Photo by Kirsten Zoellner
After speaking with several design companies, Rushford Village will contract with Vision Design for an updated website and domain. The council discussed details at the June 20 meeting.
The current website provider, Catalis, contacted City Clerk Mary Miner regarding a sizable price increase. According to the Miner, the company says the increase offsets revenue shortages. She says the four-year contract would be $1,995 in the first year, increasing 6% yearly, and ending at $2,376 in year four.
The city also considered a local Winona company with no experience designing a governmental site, but they would set up the equivalent of what the village has now.
“I’m not sure if we want that if we want to change things,” noted Miner. “It’s cheaper, but the product is not going to be what we need.”
Ultimately the council approved the hiring of Vision Design based on Miner’s recommendation. The initial cost is $2750, and the monthly charge is $50.
A new Fillmore County Cannabinoid/THC ordinance aims to regulate the sale of hemp-derived products. The village had the option to take it on as its ordinance or let the county handle it.
“I would recommend the latter,” said Miner. “We don’t have a police department to enforce it. Most cities are going to go with Fillmore County.”
“There are a lot of unanswered questions,” added Mayor Dennis Overland. “It’s not implemented until 2025.”
City Attorney Joe O’Koren suggested the city let the county know they took no action at this time. Still, if the county needs a formal adoption to allow it to handle things, it can be done later.
The 2023 spring cleanup held last month was a success, according to the council. Still, there was a loss of $836 on the waste removal. Councilor Bob Hart suggested it would be good to reduce cities’ expenses.
There weren’t any citizen complaints about the costs paid to drop off items, but they appreciated the service. The yearly project aims to clean up properties and minimize illegal waste dumping, including oversized items, electronics, and appliances.
The council heard details of several Public Works items, including a pump failure over the past weekend that resulted in a few residents being without water.
“It was a fluke thing, so it’s hard to figure out what happened when it’s working when you look at it,” noted Public Works Supervisor Trenten Chiglo.
The city will look into installing a dialer to notify emergency personnel if a failure occurs again.
Road grading and ditch work are also underway, but dry conditions hinder work. Public Works continues to use the reclaimer, but Chiglo noted it doesn’t save on gravel as expected but crowns the roads well.
“It’s worth it,” he said. “It makes a little less of a mess and isn’t costing us anything since we already own it. But, yeah, it works really well for that.”
The upgrades on the Public Works maintenance shed are continuing. The back half of the building has new concrete, but the front half is still waiting for plumbing. According to Chiglo, the contractor is still waiting on permits from the county. Once the plumbing is in and the front half of the shed gets concrete, the work includes digging tanks out and having NES do the wiring portion of the project.
A resident on Ridgeview Road requested children at play signs near his property. According to Miner, he indicated his grandchildren play on the gravel road. Still, her opinion was they shouldn’t be on the road. Councilor Rick Ruberg, who lives on the rural road, said there are fast drivers some days, and the road is busy.
City Attorney Joe O’Koren suggested speed signs are typically more effective, but that both come with mixed results. “If we know there’s a concern, we do what we can,” he added.
The council approved two signs in front of the property.
The next regularly scheduled meeting is Tuesday, July 11, at 7 p.m. at the village hall. Please note the date change from the first and third Tuesday to the second Tuesday. There will be only one council meeting in July. The public is encouraged to attend.
Leave a Reply