City of Waverly Minutes

Regular Session Pursuant to notice and call the Waverly City Council met in regular session at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, November 12, 2003 in the council chambers of Waverly City Hall. Those in attendance were Mayor Bush, Clerk Ryks and Council Members: Hausladen, Antil, and Henry-Neaton. Council Member Olson was absent. Agenda The following items were added to the agenda: City Engineer‚s Report, item b.1. Payment Request No. 1 Water Tower Project; Park Commission Report, item 17.a.-Arcon Park Cost Estimate; Administration, item 18.e.- Leadership Conference; Old Business, item 20.a. Meeting w/ townships: Annexation Agreements; New Business, item 21.a.-Village Hall Community Survey Draft, item 21.b.-HLWW School Board Letter. The agenda was approved as amended by consensus of the council. Public Hearing-Storm Water Utility Ordinance/Fees The public hearing was opened at 7:30 p.m. The purpose of the hearing is to consider adoption of a Storm Water Utility Ordinance and utility fees at the rate of $3 per lot for residential services, $12 per lot for commercial services. Lots over one acre in size will have a different calculation. The funds will be used for the storm water system, and curb and gutter installation as required. The fees will be calculated by water connections. The fees are monthly and will be tripled for quarterly billings. There were no public comments offered. The hearing will remain open pending additional comments until 7:45 p.m. There were no additional comments received. The public hearing was closed at 7:45 p.m. Motion by Antil, seconded by Hausladen to adopt ordinance 03-05. Carried 4-0. City Engineers Report City Engineer Barry Glienke reported that payment request #1 for the water tower project has been submitted and recommended for approval by the council. The payment request is for structural drawings that have been prepared. The amount of the payment request is $23,750. A preconstruction meeting will be held in December. Footings will be dug in January. The total time line for completion is 1 ∏ years. New developments may be put on hold until water capacity is increased and the new tower is operational. Motion by Antil, seconded by Hausladen to approve payment request #1 submitted by Maguire Iron and recommended for approval by the city engineer in the amount of $23,750 for structural drawings. Carried 4-0. Bolton & Menk is currently tracking sewer capacity so we can be in control of proposed development projects and when they may move forward. This project is being worked on with the City of Montrose. The Montrose wastewater treatment plant should be on line within 3 weeks,. Montrose will be on line with the new plant as soon as it is operational. Waverly will pump to the new plant next spring. Glienke is currently working on development maps for the council. The maps will show the location and size of pending development projects. Minutes The minutes of the October 6, 2003 Special Session were presented for approval. Motion by Hausladen, seconded by Henry-Neaton to approve the October 6, 2003 Special Session minutes as presented. Carried 4-0. The minutes of the October 7, 2003 Special Session were presented for approval. Motion by Antil, seconded by Hausladen to approve the October 7, 2003 Special Session minutes as presented. Carried 4-0. The minutes of the October 10, 2003 Work Session were presented for approval. Motion by Hausladen, seconded by Antil to approve the October 10, 2003 Work Session minutes as presented. Carried 4-0. The minutes of the October 14, 2003 Regular Session were presented for approval. Motion by Henry-Neaton, seconded by Hausladen to approve the October 14, 2003 Regular Session minutes as presented. Carried 4-0. The minutes of the October 27, 2003 Village Hall Committee were presented for approval. Motion by Henry-Neaton, seconded by Hausladen to approve the October 27, 2003 Village Hall Committee minutes as presented. Carried 4-0. Accounts Payable Motion by Hausladen , seconded by Antil to approve the accounts payable in the amount of $65,017.62. Carried 4-0. Public Hearing-Proposed Assessments, Unpaid Utilities The public hearing was opened at 7:45 p.m. George and Judith Hudson, 302 N. 4th Street, were present at the meeting to submit a protest for the proposed utility assessment to their property in the amount of $162.00. The bill was left by the previous owner, Chris Brings. They stated that they have resided at the address for 5 years and were never informed that a billing was left unpaid. Their title company did not find any assessments owing on the property as of their closing date. This is due to the fact that the bill left unpaid was the final utility billing that was calculated after the closing date. The council explained that they did not want to write off the amount owed to the city. Craig Smith, a Waverly resident and in the realty business explained that this is an issue between the buyer and seller of the property. The Hudsons could pursue a suit in small claims court against the seller. The seller signs a document at closing that states that the seller is responsible to pay final utility bills. Smith suggested that the Hudsons obtain a copy of the paperwork from the title company and sue in small claims court to recover the $162.00 that they will have to pay on their taxes. If they do not pay the assessment, it will become a lien on the property and they will not be able to transfer the property until it is resolved. Roxanne and Alan Kugel, 6252 1st Street S. were also present at the hearing regarding a utility bill that was left unpaid by the previous property owner in the amount of $871.09. They were present during the discussion with George and Judith Hudson and stated that they will contact a real estate company for legal action against the seller. They are currently experiencing a financial hardship due to a lay off and requested a time period of 12 months to pay the assessment amount in the case they have trouble collecting from seller. Due to the financial situation of the Kugels and due to the fact that they will be pursuing action against the sellers, the council issued a payment arrangement as follows: Six month grace period with no payments, A 9 month time period to pay the previous owner‚s bill with no interest. The city will provide a letter for the Kugels to bring to small claims court. Motion by Hausladen, seconded by Antil to approve the payment arrangement with the Kugels and provide a letter for small claims court. Carried 4-0. Clerk Ryks received a request from Mark Rask who owns rental property at 813 Pacific Avenue. The renter has not paid the bill or kept up with payment arrangements made with the council. Rask requested to make payments over a 2 year period in lieu of an assessment on the property taxes. The amount of the proposed assessment is $2,159.37. Rask was unable to attend the hearing as he resides in Wisconsin. The council declined the payment arrangement proposed by Mark Rask for the rental property located at 813 Pacific Avenue. Scott Ogle was present at the hearing to confirm that payment was received and there would not be an assessment to his property located at 507 Maple Avenue. The council informed Ogle that the payment was received and is not proposed for assessment. The hearing was closed at 8:20 p.m. Resolution 03-11 was presented to the council for adoption of the assessments. The total assessment amount as of November 12, 2003 is $20,087.71. Payments received by November 21, 2003 will be removed from the assessment list by the Clerk. Motion by Bush, seconded by Antil to adopt Resolution 03-11 to adopt the assessments in the amount of $20,087.71. Carried 4-0. Maintenance Report Maintenance Supervisor John Rassat reported that the sander cost increased due to revamping the hoses. It resulted in a $1600 additional cost. 1st Street S. will be re-shaped and built up for grading so snow plowing can be done this winter. Bids will be let in February or March for the improvements to 1st Street S. The engineers will phase the project so that residents in the Kristall Development will not be cut off as their second exit will be on 1st Street. Rassat asked for quotations for a maintenance agreement for the street lights on highway 12. Design Electric installed the lights but did not respond to the request for a price on a maintenance agreement. CR Electric, Winsted provided a proposal for time and material cost as repairs are needed. The costs are $40 hourly for the truck and $50 hourly for labor. Xcel Energy previously provided a quote for a maintenance agreement which would include a $3000 up front cost to upgrade the lights to their parts and products to accommodate maintenance and $2.50 per lamp/monthly and the parts cost is additional. Diers Electric is not interested in providing an agreement for repair of the street lights. 6 lights are currently in need of repairs. The lights were installed in 2001 with the highway 12 reconstruction project. Motion by Antil, seconded by Henry-Neaton to authorize Rassat to sign the contract with CR Electric for maintenance of the highway 12 street lights for a trial period of 1 year. Carried 4-0. Rassat reported that Jim Woitalla and Bill Schoening will be attending Wastewater School December 9-11, 2003. Schoening will be taking his Class D Wastewater License exam, and Woitalla will be taking his Class C Wastewater license exam on December 11. Parks Superintendent Woitalla reported that he and City Engineer Barry Glienke met with Wright Soil and Water about ditch cleaning at the park. Glienke and Woitalla were told that they would have to retain some of the cattails. Morris Excavating‚s quote will change due to less work. The council would like to move forward now to improve the drainage situation. If the parking lot is paved, Wright Soil and Water wants a storm water pond installed during the park improvements. State Representative Dick Borrell stated that the city may have the ability to destroy a self created wetland such as the ditch area in the park. Planning and Zoning Report A public hearing was held on Oct 16, 2003 regarding a variance application for the property located at 5661 Dempsey Avenues submitted by Craig and Linda Smith. The proposed side yard setback is 5 feet to accommodate a deck. The lot is small in size and the deck plan will provide a second access. The Planning Commission has recommended approval of the variance request as submitted due to the small lot size of the property. Motion by Hausladen, seconded by Antil to grant the variance request for 5661 Dempsey Avenue as recommended by the Planning Commission. Carried 4-0. There is a vacancy on the Planning Commission due to the resignation of Chris Halvorson. The Planning Commission conducted an interview of Craig Smith and has recommended the appointment of Craig Smith to fulfill Chris Halvorson‚s term, with the term expiring on 12/31/05. Motion by Antil seconded by Henry-Neaton to appoint Craig Smith to the Planning Commission for the term expiring on 12/31/05. Carried 4-0. EDA Report The Economic Development Authority has a vacancy due to the resignation of Becky Halvorson. The Board interviewed two candidates for the open position. They plan to conduct additional interviews at their November meeting. There may be one additional position open due to the relocation of a member to Buffalo. The repurchase of the Eagle Creek Development property was discussed but it was decided that there is not much that can be done to expedite the work and it is not feasible to repurchase the property because of increasing property values. The EDA will be formulating goals prior to a joint meeting with the committees in January. Park Commission There is currently a dispute between the City of Waverly and Arcon Development regarding the park development fees. The City Attorney will be forwarding a letter to Arcon Development explaining the city‚s position. A cost estimate was prepared by Bolton & Menk for development of the Arcon Park which includes ball fields, restrooms, picnic shelters, and playground areas. The cost estimate is $368,000. Amendment to Sanitary Sewer Agmt-Waverly/Montrose An Amendment to the Sanitary Sewer Agreement, between the cities of Waverly and Montrose was reviewed by the council. The amendment reflects the boundary of Crofoot Avenue between the two cities and which city will provide utility services. Motion by Henry-Neaton, seconded by Bush to approve the amendment to the Sanitary Sewer Agreement. Carried 4-0. Humane Society-Animal Control Contract The 2004 proposed animal control contract was received from the Wright County Humane Society. The 2004 contract includes a $40.93 increase over the 2003 contract. The City will also include cats in the 2004 contract. Motion by Antil, seconded by Henry-Neaton to adopt the 2004 animal control contract. Carried 4-0. 2004-2005 Police Contract The proposed Police Contract for 2004-2005 was received from Wright County. The new contract includes increases each year and a section requiring the city to provide an area for the police officers to set up a computer and telephone as well as allowing a sign to be posted on the outside of the city office building. 2003 rates are $43.50 per hour, 2004 rates are proposed at $45.50 per hour, and 2005 rates are proposed at 47.75 per hour. There are a total of 1,768 contract hours per year. Motion by Hausladen, seconded by Antil to adopt the 2004-2005 police contract. Carried 4-0. Wine License Renewal-Uptown Bar and Grill Motion by Hausladen, seconded by Henry-Neaton to renew the wine license for 2004 for the Uptown Bar and Grill LLC pending receipt of adequate insurance and a completed application. Carried 4-0. Municipal Liquor Store Report Motion by Antil, seconded by Henry-Neaton to adopt the October 2003 Municipal Liquor Store Report. Carried 4-0. It was noted that a special meeting is scheduled for Friday, November 28, 2003 at 1pm at the liquor store. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss plans for an addition to the off sale. Annexation Agreement Meeting w/ Townships A meeting was scheduled for December 11, 2003 at 7pm. to discuss revisions to the draft annexation agreements with Marysville and Woodland Townships. Village Hall Community Survey The community survey was drafted by the council committee on November 10, 2003. Clerk Ryks presented the survey as drafted for review by the council members. The survey will be sent out by bulk mailing to the utility customers. The city will ask for return of the surveys by December 1, 2003. A reminder will be placed on the electronic sign. Draft Letter to HLWW School Board Mayor Bush formulated a letter to the School District that was reviewed by the council members. Two Planning Commissioners and the council members present at the meeting signed the letter for mailing to the School District. The letter will be given to the Herald Journal as a „Letter to the Editor‰. Acknowledgements/Recognition- Council Member Henry-Neaton recognized the Waverly Boosters for another successful Halloween Party. State Rep. Dick Borrell State of Minnesota Representative Dick Borrell was present at the meeting to update the council regarding state finances. The council informed Borrell that Waverly has experienced difficulty with the local government aid cut that resulted in a loss of $23,000 to the general fund. Borrell informed the council that he has been involved in research regarding cities that operate enterprise businesses. He stated that all cities have different policies. Some cities such as the City of Duluth operate businesses that consistently lose money. The cities collect local government aid to assist failing businesses. Borrell has taken the position that cities should cut costs by contracting out water/sewer services. His reasoning is to reduce the number of city employees that draw on state insurance and the state retirement system. Maintenance Supervisor Rassat reported that other city representatives he has met at conferences have informed him that the contracting situation for utility operations has not worked effectively and the utility customers have paid for the failure of the situation. He informed the council that Governor Pawlenty is currently looking into health issues such as increasing insurance costs, and costs of prescriptions. Drainage Ditch Cleaning The cleaning of the drainage ditch at Waterfront Legion Park was brought up for further discussion. Jim Woitalla will pursue the cleaning of the entire ditch once again with Wright Soil and Water Conservation District. If the entire cleaning is not permitted, he will proceed with the repair of the drainage situation as permitted. Adjournment Motion by Bush, seconded by Antil to adjourn the meeting at 9:30 p.m. Carried 4-0. _______________________ _______________________ Deborah Ryks, Clerk

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