EVANSTON — The Evanston City Council had a busy evening Tuesday. Mayor Kent Williams was not present but they had a quorum and Andy Kopp led the meeting as mayor pro tempore. 

The council quickly passed two items on the consent agenda, one for an open container permit and a street closure permit.

For many years Urban Renewal has held its annual Hunters’ Widows Night in downtown Evanston. As in years past, Main Street will be closed for downtown trick-or-treating. This year’s event is on Oct. 31 from 3-5:30 p.m. Both permits were granted.

In unfinished business, the council passed two ordinances, 17-04 and 17-05, on their third and final readings. These ordinances bring the city in-line with changes in the state’s liquor laws. 

Ordinance 17-04 amends several sections of city code to revise the definition of the term “operational” and to modify the requirements on liquor licensees to demonstrate their business is operational. It also modifies the minimum purchase requirements for businesses to be considered operational.

Ordinance 17-05 revises restrictions regarding persons less than 21 years old being allowed in a building which sells alcohol. This allows those less than 21 to enter bars and taverns but can only sit in areas serving food, they would not be allowed to sit at the bar. Those under 21 would not be allowed in liquor stores unless accompanied by someone who is of legal drinking age.

Ordinance 17-06 passed on second reading. The ordinance changes the licensing for a liquor establishment from licensing a dispensing room to simply licensing the building.

Each of these changes is designed to bring the city in line with the amendments to state statutes made by the Wyoming Legislature.

Several resolutions were passed Tuesday, beginning with a resolution to ratify the execution of a pension agreement with the Wyoming Retirement System to cover all city employees. 

According to city officials, when the city moved to the Wyoming Retirement System, each department could choose if they wanted to participate. All but two departments chose to participate. Over the years, as departments have grown or diminished, the city has only three employees not participating and they want to be a part of the system. This resolution brings all departments into the system. It passed unanimously.

The council also formalized an agreement with the Uinta County Business Leadership Network (UCBLN) to provide office space for their program which facilitates the employment of job candidates with disabilities. UCBLN has been using the office space with assistance from the city but this resolution formalized what had been a “handshake” agreement.

The fairgrounds sewer project has faced delays. These delays have been caused by a variety of issues from weather, excessive groundwater, additional utilities and activities at the fairgrounds, requires the city to approve a change order to push back the completion date from Oct. 31 to Nov. 14. 

The original contract price was $387,154.50 but previous change orders have increased that cost by $93,163.50 to $480,318.

Evanston Police Lt. Ken Pearson spoke to the council regarding resolutions 17-76 and 17-77.

The FBI maintains the National Incident-Based Reporting system (NIBRS) and uses it to generate national crime estimates. It has recently announced that NIBRS will be the crime reporting standard for the nation and will expand on what crimes are reported and records kept.

The U.S. Department of Justice has awarded grant funds to the city to assist in paying for NIBRS in Evanston.

“We are happy the feds have provided this grant to upgrade to NIBRS,” said Lt. Pearson. “We can now enter into a contract to upgrade, meeting the FBI mandate.”

The cost of the upgrade is estimated to be $165,466 and is approved by the Office of Justice Programs.

The council approved the funding and the resolution to enter into a contract with Spillman Technologies to perform the upgrade and include first-year maintenance, project management and installation. They will also assist with training to ensure a smooth transition.

“We should get started sometime in mid-January to February,” said Lt. Pearson. “Then we will begin training. After the training we will seek approval by both the state and the feds. Once that is done we will operate for six months prior to receiving ratification.”

The final resolution of Tuesday’s council meeting was 17-78. The cost for the point of sale (POS) system used at the golf course recently increased significantly, from about $300 per month to more than $600. Purple Sage Golf Course has been looking for a replacement and proposed to enter into an agreement with EZ Links Golf LLC. 

The POS will cost $575 per month but should provide a host of services which should enhance business at the golf course.

The new system will provide an email marketing service, track golfer trends, host their website and provide development for the website and mobile device applications. It will also provide maps, remote training for employees and an accounting system interface. The resolution was passed by the council.