Oct. 13.
The City Council for the City of Garretson met on October 5, 2020. While most of the items were a continuation from the September meeting, Mayor Greg Beaner introduced Jordan Doane to the council, the newest full-time employee with the City.
“We’ve done some restructuring with the City,” Mayor Beaner said. “[Current City Utilities Manager Craig Nussbaum] is going to be retiring in a year, and we’re taking his job and splitting it into two positions, so there will be a natural gas, parks, and buildings Utility Manager, and there will be a streets, water, and sewer Utility Manager.”
Mayor Beaner continued by noting that Doane would be taking the position for natural gas, parks, and buildings Utility Manager. “He worked for the State, he’s familiar with GIS, so he’s got a lot of experience in that area,” Beaner said.
The meeting began in executive session for contract negotiations, with the council meeting representatives of ISG, the architects chosen for the community building project. No decisions were made in public session regarding this portion.
Once the meeting opened to the public, the council quickly approved a Cable Franchise Ordinance, a replat of land in the Coburn Addition, a fence request at 5th and Canyon, and an amendment to Resolution 2020-15. This modified the amount of the loan for the water and sewer project to $458,500, a $500 change.
They also adopted a resolution to request reimbursement for costs incurred by the pandemic. The funds were given to the state by the CARES Act, and it allows cities to make updates and improvements to their infrastructure in order to allow for better operations while socially distancing.
City Finance Officer Anna Uhl explained that most small towns and cities were opting to utilize their funds for laptop computer upgrades and phone upgrades so employees could work from home as necessary. Uhl said she planned to do the same, as well as utilizing some of the funds to cover the extra costs incurred with the June and November elections, such as extra pencils, plexiglass protectors, and hand sanitizer. The amount that will be requested from the State was not given.
The final resolution the council approved was a resolution allowing for the deed transfer to the Garretson Volunteer Fire Department (GVFD), the final step to ensuring the land the GVFD building occupies is owned by that entity.
GVFD 1st Assistant Chief Levi Schmid was on hand to give the committee report as well, noting that they’ve had a year-to-date total of 82 calls and 1100 hours of training. Between June, July and August they fielded 35 calls.
Council member Jodi Gloe gave an update from the Garretson Parks Advisory Committee, informing the council that new tent campsites had been plotted out in the north end of Split Rock Park. She noted they would be working closely with Parks Maintenance Supervisor Randy Megard and Nussbaum to update the camp markers.
Nussbaum then gave an update on the streets project, noting that the paving of Main Avenue was slated for the end of the week, with painting and striping to occur the following week. A discussion ensued as to the effectiveness of painting a double-line down Main to help prevent illegal turns for parking.
Council member Dave Bonte, frustrated with the lack of enforcement by the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Department in the past, was unsure the line was going to help, but council member Greg Franka pointed out that if a line is painted and an officer observes the behavior, they can ticket the offender. Bonte agreed, and they made a motion to paint along the block between 3rd and 4th Streets, which the council approved.
The council then discussed the option of doing a ribbon cutting for Main Avenue once construction was completed. Council member Tom Godbey had suggested inviting the Garretson High School band for musical entertainment and having a small ceremony. While he said Band Director Nick Sittig was on board, neither Godbey nor Sittig had discussed the option with Superintendent Guy Johnson as of the council meeting. The council asked Godbey to continue moving ahead with the plans, with the understanding that it may be moved to spring.
The council then heard a proposal from Infrastructure Design Group’s Chad Hanisch regarding directionally boring a water line near Dows St. to the building owned and operated by Central Valley Dairy (CVD). He discussed options ranging from a 2” line to an 8” line, which ranged from $56,000 to $84,000 as a cost estimate. With the installation of the line, the business would get water services, and the City would be able to place a fire hydrant on the premises. Discussion then ensued about paying for the option, with a suggestion of perhaps splitting costs similarly to how the City split costs for the utilities brought to the Dollar General property. In that instance, the company paid the full amount to the lowest cost option (in this case, the 2” line), and the City covered the difference to install an 8” line (in this case, City costs would be approximately $28,000). While no decisions were made, Uhl said she would contact CVD owner Rod Tillma the next day to discuss the recommendations.
An update to the cost estimate for finishing Lacey Avenue from Leslie Dr to Sarah C St was then addressed, with Mayor Beaner noting the cost had come in at $57,000. Nussbaum requested the subject be moved to executive session since it dealt with contract negotiations, and the council agreed.
Next on the agenda was approval for sections one and two in the new employee handbook, which is being developed by Alternative HRD. Sections will be approved as they become available, rather than approving the entire handbook at once. Minor changes were made, and the sections approved.
As a final piece before the council re-entered executive session, community member Colleen Collier inquired whether the City would be willing to buy the land her driveway is currently occupying. While it is private property, she has allowed it to be used for years as part of the throughway to the alley behind her property. She has been having increased problems with reckless drivers, noting that two of her vehicles have been damaged in the past several months and her elderly father was nearly hit by vehicles driving through her property. She asked that for liability reasons, ownership be turned over to the City.
All council members agreed, and asked both Uhl and Collier to investigate fair market value for the property and to bring the suggested sale price to the November council meeting. Mayor Beaner agreed to visit with an adjacent neighbor who owns 10 feet of the property and has been reticent to sell in the past.
The council then entered executive session to discuss contract negotiations for Lacey Avenue. The council later approved the installation of the road, and adjourned.
The next meeting of the Garretson City Council will be held on November 2 at 6:30 p.m., at the American Legion building.
