NOVEMBER BOARD MEETING MINUTES

NOVEMBER 10, 2009

The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Chairman of the Board of Supervisors Jeff Bachke.  The “Pledge of Allegiance” was recited.  Present for the meeting were Chairman Bachke, supervisors Greg Andrews and John Goman; treasurer Holly Herstad, clerk Patti Alander, deputy clerk Cammy Hansen, fire chief Matt Frantz, animal control officer Gloria Dallum; and residents Andi Schmaltz, Mark North, Randy Kniep, Leonard Hegg and Ray McClelland.

Jeff went over the list of upcoming meetings:

November 17, 2009 7:00 p.m. Planning & Zoning

December 1, 2009 7:00 p.m. Agenda meeting

December 2, 2009 7:00 p.m. St. Louis County Assn. of Township Officers

December 3, 2009 6:00 p.m. Utility committee re:  water use

December 8, 2009 7:00 p.m. Board meeting

A motion to approve the following minutes was made by Greg and seconded by John:

                October 13, 2009 Board meeting minutes

                October 27, 2009 Erickson Road meeting minutes

                October 29, 2009 Fire Dept. building meeting minutes

The October financial report was presented by Holly Herstad:

October Receipts                             $55,144.04   

October Expenditures:                 

General Fund                    $  9,012.16   

Administration                  $15,782.80

Public Works                                      $  5,679.19     

Road & Bridge                                                   $1,882.36

Fire                                                                                        $4,045.65    

Building Inspection                                          $  5,268.90           

Lift Station #3 Improvements     $  3,863.06

Public Works Building                      $10,037.50

Total Expenditures                          $55,571.62

November Expenditures thus far:

General Fund                                    $25,888.52 

Utilities                                                                 $23,914.04

Payroll                                                                  $15,000.00 (est.)

Fair Housing                                                       $16.00

CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED:

·         E-update, Office of the State Auditor, October 2, 16, 23 and 30, 2009

·         Foster, Jacobs Johnson memo re:  Health Hazards association with reclaim wash systems

·         Minnesota Counties,  October, 2009 issue

·         RSPT 9/16/09 meeting minutes

·         Cities Bulletin, October 21, 2009 issue

·         Lakewood Township Sept/Oct newsletter

·         Stockholder/proxy voting notice from Dreyfus Funds

·         Municipal Sewer & Water, November, 2009 issue

·         Northeast MN Wind Energy Forum agenda

·         WLSSD Agenda, 10/19/09 board meeting

·         Erosion and Stormwater Management News, Fall 2009

·         Letter from Moody’s Investors service requesting 2007, 2008 financial reports

·         2010 MBA Scholarship Program notification

·         Northeast Service Cooperative Review, October, 2009 issue

·         Business North, October, 2009 issue

·        

DEPARTMENT REPORTS:

1.       Building Department:  Cammy read the following reports submitted by Marty Paavola into the record:

A.      SEPTEMBER BUILDING REPORT

Total valuation of projects $573,093.84

Total fees collected $9,176.31

B.      OCTOBER BUILDING REPORT

Total valuation of projects $287,503.00

Total fees collected $5,773.12

2.       Planning & Zoning Department:  Cammy read the following reports from Marty Paavola into the record:

A.      September Report:

A Public Hearing was held on September 10^th for Richard Kobus to consider the rezoning of properties on West Calvary Road.  Due to confusion this hearing has been rescheduled and published for October 14, 2009 at 6:00 PM.

A Public Hearing was held by the Board of Adjustment on September 29, 2009 to consider variances on the Property owned by Universal Properties located at 5021 Arnold Road.   The variances were approved.

Along with the regular planning meeting held on September 22, 2009 the following public hearings have been scheduled for October:

A Public Hearing for a Conditional Use Permit for a communication tower on the property owned by Donald and Grace Chesney at 5294 Rice Lake Road.   This hearing is scheduled for October 20, 2009 at 6:00 PM.

A Public Hearing for a Conditional Use Permit for a communication tower on the property owned by Edward J. Erickson at 5858 Arnold Road.  This hearing is scheduled for October 22, 2009 at 6:00 PM.

The next regular meeting of the planning commission is Tuesday October 20^th after the public hearing.

B.      October Report:

A Public Hearing was held on October 15, 2009 for Richard Kobus to consider the rezoning of properties on West Calvary Road (see attached notice.)  The rezoning was approved. 

A Public Hearing was held on October 20, 2009 for James Ries/Buell Consulting to consider a conditional use permit for property at 5295 Rice Lake Road.  The CUP was approved.

A Public Hearing was held on October 22, 2009 for Minnesota Towers to consider a conditional use permit for property at approximately 5858 Arnold Road.  The CUP was approved.

The regular monthly Planning and Zoning meeting was held on October 20, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. at the Town Hall.

The next regular meeting of the Planning and Zoning Commission is Tuesday, November 17, 2009 at 7:00 p.m.

3.        Public Works/Road & Bridge:  Cammy read the following reports from Gary Olson into the record:

A.      September report:

·         Flushing and winterizing hydrants was started

·         Most Town roads were graded; all will be graded before freeze up

·         Commercial water meters were read

·         New radio read water meters were read on W. Calvary and Stavanger Roads

·         All Town roads were inspected after high winds.  Downed trees and limbs were removed.

·         Eleven Gopher One locates were done

·         Three legal postings were done

·         Seven loads of aluminum cans were hauled to the recycler

·         Waste water collection is not complete due to the force main bypass at Lift Station #1 during the upgrade:  303,100 gallons

·         Water usage as 2,469,591 gallons; daily 82,319 gallons

B.      October report:

·         Hydro Clean televised our new gravity sewer lines on West Calvary & the Rice Lake service road

·         Town Park ball fields were aerated

·         Town Park restrooms were winterized

·         Removed roadside debris from W. Kingston Rd. (this has been an ongoing problem)

·         Commercial water meters were read

·         Radio read meters were read

·         W.W. Goetsch Co. repaired Lift Station #1 and #7

·         New recycle signs were installed on the gates

·         1^st Avenue South and Fayre Roads were patched

·         All town roads were graded

·         Kunst Co. repaired a sewer clean out at Voyageur Bus Co. (this may solve the rock problem in Lift Station #1)

·         Five loads of aluminum cans were hauled to the recycler

·         Three legal postings were done

·         Thirty-four Gopher One locates were done

·         Water usage was 2,255,584 gallons; daily 72,760 gallons

·         Waste water collected was 474,600 gallons; daily 15,309 gallons

4.       Fire Department:  Matt Frantz read the following report for October into the record:

·         Ten medical calls

·         One downed power line

·         One Gold Cross assist

·         Two vehicle accidents

·         One structure fire

·         One car fire

·         Two good intent (cancelled, no emergency)

·         Two Mutual aid calls (one structure fire, one medical)

5.       Animal Control:  Gloria Dallum gave the following report:

Hours Worked                                   43.50                    

Miles driven                                       207

Fines assessed & collected          $182.00

License fees collected                    $5.00

Dogs to pound                                  1

Citations issued                                                1

6.       Utilities:  Patti reported that Lift Station #1 renovations are now complete with the exception of a few punch list items.  There was a phone problem with Lift Station #10 that has been repaired.  Sewer improvements that were approved by the town to repair manholes and correct I&I issues have been completed with the exception of some restoration that will be completed in the spring.

7.       Park:  The light for the flag pole has been installed; the bill is to be approved with tonight’s claims.  Rick’s Tree Service is continuing to remove trees on the west side of the soccer field.  The company who installed the gate will be inspecting the property to see how we can gate off the newly cleared area. 

8.       Sheriff:  In August deputies worked four shifts totaling 16 hours.  The made 20 traffic stops resulting in 15 warnings, six citations and zero arrests.  They also responded to several calls regarding dirt bikes and ATVs and one loud party complaint.  Total amount billed to the Town:  $880.00.

9.       Rice Lake Fair Housing Authority:  No activity

OLD BUSINESS:

1.       Rice Lake Dam Road project:  No new information

2.       Erickson Road:  The minutes of the 10/26/09 meeting were approved earlier in the meeting.  Mr. Sjelin has signed a temporary easement and the attorney is working on drafting the permanent easement.  Darrel Johnson will be doing the work for the turnaround.

3.       Rutter Road stop signs:  Request has been submitted to the county; work is pending.

4.       New North Fire Hall:  Greg asked if we have heard anymore from the County regarding the culverts.  Patti responded that someone from the County will be stopping to pick up the plans from us and he will most likely approve a temporary permit for culverts.

5.       Andi Schmaltz: 

A.       MSA Inspection reports:  Andi had requested copies of the MSA reports.  Cammy has them and will provide them to her.

B.      Sewer Connection fee:  A utility meeting has been scheduled for December 3^rd and this issue will be discussed at that time.

C.      4193 W. Calvary Rd.:  Andi had requested a status update on the junk ordinance violation on this property.  Jeff stated that a citation has been issued and a court date is scheduled for 11/19/09 at 9:00 a.m.   She had some further questions regarding the process and Jeff let her know that the judge will be making the ruling on the citation.  Jeff also explained that the definition of “junk” is very subjective and makes enforcing this ordinance difficult in the eyes of the law.  She also stated that she and other neighbors will be appealing to the county for a reduction in property taxes because they feel that their properties are worth less due to this home.  If the county reduces the taxes, she states this will prove that the property values have decreased and mentioned that at that point she will most likely be seeking damages from the Town for the difference of what the previous value versus the decreased value may be.  She had additional questions regarding the ordinance.  Jeff explained that the Town has previously made attempts via issuing citations to get properties cleaned up and has been unsuccessful.  The court system seems to think that the matters relating to the junk ordinance are trivial. 

NEW BUSINESS:

1.       Resolution 09-11-30 was read into the record by Cammy Hansen:

       RESOLUTION 09-11-30

RESOLUTION REZONING PROPERTIES LOCATED IN SECTION 32 OF RICE LAKE TOWNSHIP

WHEREAS, the Town of Rice Lake has a Planning & Zoning Commission and a zoning ordinance known as Town of Rice Lake Zoning Ordinance #22; and

WHEREAS, an application and petition was received by the Town of Rice Lake to rezone the properties located and legally described as:

East Boundary:  North side of West Calvary Road with an address of 4349 West Calvary Road and South side of West Calvary Road with an address of 4350 West Calvary Road

West Boundary:  North side of West Calvary Road with an address of 4397 West Calvary Road and South side of West Calvary Road with an address of 4396 West Calvary Road

Legally described on attached “Exhibit A”

From Multiple Use Non Shoreland (MUNS-5) to Residential (RES-7); and

WHEREAS, a public hearing was held on October 14, 2009 of all interested property owners and the Planning & Zoning Commission to consider the rezone application; and

WHEREAS, after careful consideration of all information and recommendations pertaining to the rezone the Planning & Zoning Commission hereby recommends the rezone of the properties from Multiple Use Non Shoreland (MUNS-5) to Residential (RES-7.)

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Rice Lake Board of Supervisors upon the recommendation of the Planning & Zoning Commission approve the rezone of the properties located and legally described as:

East Boundary:  North side of West Calvary Road with an address of 4349 West Calvary Road and South side of West Calvary Road with an address of 4350 West Calvary Road

West Boundary:  North side of West Calvary Road with an address of 4397 West Calvary Road and South side of West Calvary Road with an address of 4396 West Calvary Road

Legally described on attached “Exhibit A”

From Multiple Use Non Shoreland (MUNS-5) to Residential (RES-7.)

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the zoning map and Comprehensive Land Use Plan for the Town of Rice Lake be amended to conform to these real properties that have been rezoned by this application.

A motion to approve the resolution was made by Greg and seconded by John.   All vote in favor; motion carried.

2.        Resolution 09-11-31 was read into the record by Cammy Hansen:

       RESOLUTION 09-11-31

RESOLUTION DESIGNATING DEPOSITORIES AND CORPORATE AUTHORIZATION

THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT, at a meeting of the Town Board of Rice Lake Township, County of St. Louis, State of Minnesota duly called and held on November 10, 2009, the following resolution was adopted.

RESOLVED, that the North Shore Bank of Commerce, a Minnesota Banking Corporation shall be the official depository for all funds of the Town of Rice Lake; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Clerk shall from time to time, ascertain that adequate security as required by the laws of the State of Minnesota, is furnished by such depository to protect the Town’s deposited funds against financial loss; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the checks of this corporation drawn on North Shore Bank of Commerce, a Minnesota Banking Corporation, hereinafter called the Bank shall be signed by three of the following officers:

        Gregory Andrews, supervisor, Jeffrey W. Bachke, supervisor; John Goman, supervisor;

        Holly Herstad, treasurer; Patricia Alander, clerk; Camille S. Hansen, deputy clerk

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that said bank is hereby authorized and directed to honor and pay any checks so drawn as above set forth, whether or not such checks be payable to the order of the foregoing persons either in their individual or official capacity or deposited to their individual credit and whether or not such signatures are followed by the title or office of the person signing.

A motion to approve the resolution was made by Greg and seconded by John.  All vote in favor; motion carried.

3.        Joint Powers Agreement with WLSSD regarding Lift Station #9:  A motion to approve the Joint Powers Agreement was made by Greg and seconded by John.  All vote in favor; motion carried.

4.       North Fire Hall:  Jeff asked if a letter has gone out to any architects yet.  Patti responded that it has not.  The Town is contacting two architects to discuss the project.  No meeting will be scheduled until an architect is selected.

5.       Delinquent Utilities:  The delinquent utility list has not yet been completed. 

6.       Letter to West Calvary residents in violation of Sewer Ordinance:  Jeff proposed a change to the portion of the letter which describes the fine to:  fines will be assessed per ordinance (the ordinance allows fines of up to $1,000.00 per day.)  The supervisors took a moment to review the ordinance.  Jeff read the proposed letter into the record:

RE:  Notice of Violation of Rice Lake Township Sewer Ordinance:

If you need assistance beginning the connection process, please do not hesitate to contact the Town office:  721-3778 or

Earlier this summer, you were sent a written ninety (90) day notice to comply with the Sewer Ordinance and connect to the public sewer.  The Township did not receive a response confirming that your property has connected to the Public Sewer or that any arrangements for such a connection have been made.

You are hereby notified that the failure to connect your property to the public sewer is a violation of Section 5.1 of the Rice Lake Sewer Ordinance.  You have thirty (30) days from the date of this letter to correct the violation and comply with the Ordinance.

Since it is unlikely that you will be able to hire a contractor to make the connection within the thirty day period, the Township will accept proof of an agreement with a contractor verifying that the connection will be made when weather permits.  If the Township has not received verification of the connection of your property to the sewer system (or proof of an agreement with a contractor) you will be fined in accordance with the Ordinance.  Fines will be assessed as per Town of Rice Lake Ordinance #25.

Affected property owners who comply with the Ordinance have been allowed to pay the WLSSD capacity allocation fee of $750.00.  Upon expiration of the thirty day period specified in this letter, your property will be assessed the new WLSSD capacity allocation fee of $940.00.

In addition, Section 5.2 of the Rice Lake Sewer Ordinance provides that if a property owner fails to connect to the Public Sewer and to terminate operation of the on-site wastewater disposal system, the Township may have the work done and charge the property owner for the costs.

To avoid enforcement actions for failure to comply with the Rice Lake Sewer Ordinance, please contact the Town Administrative Office at 721-3778 immediately.

Sincerely,

Cammy Hansen

Deputy Clerk

Andi asked why the junk ordinance cannot be fined or enforced, but violations of the sewer ordinance allow for up to $1,000 per day in fines.  Greg stated that this letter is to be sent to people who have not yet made an attempt to contact the Town.  Ray McClelland asked about a hardship provision.  Jeff stated that there is a hardship provision in the ordinance.  We are asking residents simply to contact the Town and each situation will be taken on a case by case basis.  Andi brought up points which she has made at several previous meetings.  Jeff assured her that the Town is willing to help as much as we can, however we cannot help them unless they contact the Town.  Andi stated she does not feel she is getting appropriate answers from the Board.  Patti stated that we will give a copy of this tape of tonight’s meeting to the Town’s attorney and will let him respond to her.  A continued heated discussion occurred with Andi Schmaltz being considered out of order by chairman Bachke. 

 A motion to approve the letter for mailing was made by John and seconded by Greg.  All vote in favor; motion carried. 

BUSINESS FROM THE FLOOR: 

1.        Randy Kniep, 4281 W. Calvary Road:  Stated that he thinks taking sewage from Rice Lake and pushing it to Lake Superior and then back to Rice Lake is not proper.  Jeff stated that the process for wastewater treatment is set by WLSSD.  Randy said that he does not need the Town’s utilities and does not want it.  He said his system is proven.  Cammy let him know that if he has his septic system inspected and the County states that it is compliant, he will not have to hook up at this time.  She told him to contact the St. Louis County Health Department.

2.       Matt Frantz, :  Stated that the difference between the two Ordinances (the junk ordinance and the sewer ordinance) is that what is considered “junk” is subjective and the sewer ordinance is black or white.

A motion to approve and execute the following claims was made by Greg and seconded by John.  All vote in favor; claims approved.

                General fund checks #50208 through #50223 and #50257 through #50268

                Utility fund checks #4149 through #4156

Having no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 7:50 p.m.