AKELEY CITY COUNCIL
REGULAR MEETING
JUNE 10, 2009
7:00 PM CITY HALL
JUNE AGENDA
1. Call the Meeting to Order
2. Pledge of Allegiance
3. Approve Consent Agenda of…
a)
Minutes from May 13th Regular Meeting
b)
May 2009 Treasurer’s Report
c)
May 2009 Bills for Payment from Check # 5492 to Check #
5597 including Automatic Bank Payments
4. Tim Fritze – Dog Laws
5. Make a Decision Regarding Paul Bunyan Statue Repair
6. Approve the 2008 City Audit
7. Bob Winner – Liquor Store Report
8. Frank Thelin – Water/Sewer/Maintenance Report
9. Eric Klein – Police Report
10. Old Business
a) Decision regarding Pot Bellied Pig
11. New Business/Public Forum
12. Adjourn
14. New Business/Public Forum
15. Adjourn
AKELEY CITY COUNCIL
REGULAR MEETING
JUNE 10, 2009
7:00 PM CITY HALL
The
Akeley City Council met in a regular meeting Wednesday June 10,
2009 at 7:00 pm. Mayor Scott Vettleson called the meeting to
order. Council members present were: Troy Hegg, Jon Johnson,
Jennifer Mitchell and Cliff Johnson. The Pledge of Allegiance
was recited by the Council and attending audience.
Motion by Cliff Johnson seconded by Jennifer Mitchell and
carried to approve the consent agenda consisting of the May
regular meeting minutes, the May 2009 treasurer’s report and the
May bills paid from check #5492 to check # 5597 including
automatic bank payments.
Tim
Fritze was present to address the dog laws in the City of
Akeley. He stated that when he moved here he understood that it
was mandatory to register dogs, pay for the license and provide
proof that they have been vaccinated. He said that his purebred
dog now has a litter of pups from a stray dog which he is not
able to sell. Tim asked what the City is doing to enforce the
ordinance if it says that dogs need to be licensed. Mayor
Vettleson stated that the ordinance is enforced through the
police department and that all dog owners have to purchase
licenses, it’s just whether they do or not. Police Chief Eric
Klein stated that when he is able to catch a stray, if the owner
is unknown he takes the dog to the Headwaters Animal Shelter.
Mayor Vettleson said that he has been trying to get a hold of
Krotzers to see what can be done to repair the Paul Bunyan
Statue. He wants to set up a meeting to talk to them about a
different way of surfacing the statue to preserve it without
affecting the artistic integrity. Mayor Vettleson suggested
tabling this item.
Motion by Jon Johnson seconded by Scott Vettleson and carried to
table a decision regarding the Paul Bunyan Statue until the next
meeting.
Clerk-Treasurer Denise Rittgers stated the City Audit has been
completed and some changes the auditor suggested were to include
check numbers of the bills paid each month in the council
minutes and the segregation of duties in the office. Denise
said this comes up each year but it is difficult to segregate
duties in a small office of only two people.
Motion by Scott Vettleson seconded by Troy Hegg and carried to
approve to pay the City Auditor $9,700 for the 2008 City Audit.
Liquor Store Report – Bob Winner
-
Bob said he would
still like to have all of the windows taken out of the smoke
shack. Mayor Vettleson said that the maintenance department
is really busy at this time.
-
Bob is looking at
having the bar stools repaired with a better grade of vinyl
at the cost of $30 per bar stool. Mayor Vettleson agreed
that he should get them repaired.
-
The dart machine
at the liquor store is making more money than the TV that
used to be there.
-
Bob said he did
an analysis comparing the first two weeks of June this year
to last year and it appears that the liquor store is ahead
of last year.
-
Bob asked if the
council wanted to look at getting more security cameras at
the liquor store. Mayor Vettleson said he would like to
wait and see if the liquor store will have the money to get
them.
-
The Kegmeister
that Bob would like to purchase is still for sale but Bob
said a decision didn’t have to be made right now since he
will be selling canned beer at the beer garden during Paul
Bunyan Days.
-
Bob said he
thinks the liquor store will be having the outdoor bands
again during Paul Bunyan Days. Cliff Johnson is waiting to
hear back from a contact person as to whether there will be
bands or not.
Motion by Scott Vettleson seconded by Jennifer Mitchell and
carried to approve to have the bands during Paul Bunyan Days.
Water/Sewer/Maintenance Report - Frank Thelin
-
Frank said he had
a couple of complaints about the electrical outlet boxes at
the campground so he had them checked and had to have a few
breakers replaced.
-
Frank received an
estimate to get electricity at the beach bathrooms. Jon
Johnson said he would like to see the cost of parts and
labor broken down.
-
Frank spoke with
a representative from FEMA and said the City could receive
an estimated $4,900 to repair damage of roads due to the
spring thaw. He is not sure when the City would receive the
money but it would be used to repair Crow Wing Lake Drive,
Hulet and 2nd and a couple of roads at the
campground.
-
Frank said that
Frank Lamb had spoken to him and said there was about $7,000
available to be used for bathrooms by Paul’s Patio. Frank
Thelin said he understood it was available from the C&C but
a C&C member present at the meeting stated she didn’t
believe it was the C&C who had the money to donate. Some
members of the audience assumed it was the Lions club but it
was not known for sure. Any questions should be directed to
Frank Lamb.
-
Frank is working
on getting quotes for the boat ramp.
-
Frank said that
irrigation is going good at the sewer ponds.
-
Frank received
some recommendations for maintenance on the lift stations.
Recommendations that could wait until next year are gasket
replacement and new stainless steel chains on the pumps at
the main lift station. The
lift station at the campground was recommended to be
overhauled at a cost of between $3,000 and $4,000 due to
badly rusted pipes. Council members felt the campground
lift station should be fixed as soon as possible. Frank
Thelin stated he thought it would take about a day to fix.
Motion by Scott Vettleson seconded by Cliff Johnson and carried
to approve to get the exact cost to fix the campground lift
station and to have it fixed on a Monday or Tuesday per the
campground manager’s recommendation.
Police Report - Eric Klein
·
The rust on the squad truck was permanently fixed
with a lifetime warranty at the cost of $600.
·
The parade permit for Paul Bunyan Days has been
received from MN DOT.
·
The day for Akeley Clean Up has been set for June
13th starting at 8:00 AM.
·
Eric asked the Council if they would like to have
a reserve officer assist with the SAFE Program as they have the
past two years. Cliff Johnson stated he didn’t think a reserve
officer was needed at the SAFE Program. Travis Carlson read a
letter from Andrea Thelin stating the SAFE Program would be held
from June 15th to August 15th.
Motion by Jennifer Mitchell seconded by Jon Johnson and carried
to donate $500.00 to the Akeley SAFE program to help extend the
hours of the program.
Motion by Scott Vettleson seconded by Cliff Johnson and carried
to not have a reserve officer at the SAFE Program.
·
The Bike Safety Class went well with approximately
25 kids in attendance.
·
Clean up notices have been given to some residents
by the police department and progress has been made.
·
Eric requested to use $500 from the donation fund
the police department has to assist in wages for the part-time
budget for Paul Bunyan Days. Mayor Vettleson said he should go
ahead and use it.
·
Eric said the police department would like to use
4 wheelers again during Paul Bunyan Days with the council’s
approval. He said he spoke with the city’s insurance agent who
said it would be ok as long as the owners of the 4 wheelers
carry the insurance.
·
Eric said he wanted to know how the present
council feels about 4 wheelers driving from the trail to
businesses on the city streets. He said that the past council
was ok with it but he wanted to make sure this council was in
agreement. Mayor Vettleson said he would be concerned if the
drivers were underage or without a license otherwise he would
encourage 4 wheelers to come to the city businesses. Marilyn
Ferrie was present at the meeting and said that there is a lot
of racing among 4 wheelers that takes place on Crow Wing Lake
Drive. Mayor Vettleson said when she sees this happening to
please call the police department. Jon Johnson suggested having
Greg Everett hand out at the campground, literature which
reminds 4 wheelers of speed limits and other information they
need to know about driving in the area.
·
Eric said he needs to be recertified with the
Taser and the POST credited class will be held in Elk River on
June 19th at a cost of $125. Mayor Vettleson and
Cliff Johnson both said he should attend to get the training he
needs.
·
Reserve Officer Travis Carlson said that during
Paul Bunyan Days the police department will be helping the MN
Child Passenger Safety Coalition answer questions regarding car
seats and the new seat belt law. He also said the Greater
Northwest EMS Association will have a 30 mph roll simulator that
will show what will happen to a person when buckled correctly
and incorrectly in a 30 mph roll over.
Old Business
Mayor Vettleson stated that he checked with more cities,
including Park Rapids and found out that they don’t allow
pot-bellied pigs and he says he still feels as he did last month
in that they should not be allowed. Jennifer Mitchell said she
found that the City of Underwood does consider a pot-bellied pig
to be a domesticated animal and she also looked at what the
government considers to be a farm animal. She has a letter from
the USDA stating that pot-bellied pigs are not a food resource
and are not used for any food product so they consider them
domesticated animals. She also shared that the MN Department of
Revenue charges sales tax on pet food but does not charge tax on
feed for farm animals so they would consider a pot-bellied pig
to be a pet. No one has complained about the pig and Tania
Sorvisto said that there are 2 or 3 vaccinations that her pig
could get and she would be willing to buy a license. Cliff
Johnson said he didn’t think it would be a problem as long as
the pig was licensed, had required shots and was in a kennel
when outside.
Motion by Jennifer Mitchell seconded by Cliff Johnson and
carried to update the animal ordinance to include pot-bellied
pigs as domesticated animals. (Ordinance No. 04-09, An
Ordinance Amending Chapter 91 of the Akeley City Code of
Ordinances Relating to Animals). Jon Johnson and Scott
Vettleson voted no. Troy Hegg said he would like to see the
immunization record and proof of license at the next meeting.
New Business
Motion by Scott Vettleson seconded by Cliff Johnson and carried
to call an executive meeting on Thursday, June 18th
at 6:30 PM at City Hall as requested by the attorney assigned by
the League of Minnesota Cities to defend the City of Akeley so
that the City may have an opportunity to discuss the lawsuit in
a privileged, confidential setting with their attorney.
Motion by Jennifer Mitchell seconded by Scott Vettleson and
carried to adjourn at 8:00 PM.
Denise Rittgers
Clerk Treasurer
City of Akeley
Wendy Klein
Deputy Clerk
City of Akeley
