The Tres Rius City Council met on October 18 to discuss and take action on several issues. One of the issues that was discussed was the spending of funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). City Manager Thomas Salazar suggested the funds will be used for the levee wall, to repair an in-ground storage tank and for an automated sewer plant control system. There is about $400,000 left in ARPA funds, as the only purchase so far has been a backhoe. To prepare for the next meeting, Salazar said he would develop a spending plan and work with an engineer on project specifications. The schedule would be to accept bids early next year, with construction beginning next spring.
Discussion of an investment policy was also on the agenda. Ray De Los Santos, a consultant at Santos McBain, said interest rates have been low for the past few years. Now that rates are improving, it’s a good time for the city to consider an investment policy. The city currently has funds in a money market account, but certificates of deposits (CDs) pay more. City Attorney Roxann Pais Cotroneo said the city can invest public funds but must follow specific rules, including having a written investment policy. The city must select investment accounts with safety and liquidity in mind. He explained that security means there is little chance of losing money and liquidity refers to being able to access cash if needed for emergency use. Cotroneo provided a sample investment policy for the board to review in preparation for a future meeting.
In other business, the council approved a motion to create a job description and advertise for a public works director. The council also approved the hiring of a full-time water and wastewater intern and a full-time maintenance department worker, with pay increasing to $13.33 per hour.
In the final work order, the council authorized the identification of areas of the city for a low-to-moderate income survey. De Los Santos explained that some neighborhoods may have been underrepresented in the previous census, making the city ineligible for certain types of funding. The survey aims to improve eligibility related to Community Development Block Grant funding and other sources of state and federal funds, which could be used for water tower rehabilitation.
