board_meeting_minutes_april_11_2024.pdf

Village of Siren is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer. Complaints of discrimination should be sent to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington DC 20250-9410 VILLAGE OF SIREN - VILLAGE BOARD MEETING THURSDAY APRIL 11, 2024 MINUTES The Regular Village Board meeting held on April 11, 2024, was called to order at 10:10 a.m. by Village President Dave Alden. A moment of silence was held at the start of the meeting in honor of former Village Board member Rudy Mothes who passed away in February. Members Present: Dave Alden, Rick Engstrom, Janet Hunter, Jim Pearson, Steve Young Members Absent: Jeff Johnson Others Present: Ann Peterson, Clerk/Treasurer; Jim Jaskolka, Public Works Director; Trevor Thiex, Police Chief; Sarah Radomsky, Inter County Leader; Teresa Anderson, MSA; Becky Strabel, Burnett County Sentinel; Tim Murphy & Mark Elliot, Gandy Dancer Pickleball Association; Ed & Ann Johnson; Sara Reimann-Hill; Brian Bocan President Alden called for Public Comments. A motion was made by Steve Young and seconded by Janet Hunter to approve the agenda as presented. Motion carried without negative vote. A motion was made by Steve Young and seconded by Jim Pearson to approve the February 8, 2024 Village Board meeting minutes. Motion carried without negative vote. A motion was made by Steve Young and seconded by Jim Pearson to approve payment of the bills in the amount of $249,317.60 general vouchers and checks cut since the last regularly scheduled board meeting in the amount of $213,965.45 for a grand total of $463,830.05. Motion carried without negative vote. President Alden gave the President’s Report. He welcomed Ed Johnson as the newest Village Board meeting who will take over on April 16th along with Steve Young who was reelected to the Village Board. He thanked Jim Pearson for his time on the Village Board. President Alden inquired of MSA on the status of the Landquist Project. MSA did meet with Haas last week to work on the project. The issue should get taken care of this summer. Clerk/Treasurer Peterson gave the Clerk’s Report. The Board of Review will need to meet and adjourn prior to the May Board meeting as the assessment roll will not be complete yet because of the market revaluation. The training material for Board of Review members is here and at least one member of the Board will need to take the training prior to the initial meeting. Others can take it prior to the actual Board of Review meeting if desired. Chief Thiex gave the February & March Police Reports. The Department has been busy, There has been an uptick in retail theft in local stores; some of the suspects have been identified. The Department took on a case yesterday where some cell phones need to have the phone’s information extracted. This could cause an expense for the Village at a rate of approximately $1300 per phone. Polk County Sheriff’s Department is going to see if they can “break” the phones for us at a cheaper cost. There may be something in the future where the local Departments along with Burnett County Sheriff’s Department will Village of Siren is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer. Complaints of discrimination should be sent to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington DC 20250-9410 combine to get the technology to do this work. One of the local bars has been cited for being open after hours. The Troy Lanning property was awarded to the Village by the Burnett County Trial Court. That decision was appealed to the Court of Appeals. The District Attorney’s Office indicated that Attorney Benson could deal with the issue through the Court of Appeals and get the property titled to the Village. The property behind the former Golf Shop should be getting cleaned up. There are trailers on site for removal of the debris. OLD BUSINESS A motion was made by Jim Pearson and seconded by Steve Young to approve Resolution 2024-02: Authorizing Resolution to Commit Match Funds & Certification of Match Funds Secured. This is for the CDBG Application. Match funds were secured through Community Bank. President Alden called for a roll call vote: Alden aye Pearson aye Engstrom aye Young aye Hunter aye Motion carried. A motion was made by Steve Young and seconded by Rick Engstrom to approve Resolution 2024-03: Authorizing Resolution for the Submission of a Community Development Block Grant Application. President Alden called for a roll call vote: Alden aye Pearson aye Engstrom aye Young aye Hunter aye Motion carried. A motion was made by Jim Pearson and seconded by Rick Engstrom to amend the Pickleball Court Fence Contract to have 4” high black fences placed between the courts when the project is complete. The additional cost is $4,247. Bernick’s Pepsi has donated $20,000 toward this project and would like to be at the May Board meeting to officially present that donation. The Gandy Dancer Pickleball Association has a total of $33,000 for the project which includes the $20,000 donation from Bernick’s Pepsi. Motion carried without negative vote. A motion was made by Steve Young and seconded by Rick Engstrom to have a public hearing prior to the May Village Board meeting on the creation of C3 Commercial Campground District Ordinance. Motion carried without negative vote. Teresa Anderson from MSA and the Board discussed the property lines along State Road 35 and Rasmussen Street leading into the Ball Park. As part of the ongoing water project planning the property lines need to be properly determined. There is a small piece of property that the deeds do not adequately describe the Village Street; however, because the street is existing there may be property rights that aren’t reflected in the deeds. The Village could have Attorney Benson issue an opinion on whether there are prescriptive rights due to the longstanding existence of the Village street. Another option discussed was having the area surveyed by Doug Crane to verify proper lot lines and then prepare quit-claim deeds if necessary. A motion was made by Jim Pearson and seconded by Steve Young to have Doug Crane look over the existing lines to determine the best course of action for the Village to move forward. Motion carried without negative vote. NEW BUSINESS A motion was made by Rick Engstrom and seconded by Steve Young to finance the Village of Siren is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer. Complaints of discrimination should be sent to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington DC 20250-9410 purchase/outfitting of the 2024 Dodge Durango Squad through Community Bank at a rate of 4.4% for five years. The total cost of the squad/conversion is $59,788.47. Authorized signers for the loan papers will be Village President Dave Alden and Clerk/Treasurer Ann Peterson. Motion carried without negative vote. The Board discussed applying for an Urban Forestry Inflation Reduction Grant to plant additional trees in the Village. Areas that could be included include the Industrial Park and the Tewalt Property along State Road 35. Funding can also be used to do a tree plan and management plan. A motion was made by Dave Alden and seconded by Steve Young to have Public Works Director Jim Jaskolka & Clerk/Treasurer Ann Peterson work on the grant application. Motion carried without negative vote. Motion carried without negative vote. The Board discussed the possible purchase of an ATV/UTV/Trailer from the St. Croix Tribal Police Department. The cost of all three units would be $12,000. The ATV and UTV could be used by both the Public Works Department and Police Department and the existing ATV could be used at the Ball Park. The UTV does have a plow. The Village does have funding in our Equipment Outlay and Police Department Outlay Funds to purchase the equipment. A motion was made by Jim Pearson and seconded by Dave Alden to approve the purchase the equipment from the St. Croix Tribal Police Department with the purchase split between the Police and Public Works Departments. Motion carried without negative vote. A motion was made by Steve Young and seconded by Jim Pearson to update the Capital Improvement Plan to include the proposed water projects being done as part of the Safe Drinking Water and CDBG applications. Motion carried without negative vote. The Board discussed the current day/times of the Village Board meetings. The individual who won the write-in vote for the third Village Trustee position is not able to attend meetings during the day. The Board discussed that perhaps the write-in candidate may need to talk with his employer to see if an allowance can be made for him to attend the meetings. Board members discussed that in the past when meetings were held in the evening there was not an increase in the number of residents/audience participants. New Board member Ed Johnson addressed the Board that having the meeting during the day does interfere with people who have appointments during the day and having the meeting in the early evening hours might be easier for certain people. A motion was made by Jim Pearson and seconded by Dave Alden to leave the meeting date/time at 10:00 a.m. on the second Thursday of the month. Motion carried without negative vote. Sara Reimann-Hill gave an overview of the Staying Connected App to the Board. There is a place on the app for Government entities. The cost would be $500 per year to have the Village information placed in the app for the Police Department, Public Works, Village Government, and Parks areas. The Village Board decided to have the Personnel & Finance Committee look at the App to have the option discussed and to bring a recommendation back to the Village Board. The meeting schedule was set as follows: a. Reorganizational Meeting: April 16th at 9:00 a.m. b. Board of Review: May 9th at 10:00 a.m. c. Committee of the Whole: May 1st at 9:00 a.m. d. Planning Commission & Board of Appeals: To be set if needed. e. Tourism Commission: April 17th at 9:00 a.m. f. Ball Park Committee: May 7th at 6:00 p.m. g. Personnel & Finance Committee: following CotW on May 1st Village of Siren is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer. Complaints of discrimination should be sent to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington DC 20250-9410 A motion was made by Dave Alden and seconded by Jim Pearson to adjourn the Village Board Meeting at 11:17 a.m. Motion carried without negative vote. Submitted by Ann L Peterson, WCMC/CMTW Village Clerk/Treasurer