 6. The County will also cover the costs of
hauling Lakeside refuse and appliances. 7. The site will be staffed.
8. There will be specified days/times for
the site to be open.
9. Rules for types of waste allowed will be
enforced.
The options come into play with the
“a combined effort of both figure skating and hockey programs.”
Butts said the city is moving forward with negotiations with the foundation.
As interest in the use of the facility increased, the demands for higher levels of management and greater availability of use have also increased.
User groups in the past year have repeatedly requested the city provide the opportunity for a management agree- ment that shifts management responsi- bilities away from the city and toward user groups.
The city anticipates a contract with a single operator to serve the Ice Den for the 2015-16 season, which runs Oct. 5 through March 20. During this “trial period,” the city will evaluate whether the service should continue in the future.
Under the agreement, the city would retain $308,716 in user-group revenue, with any amount generated above that going to the operator. The city also will establish a $10,000 fund to offset the loss of user-group contracted ice time and the operator would be required to offset any losses greater than that amount.
The city will pay utilities for the facil- ity up to $70,000. A $25,000 repair and maintenance fund also will be made available.
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operational procedures, mainly:
• With or without recycling (to-date, the cost of a cardboard compactor is not included in any of the proposed
options).
• The number of days the site will be open
per week: seven days or fewer. Survey results indicated that three to five days per week would be acceptable as long as weekend days were included. The options currently being presented by the Solid Waste Department are based on 7 days per week and 5 days per week. The annual fee could be lower if the community would accept 4 days or 3 days per week.
• Estimated annual fee amounts vary based on the option but all presented in the board meeting are under $90, with staffing eating up most of that cost. Results from the community survey indicated that 81.4 percent of respon- dents were willing to pay up to $50 and 71.3 percent indicated they would pay up to $55.
Comments on the green box site can be sent to [email protected] before Oct. 21.
[email protected]
NEWS
COUNTY BEAT
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SEPTEMBER 30, 2015 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM