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Friday, August 11, 2006
CITY OF WAUBUN REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING TUESDAY, JULY 11, 2006 6:00 PM - WAUBUN COMMUNITY CENTER The regular meeting of the Waubun City Council for July was convened at 6 PM on Tuesday, July 11 by Mayor Bill Eck. Roll was called. Members present were Mayor Bill Eck, Councilpersons Jean Horack, Milo Winter, Eugene Moore and Thomas Bement. All members were present. Staff members present were Paul Brehm, and Germaine Riegert. Guests and delegations present were Karen Ahmann, Marilyn Kemper, Melissa Spencer, Duane Dorow, Engineer Chris Thorson and City Attorney Elroy Hanson. The Agenda was reviewed and the following items were added: Police requested new tires for the police squad and an alignment By-laws need to be set up for the Community Center Lawn and weed care on the old Ray Wolbeck property Bement made a motion to approve the agenda as amended. Horack seconded it and the motion carried by unanimous vote. Winter made a motion to approve the minutes as presented. Moore seconded it and the motion carried unanimously. The following bills were reviewed and scheduled for payment: General Fund Midwest Bank 633.54 PERA 454.93 NCPERS 32.00 Ulteig Engineers 12,875.38 ACS 180.42 Waubun Implement 1,023.90 JoAnne Riegert 100.98 Bement Oil Co. 618.55 Reed Business Information 271.36 Triangle Ag 111.30 Mahnomen Pioneer 74.40 Ottertail 1,290.34 Waubun Steel 31.56 John Deere Credit 8,508.15 Gopher State One Call 18.85 EZ ONE STOP 6,327.19 MPCA 400.00 Internal Revenue 30.00 Net Payroll 3,934.91 Water and Sewer Fund Ottertail 344.59 Team Laboratories 905.25 Hawkins Inc. 1,142.60 RMB Laboratories 80.00 Electro Watchman 70.29 The motion to pay the bills was made by Horack and seconded by Moore. It carried unanimously. The Clerk reported that no bills had been sent out since the last meeting because she wanted input from the Council about how to improve water and sewer collections. Overdue bills are in excess of $3,000 at this time. A list of outstanding water and sewer bills was presented to the Council. After some discussion Winter made a motion to notify customers that any bill that is more than three months delinquent after August 4, 2006 would be shut off. In order to reconnect the customer would have to pay a reconnect charge of $15 and make payment in full. Bement seconded the motion and it carried unanimously. The Clerk reported that the first half of the Real Estate taxes in the amount of $81,179 was received since the last meeting. Old Business Mayor Eck asked if the order of the agenda could be changed to accommodate the Spencer’s and Dorow’s. It was agreed upon by a consensus of the Council. Grocery Sale Lease/Sale City Attorney, Elroy Hanson, spoke to the terms of the lease he had prepared as well as research he had done on whether or not the City could sell the lots which the Grocery Store sits on as they were gotten through tax forfeiture for the express purpose of providing for the common good of all the village residents. To sell may or may not trigger a reverter clause that would return the ownership back to the State of MN. Since this is a tax increment financing district it might be better to continue with a lease or enter into a contract for deed. After much discussion it was agreed that a new lease would be executed for an initial term of five years with year to year automatic renewal thereafter. The lease payment would probably stay at $1,000 per month. An appraisal of the property will be ordered and the City agreed to continue working on the sale of the building over time. Horack made a motion that Mayor Eck and Clerk Riegert are authorized to execute the lease. Bement seconded it and it carried unanimously. Highway #113 Project Chris Thorsen of Ulteig Engineers Inc. presented the proposed contract for the work on the area between Third Street and the Railroad. Test borings showed that there were still some “hot” areas at the Bement property but the State had agreed to proceed with the job providing the contractor took special precautions. Mr. Thorsen presented the results of the bid opening. The low bid was received from Gordon Construction of Mahnomen in the amount of $651,853.30. The City’s share will be under $6,000. Bement made a motion to approve the low bid and to proceed with the project. Horack seconded it. A roll call vote followed: Bement-aye; Eck-aye; Horack-aye; Moore-aye and Winter-aye. There were no nay votes. The project is expected to begin on July 24. Mayor Eck, on behalf of the business people in town, requested that a sign be set up directing people on an alternate was to get to the business district. Chris said that this could and would be done. Gazebo Repairs The repairs have not been done to the Gazebo in the park. Under the terms of the gift of the Gazebo to the City, it must be kept in reasonably good condition. It was agreed that the Clerk prepare a letter to Ray Thorkildson asking him to work on it before it gets worse. John Deere Back Hoe Contract Negotiations with Nortrax are still being conducted. It appears that returning the machine and canceling the sales contract may not be in the best interest of the City. Several people have expressed an interest in purchasing the machine, also. The Council agreed by consensus to negotiate further and to pay the amount due on this season’s installment. Community Center Marilyn Kemper reported that she and a group of volunteers have been cleaning the whole building. The areas remaining include the kitchen and storage areas. These are the areas that are shared with the Elderly Nutrition Project and have been part of the reason for concern by the State Health inspector. He has agreed to give them until August 1, to bring the Center into compliance or it will be shut down. She also requested a key for her use. The Council gave approval for the key and agreed to work in any way necessary to keep the Center open. “Blaming does no good—let’s work together for the good of the whole Community”. They also asked Marilyn to try to find some by-laws to set up administrative procedures to insure that policies are administered with fairness and equity. Park Curfew Paul Brehm reported that he has been patrolling in the Park area more often and is reminding folks of the 10 PM curfew. He also reported that the new picnic tables have been removed from the shelter. There are still six available. The Council thanked him for his concern. Community Maintenance Worker Six people have applied for the position of City Public Works and Maintenance person. The Clerk was directed to set up a schedule of interviews for July 18 beginning at 6 PM with the Personnel Commission. Other-Goble property Mrs. Goble agreed to let the old wood and stuff be removed as long as she doesn’t have to pay for it. Bement agreed to call Terry Tibbetts, District II RTC Rep. so see if they would be willing to waive tipping fees, etc. The matter was tabled until further notice. --Lawn care and noxious weeds The owners of the Ray Wolbeck property at 1418 Main St. do not live in the area and therefore are not taking care of their lawn and thistle patch. It was agreed that the Clerk send a certified letter asking them to take care of this immediately or the City will mow and spray and either bill them or attach the fee to their real estate taxes. Motion by Winter and seconded by Bement to approve this action. Motion carried unanimously. --Tires and alignment Police Chief Brehm reported that he needs new front times and a wheel alignment on the squad car. Motion by Moore and seconded by Horack to purchase a set of tires and have the front end aligned as requested. Motion carried unanimously. New Business Banners for 2007 The need for new banners and signs for the City Centennial were discussed. Several suggestions were made to let WAMO and WOW help with this matter and there is a need to select a theme. Because of the lateness of the hour, this matter was tabled for another time. Evelyn Larson Award The selection of a community member to receive this award for 2006 was not made in time for the Pre-Harvest Festival. The Clerk was directed to contact the Larson family and WOW to select someone for this year. Staff Reports Chief Brehm presented his calendar and written reports for Police and Fire. No further business was presented. Bement made a motion to adjourn at 7:50 PM. Horack seconded it and it was unanimously approved. ______________________________ _________________________________ Mayor Clerk |
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