Council grants exception for new daycare

Daycare center gets okay from council

McCOOK, Neb. — The McCook City Council approved a special exception Tuesday night at its regular meeting, so a daycare center can operate in a residential neighborhood.

Brittany “Bee” Samms was granted the special exception to operate “Bumble Bee’s Daycare” at 107 N. Cherokee. The exception was requested by Samms and the owner of the property, Edward Rockenfield.

McCook’s zoning ordinance allows daycare centers in residential medium density neighborhoods with a special exception. The McCook Planning Commission recommended to allow the special exception for Samms at its meeting prior to the council meeting Tuesday night.

The daycare would have between five and six children, operate during normal business hours and be closed on holidays, City Manager Nate Schneider told the council.

He said he received one phone call from a neighbor concerned about parking, but after talking to Samms, the caller’s question was answered satisfactorily, he said.

The council also approved on its second reading the increased fees for trash collection. The fees will increase to $23.25 from $22.75 per month for residential users and to $64 per ton from $63 per ton for commercial users. The rates will go into effect in October.

As a consent agenda item, the council approved the lowest bid of 78,927 from BSB Construction, Inc. for the West Fourth Street sewer main replacement. The other bid received came from Midlands Contracting Inc. of Kearney, Neb., for $100,165.

The eight-inch clay tile sewer main will be replaced with an eight-inch PVC main, located in the alley north of the city offices between West Fourth and West Fifth Streets, with 370 feet of sewer main replaced between existing manholes on D and E Streets.

The project is expected to take 21 days, with the completion of date of Dec. 31, 2018.

Also as a consent agenda item, the council approved filing the property damage claim to the city’s insurance company submitted by Logan Roepke. Roepke said in his claim that on Aug. 23 at 10:30 a.m. in front of Brookdale Retirement Center, he drove past a city employee mowing when a rock flew up and broke the passenger side window of the pickup truck he was driving.