Votes at a glance: Pullman council approves Hopkins Court vacation, purchase-card update, ChargePoint chargers and several consent items

The Pullman City Council approved several formal actions at its Jan. 28 meeting, including an ordinance to vacate a portion of Hopkins Court, a resolution updating city purchase-card policies, a contract for three electric bus chargers and the confirmation of a new fire chief. The consent agenda — encompassing routine minutes, multiple disbursement approvals, a transfer to the CIP reserve fund, acceptance of a completed construction contract, authorization of a contract with Spin for electric scooters and bicycles, and a rules-of-procedure resolution — was also approved in a single motion.

Quick summary of formal outcomes

- Hopkins Court/Andrus Drive vacation (Ordinance No. 25-1): Council adopted Ordinance 25-1 vacating approximately 5,544 square feet of right-of-way adjacent to Lot 45 of the Port of Whitman County Industrial Park Subdivision No. 2. Staff advised that a 60-foot right-of-way would remain, utility easements and a pedestrian-access easement would be retained, and because the dedication occurred less than 25 years ago the compensation rate is set at 50% of appraised value. The ordinance passed on voice vote with no recorded dissent.

- Purchase card policy update (Resolution R-03-25): The council adopted Resolution R-03-25, updating the city’s purchase-card policies to align with State Auditor suggestions. Changes include revised card limits, updated restrictions and a new cardholder responsibility section; the motion passed on a voice vote.

- Electric bus chargers (procurement via national contract): Council approved a motion to accept ChargePoint’s quote (contract 042221-CPI) for three electric bus chargers to be installed at the transit garage this spring and paired with three incoming electric buses. The chargers include a five-year warranty, onsite inspection and cloud services; the motion passed on voice vote.

- Confirmation of Brett Nash as fire chief: Council moved and approved the confirmation of Brett Nash as the city’s fire chief; Nash was not present at the meeting and is scheduled for swearing in at the next council meeting. The motion to confirm passed on voice vote.

- Consent agenda: Items approved on the consent agenda included: approval of Jan. 14, 2025 minutes; multiple accounts payable disbursements (three check runs and payroll/electronic transfers totaling more than $4.9 million combined); transfer of sales tax revenue of $416,755 to the CIP reserve fund for Q4 2024; acceptance of the Teraview and Crestview Pass contract as complete; authorization of a Spin contract for scooters and bicycles through Dec. 31, 2025; and Resolution R-02-25 updating council meeting times and rules of procedure for a limited February–April 2025 schedule.

How council described each vote

City staff presented background information on each item before council action. For the Hopkins Court vacation, the city surveyor explained the area is part of an obsolete turnaround and that utilities and pedestrian access easements would be retained. For the ChargePoint purchase, transit staff noted prior upgrades to the transit facility (a new transformer and breaker capable of supporting up to eight chargers) and said the purchase represents chargers 4–6 in that system. Finance staff said the purchase-card policy update responded to a State Auditor recommendation and would be accompanied by updated staff training.

Record of motions and outcomes

All the above votes were taken by voice vote with no recorded opposition noted in the meeting transcript. Where the council had previously taken formal steps (e.g., Planning Commission review for the vacation), staff noted those actions on the record.

Ending

Council members and staff described next steps for implementation — executing the ChargePoint contract and proceeding with design/installation; preparing the ordinance paperwork for the Hopkins Court vacation; rolling out purchase-card training; and scheduling Brett Nash’s swearing-in at the next council meeting.