After a lengthy discussion about the size, costs and locations of new signs in Hennessey, the town board voted to accept the design, but decided to wait to order them until staff come up with how many they want.

Terrell Prince, owner of Royal Signs, presented his designs and costs to the board at their Mon., Dec. 9 meeting at town hall.

Some of the signs will allow the town to post upcoming events and others are directional signs.

Costs were estimated at $45,000-$50,000 for signs at the four entrances into the town and at least four in the downtown/Main St. areas.

Prince’s company, located south on US 81, recently designed and installed the Hennessey Event Center sign at the school.

The board talked about larger signs on the north and southbound highways as opposed to the east and west entrances.

The hotel/motel tax will be used to fund the new signage.

All members of the board attended the meeting: Mayor Bert Gritz, Vice Mayor Clif Vogt, Wes Hardin, Keith Meek and Richard Simunek.

Medical marijuana ordinance gets fi nal approval

The board approved an ordinance governing medical marijuana inside the town limits. Note: The Times & Free Press did not have a reporter during this discussion and action due to covering a school board meeting.

The board spent considerable time at the past two months discussing an ordinance and had given their attorney the go-ahead to write it.

The ordinance requires all medical marijuana business to have valid state licenses and does not allow the businesses to be within 1,000 feet of any public or private school.

Medical marijuana dispensaries will be permitted in commercial zoning districts while processing/wholesale/ storage facilities shall be permitted in industrial zones with growing permitted in agriculture districts.

Those businesses will be charged a license fee of $1,500 each year.

Any violators of the ordinance will be fi ned $500.

Earlier the board had wanted to have more restrictions, but their attorney advised against them.

Collection agency hired

The board approved an ordinance that calls for collection fees of 35% on unpaid utility bills then turned around and hired RS2 Solution LLC as their collection agency.

Town Administrator Tiffany Tillman said this is the same agency used for municipal court collections.

Personnel matters

After an executive session Christian Solis was hired as a reserve police offi cer at $16.50 an hour and Bryann Duffey as a part-time police dispatcher at $9 an hour. Solis had resigned as patrol offi cer in March.

Meeting dates changed,

again

There was lengthy discussion before the board had a 4-1 vote to change their 2020 meeting dates to the second Thursday of each month.

Last year the board met on the first Monday but changed it to the second Monday so it wouldn’t be on the same night as the school board because there had been complaints from local media. Then the school board changed their meetings this year to the second Monday, and that irked some of the town board members.

A couple of months ago the town board changed their meetings to the second Tuesday in a 3-2 vote, then changed it back to the second Monday because it confl icted with another meeting of a board member and school events.

Trustee Simunek asked to change for another night so it wouldn’t conflict with the school board meetings. He said both boards were being “inflexible,” and he wanted to have the Times & Free Press reporter at all of the meetings. “Many of the people in Hennessey take and read the Kingfisher paper,” he said.

From the audience, Library Director Ruth Ann Replogle said changing the meeting date would interfere with the library board’s meetings at 4:30 p.m. on the same day as the town board.

She said library board members like meetings on Mondays and it’s what they are used to.

Meek asked why they needed to meet on the same date. It’s unclear if anyone answered because as one board member said, “It was kind of hectic there for a little bit.”

First Monday night meetings wouldn’t work, said Tillman and Town Treasurer Teresa Weber because they need time to get financial reports for the meeting.

Simunek suggested Thursday night meetings since Tuesday hadn’t worked well for some.

Tillman and Weber checked their calendars.

Replogle told the Times & Free Press reporter that she didn’t know why she needed to attend the meetings because it was the town’s job to send media information and news releases.

The mayor, and people on the back row, overheard what Replogle said.

“I like to have the newspaper, the media, here,” said Gritz. “I think it’s important. I’m glad they are here.”

Then Hardin made a motion, seconded by Simunek, to schedule 2020 meetings on the second Thursdays at 7 p.m. Vogt cast the only no vote.

Replogle left the meeting after the vote, and the board continued their meeting.