The Stratford city council on Monday evening accepted the resignation of council member Jim Mead. City manager Kim Leeds read Mead’s resignation letter to the council. Mead’s term expires December 31,2023. The council administered the oath of office to a new council member Catherine Bergman. Bergman will succeed the term of Chase Haman who stepped down from the council on March 27.
Jake Dugger from McGuire Iron presented water town painting options to the council. At this time the water tower needs painting done to both the interior and exterior. The renovations come at a cost of $193,059. The Stratford city council is looking at a few options. They include setting up a maintenance agreement to spread the cost out over five years or just an inspection agreement and paying for the painting cost upfront. McGuire Iron is going to put some possibilities together. They will be presented to the city council at their next meeting on June 13.
A request from Copperhead Saloon and Grill to hold a July 4th celebration on Saturday,July 2 pending the bar can provide insurance limits required by ordinance was approved.
There was a lengthy discussion on the proposal from Windstream Communications to bore two inch innerduct and 96 count fiber optics cable along the west side of Tennyson Avenue from Highway 175 to 345th Street. After discussing the various options, the council decided to have city manager Leeds to communicate with them on finding another route as all the city’s utilities are located on the west side. The city would like to see them move their route to the east side of Tennyson. The council went on to approve the request of Windstream Communications to install fiber optic cable on the east side of Teneyck Avenue.
In other matters, the Stratford city council voted to send out requests for proposals for a new city attorney.The council also approved a notice giving Waste Mangement a 90 day written notice to end their contract with the city and sending out requests for proposals for a garbage contract with Stratford.
A conversation concerning the status of the 2022 season at the Stratford swimming pool was a part of the council meeting. The council discussed various options, They ultimately decided to up the pay to $10.00 per hour and give lifeguards a fifty cent an hour stipend to be paid out at the end of the season if all hours scheduled are worked. The council approved opening the pool as much as possible with the available staff with the wages for lifeguards at 10 dollars per hour with the 50 cent stipend to be paid out at the end of the season if all hours scheduled are worked.