Village of Brainard Board of Trustees
- Joel Vrbka, Chairman of the Board
- Jeff Karber, Board of Trustee
- Randy Robeson, Board of Trustee
- Tom Pesek, Board of Trustee
- Steve Hummel, Board of Trustee
The Village Board of Trustees meet on the third Monday of every month at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall located at 111 East Washington Street Brainard, NE. If you have a specific topic item you would like the Village of Brainard Board of Trustees to discuss, submit a Request for Future Agenda Items.
Village of Brainard Staff
Mitchell Janak, Utilities Superintendent, 402-803-9218
Carla Sander, Village Treasurer, 402-545-2701
Yolanda Bailey, Village Clerk, 402-545-2701
The Village of Brainard
Board of Trustees Board Meeting Minutes
May 19, 2025
The Board of Trustees of the Village of Brainard held a regular meeting on May 19, 2025 at 7:00 P.M. at City Hall. The meeting notice and agenda were posted at three public places: City Hall, the Community Bulletin Board, and the Brainard Post Office. The agenda is kept current at the City Clerk’s Office and available for public inspection. This method is designated by the public body.
Chair Vrbka called the meeting to order.
Roll Call: present: Joel Vrbka, Steve Hummel, Jeff Karber, Tom Pesek, and Randy Robeson.
Staff Present: Treasurer Sander, Clerk Bailey, and Maintenance Supervisor Janak
Guests included: Brian Foral, Elaine Fortik, Madison Dewitt, Valerie Vandenberg, Dave Foral, Chris Grooms, Dane Simonsen, and Brittany Lozgodski.
Public Comments:. Valerie Vandenberg reports there was damage to the dugout roof at the ballfield due to a recent storm. They looked at the Lease Agreement, and the Village owns the dugout. Dave Foral came and got the roof out of the road and ratchet-strapped the piece that was left back on. It is dangerous and both the roofs need to be fixed, as they were not built correctly the first time. There needs to be something bolted into cement to be more secure. Dave Foral will give us a few quotes on a repair, and it can go on the June Agenda.
The Ballfield is getting new sidewalks, and as a result, the barrier from the parking lot to the fence will have to be cut with the right corners. They are going to wait until the season is over to do these projects.
Business:
- 4. Business:
- a. Manager report for Pool – Discuss Membership Fees-among other items- with Madison Dewitt.
- It was decided to not raise the membership prices. Discussion begins on purchasing concessions and where we will be getting them. Cash-Wa was looked into, and they are quite a bit more expensive than Sam’s Club. It was brought to the Trustees attention that the lounge chairs at the pool are in bad shape, and we need to purchase at least 10 more. It was decided to look into Amazon and Sam’s Club delivery as possibilities for Pool Concessions. Trustee Pesek reports they have found a new Lifeguard for the season. They would like to hire Jonathan Kunasek.
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to hire Jonathan Kunasek as a Lifeguard, seconded by Trustee Hummel.
- Ayes: Robeson, Hummel, Karber, Pesek, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- b. Discuss w/ Dane Simonsen of JEO the Water Funding Package Proposal.
- Dane begins the discussion on the proposed water projects and the funding proposals we have received regarding same. The process actually started over 1 ½ years ago. The initial project was a big one, encompassing the entire water system, and it turned out the quote for funding we received would result in utility bills going up a great deal, too high for residents. Dane went back to the funding table and investigated if we could cut the project back to something smaller, which would be more reasonable for residents, while still continuing to upgrade infrastructure. He presented three smaller projects to the agencies. The offers were updated by USDA and SRF, and we received a letter with the funding options on May 13, 2025.
- The funding options they came back with do not have any grants or subsidies; they do have some different timelines and interest rates. SRF has an estimated user rate of $59.00 per month, and the USDA would be a little lower, at roughly $47.00 per month. The USDA loan is for a longer term, but has a higher interest rate. At this point the Board has to decide what they want to do going forward; choose one of the Agencies, taking a look at how large of a project you want to take on at this time. If you wanted to reduce the amount – even by half – he is confident the Village would still get the same terms. The next step would be for the Community to reply back to this letter, and to whatever agency the Board decides to go with. If the project is going to be changed or reduced, that will have to be decided soon. That agency will then draw up a loan-agreement, and that will get the funding in place. Tonight, we need to decide on which Agency to go with for funding. The next step would be to prioritize which part of the water main has the most problems and needs to be replaced. Lincoln street was discussed as having a significant number of problems. Dane explains you could decide on three projects, but have them done one at a time – adding to the loan as you go. JEO could give us engineering estimates on all the projects and keep them on file until we decide to begin each one – if it’s within 5 years.
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to go with the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy, (SRF) for funding, seconded by Trustee Hummel.
- Ayes: Robeson, Hummel, Karber, Pesek, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- c. Consider 1 to 1 Technologies Virtual Private Network and Managed Solutions contract with Representative.
- Brittany Lozgodski from 1 to 1 Technologies in Central City hands out a brochure describing their services. We are hiring them to set-up a VPN and Firewall. After the initial cost for this of $1,499.99, there is a regular monthly fee of $140.00 to maintain the system. For an additional $140 per month, they can provide security protection, regular backups to the Cloud, and unlimited tech support for hardware and software. For this, remote help is free. On-site help does have a fee, but there is a discount. To be clear, they want us to know if they need to come to the office to set up the Virtual Private Network and Firewall, there will be an additional charge.
- Trustee Pesek makes a motion to accept the proposal from 1 to 1 Technologies for Firewall and Virtual Private Network setup and ongoing technical support for $1,499.99; plus an additional $280 per month, and on-site setup charge, seconded by Trustee Karber.
- Ayes: Pesek, Karber, Robeson, Hummel, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- d. Consider a Fireworks Vendor Permit Application.
- Discussion on the permit, and how it needs to be edited to reflect the amount of Liability Insurance that is needed: at least $1 million. This year the Fireworks stand is being moved from its previous location to 223 N. Madison.
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to accept the Fireworks Vendor Permit for Tim Pelan, seconded by Trustee Pesek.
- Ayes: Robeson, Pesek, Hummel, Karber, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- e. Discuss and finalize street closures for the Car Show and Private event.
- Discussion on Car Show and Private event being held from July 12 – July 13, 2025. Some of the streets are changed because of the potential construction on the drainage project by the school.
- Trustee Vrbka makes a motion to close Madison Street between Jefferson and Lowell, leaving those intersections open, with Washington, Hamilton, and Adams Sts. being closed from alley-to-alley, seconded by Trustee Robeson.
- Ayes: Vrbka, Robeson, Hummel, Karber, and Pesek.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- f. Discuss Liquor License for Private Event.
- Trustee Hummel makes a motion to approve the Specific Designated Liquor License for Husker Bar III, from 8 am July 12th, 2025, to 8 pm July 13th, 2025, for a wedding reception and the Car Show, seconded by Trustee Karber.
- Ayes: Hummel, Karber, Robeson, Pesek, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- g. Consider closing Washington St. for Fire Dept. Street Dance, and Liquor License for same.
- Motion made by Trustee Pesek to approve the SDL for the Fire Dept., and closing Washington Street from the alley between City Hall and Classic Cuts, east to Lincoln Street from 3 pm on July 11th, 2025, to 2 am on July 12th, 2025, seconded by Trustee Robeson.
- Ayes: Pesek, Robeson, Hummel, Karber, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to approve a Special Designated Liquor License for The Brainard Fire Department Street Dance from 4 pm July 11th, 2025 to 2 am July 12, 2025, seconded by Trustee Karber.
- Ayes: Robeson, Hummel, Karber, Pesek, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- h. Consider Hot Spot Monthly Fee for use in ambulance.
- Discussion on the ongoing issues with connecting a computer to the Ambulance. The service will cost $40 per month.
- Trustee Hummel makes a motion to approve getting a “Hot Spot” and adding it to the Village Verizon Plan for 2 years, seconded by Trustee Karber.
- Ayes: Hummel, Karber, Robeson, Pesek, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- i. Consider Water Rate-Study which would be performed by NE Rural Water Assoc.
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to approve the Rate Study by NE Rural Water Assoc., seconded by Trustee Pesek.
- Ayes: Robeson, Pesek, Hummel, Karber, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- j. Consider purchasing 10 trees for Village from the Great Plains Nursery.
- These will be Red Oak and Maple trees. They are being pickup up on May 20, 2025. There has been a request by a resident at 124 E. Jefferson for a new Village tree.
- Trustee Vrbka makes a motion to purchase 10 trees from the Great Plains Nursery, seconded by Trustee Pesek.
- Ayes: Vrbka, Pesek, Robeson, Hummel, and Karber.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- k. Consider purchasing a generator for Fire Hall and Legion.
- This item was tabled until a future date.
- l. Consider Ordinance #318, Approving Rates for the Use of Utilities.
- It was decided to raise the Facility fees of the Electric and Water service by $2.00 for each meter, due to the cost of implementing and running the new meter-reading system.
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to Introduce Ordinance #318, seconded by Trustee Pesek.
- Ayes: Robeson, Hummel, Karber, Pesek, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- Ordinance #318 is read aloud by Joel Vrbka.
- Trustee Pesek makes a motion to Accept the Reading of Ord. #318, and waive the 2nd and 3rd readings, seconded by Trustee Hummel.
- Ayes: Pesek, Hummel, Robeson, Karber, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- Trustee Pesek makes a motion to Adopt Ordinance #318, seconded by Trustee Karber.
- Ayes: Pesek, Karber, Robeson, Hummel, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- The Ordinance will be activated at the next billing. Power Manager will have to be called to make adjustments to the software before then.
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to Introduce Ordinance #318, seconded by Trustee Pesek.
- It was decided to raise the Facility fees of the Electric and Water service by $2.00 for each meter, due to the cost of implementing and running the new meter-reading system.
- m. Re-consider Crack-Sealing contract from Midwest Coatings.
- Discussion on the crack-sealing contract with Midwest Coatings, and how the job was not done when it was still cold. It would not be effective to do the sealing now, as it has warmed up and the cracks have closed up.
- Trustee Vrbka makes a motion to suspend Crack-Sealing until next Spring, seconded by Trustee Robeson.
- Ayes: Vrbka, Robeson, Hummel, Karber, and Pesek.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- 5. Approve minutes for April 21, 2025 meeting.
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to approve the April 21st minutes, seconded by Trustee Karber.
- Ayes: Robeson, Hummel, Karber, Pesek, and Vrbka.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- 6. Consider May claims.
- Trustee Vrbka makes a motion to pay May claims, seconded by Trustee Hummel.
- Ayes: Vrbka, Robeson, Hummel, Karber, and Pesek.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried
- 7. Committee Reports.
- Discussion on the transformers by Trustee Hummel, and the transformers are getting old and it’s getting hard to find parts for them. We need to begin upgrading transformers soon, there are possibly 40 that need replacement. Hummel will work on getting a quote for a bulk order, and then we can begin replacing them every year.
- 8. Employee Reports.
- May 2025 Clerk Report—Yolanda Bailey
- An update on the SENDD Survey is in your packet. There is a printout of several emails between myself and James Owens of SENDD. There is also a sample income survey for you to review.
- Regarding the light pole that was damaged, I was sending invoices to the Sheriff for the claim, but it turns out we need to submit the claim to the delivery person’s insurance company. Right now, I am not sure who that is. We need to work on getting this submitted.
- The internet has been acting up during the last month. I called Windstream and they came out last week. They told Carla they couldn’t replace the Router because the type we have would be needed for the VPN, and they didn’t have any of those on hand, and there is a shortage. The Internet still needs to be reset daily. I could call Winstream again, but I am not sure what course to take to fix this problem if they can’t replace the Router.
- I received a call from the Resident at 324 N Lincoln, and he wants the Board to know that he is letting his grass at his house go to seed for one month, in order to re-seed the lawn. He also wanted the Board to know his daughter is working on getting rid of the junk cars on his lot.
- Norman Bruner came in to the office and was inquiring about the Village deeding back the land to property owners’ behind the buildings on Washington Street. He was asking if there was a survey done and if there has been any movement on this issue.
- There is a resident at 124 E Jefferson St. that is asking for the Village to replace at least one of the two trees by her house that were taken down.
- First NE Bank dropped off a copy of our EMC Insurance Policy.
- Mitch Janak: Utility Supervisor Report
- Janak reports the pool is doing well after being filled for the season, the softener and filters are working and everything is going well so far. He has caulked, and is planning on applying a coating to the slide landing to smooth the surface out. The electrodes on the new filter needs yearly cleaning, and Scott will come out and do that.
- There are some posts at Evergreen that need replacing.
- Discussion on some trees that need to be removed. One at the end of the Alley (too close to power lines) one across from the Legion (too close to the well house), and still another: 512 S Lincoln St. It was decided the Tree Board should go around and make a new list, so we can get some bids on the ones the Village can’t handle.
- The new truck might be here in 2 weeks or so. Viking is sending some workers to town on the 29th, to look at and talk about the Water Tower, and Mitch would like a couple of Board members to be there.
- April Treasurer Report: Carla Sander
- A profit and loss report since Jan 2025 has been provided. Positive projections in all classes, except the general due to audit and engineering costs. An invoice to East Butler School for $9750 was sent for half the engineering cost associated with the drainage project and this will recoup the general class. The sever bond is due in June for $23,120 (on claims). The sewer fund has $31,086.68 since the last payment, therefore, has sufficient funds for this payment.
- The bank account balance report is provided in the Board packets. An increase of $16,664.42 in bank deposits since April is reported.
- An April employee pay report is provided in the Board reports. A decrease of $2,250.76 as March was a three pay period.
- Collection Report- 19 overdue utility bills, 2 more than in April. Shut offs went out 5/16/25, shut offs will be due on 5/27/25, therefore, Shut offs will take place on 5/28/25. There is 2 past due accounts where utilities are off and no reconnection fees paid. Liens has been filed on both properties.
- Pool Donation report enclosed. 6. Village insurance is due. The premium increased $3,306 from last year.
- May 2025 Clerk Report—Yolanda Bailey
- 10. Petitions, Communications, Correspondence.
- Waste Connections missed quite a few pickups last week. Trustee Vrbka called them and asked them about it – they had lots of excuses. It has been getting worse every month. Discussion on looking into another company.
- The contract will be up in April of 2026. It’s in the contract that they need to give us 2 months notice before they raise their rates.
- 11. Additional Business/Items for next meeting.
- Quote for the Dugout Roof repair from Dave Foral.
- JEO – engineering bid
- Diane Vanderslice – Insurance quote Spark – transformers
- 12. Adjournment.
- Trustee Robeson makes a motion to adjourn at 9:02 pm, seconded by Trustee Karber.
- Ayes: Robeson, Karber, Vrbka, Pesek, and Hummel.
- Nays: none
- The motion carried