MINUTES OF THE
REGULAR FRANKLIN
Monday,
July 11, 2011
A Regular Meeting of the Franklin City Council
was held on Monday, July 11, 2011, at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall. Council members present were: Degner, Hoffman, Lyon, Schacher, and
Wiese. Staff Department Heads present
were: Degner, Kokesch and Pederson. Guests present were: Barbara Yescavage,
Dan Woods, Joel Harmoning, and Andy Kehren.
At 7:00 p.m., Mayor Degner called the meeting to
order with roll call showing all council present.
Mayor
Degner called for approval of the agenda and noted the request to add
Resolution 2011-6, Approving membership in the MnWARN
System. Schacher motioned to approve the
agenda with the addition of Resolution 2011-6, second by Wiese, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Mayor
Degner called for approval of the minutes of the June 13, 2011 Regular Meeting.
Hoffman motioned to approve the minutes as presented, second by Wiese,
RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
No citizens requested to be addressed, all
present were on the agenda.
Andy Kehren presented
the bid tabulation for the Well #5 project.
Four bids were received, ranging from $43,105 (by Ervin Well Company) to
$52,680, with the engineer’s estimate at $57,100. Kehren recommended the council approve the
bid of $43,105 from Ervin Well Company contingent upon approval and concurrence
with Rural Development. Kehren also noted that with the state shut-down,
the Dept. of Health is not working and it may have an impact on when the well
can be drilled. Lyon motioned to approve the Ervin Well Co. bid of $43,105 contingent
upon Rural Development approval and concurrence, second by Hoffman, RCV-5 Yes,
0 No.
Kehren reported that the
plans for the 2nd Ave. repairs are completed but no construction can
begin until the state shut-down is over, due to this portion of the project
using state aid dollars. Kehren is
working on preliminary plans for the remainder of the project. Kehren and the city attorney have been
working on documentation to present to Gaub’s bond
company for the warranty work.
Joel Harmoning presented
the Fire Relief Association’s 2010 financial report, noting the funds are in
good shape, the current benefit level is at $1,000 which they are very
comfortable with. Pederson stressed the
difficulty in budgeting the state aid dollar match.
Wiese motioned to accept with regrets the
resignation of Brian Pederson from the Fire Department, second by Schacher,
RCV-5 Yes, 0 No. Pederson will post the vacant position
and if no new applicants are received the recent applicants will be considered
for hire.
The financial status of
the city was reviewed. June receipts
totaled $115,701.55; current bills were presented for payment in the amount of
$39,055.30. Schacher motioned for approval of the bills and financial report as
presented, second by Hoffman, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Department Heads were addressed. Kokesch received a recommendation from Eugene
Zempel to thin the trees at the boat landing, the council approved Kokesch to
mark trees and offer the marked trees for removal; mosquito spraying has been going well and
will be applied prior to Catfish Days; reported on the poor condition of the
alleys, the council will look at them before the next meeting; the former
elevator building has water in the basement, this is not felt by the city to be
a city caused problem and it was noted that with the saturated ground there are
numerous properties with water issues;
the pellet building was insulated last week and the auger has been
lowered; Catfish Days preparations are underway; there was a substantial amount
of storm debris to clean up today; the city pickup truck is experiencing
transmission problems again and should be considered for replacement in the
future. Pederson noted that 5 disconnect
notices were posted; the official 2010 census data was received from the state
demographer’s office; the council approved a $300 donation to the Renville
County Heartland Express; reissuing bonds would not produce enough savings to
cover the cost; the Sharp copy machine is in need of service and due to its age
may not be serviceable, Pederson is to research copier options; Pederson requested council direction on the
preparation of the preliminary budget, the council recommended using a 7% levy increase.
Zoning permits were
issued to: Rakesh
Patel, Tej, LLC, to install a 6’ x 10’ metal box with
concrete at 350 St. Hwy.19; Tim Scharfencamp to build
a 20’ x 16’ x 8’ wood roof over his existing deck at 411 First St.; and to Matt
Anderson to install a 40’ x 40’ x 6’ fence/corral and move an existing building
at 471 St. Hwy. 19.
Wiese motioned to approve Resolution 2011-5, Anderson Rezoning
Classification and Conditional Use Permit, second by Schacher, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Kokesch presented information to the council
regarding the MnWARN (Minnesota Water Agency Response
Network) Agreement, which is a mutual aid agreement between governmental units
allowing their water, wastewater and storm water utilities to assist each other
in case of an emergency. Schacher motioned to approve Resolution
2011-6 Authorizing the city to be a party to MnWARN,
second by Wiese, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
The council discussed the 330 First Ave. property,
noting the past due taxes and deed costs were $3662.77, plus there will be
attorney fees associated with this property.
Yescavage noted that there is no furnace and
the plumbing and electric need repairs; she also noted that other cities are
selling properties for $1 just to get them back on the tax rolls and using
utilities. Hoffman motioned to sell the property for $4,000, second by Wiese,
RCV-5 Yes, 0 No. Hoffman additionally
motioned that the buyer must have the house renovations substantially completed
within one year of the purchase, second by Lyon, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Pederson presented building inspection
information received. The council
discussed their options and which properties to concentrate on. The council would like Mr. Haslip to come to
a council meeting.
Chief Degner presented
recommended city address corrections.
The council discussed the current Third Ave. W. properties and the south
Third Street addresses. Pederson will
draft a new master address list with the council recommendations and will send
letters to notify those affected along with Sheriff Hable and David
Munsell. A resolution to adopt the new
master address list will be presented at the August council meeting.
Councilor requests
included that the council will all ride in the Catfish Days parade and Mayor
Degner will make the arrangements; Harmoning thanked the city council and staff
for their support of Catfish Days and discussed sweeping the streets on Friday
and Saturday evenings. Lyon questioned
the LMCIT volunteer accident insurance which has been added to the city’s
policy-volunteers will be sought for assistance with city maintenance. Mayor Degner reported that the LMC Annual
Meeting was very good.
At 8:57 p.m., Mayor
Degner called for adjournment, with Hoffman motioning for adjournment, second
by
Wiese, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No. The next
regular city council meeting will be held Monday, July 11, 2011, at 7:00 p.m.
at City Hall.
Respectfully
Submitted by
Wendy Pederson, City Clerk/Treasurer