City Council Meeting

City of Hinckley City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, September 10, 2024 at 7:00 PM Council Chambers (Community Room) 106 First Street SE, P. O. Box 366 | Tel: (320) 384.7491 | Fax: (320) 384.7492 | ww.hinckleymn.gov Mayor and Councilmembers: Mayor Don Zeman | Councilmember Tim Burkhardt Councilmember John Frank | Councilmember Judy Hopkins | Councilmember Jace Scharpnick PRESENT: Mayor Donald Zeman, Tim Burkhardt, John Frank, Judy Hopkins, Jace Scharpnick. ABSENT: None. STAFF PRESENT: City Administrator Leaha Jackson, Fire Chief Elliot Golly, and Firehouse Manager Phil Taggart. OTHERS PRESENT: Rebecca Wiczek. 1. Call to Order-Pledge of Allegiance Zeman called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and led the Council in the pledge of allegiance. 2. Approve Agenda Fire Chief Elliot Golly requested an addition of 6C2 to fill the vacant Captain position through December 31, 2024. Motion made by Hopkins, Seconded by Burkhardt, to approve the agenda with the addition. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. 3. Minutes of Previous Meetings A. August 19, 2024 Budget Work Session Minutes B. August 20, 2024 Regular Meeting & Summary Minutes Motion made by Frank, Seconded by Scharpnick, to approve the August 19, 2024 and August 20, 2024 minutes as presented. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. 4. Public Hearings 5. Consent Agenda (Those items listed under Consent Agenda are considered routine by the City Council and will be acted upon by one motion under this agenda item. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless the Mayor or a Councilmember so requests, in which event the item will be removed from the consent agenda and considered under New Business.) A. Approve Advertising for One Temporary Ice Rink Attendant B. Resolution 31-2024 - Community Members Can Donation C. Resolution 32-2024 - Pine County Public Health Donation D. Resolution 33-2024 Appointing Curtiss Blodgett as Bartender/Retail Clerk with Firehouse Liquors  Motion made by Frank, Seconded by Burkhardt, to approve the consent agenda as presented. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. 6. Reports of Officers, Council Committees, & Citizens Committees A. Pine County Sheriff- Calls were included in the packet. B. Building Official/Inspector—The packet included an Update on 106 Poplar Ln S. The property has closed, and Tim Davis is working on obtaining the performance bond. A roofing permit has been pulled. C. Hinckley Fire Department 1. Monthly Run Report- Fire calls 81-82 through August 31st were included in the packet. Fire Chief Elliot Golly presented on establishing a fee for Pine Technical and Community College’s use of the Safety Building for Firefighter I & II. With the extra utilities and cleaning needed to host these trainings, he has suggested a fee of $100.00 per month. This amount will go into the 221 fund to help offset some of those costs. Motion made by Hopkins, Seconded by Scharpnick, to approve the fee of $100 for Firefighter I & II use of the Public Safety Facilities. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. 2. A vacant Captain position is open due to a leave of absence. Fire Chief Golly presented the Executive Committee’s recommendation to fill the vacancy with Tyler Hoffman from September 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024. Motion made by Hopkins, Seconded by Burkhardt, to approve appointing Tyler Hoffman to the vacant Captain’s position through the end of the term. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. D. Firehouse Liquors - The manager's report was included in the packet. Manager Taggart noted that they are doing better than last year by almost three times, and they will be working on promoting Football Sundays in the on-sale. E. Library- The packet included the branch highlights for August 2024. The summer reading program was coming to an end, and the seed library was successful. F. Standing Committees 1. Planning Commission- The August Planning Commission meeting minutes were included, and Councilmember Frank provided a brief update. 2. Park Board- Councilmember Burkhardt reported they are still working on the final report to turn in to close the ECRAC grant. 3. EDA- The August EDA minutes were included in the packet, and Burhardt provided a brief update. 7. Unfinished Business A. 2024 Budget Update The August financials were included in the packet. Expenses are where we expect them to be, with larger purchases like computer replacements, vestibule, and street maintenance to be completed later this year. Staff continues to work on developing a quote for replacing the aerators at the sewage treatment plant.  B. Flag Policy The packet included a draft Flag Policy requested by the Council at the July regular council meeting. Frank asked who would decide whether the flag is political or religious for the Corn & Clover exception. After a brief discussion, it was agreed that the Council would be the authority for such a determination. Jackson will update the policy to add that language. Motion made by Burkhardt, Seconded by Hopkins, to adopt the Flag Policy with the updated language to make the Council the authority. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. C. Pine County Sheriff License Plate Readers Mayor Zeman asked for the Council's thoughts on the Pine County Sheriff’s Department (PCSD) Camera Request, but noted he is not looking for a decision yet. Councilmember Scharpnick said that he was not a fan. He worries about the security and the ask to purchase them, but yet another entity would use them. If it is theirs, why should the City pay for it? What is the benefit to the residents? Mayor Zeman clarified that PCSD answered that the County would be the purchaser/owner, so all the insurance, maintenance, and data security would be their responsibility. Councilmember Frank asked if the PCSD would still move forward with the purchase if the City passed. Jackson replied that it is still early in the County’s budget season, and nothing has been set yet. Councilmember Burkhardt questioned the real benefit to us as a City, and Councilmember Hopkins asked if we had heard from the other cities about their thoughts. Administrator Jackson has reached out to the other communities, with one not having had the discussion yet and waiting to hear back from another. She will continue to get updates from the communities. Mayor Zeman noted that he has heard good things about the system but is not sure where he thinks our benefit might be with them. He appreciates all the comments and discussion and knows this will continue as we move toward the end of the year. D. 2025 Preliminary Budget and Levy The Preliminary Summary Budget and Levy were included in the packet. Jackson presented the highlights for the different funds. The overall Preliminary Budget was $6,829,353 with the Levy being $1,194,519. As in previous years, the levy includes a 2-percentage cushion from what was discussed in the August 19, 2024, budget work session meeting. Motion made by Scharpnick, Seconded by Hopkins, to approve the Preliminary Budget and Levy as presented. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. 8. New Business A. City Vision/Future Planning Scharpnick brought up that when coming from the west to Hwy 61, where the current sign is, we considered installing a digital or lighted sign or having a spot on 61 as they do in Pine City, where they hang banners over the road. Hopkins noted that you are usually not stopped for long there, and there may not be enough time to read the sign. Frank and Zeman replied that the City has looked at over-the-road wires in the past, and some hurdles made it not feasible. Jackson responded that she hopes to explore a wayfinding signage program for the City through the USDOT Thriving Communities Program. She is working with BNSF on a lease option for the parcel with the existing sign. More to come on this topic in the future.  B. Set Public Hearing for 2025 Levy Public Input Meeting (formerly Truth in Taxation) Each year, the Council must adopt the preliminary levy and announce the time and place for the public to provide input before the final budget and levy determination. This was previously called the Truth-in-Taxation meeting. Motion made by Frank, Seconded by Burkhardt, to set the 2025 Public Input meeting for the public hearing portion of the December 10, 2024, Council Meeting. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. C. Set Canvassing Board Meeting The Council also serves as the Canvassing Board and must set a date and time to meet to canvass the November 5, 2024, election results. Motion made by Scharpnick, Seconded by Burkhardt, to set the Canvassing Board to meet and canvas the November 5, 2024, election results on November 12, 2024, at 7 p.m. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. D. US DOT Thriving Communities Annual Convening As part of the USDOT Thriving Communities Program participation, the City team must send a group to the Annual Convening held in Washington, D.C. This year, it is being held October 10- 11, and Administrator Jackson, Planning and Zoning Administrator Perry, and Mayor Don Zeman can attend. The program reimburses the flight, food, and taxi while directly paying for the accommodations in DC. Motion made by Frank, Seconded by Scharpnick, to approve sending Jackson, Perry, and Zeman to the US DOT Thriving Communities Annual Convening and authorizing any expenses to be reimbursed by the program. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. E. AFSCME Council 65 Notification to City to Open Contract Bargaining The City of Hinckley has received notice from AFSCME Council 65 to open the contract negotiations. The personnel committee, which consists of Mayor Zeman, Councilmember Burkhardt, and staff, will start working on this. 9. Presentation of Claims A. General Fund Payables - $170,865.53 B. Firehouse Payables - $246,212.80 C. EDA Payables - $45.36 D. Payroll Payables - $41,494.86 Motion made by Frank, Seconded by Hopkins, to approve the claims as presented. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. 10. Notices and Communications -CGMC Interim City Visit with staff and anyone else interested@ City Hall 1:00 p.m. September 16, 2024 - Annual Opioid Settlement Meeting Pine County, hosted virtually, September 12, 2024, 4:00 p.m. - US DOT Thriving Communities Annual Convening in DC, October 10-11, 2024 11. Presentation of Petitions, Complaints, and Requests (3 minutes each) 12. Closed Session  A. The meeting is being closed under Minn. Stat. § 13D.05, subd. 3(c) to develop an offer to purchase an easement of real property. Motion made by Burkhardt, Seconded by Hopkins, to close the meeting at 7:49 p.m. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. Motion made by Frank, Seconded by Burkhardt, to open the closed meeting at 8:08 p.m. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. Staff were instructed during the open meeting to take action as discussed in the closed session. 13. Adjournment Motion made by Hopkins, Seconded by Scharpnick, to adjourn the meeting at 8:09 p.m. Voting Yea: Mayor Zeman, Burkhardt, Frank, Hopkins, Scharpnick. Motion carried 5-0. Don Zeman, Mayor Attest: Leaha Jackson, City Administrator