During the meeting, council members engaged in a discussion about the city’s levy and budget for the upcoming year. A proposal to reduce the capital levy by $100,000 was put forth. The council also considered allocating $125,000 for the city’s airport, a compromise between previously debated figures. These adjustments would result in a 4.77% levy increase, which is lower than the preliminary 8% set earlier. The full council will review these recommendations in an upcoming session, where they will finalize the levy percentage to be presented at a public forum.

In addition to the budget discussions, the council debated the renewal of its contract with the law firm Ratwik, Roszak & Maloney for civil legal services. Options included issuing a new request for proposals or extending the current contract. Ultimately, the council voted to continue with the existing firm without seeking new bids, citing the firm’s involvement in ongoing negotiations and historical knowledge of the city’s legal matters as reasons for this decision.

Other items included the ratification of two new hires: a police intern and an apprentice line worker. The council approved both hiring decisions, noting that funding had been secured for the police intern position. Additionally, the council approved a memorandum of agreement with the IBEW Union, setting wages for a new administrative assistant position and authorizing an internal hiring process.