YODER – The Yoder Town Council convened for the town’s monthly meeting. Mayor Norman Feagler called the meeting to order a little after 7 p.m. In attendance were council members Jenna Krul, Bob Oaks and Amanda Fogle. Colby Sturgeon, legal counsel for the town appeared via Zoom while town clerk Lilian Green, maintenance supervisor Rod Weyrich, emergency management and grant coordinator Justin Burkart were present. Council member Josh Haffner was absent.

The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance followed by the approval of the evening’s agenda. A motion was made by Oaks which was seconded by Fogle. The council moved on to the approval of the February council meeting’s minutes. A motion was made by Krul to accept the minutes as presented which was seconded by Fogle. The motion carried and the minutes were approved. 

Moving on to town bills, Green pointed out the insurance for the town was down about $300. Weyrich confirmed he had one of the town’s insured vehicles switched from full coverage to liability insurance only which saved the town about $300. Weyrich stated the vehicle had already been totaled with hail damage. Green further stated she had processed one of the two cleaning deposits which need reimbursed.  

A motion was made by Oaks to approve the bills for the month of February which included Aflac, two cleaning deposit reimbursements, insurance, reimbursement for half a rollout dumpster and Wyrulec. The motion was second by Fogle. The motion carried and the bills were approved.

With no public comment, the council moved on to new business. 

Feagler explained there would be changes to the WyoStar accounts and he turned the floor over to Green who provided a detailed explanation of the changes. 

“There have been some changes here to the WyoStar account which makes it kind of harder to do some of the things that we’re supposed to be doing,” Green said. “One of the WyoStar accounts is for our USDA and according to the agreement that we have with them we have to deposit a certain amount of money into the account every single month to show that we are saving up money to pay off that loan. With these new rules, we can only take and deposit or take out a minimum of $1,000, which is a lot more than what USDA requires.”

Green noted transactions were also limited with the WyoStar account. After a short discussion, Green asked the council for permission to seek other financial institutes to which the council agreed to search for a better institute. As far as the USDA is concerned, Green noted the department is aware of the bank account issues and is currently working with the clerk. Green explained WyoClass may be a better choice of institutes for the town.

“WyoClass is actually kind of a lot like the WyoStar except it’s a little more structured like a bank so there’s going to be a lot more protection than what the WyoStar has,” Green said.

“If the WyoStar is making your life more difficult there’s no sense in dealing with them,” Oaks said. “Take it somewhere else.”

Feagler noted if the company was going to make the town jump through hoops, they could take their business elsewhere. 

After a brief discussion on setting up a new account and adding signers to the account, Green noted she would report back to the council after she reviewed her list. She also explained there was someone coming from WyoClass to visit with her about the new account next month.

Feagler also spoke regarding the town ordinance number 37, burning trash in town limits. 

“It reads in there that it has to be approved by the Rod (Weyrich) or the town – it’s right here, it said that the fire chief, mayor or clerk shall grant permission. In his or her opinion burning of the above-described materials,” Feagler read. “So, with the wind like it is, I don’t think we should let anyone burn in town myself.”

Oaks agreed stating most of the town’s residents don’t know about the burn ordinance.

A brief discussion ensued regarding a resident burning trees and trash in town on Saturday. The council agreed to amend the ordinance which would give Weyrich the final say in whether burning was safe. After consulting with Sturgeon, the council agreed to add amending the ordinance to next month’s agenda. 

Feagler then spoke on reminding the town’s residents about the town’s requirement for building permits. Feagler noted he would like to send out a copy of the building ordinance with next month’s billings to the town residents. The council discussed the residents who have built in town without permits. 

Under old business, the council discussed the DEQ’s follow-up open house on April 23 at 1:30 p.m. in the Yoder Community Center. 

Green explained the air quality tests had been completed by the DEQ and there had been some delays. Oaks mentioned the technician had come to change the filter and found the computer malfunctioning. Green reported the delay was apparently due to some form of vandalism. 

Weyrich spoke to the council on maintenance items, noting he had been painting but not much else. 

Sturgeon provided his report where he indicated things were quiet for him as well. 

“The only thing I would say is that if we do continue to have a problem with the burning issue, I think that, that something we could handle,” Sturgeon said. “I am almost positive that’s something we can sort out through that realm of municipal court.”

“It hasn’t been a big problem. With the weather pattern we are in, you have to be aware of it,” Oaks said. 

Burkart gave his report where he explained there was a grant coming in for the truck box pullout. 

“We’re going to have a mid-month grant expense. I think it’s probably going to come in next week. It’s a grant that’s already been approved, 100% reimbursement. It’s going to be around $14,000. It’s for the truck box thing, pull out thing,” Burkart said. “If we can cut a check mid-month, if we get preapproved and get that going. Then the faster I can submit it the faster I can get money back.”

Oaks made a motion to approve the expense which was already budgeted so the town can get reimbursed which was second. The motion carried.

“We’ve been searching for grants for a storm shelter,” Burkart said. “We found a grant that we thought might work. So, we started doing a little research. I did find out today that it’s a 75/25% match. We would have to come up with 25%. A storm shelter for about 50 people is $100,000 plus concrete, plus shipping.” 

Burkart stated he would continue to search for a grant to help the town with a storm shelter for its residents. 

Green spoke on administrative items where she told the council the South Goshen Conservation District’s hazardous waste collection day was approaching. Green explained the town had previously donated money for the collection of materials. Green asked the council if the town would consider donating. A motion was made to donate $100 to the district which was seconded. The motion carried and the donation was approved. 

The town’s spring clean-up dates were set for May 23-25. 

With no further council business, the meeting was adjourned at 7:39 p.m. to reconvene Monday, April 14 at 7 p.m.