Photo by Kirsten Zoellner
Last month, City Attorney Joe O’Koren cautioned the Rushford Village ouncil regarding its current rental agreement for the village hall. The topic came following a request to rent the village hall and sought permission to serve alcohol at an upcoming event. Similar past requests were council approved with a public insurance certificate naming the city as a covered party. However, the village determined that may not be sufficient liability coverage.
After further review of the agreement and consultation with the League of Minnesota Cities (LMC), O’Koren suggested the village update the agreement to include a hold harmless clause. Insurance coverage is unclear at this time. The LMC didn’t clarify whether a personal liability certificate, rather than a public one, was sufficient. Instead, they recommended a third option utilizing host liability insurance.
How much coverage is needed was unclear. Currently, the village requires a minimum of $100,000. LMC recommended $1 million in liability coverage from the renter. “We don’t even require that on other policies. It seems a bit much,” said Mayor Dennis Overland. “It will eliminate a bunch of rentals. There’s not a lot of people who have $1 million insurance.”
Clerk Mary Miner questioned whether or not the $1 million coverage would apply to all renters or just those serving alcohol. She previously stated that very few renters request to serve alcohol, but some guests at events bring it on their own.
“We need something in there that says that’s not allowed,” added Overland.
“I would hope the host would tell them. The obligation is now on them to tell them,” noted O’Koren. “We can adjust the language to say the host needs to. Worst case scenario, if they say we’re not bringing alcohol and they do, we’re covered with the hold harmless. I think it would discourage folks from bringing alcohol.”
The council directed O’Koren to rewrite the rental agreement. A draft for council review will be available at a future meeting. “We’ll tear down the entire agreement and reformulate it,” he added.
The council also considered the renewal of the Community Economic Development Associates (CEDA) contract for 2023. The contract would include 16 hours of work per month for $14,479, the equivalent of roughly $75 per hour. Rushford village previously contracted with CEDA on a per-hour basis, but that rate is $95 per hour, according to CEDA rep Rebecca Charles. Charles is currently in the middle of working cooperatively with the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse students on an ongoing trail development study and review of the village’s comprehensive plan.
“I think we talked about it before. We’re in our unique circumstance. It would be awfully nice if we established a business district or housing district. You want CEDA for business development, but if you don’t have somewhere for that to happen, it’s difficult. We’re the only town in CEDA that doesn’t have a business district. We’re the only one in this circumstance,” said Councilor Roger Knutson.
“Hopefully, that’s what we’re using them for. That’s where we have to be able to give direction,” responded Overland.
“I don’t think it would hurt for CEDA to look into helping people in our situation. Eventually you want to see something. That’s the reality,” added Knutson.
“We need to keep going with this,” noted Councilor Mike Ebner. “It’s our own fault. A couple of years ago, we weren’t giving her any direction. I think she’s on the right path on a couple of things and we just need to follow through at this point.”
“We’re novices at this, so we’re relying on an agency with more experience than us,” added Knutson.
Charles questioned whether or not the council was looking towards a business district or an industrial park, possibly owning land for development. Overland noted it would depend on the situation and amount, while Ebner suggested not being the developer but offering something to develop.
“We don’t have the money unless we’re going to start taxing the residents for that,” cautioned Councilor Rick Ruberg. “For me, we’ve got to see a return for our money.”
“Maybe we need to look at it from the standpoint of you tell us what we need,” suggested Councilor Bob Hart. “I don’t see that we’re getting that. I don’t see us paying for the service that we’re getting.”
Overland countered that trail development may not generate money for the village. “It’s what constituents asked for,” he noted.
“The governor’s Design Team study is at the library now. Have you seen it?” asked Hart. That study was conducted following the catastrophic 2007 flood and included several areas of recommended development for the entire valley area. “All of what we were discussing now and have discussed in the past is on there.”
“Either you’ve got to give us something, we’ve got to give you something, or we’ll end up right back here next year,” added Knutson to Charles. The council tabled the contract discussion.
Knutson suggested that “success stories” detailing positive development traction in the area by CEDA also be provided to the council. “I’d like to see that,” he said. “Bring it to us and say, ‘This is what’s been done.’ We’ve got to change this development thing. Everyone knows, we have all the room here. We can grow.”
The next regularly scheduled council meeting is Tuesday, November 1, at 7 p.m. at the Village Hall. The public is encouraged to attend.
Leave a Reply