The December meeting of the City Council of Garretson was a very informative meeting, and included a resolution to re-plat the land that encompasses Devil's Gulch, an overview of the condition of the arch bridge going over Splitrock Creek on 5th Street, and an overview of what winter park use may look like.
The council began with the Pledge of Allegiance, with all council members except Dave Bonte in attendance. The Consent Agenda was amended to allow for the re-plating of the land owned by Owen Wiese also known as Devil's Gulch, then the council moved on to committee reports.
Mayor Greg Beaner began with natural gas prices, which were approved as recommended, then moved on to the Parks Board report.
The Parks Board had not met in the past month, but was looking for approval from the City to keep Splitrock Park open during the winter months, if having ice skating available was an option, and if it would be possible to set up a Winter "Frosty Frolics" day. The council was open to keeping the park available for public use when the roads are frozen as long as some parameters were set, and City Maintenance Officer Craig Nussbaum said he could have the City plow make a pass to the parking lot area. As for the option of having ice skating on the creek above the dam, City Finance Officer Anna Uhl said that City property and equipment would not be allowed on the ice due to liability reasons, but if the public were to clear a space and skate at their own risk, the City would not stop it. Having the bathhouse available for a Frosty Frolics day would be allowed as well, but the City could not sponsor such an event due to liability. The next Parks Board meeting will be on January 16, 2019 at 6:30 pm at O So Good.
Next, there was a discussion regarding a recent meeting with SD Forestry expert John Ball, with Uhl, Mayor Beaner, and Parks Board member and master gardener Colleen Collier in attendance. During conversation with Ball, the City and the Parks Board learned that even with treatment, the cost required to maintain outweighs the benefit. Ball recommends waiting until the Emerald Ash Borer is discovered in the city, and then at that point, choosing 40 trees to save and eliminating the rest as quickly as possible. Once the borer has infested the tree, it has approximately 5 years before it tips over (and often without much warning). Ball estimates that all untreated ash trees in the area will be gone by 2025, which makes the lengthened timeline suggested by the Park Board moot. Parks Board member Kelli Schleuter suggested having tree sponsors, and the council encouraged the Parks Board to move ahead with that idea.
The council then moved on to the Fire Department report. This year so far, there have been 109 calls and 1,180 hours put in by volunteer members, 275 of which have been training hours and 172 hours of work detail. The department is planning on replacing one truck in the coming year, which is in line with their replacement plan. They currently have 28 members, which is a full roster.
The ambulance reported that they've had the same number of calls as last year's stats. The annual meeting was to be held on December 4. They have a class set to begin on January 15 in order to train more EMT's, with a cost of $750. Those who complete the class and begin serving become eligible for a reimbursement of those costs (for more information, contact the Garretson Ambulance at 605-594-2043 or email ). There will be an informational meeting on January 3 at 7:00 pm at the Fire Hall. More local EMT's are needed, so please consider registering for this class.
The Sheriff's report was given by Officer Joe Boseman, who stated they were maintaining their contracted amount of 43 hours per week split between days and nights, not including the service at the school. They have noted an increase in traffic citations, partly due to special attention given to areas that have repeat offenses. Assaults and drug calls and arrests have been down slightly. Officer Boseman noted that Garretson is an enjoyable community, and officers look forward to serving this area.
The council then moved on to Resolution 2018-23 and Ordinance 641, which were formalities designed to move funds from contingency to other accounts that had overages, such as increased insurance costs, unforeseen building repairs and inspections, and the purchase of the gator for equipment. The council approved both unanimously.
Next was Resolution 2018-25, which is the Sidewalk and Streets maintenance footage fee. This fee is to be used to build and replace all sidewalks in town into perpetuity, so that it creates a uniform look around town and adds sidewalks in areas where they are needed but not yet placed. Several communities in the area have implemented this type of plan, and Uhl noted that each of them adjusts their rates each year. Council member Bill Hoskins recommended starting small and seeing how it goes, and much of the council agreed. A discussion ensued as to how much that rate should be, and the council finally settled on a beginning rate of $0.50 per square foot of frontage.
Then the council approved 2018-26, which begins the process of creating a TIF for a developer for the new development off Sarah C Street. For more information regarding TIFs, please see October 11, 2018 issue of the Gazette.
After tabling Ordinance 642 due to the absence of council member Bonte, the council then invited Owen Wiese to present. Five years ago, Wiese graciously continued a lease on the 29+ acres of land known as Devil's Gulch to the City for another 25 years to operate the park. Due to his advanced age, he and his wife, Lois, decided to re-plat the section that contains the park, so that it would never be sold for development. He stated that the ownership and lease would be maintained by an LLC created by their children, then passed on to their children. Mayor Beaner expressed his appreciation to the Wiese family for their consideration, saying, "I would like to thank you for your planning and setting up something for the future. Devil's Gulch is the heart of this community." Wiese graciously accepted the thanks, expressing his hope that the park would only improve in the future. The council approved the re-platting unanimously.
Haarsma Construction, with Travis Haarsma presenting, then gave an update on 2018 street construction and planning for 2019. He noted that the road on 3rd Street is finished from Rose Ave to Main, and from 2nd Street to 3rd Street on Main. From May 9 to November 21, the area experienced 69 days of precipitation out of 196 days, which placed almost all road construction in the area far behind schedule. The company plans to begin construction in 2019 on or around March 18, which includes finishing 3rd Street from Rose to the highway, and from Main to Depot. They will also begin on the Truck Route at that time. Haarsma did seek clarification as to whether the work on Main Avenue should wait until after Jesse James Days again this year, but no decision was yet made as to when that would begin. There has also been some complaint of a "washboard effect" on Third Street, and Haarsma noted that the asphalt company had agreed to fix that next summer.
The council then continued the discussion begun two months ago with regards to boulevard trees. After the meeting with Forestry expert Ball, whose recommendation was to restrict the planting of Maple trees due to over use and Poplar trees due to their root system, the council debated whether it would be pertinent to have a recommended trees list or a prohibited trees list for boulevards. No action was taken at the time.
The water project, which included a grant to extend a larger pipe system out to the industrial park, was reported by Infrastructure Design's Chad Hanisch to be in the final planning stages and will be submitted soon to the DENR and the SD DOT for approval.
He then gave an update on the sidewalk on Dows Street. A railing was still needing to be installed, but other than some clean up, the sidewalk project is completed. Hanisch noted that due to the late construction, extra gravel was laid to prevent frost issues, and concrete blankets placed over the cement allowed it to cure correctly, so there should be no issues with the sidewalks.
After the sidewalk report, Hanisch continued with a report on the Capital Improvement Plan, which has been drafted and is currently in process with CCoG to develop funding plans.
He concluded with a report on a residential drainage plan for the new development. The developers had expressed concern about the long-term drainage plans in the area, noting that a berm had been constructed to prevent overflow into the yards of current housing in the area. He gave suggestions for the best drainage plans available for the city to pursue as construction moves forward.
Vanessa Victor of Infrastructure Design then gave a presentation on the condition of the bridge over Splitrock Creek on 5th Street. She noted that the arch bridge is one of only two left in the state of South Dakota (the other being in Redfield), and was built in 1966. This bridge is unique in structure and design as it's known as an arch bridge, a type that is no longer built due to cost and speed of build, even though it is aesthetically pleasing. Victor highly recommends submitting the bridge to the state for a preservation grant, which would give an 80/20 reimbursement after construction is completed (similar to the FEMA grant that was used for the dam, but with a much faster turnaround time).
An inspection this past summer did find that the bridge grade had deteriorated quickly: in 2016, its rating was 81.9, and for 2018, its rating had fallen to 54.4. A bridge is considered unsafe when it gets into the 30's, according to Victor. This means the bridge can still be saved, but the City must act soon. The overall cost to fix the bridge is estimated to be $807,500, but the cost to the city would be $161,500 after the grant. A new bridge altogether would be estimated in the millions, anywhere from $1.8 to 4 million dollars. For details on what was recommended for fixes, contact city hall. Due to a deadline date of January 2, 2019, the council acted immediately and approved application for the grant. If the city is approved, it will be rewarded in April 2019 and construction could begin as early as 2020. This construction, says Victor, should not only re-set the clock on the bridge, but should be able to extend it for at least another 50 years.
After this report, the council voted to move into executive session, then adjourned. The next meeting will be held on Monday, January 7, 2019 at 6:30 pm.
