KANOPOLIS — Tom Wilkinson is the newest member of the Kanopolis City Council. At the Nov. 10 meeting, he was sworein to succeed Matt Munoz, who recently resigned.

In other business:

• The time of the Kanopolis City Council meeting was changed to 5:30 p.m. from 7 p.m., still on the second Tuesday of the month.

• The city’s water project is complete. At the request of Thaniel Monaco of BG Consultants, council members approved a final pay request for $28,304.07, and authorized Hopkins to sign the completion papers contingent upon repair of the shark bite coupler to a solid pipe spool within three months.

Before the council action, Wilkinson expressed concerns about the coupler and the longevity of the new well. Monaco said one issue was flooding, but he didn’t think there will be electrical issues and this is considered a warranty problem.

• The survey on the new water tower was to begin Nov. 11. Monaco asked whether there were any restrictions from the Ellsworth County Historical Society and Debbie Kralik, city clerk, agreed to check. In response to a question from Hopkins, Monaco said he had no concerns about financing. Hopkins also asked for a general timeline for construction, including completion. Monaco said the bidding for the project should be in late spring or early summer with completion by late summer or early fall.

• Hopkins expressed concerns about the spread of COVID-19 and voiced a need to get iPads ordered for the council members along with personal protective equipment. Dan Finnegan of Wilson Communications will price match the cost less a setup fee. A special meeting will be needed for council action.

• Hopkins requested all council members and employees cooperate with the county mask mandate. Council member Greg Tripp asked about future council meetings. Hopkins suggested having remote meetings or in-person meetings with masks. Council president Michelle Schwerdtfeger suggested moving meetings to the community center. After some discussion, the council, by consensus, decided to conduct meetings at the community center during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• During a discussion of the siren at the fire station, Kralik was asked to call Ellsworth County dispatch to get a copy of the procedures to sound alarms. Wilkinson suggested getting a transponder on the south siren to activate the north siren. A special meeting will be needed to discuss the transponder.

• Kralik said she received three quotes from Blue Cross/Blue Shield for city employee health insurance. Hopkins sug-gested looking at Kansas Farm Bureau Insurance. He will send a link to Kralik to get quotes.

• Consideration of a request to become a member of the Kansas Non-Profit Coalition, a unified voice for non-profit organizations around the state, was tabled until the Dec. 8 council

• Approval was given to move forward with a recycling program for Kanopolis. Hopkins was approached by citizens regarding the recycling trailer. Darlene Dohe of Lincoln runs recycling in Lincoln County and there are no trailers available until next year. Dohe will get Kanopolis a recycling trailer when one is available There is no cost to the city.

• City employee Aaron Burwell said the city needs a place to store road salt. Wilkinson suggested utilizing super sacks instead of bulk salt.

Burwell said posts at the city park need replaced. Tripp has 4.5 to 5.5 inch pipe available for use and will get a bid to present to the council.

• Burwell said the city crew is waiting until it snows to burn the tree pile in the Kanopolis City cemetery.

• Hopkins said Tony Lamia of Slechta Enterprises told him the trees in the alleys need to be trimmed again. Kralik said Rolling Hills Electric Cooperative is having the trees trimmed and the city should wait until the utility is done before it takes action.

• Hopkins was approached to have halo Tron fire extinguishers on at least two city fire trucks. No action was taken.

• Kralik said she has received several complaints about a resident illegally hooking up to the sewer. Hopkins asked her to call Kanopolis Police Chief Jeff Weigel to look into the matter for code enforcement.

• The council agreed, by consensus, to keep the lobby of the city office closed at this time.

• Kralik received a request from Nextlink regarding a new cell tower on East Ohio for high speed internet. Hopkins said the city has no zoning requirements, but Nextlink needs to purchase building permits.

The next meeting of the Kanopolis City Council will be at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 8, at the Kanopolis Community Center.

CITY COUNCIL

Note to Kanopolis residents:

The time and place of the next City Council meeting will change.

Council members will meet at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 8, at the Kanopolis Community Center.