By Patrick Andrews
The June 6 Ostrander City Council meeting opened with a visit from organizers of Fins and Films, a non-profit organization in search of a venue for their “grass drag” racing event. The Spring Valley land previously used for the low-speed drag race has since been built on, and the event’s coordinators have turned to an Ostrander lot as a “plan B” venue, asking the city council for approval to use the land. The council accepted the group’s request, voting to allow the racing event to be held at the Ostrander lot. The group’s president spoke of investigating another potential location before making a final decision, but regardless the event is scheduled for July 15.
The council also discussed a few CHS buildings, which lack functional water meters. The agricultural cooperative, which moved their spraying and fertilizing services out of Ostrander within the last two years, now uses their Ostrander facilities primarily as a truck washing station. CHS will potentially sell the buildings by this fall, and are slated to first perform work including excavations at the building sites. City council members voted to require functional meters be installed while water lines are exposed and before the buildings change owners.
Plans were also made to restain and powerwash the playset at Lund Park. A community member offered to do the work for free, provided the city donates the stain. The job’s cost was estimated at $300 or less, and having donation funds available, the council voted to approve the job.
The Fillmore County Sheriff’s Office report indicated a quiet month for crime in Ostrander. Only two service calls were made; one for theft on May 5, and one for suspicious activity on May 27.
The council also discussed giving yard cleanup notices to various properties around town. Photographs of four houses and yards were briefly examined, and unsightly items including a dead car, broken trampoline, and pallets were pointed out to the council. The back yard of one abandoned house was described as an “unforgivable weed mess.”
Lastly, the council agreed to waive limited liability for city insurance. The city’s policy, purchased through the League of Minnesota Cities Insurance Trust, currently covers the city for liability in the event of an accident up to $500,000 per injured person, up to a maximum of $1.5 million per accident. After waiving limited liability, the injured party could receive up to $2 million in the event of an accident. Two reasons were cited for making this decision: First, waiving limited liability made no change to the city’s insurance premium; second, better protection would be provided to the injured parties, who may themselves be community members.
Ostrander City Council meetings are normally held at 6:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month in the Ostrander Community Center at 410 N Main Street. However, the next city council meeting will be postponed by one week and held July 11 at 6:30 p.m. in observance of the Fourth of July holiday.
Leave a Reply