Lynn Schmidt resigns council seat; Kiesz sworn in

At the January 14 Odessa Town Council meeting, Mayor Doug Plinski got right to business by reading a letter of resignation from councilman Lynn Schmidt, dated December 31, 2012. Schmidt cited his recent move to a location outside the town limits, thereby making him ineligible to serve on the council as the reason for his resignation. He will continue to serve on some committees as a private citizen.

Plinski then officially swore in Gail Kiesz as the new town clerk/treasurer as she recited the oath of office. Kiesz had been working alongside newly retired clerk Linda Burghard for several months, learning the details of the position to prepare for taking over the job.

Police Dept.

Police Chief Helen Coubra reported that things had been quiet, with a few agency assists, a hit and run call, and the majority of calls being animal complaints. She requested that the public be reminded that dog tags must be renewed for 2013 at the town clerk’s office.

Public Works

PW Director Rod Webster reported on the failure of a blower at the water treatment plant. Typically there is one blower on standby and two blowers ready for use, but in this instance, there were burnt leads in one motor and two blowers were sent off for repairs. The cost for the new blower was $2,700 and repairs for the other two motors ran from $1,700-1,800 dollars. Any serious sewage back up problems were averted.

Other equipment repairs already in the budget include the vacuum truck and the street sweeper which has a hydraulic leak.

Water sewer certificate materials have been received by the department to study regularly in order to receive certification for employees.

Mayor’s Report

Plinski distributed to all council members, a sign-up sheet for all of the committees that have been formed. He asked for each member to commit to serving on several committees to better serve the community and achieve goals set for 2013 and beyond. In particular, he asked that the Parks and Recreation committee do more research on budgeting and that the Streets committee become active immediately in preparing a six-year plan.

With the resignation of Lynn schmidt, the council loses not only a councilman, but also a mayor pro-tem. A nomination for the open position was put forward for Lois Hubbard.

Perhaps the most exciting news of the evening was delivered by Plinski when he announced that he had been contacted by Judy Cole of ACN (American Christian Network) Radio to appear as a guest on her half hour talk radio program. The show will be broadcast on stations in Wenatchee, Walla Walla, Tri-Cities, Spokane and Northern Idaho. The scheduled topics will include the history of Odessa, happenings and events, and anything else Plinski would like to bring up for discussion. The Mayor believes that the invitation is a direct result of Odessa’s website and other social networking sites.