The Canton City Council met on Wednesday, March 11, and tackled an agenda mainly focused on the city’s significant street and utilities project. Prior to that discussion, individual departments gave their reports.
Clerk Anne Koliha reported that she has been busy continuing to move through the 2025 fiscal audit. She also let the council know she was contacted by MPCA regarding new funding available from the State to test for PFAS.
Deputy Clerk Barb Kerns informed the council she had reordered UTV license stickers, and the new stickers are a little bigger than the old ones.
Public Works director Jon Nordsving met with representatives of WHKS (the city’s engineering firm) and Mediacom to discuss the need to have some telecommunication lines moved. Mediacom wants to install a small “cabinet” for their equipment on city property, in a spot where a few other electric and internet boxes are located. This probably won’t happen until 2027.
Following those reports, a representative of WHKS gave an update on the major street/utility project the city is undertaking. The goal is to keep water and sewer service functioning with as few interruptions as possible for residents, while still moving through the replacement process in a logical way. They have finalized their plans for the project and need the council to pass a resolution approving the plans, so they can submit them to USDA Rural Development (which is providing a portion of the funding for the project). Once Rural Development approves the plans, they can start getting bids out. The council moved to approve the plans.
The council then addressed a new item of business, also related to city infrastructure. Working through WHKS, the city has received preliminary approved for funding from the Minnesota Public Facilities Authority to replace lead and galvanized steel service lines. There are estimated to be 50-70 such lines in the city that would need to be replaced. In order to receive the money, the city needs to submit a full application to the State by March 31, however the State has not provided the application yet, which has caused some frustration. The city also needs to pass a formal resolution that they will undertake the project. The resolution was passed unanimously.
Following that discussion, a couple of miscellaneous items were tackled. A building permit for the Canton Historical Society to construct a platform at the train depot was approved. A pay increase of 3% for the position of Public Works Director was also approved, in order to keep wages competitive with nearby cities, and attract and retain a qualified person to the position for the long term.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:24.
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