MORAN Classrooms at Marmaton Valley USD 256s schools are about to become significantly more secure.
Moran Police Chief Shane Smith told City Council members Monday about the recent acquisition of 58 Nightlock devices, to be distributed throughout the district.
A Nightlock is a metal apparatus that affixes to a doors locking mechanism, with a separate metal insert that can be easily slid into place to prevent the door from being forced open by an intruder, Smith explained.
The Nightlocks were purchased with more than $500 from an Enbridge grant to the Marmaton Valley Parent Teacher Organization, with a $500 match from the city, Smith said.
Hopefully, we wont ever have to use them, Smith said.
Similar Nightlock devices are in place in Humboldts schools, he continued, and theyre very effective.
The inserts will be kept within easy access for teachers or administrators so they can be dropped into place within seconds. The only way to get through the door from the outside is with special tools that will be made available to emergency responders and school administrators.
Smith said the goal is to have the Nightlocks in place prior to the start of the 2019-20 school year, unless maintenance staff has enough time to install them over spring break.
COUNCIL members agreed the citys practice of allowing partial utility bill payment agreements does not need to change.
The city allows utility customers some leeway if they cannot pay their utility bills in full by the due date, Deputy City Clerk Taeler Carr said. The agreement must be made in writing, and the customer must have the bill paid in full by the end of the month. If a customer misses the extended deadline, their utilities are disconnected, and no extensions are allowed for a calendar year.
The question is, Carr asked, how often should the practice be allowed?
Carr told Council members three customers request partial payment agreements on a nearly monthly basis.
I dont think its a big issue, Mayor Phillip Merkel responded, noting the extensions allow customers to avoid earlier disconnections, and the subsequent reconnection fee of $75 for each service, water or electricity, which makes it even harder for them to pay.
Councilman Kris Smith agreed. The bills still have to be paid by the end of the month, he said.
COUNCIL members were pressed by Kay Lewis on their plans for the old Back 40 Antiques Store, which had been donated to the city by E.J. and Barb Siefker last year in order to convert the structure into a museum.
Merkel noted no decisions had been made on the building.
