MINUTES
OF THE
REGULAR
FRANKLIN
Monday,
October 12, 2009
A Regular Meeting of the Franklin City Council
was held on Monday, October 12, 2009, at 7:00 p.m., at City Hall. Council present were: Degner, Hoffman, Munsell, Schacher and
Wiese. Staff Department Heads present
were: Degner, Kokesch and Pederson. Guests present were: Katrina Swigart and
Scott Nissen.
At 7:00 p.m., Mayor Degner called the meeting to
order with all council present.
Mayor Degner requested approval of the agenda; Munsell motioned to approve the agenda,
second by Schacher, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Mayor
Degner called for approval of the minutes of the September 14, 2009, Regular Meeting.
Schacher motioned to approve the minutes as presented, second by
Munsell, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Citizens were
addressed. The council allowed Swigart’s request for an extension until Friday to pay her
delinquent utility bill in the amount of $87.03.
Tom Bordwell, Mediacom, was unable to attend the
meeting due to illness. Munsell motioned for the city to approve
and sign the franchise agreement as received from Bob Vose, Kennedy and Graven,
and send the signed agreement to Mediacom; second by Schacher, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
The council reviewed the Expert T Billing
Contract and felt the $.50 increase per claim was nominal. Munsell
motioned to approve the Expert T Billing Contract renewal; second by Wiese,
RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
The council discussed the Clobes
Sanitation contract renewal for three years at the cost of $1,250/month or
$15,000 per year for garbage collection, noting no problems with service. Schacher
motioned to approve the Clobes Sanitation contract
renewal at an increase of $100/month; second by Hoffman, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
The Franklin State Bank made an offer of $8,000
for the Community Center building.
Nissen recognized that the offer is lower than the city had wanted, but
the costs to remove the back of the building and make necessary renovations will
exceed the purchase price. Nissen also
noted that the bank has no definite plans for the building but is certain it
will be an improvement. Eugene Longstrom offered to be the general facilitator of the
closing for a fee of $400.00; the bank would be responsible for the title
opinion. Hoffman motioned to accept the bank’s offer
of $8,000; second by Wiese. Munsell recommended amending the motion
to include Eugene Longstrom to facilitate the
closing. Hoffman amended her motion to accept the Franklin State Bank’s offer of
$8,000 and to hire Eugene Longstrom to facilitate the
closing for $400; second by Wiese, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
The council discussed the situation with the
Prairie Agra Fuels property, the tax situation, and TIF district options. The Franklin Dev. Corp. recommended that the
city not decertify the district at this time and Munsell added that he felt it
was too early especially given the expense involved to set up the TIF
district. Pederson has been in contact
with the county auditor, county attorney, and the state TIF department and is
working to find a creative solution.
Letters will be sent to the property owners, to Prairie Agra Fuels, and
the Dev. Corp. will be asked for consideration of grant funds. The issue was tabled until November.
The financial status of
the city was reviewed and current bills were presented for payment in the
amount of $36,999.82; September receipts totaled $27,842.13. Schacher
motioned for approval of the bills and financial report as presented, second by
Hoffman, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Chief Degner reported that for the city to adopt
the Renville County Tobacco Ordinance, license fees to the county would be
$80.00 per year vs. the current $40.00; there would no longer be the $40.00
compliance check fee charged to the city.
Munsell motioned for the city to
adopt the county tobacco ordinance; second by Schacher, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Department Heads were
addressed. Kokesch reported that he has
begun winterizing the parks and questioned if the power should be shut off at
the tennis court park, council consensus was due to the need for the
surveillance cameras the power will be left on; discussed the possibility of an
ice skating rink and Kokesch noted the difficulties and lack of quality ice;
sweeping the leaves has been challenging due to the weather; the water repairs
on 2nd Ave. have apparently alleviated the wet basement problems in
the area; hydrant flushing is underway; there will be an MPCA inspection on
Thursday morning; and hopefully the Community Center will be cleaned out by the
end of October. Pederson and Schacher
reported on the county radio meeting, noting that the county intends to switch
to the ARMOR System and recommended that cities not purchase any new pagers at
this time; regarding the Veteran’s Park, there is no funding for DNR Outdoor
Recreation Grants at this time and the railings at the park do meet the
building code; the council declined on advertising in the Redwood Area
Visitor’s Guide.
A zoning permit was
issued to Tim Birkemeyer to install a 12’ x 16’ and
4’ x 10’ wood and composite deck at 280 Fifth St. E. Pederson reported on the need to address
metal roofs in the zoning code.
Currently repairs and replacements may be of metal as they do not require
a permit, but new construction does require a permit and would currently not be
allowed. Pederson will research this and
present an amendment to the zoning code for review.
Munsell motioned to approve Resolution 2009-7, Assessment of Delinquent
Utility Accounts/Services Against Benefited
Properties, in the amount of $376.29; second by Schacher, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Munsell motioned to approve Resolution 2009-8, Annual Ambulance Assessment, in the amount of $4,750.00; second by Wiese, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Pederson received council approval to apply for a
grant for an accessible doorbell for the Fire Hall. Schacher
motioned to approve Resolution 2009-9, Approval to Apply for an EAID Grant,
second by Hoffman, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Councilor requests were addressed. Munsell questioned the status of the proposed
water/sewer improvements project; Kokesch and Pederson have been working with
Bill Helget, Bolton and Menk, on revising data for
submittal to USDA.
At 8:16 p.m., Mayor
Degner called for adjournment, with Wiese motioning for adjournment, second by
Hoffman, RCV-5 Yes, 0 No.
Respectfully Submitted by
Wendy Pederson, City Clerk/Treasurer