Council Meeting

Regular Council Meeting November 12, 2024 Mayor Stan Townsend called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. In attendance were Darwin Sietsema, Brian Baartman, Chris McCurdy, and Stu Peterson. Also in attendance were Tami Nelson, Tim Haase, and Darrin Haroldson. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited by those in attendance. Minutes of the October meeting were approved by M/Sietsema 2/Baartman/cd unanimously. Tami Nelson was here to talk to the council about the school memorabilia and to give an update on the school memorial to be built. The memorabilia will be donated to the Pipestone County Museum. The memorial will be built next spring and the city council decided to waive the building permit fee. Wastewater Supervisor, Darrin Haroldson gave the council his report for the month of October and answered the council’s questions. A building permit for First Independent Bank for the addition of 4 new windows on the east side of the bank and replacement of windows on the north side of bank at 339 Aetna Street was approved by M/Sietsema 2/McCurdy/cd unanimously. The October bills were presented and approved by M/Peterson 2/Baartman/cd unanimously. Receipts = $46,874.08 Disbursements = $15,885.81 Results of the 2024 General Election for the City Council are as follows: (Winners are indicated with **) Mayor: 2-year term. Voted for 1 ** Stan Townsend – 86 Write-ins – 12 Under votes – 11 Council member: 4-year term. Voted for 2 ** Brian Baartman – 87 ** Stewart Peterson – 72 Bonnie Stelton – 24 Write-ins – 4 Under votes – 31 Special Election for Council member: 2-year term. Voted for 1 Chris McCurdy – 98 Write-ins – 3 Under votes – 8 The City of Ruthton had 115 registered voters at 7:00 a.m. when the polls opened. At 8:00 p.m. when the polls closed, 109 voters had cast their vote for a 95% turnout. After going through the results, a motion was made to sign Resolution 2024-08, certifying the results of the November 5, 2024 General Election by M/Baartman 2/Peterson/cd unanimously. Tim Haase was here with questions on the papers that were served. The council gave him until December 1, 2024 to get the vehicles licensed or the city will come in and remove. Tim Haase stated that the bills will be paid by January 2025. The council did grant an extension until next spring to get the fence repaired. A list of people owing delinquent charges was presented to the council. A letter to each delinquent account was mailed on October 7, 2024, notifying them of the delinquent amount and unless paid will be certified on their property taxes as a Special Assessment. A total of one (1) property will be assessed special assessments for delinquent charges. After discussion it was approved by M/Peterson 2/Sietsema/cd unanimously with Resolution 2024-09 to certify to the Pipestone County Auditor any delinquent charges if not paid on or before November 22, 2024. Pipestone County sent a resolution for Cannabis Microbusiness Authority. The city would consent to the County of Pipestone for issuing registration of any cannabis microbusiness with a retail operations endorsement, cannabis mezzobusiness with a retail operations endorsement, cannabis retailer, medical cannabis retailer, medical cannabis combination business or lower-potency hemp edible retailer within the jurisdiction of the city of Ruthton. After discussion, it was decided to table this issue until the December meeting. The council approved tenure pays for employees who have been with the City of Ruthton 15 years or more. Both full-time employees will qualify. The tenure pay will amount to $100 per year of employment. Rochelle VanderWoude, a 24-year employee will receive a tenure check of $2400.00, and Darrin Haroldson, a 17-year employee will receive a tenure check of $1700.00 for their services in December. The meeting went into closed session at 9:00 p.m. to discuss City Clerk/Treasurer wages. It was approved to jump Rochelle VanderWoude’s wage to $26.50 retroactive back to October 13, 2024. The meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m. by M/Baartman 2/Sietsema/cd. Rochelle VanderWoude Ruthton City Clerk/Treasurer