CITY OF CLAREMONT
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
TUESDAY, MAY 3, 2022
7:00 P.M.
A regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Claremont, Minnesota was held on Tuesday, May 3, 2022, at 7:00 p.m. at Claremont City Hall.
Members present: Mayor Tasha Dahl, City Council Members Jacob Klejeski, Deb Ellis, and Hunter McGovern. Council Members absent: None. There is 1 vacant city council seat.
City staff and others present: City Administrator Evan Brown, City Clerk/Treasurer Elizabeth Sorg, City Attorney Mark Rahrick, City Engineer Derek Olinger, First Responder Director Casey Dahl, Claremont Area Chamber President Dean Schuette, and Terri Schuette.
There were two additions to the agenda: Maintenance Position and PeopleService Repairs Needed. Motion by Ellis to approve the agenda with the two additions, second by Klejeski. Motion carried unanimously.
PUBLIC INPUT
None
CONSENT AGENDA
The Consent Agenda consisted of: Minutes of the April 5, 2022 City Council Meeting and Minutes of the April 25, 2022 Local Board of Appeal and Equalization. Motion by McGovern to approve the Consent Agenda, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
PERSONNEL COMMITTEE
Administrator Brown’s 90th day of employment is June 11. Council will have a 90-day review with him on July 5 at 6:30 p.m.
FINANCE COMMITTEE
Motion by Klejeski to approve the financial reports, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
Motion by Ellis to approve the amended list of bills to be paid, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
PUBLIC HEALTH & SAFETY COMMITTEE
Nothing at this time.
PLANNING & ZONING COMMITTEE
Derek Gasner, 212 E Front Street, applied for a variance to put an addition onto his garage that would be 2’ from the side yard. Per city ordinance the minimum side setback is 6’. The existing garage was built either close to or right on the property line. He would put the 12’ x 20’ addition on a cement slab that is already there. His neighbor at 208 E Front Street said she had no problem with it being there. The 2 properties have a shared driveway and the commission suggested Gasner and Heise get a driveway agreement on who will maintain it to prevent future problems between them or any new neighbors. The commission recommended the council approve the variance. Motion by Ellis to approve the variance request for 212 E Front Street, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
EDA
CEDA Specialist Robert Harris finalized the Land Use Plan with some minor revisions the council requested at their last review. Motion by Klejeski to approve Resolution No. 22-13: A Resolution Approving Land Use Plan, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
PARKS COMMITTEE
CEDA Specialist Robert Harris found 4 grants that may be available for park equipment. Council requested he apply for the grants that the city qualifies for.
There has been discussion of having a walking trail out to and around the storm water pond between the railroad tracks and new Highway 14. Council requested Administrator Brown research some costs on putting some plastic or felt down for the trail or cost to spray the weeds so they don’t grow in the trail. They would like to see a plan of what could be done and the costs.
Once the taxes get paid on the new ball field then the transfer of property can occur. Mayor Dahl will contact Bryon Wolf to start discussion for the layout and plan.
PEOPLESERVICE
There are 2 pumps that are failing at the wastewater treatment facility. Each pump is $8500 or a temporary fix for $1300 but it would run the sump pump often. Council was wondering if they could replace one now and one next year. The pumps do have a 10 year life span, and they are almost twice that old. PeopleService will be turning in a report with more information. City Engineer Olinger will look over the report and make a recommendation at that point.
CITY ATTORNEY
Nothing at this time.
CITY ENGINEER
At the next city council meeting the streets improvement bid will be approved.
CITY ADMINISTRATOR
The Administrator will be taking military leave May 31 – June 24. Per MN Statute, the city is required to pay for 15 days of military leave in each calendar year. Brown stated in some other jobs the employer would pay for 50% of salary while gone. He can be available by phone or email and do what work he can do when he’s gone or he can take no pay and can’t be available. He would use the 15 days at other times through the year when he has to be gone. Motion by Ellis to approve 50% wage for Brown during his military leave in the month of June, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
It's not uncommon for smaller cities to have Fridays off. Fridays are very slow at City Hall with walk-ins and phone calls. It would save on overhead costs to close City Hall on Fridays. Should something come up that would require someone to be at the office, Brown or Sorg will come in. Motion by McGovern to approve City Hall being closed on Fridays, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
OLD BUSINESS
None
NEW BUSINESS
Administrator Brown, Mayor Dahl, and Chamber President Schuette have been researching new signs to put out on new Highway 14. Schuette stated he will get quotes on the stone or brick pillars. Depending on the quality and size the signs can run $40,000 or more. Schuette has talked to landowners on both the east and west sides (County Road 1 and 3) of town and they agreed to having the signs there at no cost. The city will get easements for the 2 areas. They will keep researching signs and costs.
Chamber President Schuette asked if they could move the former Claremont city sign that was south of old Highway 14 to north of new Highway 14 as close to the south of the railroad tracks as they permit and on the west side of County Road 3 facing south. They will downsize the sign from the one that used to be on old Highway 14 and have telephone poles to put it up. They could put something on the back side of it also. Schuette has contacted Guy Kohlnhofer about the setback and they approved it to be 65’ west of the center of County Road 3. Schuette will bring to the council a draft of the new sign, along with dimensions, and a zoning permit for placement.
The digital community sign by the Fire Hall has seen it’s useful life and the company won’t fix it. There isn’t a lot of information to be placed on the sign as much as in the past and many people use Facebook or the city’s website for the same information. The blacktop around the sign is cracking and starting to sink. The bell decor is going to be removed also. The city will remove the bell and wood décor and the sign when they get time. The parking area will be patched or fixed this year. Terri Schuette also requested the city remove the flower bed on County Road 1 and old Highway 14. The Greg Lange memorial with bricks will be removed and upgraded also this summer.
Dodge County updated their All-Hazard Mitigation Plan. Motion by Ellis to approve Resolution No. 22-15: Adoption of the Dodge County All-Hazard Mitigation Plan, second by Klejeski. Motion carried unanimously.
Motion by Klejeski to approve Resolution No. 22-16: Resolution Appointing Election Judges and Rate of Pay, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously. The head election judge will be paid $13.50/hour and the regular judges will be paid $12.50/hour. Lunch and supper will be provided.
Triton summer recreation requested financial support and use of Henning Park ballfield on Monday evenings for part of June and all of July. Motion by Ellis to contribute $1000 for the summer rec programs, second by McGovern. Ayes: None. Nay: Dahl, Ellis, McGovern, and Klejeski. Motion fails. Motion by Ellis to contribute $500 to the program and use of the ballfield, second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
Someone has rented the pavilion June 18 for a graduation party and they requested approval to have a DJ from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Motion by Ellis to allow the DJ on June 18 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., second by Klejeski. Motion carried unanimously.
Skjeveland Enterprises submitted a proposal for a city-wide clean up day for 2 guys and a truck at $135 an hour and waste at a cost of $100 a ton. Years past, it was around 10 hours and 16 ton. No appliances, tires, chemicals, or construction demo will be allowed. Only 1 pass per household. Motion by McGovern to have a city-wide clean up day on June 6, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
Thursday, April 28 two of the council members, Brown, and Sorg interviewed 3 people for the maintenance position. Motion by Mayor Dahl to have Brown offer the maintenance position to Brian Styndl at $23/hour with the option to negotiate up to $1, plus standard benefits. If he declines the position will be offered to Conner Breitbarth the rate of $22/hour due to Conner not having a CDL license, second by Ellis. Motion carried unanimously.
Motion by Klejeski to adjourn the meeting at 8:22 p.m., second by McGovern. Motion carried unanimously.
ATTEST:
Elizabeth Sorg, City Clerk/Treasurer
Tasha Dahl, Mayor
