On June 14, 2021, the Caledonia City Council held its regularly scheduled meeting from 6-8:05 p.m. in the City Hall Council Room. Council members present: Mayor DeWayne “Tank” Schroeder, Amanda Ninneman, and Robert “Bob” Klug. Absent were David Fitzpatrick and Brad Rykhus. Mayor Schroeder led the council and the public in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Consent Agenda
The council unanimously approved the Consent Agenda. Approved were the minutes from May 24, 2021, regular city council meeting; proposal from Galileo Consulting Group to provide engineering design and construction engineering services for HVAC system improvements at the Municipal Auditorium and adjacent fire station at the cost of $8,500; proposed parade route and parade detour route for Spring Grove/Caledonia Film Festival on Saturday, July 24, 2021, at 2 p.m.; Resolution 2021-10: A Resolution Accepting Donations from Caledonia Lions Club and Caledonia Community Spirit for Pocket Park, 119 S. Kingston St.; and hired Michael Morey as a firefighter for Caledonia Fire Department.
2020 City Audit
The council accepted the 2020 financial audit as presented by Andrew Forliti, CPA, Smith Schafer & Associates. In summary, the audit “provides reasonable, but not absolute, assurance that the financial statements are free from material misstatement.”
Adam Swann, clerk/city administrator commended Stephanie Mann, Finance Office, on her outstanding work and organizational skills.
Mayor Schroeder summarized the results of the audit by stating, “The city is moving in the right direction.”
Public Works/Zoning
director updates
The city completed the road work on Green Acres last week. At an additional cost of $600, recycled asphalt was added to the surface, which will help when the seal coating is added next year and will help in the long run. The mayor mentioned that he drove on it last week after the repairs were completed, “The road looks nice and is smooth to drive on.”
The pool is on track to open in mid-July. The contractor did the tiling last week and has started removing equipment from the job site that is no longer needed to finish the project.
The city received a few bids on the well house. The offers are scheduled to be opened on Wednesday, June 23.
Clerk/administrator updates
Caledonia Rehabilitation and Retirement, 425 N. Badger St. is significantly behind on their utility bill. Currently, the bill exceeds $30,000 and is averaging $10,000 in charges per month. The city cannot disconnect the service due to the nature of the business but can assess the late fees as a lien against the property.
Swann expects the city to receive between $280,000 to $290,000 in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
The city is working on cleaning up Sprague Woods and addressing residents’ concerns. For less than $2,000, the city will contract with an area farmer to bring in 30 goats to graze the property. The goats will first spend a month on the property, followed by two more weeks later in the summer. The City also plans to contract with a local contractor to come in and remove two toppled trees. After a walk-through, Casey Klug, Planning/Zoning Director, believes that might be seven trees that need to be taken down within the year.
Other Business
A public hearing was held regarding the application submitted by Ryan Stenzel for a 3’ setback variance of 3 feet to build a 22’ x 26’ attached one-car garage at 114 S. Winnebago St., the Planning/Zoning Director, has no problems with the request. There were no questions or comments from the public. The council moved to approve the setback variance.
The council approved the purchase of Jenkins Iron and Steel stump grinder from Caledonia Implement Company for $5,750. Before the council voted, Casey Klug explained, “Every year, we pay to grind stumps. So the stump grinder will be paid for in one year.” Councilmember Klug abstained due to a business conflict.
MiEnergy offered to provide the city with one free electrical vehicle charger (ZEFNET 40-CPD-SS, 7.7 kW). It is a small charger, and MiEnergy said everyone is going with a bigger charger. Ninneman is okay with upgrading to ensure it is used because the small one might be outdated in two years. The charger will be located behind the fire department by the water tower. The city will charge a parking fee per hour and charge for the electricity. Motion made by Klug was approved.
Councilmember Klug made a motion to resume charging a 5% penalty on delinquent utility bills and a 2% convenience fee on credit card and debit card payments. The motion was approved.
Ninneman motioned to issue an RFP for professional architectural and construction management services for the new ambulance station. This also was approved.
Swann believes it may be a long shot, but the city should go for it. Mayor Schroeder made a motion to approve Resolution 2021-09: A Resolution Supporting Capital Budget Request for New Ambulance Station and Recommending Inclusion of New Ambulance Station in Governor’s Capital Budget. The motion passed.
The council did not have enough information from the organizers of the upcoming Spring Grove-Caledonia Film Festival, July 20-25, 2021, to decide whether to allow food and drink in the city auditorium or not. The mayor shared his opinion, “I don’t want to ruin the floor, because we spent a lot of money on it.” The council was reminded that renters must have a $1 million liability policy listing the city as additional insured. The council also discussed requiring a $1,000 refundable deposit. A decision was tabled until the next meeting.
Councilmember Klug believes that the city should provide transportation to either the Spring Grove, Hokah, or La Crescent swimming pools for residents until the Caledonia Aquatic Center pool gutter replacement project is finished next month. Elsie’s is providing transportation on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday to the Spring Grove pool. Elsie’s bus can hold a maximum of 14 riders and is making three trips a day over and back. A 61-passenger bus is $90 per day for one trip. The city will check with the pools to see if they will accept Spring Grove kids two days a week. Ninneman motioned that the city tries to provide bus service to either Spring Grove, La Crescent, or Hokah pools until the Caledonia pool opens. This motion was approved.
The next city council meeting is Monday, June 28, 2021, at 6 p.m., Caledonia City Hall.