The Broken Bow City Council met in Regular Session Tuesday evening, June 23. Mayor Rod Sonnichsen called the meeting to order at 6:00 PM in the Council Chambers of the Broken Bow Municipal Building. All members of the Council were present.
Electric Bike Ordinance Updated, Discussed
Ordinance 1311 updating City rules around the use of electric bicycles and similar vehicles in the downtown area once again received the majority of the Council’s attention this session. Council President Russ Smith, Member Travis Kleeb and City Administrator Dave Schmidt presented a handful of changes in response to comments at the June 9 Council Meeting and other feedback received outside of the meeting. Kleeb noted that the revisions were not completed until after the Council Agenda had already been published.
Kleeb stated that the changes were geared to clarifying that the restrictions were intended to target primarily youth riders, and that the ordinance was not designed to restrict adult riders. The updated ordinance presented now indicates no minor person without a motorcycle permit is allowed to ride an electric scooter, electric bicycle, or hoverboard on roads within Broken Bow city limits where the speed limit is more than 25 MPH, and restricts youth riders entirely in the downtown business area.
Adding the provision that a minor with a motorcycle license can operate an e-bike in these areas was intended to acknowledge that obtaining a license involves at least some level of proven understanding of the rules of the road, according to Smith.
The group went on to discuss a number of ways this age restriction should be framed, including what permits might allow a youth rider to use an e-bike on city streets, the limits of the downtown area that would see greater restrictions on riders, and how to define limits on where riders on the streets should ride. City Attorney Jason White provided input to clarify some items that might have been open to interpretation from a law enforcement standpoint.
Community member Christie Trumbull spoke to remind the council that while kids transiting the business district on the streets was concerning from a safety perspective, so were limits on the abilities of youth to move through the downtown area.
Given the ongoing updates, in the interest of full transparency, and to ensure meeting rules are observed Sonnichsen and White recommended that the council re-start the review period with a new ordinance at the next Council meeting. The Council voted against approval of Ordinance 1311 as currently presented; a new version of the ordinance will be taken up for consideration at the July 14 City Council meeting.
Other Council Actions
The final public hearing for Ordinance 1309 was held during Tuesday evening’s meeting. First introduced in the May 26 City Council meeting, the ordinance will increase electric rates for City electric customers. The 4% increase to customers is a result of a 5% increase seen by the city from its electric wholesaler, and is designed to level the price structure for the City’s rural customers.
No additional comments were brought to the Council for or against the change, and the group voted unanimously to approve the ordinance increasing electric rates.
Kyle Finney was appointed to the Broken Bow Airport Authority Board with a term ending in June 2032. Mike Garner, Breanna Kaup, and Rachel Schmidt were re-appointed to seats on the Broken Bow Library Board with their terms ending February 2030.
During the Council Comments period Kleeb asked if changes could be made to improve site-lines at the corner 10th and D Streets, recommending changes to parking to improve safety at the intersection. White noted that if changes were made to that location, several other intersections would likely need to be considered for updates as well.
Sonnichsen stated that while the issue could be added to a future agenda for detailed discussion, it would be good to bring in Broken Bow Police Chief Chris Anderson, as well as the City’s engineering firm JEO Consulting for input on the question.
With no further business before the Council, the meeting of the Broken Bow City Council adjourned at 7:06 PM. The next meeting of the Broken Bow City Council will be July 14 at 6:00 PM, at the Broken Bow Municipal Building.
