CITY OF CLAREMONT
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
TUESDAY, MARCH 7, 2023
7:00 P.M.
A regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Claremont, Minnesota was held on Tuesday, March 7, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. at Claremont City Hall.
Members present: Mayor Tasha Dahl, City Council Members Deb Ellis, Jacob Klejeski, Hunter McGovern, and Krystal Sultze. Council Members absent: None.
City staff and others present: Interim City Administrator Jim Brimeyer, Clerk/Treasurer Elizabeth Sorg, First Chief Casey Dahl, Ben Cass with Smith, Tollefson, Rahrick and Cass Law Firm, City Engineer Derek Olinger, Layne Kockelman and Natasha Haugen with Abdo, and John Buckingham.
AGENDA
Motion by Klejeski to approve the agenda with the additions of Resolution No. 23-08: Resolution Expressing Acceptance of and Appreciation of Donations, Resolution No. 23-09: Resolution Expressing Acceptance of and Appreciation of a Donation, and an update on the Ball Field, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
PUBLIC INPUT
None
CONSENT AGENDA
The Consent Agenda consisted of the Minutes of the February 7, 2023, Regular City Council Meeting. Motion by Ellis to approve the Consent Agenda, second by Sultze. Motion carried unanimously.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
PERSONNEL COMMITTEE
Nothing at this time.
FINANCE COMMITTEE
Motion by Klejeski to approve the financial reports, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
Motion by Klejeski to approve the amended list of bills to be paid, second by Sultze. Motion carried unanimously.
PUBLIC HEALTH & SAFETY COMMITTEE
The regular meeting dates for the fire department and first responders were added to the Standard Operating Guidelines and a couple spelling/grammatical errors were done. The fire department will have a final review, then the council will approve it at the April meeting.
PLANNING & ZONING COMMITTEE
The Planning and Zoning Commission had a meeting yesterday which included 2 public hearings. Keith Cloutier at 124 Oak Street applied for a variance to build a garage 25’ from the edge of Oak Street. His lot is 66’ deep (front of lot to back) and the side lot is 132’. Oak Street is platted at 80’ wide but the current driving surface is about 27’. The front yard setback per ordinance is 25’ from the right of way. The garage will not fit on the lot if it has to be 65’ back from the middle of Oak Street (right of way plus setback). The garage will be 34’ from the alley and 22’ from the rear yard, so it meets the rear and side setbacks. The Planning & Zoning Commission recommended approval. Motion by Sultze to approve the variance with the setback of 25’ from the edge of Oak Street for 124 Oak Street, second by Klejeski. Motion carried unanimously.
The new ball field on 3rd Street that was donated to the City is currently zoned Agricultural. It needs to be rezoned to Residential as parks are a permitted use in a Residential zone. The Planning & Zoning Commission recommended approval. Motion by Ellis to approve the rezoning of the ball field from Agricultural to Residential, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
EDA
CEDA Specialist Robert Harris submitted a report on grants he has researched and applied for the ball field and playground equipment.
MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT
Nothing at this time.
PARKS COMMITTEE
TruGreen submitted a proposal for weed control at the parks. Another company will be submitting a proposal also. Tabled until the April Meeting.
Tasha Dahl, Jacob Klejeski, Dean Schuette, Bryon Wolf, Liz Sorg, and via zoom Jim Brimeyer met to discuss the ball field. Schuette drafted a letter that will go to all residents and businesses explaining the project and asking for donations.
PEOPLESERVICE
Their reports were in the packet.
CITY ENGINEER
Streets in good condition are placed on a 7-year rotation of chip sealing and crack filling to ensure the city gets the maximum service life. This year, the city has budgeted $35,000 for chip sealing and crack filling some streets. After the bids are received, they will know which streets and how many will be able to be done. Motion by McGovern to move forward with getting the bids, second by Sultze. Motion carried unanimously.
CITY ADMINISTRATOR REPORT
Nothing at this time, other than is what is on the agenda.
CITY ATTORNEY
City Attorney Mark Rahrick was unable to be present, but Ben Cass was present for him and will have some discussion under the Midco Communications Lease later on the agenda.
OLD BUSINESS
None
NEW BUSINESS
Layne Kockelman and Natasha Haugen with Abdo went over the 2022 audit. There were 3 audit findings due to the size of city staff (those findings are common with cities of Claremont’s size). The auditors recommended reviewing the water and sewer rates as water operating costs exceed operating receipts. Motion by McGovern to accept the 2022 audit, second by Sultze. Motion carried unanimously.
Midco Communications send correspondence asking the city to extend the current land lease. Midco recently invested quite a bit of money on broadband equipment on their tower which they will be activating in the spring of 2023 and will be able to provide fixed wireless broadband service up to a 7-8 mile radius. The city currently has a franchise agreement approved in 2021 that expires in 2031 and a lease agreement from 1998 that expires the same date as the franchise agreement. The guide wires for their tower are not in suitable locations. The council wondered if Midco is an amenity that residents still wanted or even used. No action was taken.
The Hogfest Committee submitted a request to use East Street from Front Street to Third Street for the garden tractor pull for Hogfest. Motion by Ellis to approve the request, second by Sultze. Motion carried unanimously.
A CD will be maturing on March 23. Administrator Brimeyer suggested not renewing it, putting it in the checking account after maturity and Clerk Sorg will review options for a better interest rate than a 6-month CD. Motion by Klejeski to cash out the CD upon maturity, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
The Claremont Area Chamber donated $2600 and $4000 to go to the Hogfest Committee. Motion by Ellis to approve Resolution 23-08: Resolution Expressing Acceptance of and Appreciation of Donations, second by Sultze. Motion carried unanimously.
The Claremont Area Chamber donated $2500 to the Fire Relief Department. Fire Relief Treasurer Tim Kruckeberg said to put the money into the Fire Department savings account. Motion by Sultze to approve Resolution 23-09: Resolution Expressing Acceptance of and Appreciation of Donation, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
Motion by McGovern to adjourn the meeting at 8:27 p.m., second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
ATTEST:
________________________________ ____________________________________
Elizabeth Sorg, City Clerk/Treasurer Tasha Dahl, Mayor
