At their April 5 meeting, the Kimball City Council discussed the request by A.M. Maus & Son for a tax abatement amounting to approximately $40 over the next eight years. Maus plans an expansion project, and the abatement would exempt the expansion from their tax bill for the next eight years. There will be a public hearing on the Maus tax abatement request at the next council meeting, Monday, April 19. The tax abatement requested would be for taxes due to the city of Kimball only, not for county or school district taxes; these will be due on whatever the new tax assessment is. Representatives of the Kimball Express baseball team presented their plans for improvements to the baseball field and facilities. The council approved various projects so long as insurance and other requirements are met. If all goes according to plan, the baseball park will have its new scoreboard running, new flags and flag pole, a P.A. system, a crow’s nest above the dugout. Chris Jeppesen will again be the city’s coordinator of Kimball Days (which will be Aug. 13-15 this year). The council approved having fireworks again this year to kick off Kimball Days. On behalf of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Kimball, Tom Zipoy presented the plans for the new church (groundbreaking is scheduled for May 5, 2005) and inquired whether the city is still interested in purchasing the old church once it’s vacated. The council response was that it is indeed interested, but that it will need a lot of information before proceeding – especially where the funds will come from to purchase and renovate the building. The council will pursue matching grant funds that may be available for developing a comprehensive plan for Kimball. They also discussed the status of repairs to the Davis home, damaged when their home sewer line was connected to an inactive main last summer. The city’s insurance is no longer cooperating with the Davises who have now hired an attorney. City council meetings are the first and third Monday nights of each month and are always open to the public. The next regular meeting is 7 p.m. Monday, April 19. The city of Kimball assessment hearing will be at 6 p.m. Monday, April 12.
