City Council Agenda for June Meeting

City of Lawler
414 E. Grove St.
PO Box 215
Lawler, IA 52154
563-238-3614

AGENDA

REGULAR MEETING

JUNE 3, 2013 7:00 PM, CITY HALL

1. ROLL CALL.

2. APPROVAL WITH ANY ADDITIONS OF AGENDA.

3. APPROVAL & CORRECTIONS, IF ANY, OF THE MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETINGS AND APPROVAL OF THE BILLS PRESENTED TO BE PAID.

4. MAYORS COMMENTS.

5. BUSINESS:

WATER PROJECT – TEKIPPE ENGINEERING.

POLICE REPORT.

LAWLER IRISH FEST COMMITTEE.

ALL WAY STOP ON HWY 24 DURING IRISH FEST.

BUCKY’S CIGARETTE PERMIT RENEWAL.

BUILDING AT 315 E GROVE STREET.

RAILROAD CROSSINGS.

POLICE CONTRACT.

NUISANCES

SALARY REVIEW.

DIAGONAL STREET BRIDGE.

6. COMMENTS.

7. ADJOURNMENT.

Irish Fest Press Release, May 30

May 30, 2013

PRESS RELEASE:

Lawler Irish Fest is pleased to introduce “The Don’t Be Brothers” playing the main stage on Friday, June 21 from 7:00 pm – l1:00 pm. All entertainment is under a tent and some seating is available, though it is expected most visitors will bring lawn chairs. No coolers are allowed inside the beer tent itself.

Larry Kernagis and Larry Diemer, “The Don’t be Brothers” have been entertaining crowds throughout the midwest for many years. These Irish American Folksingers & Merrymakers, by their own admission, know enough Irish songs to choke a leprechaun!

There will be several other activities on stage as well; please see our program for details. One such activity will be the crowning of the Lil’ Lad and Lil’ Lass contest. Entry forms can be found on our website, along with contact information if you have questions.

Don’t miss Friday night’s fantastic free-will admission entertainment!

The festival committee is still in need of volunteers and would love to have you participate in this 1^st ever event. You don’t need to be from Lawler or even Irish! This is a great way to meet lots of people, make new friends, and help make this inaugural event a success. Also, you’ll get into all entertainment on Saturday FREE!

Visit the Lawler Irish Fest website at www.lawleriowa.us (go to the EVENTS tab for various links) for details. Remember, you can sign up to volunteer online, purchase festival merchandise, obtain parade entry or Lil’ Lad & Lass contest forms, make an online donations, or simply view the program.

The goal of this inaugural event is threefold:

To celebrate Lawler’s Irish heritage
To bring the community together
To give back to the community

For additional information or questions, contact Pat Sheridan at 563-238-2402 https://www.australia-casino.org/

For parade information or questions, contact PJ Rosenbaum at 319-240-9400.

April 2013 City Council Minutes

Lawler City Council Meeting Minutes

Regular Meeting May 6, 2013 7:00 PM City Hall

Mayor Mueterthies presided.

Council members present: King, Njus & Scheidel. Absent Izer & Zubrod.

Others present: Jay Uhlenhake, Amanda Blazek, Tony Blazek, Roger Dreckman, Harold Busta, Kurt Croell, Heather Busta, Tina Hageman & Deputy Jeff Athey.

Moved by King, seconded by Scheidel to approve the Agenda. All Ayes.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by King to approve the minutes of the previous meeting and approve the bills presented to be paid. All Ayes.

Hawkeye REC	Service	$18,505.77
Treasurer State of Iowa	Sales tax	$821.00
United States Treasury	FICA, with	$1,361.14
IPERS	April	$873.75
Salaries	Salaries	$6,046.68
Jendro Sanitation	Garbage-April	$2,081.06
Post Office	Postage	$204.00
United Parcel Service	shipping	$163.54
Windstream	April	$71.65
Black Hills Energy	natural gas	$251.11
CASH, Inc.	fuel & supplies-March & April	$653.14
Office Depot	office supplies	$194.11
Hawkins, Inc.	water supplies	$268.50
Stanton Electric	electric repairs	$150.00
Zips	supplies	$226.11
Test America	water & wastewater testing	$202.45
Office World	office supplies	$35.99
Pollard	pest control	$52.50
New Hampton Tribune	proceedings	$208.67
Gary Cuvelier	snow removal	$200.00
Bodensteiner Implement	supplies	$292.83
Bank Iowa	street note	$14,686.29
Five Star Coop	fuel -March	$147.57
Insurance Associates	insurance	$18,917.00
Marshall & Swift	rental	$37.12
Bucky’s	fuel	$62.01
Kenneth Klotz	refund	$177.83
Lawler Library	allotment	$1,141.00
Five Star Coop	diesel-April	$380.16
NAPA of New Hampton	parts	$90.48
Post Office	box rent	$46.00
ULINE	supplies	$67.49
Team Lab	road patch	$440.00
Len Cutsforth	rock cleanup & thatching	$325.00

Total		$69,843.95

Library Bills

IPERS	April	$158.56
Riley’s	repairs	$4.99
INGRAM	books	$192.25
Midwest Tape	DVD’s	$152.18
Petty Cash	petty cash	$35.00
Cathy Humpal	DVD collection reimbursement	$84.74
Windstream	phone	$82.40
Cathy Humpal	wages	$1,097.29
Calmar Courier	subscrtption	$25.00
Redbook	subscription	$26.05
Crafts & Things	subscription	$24.99
Food Network Magazine	subscription	$24.97
The Courier	subscription	$65.15

Library Total		$1,973.57

April Receipts

General		$198.29
Property Tax		$24,127.96
Road Use Tax		$2,604.28
Local Option Tax		$3,078.74
Library		$0.00
Charges for Services		$42,792.52

Total		$72,801.79

The Lawler Irish Fest committee was present for approval of the parade route, beer permit and street closings for the weekend of June 21-23.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by Njus to approve the parade route presented by the Lawler Irish Fest committee for the parade to take place on June 22 at 10:30 AM. All Ayes.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by Njus to approve a five day class B beer permit for the Lawler Irish Fest. The permit is for the sale and consumption of beer and wine coolers to be sold and consumed in a 40’ x 140’ tent to be located on North Depot Street. All Ayes.

Moved by King, seconded by Njus to approve the closing of North Depot Street at the intersection of Grove Street for the erection of a tent for the Lawler Irish Fest. The street may be closed no sooner than Wednesday, June 19^th at 12:00 noon and be re-opened Monday, June 24^th no later than 12:00 noon. All Ayes.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by King to approve the closing of East Grove Street between Benz Street and Depot Street for the Lawler Irish Fest activities. The street may be closed at 12:00 noon on Saturday, June 22 and be re-opened no later than 12:00 noon on Sunday, June 23^rd. All Ayes.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by Njus to approve the closing of East Grove Street between Benz Street and Depot Street Friday, June 21^st no sooner than 6:00 PM. The street will be re-opened Saturday, June 22^nd for the 10:30 AM parade. A sign must be posted showing that the Hole in the Wall is open for business that evening. All Ayes.

Moved by King, seconded by Scheidel to allow designated parking at Junko Park during the Lawler Irish Fest. There is to be no designated parking at Croell or Highland Park. The volleyball tournament will be allowed at Junko Park, no volleyball is to be played on the ball diamond or outfield. All Ayes.

Police report was given by Deputy Jeff Athey.

Moved by King, seconded by Scheidel to designate the Calmar Courier as the newspaper to publish all council proceedings. All Ayes.

Moved by King, seconded by Scheidel to approve the Brite Spot’s liquor license renewal. All Ayes.

The annual insurance renewal was discussed. The fountain on Grove Street and pillars at the park will be added to the policy.

Moved by King, seconded by Njus to pass ordinance ##290 RE: an ordinance amending refuse collection rates. All Ayes.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by King directing the City Attorney to proceed with the enforcement of a municipal infraction at 315 E Grove Street. All Ayes.

There will be an outline of options for the water project at the next meeting.

Moved by Njus, seconded by King to adjourn the meeting at 8:00 PM. All Ayes.

______________________________

Sue Cutsforth, City Clerk

City Council Agenda May 6, 2013

City of Lawler

414 E. Grove St.

PO Box 215

Lawler, IA 52154

563-238-3614

AGENDA

REGULAR MEETING

MAY 6, 2013 7:00 PM, CITY HALL

1. ROLL CALL.

2. APPROVAL WITH ANY ADDITIONS OF AGENDA.

3. APPROVAL & CORRECTIONS, IF ANY, OF THE MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETINGS AND APPROVAL OF THE BILLS PRESENTED TO BE PAID.

4. MAYORS COMMENTS.

5. BUSINESS:

WATER PROJECT – TEKIPPE ENGINEERING.

POLICE REPORT

LAWLER IRISH FEST – BEER PERMIT APPLICATION & STREET CLOSING.

TINA HAGEMAN FROM CALMAR COURIER – PROCEEDINGS PUBLICATION.

BRITE SPOT LIQUOR LICENSE RENEWAL.

INSURANCE RENEWAL.

ORDINANCE – GARBAGE RATES.

REVIEW STATUS OF THE BUILDING AT 315 E GROVE STREET – CONSIDER ACTION TO PROCEED WITH ENFORCING A MUNICIPAL INFRACTION.

6. COMMENTS.

7. ADJOURNMENT.

Your Encore Career: For Fun or Profit

Author’s Note:

Although the following piece is not directly related to Lawler, it ‘kinda sorta’ is. Let me explain. My first ‘real’ job began in 1957 at age 13, working for Uncle Chet McKone and Cousin Jack at the Phillip’s 66 Station on the west end of the business district. Eventually, we moved to the DX Station on the east end of downtown. After graduating from high school, I worked for a couple of years at the State Bank of Lawler before going to college.

Somehow, when I wasn’t paying attention, 56 years passed like 56 days since that first day at the filling station. As this is written, I am 69. I retired from corporate life in Des Moines at age 65, but made the choice to keep busy . The following piece has been sent to an author specializing in retirement topics. He wants material for a book that he’s updating and I have no idea at the moment whether he will use it. Either way, I want to share it with our Lawler website users. Hope you enjoy the story. (Bill)

Your Encore Career: For Fun or Profit

My final day as an employee in the corporate world, as a trainer for a major life insurance company in Des Moines, was on the last Friday in March, 2009.

My first official day as a self-employed writing coach, freelance writer, and author began three days later on the first Monday of April, 2009.

I jokingly tell my friends who knew that I once taught high school English, “My corporate career was really really good…but this encore career is even gooder!”

There were two factors leading to a seamless transition from reporting for work after a 25-minute commute downtown, to walking a couple minutes downstairs to my basement home office:

1.) The previous 35-years I had written essays and articles for newspapers and magazines as an avocation. Occasionally there was remuneration, and more often simply the pure joy of seeing my words in print.

2.) I had the privilege of having a life coach for many years, Mary Duwe of Mosinee, Wisconsin, who kept me focused on the task at hand.

During the final year on my job, each week during our one-hour phone session, Mary reminded me of our theme for the year: GET READY…GET SET!

She asked me how my plans were coming toward the next phase of my life. Something she said stuck with me like glue, “Bill, I’ve watched a lot of people retire and have noticed a trend that can be avoided. If they don’t have a plan for their lives every morning–their days turn to mush!” That possibility had absolutely no appeal to me.

With Mary’s gentle prodding and my desire to avoid sitting in a rocking chair at age 65, we made a plan that has worked out phenomenally well.

It helped that I was gifted with several related passions: I loved writing, enjoyed helping others write, wanted to write a memoir about growing up in the 50s, and now had the time to concentrate on all of the above.

To ensure that potential clients know I was serious, the following steps were taken:

An attorney helped me form a limited liability company (Sheridan Writes, LLC), so our retirement savings would not be at risk from some frivolous lawsuit
Established a business checking account and secured a business credit card
Created my own website (www.sheridanwrites.com) and a business email address (william_sheridan1@msn.com); and ordered professional looking business cards
Wrote a nine-word mission statement: “My mission is to help you tell your story!”
Networked to find my first clients. A friend who works with professional speakers led me to several folks who needed help writing books, magazine articles, and web content
Self-published my first book (Depot Street Memories—The Lawler Stories) to establish credibility
Presented readings at service clubs, libraries, retirement homes, and church groups encouraging audiences to write their own stories…even if only on a yellow pad…before those stories are lost
Sold a thousand copies of my printed version, and then uploaded it to Kindle and Nook as an e-book
Continue to submit articles to newspapers and magazines, most of which are published

Does that mean all I’ve accomplished in ‘retirement’ is work?

Not by a long shot. Renee and I ‘snow birded’ for the first time last year, leaving snowy Iowa to invest the month of February in Florida. I volunteer to teach AARP Driver Safety classes to seniors 5-6 times per year. I go out for lunch or breakfast with former co-workers four or five times per month. I meet my two bible study buddies weekly. My wife and I attend events at Des Moines Civic Center and movies on a regular basis. We’ve reconnected with old friends who were neglected when both did the 9-5 routine. And we go to a bizillion sporting and school events that our two grandsons participate in every year.

It’s been four years since my last day on a corporate job that I loved. As this is written, I am now 69. Thanks to some great coaching and my own willingness to plan ahead, my days have not turned to mush. And as a couple, we’re having the time of our lives.

My advice to those still in the workforce: Develop a plan. Decide what would be fun and fulfilling. Follow through. Make the rest of your years the best of your years. You do have a choice.

Bill Sheridan

8106 Brookview Drive

Urbandale, IA 50322

William_sheridan1@msn.com

www.sheridanwrites.com

515.669.4913

April 2013 City Council Minutes

Lawler City Council Meeting Minutes

Regular Meeting April 1, 2013 7:00 PM City Hall

Mayor Mueterthies presided.

Council members present: Izer, King, Njus & Scheidel. Absent Zubrod.

Others present: Jay Uhlenhake, Alan Powell & Deputy Jeff Athey.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by Njus to approve the Agenda with the addition of water system discussion. All Ayes.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by King to approve the minutes of the previous meeting and approve the bills presented to be paid. All Ayes.

Hawkeye REC	Service	$20,544.25
Treasurer State of Iowa	Sales tax	$971.00
United States Treasury	FICA, with	$1,361.12
IPERS	March	$873.74
Salaries	Salaries	$6,046.68
Jendro Sanitation	Garbage-March	$1,999.90
Post Office	Postage	$99.00
United Parcel Service	shipping	$131.37
Windstream	March	$74.23
Black Hills Energy	natural gas	$248.46
CASH, Inc.	fuel & supplies	$220.71
Wellmark Blue Cross	health insurance	$2,934.45
Office Depot	office supplies	$80.48
Post Office	postage	$112.00
Hawkins, Inc.	water supplies	$334.00
Rosenbaum Auto	service	$54.98
Stanton Electric	electric repairs	$310.00
Zips	supplies	$34.42
USA Bluebook	water supplies	$95.52
City of Lawler	electric at lift station	$202.93
Test America	water testing	$50.50
Treasurer State of Iowa	withholding	$701.00
Iowa Workforce Development	unemployment	$163.26
Total		$38,106.00

Library Bills

IPERS	March	$160.17
People Magazine	subscription	$116.07
INGRAM	books	$207.61
Midwest Tape	DVD’s	$24.14
Post Office	annual box rent	$46.00
MidAmerican Books	books	$67.80
Cathy Humpal	supplies	$10.70
Windstream	phone	$82.59
Cathy Humpal	wages	$1,478.57
Internal Revenue Service	FICA & withholding	$555.54
Treasuser State of Iowa	withholding	$30.00
Penworthy	books	$107.29
Prevention	subscription	$22.97

Library Total		$2,909.45

March Receipts

General		$95.85
Property Tax		$1,684.23
Road Use Tax		$3,901.85
Local Option Tax		$3,078.74
Library		$0.00
Charges for Services		$39,656.52

Total		$48,417.19

Police report was given by Deputy Jeff Athey.

A sanitation services proposal was submitted by Alan Powell from Jendro Sanitation. There were no other proposals at this time. Moved by King, seconded by Njus to extend the current sanitation services contract with Jendro Sanitation for five years. All Ayes.

Moved by King, seconded by Scheidel to approve a 28E agreement with Chickasaw County for Law Enforcement Services effective July 1, 2013 at the rate of $7.50 per capita. All Ayes.

Spring Cleanup day details will be sent to residents in the City Newsletter. The Lions Scrap Metal Drive is April 27 and the City cleanup is May 3.

Moved by Scheidel, seconded by Izer to approve Bucky’s beer permit renewal. All Ayes.

The Iowa DOT sidewalk project was reviewed. No action was needed by the City Council.

Moved by King, seconded by Scheidel to remove the window and door and install counter top in the City Clerk’s Office. The estimated cost is $1,560.00. All ayes.

Water system problems were discussed. A plan is in place for improvements per engineering study completed by TeKippe Engineering.

Moved by King, seconded by Izer to adjourn the meeting at 7:50 PM. All Ayes.

______________________________

Sue Cutsforth, City Clerk

Donation Form

If you wish to make a donation to the Irish Festival, you may use this form. It will be mailed to Lawler area businesses early next week. Even though this is sent to businesses, it may be used for individual donations as well. Simply print it off, fill it out, and send it to the address provided. Remember, the more our donations, the more we’ll be able to offer you when you come to the festival. Our goal is to raise $30,000; can you help?

Click here for Donation Form.