Winn appointed to Buffalo City Council

Bob Winn takes the Oath of Office as Buffalo City Councilman. The regular meeting of the Buffalo City Council was held on Monday evening, August 10, with a quorum present. Absent were Tim Ezell and Steve Oliver.

Mr. Oliver's absence was explained early in the meeting when Mayor Royce Dawkins read Oliver's letter of resignation from the Council, effective immediately. After accepting Oliver's resignation, Mayor Dawkins and the remaining councilmembers appointed Bob Winn to fill the vacancy for a term expiring in May, 2010. Mr. Winn was present, accepted the appointment, took the Oath of Office and took a seat at the table. (Both Oliver and Winn had run in the at-large council election last May, won by Dianne Ryder. Oliver had been appointed to fill Dawkins' council seat, vacated when Dawkins became Mayor.)

In public comments at the beginning of the meeting: - Mike Glick asked for an update on the progress of the city's 2007-08 external audit by Staples & Associates. The question was deferred to Debbie Waters, who predicted it would be complete by the end of this month. - Martin Housler expressed the Buffalo Chamber's appreciation for funding for this year's Stampede, and reminded everyone to attend. - Johnny Wilson pointed out that the current agenda still did not include restrictions on spending, nor a firearm ordinance.

Turning to the agenda items, the Council consulted City Attorney Gail Ray before passing an ordinance approving the settlement of Atmos RRM (rate review mechanism) filing. Ray explained that the city's interests were represented by a steering committee during rate negotiations. "It was 70%-80% less than Atmos requested, and sounded okay to me," Ray concluded. The average resident will see an increase of 15 cents per month in their energy rate.

Police Chief Lance Pavelka reported that his department responded to 114 incidents in the city and nine traffic accidents last month. He also stated that the department is "being proactive to see that places which sell alcohol have the proper licensing and are not selling to minors." The chief encouraged residents to lock doors, described a scam circulating in the area, and pointed out new legislature about cell phone usage in school zones. The new law imposes a $200 fine for using a cell phone on a public road- way in an active school zone, and will be enforced as soon as proper signage is in place.

Roy Kingsbury reported on the progress on the city's water/sewer projects, stating, "We're 95% finished with the water project and 65% on the sewer." Mayor Dawkins added that the work is on course to be completed by late December or early January.

Regarding the implementation of the new water tower, Kingsbury stated, "As soon as TXU sets the (power) pole, we'll be ready to go." That is expected to be later this week or the first part of next week.

In routine housekeeping matters, the minutes from three previous meetings were approved and outstanding bills approved for payment. A budget workshop was set for next Monday (August 17 at 6:00 at City Hall). Dianne Ryder requested that the meeting agenda include purchasing limits and a closed session to discuss personnel.