At the July 6 Lanesboro City Council meeting, a public hearing was opened to discuss the transfer of powers and duties from the Local Board of Appeal and Equalization to the Fillmore County Board. There were no public comments. The council approved a resolution for the transfer for the years of 2027, 2028, and 2029.
Sandy Webb from the Lanesboro Community Theater spoke during the public comments portion of the meeting to invite the council to the showings of “A Wrinkle in Time” later this month.
The minutes of the June 1 regular meeting and the June 11 special meeting were approved. The consent agenda was approved and included the accounts payable, the year-to-date audit report and cash balances, a resolution accepting donations to the Lanesboro Fire Department, and another appointing the election judges for the general election in November. A temporary on-sale liquor license application was approved for the Lanesboro Fire Department Relief Association.
A request from the Lanesboro Fire Relief Association to increase the annual retirement benefits from $1,850 to $1,950 was approved with Chase Bakke abstaining.
A variance request from Dawn Bearson was considered. Bearson would like to install a six-foot tall privacy fence along the alley behind her house due to the traffic in that area. The city code limits fences to four-feet tall so she requested a variance. A second variance request was received from Nancy Martinson. Martinson submitted plans for the addition of an enclosed screened porch on her house which would come within two feet of the property line. Planning & Zoning recommended granting both variances. The council approved them.
City Works Director David Haugen asked the council to consider approval of the purchase of a street sweeper. The city’s current street sweeper is 20 years old and is requiring significant, costly maintenance, leading to a reduction in hours it can be used. Due to its age, replacements parts are becoming more difficult to find as well. Haugen presented two options to the council for a replacement street sweeper. The first option would be to purchase outright a pre-owned 2019 Elgin Pelican NP sweeper from a city in Michigan which would leave around $24,000 in the equipment fund. The second option would require the city to obtain financing to purchase a brand-new street sweeper. The council approved the first option. Haugen will ask the owning city to bring the sweeper to the Twin Cities where he can inspect it before moving forward with the purchase.
The commercial water heater at the city hall is 16 years old and showing its age with so much calcification that it can’t be safely flushed out anymore. It has been taking longer and longer to heat the water for the public showers, which is a concern because of the number of campers using it. Haugen recommended replacing it with a more efficient water heater and presented a quote for $13,499.90. City Administrator Mitchell Walbridge noted that the camping revenues for this year are already higher than expected, which could help offset the cost. Council member Bakke asked if Haugen could obtain a quote from a second vendor as he felt the first one was higher than expected. He also asked for both quotes to be broken down into all the expenses, rather than a lump sum. The matter was tabled to allow for time to get a second quote.
Currently, the Fire Department Relief Association manages its own investments for retirement funds, but they are considering a switch to the Statewide Volunteer Firefighter plan through the Public Employees Retirement Association, or PERA. Doing so would allow PERA to manage the investments and pensions instead. The first step in the process is to have PERA run a cost analysis which is free of charge. The council approved the cost analysis with Bakke abstaining.
The city-owned North Bluff holiday tree is several decades old and is not in great condition. Before redoing it, it was thought best to formalize legal access to it which will require easements from two families. Walbridge has spoken with both families, and they seem to be in favor of the easements. The council approved moving forward with the easement agreements.
A revolving loan fund application was received from Barb Soma, owner of E2 Boutique. She is requesting a $10,000 loan to help cover the costs for a recent roof replacement. The council approved the loan.
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