Milford’s town council held its last meeting of 2014 Tuesday morning. Items on the agenda included a change to election practices as well as a pay raise for city employees.
Ordinance 2014-9 changes the election year for town council members to coincide with federal and state elections. Those members elected in 2015 will serve a three-year term. Elections will be held again in 2018 and will follow a four-year cycle thereafter.
Council member Dan Cochran explained the ordinance is in response to complaints by some voters who felt “disenfranchised” in the last election when Republican candidates, chosen by a party caucus, ran unopposed.
Town employees present at the meeting thanked the council for the raise they received of 50 cents per hour. Council member Doug Ruch suggested the flat increase as opposed to a percentage-based increase, which would have increased the wage gap between higher and lower paid workers. The increase amounts to $1,040 per year.
In police department reports, Officer Refugio Ramirez submitted his resignation due to health reasons, according to Town Marshal Rich Miotto, who added the department is taking applications for reserve officers.
Utilities Superintendent Randy Veach reported by 2016 every Milford residence or business must have check valves and pressure tanks as mandated by the state, and the council should “consider the cost to the town.” He added an ordinance would have to be drawn up for factories and other commercial buildings.
Veach also stated it is illegal to shut off utilities in the winter months for unpaid bills. Exactly which months those are was not specified.
Finally, Veach informed the council much of the utilities department’s equipment has a high number of usage hours. For example, the city’s backhoe is 14 years old, with around 2,000 hours of usage.