Tuesday, November 30, 2010

City Council Meeting

Mayor Hakes and Councilors Costello, Kennedy, Lenz and Sivertson were all present for today's City Council Meeting.  Also present were Mike Roth, Kim Dunsmoor and Attorney Chris Hood (via phone).

Open Forum
No member of the public opted to speak at the Open Forum.

Consent Agenda
The Consent Agenda was approved with (1) minor correction.

Snowmobile Club Request
Kim Linnell, Chamber of Commerce President, and Dan Anderson of the Ridge Riders Snowmobile Club requested the Council consider and approve the bike trail between 3rd Avenue West and the west edge of Grand Marais for snowmobile traffic.  The Snowmobile Club will be responsible for grooming the trail and signage.  Linnell and Anderson presented a letter of support with signatures from nearly all of the business owners along this portion of the bike trail.  Council expressed concern for pedestrian traffic, noise, logistics of trail grooming.  Council voted 5-0 to approve this portion of the trail be used for snowmobile traffic for the winter season of 2010-2011, subject to review in the Spring 2011.

PUD/Subdivision Regulation Issue 
Cook County Planning and Zoning has received an application for a Planned Unit Development (PUD) under the County's zoning ordinance.  The PUD at issue is proposed to be located outside the City, but is located within the two mile area upon which the City's subdivision regulations apply.  In this case, the County has zoning jurisdiction and the City has subdivision jurisdiction which raises the question of who should process the PUD application.  Both governmental jurisdictions have a portion (but not all) of the legal authority governing a PUD application under these circumstances.  Council directed Mike Roth and Tim Kennedy to set up a meeting with Tim Nelson (County Planning & Zoning), Tim Scannell (County Attorney) and Jan Hall (Commissioner District 5) to discuss potential solutions for consideration by the County Board and City Council.

Ordinance 2010-02 2nd Reading
Council unanimously approved the 2nd Reading of Ordinance 2010-02 to amend Grand Marais Zoning Ordinance to rezone Lots 4-17, Block 26 and lots 4-10, Block 27, all in Harbor Addition from C/I Commercial Industiral to MU Commercial-Residential Mixed Use zoning.

Curling Club Consumption and Display Permit Renewal
Council unanimously approved the Renewal of Consumption & Display Permit for the Cook County Curing Club.

Council Feedback to EDA
Councilor Jan Sivertson requested the Council provide her with ideas and feedback on where the EDA should focus its efforts in 2011.  Many ideas were discussed with general agreement that growing existing business was a priority.  Hakes provided written comments for the EDA to consider.

Council & Staff Reports
Tim Kennedy reported that the Biofuels Project hired Gary Atwood as Project Coordinator and is in the process of interviewing engineers.  A Public Meeting will be held on December 9 at 6 PM.
Bill Lenz reported that materials are arriving for the repair of the pool roof.  Lenz said completion of the project is weather dependent.  He is also concerned about the aging boiler.
Sue Hakes reported that the Miss North Shore Pageant will be held on January 8, 2011 at the Two Harbors Auditorium.  The Pageant requested $500 from the City of Grand Marais for their scholarship program.  The City is unable to honor this request and asked Mayor Hakes to send a letter of regret.
Mike Roth reported that Crystal Clemens has resigned from the Park Board.

Mark Your Calendar
Wednesday, December 8 at 4:30 pm, City Council Meeting
Wednesday, December 8 at 6:00 pm, Truth in Taxation Meeting
Wednesday, December 29 at 4:30 pm, City Council Meeting

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Do North!

Get into the holiday spirit by coming downtown Grand Marais today to listen to music, enjoy some hot chocolate, see Santa and his sled dogs, and share in the lighting of the holiday tree!

Festivities begin just after 4 pm and all are welcome to share in this family event!  Hope to see you there!

Monday, November 15, 2010

Moose Classroom Visits City Hall

 
Moose Class students get a tour of
the old jail at Grand Marais City Hall!
Mayor Hakes hosted teacher Carrie Otis and (3) students from the Moose Classroom of Great Expectations School.  These students have been studying Federal and State government and wanted to learn more about local government, both at the City and County levels.

Hakes, supported by City Administrator Mike Roth and Finance Director Kim Dunsmoor, led the students through an overview of the services provided by local government, where the funding comes from, and how decisions are made.  The students asked thoughtful questions.

At the end of the visit, Hakes gave the students a tour of City Hall, including the old jail and firehall.  The students also toured the City's main office where they met Public Utilities Commission Administrator Jan Smith who gave each of the students a pocket sized PUC flashlight.

Hakes and Roth expressed their appreciation to the Moose Classroom students and teacher for their interest in local government and encouraged them to attend a City Council or County Board meeting to see local government in action.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

City Council Meeting

Mayor Hakes and Councilors Costello, Kennedy, Lenz and Sivertson were all present for today's City Council Meeting.  Also in attendance were Park Manager Dave Tersteeg, Tina Hanson and Attorney Robert Scott filling in for Christopher Hood.  Absent were Mike Roth and Kim Dunsmoor.

Open Forum
(3) members of the Harbor Park Committee--Bette MacDonald, Jim Shinners and Richard Olson--addressed the Council during the Open Forum to ask the Council to consider the creation of a Public Arts Commission.  The purpose of such a commission would be to approve and site public art on city property.  Council agreed to discuss the idea of a Public Arts Commission at a future Council meeting.  The Harbor Park Committee went on record in opposition of the recently proposed memorial flag pole for Harbor Park.  Mayor Hakes reported that Park Johnson withdrew the request for a flag pole in memory of Dick Joynes at Harbor Park.

Christmas Parade Street Permit
Council unanimously approved the Chamber of Commerce permit request for their annual Christmas Parade to be held on November 23 from 5:30-6:30 pm.  The City is decorating downtown Grand Marais with decorations and lights.  Anybody interested in volunteering to decorate Harbor Park may meet at Harbor Park this Friday, November 12, at 9 AM to help.

Pool Repairs 
The Municipal Pool building sustained damage to the roof and walls during the wind and rainstorm on 10/27 and is closed until further notice.  The League of MN Cities insurance adjuster has been on site to assess the damage and authorize temporary repairs to prevent further damage.  The insurance adjuster, city staff and contractors met on Friday, 10/29; bids were solicited for replacement of the entire rubber roofing system and additional carpentry work on damaged walls.  Tersteeg presented bids for this work to Council for consideration.

After a lengthy discussion, Council agreed unanimously to repair the storm damage to the roof and walls.  The City's deductible is $10,000 and the repairs wll take approximately 1 month to complete.  Mayor Hakes and Park Board Member Robin DuChien both received several phone calls from the public in support of repairing the pool.

Council agreed to recess today's Council meeting and reconvene Friday, November 12, at 1 PM to select a contractor to do the repair work.

Rezone Request
Council supported the unanimous recommendation of the Planning Commission with a 1st reading of the Ordinance to rezone Lots 3-17, Block 26 Harbor Addition from C/I Commercial Industrial to MU Commercial-Residential Mixed Use zoning.  Among other findings, it was determined that the C/I zoning was not appropriate for this area, and the MU zoning will allow the current single family uses as well as low impact commercial uses.

Council & Staff Reports 
Bill Lenz reported that the Park Board is in the process of reviewing their rates for 2011.  He also reported that both Park and Golf revenues are up.  The 10/27 storm caused damage to the boat ramp at the City Marina, as well as damage in Boulder Park.
Kay Costello reported that the Library has selected DSGW Architectural firm for the Library expansion project.
Jan Sivertson reported that the EDA has created a board to manage the Superior National Golf Course.  She also noted that the EDA has paid back their loan to the County.  Sivertson solicited feedback from the Council about the direction they believe the EDA should take.
Tim Kennedy reported that he met with Safe Routes to School (SRTS) to discuss the drop off area at Great Expectations School.  He also worked with Kim Dunsmoor to intervivew candidates to lead the City/County Energy Plan.  And, Kennedy is part of the committee interviewing for a local coordinator to work on the biofuels project with Dovetail Partners. 
Sue Hakes shared that the 7th grade class from GES will be coming to City Hall next Monday for a tour and presentation on City government to be given by Hakes.  She also reported that the Community Center Steering Committee is making steady progress with ORB Management with a schedule to complete the Community Center by the end of 2012. 

Mark Your Calendars
Thursday, November 18 at 4:00 pm, Joint CCST Meeting at ISD 166
Tuesday, November 30 at 4:30 pm, City Council Meeting (note deviation from regular schedule)
Wednesday, December 8 at 4:30 pm, City Council Meeting
Thursday, December 8 at 6:00 pm, Budget Comment Meeting
Wednesday, December 29 at 4:30, City Council Meeting

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Local Election Results

Click here for local election results in Cook County and Grand Marais.