The Village of Farley will soon have a new addition at board of trustees meetings in the tiny town of around 250 people.
The board voted on Monday night to hire an off-duty sheriff’s deputy to sit in the meeting for $25 an hour with a minimum $50 per meeting. The expected cost is $600 a year.
Before the discussion about security began resident Tim Moore said he had some concerns he would like to discuss with the board. Board President Teresa Bing said the board had already had the public comments section.
“We are on new business now,” said Bing. “Please let us get through our business with no interruptions.”
“I’m sure that since our last meeting you have heard about Kirkwood,” said Bing. “There was a shooting in Kirkwood and quite a few people have raised this issue to me. I just want to see if you want to discuss possible security.”
The husband of Farley City Clerk Beverly Kincaid said he had talked to the sheriff’s department about the off-duty deputy.
“I talked to the Platte County Sheriff’s Department,” said Bobby Kincaid. “Their price is $25 for a minimum of two hours per meeting. It’s just a precautionary measure.”
“I heard about what happened it Kirkwood and I think it’s pretty scary,” said Judy Bond, trustee. “I think we should discuss it.”
“There’s been times when there have been disruptions, but I don’t know if it has gone anywhere,” said James Caldwell, trustee. “For $50 it’s something I’d consider.” The board president explained how the fee would be paid.
“It would come out of the city funds,” said Bing. “This is for those of us who volunteer for this board.”
While she was speaking, Moore said he disagreed that they needed security.
“It’s this type of thing, when we continue to have public comments during the meeting,” said Bing. “Excuse me, Tim; please let us continue our meeting. This is a prime example; all I’m asking for is respect for people who got elected.”
“I think it would be money well spent,” said Caldwell.
The board then voted 4-0 to hire an off-duty deputy to sit in the meetings.
Another issue on the agenda for the trustees involved discussing an extension of the village’s terrorism coverage through their insurance company.
According to Beverly Kincaid, the insurance costs $10 and the village has paid for it every year and the issue was simply a renewal.
The trustees voted 4-0 to approve the terrorism insurance.
Before the end of the meeting Bing allowed Moore to speak to the board after an agreement allowing him to speak provided he did not interrupt the board during the meeting.
Moore presented the board and members of the audience with a list of comments and questions for the trustees.
One of the points listed involves a dispute Moore had with the village in November of 2007 about the purchase of American flags. Moore had requested the village purchase 10 American flags for a total of $200 to put along Main Street. The village refused, citing financial problems. “We didn’t have $200 to buy flags, but they can pay for a deputy,” said Moore.
“The village is not totally broke, but we try to be good stewards of the village’s money,” said Bing.
“I hear you, but I think you have a ways to go,” said Moore.
Moore addressed the issue of security and asked why it was needed.
“When people come here to volunteer, we’re not getting any money for this,” said Bing. “We’ve been a little bit lax in the past and (these interruptions) is what I’m talking about. Unfortunately, we have to use village money to enforce this. If people choose not to follow the rules then we have no other recourse.”
The board heard an update on a project to fix several gravel roads in the village.
According to Bobby Kincaid, the village will need to pay for engineering services in order to apply for a grant from FEMA and SEMA to fix roads damaged during the floods of 2007.
Kincaid reported the lowest bid for services was from GeoTech with a cost of $11,595. The village expects to receive an answer from SEMA after a review by the end of this week.
The board also heard that Codes Enforcement Officer David Hendrix was resigning from the city. Bing suggested talking further with Mike Large of Weston to possibly take over the position.
The village’s attorney Aaron Johnson previously asked Bing to have the village find a new attorney. According to Bing, Johnson is busy with several different cases. The suggestion is to have Vic Peters, former Platte County prosecutor, be the village’s attorney at a rate of $100 an hour.