City Council Meeting

Holdingford City Council Meeting Minutes November 9, 2020 The November 9, 2020 Holdingford City Council meeting was called to order by Mayor Sue Marstein at 7:04 p.m. via Microsoft Teams, an electronic teleconferencing resource as per declaration for the Determination Regarding Conducting Meetings by Telephone or Other Electronic Means due to a health pandemic or an emergency declared under MN State Statutes, Chapter 12. The pledge of allegiance was recited. Council members present via remote access/electronic teleconferencing: Mayor Susan Marstein, Eric Berscheid, Robb Berscheid, Mike Odden, and Bob Sanchez. Sandra Meer and Bill Shank were present at City Hall. Steve Horvath and Scott Lange (SEH) were also present via remote access. Robb Berscheid made a motion to approve the consent agenda including minutes of the October 12, 2020 Council Meeting and October 29, 2020 Special Meeting, submitted monthly claims and financial reports. Sue Marstein seconded the motion. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. Department Reports Municipal Liquor Store financial report was given by Manager Bill Shank. October Revenue=$33,035.94. Expenses=$39,372.21. October e-tabs and pull tab revenue=$2,765.00. Bands are scheduled for the next three Fridays in November. A new wall mounted juke box and a dart board have been ordered and are coming in this month. Evaluations and step increases for two bartenders will be considered at the December council meeting. Fire Department personnel were not available for a report. Maintenance Department Report was given by Lead Supervisor, Steve Horvath. Hydrant flushing was completed and all fire hydrants were winterized. Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) bio-solids were pumped and applied on the field. The public restroom at Veterans Park and city sprinkler systems were winterized and closed. Water samples were collected for bi-annual copper and lead testing by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). Took down the patio and opened the alleyway at the Muni before October snow removal. A sink hole on Ridge Way was patched and will need excavation next spring. Several water meters at Main Street businesses were repaired after some gravel came through during the Main Street Utility Project. A selling price should be determined for the John Deere tractor as well as the mower, trimmer and blower attachments. It is the only lawn mower the city has at this time. Staff will check if attachments are specific to that 1445 JD tractor or if we can find a buyer for the attachments. It can be listed on the League of Minnesota Cities website as well as local, online sites. There was discussion on where to place the ice rink. Last year it was very uneven when it was put on the infield at the ball park. Some sand would be needed if it was laid in the parking lot. The skate ramp area was considered. The option to take out the middle poles on the volleyball court and replace them in the spring will be investigated. WD Scepaniak was asked to quote new floor drain grates at the Maintenance garage but hasn’t responded. A quote for floor drains was reviewed at the October council meeting. Mike Odden made a motion to approve bid from Berkon Outdoors for galvanized floor grates for $1,500.00. Sue Marstein seconded the motion. Sue Marstein, Robb Berscheid, Mike Odden, and Bob Sanchez voted in favor. Eric Berscheid abstained. Motion passed. Last month: 2,649,000 gallons of well water were pumped. 1,929,000 gallons of wastewater were treated. City Engineer Scott Lange addressed letter from Jeremy Kuechle requesting that the contract for the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) project be closed out and the retainage paid with clear understanding that any re-seeding, raking, additional topsoil or landscaping would be taken care of next spring if needed. Robb Berscheid made a motion to close out the SRTS Project and approve Final Pay Application #3 for $25,216.70 to Kuechle Underground, Inc. Bob Sanchez seconded the motion. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. Scott Lange reviewed four items on Change Order No. 2 for the Main Street Project which included 383.4CY of Class 5 gravel, 3650 SY of Geogrid with costs shared by the county and city, and additional traffic control and trench paving that were city costs. The additional patch work required should be the responsibility of the contractor. Buildings that need to be cleaned from concrete saw work will be done this week. Sue Marstein made a motion to approve Change Order No. 2 for 33,220.20. Bob Sanchez seconded the motion. Sue Marstein, Robb Berscheid, Eric Berscheid and Bob Sanchez voted in favor. Mike Odden voted against. Motion passed. Robb Berscheid made a motion to approve Pay Application #3 to C&L Excavating for $170,554.92 for work completed on the Main Street Utility Project through the 1st of November. Eric Berscheid seconded the motion. Sue Marstein, Robb Berscheid, Eric Berscheid and Bob Sanchez voted in favor. Mike Odden voted against. Motion passed. Scott Lange is working to get pricing from contractors and expecting work on water & sewer extensions to begin this month on the Greg Konsor Trust Property. Easements for the 4th Street utilities will be completed and recorded at the County this month. The utility easement includes water and sewer along 4th Street with a connection point by North High Court approximately 650 feet north to the Art In Motion building entrance. Sue Marstein made a motion to approve the acceptance of water and sewer utilities on 4th Street and the easements, contingent upon final filing with Stearns County. Bob Sanchez seconded the motion. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. Chandrowtie Somaiah submitted an application for a conditional use permit for the property at 531 Main Street that has a street level rental apartment unit. The zoning ordinance does not permit street level apartments in the Commercial District without a Conditional Use Permit and she is hoping to sell the building as is. Robb Berscheid made a motion to set a public hearing for December 14th immediately following the Truth in Taxation public hearing at 7:00pm. Mike Odden seconded the motion. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. Unfinished Business Three quotes for removing trees at the Wobegon Trailhead were reviewed. J&K Tree Service quoted $4311.04 to remove dead trees and $8,083.20 to remove all trees. Carr’s Tree Service quoted $1,800 to remove dead trees and $3,900 to remove all trees. Maximum Tree Service & Landscaping quoted $2,750 to remove all trees. Robb Berscheid made a motion to take out all trees, remove and clean up with lowest quote (Maximum). Eric Berscheid seconded the motion. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. Nikki Horvath requested a change in her position title with additional duties she’s taken on. The Mayor and council liaison will be meeting again with her and Bill to discuss changes. Kathy O’Hara asked about getting a phone reimbursement of $75 for three winter months and then 15 minutes per call during the other months as has been done in the past which would eliminate having two phones. Council suggested that calls only be answered during business hours and have calls forwarded to voice mail after hours so she doesn’t have to be on-call at all times. A draft outline for determining compensation guidelines for Steve Horvath was discussed. Steve was rehired as a fire fighter and could be answering fire calls during day time hours when he’s also working at the Maintenance Department. The draft conditions were not accepted and will be revised. Submitted invoices for shared expense requests from Jon Halvorson from Roering Co, LLC and Austin, Inc. were discussed. Austin’s bill totaled $1,425 for jetting from the house to the culvert, installing a sump pump and a hydro vac truck to clean the culvert. Roering’s invoice totaled $2,285 for a new culvert, sand, gravel, installation and old culvert removal. Discussion on what portion of this is the city responsible for versus homeowner and if it could have been done differently, like a 4 inch pipe drilled into the back of the catch basin , and at less cost? There was also consideration given for Halvorson’s easement for sidewalk along the south side of his property for SRTS. Mike Odden made a motion to pay for hydro vac truck expense of $675. Robb Berscheid seconded the motion. Further discussion that culvert was replaced without city approval or input from the city. Sue Marstein, Robb Berscheid, Mike Odden, and Bob Sanchez voted in favor. Eric Berscheid voted against. Motion passed. Jeff Burg from Holdingford Mill was seeking reimbursement and submitted two items from Larson Excavating Contractors, one estimate for $4,000 to replace the existing fire hydrant and an invoice for $6,500 that included the estimate costs as well as moving the hydrant approximately 30 feet to the west. The old fire hydrant was a 1966 model that Burg was told (by Larson?) didn’t meet current standards but was still fully functional. Discussion on getting an easement over the new line; the necessity and function of moving the hydrant versus convenience; the life span of the hydrant; and city’s cost of providing a replacement hydrant and gate valve. There was consideration given for the easement Burgs allowed for putting power lines over his property with the Main Street Pole relocation. Robb Berscheid made a motion to pay $2,000 towards the submitted invoice for moving fire hydrant. Following further discussion, Robb Berscheid amended the motion to pay $1,000 towards the cost at which point, Eric Berscheid seconded the motion, contingent on getting an easement over the water line to the hydrant. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. Sue Marstein reported on completing the survey for Stearns County Ditch 28 project review and noted the County Commissioners will consider survey results and next step to spend $25,000-30,000 for an Engineer’s Report of Repair at their November 17 th meeting. New Business Mike Odden made a motion to approve Resolution 20-11-9-1 for Knights of Columbus Raffle to be held on May 6, 2021. Robb Berscheid seconded the motion. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. Bob Sanchez made a motion to approve Resolution 20-11-09-2 Allocating CARES Act Funds. Sue Marstein seconded the motion. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. There is approximately $3,775 remaining to be spent by the November 15 th deadline. The council agreed to purchase a new desk top computer for the Mayor’s office and a laptop for meeting use as well as a microphone and camera to facilitate virtual meetings. Mike Odden made motion to canvass Election results as submitted; Sue Marstein - mayor, Robb Berscheid - council member and Seth Young - council member. Eric Berscheid seconded the motion. Following a roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion passed. Replacing the corrugated No Parking Signs that are posted on utility poles along 4th Street was discussed. The temporary signs were posted as a result of construction and increased traffic flow to the new with Art In Motion facility. More research will be done and it will be addressed next spring. Council members reviewed HMLS Manager, Bill Shank’s annual evaluation completed with liaison Robb Berscheid and Mayor Marstein. As a result of the October 29th Special Meeting, the terms of Bill Shank’s one year probation were discussed including; participation in bi-monthly evaluation meetings to review goals and show marked improvements, review update and begin to implement HMLS Policies and Procedures Manual and have ready for council approval on the January 11, 2021, work with council and lottery managers to create and implement policies that will eliminate the practice of holding checks for any and all purposes for employees and liquor store patrons, permit mayor, council liaison, lottery managers or clerk-treasurer to verify balances of lottery box(es) and cash box at any time. The accumulation and use of comp time and the salaried position was discussed and clarified. The council agreed that as a salaried position, comp time is not accumulated and a minimum of 40 hours per week is to be worked. They directed Bill to use the remaining balance of 34.5 hours of comp time that was accumulated in January 2020 as soon as possible. Announcements Residents who are delinquent on their utility payments include: , Jesse Johnson $893.22, Walker Nienaber $636.97, Jacob Hanebuth $589.48, Troy Hansen $546.95, Brenda Rybak $441.67, Will Wolter $389.30, Principal Logistics $365.67 and Bill Fellegy $371.30, Scott Zehowski $337.61 and Shannon Backlund $323.49. Letters have been sent to homeowners with delinquent accounts to levy balance owed to 2021 taxes. There was discussion on shutting off water during the pandemic to encourage regular payments. Admin Reports Mayors/Council Discussion notes:  Nuisance properties: Hyatt House cleaned up and cleared very well. Follow will be done with Posch.  Storage containers on residential property. Road legal 8 ft wide. Anything over 200 square feet it needs a permit. It needs to be in the back. Want some kind of ordinance pertaining to storage containers. Sue will check what other cities are doing with. Campers in front yards need to be on an impervious surfaces, or needs to have time line for how long it’s there. Look at what other cities are doing.  Union negotiations: council liaisons agreed to COLA increase of 3% per year for the two year contract and did not agree to give additional $100 per month for insurance benefits. They are still negotiating on a Step Increase for attaining Class B licensure since neither employee is eligible to take the license test for another year and half.  Main Street light poles are still on order, expected to come in December.  Park revenue report from Park Manager Kathy O’Hara totaled $4,808 for the 2020 camping season. Mike Odden made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Robb Berscheid seconded the motion. Meeting adjourned at 10:15p.m. Respectfully submitted, Sandra Meer City Clerk, Holdingford OCTOBER 2020 Department Gross Pay General $ 7,040.32 Public Works $ 7,913.51 Fire $ Liquor $ 7,125.54 Total $ 22,079.37 2 pay periods ending 10/9, 10/23 City of Holdingford - Equal Opportunity Provider Accounts Payable Check Register Report - STEARNS BANK For The Fiscal Periods Range From 2020-10 To 2020-10 For All Vendors And For Outstanding, Cleared, Voided Checks - Computer Generated Check # Type Date Vendor Name Amount Status 35900 C 10/13/2020 496 Albany Chrysler Center $533.06 C 35901 C 10/13/2020 517 Alex Air Apparatus, Inc $1,586.21 C 35902 C 10/13/2020 328 AllSpec Services, LLC $58.75 C 35903 C 10/13/2020 691 Allstream $247.64 C 35904 C 10/13/2020 6 AmeriPride Linen $142.55 C 35905 C 10/13/2020 1013 Anderson Excavating & Septic $400.00 C 35906 C 10/13/2020 326 Auto Value $42.19 C 35907 C 10/13/2020 1045 Badger Meter $250.00 C 35908 C 10/13/2020 9 Bernick's Pepsi-Cola $784.25 C 35909 C 10/13/2020 825 Bound Tree Medical, LLC $141.16 C 35910 C 10/13/2020 627 Breakthru Beverage Minnesota $759.68 C 35911 C 10/13/2020 828 Brian Zapzalka $650.00 C 35912 C 10/13/2020 18 C & L Distributing, Inc $4,599.45 C 35913 C 10/13/2020 24 Central McGowan, Inc $22.73 C 35914 C 10/13/2020 48 Dahlheimer Beverage $234.60 C 35915 C 10/13/2020 1020 DG Central 1, LLC $2,164.72 C 35916 C 10/13/2020 940 Flow Measurement and Control Co $415.00 C 35917 C 10/13/2020 70 Frito-Lay, Inc $61.62 C 35918 C 10/13/2020 80 Gopher State One-Call, Inc $175.00 C 35919 C 10/13/2020 787 Granite City Jobbing Co $1,146.18 C 35920 C 10/13/2020 340 HACH COMPANY $573.95 C 35921 C 10/13/2020 90 Harry's Frozen Foods $202.50 C 35922 C 10/13/2020 91 Hawkins, Inc $3,996.56 C 35923 C 10/13/2020 92 Headley Hardware $154.69 C 35924 C 10/13/2020 481 Heggies Pizza $185.40 C 35926 C 10/13/2020 614 Holdingford Gas and Grocery $123.13 C 35927 C 10/13/2020 1016 Independent Testing Technologies, Inc. $670.00 C 35928 C 10/13/2020 119 Johnson Brothers Liquor Co. $3,247.52 C 35929 C 10/13/2020 1009 Kennedy & Graven, Chartered $305.25 C 35930 C 10/13/2020 730 Midcontinent Business Solutions $321.85 C 35931 C 10/13/2020 687 MN Dept Hlth, MDH $697.00 C 35932 C 10/13/2020 171 MFSCB $300.00 C 35933 C 10/13/2020 911 MN PEIP $1,137.00 C 35934 C 10/13/2020 995 Robert Opheim $300.00 C 35935 C 10/13/2020 750 St Cloud Times #1076 $25.00 C 35936 C 10/13/2020 237 St Rosa Lumber, Inc $597.24 C 35937 C 10/13/2020 685 Star Publications, LLC $233.79 C 35938 C 10/13/2020 242 Stearns Cty Auditor-Treas $2,000.00 C 35939 C 10/13/2020 263 Tom's Refuse $6,351.00 C 35940 C 10/13/2020 804 Toshiba Financial Services $122.23 C 35941 C 10/13/2020 728 Tri-State Pump & Control, Inc. $924.24 C 35942 C 10/13/2020 271 UC Lab $1,304.00 C 35943 C 10/13/2020 276 Vadim Municipal Software Inc $4.16 C 35944 C 10/13/2020 281 Viking Coca Cola Bottling $1,452.80 C 35945 C 10/13/2020 360 XCEL ENERGY 51-5655037-5 $1,037.86 C 35946 C 10/13/2020 359 XCEL ENERGY 51-5655038-6 $283.54 C 35947 C 10/13/2020 519 XCEL ENERGY 51-8242904-3 $55.42 C 35948 C 10/14/2020 704 AFSCME Council 65 $104.59 C 35949 C 10/14/2020 1039 C&L Excavating, Inc $145,048.35 C 35950 C 10/14/2020 339 Verizon Wireless $114.35 C 35965 C 10/26/2020 787 Granite City Jobbing Co $1,382.71 C 35981 C 10/26/2020 359 XCEL ENERGY 51-5655038-6 $1,314.50 C 35982 C 10/26/2020 361 XCEL ENERGY 51-5655039-7 $911.69 C 35983 C 10/26/2020 383 XCEL ENERGY 51-5655041-1 $879.11 C 35925 C 10/13/2020 107 Holdingford Fire Relief Assn $23,755.90 O 35952 C 10/26/2020 1036 James Keehr $300.00 O 35953 C 10/26/2020 824 American Solutions for Business $313.31 O 35954 C 10/26/2020 870 Arnie's Log & lawn $286.94 O 35955 C 10/26/2020 326 Auto Value $32.99 O 35956 C 10/26/2020 9 Bernick's Pepsi-Cola $277.03 O 35957 C 10/26/2020 627 Breakthru Beverage Minnesota $1,645.10 O 35958 C 10/26/2020 18 C & L Distributing, Inc $3,666.85 O 35959 C 10/26/2020 24 Central McGowan, Inc $39.51 O 35960 C 10/26/2020 21 Central MN. Alarms, Inc. $218.85 O 35961 C 10/26/2020 873 CenturyLink $67.28 O 35962 C 10/26/2020 48 Dahlheimer Beverage $380.00 O 35963 C 10/26/2020 1020 DG Central 1, LLC $1,482.10 O 35964 C 10/26/2020 316 GERAD'S OIL CO., INC $317.55 O 35966 C 10/26/2020 89 Handyman's Inc $63.84 O 35967 C 10/26/2020 90 Harry's Frozen Foods $117.50 O 35968 C 10/26/2020 481 Heggies Pizza $83.40 O 35969 C 10/26/2020 107 Holdingford Fire Relief Assn $200.00 O 35970 C 10/26/2020 119 Johnson Brothers Liquor Co. $2,784.90 O 35971 C 10/26/2020 718 Nelson's Septic Service $675.00 O 35972 C 10/26/2020 301 Ramler Truck & Trailer Repair $378.78 O 35973 C 10/26/2020 343 ROTO-ROOTER $355.00 O 35974 C 10/26/2020 223 S.E.H. $27,775.42 O 35975 C 10/26/2020 750 St Cloud Times #1076 $25.00 O 35976 C 10/26/2020 960 Summit Companies $132.50 O 35977 C 10/26/2020 1047 Taft Stettinius & Hollister $10,000.00 O 35978 C 10/26/2020 263 Tom's Refuse $6,351.00 O 35979 C 10/26/2020 276 Vadim Municipal Software Inc $2,777.84 O 35980 C 10/26/2020 903 Upper Lakes Foods, Inc. $304.92 O Cleared $190,776.22 Outstanding $84,808.51 Void $0.00