The Caliente City Council met July 18.

At the start of the meeting, Councilman Tommy Rowe was elected mayor pro tem.

Needing more information, the council tabled a variance on property for Russell Wells on his property on Denton Heights and Steve Sendlein’s garage on his property on MacArthur Drive.

Transfer of ownership was conditionally approved for MJ Distribution C201, LLC, and MJ Distribution P132, LLC, to Vireo Health of Nevada, LLC, operating out of Minnesota. The State of Nevada requires local approval prior to state approval for transfer of ownership. The condition will be satisfied upon the state’s final approval.

Ty and Melissa Mizer were approved for a boundary line adjustment and merger of parcels numbered 003-02-106 & 003-02-107. Councilman Tommy Rowe abstained from voting as he is Melissa’s uncle.

Clark Eustis requested and was approved a lease of room six in the Depot.

The Kokopelli ATV Club of Mesquite requested the purchase and placement of a two-panel kiosk on Clock Tower Island, the grassy area next to where Highway 93 turns north. Once the kiosk is installed it will become the property and responsibility of the city.

Sheryl Johnson stated, “As a home and business owner behind that grassy area, I’m not interested in having it there. I feel there is a safety issue with traffic blocking the businesses and it would be hard for motorhomes to get in there to read the information.”

The OHV Commission will hold its summit meeting in Caliente Oct. 31-Nov. 2.

Creation of a beautification sub-committee for the Depot Grant Rehabilitation was tabled until after the Beautification Committee can meet to further discuss the matter.

City employee attendance to assorted POOL PACT conferences was approved, as well as the use of the city car.

Councilman FitzSimons talked to the owners of the SnoCone Shack. The new owners had not been advised about the fee for use of the power for that location and are more than willing to pay for the time they have been there. FitzSimons noted that Cole Bradshaw, who owns the coffee cart across the Street, runs a generator and is interested in the idea of using the power by the SnoCone shack even though he’d need to move his cart.

City attorney Dean Katschke pointed out that Bradshaw’s coffee cart operates year round, while the SnoCone Shack is only in business a few months a year. Bradshaw would need to make room for seasonal vendors.

Sheryl Johnson reminded people that it’s a small area with limited parking spots for customers who frequent the businesses.

Mayor Steve Rowe suggested that city might install a power box with a meter, but Bradshaw would need to discuss that with his landlord.

A motion was carried to send an invoice to the SnoCone Shack for $62.50, for the months of June, July and prorated for August, and for the council to look into a contract and daily, weekly and monthly fees during the off-season.

A vote was also carried to keep the city office open Monday through Friday instead of having a four-day, ten-hour work week.

The council voted to try to hire someone through Work Force to assist with taking payments, task overflow and record reconciliation/organization.

Jacob Long was approved for training on how to answer phones, take utility payments and assist with short staffing/ lunch coverage at city hall.

Amanda Anderson, acting city clerk while MaryJo Shearer is out on maternity leave, was approved for a five percent “Working Out of Class” wage increase as outlined in the employee handbook.

The next city council meeting will be August 1 at 6 p.m.

The planning commission will meet July 31 at 5 p.m.

Room Tax Board

The Caliente Room Tax Board, an advisory board for the city council, met July 19 at 3:30 p.m.

Kathy Cook requested and was approved for $2,000 from the Room Tax Fund for entertainment for the Lincoln County Fair.

Chardon Samson asked for a donation of $890 to pay the insurance on the Olsen Senior Center but the motion died for lack of a second.

Samson’s request will be on the agenda for the August 1 council meeting

Planning Meeting

The Caliente Planning Meeting was held July 17.

The committee welcomed Keith Comella to the group and appointed him chairperson. Russell Wells requested a variance for his property at 225 Denton Heights. This was put on hold so he can combine the three lots into one to build a home upon.

Steve Sendlein’s request to build a garage on the east side of his property line, located on MacArthur Drive, was denied. The planning committee required more information on the exact location.

Kokopelli ATV Club of Mesquite proposed the purchase and placement of a two-panel kiosk in the grassy area next to Highway 93, where the Clock Tower is located. Objections to this were safety issues and blocking local businesses. It was suggested that the kiosk be placed at the Industrial Park instead, where people in RVs can pull off safety to get the information. This was approved contingent on finding a location that could be agreed on.

Regen Gubbler requested the planning commission look into ideas for potential grant opportunities. Some of the suggestions included establishing a City of Caliente Recreation Program to include SafeKey and Intramural sports, adding a swimming pool cover, removing Denton Theater’s facade and creating an open space area, establishing small grants (up to $5,000) for locals to upgrade their exterior property facades and streets.

Other suggestions were hard shade covers for bleachers in ballparks, safety nets for ballparks, a splash pad, batting cages and a welcome center.

All suggestions are welcome from the public. The next planning meeting will be July 31, 5 p.m. at the Depot.