Restaurant tax: No sale

“The restaurant tax ordinance is dead.”

Those were the words of Carrington Mayor Tom Erdmann when he asked for a motion to accept the second reading of the proposed tax at the last city council meeting.

During the meeting held on Monday, May 8, Erdmann asked for a motion three times. There were several residents in the audience and the room was silent.

Hearing no motion, Erdmann’s words were heard by all and there was no more discussion on the matter.

In other business:

Committee Reports

FIRE:

• Carrington Fire Chief Ken Wangen reported that there were no calls for service in the last month.

• Wangen said the spaghetti feed went very well.

• He also reported that 100 percent of the fire insurance tax premium will be returned to the fire departments in North Dakota.

• Finally, Wangen reported that the terminology of the “fire ban” was changed to “fire restriction determinations.”

FINANCE & LEGAL:

• Mayor Erdmann reported that they are looking for someone to sit on the special assessments committee.

• He said the Carrington Sales Tax had a record year in 2022, but this year it is exceeding the first four months of last year by $20,000.

CCEDC:

• A total of three applications were received for the Chamber Scholarship for a Carrington High School senior. The senior with the best score was Braden Kruse and he was presented with a scholarship certificate at Honors Night last month.

• A Scholarship Program application has been received from CHS Senior Evan Cates with Leading Edge Equipment and Career Builders for Evan to attend NDSCS for two years in the John Deere Technician Program.

The board passed a motion to support this request with a grant for $4,250 in conjunction with Leading Edge paying the same.

• An application for a Business Improvement Grant was received from the new Central City Wellness Center (partners Ryan Zink, Josh Sherman and Mason Wede). They are purchasing and remodeling the old hardware store on Main Street.

CVB:

• CCEDC director Laurie Dietz visited with Paul Halko of the Arrowwood Refuge and he is working with Jamestown Tourism and others to keep the Birding Drives organization going.

• The Rainbow Gardens board is moving forward. Fund raising is going well. They are on track for a possible start in 2024.

LIBRARY:

• House Bill (HB)1205 and Senate Bill (SB) 2360 were discussed at the last library board meeting held on April 10. SB 2360 was vetoed by the governor, and was sustained. HB 1205, on the other hand, passed and was signed by the governor. However, there is nothing in the City Library’s children section that would be a problem.

• The library received a $3,000 grant from Community Development for the Summer Reading Program for summer help, the movie license and prizes.

POLICE:

• Carrington Police Chief Chris Bittmann reported that seven letters were sent for vehicles in the impound lot.

• A new police officer was hired.

• They received 265 calls for service in the month of April.

PUBLIC WORKS:

• The west-side water expansion is moving forward, but the rain isn’t helping.

• The antenna that will be installed on the water tower for the SIRN 2020 new state radio system will be magnetic so as not to compromise the water tower.

• Pot hole filling and sign replacement has been going on around the town.

• The city-wide cleanup is scheduled for June 1-3.

• The shingles for city hall have been ordered.

• A couple of the sirens within the city were having issues.

BUILDING OFFICIAL:

• Two building permits were requested.