By Michael Howell
The Town of Stevensville has a water right change application pending with the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation involving an exchange of some surface water rights up the Burnt Fork to mitigate the impacts of new ground water rights at the new well-field located next to Twin Creeks Subdivision.
At the Town Council meeting on April 9, Mayor Gene Mim Mack said of the most recent meeting with DNRC, “We appeared to perplex DNRC and they perplexed our engineers.” He said the Town’s water system was “unique” in the state and relied on a complex mixture of ground water rights and surface water rights.
Problems began for the Town when it failed to file its water right claims in 1973 and lost its priority dates. The Town currently relies on a Statement of Claim filed in 1994. The Town’s claims must be based on actual historical use of each claim and be based on the amount of water being consumed at the time the claim was made. According to Mim Mack, basing the claim on 1994 figures gives the Town an advantage in that the use was calculated at the time and is probably the highest use in historical terms.
The Mayor said that the surface water rights up the Burnt Fork would be retained but be “de-valued” and greatly reduced. Nor would they be usable as mitigation for any future groundwater claims. He said, one way or another, the historic use will probably settle out to be about 1,600 acre feet per year. Right now the Town is waiting on some final legal guidance about the process but hopes to finish the process in the next 90 days.
The Ad Hoc Executive Compensation Committee, formed in November 2014, submitted a final report to the Town Council at Thursday’s meeting. The committee presented three alternatives for the council to consider in terms of mayoral compensation. The committee was composed of six members including Council members Tim Hunter, who served as chair, Jim Crews, who served as secretary, Bill Anderson, Bob Summers, Eddie Olwell and Raymond Smith. The committee met seven times and reviewed ordinances and resolutions and job descriptions. They also interviewed Mayor Mim Mack and Council President Bill Perrin about the mayor’s duties and reviewed salary surveys for all mayors in Montana.
The committee recommended a job description for the mayor that would require a minimum of 20 hours per week of service. They gave three compensation options for consideration:
• An $800 honorarium and a $200 to $800 per month salary for “special projects” like water and sewer projects.
• $400 honorarium and $1,200 per month salary [the current arrangement]
• $20,000 per year salary with a minimum of 20 hours per week. An assistant could be hired but the combined pay of mayor and assistant could not exceed $20,000.
The Council accepted the report and took it under advisement.
The Council approved creation of the Twin Creeks Lighting District including all the lots within phase 1 of the Twin Creeks Subdivision. The installation and capital improvements included wires, pipes, conduits, lamps, other materials and labor costing a total of $25,422.76. The Town assessed a one-time fee of $2,000 to cover its legal costs and administration costs in setting up and operating the District.
The Council adopted an amended purchasing policy. State law requires that any expense over $80,000 must go through a formal advertising and bid process. Expenditures of $25,001 to $79,999 require three quotes to show that the Town sought the lowest responsive quote. Expenditures of $1,501 to $25,000 require a minimum of two written quotes. Expenditures of $501 to $1,500 may be made with department supervisor’s approval with a minimum of two quotes for new vendor items and existing vendor pricing will be reviewed annually. Purchase up to $500 may be made at department supervisor’s discretion.
Mayor Mim Mack issued a Proclamation for National Student Leadership Week declaring the week of April 19-25, 2015 as “Town of Stevensville Student Leadership Week.” He urged citizens to seek opportunities to recognize student leaders in the schools and support their training and activities as they prepare themselves for their future stations as leaders of our city, state and nation.
The council set preliminary dates for budget workshops that include:
Water Fund – 6/8/15
Sewer Fund – 7/6/15
All funds not General Fund – 7/13/15
General Fund – 7/27/15
Preliminary Budget Presentation – 8/3/15
Public Hearing Budget Adoption – 8/20/15