*January 2010 Newsletter*
Calendar of Events
January 4 - City Workshop Meeting 7:00 p.m. - Council Chambers
January 5 – Ambulance Meeting 6:00 p.m. - Ambulance Bldg.
January 8 - Chamber of Commerce 7:00 a.m. - Feeding Station
January 11 – Jaycee Club Meeting - Jaycee Club
January 12 – Park and Rec. Meeting 7:00 p.m. – Council Chambers
January 12 - Senior Pinochle - Tekoa Community Church
January 13 – Tekoa Fair Association 7:30 – Prairie Grain Office
January 13 – Caregiver Coffee 10:00 a.m. – Tekoa Retirement Apartments,
Community Room
January 18 - City Council Meeting 7:00 p.m. – Council Chambers
December 17 - Distribute Commodities 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. - City Hall
January 25 - Ambulance Board Meeting 7:00 p.m. - Ambulance Bldg
January 26 - Senior Pinochle - Tekoa Community Church
January 26 – School Board Meeting 7:00 p.m. – District Board Room
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
*NOTICES*
**Please Note: City Hall will be closed January 1, 2010,
for New Years Day
Feral Cat Solutions~ Trap, Neuter and Return Program of Humane Society of
the Palouse in Moscow, Idaho. No house cats allowed. For Feral (wild) and
barn cats ONLY. Call after Jan 15, 2010 for clinic dates and to enroll your cats.
Cost is $25 per cat. Includes spay/neuter, FeLV/FIV test, FVRCP/rabies
vaccines, and ear tipping for identification. Advanced reservations necessary.
Email hsopfcs@gmail.com, or call 509-334-7099 after Jan 15, 2010.
It is time to renew those dog tags! Every dog in Tekoa is required
to have a license. Please fill out the enclosed form, and return with
payment. $20.00 not altered, and $10.00 altered.
Tekoa Parks and Recreation District would like to announce the Holiday Lights
Contest Winner.Winners are Jim and Claudia Heaton “Brightest Lights”,
Mike and Kate Bogenreif “Waiting for Santa” and Greg and Karen Blomgren
“Most Colorful”. Thank you to everyone who made Tekoa beautiful with all
the lights this season. Wishing you a very Happy New Year from the
Tekoa Parks and Recreation District.
The council will have a workshop meeting on January 4, 2010,
at 7:00 p.m. in the council chambers. The workshop will be to
go over the roles of the council members.
SALARY CHANGES FOR CITY EMPLOYEES~
At the December 7, 2009, meeting, the council approved of the
following benefit/salary changes for the city employees:
Duane Groom went from full family medical coverage, to a high
deductible medical insurance plan, saving $1,331.60 per month.
Even after adding $600 a month to his salary, this will be a savings of
$9,719.40 per year for the city. Rob Brownfield went from a single, low
deductible, medical plan to a high deductible plan with a health savings
account. Consequently, the city is able to give him a 3% pay raise and still
have a savings to the city of $3,652.44 per year.The council voted to add an
additional hour per day to Tara Chittenden’s time. This will increase her
wages $12.00 per day, or $3,120.00 per year. Kynda Browning’s salary
will remain the same as in 2009.The total savings to the City of Tekoa in
2010 for these salary changes will be $10,251.84.
~Messages from the Mayor~
My message this month will be short because Marge and I are
leaving to spend Christmas with our daughter in Choteau, Montana.
If you wonder where Choteau is located, it’s just a little south of Cutbank,
Montana, which I understand is often the coldest place in the lower
48 states!
I had the privilege to present plaques to Lina Zehm and Melinda
Wilkins at our December 21st meeting. Both ladies were very effective
members of the city council at a time when tough decisions had to be made.
I need to mention that Linda is still active with Tekoa’s Chamber of Commerce
and thus, our Slippery Gulch Celebration. Melinda will again co-chair the Slippery
Gulch Celebration and also take over managing the “Idol” contest, which was
so popular last year. I was pleased that three patrons of Tekoa applied for Linda’s
vacant council position. The council appointed Troy Wilson to fill this position
until next fall, when this council position will be on the ballot. So, we now have
Eileen Soldwedel and Troy Wilson on our council. Both bring a wide variety of
expertise and experience which will be helpful as we continue to struggle with city
finances and infrastructure concerns.
I hope all had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy/safe New Year.
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