OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Kearney City Council Meeting - January 13, 2026

City CouncilTuesday, January 13, 2026
BodyKearney, Nebraska
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, January 13, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record

STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE

Transcript — Verbatim
0:07

Okay, we'd like to thank the members of the Carney Police Department Honor Guard for presenting the colors this evening.

0:12

Please join us in the Pledge of Allegiance.

0:19

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which one nation under the flag indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

0:38

Can be seated.

0:40

We will uh have a really special event here tonight.

0:44

It's always great to see members of law enforcement here and the family of law enforcement that come together to celebrate each other.

0:50

So I'm gonna ask Chief Excuse me.

0:53

I'm gonna ask Chief Qualic up to give a few remarks, and counsel will go ahead and step down from the I'm sorry, Chief.

1:05

Got thrown by my accordance with section 8414 of 12 of the Nebraska revised statutes.

1:12

A current copy of the Open Meetings Act is available for review and is posted on the wall of the council chambers.

1:16

Peggy, please take roll.

1:18

Mayor Nicolette.

1:19

Here Bush Cutter Moore.

1:22

Here Schmidt Stratman.

1:24

Here at this time, we'll ask Chief Qualk to come up and invite um police sergeants Derek Hosick and Austin Hubbard up for a few remarks followed by the oath of office and badge pain.

1:35

Thank you.

1:36

Thank you, Mayor.

1:37

If uh Sergeant Mosek and Sergeant Here would like to come up there.

1:41

Okay.

1:42

Awesome.

1:43

Um before I say it on already.

1:45

So thank you for everybody coming here tonight.

1:49

Uh we get a celebrate these two hardworking individuals on their accomplishment today.

1:54

It's just awesome here to be surrounded by family, uh, friends, also all the law enforcement that's in the room as well to just so show uh their support to you guys.

2:04

Um, you know, uh here, Austin here, Sergeant Hebert, he's joined here by his wife Monica and his two children, uh Melanie and Carter, and then Sergeant Posa Care with his girlfriend Pope and parents, and we just really appreciate that you guys are here because this really is a family celebration, a family event, and it is a big deal.

2:26

Um so when we're looking at promote people, we're always looking at what we call it the three C's.

2:31

You know, we're looking at competency, we're looking at culture, we're looking at character, and we really feel like it's very important as a department that we're hiring the right people and that we're promoting the right people.

2:42

And we really feel like we are promoting the right sergeants here.

2:45

They have such influence on the culture of our department and mentoring officers.

2:51

They will um supervise as sergeants anywhere from five to thirteen, and they just have that daily contact, that daily influence, reading reports, helping them out with cases, and they really just guide those officers throughout their career.

3:06

Officers will always remember their sergeants that they had that they have their grief by and that they have daily contact with.

3:12

Again, go through the three C's, you know, when you talk about competency.

3:15

Um these individuals are extremely intelligent.

3:18

Um they both have college degrees.

3:20

Officer or Sergeant Hebrew, um, he's our case law expert.

3:24

Every week he puts out a um a message out to the officers about current case law, things that we need to be updated on, very important to us.

3:32

Um FTO, uh police officer in charge, he's our emergency service unit, um, commander, or I'm sorry, uh team leader, where when we have a higher situation, we often um we uh often will um trust his judgment, his decision making um to keep officers safe and keep the community safe.

3:52

So heavily rely on that.

3:54

Um Sergeant Hosick, he comes from uh he has a history with uh the actress police department where he's actually a sergeant previously, uh K9 handler, uh SWAT team member as well.

4:05

Uh and then when he came here um within the last three years at KPB um just excelled uh doing drone operator motorcycle uh operations and also very heavily involved with community engagement.

4:18

So for them to uh relay that information, share that information with uh the the people they will uh need is just very very valuable.

4:27

Um also you talk about character, you want to be uh promoting the right guys that have moral integrity, guys that will take ownership over mistakes, learn from mistakes, not blame others, and realize that they are there for the individuals uh that they supervise that those individuals are not there for them, and just really being selfless and doing the right things.

4:48

Then lastly, you talk about culture, Carney Police Department.

4:51

Uh we have a high um drive and are very passionate about what we do and we want to be doing a good job.

5:00

And it's very important that we have the right supervisors teaching that to the officers that that again they have daily contact with.

5:07

We want a culture where we're promoting uh community trust, public trust, and also um uh public safety, uh community safety.

5:16

We want to be doing those two things.

5:17

And we already explained their tactical backgrounds, uh, where they're both ESU members and compete for community safe, also they are heavily involved with community engagement as I discussed earlier.

5:28

Um Sergeant Pose, he's heavily involved with Special Epics Nebraska and uh Sergeant Hibbert, you've often seen them at all our community engagement events, um involved at the schools, and it's just very important that they teach officers that same philosophy.

5:43

So very excited to get both these individuals working as uh sergeants and just leading shifts and just very proud of both their accomplishments.

5:54

Um it's neat to see that both these individuals are carnivids that grew up here, Carnegie High School.

6:01

Uh Sergeant Hebard stuck around and went to UNK uh and then he worked for the sheriff's office as a jailer and then came to KPD back in 2019, and Sergeant Hose went to UNL, graduated, uh started uh was with the Beatrice Police Department, then came over to Carney PD, and both of them really truly care about this community and the citizens and what they do.

6:24

They have a lot of pride in what they do, and I know they're gonna do big things, and very excited for them.

6:29

So anyway, on behalf of the community, Carney Police Department, I want to congratulate both you guys now to your vocal office.

6:55

I do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States.

7:03

Of the United States.

7:05

And the Constitution of the State of Nebraska.

7:10

Against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

7:14

Foreign and domestic.

7:15

That I will bear true faith.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning and Land Use█████████████████████████████████████████████57%
Procedural██████████13%
Public Safety█████████11%
Engineering And Infrastructure██████7%
Community Engagement████5%
Affordable Housing██3%
Budget Equity Analysis1%
Public Engagement1%
Cannabis Regulation1%
Summary of Proceedings

Kearney City Council Meeting - January 13, 2026

The Kearney City Council met on January 13, 2026, at 5:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. The meeting included a recognition ceremony for police sergeants, numerous public hearings on zoning, land use, and code amendments, and approval of consent agenda items. Key topics included the approval of the Oldfather First Addition development, a discussion on proposed short-term rental regulations, and a decision to postpone action on the code amendments.

Recognition Ceremony

  • Police Chief Qualk recognized the promotions of Sergeant Derrick Hosick and Sergeant Austin Hibberd. Both officers were sworn in and received their badges. The chief highlighted their competency, character, and contributions to the police department and community.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the minutes of the regular meetings on December 9, 2025, and December 16, 2025.
  • Approved the claims.
  • Reappointed Jonathan Nikkila to the Visit Kearney Board, appointed Kurt Schmidt and Tami James Moore to the Buffalo County Economic Development Council, and appointed Tami James Moore, Alex Straatmann, and Chuck Ogle to the Joint Airport Zoning Board.
  • Adopted Resolution No. 2026-6 reappointing city employee Brandon Shafto as City Street Superintendent for 2026.
  • Approved Resolution No. 2026-7 authorizing use of NorthWestern Energy funds to offset construction costs for an approximately 12,000 square foot aircraft maintenance facility at Kearney Regional Airport for Vertical Lift Maintenance Solutions, LLC.
  • Accepted the bid for the 2025 Part 4 Improvements (Box Butte) and adopted Resolution No. 2026-8 awarding the contract to Midlands Contracting, Inc. in the amount of $2,876,284.50, contingent upon EDA approval.
  • Authorized the Mayor to send a letter of no recommendation to the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission for a Class D liquor license and manager application for The Cigarette Store LLC dba Smoker Friendly 014.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Tim Sinner, a local property owner, expressed concerns about the proposed short-term rental regulations. He argued that the new permits, fees, and penalties apply selectively to short-term rentals while long-term rentals and hotels are not similarly regulated. He questioned the complaint-driven enforcement and noted that short-term rental owners are local residents trying to afford their homes.
  • Tyler Wiltering, a property owner with Airbnbs, raised concerns about the cost of compliance (fees and occupancy tax) and the potential for non-compliant operators to undercut responsible owners. He also advocated for occupancy limits based on property size rather than a hard cap.
  • An additional speaker asked about the requirement for board of adjustment approval for downtown residential conversions and whether HOA protections would be in place.

Discussion Items

  • Public hearings 1–10 were conducted. Hearings 1 (utility easement vacation), 2 (rezoning to AG), 3–7 (Oldfather First Addition: land use map amendments, rezoning, final plat, and annexation), and 10 (permanent right-of-way easement) were closed and approved unanimously.
  • Public hearings 8 and 9 (proposed code amendments to Chapter 12 and Chapter 46 regarding downtown residential uses and short-term rental regulations) were discussed extensively. City Planner Melissa Doherty O'Hara presented the proposed changes, which would allow adaptive reuse of one-story downtown buildings for residential use (up to 40%), require commercial use on street-facing facades, and establish a licensing and permitting system for short-term rentals. Council members raised questions about fees, inspections, enforcement, occupancy limits, and the collection of hotel occupation tax. Several council members expressed a desire for further review and public input.
  • Council members discussed the need for consistency in regulation across housing types and the importance of education for short-term rental operators.

Key Outcomes

  • Public Hearing 1: Approved Ordinance No. 8777 vacating a 10' x 890' utility easement for OE Engines, LLC. (Unanimous)
  • Public Hearing 2: Approved Ordinance No. 8778 rezoning a parcel from R-1 to AG for NP Land Development, Inc. (Unanimous)
  • Public Hearing 3: Approved Resolution No. 2026-1 amending the Land Use Map to MU2 for a portion of the Oldfather First Addition. (Unanimous)
  • Public Hearing 4: Approved Resolution No. 2026-2 amending the Land Use Map to MU1 for another portion. (Unanimous)
  • Public Hearing 5: Approved Ordinance No. 8779 rezoning from AG to BP for the Oldfather First Addition. (Unanimous)
  • Public Hearing 6: Approved Resolution No. 2026-3 approving the final plat and subdivision agreement for Oldfather First Addition. (Unanimous)
  • Public Hearing 7: Approved Resolution No. 2026-4 approving the annexation of Oldfather First Addition. (Unanimous)
  • Public Hearings 8 and 9: Motion to postpone action on the proposed code amendments (Ordinance No. 8780 and 8781) to the January 27, 2026, City Council meeting. Passed on a roll call vote (Mayor Nikkila, Stratman, Bushcutter, Moore, Schmidt all in favor).
  • Public Hearing 10: Approved Resolution No. 2026-5 for a permanent right-of-way easement from Gary L. Henderson for Box Butte development. (Unanimous)
  • Consent agenda items 1–7 approved as a block.
  • The meeting adjourned after council reports.

Meeting Transcript

Okay, we'd like to thank the members of the Carney Police Department Honor Guard for presenting the colors this evening. Please join us in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which one nation under the flag indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Can be seated. We will uh have a really special event here tonight. It's always great to see members of law enforcement here and the family of law enforcement that come together to celebrate each other. So I'm gonna ask Chief Excuse me. I'm gonna ask Chief Qualic up to give a few remarks, and counsel will go ahead and step down from the I'm sorry, Chief. Got thrown by my accordance with section 8414 of 12 of the Nebraska revised statutes. A current copy of the Open Meetings Act is available for review and is posted on the wall of the council chambers. Peggy, please take roll. Mayor Nicolette. Here Bush Cutter Moore. Here Schmidt Stratman. Here at this time, we'll ask Chief Qualk to come up and invite um police sergeants Derek Hosick and Austin Hubbard up for a few remarks followed by the oath of office and badge pain. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. If uh Sergeant Mosek and Sergeant Here would like to come up there. Okay. Awesome. Um before I say it on already. So thank you for everybody coming here tonight. Uh we get a celebrate these two hardworking individuals on their accomplishment today. It's just awesome here to be surrounded by family, uh, friends, also all the law enforcement that's in the room as well to just so show uh their support to you guys. Um, you know, uh here, Austin here, Sergeant Hebert, he's joined here by his wife Monica and his two children, uh Melanie and Carter, and then Sergeant Posa Care with his girlfriend Pope and parents, and we just really appreciate that you guys are here because this really is a family celebration, a family event, and it is a big deal. Um so when we're looking at promote people, we're always looking at what we call it the three C's. You know, we're looking at competency, we're looking at culture, we're looking at character, and we really feel like it's very important as a department that we're hiring the right people and that we're promoting the right people. And we really feel like we are promoting the right sergeants here. They have such influence on the culture of our department and mentoring officers. They will um supervise as sergeants anywhere from five to thirteen, and they just have that daily contact, that daily influence, reading reports, helping them out with cases, and they really just guide those officers throughout their career. Officers will always remember their sergeants that they had that they have their grief by and that they have daily contact with. Again, go through the three C's, you know, when you talk about competency. Um these individuals are extremely intelligent. Um they both have college degrees. Officer or Sergeant Hebrew, um, he's our case law expert. Every week he puts out a um a message out to the officers about current case law, things that we need to be updated on, very important to us. Um FTO, uh police officer in charge, he's our emergency service unit, um, commander, or I'm sorry, uh team leader, where when we have a higher situation, we often um we uh often will um trust his judgment, his decision making um to keep officers safe and keep the community safe. So heavily rely on that. Um Sergeant Hosick, he comes from uh he has a history with uh the actress police department where he's actually a sergeant previously, uh K9 handler, uh SWAT team member as well. Uh and then when he came here um within the last three years at KPB um just excelled uh doing drone operator motorcycle uh operations and also very heavily involved with community engagement. So for them to uh relay that information, share that information with uh the the people they will uh need is just very very valuable. Um also you talk about character, you want to be uh promoting the right guys that have moral integrity, guys that will take ownership over mistakes, learn from mistakes, not blame others, and realize that they are there for the individuals uh that they supervise that those individuals are not there for them, and just really being selfless and doing the right things. Then lastly, you talk about culture, Carney Police Department. Uh we have a high um drive and are very passionate about what we do and we want to be doing a good job. And it's very important that we have the right supervisors teaching that to the officers that that again they have daily contact with. We want a culture where we're promoting uh community trust, public trust, and also um uh public safety, uh community safety. We want to be doing those two things. And we already explained their tactical backgrounds, uh, where they're both ESU members and compete for community safe, also they are heavily involved with community engagement as I discussed earlier. Um Sergeant Pose, he's heavily involved with Special Epics Nebraska and uh Sergeant Hibbert, you've often seen them at all our community engagement events, um involved at the schools, and it's just very important that they teach officers that same philosophy. So very excited to get both these individuals working as uh sergeants and just leading shifts and just very proud of both their accomplishments.

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