Council members listened to a request from Wayne School District #17 for a "No Parking Midnight to 7 a.m." sign to be installed on the diagonal parking spots on the north side of Wayne Elementary School on Fourth Street.
Wayne Community Schools Superintendent Dr. Mark Lenihan and Elementary Principal Courtney Maas spoke to the council on the need to restrict diagonal parking on the north side of the school for several reasons.
Dr. Lenihan said snow removal becomes an issue when cars are parked in the parking spots over night as "one car becomes three spots during snow removal."
Maas also stressed the need for teachers who have to travel between buildings and those parents with special needs students to use the parking spots on the north side of the building.
After discussion, council members directed staff to notify property owners in the area of the plan to make the change in parking regulations and set a public hearing for a future council meeting.
Brett Kramer with Northeast Nebraska Insurance Agency presented information on the city's 2025 Property and Casualty Insurance page.
Kramer explained to the council that the valuation of the city-insured property (not including the Power Plant) is just under $60 million and told the council that the city's Experience Mod for Workers Compensation dropped to 0.80, which is "a great thing."
The overall cost of coverage for the policy is $596,502, which is up just over $64,000 from last year.
Council members approved the amount for the coming year.
Resolution 2025-1 was given approval. It will allow for a mutual aid agreement with the communities and rural fire districts of Allen, Bancroft, Concord, Dakota City, Dixon, Emerson, Homer, Laurel, Martinsburg, Newcastle, Pender, Ponca, Rosalie, South Sioux City, Thurston, Wakefield, Walthill and Winnebago, known as the Northeast Nebraska Mutual Aid District.
This item is approved annually and allows the Wayne Volunteer Fire Department to respond to other members' emergency calls if there is a fire or other disaster too big for local firefighters to control.
Resolution 2025-2 was approved. It approves the specifications and authorizes the purchase of a 2025 Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD, four-wheel drive regular cab work truck from the Sid Dillon Fleet through the state bid process. The cost of this new vehicle is $43,730.
Casey Junck, Water/Wastewater Superintendent, explained to the council why the vehicle is needed and said a 2008 pickup currently being used would be shifted to different responsibilities.
He did also tell the council he had spoke to the local dealership about purchasing the vehicle locally, but at this time, they are not able to provide a state bid for the purchase.
Also approved was the purchase of an Altec Digger Derrick. The quote of $188,850 is for the purchase of a 2022 truck. A second quote of $274,082 is for a truck that would have to be ordered and would have a delivery date of sometime in 2026.
Clayton Dredge, Electric Distribution Superintendent, told the council that his department has been using the vehicle as a demo since November and it would need approximately $10,000 worth of accessories to meet the needs of his department. However, he said this is "a unique opportunity and having this vehicle would expedite the process by about a year."
The city had budged $150,000 for the vehicle in this fiscal year's budget and was planning to budget the same amount in the next budget. With this purchase, the city would use that budgeted amount and money from the department's budget to pay for the vehicle in this fiscal year.
Resolution 2025-4 was passed, creating an interlocal agreement between the city and Wayne County for financial support for the new dispatch and communications center being constructed. The county is sharing costs for the upgrades that will be necessary with the move.
The county's contribution of $200,000 is approximately one-third of the cost and will be paid between January and June of this year.
In other action, council members approved Payment No. 14 in the amount of $238,961.00 to Otte Construction Company LLC for the Wayne City Hall and Police Relocation Project.
Certificate of Payment No. 4 in the amount of $144,357.00 to Otte Construction Company, LLC. for the Wayne Parks & Rec Maintenance Building Project was approved.
During the council's mini retreat following the regular meeting, council members got an update on the electric projects, including where the substation project is at, when some activities, such as dirt moving will take place.
City Administrator Wes Blecke told the council, "this a complicated, long process and we are still working on getting a timeline for it. You, as a council, need to take formal action for the project as we move forward."
Council members also talked about various options in regard to downtown landscaping.
It was noted that because Main Street is along a state highway, the state would need to give its approval before certain changes can be made.
In addition, council members listened to information in regard to curb stops (water shut-offs) in front of businesses along Main Street and the fact that many of them are raised above the sidewalk. These are the responsibility of the property owners, who will be notified of the situation.
Additional discussion will be held in coming weeks on what can be done.
The Wayne City Council will next meet in regular session on Tuesday, Jan. 21 at 5:30 p.m. in council chambers.
