Village Board

Village of Hawkins Meeting Minutes July 1, 2024 5:30 P.M. Meeting called to order by Pres. Jill Baker. Board members present:Doug VanDoorn, Christa Luebke, and Trish Johnson. Amanda Bratlie absent. Also present:Matt Boehmer, John Burkman, Mark Case, Jennifer Mabie,Carol and Kyle Austad. Minutes from the June 3, 2024 meeting were read by Clerk, Alicia Valentine. Motion toapprove the Juneminutesas read, by Johnson, second by VanDoorn.Motion carried. AGENDA ITEMS: Public Comment (5 minute time limit) Jennifer Mabie asked if the Board will make someone remove a shipping container if they currently have one. No discussionsince the Board has not put an ordinance in place.Kyle Austad requested to have the alley near his property raised due to flooding issues. PW Director, John Burkman explained that gravel was added and raising the alley will not resolve the flooding issue. Burkman recommended that landscaping around the home/garage would resolve the problem. Well/SCADA Project Update No pay requests received. VanDoorn motioned to approve the Resolution Making a Declaration to Reimburse Expenditures from the Proceeds of an Issue of Tax-Exempt Bonds, second by Luebke. Motion carried. TID – Discussion and Possible Action Luebke motioned to create TID #4 and internally borrow funds from TIF #3 to pay the TIF #4 creation fees, second by Johnson. Motion carried. It is estimated that the funds will be repaid to TIF #3 in 2026. Speed Limit – Hwy 8 Discussion and Possible Action Reducing speed from Hwy M to Elms Rd discussed. Valentine contacted Rusk County and is waiting for a response. VanDoorn will follow up with the County. Shipping Container Ordinance – Discussion and Possible Action Discussion if shipping containers should be allowed in the Village as storage units. Concerns: rusty containers are an eyesore, placement on property, concrete base or ground, should not be used as living quarters. Further research is needed before a decision is reached. Village Website – Discussion and Possible Action Village website creation will make the following items available to residents: meeting agendas, meeting minutes, ordinances, calendar of events, online utility payments, alerting system. Three website creators submitted quotes. Additional information needed before a decision can be made. Approve Operator’s License Applications - Action VanDoorn motioned to approve operator’s licenses for YougaTimisina, Deepak Subedi, Sierra Voldberg, Manish Karki, Doreen Burris, and Stanley Burris, second by Johnson. Motion carried. Appoint Library Board Village Representative - Action VanDoorn motioned to appoint Jennifer Stamper as the Village Library Board representative, second by Johnson. Motion carried. Zoning - Discussion Board members agreed to not proceed with creating a zoning committee. Village Property Clean-Up Ordinance violations - Parcels 136-00215-0000, 136-00271-0000, and 136-00257-0001. Letters will be mailed to property owners. (con’t. p. 1 of 3) Meeting Minutes July 1, 2024 (con’t. p. 2 of 3) Water Simplified Rate Case – Discussion and Possible Action New water rates effective 7/1/2024. Pres. Baker requested to create a resolution to increase water rates annually through the PSC Simplified Rate Case process. Valentine will present Resolution at the August Board Meeting Sewer Rate Increase – Discussion and Possible Action Last sewer rate increase was 2020. Pres. Baker requested to create a resolution to increase sewer rates annually by a percentage. Valentine will provide financial and percentage data and Resolution at the August Board Meeting. Hauled Waste Increase – Discussion and Possible Action PW Director, Matt Boehmer, presented the part of the sewer use ordinance pertaining to hauled waste, including rates. MSA provided a graph showing rates based on population. Boehmerrecommends adopting a sewer service area with rates based on those areas. Boehmer also recommends a resolution to increase rates in five year increments. Changes are needed due to DNR Wastewater permit changes/limits.Discussion will continue at the August Board Meeting. Hwy 8 Construction Update Highway construction in the Village took longer than expected due to the removal of the concrete base. Everyone agreed that the construction crew is doing a good job. Public Works – Water/Sewer Monthly Report Public Works Water/Sewer Director, Matt Boehmer, reported that the DNR is instituting new chronic ammonia limits and PFA’s/PFO’s testing to the wastewater permit. Working with engineer and DNR to get the permit renewed. The PFA/PFO testing is $500 per month. This is an expense the Village was not expecting. DNR agreed to one test rather than monthly, unless the results are higher than the allowable limits. CMAR submitted, waiting for DNR response. Water project – Well 2 floor removed, service line installed for distribution samples. Genset pad poured and conduit run. Lead/Copper report submitted to DNR. Waiting for a response.Started effluent discharge June 3, 2024. Village had violations which the DNR is aware of. PH jumped from 8.03 to 8.47 within two days. Ammonia increased from 2.8 to 4.4 in the same time period. We do not have a way to predict this. While replacing meters, a discrepancy of 18,000 gallons of water was discovered at Parcel 136-00008-0000. Motion by Luebke to write off the 18,000 gallons, second by Johnson. Motion carried. Three water valve boxes were replaced on Ellingson while the road was tore up. There is one on Amick that should be repaired. Boehmer will talk to Engineer. There are four remaining water meters that need to be installed. Notice was posted at the properties that if we do not hear from them, their water will be shut off July 15, 2024. Public Works – Streets Monthly Report Streets Director, John Burkman reported that roadside mowing is complete. Eight yards of gravel added to the east end of the Main – Washington St alley due to flooding issues. Homeowner can resolve the flooding issue by properly ditching their property so the water runs away from the buildings. Exposed abandoned storm sewer pieces, from the east side of Tom’s Way to Go, removed and filled in with gravel. Roof leak repairs in fire hall around heaters complete. Heat pipe repairs/replacement is needed in the Community Center kitchen area. Clerks Report Clerk, Alicia Valentine, reported that she transferred funds from the Refuse account to the LGIP Refuse account to earn interest. Next Election is August 13, 2024. 24 units of blood were donated at the recent Red Cross Blood drive. Thank you to everyone who assisted with the drive and donated blood. Set Next Agenda Monday, August 5, 2024 5:30 pm Agenda Items: Well/SCADA Project Update/Pay Request, TID #4, Hwy 8 Speed Limit, Shipping Containers, Village Website, Annual Water Simplified Rate Case, Annual Sewer Rate Increase, Hauled Waste Ordinance/Increase, Approval of Operator’s Licenses, Village/Town/JeldWen Property, Water/Sewer/Street Public Works Reports, Clerks Report, and Approve Bills. (con’t. p. 2 of 3) Meeting Minutes July 1, 2024 (con’t. p. 3 of 3) Board Comment No comments. Approve Bills Board members reviewed timesheetsand bills for the monthof June/July. Bills approved: General Fund $9,910.32,W&S $9,221.21,Refuse $443.42, ACH/Card Receipts $8,070.73, and Tax Acct 0.80. Motion to approve bills by VanDoorn, second by Luebke. Motion carried. Adjourn Luebkemotioned to adjourn the meeting at 8:00pm, secondby VanDoorn. Motion carried. Alicia Valentine, Clerk