The last Sapulpa City Council meeting of 2019 began at 7:07 after a lengthy pre-meeting, “Study Session.” The Council members were all in attendance: John Anderson, Carla Gunn, Hugo Naifeh, Bruce Bledsoe, Mayor Reg Green, Craig Henderson, Marty Cummins, Lou Martin, Jr., and John Suggs. The City Manager, Joan Riley, and City Attorney, David Widdoes, were also present.
Consent items included Mayoral Appointments to the Sapulpa Board of Adjustment: Tom Hughes (reappointed) for 4 years with his term expiring January 2024; Deborah Frost (reappointed) for a four-year term, expiring in January 2024; and Rick Engleman (reappointed) to a two-year term, expiring January 2022.
According to the City of Sapulpa website, “the Board of Adjustment is a 5 member quasi-judicial body appointed by the City Council that hears variance and special exception requests, makes interpretations of City code.”
Variances are sought if there are extenuating circumstances associated with a piece of property that make it difficult for the applicant to meet the zoning code requirements. In order for a variance to be approved, the applicant must prove a hardship exists.
Special exception requests typically involve a design element or structure that may not conform to the dimensional or spatial requirements of the base zoning district in which it is located, but may be allowed under certain circumstances with approval from the SBOA.
Back to the items in the meeting, the monetary claims for this month exceeded $850,000.00 including pre-paid claims.
The Calendar Year 2020 Schedule of the regular meetings was approved as was the 2020 schedule of regular meetings for the Administration and Finance Committee, Public Works and Transportation Committee and Community and Economic Development Committee.
The Sapulpa Fire Chief David Taylor stated that Fire Department needed an amended FY 2019-2020 budget to increase the revenues by $141,426.00 and apportionment in the amount of $153,883.00 to recognize grant money from FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) for more training. It was approved wholeheartedly by the council.
The council also approved the filing and notification of the Publication of the Sapulpa City Code.
An Executive Session was called which lasted about 10 minutes. City Attorney David Widdoes was called upon to handle the negotiations for the purchase or appraisal of real property.
Brian Bigbie from the Economic Development division of INCOG introduced himself to the Council, apologizing for his “ long overdue” visit. He said he “hit the ground running” in 2017 and was late in coming to the Council. He made himself available for explaining and implementing federal grant opportunities for the citizens of Sapulpa.
The meeting adjourned at 7:30 and the Municipal Authority meeting began. During this meeting, the claims approved amounted to over half a million dollars and the schedule of Calendar Year 2020 regular meetings was approved.
A Service Agreement with Oklahoma Chiller for HVAC coverage located at the Water Treatment Plant was approved for $19,796.49.
The meeting adjourned at 7:33 p.m.
The next regular meeting of the Sapulpa City Council will take place on Monday evening, January 6th, 2020, at 7 p.m., at the City Courtroom in City Hall. Any member of the public is invited to attend this meeting and see how your tax dollars are spent and hear how the decisions that affect your daily life are implemented.
