Due to the increase in vandalism that was experienced last winter when the parks were allowed to remain open, GPAC also gave a recommendation to the council that the parks be closed for the entire season other than this event, starting November 1 and going until spring. This would include foot traffic, snowmobiles, skiing, etc, as the roads would not be maintained and there would be no way for emergency services to enter the park if they were needed. The council noted that this is hard to enforce but agreed with the recommendation to close the gates.
The council next moved on to Nuisance Board, with the first request wondering if a right to appeal should appear on the notice. It was also questioned whether a council member should be appointed to receive any appeal requests or if those should go to Scott (Dubbe, Code Enforcement Officer) first. The council agreed the Code Enforcement Officer should be the first contact.
With regards to one property on the corner of 3rd and Center, the hole should be filled prior to first snow, according to contractor Rob Lowe.
City Finance Officer Anna Uhl then addressed the first reading of the budget, which does include an amount budgeted for a part-time office employee and a plan to finish paying the natural gas debt. Uhl noted that the budget was currently $30,000 short, so changes would need to be made.
The budget is also trying to correlate with the CIP (Capital Improvement Plan). The CIP does include the project to fix and improve the bridge crossing Split Rock Creek on 5th Street. This project is slated to begin late May/early June of 2020, and while a grant has been received that will reimburse most of it, the City is required to take on the debt load until it is completed.
A special meeting for the budget will be held at City Hall on Monday, Sept 23 at 6:30 pm, where it will be finalized prior to the September 30 deadline.
The council then approved a request from Marlyn Conrad to build a new 6-plex next to the 4-plex on South Main. He stated that it would be identical to the 4-plex with two more units. He’s intending to lay the foundation this fall and building to occur over the winter. Curb and gutter will also be placed this fall, and water/sewer were installed a year ago in preparation. Next summer, that section of the road will then be paved.
Next on the agenda was a continuation of the variance request from the new owners of the land next to Split Rock Creek at 400 5th St to install a septic tank on their property. While there was quite a bit of discussion, a final decision was not made at this meeting.
The city has maintained a strict policy to not allow any septic tanks within city limits, but is financially responsible for ensuring a sewer line is brought to the front of any property.
Due to the layout of the land and the length required for a sewer line (depth at some points along 5th St is only 3 feet, which is not enough to keep the line from freezing, and the line from the corner of the property to the house would have to be 1400 feet), the owners and the contractor were requesting that a line be placed to the west for eventual hook-up to city property once development occurred there, and that a septic tank be placed until that time.
Hoskins requested financial information to place a sewer line to the front of the property, which would be in the vicinity of $20,000. It was then noted that all properties placed in the additions north of 5th St would then all be required to have forced sewer lines from then on, if that route was taken.
Council member Greg Franka noted that three other requests for septic tanks have been rejected, including one on the same plot of land. Council member Bill Hoskins stated he did not want to hold up the project, but if the variance is not approved then the city is required to bring a line to the front of the property, which would require time and money.
The council deadlocked on this decision, with council members Franka and Hoskins voting to reject the variance request and members Tom Godbey and Dave Bonte accepting the request. The motion then died due to lack of majority, as a minimum of 6 council members is required to deadlock in order for the mayor to place a vote.
The council agreed to re-visit the issue at the special meeting on Sept 23.
The council then moved to drainage concerns near Sarah C St and the new development, which began construction at the beginning of the month. Homeowners were concerned that not enough was being done to prevent further flooding issues. Several homeowners were in attendance, and they talked about how they’ve had to install berms themselves in years past to reduce flooding issues.
Homeowner Randy Hoogland stated that he had to break one of the berms down earlier that day in order to re-route some water into the street and off their property due to increased run-off from the recent rains. The homeowners in attendance also noted that snowmelt is often an issue for them.
City engineer Chad Hanisch presented the developer’s plans for drainage in detail, showing the drainage swale and culvert that would be placed between what is currently the end of Sarah C and the beginning of the new development. This is intended to prevent further drainage issues. The drainage swale would then be routed to the south of the properties on Sarah C and run west until it met city property.
Hanisch then said the swale was not required by city ordinance, and it was at the request of the City that it was included in the construction plans, as the ordinance only requires a minimum of drainage into the street. He and homeowner Brad Farrell, also in attendance, noted that this type of drainage would likely cause issues for homeowners down the street near Main and Frank Avenues.
Finance Officer Uhl stated that Nielsen Construction had agreed to also install the drainage swale to the south of the properties for only $19,000 as part of “being a good neighbor, and because he already had the equipment there.” Bid out costs were at $45,000, which meant a $26,000 savings.
However, at the deepest, the swale would be 7 feet deep, and homeowners were concerned about any potential danger for local youth. After much discussion, the council reached a consensus to request Nielson Construction place a pipe at least 300 feet long in the deepest area.
Property owner Todd Pierret, also in attendance, agreed that this would be the best move, as it would reduce the amount of land required for easement from 50 feet to 25 feet. Financially, placing a pipe costs more, but would potentially reduce the amount of cost toward the easement over the long term.
The council then passed the construction plan (which ended at the border of the new development and did not include the drainage pipe).
City Engineer Hanisch then gave an update on the 5th Street project, which was moving along. Several businesses had been hooked up to the new water line and pressure testing was completed. Replacement of the asphalt was slated to begin at the end of the week.
Next, Palisade Township member Oran Sorenson presented on a request that the council attempt to keep the current entrance to Palisades State Park open, if for no other reason than as an exit to keep the road paved as a lifeline into Garretson.
He stated that the current budget of Palisades Township is not enough to maintain that road, and had been alerted that the State had offered to pay fully for 256th Street to the new entrance be paved, an agreement that Palisades Township had never received for 485th Avenue.
(Editor’s Note: there was an old agreement that combined the resources of Palisades Township, SD GFP, and Minnehaha County that was in place to maintain the 1.2 miles of pavement, but it had nearly fallen through a few years ago due to none of the entities wanting to take responsibility for road improvements. At that time, Minnehaha County agreed to fix the road but wanted to be removed from future responsibility. The current amount of pavement needed to the new entrance is approximately 530 feet.)
Sorenson was also of the opinion that the entrance, even if only as an exit, would provide a lifeline to Garretson. Currently, the entrance from Palisades State Park to downtown Garretson is 2.9 miles. The new entrance would place Palisades 4.4 miles from downtown Garretson.
Mayor Greg Beaner was initially hesitant to endorse that resolution. “We have a really good relationship with the State Park people right now,” he said.
Council member Hoskins agreed. “I can see putting together a resolution of congratulations, but wondering about the road.”
Hoskins then volunteered to explore putting together something that was tactful, and would cover those concerns. He agreed to present this to the council at the October meeting.
The council then quickly discussed the need for a double yellow line down Main Avenue, now that construction was finished between 2nd and 3rd Streets. They agreed it was still necessary to prevent accidents and planned to have it painted before adjourning. The next meeting of the City Council will be on September 23 at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall, and the next regular meeting will be on October 7 at 6:30 at the Legion.
