City Commission

MEETING MINUTES OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF DEVILS LAKE, ND JUNE 16, 2025 The regular meeting of the Devils Lake City Commission was held on June 16, 2025 with the following members present: President Moe and Commissioners Hach, Pierce, Knowski, and Uhlenkamp. MEETING ITEMS 1) Call to Order 2) Approval of Minutes – June 02, 2025 Commissioner Pierce made a motion to approve the minutes of the June 2, 2025 City Commission meeting. Commissioner Uhlenkamp seconded the motion, and the motion was approved unanimously. AWARDS AND PROCLAMATIONS PUBLIC HEARINGS – 5:30 PM BID OPENINGS – 5:30 PM VISITORS OR DELEGATIONS 1) Lake Region Heritage Center – Lisa Crosby Lisa Crosby with the Lake Region Heritage Center provided an update on the events that the Heritage Center had held within the last quarter. She mentioned that Macaroni Days is this weekend at the Heritage Center and that they are trying to get an antique tractor show downtown. Lisa is requesting Quarter 3 funding for the Heritage Center. Commissioner Hach made a motion to approve quarter 3 funding. Commissioner Knowski seconded the motion, and the motion was approved unanimously on a roll call vote. 2) Midstate Volunteer Program Brenda Bergsrud provided an update on the shelter. She mentioned that last year they had a total bed count of 3,285 and the capacity is 12 beds and 9.5 were filled for 365 days in 2024. It was mentioned that they could increase to 15, but that would be up to the City Commission and require greater financial support. Their numbers are consistently increasing. She mentioned that they need support and supplies for the urinalysis tests and breathalyzers, along with helping individuals find other resources. They have also had to find more funding for the food, as they are not getting as much from the Hope Center. Commissioner Knowski asked where they are currently getting their food. Brenda mentioned that sometimes they end up purchasing it themselves or they also have restaurants donate anything extra they have at the end of the night. Commissioner Knowski made a motion to approve the funding for the shelter. Commissioner Uhlenkamp seconded the motion. Commissioner Pierce asked if the building would still pass inspection if they moved to 15 beds. Brenda mentioned that she believed it would, and the Fire Chief asked her to stop by the station so they could look at it. The motion was approved unanimously on a roll call vote. COMMISSION PORTFOLIOS Commissioner Knowski – The City Engineer said that the Utility Department has the CCR Report completed and out there. They are not quite done with hydrant flushing, but they are getting close. There are still two (2) open positions within this department. Commissioner Hach – The City Engineer said that there will be normal recycling until the end of the month for the Sanitation Department. If individuals do not want to keep their recycling bins, they can place them out with their normal pickup, and they will be grabbed. They can also keep their bins if they would like and if they miss the pickup, they can take them up to the recycling center. President Moe communicated that there is a retirement party for Rodney at Roosevelt Park tomorrow from 11-1. He added that the Engineering Department had a meeting with the contractor on the mill & overlay project and that it will be starting this week. He also mentioned that work is continuing on the project on College Dr. The Building Official said that he started property assessments last week for the year. He is working on residential properties that are located south of highway 2 and east of highway 20. He mentioned that he has had a few appointments scheduled for people who are letting him inside the home. He said it is pretty standard that people do not want to let someone into their home. If someone would like to make an appointment, they can give the City Office a call or go to our website. Commissioner Uhlenkamp – The City Engineer said that we had budgeted for aerial mosquito spraying prior to the 4th of July. We have done it a few different ways in the past – we have looked at counts and have sprayed or we have looked at counts and spraying was unjustified, so we did not spray. This is a contact spray, so if the mosquito is not out and flying the spray will not be effective. The Street Department has been out at least twice this year to do ground spraying. Commissioner Pierce made a motion to increase ground spraying, as of now, depending on what is found out at the Special Meeting on June 25th. Commissioner Knowski seconded the motion, and the motion was approved unanimously. Commissioner Uhlenkamp communicated that there was a library board meeting last Tuesday and Maddie has given her notice to resign as she will be moving to Fargo for family reasons. There is a special meeting on Wednesday to go over the Library Director position and get that posted as soon as possible. Commissioner Pierce – The Fire Chief said the total for fill the boot was $5,569.36. They hosted a regional live fire training and that went well. The 4th of July parade will start at 10am – if the weather does not cooperate, they will not be rescheduling it. The firework show will start at dusk – if this get rained out, it will be moved to July 5th. They had three interviews this week for their open position. Commissioner Pierce mentioned that Ramsey County Zoning approved the first step of the comprehensive plan. He sat in on the homeless coalition meetings for informational purposes. He also wanted to talk about the 31:8 Bravery Backpack Program – he received a letter from the administrative assistant, and it states that this program helps children who have experienced trauma. They collect multiple different items and put them into backpacks and give them to the children. He mentioned that he is working with a couple of organizations in town so that we can be a part of it. He communicated that we are going to need a drop-off location, and he thought that City Offices might be a good drop-off location. He mentioned that the LEC received a letter from two anonymous staff members addressed to the LEC board about everything that is going on. He read the letter to the City Commission. There will be an LEC meeting on Wednesday and Commissioner Pierce has another meeting with the staff on the planning of the jail. President Moe – The Police Chief said they have been trying to get a police department for at least a decade, if not longer. He said that he also talked to the lady from 31:8 Backpack Program, and the Police Department is going to look into that. He mentioned that Bradin Welsh, their newest officer, was sworn in today. He also said that he will be attending the Chief of Police conference in Grand Forks next week. The City Administrator mentioned that the legislative report from the league of cities is attached. The special meeting is next week on June 25th at noon for the general fund, sales tax proposal, and public safety. Commissioner Pierce asked when the next Public Safety meeting will be. The City Attorney said that he had spoken to the City Administrator about the abstracts to the properties that have been transferred to the JDA. He will review them as soon as possible. President Moe wanted to congratulate Dr. Doug Darling with LRSC, Donna Fuchs with NDHP, & Rodney Ivesdal with the City of Devils Lake and Lake Region Corporation on their retirement. OLD BUSINESS 1) Update on Sales Tax Initiative and Police Department Relocation Strategy The City Administrator mentioned that the open houses for the Sales Tax proposal are July 8th and July 10th from 11am-1pm and again from 4pm-6:30pm at the Fire Hall. Absentee ballots are available at the City Offices or on the city’s website. CONSENT AGENDA NEW BUSINESS 1) Liquor License Renewals for July 1, 2025 Commissioner Hach made a motion to approve the liquor license renewals for July 1, 2025. Commissioner Uhlenkamp seconded the motion, and the motion was approved unanimously. 2) Appointments to Renaissance Zone Authority Commissioner Knowski made a motion to approve the appointments to the Renaissance Zone authority. Commissioner Pierce seconded the motion, and the motion was approved unanimously. 3) Budget Amendment 25-05 – Vacuum Excavator Commissioner Knowski made a motion to approve budget amendment 25-05 – Vacuum Excavator. Commissioner Pierce seconded the motion, and the motion was approved unanimously on a roll call vote. CITIZEN COMMENT INFORMATIONAL ITEMS 1) May 2025 Financial Report LIST OF BILLS Commissioner Pierce made a motion to approve the list of bills as submitted. Commissioner Uhlenkamp seconded the motion, and the motion was approved unanimously on a roll call vote. __________________________________ __________________________________ SPENCER HALVORSON JIM MOE CITY ADMINISTRATOR/AUDITOR PRESIDENT OF CITY COMMISSION