CITY OF CLAREMONT
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
TUESDAY, JUNE 3, 2025
7:00 P.M.
A regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Claremont, Minnesota was called to order by Council Member Ethan Johnson at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 3, 2025, at Claremont City Hall.
Members present: Mayor Jared Sultze (Sultze arrived at 7:04 p.m.) and City Council Members: Ethan Johnson, Deb Ellis, and Donna Gregory. Absent: Krystal Sultze.
City staff and others present: City Administrator Elizabeth Sorg, City Attorney Mark Rahrick, Jamie Sultze, Elle Leeper, Hannah Behnken, Carter Behnken, Jessica Schleusner, Connor Schleusner, Tasha Dahl, Timothy Hudson, and Dodge County Deputy #3121.
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
AGENDA
Motion by Ellis to approve the agenda, second by Gregory. Motion carried unanimously.
PUBLIC INPUT
Timothy Hudson said he thought the city administrator and city council member’s behavior was disgusting at the last council meeting. He also stated that the city should be having the special election in August.
At 7:04 p.m. Mayor Jared Sultze arrived and presided over the remaining meeting.
CONSENT AGENDA
The Consent Agenda included: Minutes of the May 6, 2025 Regular City Council Meeting and Resolution No. 25-17: Certifying Past-Due Bills to Dodge County. Motion by Johnson to approve the Consent Agenda, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
PERSONNEL
COMMITTEE
Nothing at this time.
FINANCE COMMITTEE
Motion by Johnson to approve the financial reports, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
Motion by Johnson to approve payment of the bills including the added bills, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
PUBLIC HEALTH &
SAFETY COMMITTEE
Nothing at this time.
PLANNING & ZONING COMMITTEE
Nothing at this time.
EDA
Nothing at this time.
MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT
Nothing at this time.
PARKS COMMITTEE
The Harmer Park Dedication will be Friday, June 13th at 6 p.m.
Administrator Sorg created a Ballfield Reservation Form for teams to reserve the use of the ballfield. At this time there will be no charge to use or reserve the ballfield.
CITY ENGINEER
Nothing at this time.
CITY ADMINISTRATOR REPORT
Administrator Sorg met with Maintenance Supervisor Casey Dahl for his annual performance review. He has worked for the city for 2 years and is doing a great job. He has taken on the additional duties of the water and wastewater facilities, training 1-2 evenings per week, and works every other weekend. Motion by Ellis to approve a 4% increase for Dahl, second by Johnson. Ayes: Sultze, Ellis, and Johnson. Nay: Gregory. Motion carried.
Administrator Sorg met with Maintenance Worker Richard Klindworth for his 90-day performance review. He has also taken on additional duties of water and wastewater operations, training 1-2 evenings per week, and working every other weekend. He is doing a great job and due to the amount of additional work he has taken on, motion by Johnson to approve a $2 per hour increase for Klindworth, second by Ellis. Ayes: Sultze, Ellis and Johnson. Nay: Gregory. Motion carried.
CITY ATTORNEY
Last month a resident submitted a complaint about his neighbor’s fence, so the council requested City Attorney Mark Rahrick review it to see if there are any regulations regarding it. The fence has pagan markings on it, per the homeowners, and birdhouses on top of tall poles with the same markings. Rahrick stated he cannot express enough that under no circumstances can a city regulate content or prohibit what a message says or is written simply because someone doesn’t like what it says, (as long as it is not obscene).
It doesn’t meet the definitions of graffiti or signs, so maybe it would meet the definition of a mural. City ordinances generally don’t cover murals and even if there was an ordinance created these markings would most likely be grandfathered in. Rahrick stated there is nothing that can be done about it. Someone suggested that the neighbors discuss the matter and work it out among themselves.
OLD BUSINESS
Alec Vaughn with the Advisory Committee stopped into City Hall and set up the Owl to record the meeting, did a few test runs and it is now recording this meeting. It was discussed of either putting the meetings on Facebook, YouTube, or another service that would have a monthly fee. The mayor suggested trying Go To Meeting as then people could call in and listen to the meeting while the meeting is going on. More information about where to stream it will be looked into.
NEW BUSINESS
None
FINAL WORD
City Council Members will sign the City Council Code of Conduct acknowledging that they received a copy of it.
Administrator Sorg gave the council a Complaint Form that a resident had turned in. Tasha Dahl spoke regarding that Complaint Form. Dahl stated Donna Gregory has been taking pictures of her children, her husband while he is at work, and her home and she requested it to stop immediately. Gregory denied the allegations.
Motion by Ellis to adjourn the meeting at 7:34 p.m., second by Johnson. Motion carried unanimously.
ATTEST:
Elizabeth Sorg, City Administrator
Jared Sultze, Mayor
