City Council - Special Meeting

started. If you have a cell phone, please silence it. I'd hate to be the the monitor and have to take your phones. Same with the council. Please silence your phones. I I mean, I already have one from the council member, so [clears throat] Yeah, appreciate it. Madam clerk, please call the role. Mayor Cooper here. Deputy Mayor Canantra here. Council member Carrington here. Council member Collins here. Council member Graham here. Council member Hudson here. Council member [clears throat] Moer here. We have a quorum.

Thank you. And now pledge lead. Liz Jackson, would you get lead us in the pledge, please?

To the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

[clears throat] Moving on to the approval agenda. Wishes of the council. Move to approve. Second. Are there any any discussion changes? Madam clerk. Hold on. Mayor Cooper. Yes. Council member Hudson. Yes. Council member Graham. Yes. Council member Carrington. Yes. Deputy Mayor Canantra. Yes. Council member Collins. Yes. And council member Moer. Yes. It is approved.

Thank you. Moving on to audience participation. Uh a little bit of rhetoric. Sign in. State your name. Three minutes per person. Council meetings. Meeting rules protect your right to testify and be heard even if others in the room disagree with you. Council meeting rules also ensure that those attending can express their views if they do not interfere with the rights of others to see and hear the proceedings at all times. Order and decorum will be maintained in keeping with civility and dignity of the legislative process. Please be respectful during audience participation. No disruptions to city business or threats of any kind will be allowed. Individuals who cannot follow these guidelines will be removed. Any threats against others could result in criminal prosec prosecution. Again, please sign in. State your name in three minutes.

I don't have the sheet, so whoever thinks they're on first can. Anybody who wants to come forward, sign in. All right. You might have to turn the microphone on since you're first back. Just hold the back in about three seconds and you'll see a green light. I haven't started your time yet. Promise. The green light's on the side. Yeah. Oh, I think testing. There you go. My name is Sam Olsen. I live in Palmer, Alaska. I'm representing the Save the Palmer Golf Course Coalition. I'm pretty sure that gives me five minutes. Is that correct? No.

Okay. Um, I want to give you a high over overview of how this contract actually works. I think we can all agree the city pays the land lease of, you know, $15,000 a year for the land at $100 an acre right now. Just like any business, including the municipalities, Eagle Golf Management operates as a contractor, meaning $475,000 that you approved in December 16th, that's revenue. Okay? So, if you have your pen, I would probably write this down. $475,000 is revenue. Below that is expenses. And I think the number you're trying to get to, and I think the misconception within this community, is net income. Okay, George. employs 50 people. If he spends half a million dollar a year, that's $10,000 per person for the summer. That's without benefits, health, dental, retirement, anything of that nature. George also has insurance costs. It's closer to probably about $40,000. So, if you take 475, which is what you guys are paying George, and you take those expenses, his company actually comes out net negative. Even if you add in like food and beverage, you're probably looking at a minimal profit of about $14,000 a year. So, I just wanted that to be on the record because everyone seems to be really confused about how much money Eagle Golf Management makes on this contract. If George was to be a municipal employee, he would also have to hire all of his employees through the application process, and you guys would have to pay them a salary as well as all of the benefits. Now you're looking at a really big bill because back in 1995 I think Mark Delesie was making about hundred grand a year. So account for inflation that's about $200,000 today not including health insurance, dental, and any of all the other things that the municipality has to provide given your municipality. So my point is George is really doing this community a favor by operating as a

contractor, not as an employee. Doesn't come with all the stipulations that you guys have to deal with. Okay. The second piece of this whole thing that I want to point out is in that RFP that you guys put out for the land appraisal. That's only for a fair market value lease. That's not for a fair market value purchase. And until you figure out what that's going to cost to buy the land back and pay the FAA and the airport fund, there's no point in really going forward with an RFP for an appraisal because you're just going to have to do it all over again and cost yourself probably another $50,000 to do it. You might as well do it all in one shot. The third piece of uh that I want to get to is in your 2026 operating budget, I would ask that you probably remove those numbers that were listed about the golf course not being able to afford the lease. That that's a madeup number at this point until you do an appraisal. Right. I just don't understand how that gets thrown around. Is that five or three?

That's your time.

Okay. Thank you. [clears throat and cough] Yeah, my my name is Joel Stfansky. Um, live just outside the city limits here. Hopefully someday I can um be in the city limits so I can be involved a little more. Um, you know, it's been said before that several people say they don't care about history and the history of the golf course. I've been involved from pretty much day one with when Mark Delesie was the uh pro here and I've seen this uh wonderful piece of property um farmland turn into a wonderful community asset. And uh George is about the third person that's been managing it for the last 18 years. Has done a tremendous job. And um very disappointed over the course of the last three or four months. There's been a lot of misinformation given to the council and uh and basically George thrown under the bus, which is really sad because that man has been a great steward of that 144 acres and uh and if I was king, I would extend his contract for three three years and should have been just left the way it is. Nothing should have changed and I don't know how we got to this point. We were involved in the community on a great asset run by a great group of people and uh I I don't know if any of you guys knew the history of this course and and

what it serves this community. It's not always about making money. It's about what what this golf course has done for the community at all ages. And we have to think about that when we try to tear something that serves this community greatly. And uh I just want to support George and his company and his employees and what they've done. They're done a tremendous job and let's recognize that. And uh I'll be talking tomorrow night too, but on a few other things, but um thank you very much for your time. And anyone else wishing to come forward and speak on this issue, any issue. [clears throat] Okay, seeing no one, we'll close audience participation. And now unfor we are going to go into an executive session. So all you folks have to

we can make the motion first or Yeah, that's right. Wish to the council about the executive session. Please

make a motion to go in executive session. That's what I was just going to do. Yes. I would like to make a motion that the city council enter into executive session [clears throat] um for the immediate knowledge of which could have a clearly an adverse effect upon the finances of the public entity and a discussion regarding the Palmer golf course. In the executive session included will be the city council um the attorney uh Lesie Ne uh Colby Zurkl Benji Johnson and George Colum. And if I might add, it would probably have Nate here as well because he has been dealing with George a little bit public works. And public works because they do other

Mr. Mayor, if I may. Um, I think it would be keen of this council to hear directly from George and give him some time and then if needed um maybe they can wait and we can call them in um if Miss Circle thinks that it's an appropriate time if there's questions. Yeah, absolutely. Okay. Okay. Thank you. Yeah. Charles right here. Not last. Yeah. And this is Charles. Sorry, that's Oh, okay. Charles, thank you. Is there a second on that second? [clears throat] Clerk. Mayor Cooper. Yes. Deputy Mayor Cantra, yes. Council member [snorts] Carrington, yes. Council member Collins, yes. Council member Graham, yes. Council member Hudson, yes.

And Council Member Moer, yes. It is approved. Thank you. And we will move into exe. You want to take a quick break, right? [snorts] Yes, please. Quick break while everybody vacates premises. Thank you.