City Council Meeting

A full Council was present for today's City Council Meeting. Also in attendance were Mike Roth, Kim Dunsmoor and Don Davison.

City Council Meeting

Although several members of the public were in attendance at today's Council Meeting, nobody spoke at the Open Forum.

ATVs on City Streets
Betsy Perry, representing the Cook County ATV Club, asked if a legal determination about jurisdiction had been made regarding County State Aid Roads within the City of Grand Marais. Don Davison advised that he and Tim Scannell had communicated and reached the conclusion that the County Board has authority over County State Aid roads even within Grand Marais. Council agreed unanimously to encourage the County Board to leave County State Aid Roads within the city limits open to ATV riders. Mayor Hakes will draft a letter of support to the County Board stating this position.

Summer Festivals
Council unanimously approved the Grand Marais Art Colony's Application for Street & Sidewalk use to host their 19th Annual Grand Marais Arts Festival July 11-12, 2009. Just one change was made from last year's festival; vendors will be responsible for removal of their own garbage.

Council unanimously approved Como Oil & Propane's request for Customer Appreciation Day to be held on July 8 at the City Parking Lot from 9 AM to 2 PM. Como will be responsible for garbage removal during and after this event.

Personnel
(3) part-time lifeguards and (1) seasonal maintenance worker have been hired in the Park Department. Kyle Oberg and Kirk Oberg were approved as Volunteer Fire Fighters in Grand Marais.

DEED Grant Application
Council authorized Dick Grabko of SEH to apply for funding to help pay for additional repairs needed in the Cedar Grove Business Park resulting from the storm last June 6. A request for $104,800 is being submitted to cover costs not previously covered by FEMA.

Creechville Annexation
After discussion, Council approved (4-1) the First Reading of Ordinance No. 2009-01 to annex land located in the Blackwell Addition in Creechville. A Second Reading will occur at the next City Council Meeting on May 13. Council acknowledged the difficulty in this annexation and that some affected residents are opposed. However, Council determined that it is in the best interest of the public to move forward with this annexation for the following reasons: planning for growth, fairness in taxation, public health, urban character of the area. It was also noted that some residents in this area are in favor of the annexation.

The City hosted a public hearing to consider this annexation by ordinance on April 8, 2009. At this hearing an estimate of taxes before and after annexation was requested. This tax information, along with estimated assessments for those four property owners affected by the water and sewer project, is available at City Hall.

Other Notes
Sue Hakes contacted MN DOT Traffic Engineer, Rob Ege, regarding traffic problems, safety concerns, lack of crosswalks, and pedestrian friendliness in Grand Marais. Tim Kennedy, Kay Costello, Mike Roth and Hakes will host Ege to discuss these problems and work to identify short and long term solutions.

Sue Hakes reported that the DNR Legal Council has notified us that the DNR will not do any harbor breakwall work that enhances or improves private property. Having this information is important in taking the next steps for design of a Grand Marais Safe Harbor & Marina as outlined in Resolution No. 2007-05.

Several cities in Northern MN have been funded with stimulus money. Council has agreed to a Work Session to identify shovel ready projects for Grand Marais that might qualify for future funding. Projects to explore include replacement of fire hydrants and the Creechville sewer project.

Council & Staff Reports
Jan Sivertson reported on CCLEP Windpower, Tourism Meeting and EDA. Bill Lenz announced that the Park Board has pared the proposed park plans to (2). Kay Costello reported on the 1% Sales Tax effort and Joint Powers Rec Board.

Mark Your Calendars

Wed May 13 at 3:30 Worksession on City Budget
Wed May 13 at 4:30 City Council Meeting
Tues May 19 at 7:00 PM Park Master Planning at Community Center--Public Input Needed
Wed May 28 at 3:30 Stimulus Funding Worksession
Wed May 28 at 4:30 City Council Meeting
Wed June 10 at 4:30 City Council Meeting
Wed June 24 at 4:40 City Council Meeting