The regular meeting of the Grey Eagle City Council was called to order by Mayor Joseph Arnzen at 7:00 p.m., on the 12th day of November 2019 in council chambers. Council members present were Thom Muellner, Bill Pohlmann, Roland Ahrendt and Brian Hollenkamp. There were no council members absent. Also in attendance were Chico Hellmann, Dan Berscheid, John Call, Lori Hellmann and guests Meaghan Wieber and Greg Stang.
A motion was made by Bill Pohlmann to approve the amended agenda. A second was made by Roland Ahrendt and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried.
A motion was made by Thom Muellner to approve the minutes of the October 8, 2019 meeting with one change as follows: page 1731, item #3, change the word repaid with the word repair. A second was made by Brian Hollenkamp and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried.
Greg Stang from People Service provided the council with three possible options for the water and wastewater system contract. Option #1: $9,764 per month would include the following: full time operations and management of the water and wastewater systems, responsible for locates and customer turn on/off, perform routine maintenance, testing and reporting and maintain certification compliance. Option #2: $1,760 per month would include the following: Monday through Friday daily visits and operational oversight/certification compliance. This option would not include locates or customer turn on/off. Option #3: $625 per month would include the following: one time per week visit for certification coverage, required sampling and testing. This option would not include locates or customer turn on/off. With option #2 or option #3, the hourly rate of $70/$105 applies for call-outs or anything else outside of the scope requests. The council will discuss the matter further and make a decision at the December meeting.
Meaghan Wieber was in attendance to ask for a variance to the number of dogs per household. She is moving into the City and currently has three dogs. One is in bad health, all are spayed and/or neutered and all shots are up to date. Meaghan stated that she will clean up after her dogs. A motion was made by Bill Pohlmann to approve the variance for Meaghan to keep three dogs with the understanding that the dogs will be licensed and if something happens to one of the dogs she would not be allowed to replace it. A second was made by Brian Hollenkamp and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried.
Dan Berscheid provided the following Fire Department update:
1. Bayer has the barrel done and is requesting 30% completion payment. Chassis should be in at the end of the month.
2. The Fire Department currently has 2 Registered Nurses on the roster.
The council discussed the information from People Service and requested the Clerk to obtain more information regarding the scope of services that will be provided under Option #2. Once the information is obtained, the Council will have a better idea of what the job duties would be for the part time employee.
A motion was made by Thom Muellner to approve Resolution No. 2019-11, A Resolution Authorizing and Providing for the Incurrence of Indebtedness for the Purpose of Providing a Portion of the Cost of Acquiring, Constructing, Enlarging, Improving, and/or Extending It’s Sewer System Facility to Serve an Area Lawfully Within Its Jurisdiction to Serve. A second was made by Roland Ahrendt and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried. A copy of the resolution will be permanently attached to these minutes for future review.
The Council discussed snow removal on sidewalks within the City. Current ordinance requires that snow and/or ice must be removed from ANY sidewalk within 24 hours after the fall or accumulation. Residents are reminded that it is up to each individual property owner to make sure that snow and/or ice is removed from the sidewalk.
A motion was made by Thom Muellner to approve the Double R Saloon Liquor License application. All fees for the liquor licenses must be paid before any license will be given, and the licenses must be picked up at City Hall during office hours. A second was made by Brian Hollenkamp and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried
A motion was made by Brian Hollenkamp to approve the Tobacco License applications for the Double R Saloon, the Junction, Dollar General and Grey Eagle Gas and Grocery. All fees for the tobacco licenses must be paid before any license will be given, and the license must be picked up at City Hall during office hours. A second was made by Roland Ahrendt and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried.
The Clerk reported on the information she received regarding the windows in the Old Village Hall. Any windows replaced must be replaced with wood. Vinyl and aluminum are not desirable material on a building with historical value.
The Council directed the Clerk to send a letter to a resident, informing them that any vehicles, trailers, etc., must be parked a minimum of ten feet from the edge of any alley or road, that no cleaning of snow may take place within any road or alley, that snow is not to be pushed across any road or alley and that the trailer parked at the end of the dead end road must be removed immediately.
A motion was made by Brian Hollenkamp to approve Resolution No. 2019-12, A Resolution Amending the $1,125,000 General Obligation Temporary Sewer Revenue Note, Series 2018A and Providing for its Reissuance. A second was made by Bill Pohlmann and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried. A copy of the resolution will be permanently attached to these minutes for future review.
A motion was made by Brian Hollenkamp to approve the Financial Consulting Agreement with Northland Securities, Inc. A second was made by Roland Ahrendt and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried.
The Clerk provided information to the Council from a meeting held in Long Prairie regarding the 2020 Census. The purpose of the Census is to count every person one time and one time only. The Census count helps determine how much money a community may be entitled to that comes in many different forms. The Census forms have been shortened and most people can do it online from home or at any public library. Census information will start going out in March of 2020.
There were no building permits for council consideration.
The Council discussed the Main Street Christmas decorations. It was decided to use what we have and look at other options in the future.
Chico reported that the cutting blades on the snow plow truck and the turbo have been replaced. He also reported on information from his recent Minnesota Rural Water Association training on winterizing your water system.
A motion was made by Roland Ahrendt to approve the fund transfer of $148.12 from the General Fund of which $31.12 goes to the Water Fund and $117 goes to the Sewer Fund for Fire Hall, Old Village Hall and Library utilities. A second was made by Brian Hollenkamp and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried.
A motion was made by Brian Hollenkamp to approve the payment of bills as listed and to include the payment of the following additional items: $310 to Minnesota Pollution Control, $125 to Minnesota Rural Water Association, $200 to Central Minnesota Credit Union, $1,936.19 to Minnesota Power, $207.13 to First State Bank of Swanville, $23,320 to Central Minnesota Credit Union and $18,708.53 for Grey Eagle Volunteer Relief Association. A second was made by Thom Muellner and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried.
A motion was made by Brian Hollenkamp to adjourn the meeting at 8:38 p.m. A second was made by Roland Ahrendt and upon vote, with all members voting in favor, motion carried.
The next regular meeting of the Grey Eagle City Council will be held on Tuesday, December 10, 2019 in council chambers.
Lori Hellmann, Clerk
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