Kingston City Council approved four people to serve as volunteer firefighters at its regular monthly meeting on February 12.
After meeting in executive session, Mayor Sarah Jones, Deputy Mayor Loren Runyan and Councilors Donna Stowe, Theodor Ponder and Danny Southerland approved VictorSeeley, Dawson Bruce, Dominic Sample and Breanna Hendricks to serve on the Kingston Fire Department.
In other action, the council voted against purchasing a Rex Lyons property on Kemp Street for use in a new park. This was previously discussed during a meeting last month and would also have involved opening a road that would cost around $60,000.
Council members voted to move forward with the acquisition of Lyon's Kemp Street, and Southerland said it would be a benefit because the city does not own that street.
"I feel like it's something we need to do," added Fire Chief James Kuykendall.
The city council will need to take steps to provide legal documentation and a survey to obtain the street.
No action was taken to open North Donehoo Street from Northwest Second Street to the Lyons property and the council voted no to extending North Donehoo from the southern boundary of the Lyons property northward across the property.
Dates have been approved for upcoming events in April, May and June at MainStreet Market. Springfest is April 13 and there will be a Bubble Run on May 4, and the Texoma Boat Show will be June 1. The city is also planning a Fourth of July parade.
The council voted to have Jim Houlette file a tort claim with the city's insurance. According to council members, the water meter that had been turned off at Houlette's property on Rattler Ridge Road exploded and flooded his home.
A quote for crushing services was approved in the amount of $2,125.00. Secretary-Treasurer Michelle Beardense said the city has sold files that need to be removed and cleaning them out will free up space and allow the office to be a little more organized.
The council voted against purchasing Nelson Park from dentist Dr. Jeffrey Nelson. Mayor Jones said Nelson is willing to sell the property to the city for what he values it and that the property is more than an acre and most of it is a pond. This property was once owned by the city before being sold to Nelson; However, the title was never put in Nelson's name, so no taxes were ever paid on it.
Southerland expressed opposition to purchasing it, saying the city has a lot of infrastructure problems right now.
"We have more than we can take on right now," he said.
The council, however, will provide Nelson with a quitclaim deed so the land can be placed in his name.
The city will apply for a $600,000 CDBG grant for water and wastewater to be written by the Southern Oklahoma Development Association. It would be used to repair wells and water lines.
"It's an expensive project, but it needs to be done," Jones said.
After discussion, the council decided to include $50,000 in matching funds from the city's reserves for the grant if approved. Matching funds may include labor.
The council also voted on the following agenda items: - Approved a resolution for Fair Housing, which is one of two things required to be eligible for SODA grants.
- Voted in favor of purchasing Air Med Care for employees as has been done in recent years. The approximate total cost is $2,000.
- Voted to increase the cost of new water meters from $1,000 to $2,000 as suggested by the auditor.
- Action on purchasing/building a pumper truck or trailer was postponed and council hopes to have more information by the next meeting.