City Council Minutes 6-17-25

TREMONTON CITY CORPORATION
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
JUNE 17, 2025

Members Present:
Wes Estep
Beau Lewis
Bret Rohde
Lyle Vance
Blair Westergard
Lyle Holmgren, Mayor
Bill Cobabe, City Manager
Linsey Nessen, Assistant City Manager
Cynthia Nelson, City Recorder

CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP

Mayor Holmgren called the June 17, 2025 City Council Workshop to order at 4:59 p.m. The meeting was held in the City Council Meeting Room at 102 South Tremont Street, Tremonton, Utah. Those in attendance were Mayor Holmgren, Councilmembers Estep, Lewis, Rohde (via Zoom), Vance, and Westergard, City Manager Cobabe, Assistant City Manager Nessen, and City Recorder Nelson. The following Department Heads were also present: Public Works Director Carl Mackley, Police Chief Dustin Cordova, Fire Chief Jeff Jarrow, Community Services Director Zach LeFevre, and Treasurer Sharri Oyler. Also in attendance was Finance Director Curtis Roberts.

The following items were discussed out of order.

1. Operational Budgets

The Council spent time discussing different line items of the budget, including building permits, fees in lieu, grants, election services, salary increases, and engineering budget (which is contracted out). The Council also asked about supplies and maintenance for the police department. Manager Cobabe said we may have to amend some of these items. We will do that reconciliation, which is a lengthy process and will present it to you when finalized.

Councilmember Lewis asked about an $80,000 increase to the Senior Center. Assistant Manager Nessen said they have requested two part-time receptionists. Benefits did not go up because those are part-time. They are short-handed. When asked about talking with other municipalities about paying their fair portion of the Senior Center expenses, Mayor Holmgren said they have reached out to many and even sent bills to participating municipalities. The Council spent time discussing how things need to change in order to ensure all seniors in the County get their meals, but not at Tremonton residents’ expense. Councilmember Lewis said it is important that we communicate to the constituents of other municipalities, that we are subsidizing their citizens. Councilmember Vance said you are new and do not know the history behind this. We have asked them to pay in person to their city councils. We have begged and explained that we are subsidizing that service, which is not fair to our citizens. This really needs to be analyzed deeply. We have gone over this for years. Garland owes around $55,000 for the past two years and they will not pay a dime. We are not doing a service to our citizens by allowing this to keep happening. Director Roberts said the amount we are looking at is about $100,000 a year that is struggling to be collected from different cities. I have done my own analysis and we are losing just over $100,000 on the operating side. That does not include capital for vehicles and pay for the delivery person.

2. Follow-up on Capital projects if needed

Director Roberts said the list of capital projects we are recommending the Council adopt are now included. All of these capital projects are coming out of savings. This has no impact on revenues or operating expenses. We have a grant for cemetery software and digitization. We are also recommending setting aside $575,000 for Midland Square that will satisfy that grant. We also have planned a central trail. We are recommending that we carry that project into fiscal year 2026. The total capital we are recommending to the Council is $690,000 out of the parks fund balance. Next is water. We have the ASR project phases one and two. There is also the equalization base. Those are covered with grant funding ($905,000). Next is the treatment plant. About seven years ago, we went through a three-year period where we bumped up the sewer rate to set aside money. Now we have that ready for these State mandated items. The plan worked well so kudos. We have $7.2 million set aside to do that treatment plan upgrade. We recommend the Council pull the trigger and stay in compliance. The exhaust system for the west bays in the Fire Department will cost $27,000. There are enough funds in Fund 28 to satisfy that. There is a list of capital projects that we do have money set aside for. We went back to the department heads and said, which ones should we do this year? This is the consensus.

Director Roberts said this area moves money out of the General Fund over to Capital Projects and sets it aside so that in the future the police department would be able to buy vehicles. They will still have to come back and ask the Council because they have to have authorization to spend. This helps the Council set aside money for those future acquisitions. Those funds can be used for any vehicles, whether they are for police, fire, senior center, or parks. The RDA is providing the match for the Midland Square Grant. Sergeant Gailey said we would like to rotate our police vehicles every five years. That gives four vehicles a year roughly with our current fleet and keeps us fairly close to warranty. The last couple years I have shopped around to get the best price. We are roughly $47,000 for a pickup truck and another $20,000 to outfit each one. Some of our vehicles are admin vehicles so they might be able to run longer. We also have animal control in that and that vehicle is well past its due date. We have not sold any vehicles, they have all been passed down to other departments. We want two backups in our fleet in case one gets in a wreck or has mechanical failures. We have 17 officers, one in animal control. We have a total of 22 vehicles. Garland provides their own vehicles.

Director Roberts said I am trying to make this much more transparent. When we started this process in March, I told the Council we have about $9 million available as of July 1, 2025. Of that $9 million, $2.16 million is what we will have available in our Capital Projects Fund; $1.3 million is expected to be sitting in savings for vehicles; $4 million is going to be sitting in transportation capacity. I estimated about $2 million being available if the Council wanted to appropriate that out of the General Fund. The $2 million was something I felt was safe, but that is over the limit the State allows which is 35% of the revenue. We are going to end somewhere around $4.3 million fund balance, but we can only have $3.5 million in the General Fund. I would ask the Council to amend the budget to move between $600,000 and $1 million to one of three funds. They can be moved any way you want it just needs to be out of the General Fund so we are in compliance. I would recommend being closer to $1 million dollars so we set it aside for capital projects. All we are doing is sliding it from one pocket to the other.

After some discussion, Councilmember Vance said we cannot keep living on savings. You have to look to the future. Director Roberts said yes and decide how we are going to set aside funds. I am projecting that we are going to draw it down from $9.3 million to $8.4. We are using our savings to build things, which is what it is designed for, but we cannot keep going on like that forever without more sources. Councilmember Estep said I still believe some of our department heads are going to turn money back. They have not spent everything in this year’s budget. Manager Cobabe said that reconciliation will be presented in a few months. I hope you will see a much sunnier picture. This is an iterative process. We learn and grow and create our priorities and where we want the funding to go. It is a lean year so the capital projects we are funding are proportionately small. This budget gets us where we want to be and then we can discuss other concerns.

The Council spent time discussing the recreation fund and water fund. They also discussed development and how the speed of that could affect things going forward. Impact fees were also talked about. Director Mackley addressed his concerns with storm drain and future growth. The Council discussed the impacts those would have on City resources. Director Mackley said the reason why storm drain is particularly difficult is because there is no commodity attached to it like water and sewer. It is not fair to charge that as a commodity, so it is strictly impact fee based. We just have to understand how the timetable of the decisions we make and how long it will take for impact fees to come in. If we keep improving and do not recover it quickly enough, then we will go into debt. Director Roberts said I have been before the Council for the last three to four years talking about storm drain fees being too low. It is impacting us. It is only generating $270,000. It can fix stuff, but it cannot help build stuff. You have to look at the rate since that generates your ongoing cash. The impact fees help, but the impact fee on storm drain is pretty healthy. The cost estimates might be too low now because we are three years later and have inflation. Manager Cobabe said now is a good time to look at it because of the developments happening in the area. It is a good idea to have that in our back pocket so when that takes place, we are ahead of the game. Councilmember Vance said the study has to be done by a financial institution and the cost is about $17,000. Director Roberts said yes, but the first piece is usually done by an engineer to identify the capital (cost is about $25,000). The rate is how much we charge. A storm drain fee goes to everyone’s bill and is designed to recover the cost of the system. We really need to look at that rate because it is not high enough. It is not generating the way the treatment plant or water fund are. It is not generating enough cash to fund some of these projects. We are falling behind. If that rate is not looked at and adjusted, it eventually falls behind due to inflationary pressures over time and you do not have that money and cannot replace the assets. Director Mackley said impact fees are on a per residential unit basis and so it depends on how quickly people build. We are approving faster than they can build and that is why we would go into debt. Not because there is a problem with the fee itself and not because the money is not going to come. The fees may be behind, but the problem is still a timing thing because it is directly proportional to how quickly they build. We are not collecting those impact fees quick enough. Councilmember Vance said we need to figure out how often these things need to be looked at. We are warned that we are behind on the fees, but nothing ever happens because it is not on the agenda. We need a methodology set up so these things are being looked at on a regular basis.

3. Review of the agenda items identified on 7:00 p.m. City Council Agenda

4. CLOSED MEETING: No Closed Meeting held at this time.

a. Strategy session to discuss the purchase of real property when public discussion of the transaction would disclose the appraisal or estimated value of the property under consideration or prevent the public body from completing the transaction on the best possible terms; and/or
b. Strategy session to discuss the character, professional competence or physical or mental health of an individual; and/or
c. Strategy sessions to discuss pending or reasonably imminent litigation; and/or
d. Discussions regarding security personnel, devices or systems

The meeting adjourned at 6:51 p.m. by consensus of the Council.

CITY COUNCIL MEETING

Mayor Holmgren called the June 17, 2025 City Council Meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. The meeting was held in the Tremonton City Council Meeting Room at 102 South Tremont Street, Tremonton, Utah. Those in attendance were Mayor Holmgren, Councilmembers Estep, Lewis, Rohde (via Zoom), Vance, and Westergard, City Manager Cobabe, Assistant City Manager Nessen, and City Recorder Nelson. The following Department Heads were also present: Public Works Director Carl Mackley, Police Chief Dustin Cordova, Fire Chief Jeff Jarrow, Community Services Director Zach LeFevre and Treasurer Sharri Oyler. Also in attendance was Finance Director Curtis Roberts.

1. Opening Ceremony: Prayer—Manager Cobabe, Pledge—Assistant Manager Nessen

2. Introduction of Council

3. Declaration of Conflict of Interest: None.

4. Approval of Agenda:

Motion by Councilmember Vance to approve the agenda of June 17, 2025. Motion seconded by Councilmember Estep. Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

5. Approval of minutes – June 3, 2025

Motion by Councilmember Lewis to approve the minutes of June 3, 2025. Motion seconded by Councilmember Westergard. Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

6. Swearing In Youth City Council: 2025-2026 Youth City Council Members

Mayor Holmgren said I have had opportunities to work with the Youth City Council as they have volunteered their time with different service projects. We have a great youth city council and great leaders. This gives them opportunities for leadership. We appreciate that very much. Recorder Nelson then led them through the swearing in process.

7. Public comments:

ChrisDean Epling said I want to thank the Council for your willingness to listen and engage with the residents. I am following up on a key topic raised at the last meeting. The importance of having a shared plan to guide Tremonton’s growth. That idea resonated deeply with me. Since that meeting, I have reviewed the Integrated Land Use Plan in depth. It is an excellent foundation. One that reflects a thoughtful and balanced approach to growth while preserving the small-town character our residents value. I want to emphasize the importance of planned based growth over market driven growth. Healthy cities do not just happen. They are shaped through intentional planning. Planned based growth ensures development aligns with our infrastructure, public safety, and long-term vision. In contrast, market growth can result in overcrowded neighborhood, overburdened systems, and the permanent loss of community identity. As a resident, I want to be part of the solution. Like any household or business, a city that grows with a clear plan is more likely to thrive than one reaching short-term trends. I trust that Tremonton can be a model of intentional and community centered growth. Thank you for your commitment to our community.

Robert Epling said I noticed on your agenda you are discussing tax rates. In our last Council meeting, there was talk of giving City employees raises, which I am not 100% against, but I would like the Council to know that most people in the area are not getting raises. I am a sales rep. I travel to 150 different offices and talk to hundreds of people. Those people are not getting raises because of how expensive things are. My income dropped 15% over the last two years, but my expenses have gone up over 30%. Keep in mind that for those of us who are paying the City bills and for employees, we are not getting increases in our pay. With our secondary water, we were paying $70 when we first moved in and then they put in the purple boxes and we went up to as much as $450 a month. We are settling about $230 every month for all we pay to the city. Lots of expenses are going up. Just keep that in mind, thanks.

8. Public Hearing

Mayor Holmgren called a Public Hearing to order at 7:16 p.m. to consider the final budget for FY 2025-2026. There were 39 people in attendance.

a. Public Hearing to consider adopting the Final Budget entitled “The Tremonton City Annual Implementation Budget 2025-2026 (General Fund, Capital Fund(s), Enterprise Fund(s), and Special Funds),” for the period commencing July 1, 2025 and ending June 30, 2026

There were no public comments. Mayor Holmgren closed the Public Hearing at 7:17 p.m.

Mayor Holmgren called a Public Hearing to order at 7:17 p.m. to consider amending the budget for FY 2024-2025. There were 39 people in attendance.

b. Public Hearing to consider amending the Budget entitled “The Tremonton City Annual Implementation Budget 2024-2025 (General Fund, Capital Fund(s), and Enterprise Fund(s), and Special Fund(s)),” for the period commencing July 1, 2024 and ending June 30, 2025

There were no public comments. Mayor Holmgren closed the Public Hearing at 7:18 p.m.

9. New Council Business:

a. Discussion and consideration of adopting Resolution No. 25-29 approving the Final Budget entitled “The Tremonton City Annual Implementation Budget 2025-2026 (General Fund, Capital Fund(s), Enterprise Fund(s), and Special Funds),” for the period commencing July 1, 2025 and ending June 30, 2026

Director Roberts said you have been incredibly patient through all our discussions. I want to express my thanks to the Council for the fantastic dialogue. We have presented a balanced budget. There are funds adequate to pay for all the expenses being proposed and for all the capital projects. Overall, it has been a solid process. Councilmember Lewis said I want to hound on having a capital asset schedule that is clear and correlated. Are other things needed at this time? Manager Cobabe said this does reflect the desires of department heads. We feel comfortable with where the budget is and this represents their recommendations. Councilmember Vance said the operating budget is what Tremonton works on annually. We try to get through all the operating expenses so we can come up to a net excess amount to fund capital projects. We improve our streets, parks, and more with that. This year we are really skinny, and it makes us nervous. Bottomline, we ended up at $616,000 net excess this year. Normally, we are at $2.5 million. I want to make sure the Council is aware of the position we are in and what we are approving. Somehow, we need to figure out how to increase our net excess at the end of our budget so we can keep improving Tremonton. I do not know where we can cut, except for the Meals on Wheels. That needs to be analyzed. We have discussed salaries and done step-ups within the fire and police departments. On top of that, we are talking about a 3% COLA and a 3% market.

Chief Cordova then provided an analysis of their costs, savings, and services. We are not overspending. The picture I am trying to paint for the Council is that overall, we are very affordable as a department. Our police staffing levels are healthy now that the Council voted to increase our staffing. We have come a long way. These pay raises are more of a wage adjustment. We need to be competitive in the County. Last Council meeting, we discussed the 6% increase across the board. The pay scale for our department was voted in and approved by the Council last year. These efforts allow us to retain good employees. This paints a career path and we save a ton in retention. When we lose an officer, it is $150,000 out the gate and then we have to train someone new. If we do not pay competitively, we lose them, and another city saves that money. We are getting the most bang for the buck when it comes to the level of service we provide. We are always looking for more grant funding. At the end of the day, my goal is to retain the great people we have and if that means pushing something offline for a while and recalibrating for next year, we are willing to do that, but it is reckless to lose good employees. It costs us twice as much to get them back. We are asking for the 6% across the board and to honor the approved pay scale from last year.

Director Roberts said 6% of $5.3 million for salaries is $324,000 for the whole City. That is the increase. Chief Cordova said the step raises are already in place to make us competitive. Both Box Elder County and Brigham have increased their wages. We are just trying to play catch-up. This is a good faith effort to get caught up over a period of time. They do have criteria to meet with performance and qualifications to get that increase. The 3% helps us inch toward other cities to be competitive. Retention is the cheaper option. We have already approved a step scale we need to honor. If we lose people, it is going to cost us far more than the 3% to bring them back. We did a survey and one of the things was, if the City tries to adjust your pay over a course of time to be more competitive, will you stick around? Will you be patient? The answer was 100% yes. That just shows the relationship our police have with the City. I want to keep going forward and am happy to work with the Council to try to help generate revenue and save money, but I also want to make sure we are taking care of our people.

Councilmember Lewis said with these current changes, both on the admin and police level, we will have very little for capital projects in the future. Right, wrong, or indifferent, that is the reality of the overall budget. No one is saying we should not do salary increases to get up to market rate, but we are signing ourselves up for a long-term commitment on what we think is right, right now. A lot of constituents are concerned we are just spit balling the market rate versus actually going in with an educated guess. Manager Cobabe said Assistant Manager Nessen has looked into this extensively. We internally subscribe to a service called TechNet, which grabs comparable-sized cities in our region and around the State to compare our wages to. We have not done a comprehensive study, which looks at job descriptions and titles, but we do subscribe to this service that allows us to go into their database and compare what we are paying for certain job titles and make sure we are comparable. We adjusted our pay scales to match those market rate conditions. The COLA increase is an acknowledgment that things in life are more expensive than they were last year by about 3%. The other market adjustment is an acknowledgment of the fact that we have not seen real market adjustments to these scales in the past. We want to hold on to our talented and dedicated individuals, so they do not look elsewhere for more money. If not, we will slip further behind. All our departments are experiencing the same kind of pressures, and we need to respond. How we respond tells our employees how much we value them and their dedication.

Councilmember Lewis said our constituents have asked us not to raise property tax, but there is inflation. What are we supposed to do if we are not doing Truth and Taxation to match property tax with our costs going up? Manager Cobabe said we missed the window for having a Truth in Taxation this year and we did not do one last year so if we did one next year, we would be looking at a 9% increase to catch up. Councilmember Vance said we just barely did a tax increase two years ago because we were behind on wages. We hired full-time people in the fire department. Reluctantly, we did that and now we are already back to being behind. Bottomline is we are at a half a million right now in excess funds. The wages have cut into $2 million of our ongoing expenses. Next year, when inflation goes up, we are going to eat into that. Manager Cobabe said that is a valid concern, especially if we are not matching our revenue stream to the expenditures. We either squeeze the expenditure side or we increase the revenue, or both. Mayor Holmgren said the other option is to give up services. Manager Cobabe said that is a scary position to find yourself in, because then you lose your talent. Chief Cordova said I do not envy your position. It is hard when you are trying not to increase taxes but are also trying to generate more revenue. What I can promise you as your department head is we are not wasting money. We are getting a good deal for the services we provide. If you want us to re-evaluate we can, but the only solution I have at this point is to start cutting services. I would hate to do that, especially as we continue to grow. We have stretched this as far as we can. I cannot speak for other departments. He then reviewed some of their statistics on decreased crime and how they have made the community safer. I am extremely proud of the people I have the pleasure to work with and the results are there. I am happy to pay more to keep these good people. I understand we need to look at other revenue sources, but all I can do is assure the Council and our citizens that we are as efficient as possible with our resources and that we are making an impact.

Chief Jarrow said National Fire Protection Association calls for four firefighters on an engine. We are staffing with two because we are jump staffing it and sometimes not having any because we are taking two medical calls at once. We are taking transfers, 911 calls and are spreading ourselves thin. That is not working. We cannot continue to bleed EMTs and paramedics to other cities because they are paying them more. When I was hired as Chief, we lost two people who are highly trained paramedics and great firefighters. We lost them because Brigham City has a $5,000 sign on bonus, plus $20,000 extra a year. Our pay scale is just asking for a few bucks more hourly. I agree with everything that has been said. You are in a difficult position. We are just asking for enough to help get us where we need to be so we can retain good employees and continue to move forward. Since I became Chief I have already submitted for a grant for $300,000 and will continue to look for those to offset costs. Director Roberts said Assistant Manager Nessen has the numbers in question. The 6% increase was identified at $324,000. The step increase will be $64,000 this year. This only applies to a few who qualify. That is $388,000 total for the whole city. Councilmember Vance said oh that is it? That alleviates some anxiety.

Director LeFevre said several employees have either retired or gone elsewhere requiring several positions to replace them. Steve Bench was one who did three jobs and it cost us quadruple the amount he was getting paid to replace him. The same with Paul Fulgham, who was around for so long that the value we got out of him, we cannot get anyone to come in with his knowledge to replace him. Director Mackley is amazing, but does not have that experience so he needs more help. Same with me where I am over the website and a lot of other things. There are maybe seven different positions within the City, but only one salary. People who are in valued positions, when they leave or retire it takes a lot more to replace them. That is a big reason as to what got us to this position. We have to replace those who have retired or moved on with outside firms or more people. We were good three years ago but are in a very different state and there is also inflation costs. Councilmember Vance said you hit it right on the head. I have been trying to analyze and figure out where that $2 million disappeared. We have had to hire outside help because we have not got volunteers coming in like they used to. We have lost key employees and have had to hire two or three people to cover what they were doing.

Motion by Councilmember Westergard to approve the resolution. Motion seconded by Councilmember Estep. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – no, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved by a 4-1 vote.

b. Discussion and consideration of adopting Resolution No. 25-30 amending the Budget entitled “The Tremonton City Annual Implementation Budget 2024-2025 (General Fund, Capital Fund(s), and Enterprise Fund(s), and Special Fund(s)),” for the period commencing July 1, 2024 and ending June 30, 2025

Mayor Holmgren said based on recommendations from Director Roberts and staff, they are recommending we transfer $1 million from the General Fund to our Capital Funds. We can move that inside the Capital Funds as we see fit.

Motion by Councilmember Vance to adopt the resolution. Motion seconded by Councilmember Lewis. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

c. Discussion and consideration of adopting Resolution No. 25-31 approving the certified tax rates for the 2024 tax year

Director Roberts said we are adopting the certified rate. The revenues will stay flat but include growth. Councilmember Lewis said the school board is passing a bond so there is a lot of burden coming to people. Inflation does increase our expenses and therefore the City’s budget is going up while our revenue has flatlined. I want feedback on how to solve that and to understand the public’s opinion about what we do and do not want so we can vote for our constituents.

Motion by Councilmember Vance to adopt the resolution. Motion seconded by Councilmember Estep. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

d. Discussion and consideration of adopting Resolution No. 25-32 adopting the revised Compensation and Classification Plan

Motion by Councilmember Estep to approve the resolution. Motion seconded by Councilmember Westergard. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – no, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved by a 4-1 vote.

e. Discussion and consideration of adopting Resolution No. 25-33 authorizing the write-off of uncollectible accounts receivable for Utility Services in the Enterprise Funds in the Fire Fund for FY 2025

Treasurer Oyler said the utility write-offs are $3,379.79 and have all been sent to collections in case they resurface.

Motion by Councilmember Lewis to adopt the resolution. Motion seconded by Councilmember Westergard. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

f. Discussion and consideration of adopting Resolution No. 25-34 authorizing the write-off of uncollectible accounts receivable for Ambulance Services for FY 2025 in Fund 28 Fire Department

Treasurer Oyler said there is $24,742.70 that needs to be written off. There are probably 15 people we are still collecting the monthly payment from. Director Roberts suggested we get the others off the books. That is the old system we will close out (Billing Bridge $589,000). Gold Cross started doing the billing in December, which has been nice. We will get some money from collections on these because they are newer and are going to be able to catch them. Gold Cross is caught up. Bills are sent and they are just collecting money now. It is going to be so much better. Billing Bridge is terrible, but we are being taken care of now.

Motion by Councilmember Vance to approve the resolution. Motion seconded by Councilmember Westergard. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

g. Discussion and consideration of Resolution No. 25-35 approving an aging services contract for the Fiscal Year 2025 between Bear River Association of Government’s Area Agency on Aging and Tremonton City

Mayor Holmgren said this is just an annual contract we renew to get money from BRAG for Meals on Wheels. My suggestion is we approve it this year and then do the benefit cost and get the analysis. Councilmember Vance said this is exactly the way we approved it last time and we never did it so I do not agree.

h. Discussion and consideration of adopting Resolution No. 25-36 approving amendments to the Tremonton City Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual Section II: Purchasing Policy Contracts

Assistant Manager Nessen said this just updates who is allowed to sign POs. I have also updated the names of those positions. Councilmember Estep said public works needs more since sprinklers and meters are so expensive.

Motion by Councilmember Estep to approve the resolution with Public Works leads going up to $5,000. Motion seconded by Councilmember Lewis. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

i. Discussion and consideration of adopting Resolution No. 25-37 approving a contract for election services between Box Elder County and Tremonton City Corporation

Motion by Councilmember Vance to adopt the resolution. Motion seconded by Councilmember Westergard. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

j. Discussion and consideration of adopting Ordinance No. 25-12 adopting restrictions on the use of fireworks within certain areas of Tremonton City

Motion by Councilmember Lewis to adopt the ordinance. Motion seconded by Councilmember Vance. Roll Call Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

10. Calendar Items and Previous Assignment

a. Review of calendar

Mayor Holmgren said City offices will be closed on June 19 for Juneteenth. There is a town hall meeting that night. No City Council on July 1. City office will be closed July 4th for the holiday. Hay Days is July 25-26. The Council will serve breakfast on Saturday. This Friday, the Boys and Girls Club have their annual fundraiser. Tremonton has a table. The Farmers Markets are on the second and fourth Fridays and GET OUT is every second Saturday.

b. Review of past assignment: None.

11. Reports & Comments:

a. City Administration Reports and Comments

Manager Cobabe said I want to thank you, Council, for your vote of confidence. We have an amazing staff filled with individuals who are dedicated and passionate about public service. I also want to thank, Assistant Manager Nessen and Director Roberts for putting together the budget. It has been a difficult process trying new things and being more accountable and transparent. All department heads have really pulled through. Chief Cordova, did a lot of the heavy lifting, representing ideas and concerns about holding on to staff. I want to commend him and Sergeant Gailey for putting that together. That report was very helpful. The Council’s vote tonight shows a lot of confidence in our employees and our budget process. I am grateful and humbled by your trust. It is an honor and privilege to serve with these people, who have dedicated themselves to the City. We as employees are always actively looking for ways to bring money in. Recorder Nelson for example worked hard on procuring grant funding for digitizing our cemetery. I bring this up to highlight the fact that every employee is looking for ways to bring in money through grants. We are all actively looking for ways to help save money and enhance the experience residents have here. We hold these funds sacred. These are tax dollars that are given so that we can provide services. It is a big deal to us.

b. Development Review Committee Report and Comments: None.
c. City Department Head Reports and Comments

Chief Jarrow said other departments have two to three collection departments, and that is something we should look at. Gold Cross is going to do a great job, but it would not hurt to have a second or third collection agency to make sure we maximize our revenue. I know we are responding and helping other communities, but we are losing revenue. That is something I need to look at. I would like to pursue contracts with those cities. Also, if the Council is okay with us doing more videos on our website, we would like to have more of a presence there.

Chief Cordova said I want to start by thanking the Council. I want to work with the Council for the betterment of this community. We have to work together and be a team. I appreciate your support and am happy to come up with more solutions. I just need guidance of what our goal is as a Council for my department. Also, the MRAP was approved. We are going to get that in a couple weeks. Come check it out, it is going to be pretty cool. Other than that, it is business as usual.

Director Mackley said thank you for the hours of work and looking at the budget carefully. Thank you for your support. I have heard that the Council wants road improvements and secondary irrigation to be completed. The secondary project we had scheduled for next year, was moved up. To a certain degree, roads have been neglected. One of the reasons for that is the secondary water system. It took a lot of money and we are putting infrastructure under roads. Once complete we can do more there. Manager Cobabe has taken a strong interest in the Transportation Utility Fund so I have been working with Jones and Associates. We have good GIS data of our roads. The Transportation Master Plan is really good and talks about levels of service based on traffic. There is really nothing in there about maintaining roads on an annual basis so we are coming up with a proposal to maintain sections of roads. About a seventh of them is what we are thinking for now every year. Every seven years we are going to do an update treatment. Other maintenance is needed.

Director LeFevre said thank you Council. Our youth baseball and softball programs are underway. Youth golf and pickleball have also started. Our family fitness program with the 100-mile club has started. They have three months to complete 100 miles. Hay Days is July 25-26. The police and fire departments need to get their teams together for the Guns and Hoses softball game. It was a fun tradition started last year. There are a lot of other fun things we are planning. We are continuing to work with Bear River Live and Blackthorne Media for different videos. The Parks and Recreation building improvement is underway. That is going to be a major improvement. Our grass is not doing well. It has been extremely dry and has taken a toll. We will coordinate and possibly alternate days to ensure we have enough water supply to meet our demands. Applications are out for the fair parade.

Director Roberts said I need to express my gratitude for every single department head. We have been around and around and looked at everything several times. I just cannot say thank you enough. There were several times on Saturdays when I was texting Assistant Manager Nessen and she responded. There was so much effort put in. Most importantly, thank you to the Council. Councilmember Vance it has been awesome. I am going to miss the banter back and forth. You have been an amazing Councilmember. I am not sure the community realizes how much you have dedicated to this. Thank you, you have held us accountable and provided several things. Thank you for all your work. Councilmember Vance said thank you, you have no idea how much I have appreciated you.

d. Council Reports and Comments

Councilmember Lewis said I called Councilmember Vance to ask if I should run for City Council? He said, if you do not mind a lot of criticism and taking conversations in Kent’s, because you cannot go into Kent’s the same way again. I do appreciate all the years of service you have given. You care a lot and have made a huge impact. You have set the stage for economic development to happen. I get to come in and pick up the fun part, of everything you have created. We will have another town hall meeting. We want to guide the Economic Development Committee and need to increase our sales tax income with the right types of businesses that the public wants here. Bring feedback to the town halls and help us guide economic development.

Councilmember Westergard said I want to thank Director Roberts, Manager Cobabe, Assistant Manager Nessen, and the department heads for going back through this. I know it is a ton of work. Councilmember Vance, I have only been here a year and a half, but I learned a lot from you. I was a sophomore when you were a senior and I have always looked up to you. Thank you.

Councilmember Estep said I too have to thank everybody. I see the dedication of our employees. Director Roberts you are invaluable. Councilmember Vance same thing. You are going to be missed. I have enjoyed watching you. You do hold people accountable and have kept your cool. I wish you the best.

Councilmember Rohde said we have a meeting on Thursday night at 7 p.m. We look forward to discussing our final strategies. Councilmember Vance knows how I feel about him. He is a good friend. He and I share the exact same birthday. I wish him the best. Thank you everyone for what you are doing.

Mayor Holmgren said I want to second everything that has been said. I worked with Councilmember Vance for 10 years on this Council. We appreciate your knowledge and understanding. We have not always seen eye to eye, but we were friends when we started and we are friends now. Thanks for everything you have done. You have been a great person to bounce ideas off and share thoughts. I wish you well. We have the 100-year anniversary for the Box Elder County Fair. There is going to be a parade with wagons and horses put on by the rodeo. We are looking forward to that. We met with Senator Curtis a couple of weeks ago. We showed him the Borgstrom signs, and he was very impressed and complimentary to the sacrifices made in our valley.

Councilmember Vance I appreciate all the kind words. I have appreciated working with all the City Council and past employees. Good luck to you guys and everybody working in Tremonton. I love Tremonton. I am proud to be a Tremonton Knight and to be in this area. We live with a bunch of good people. Bless you with patience. Do what you can do. There are some great things going on. Keep up the communication. It is helping. I really do appreciate each and every one of you. Thanks everybody. I officially quit and am leaving town July 21 for an LDS mission to New Guinea.

12. CLOSED MEETING: No Closed Meeting held at this time.

13. Adjournment.

Motion by Councilmember Estep to adjourn the meeting. Motion seconded by Councilmember Westergard. Vote: Councilmember Estep – yes, Councilmember Lewis – yes, Councilmember Rohde – yes, Councilmember Vance – yes, Councilmember Westergard – yes. Motion approved.

The meeting adjourned at 9:27 p.m.

The undersigned duly acting and appointed Recorder for Tremonton City Corporation hereby certifies that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the minutes for the City Council Meeting held on the above referenced date. Minutes were prepared by Jessica Tanner.

Dated this 15th day of July, 2025.

Cynthia Nelson, City Recorder

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