MMUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING
OF THE OZARK CITY COUNCIL

April 10, 2023
Ozark City Council Meeting Room

The Regular Meeting was called to order by Mayor Hall and upon a roll call, a quorum
was declared to exist for the meeting. Present were Alderpersons Angela Harris, Argest Hyler,
David Mahon, Loren Maier, Charlie Meeker and Randy Melton. Also present were Mayor Hall,
City Attorney Kevin Barham, City Clerk Susan Stevens, and Treasurer/ Deputy City Clerk Marla
Ward. Water Department Superintendent Tonya Talkington gave the invocation followed by the
Pledge ofAllegiance which was led by Vernon McDaniel.

A motion was made by David Mahon to approve the March minutes and seconded by
Charlie Meeker. Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and the minutes were
approved. A motion was then made by David Mahon to approve the minutes ofthe Special
Meeting held on Wednesday, March 29, 2023. This was seconded by Loren Maier. Upon a roll
call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and the minutes were approved. A motion was made by
Randy Melton to approve the financial reports. This was seconded by Angela Harris. Upon a roll.
call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and the financial reports were approved.

The Street Department reports that they spent several days working in our parks. Fallen
trees were cleared on the nature trail at the Overlook. A large dead tree by the West Park
playground was cut down and after the heavy rains that flooded West Park, it took a day to clean
up the debris left from the high water. They have worked for several days filling potholes from
one end oftown to the other. The street sweeper has been running and Pleasant Homes, River
Heights, Faith Addition, Baldor Road, and South 20” have been done. On rainy days, they are
doing maintenance work on all the mowers so they will be ready to go. A ditch line was cleaned
out on North 14th Street. Mowing has begun. The Water Department reports that the tanks were
delivered to the Water Treatment Plant and work has started again on the Sodium Hypochlorite
Improvement project. Completion is anticipated for the first week of May. The fence was
repaired at the Water Treatment Plant after a car crashed through. Routine maintenance and
repairs including sewer camera work, meter/meter box change outs and replacement ofwater
connection lines is being done. The high pressure and hydraulic hoses were changed out on the
sewer machine.

The Fire Department reports that six firefighters attended a 4-hour training class on
railroad accident response conducted by Union Pacific. We took delivery ofthe water tanker
from PV Fire Department. We have replaced all 10 tires and are working on pricing and build up.
New tires have been installed on the ladder truck. We have worked with the Franklin County
OES, Rick Covert, on pre-planning an evacuation plan for the city in response to a hazardous
event such as a railroad incident. The Police Department reported 103 reports, 26 arrests, 15 vehicle
accidents, 115 traffic tickets, 235 traffic warnings, 7 ordinance tickets, 68 ordinance
warnings, 20 warrants served, and 0 subpoenas served. A presentation and tour of our facility
was given to the Girl Scout Troop. Siloam Springs PD SWAT team used our shoot house. We
gave a tour of our facility to the Franklin County Leadership group. Dillion Hancock has been
hired as our Code Enforcement Officer. Officer Zachary Sloan is halfway through the Arkansas
Law Enforcement Academy. Earl Ellegood will begin the Arkansas Law Enforcement Academy
on April 30th, 2023.

The Community Center reports that they are completely booked on weekends. Spring
Break was excellent. Revenue of around$ 9K for the week. The Underwater Easter Egg Hunt
will be held April 8th. The first age group is at 9:00am, the last age group will be at 12: 00pm.
Prizes for each age group. Hope Church will be here to volunteer and hand out goodie bags to
each child. Pictures with the Easter Bunny will be available. We are working on a Blue& You
Grant to furnish equipment for the Exercise Room. Mini-Golf is open and is a huge hit. Summer
passes will be available again for the Summer Months Only! $ 10 Off a regular 3- month pass.
Hook- ups for washer& dryer have been installed. Shopping for the best pricing for appliances.
The Center is Closed April 9th for Easter. Prom is April 1501. We have several employees out, but
all shifts have been covered.

David Mahon reports for the Street& Water Committee. There is a lot of man- hole
rehabbing to be done. The drainage issue on School Street is being discussed. There is up to 260
feet of culvert to be replaced. They are considering going to a larger size culvert. Buried fiber
optic lines slow the repair process. It was brought up that the subgrade on North 3601 is
disintegrating causing the street to fall in. A total street repair/replace could be up to $250,000. A
sealed filler could be done at around$ 126, 000. These estimates were given by Cove Creek
Construction Company, and it was noted that they are subject to change. The Water Department
is still waiting for bids for the water tank clean-up. A requirement for cement vaults in the
cemetery was discussed, as was trying to find a time saving solution for mowing and weed eating
in the Cemetery. There was discussion about installing GPS trackers on city vehicles, with 3
councilmembers being against this measure. Mayor Hall brought up the question of using 309′ s
Community Service workers) to work with the Street Department in the Cemetery. Michael had
concerns over outsiders using equipment but stated it would be helpful to have someone to
remove/replace flowers and decor while the city employee did the weed-eating around the
headstones. A Trash Committee is being formed consisting of all council members and possibly
one citizen from each ward. Water Department Superintendent Tonya Talkington would like the
trash collection service removed from the water department. There is talk of a complete rebid of
the city’ s trash collection service as our CARDS contract expires this year. Jason Fitzgerald
from CARDS) requested a meeting before any rebidding process was started. David had agreed
to this meeting but stated that we will most likely move ahead with rebidding the contract.

Argest Hyler reported for the Parks & Recreation Committee who met March 21St.
Discussion was held about the Underwater Easter Egg Hunt to be held April 8 from 9am to 1pm.
Hope Church will be helping with this event. Discussion was held over a Blue& You Grant
available for outdoor activities only.) The Overlook Park has a water leak that is in the process of repair.
There are a few steps that need repair, but there are no trees blocking the trail. The
gates are not being closed every night. The times state dusk until dawn. Randy Melton stated that
there needs to be a definitive time set. Mayor Hall stated that some of the new police officers
may not be in the habit of closing the park. She would like to possibly work with the County in
sharing duties of opening/ closing the park gates. Ozark Pride and Beautification have been
painting the benches, tables, and pavilions at Eastside Park( Gar Creek). The playground area is
needing the mulch replaced. They would like to replace the wood mulch with rubber mulch
which has a lifetime guarantee. The cost of replacing the mulch is estimated to be approximately
13, 000 to $ 15, 000. They were made aware that there is an$ 8, 400 reimbursement( Mike Sprigs)
and discussed putting the money toward the rubber mulch with Council approval. The volleyball
courts have been completed. The tennis courts need repair. They are holding water and the
coating on the courts is fading and peeling. There is a question ofwhether to rehab them or not.
Parking issues next to the playground were also discussed. Regarding Westside Park there was
discussion ofpossibly turning the old pool site into tennis or pickleball courts. Michael gave the
information about the possibility of getting light poles from ADEM Surplus for approximately
350. 00 ( for a 40-foot pole and base). There was a discussion about applying for a grant to
expand the splash pad area. The public needs to call City Hall to book use ofthe pavilions at
Westside Park since there are two and be assigned to a specific pavilion. Buried fiber optic lines
have delayed installment ofwater lines to the newest pavilion. Discussion was held about
extending the current sidewalk from the roundabout to the school. The approximate cost ofthe
concrete is$ 53, 000. There is a grant available for this type of project. Mayor Hall is talking with
Chad Haberer about whether the school or the city needs to apply for the grant. Two parent/child
swings have been ordered—one for Eastside Park and one for Westside Park. Delivery estimated
to be in 2-4 months. Michael received 2 bids for the new mower. One was for$ 32, 400 and one
was for$ 26, 000 from E& E here in Ozark. Both bids were for the same model of mower. The
money has been budgeted so a Council vote was not required to move ahead with the purchase
from E&E.

There was no old business.

New Business: there was a motion to add discussion regarding ASI to the Agenda by
David Mahon, seconded by Randy Melton. Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and
the discussion was added.

Resolution 2023- 4 authorizes an expenditure of more than ten thousand dollars
10, 000. 00) for reparations of roofing on a city building as required by Ordinance 2003- 2.
Handouts were provided which listed expenses. A motion to read the Resolution was by made
Argest Hyler and seconded by Loren Maier. Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and
Attorney Barham read the Resolution. A motion was then made by Randy Melton to approve the
Resolution and seconded by Charlie Meeker. Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye
and Resolution 2023- 4 was approved.

Resolution 2023- 5 adopts a budget for the City of Ozark from January 1, 2023, ending
December 31, 2023. A motion to read the Resolution was made by David Mahon and seconded
by Angela Harris. Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and Attorney Barham read the

Resolution. A motion to approve was made by David Mahon and seconded by Randy Melton.
Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and Resolution 2023- 5 was approved. Tonya
Talkington, Superintendent of the Water Department, asked if her budget resolution needed to
read exactly as the city’ s. Mr. Barham said that it did not and that both budgets were approved by
a roll call vote in February’s Council meeting and duly recorded. According to the ARML this is
all that is required. A Resolution is a secondary issue and up to each individual city.

Resolution 2023- 6. A motion to add Resolution 2023- 6 to the agenda was made by
Charlie Meeker and seconded by Loren Maier. Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye
and the Resolution was added. Resolution 2023- 6 adopts the 2023 Budget for the City of Ozark
Water Department. A motion to read the resolution was made by Randy Melton and seconded by
Loren Maier. Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and Attorney Barham read the
Resolution. A motion to approve was made by David Mahon and seconded by Charlie Meeker.
Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and Resolution 2023- 6 was approved.
Discussion ofASI: ASI provided handouts for price estimations for upgrading our IT
systems per department. These included recurring charges as well as one-time purchases.

Recurring charges deal with subscriptions such as ILAND Secure FIPS Cloud Backup and anti-
virus management. ASI has done a review and has gone as far as they can until we update our existing
equipment. A current contract with Dobson was discussed. WAVE provides faster
internet services but does not provide phone service. A local system— Ritter— can provide both
internet and phone system services for a savings of around$ 1200.00 per year. This would narrow
us down to two providers instead of our current four. All agreed that equipment and service
should be umbrella’ d under ASI. Subject of payment was then discussed as this project was not
budgeted for in 2023. Randy Melton stated that we can use the former ARPA funds to complete
this project so as to not upend the budget. Charlie Meeker stated that we will need a resolution
appropriating these funds. Argest Hyler asked how long it will take to complete the project.
Devin answered that if some equipment is on back order it could take up to 6 months. Randy
stated that we need to get moving on the issue. Argest would like an itemized statement of actual
costs when available. Tonya stated that the Water Department backs up locally, with no Cloud
protection. She has funds that can be used for the upgrades and would like to be onboard with
ASI and City plans. Randy Melton stated that the Water Department will be covered in the initial
costs and then the yearly subscriptions could then be covered under their budget. Devin stated
that backup plans/ programs are checked regularly and tested by State Auditors. Randy asked if
we can get a time frame from ASI. Mayor Hall asked if we wanted to have a resolution drawn up
and call a special meeting to speed up the process. A motion was made to table the matter until
the May meeting when a Resolution will be presented by Charlie Meeker. This was seconded by
Angela Harris. Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and the discussion was tabled.

Announcements:

Employee’s of the Quarter

Community Center Krysta Wright
Fire Department Josh Ciampoli
Police Department Donna Kirchner
Street Department Kenneth Rosson
Water Department Sonya Palarino

There was a fantastic turn out for our Spring Cleanup. We started off Saturday, April 1 S,
with a great turnout for the Pride& Beautification trash pickup. Thank you to probation officer
Victoria Riddle for having a group pick up trash. We had a total of 36 volunteers that day. On
Tuesday, Jacob Jones and a crew from Hope Church went around town and picked up the items
that elderly/ disabled citizens called and requested us to pick up. A total of 156 residents took
items to the transfer station this spring bringing that total up by 89 from last year. Thank you to
everyone that helped make a difference. The Underwater Easter Egg Hunt was so much fun and a
huge success. Right around 200 kids were all smiling from the day’s festivities. Thank you,
Brooke, Caleb, and the lifeguards for doing a fantastic job. Thank you to Hope Church for
helping make the event successful. We are working on a couple of different solutions regarding
the drainage issue in the Pleasant Homes area. We should have more information next month.

The Run for the Fallen: There was a great response to this event. We would like to say a
big thank you to all of our volunteers. On Thursday evening, supper was provided by Rivertowne
BBQ and the Ozark Area Chamber of Commerce. Chips& drinks were provided by Mayor Hall
and family, Councilman Randy Melton& Larhonda Melton, and the Ozark Animal Hospital.
Desserts were provided by Jana Tolbert, Sherry Timmerman, Tonya Talkington, and Beth Elrod.
Bro. Brad Elrod, Pastor ofthe First United Methodist Church, Ozark, led the prayer. On Friday
morning, breakfast was provided by Arkansas Valley Electric, Workman’s I-40 Travel Center,
Harps, Ozark, Ozark Animal Hospital, Mayor Hall& Family, Councilman Randy Melton&
LaRhonda Melton, and Buzz& Pam Minshew. Decorations were provided by the Ozark
Advertising& Promotion Commission. Flags were provided by: Along Hwy 64— Ozark Rotary
Club, Hanging over Hwy 64— Arkansas Valley Electric, and Citizens holding flags— Ozark
Advertising& Promotion Commission. Other helpers included: Sarah Rodriguez, Ozark Area
Chamber ofCommerce, Nathan Rodriguez, Gene Higginbotham, District Director: Office of
State Representative Bruce Westerman, Jesse Solley: Field Representative for the Office of
Senator John Boozman, Kelli Lamberson, Field Representative for the Office of State
Representative Bruce Westerman, Mayor Roxie Hall, Clinton, Raelynn& Jameson Hall, Hope
Church, Ozark, Hunter& Morgan Immel, Grant& Aeriel Nicely, Robert& Mary Ann Bramlett,
Buzz& Pam Minshew, Brooke Rosson, Barbara Garner, and Daxton Shaffer.

Putt-Putt Golf at the Community Center is up and running with great success. We have
received many compliments and out oftowners’ making plans to return, Research and planning
has begun for the 2024 Eclipse. Many cities in Arkansas already have plans in place as it can be a
great revenue opportunity for their city. In 2017, the state of South Carolina reported an income
boost of$ 1. 9 million during the course ofthe event. Hundreds of visitors are anticipated,
and international flights are already booked in entirety. Our Chamber of Commerce has 25 port- a-
potties on reserve. Parking issues are also being researched. There is a planning meeting at

Rivertowne BBQ on April 11 m at noon. Mayor Hall would like Police Chief Devin Bramlett and
Water Department Supervisor Tonya Talkington to attend with her.
A motion to adjourn was then made by David Mahon and seconded by Axgest Hyler.
Upon a roll call vote, all Alderpersons voted aye and the meeting was adjourned.

Minutes for the Ozark City Council Meeting held Monday April 10, 2023 were approved
and passed this 8t’ day ofMay, 2023.