Meeting Minutes for January 06, 2003
MINUTES
MOUNTAIN IRON CITY COUNCIL
JANUARY 6, 2003
The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. by Mayor Skalko 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; Larry Nanti, Recreation Director; and Greg French, City Engineer.
The City Administrator administered the Oath of Office to Mayor Gary Skalko, Councilor Allen Nelson, and Councilor Dale Irish.
Mayor Skalko asked everyone to have patience during the Council meetings. He said that he has never chaired a meeting before. He informed the public that he wants the Council to be a people friendly council. He said there are a lot of changes coming and a lot are dictated by the state because of funding. He said that he would acknowledge the residents in the audience during the meeting. He asked that the Council hold respect between the council members.
The Mayor added the following items to the agenda:
V. G. 6. Personal Committee
7. Buildings/Grounds Committee
8. Old Town Renovation Committee
VII. A. Bon Air Cleanup
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Nelson that the minutes of the December 16, 2002 regular meeting be approved as submitted. The motion carried.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Nelson to authorize the payment of the bills and payroll for the period December 16-31, 2002, totaling $413,724.90, (a list is attached and made a part of these minutes). The motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Roskoski to acknowledge the receipts for the period December 16-31, 2002, totaling $677,161.43, (a list is attached and made a part of these minutes). The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish 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. The motion carried
During the public forum, Tim Kovich asked where the Council was on the sump pump issue. The Director of Public Works said that the Council had requested that the Utility Advisory Board set up a procedure to obtain a waiver from the ordinance. The Utility Advisory Board has not yet made a recommendation to the City Council.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Prebeg to accept the recommendation of the Mayor and appoint Ed Roskoski as Deputy Mayor for 2003. The motion carried with Councilor Roskoski abstaining.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Nelson to accept the recommendation of the Mayor and re-appoint the Trenti Law Firm, Sam Aluni, as City Attorney for 2003. The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Prebeg to accept the recommendation of the Mayor and re-appoint Benchmark Engineering, Greg French, as City Engineer for 2003. The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Nelson to designate the Mesabi Daily News as the official newspaper for the City of Mountain Iron for 2003. The motion carried.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Irish to designate the City�s official depositories as the American Bank, Queen City Federal, Wells Fargo Bank, US Bank, Twin City Federal, League of Minnesota Cities 4M Fund, Miller Johnson Steichen Kinnard, Inc, Salomon Smith Barney, Inc., and Northland Securities for 2003. The motion carried
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Irish to hold the regular city Council meetings at 6:30 p.m. on the first and third Mondays of the month for 2003. The motion carried.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Irish to re-appoint Ray Saari and Steve Giorgi and appoint Margaret Soyring to the Planning and Zoning Commission with their term expiring on December 31, 2005. And further, re-appoint Dave Skalbeck to the Planning and Zoning Commission with his term expiring on December 31, 2004. The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Prebeg to re-appoint Sue Tuomela and appoint Joe Matanich to the Utility Advisory Board with their term expiring on December 31, 2005. The motion carried.
It was moved by Irish and supported by Nelson to re-appoint Jerry Kujala and Dennis Benz to the Park and Recreation Board with their term expiring on December 31, 2005. The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Nelson to appoint Larry P. Johnson to the Housing and Redevelopment Authority with his term expiring on December 31, 2007. The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Prebeg to appoint Carol Kostich to the Library Board with her term expiring on December 31, 2005. The motion carried.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Irish to appoint Allen Nelson as the City Council Liaison on the Housing and Redevelopment Authority. The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Irish to appoint Joe Prebeg as the City Council Liaison on the Park and Recreation Board. The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Irish to appoint Joe Prebeg as the City Council Liaison on the Utility Advisory Board. The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Prebeg to appoint Dale Irish as the City Council Liaison on the Planning and Zoning Commission. The motion carried.
It was moved by Irish and supported by Nelson to appoint Ed Roskoski as the City Council Liaison on the Library Board. The motion carried with Council Roskoski abstaining.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish to appoint Joe Prebeg and Allen Nelson to serve on the Personnel Committee. The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Irish to appoint Joe Prebeg to the Building and Ground Committee. The motion carried.
It was moved by Irish and supported by Nelson to appoint Larry P. Johnson, Rhonda McConnell, and Lisa Casillo to the Old Downtown Renovation Committee. The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Prebeg to appoint Ed Roskoski and Dale Irish to the Street and Alley Committee. The motion carried.
The Mayor requested that City Staff notify the Old Downtown Renovation Committee that a meeting is set for Wednesday, January 22, 2003 at 6:30 p.m. at the Mountain Iron Senior Center.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Irish to ratify the following election of officers to the Mountain Iron Fire Department:
Tom Cvar Fire Chief
Steve Norvitch Assistant Fire Chief
Joe Buria Secretary
Justin Kochar Treasurer
Greg Chad Training Officer/Captain
Rory King Captain
Tom Autio Captain
The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Nelson to direct City Staff to draw up specification and seek quotes on the asbestos abatement and demolition of the Bon Air structure. The motion carried.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Nelson to adopt Resolution Number 01-03, calling for a Public Hearing, (a copy is attached and made a part of these minutes). The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Prebeg to adopt Resolution Number 02-03, Bank Authorization, (a copy is attached and made a part of these minutes). The motion carried.
It was moved by Irish and supported by Nelson to approve the Temporary Liquor License for an event for the Laurentian Arts and Cultural Alliance for February 14, 2003. The motion carried.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Nelson to authorize the Personal Accident Policy through The Life Insurance Company of North American for the Boards and Commissions for the City of Mountain Iron. The motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish to direct City Staff to continue to fax the agendas for all Board and Commission Meeting to the Mesabi Daily News. The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish to direct City Staff to review the 2003 budget and make a recommendation for a 10% reduction in the budget and present the proposal to the City Council at the February 3, 2003 City Council meeting. The motion carried.
It was moved by Nelson and supported by Irish to set a Committee of the Whole meeting for Wednesday, January 29, 2003 at 6:00 p.m. at the Mountain Iron Community Center to discuss proposed budget reductions and request the City Department Heads to attend. The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski to reconfirm the purchasing policy adopted April 18, 1994. The motion died for lack of support.
It was moved by Roskoski to continue publishing the City Council minutes for 2003. After further discussion, Councilor Roskoski withdrew his motion.
The Mayor requested that the Director of Public Works clarify the sump pump information in basic terms for the City Council and the residents in a new pamphlet. Also, if possible, advise all the residents, through a notice on the utility bills, that different size garbage cans are available for various prices.
Councilor Roskoski asked what the status of the CFL Library Accessibility Grant application was. The City Administrator advised the Council that the Library Board voted against applying for the grant. And, as part of the grant application, there must be a letter of support from the Arrowhead Regional Library System and the Arrowhead Regional Library System would not write a letter of support because of the Library Board vote. The application was submitted without the letter of support.
It was moved by Prebeg and supported by Irish to set the next regular city council meeting for Tuesday, January 21, 2003 at 6:30 p.m. because of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. The motion carried.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Irish to authorize any City Council member to attend the League of Minnesota Cities sponsored conferences for elected officials at city expense. The motion carried on the following roll call vote: Irish, yes; Roskoski, yes; Prebeg, yes; Nelson, no and Skalko, no.
During the Mayor’s report, the Mayor thanked the Director of Public Works and the City Administrator for their patience throughout the meeting.
During the open discussion the following items were discussed:
Councilor Roskoski – questioned a new housing development by South Grove with White Pine Builders. The City Administrator said that a Representative from White Pine Builders approached him and asked if the City had any land that available for a possible new housing development.
Councilor Roskoski � expressed concerned with some of the street improvement projects that there were low areas in the road and that the shoulders were not graveled sufficiently. The City Engineer explained that the city is still holding a retainage on the project for these kinds of things.
It was moved by Roskoski and supported by Prebeg to appoint Joe Prebeg as the Representative on the Quad Cities Joint Recreation Authority. The motion carried.
At 9:27 p.m., it was moved by Roskoski and supported by Prebeg that the meeting be adjourned. The motion carried.
