Meeting Minutes for November 01, 1999
MOUNTAIN IRON CITY COUNCIL MEETING
Mayor Mitchell Brunfelt called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. with the following members present: Carolyn Olsen, Stephen Skogman, Joe Matanich, and Mayor Mitchell Brunfelt. Absent member: Curt Piri. Also present were: Craig J. Wainio, City Administrator; Jill M. Forseen, Deputy Clerk; and Greg French, City Engineer.
It was moved by Matanich and supported by Olsen that the consent agenda be approved as follows:
1. Add the following item to the agenda:
V. E. Vidmar Settlement Agreement
2. Approve the minutes of the October 18, 1999, regular meeting as submitted.
3. 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.
4. Authorize the payment of the bills and payroll for the period October 16-31, 1999, totaling $292,190.61, (a list is attached and made a part of these minutes). Councilor Matanich asked that items on bills be itemized with a description rather than just numbers.
5. Acknowledge the receipts for the period October 16-31, 1999, totaling $59,633.43, (a list is attached and made a part of these minutes).
The motion to adopt the consent agenda carried on the following roll call vote: Olsen, yes; Skogman, yes; Matanich, yes and Brunfelt, abstain.
At 6:32 p.m., it was moved by Skogman and supported by Matanich to recess the regular meeting and open the public hearing on business subsidy criteria. The motion carried.
No one spoke during the public hearing and no written correspondence was received.
At 6:33 p.m., it was moved by Olsen and supported by Skogman to close the public hearing and reconvene the regular meeting. The motion carried.
At 6:33 p.m., Tom Cvar, Fire Chief, entered the meeting.
No one spoke during the public forum.
It was moved by Skogman and supported by Matanich to accept the recommendation of the City Engineer and authorize payment request number two to Louis Leustek & Sons, Inc. in the amount of $200,075.96 for work completed on the community frontage road and site grading, Project Number M199-21. The motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote.
It was moved by Skogman and supported by Matanich to accept the recommendation of the Planning and Zoning Commission and approve the building permit for L. W. Anderson Properties to construct a commercial building. The motion carried.
It was moved by Matanich and supported by Brunfelt to accept the recommendation of the Planning and Zoning Commission and approve the permit to place a sign for the Master Bakery Outlet. The motion carried.
The Council discussed some questions regarding the placement of the Sherwin-Williams sign with regard to the setbacks.
It was moved by Skogman and supported by Matanich to accept the recommendation of staff and authorize the purchase of six 25 KVA 240/120 volt transformers from RESCO at the quoted price of $5,328.00 and two 25 KVA 13800/7970 volt transformers at the quoted price of $1,678.00. The motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote.
The Council discussed the Street Maintenance Committee evaluation report. It was the consensus of the Council to have Staff review the street evaluation report and research possible funding sources for Street Improvements in the City, i.e. city bonding, legislative bonding, grants, etc. It was the consensus of the Council to discuss this during the budget meetings.
It was moved by Skogman and supported by Olsen to adopt Ordinance 02-99, amending Chapter 22 of the city code and removing section 2, (a copy is attached and made a part of these minutes). The motion carried.
It was moved Skogman and supported by Matanich to adopt Resolution number 53-99, approving business subsidy criteria, (a copy is attached and made a part of these minutes). The motion carried.
The City Administrator reported on the 35-acre parcel east of South Grove. He said that the elevation of this property is not very high, but there are no designated wetlands on the parcel. The City Administrator felt that 50% of the land could be built on. He said that the owner was asking $55,000.
It was moved by Olsen and supported by Matanich to direct the City Administrator to suggest to the Mountain Iron Housing and Redevelopment Authority to pursue the purchase of the 35-acre parcel near South Grove and direct the City Administrator to report back to the City Council regarding the Mountain Iron HRA�s decision. The motion carried.
The City Administrator informed the Council that he had spoken with Roger Suihkonen regarding the location of the Quad Cities sign. He said that there are ribbons in the trees by Country Road in Great Scott Township showing where the sign would be located. The Administrator requested that the Council review the location and discuss the location of the sign at another meeting.
It was moved by Skogman and supported by Matanich to approve the settlement agreement with Michael Vidmar for his grievance. The motion carried.
The Council reviewed the 2000 proposed budget. The Administrator requested the Council to review the proposed budget and set the final levy next month. He said that three departments have requested higher amounts than have been budgeted. The Council reviewed graphs for these three departments that the Administrator had prepared.
The Fire Chief was present and discussed the budget figures set for the Fire Department. He said that the department has requested that the maintenance amount be increased, the training reimbursement be $10 per hour, and there is a need for a new fire truck with all of the new businesses in town and to work at Minntac.
Councilor Skogman said that the ROCC would be submitting budget projections to the City soon regarding the city�s portion of the cost to run the building.
It was moved by Skogman and supported by Olsen to set a Committee-of-the-Whole meeting for Tuesday, November 23, 1999 at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the 2000 budget. The motion carried.
Councilor Matanich asked the City Administrator why the engineering fees were so high in the General Fund.
The City Administrator said that the fees for the Community Center/City Hall engineering and architectural fees came out of this account. He said that the bonding money should only be used for structural items.
The Council directed the City Administrator to send a letter of support to the Iron Range Veterans Memorial Committee.
During the open discussion, Councilor Matanich updated the Council on the City Hall/Community Center project meeting held on October 20, 1999. The Mayor asked to have Councilor Matanich keep the Council posted on the progress of the construction of the City Hall/Community Center building.
The Mayor announced the pubic hearing to be held on the Mesabi Trail on November 9, 1999 at 6:30 p.m.
Ted Newberg requested information on the land purchase behind their houses.
At 7:26 p.m., it was moved by Skogman and supported by Olsen that the meeting be adjourned. The motion carried.
