At the February 9 Harmony City Council meeting, four quotes were received for the splash pad project, two of which came in lower than the engineer’s estimate of $59,489.50. The lowest bid was from Generation X in the amount of $43,915. Council member Jesse Grabau asked if it would be wise to approve the quote without knowing what the final quotes for all components of the project will be. While this quote came in under budget, others may not. “What we need are final quotes for the project,” council member Steve Sagen commented. After some discussion, the council decided to approve the quote from Generation X and to allocate $16,000 from the Donald Wilken fund to the splash pad project.
The 2021-2023 union contract was approved as well as a liquor license application for Kwik Trip. The 2021 ambulance subsidy contract with Fillmore County was approved. The council passed a motion for David Drown Associates to continue to represent the City of Harmony
A resolution urging Minnesota lawmakers to pass the 2022-2023 state budget without reducing the Local Government Aid was passed by the council.
In 2020, the council approved the purchase of a new fire truck. City Administrator Devin Swanberg asked if the council was interested in pre-paying for it, which would save the city approximately $1,500. The council approved the payment. The fire department is currently working on obtaining a grant for approximately $40,000 for the purchase. Since it won’t be complete until after the pre-payment is made, the grant money will reimburse part of the cost from the capital improvement fund.
City maintenance worker Corey Whalen asked the council to approve the purchase of a new F550 truck for the building and maintenance department. He presented three quotes to the council for review, noting that the trade-in value on the current truck is estimated to be about $31,000. He’s hoping that the new truck, if approved by the council, will be ready by autumn so it can be used for sucking up leaves. Mayor Steve Donney asked if it would be advantageous to put the current truck up for bids rather than trading it in. The rest of the council agreed that that would be a good option to consider. A motion approving the purchase of a new F550 truck and either trading in or bidding out the current truck was passed.
The Harmony EDA asked the council to approve two revolving loan applications, one from A Cut Above the Rest and the other from Harmony Lodge. The council approved both contingent on bank approval.
The EDA has been discussing the possibility of installing an electric vehicle charging station from MiEnergy in Harmony. Council and EDA member Steve Sagen recommended including 110v outlets for charging electric bikes as well. Updates will be given to the council as more information becomes available.
Council member Domingo Kingsley gave the library board report. The library is adding more tables and possibly a new reception/librarians’ desk from Triple M Furniture.
Sagen noted that there has been an issue with people not wearing masks in the community center gym and the hallways. He suggested that the city staff police people who enter the community center or that the gym be shut down. Mayor Donney didn’t feel that policing was a good option as there isn’t enough staff to handle that. Swanberg said that he has gone into the gym several times and asked people to put their masks on and has noticed that most of the groups who reserve the gym have followed the mask mandate, but the drop-ins and one other regular group do not. Council member Tony Webber recommended putting up additional signage in the gym informing people that if they do not comply with the mask mandate, they will not be allowed access anymore. The rest of council agreed with the recommendation and Swanberg will put up signs.
The next Harmony City Council meeting will be held on March 9 at 7 p.m.
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