What happened
- Work session held April 23, 2024, 5:00 p.m. at Kenyon City Hall, single agenda topic: fire district townships
- Present: Mayor Doug Henke, Council Members Kim Helgeson, Molly Ryan, Mary Bailey; absent: Lee Sjolander
- Staff present: Administrative Assistant Holli Gudknecht, Public Works Superintendent Wayne Ehrich, Finance Director Whitney Kyllo
- Fire Chief Wayne Ehrich relayed issues brought to him by the fire district townships
- Two townships said they may move their Kenyon-served sections to neighboring departments
- Townships asked to see the budget before December and to have more say in how the money is spent
- Chief Ehrich presented the fire department's truck needs and a plan to pay for a needed tanker
- No dollar figures or formal fire-related actions were recorded at the work session
- Motion by Ryan, second by Bailey to adjourn at 5:41 p.m.; carried 4-0-0
What was asked 4 raised · 2 settled
Every question, assignment, pending figure and unsourced claim from this meeting, quoted from the record, each checked against the county, census, listing, bid and budget data we hold.
Two townships have stated they may move their township sections serviced by Kenyon to neighboring departments.
Work session discussion of issues raised by the fire district townships.
Neither township left. The Kenyon Fire Department service area still covered six townships when the 2025 contracts were reviewed in December 2024 and again when the 2026 contracts were reviewed in December 2025, on the same 51 percent city and 49 percent township split of the operating budget with each township's share set by the number of sections it has covered. The two townships that threatened to leave are never named in our record.
12.9.25 Council Agenda and Packet Updated; 12.10.24 Council Packet and Agenda Updated · taken up again 2025-12-09
Chief Ehrich presented the fire department's truck needs, a plan to pay for a needed tanker, and possible future plans.
Chief presented truck needs and a funding plan for a tanker during the work session.
The council approved the tanker purchase 5-0-0 on June 11 2024, on a Bailey motion seconded by Henke, against a quote from Midwest Fire for a 2025-26 tanker truck. The Kenyon Fire Relief Association donated $10,000 to cover the down payment reserving the build date, and by July 2024 the record shows $15,000 from the Relief Association in the tanker truck fund, with the chassis payment due on arrival and the truck due at the city in spring 2026. No total purchase price for the tanker appears anywhere in our record.
The June 2024 record puts the chassis payment due on arrival in spring 2025 while the July 2024 record has the truck arriving in spring 2026.
6.11.24 Council Packet and Agenda; 7.9.24 Council Packet Agenda · taken up again 2024-06-11
Two townships have stated they may move their township sections serviced by Kenyon to neighboring departments. The townships would like to see the budget before December and have more say in how the money is spent.
Township concerns over the fire budget process and spending authority.
The budget-timing half of the request was met in form: the city has held an annual fire contract meeting with the six townships to review the coming year's contracts, in December 2024 for the 2025 contracts and December 2025 for the 2026 contracts. The spending-authority half is not: the allocation formula stayed fixed at 51 percent city and 49 percent township with each township's share set by sections covered, and nothing in our record gives the townships a vote on how the money is spent. A revised fire service agreement would settle whether their role changed.
12.10.24 and 12.9.25 Council Packets, Fire Contract Meeting with Townships · taken up again 2025-12-09
Chief Ehrich presented the fire department's truck needs, a plan to pay for a needed tanker, and possible future plans.
Presentation of apparatus needs and future planning to the council work session.
No presentation materials, cost figures or apparatus timeline from the chief survive in our record. What is documented is the spending that followed: a tanker truck ordered in June 2024 for spring 2026 delivery, and before that a December 2023 purchase of self-contained breathing apparatus and a compressor from Alex Air Apparatus totalling $156,445, made up of $116,805 for the SCBA and $39,640 for the compressor. The city's broader capital needs went to a Northland Securities workshop on April 29 2025. The chief's handout would settle what the department asked for.
KENYON_BIDS.md, 2023-12-12 entry; 4-8-25 council packet
Decisions 1 motions
| Motion | Moved / seconded | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| Adjourn the meeting at 5:41 p.m. Motion | Ryan / Bailey | 4-0-0 |
Who did what
| Person | At this meeting |
|---|---|
| Doug Henke Mayor | Called the work session to order at 5:00 p.m. and presided; signed the minutes |
| Wayne Ehrich Public Works Superintendent and Kenyon Fire Department Chief | Discussed issues raised by the fire district townships and presented truck needs, a plan to pay for a needed tanker, and possible future plans |
| Molly Ryan Council Member | Moved to adjourn the meeting at 5:41 p.m. |
| Mary Bailey Council Member | Seconded the motion to adjourn |
| Kim Helgeson Council Member | Attended the work session |
| Lee Sjolander Council Member | Absent from the work session |
| Holli Gudknecht Administrative Assistant / Deputy City Clerk | Attended the work session, posted the agenda April 19, 2024, and signed the minutes |
| Whitney Kyllo Finance Director | Attended the work session |
Organizations named: City of Kenyon, Kenyon City Council, Kenyon Fire Department, fire district townships
Said at the meeting
Two townships have stated they may move their township sections serviced by Kenyon to neighboring departments.
Meeting minutes · minutes, verbatim
The townships would like to see the budget before December and have more say in how the money is spent.
Meeting minutes · minutes, verbatim
Chief Ehrich presented the fire department's truck needs, a plan to pay for a needed tanker, and possible future plans.
Meeting minutes · minutes, verbatim
Agenda
Each item links to where it appears in the packet.
Full packet text (0k characters)
The minutes
Official minutes as adopted, from 5-14-24 AGENDA(1); text extracted from the PDF.
Council Work Session was duly held in the City Council chambers at 5:00 p.m. on the 23rd day of April 2024.
- Present
- Mayor Doug Henke, Council Members: Kim Helgeson, Molly Ryan, Mary Bailey
- Absent
- Lee Sjolander
- Also present
- Administrative Assistant Holli Gudknecht, Public Works Superintendent Wayne Ehrich, Finance Director Whitney Kyllo
Mayor Henke called the work session to order at 5:00 pm.
Discuss Issues with the Fire District Townships
Kenyon Fire Department Chief, Wayne Ehrich, discussed issues that are being brought to him by the fire district townships. Two townships have stated they may move their township sections serviced by Kenyon to neighboring departments. The townships would like to see the budget before December and have more say in how the money is spent. Chief Ehrich presented the fire department's truck needs, a plan to pay for a needed tanker, and possible future plans.
Motion by Ryan, second by Bailey to adjourn the meeting at 5:41 p.m. Motion Carried 4-0-0
_______________________________ _____________________________________ Holli Gudknecht, Deputy City Clerk Douglas Henke, Mayor
Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a City