Meeting Minutes for February 17, 2003
MOUNTAIN IRON CITY COUNCIL
FEBRUARY 18, 2003
Mayor Skalko called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. with the following members present: Joe Prebeg, Jr., Allen Nelson, Dale Irish, Ed Roskoski, and Mayor Gary Skalko. Also present were: Craig J. Wainio, City Administrator; Jill M. Forseen, Municipal Services Secretary; Don Kleinschmidt, Director of Public Works; and Karen Luoma, Librarian.
The Mayor made a public thank you to the City Council regarding the budget cuts made by this Council and the previous Council for how the levy was set.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Nelson that the consent agenda be approved as follows:
Approve the minutes of the January 29, 2003, City Council Committee of the Whole meeting as submitted.
Approve the minutes of the February 3, 2003, City Council meeting as submitted. Noting that the date on the first page needs to be changed from 2002 to 2003.
That the communications be accepted, placed on file, and those requiring further action by the Council be acted upon during their proper sequence on the agenda.
To acknowledge the receipts for the period February 1-15, 2003, totaling $67,662.12, (a list is attached and made a part of these minutes).
To authorize the payment of the bills and payroll for the period February 1-15, 2003, totaling $187,681.99, (a list is attached and made a part of these minutes).
The motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote.
During the public forum, Scott Seeley, Representative from Taylor Investments, spoke regarding a hunting issue on the parcels by Mashkenode Lake. He said that there are four parcels within the subdivision on the west side and two parcels on the east side of Mashkenode Lake. They are tract 1, 8, 9, and 10 on the west side, with tract one having 51.6 acres, tract eight having 79 acres, tract nine having 49 acres and tract ten having 39 acres; and, Lot 9 and 10 of Block 3 on the east side, with lot nine having 80 acres and lot ten having 32 acres. He requested that the Council amend the ordinance to allow hunting on those tracts. He said that the owners would still be building a year-round single family dwelling on the property and they would like to go out in their yard and hunt. It was the consensus of the Council to seek a legal opinion from the attorney regarding the liability issue and legal ramifications for the City.
Also during the public forum, Melvin Holmquist, Vice President of Operations and Finance for H2-Ads, gave a presentation to the Council regarding placing concrete benches around the City of Mountain Iron that would be funded totally by selling advertisements that are placed on the back of the concrete benches. He said that there would be no expense to the City.
It was moved Roskoski and supported by Irish to forward the information from H2-Ads to the Planning and Zoning Commission to review to see if the proposed benches would be authorized under the present ordinance. The motion carried.
Also during the public forum, Harry Lampa spoke to the City Council regarding placing the Mountain Iron Library on the National Register of Historic Places. Mr. Lampa invited the Council members to a workshop scheduled for April on “Preservation” in Virginia; the cost is $25 for the daylong workshop.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Nelson to approve the preliminary plats for the West Expressway Addition and the Park Ridge Development Addition, (copies are attached and made a part of these minutes). The motion carried.
Tom Cvar, Fire Chief, and Steve Norvitch, Assistant Fire Chief, were present to discuss the possible bid on the Virginia Fire Department equipment for sale. The Fire Chief said that he would contact the ISO to see if the City�s rating would change if the City purchased the equipment and to see how much it would cost to obtain the necessary equipment to make the fire truck fully functional.
At 7:58 p.m., Councilor Roskoski left the meeting.
At 8:00 p.m., Councilor Roskoski returned to the meeting.
Councilor Prebeg volunteered to work with the Mountain Iron Volunteer Fire Department to develop a bid proposal. Council Nelson also mentioned that the City Council would have to look at the present budget to see how the City would pay for the fire truck if the bid were awarded to the City.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish to make the following amendments to Ordinance Number 06-02:
Section 1, Subd. 5. Draintile System. A draintile, sump basket, pump, electrical receptacle and rigid pipe connection to the outside shall may be required for any existing present residential buildings and shall be required for new residential buildings within the City.
Section 1, Subd. 5. A. The building shall have a draintile placed around the inside perimeter of the foundation connected to a sump pit. The sump pit shall be located at least ten (10) feet away from any inside floor drain on new construction after July 31, 2003 and all present installations would be grandfathered in.
Section 2, Subd. 3. All sump pumps shall have a discharge pipe or hose installed to the outside wall of the building with one (1) inch inside minimum diameter. The pipe attachment must be a permanent fitting such as PVC pipe with glued fittings. The discharge shall extend at least three (3) feet outside of the foundation wall.
Section 2, Subd. 5. A surcharge of $25.00 dollars per month is hereby imposed and shall be added to every sewer billing mailed on and after May 1, 2003 December 31, 2004 to property owners who are not in compliance with this Section.
And further, have a letter sent to the residents outlining why the City would be required to enforce the ordinance and advise them what the penalties would be if there is non-compliance. And further, have the Director of Public Works prepare a detailed drawing of the ultimate system to submit with the letter to the residents. The motion carried on the following roll call vote: Nelson, no; Irish, yes; Roskoski, yes; Prebeg, no; and Skalko, yes.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Nelson to direct City Staff to secure the Bon Air site. The motion carried on the following roll call vote: Irish, no; Roskoski, no; Prebeg, yes; Nelson, yes; and Skalko, yes.
It was moved by Irish and supported by Skalko to direct the Librarian to contact Susan Roth at the State Historic Preservation Office to begin the process of designating the Mountain Iron Library on the National Register of Historic Places. The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Prebeg to adopt the Property Control Manual for the City of Mountain Iron. The motion carried.
The Mayor requested that the Committee negotiating with the School District for the land adjacent to Unity Addition meet again. Councilor Prebeg and the City Administrator are on this Committee.
At 9:01 p.m., Councilor Prebeg left the meeting.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish to authorize the City of Mountain Iron to join PARTNERS-Local Governments with Youth and designate the Mayor as the City representative. The motion carried with Councilor Prebeg absent.
At 9:04 p.m., Councilor Prebeg returned to the meeting.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish to request that the Administrative Law Judge postpone his ruling on the land annexation north of Mountain Iron until the City Council can decide if this would be good for the City to complete the annexation. The motion carried with Councilor Nelson voting no.
The Council questioned the bonding amounts and usage of the bonds proceeds that were approved by the previous Council. The City Administrator said that he would provide this information for the next regular meeting.
Councilor Roskoski questioned City Staff regarding an advertisement for an electrical employee posted on the Internet. The City Administrator said that the City has never posted for this position on the Internet.
The Council discussed the possibility of having a cemetery in Mountain Iron. Councilor Roskoski stated that this was discussed at the Civic Association. The Council requested that Councilor Roskoski invite William Buria, Calvary Cemetery Board Member, to a meeting of the City Council to discuss the possibility of having a cemetery in Mountain Iron.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Prebeg to adopt the IRRRA Final Accounting Report, (a copy is attached and made a part of these minutes). The motion carried.
The Council directed the City Administrator or the Director of Public Works to bring information regarding the workshop set for September 2003 for Federal Enhancement funding for decorative street lighting to the City Council for further consideration.
During the open discussion, Councilor Roskoski questioned the Director of Public Works regarding the parking lot lights. The Director of Public Works stated that the parking lot lights were set up on a computer controlled timer system.
Also during the open discussion, Councilor Nelson thanked City Staff for doing an excellent job for the City and the information that Staff has provided is good information.
Also during the open discussion, Councilor Irish said that he contacted the Office of the State Auditor and was advising the Council on this discussion regarding the amount of non-essential dollars that were spent in the City. The Council discussed the Governor�s proposal for budget cuts.
At 9:53 p.m., it was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish that the meeting be adjourned. The motion carried.
