March City of Oklee Council meeting

On March 13, 2017, the City of Oklee held their monthly meeting at the Oklee Cafe at 6:00 p.m.

All members of the council were present: Paul Cyr, Matthew Genova, Lori Melby and Kaye Munt. Also present were Mayor George Burthwick; Clerk Derek Cross; and Darrell Tougas from Maintenance.

Other present at the meeting were Deputy Casey Roisland and Sheriff Mitch Bernstein.

The meeting was called to order by the Mayor and first on the agenda was the minutes from the last meeting. Genova had a question for Cross on the correction that was to be put in the paper from the previous meeting stating that he felt Cross did not adequately fix the minutes, and Cross did not have a copy of the fixed minutes for the Council to look at. Cross said he had fixed the minutes and after a short discussion on a better way to record the minutes for accuracy, the council moved on to approve the minutes with a motion by Melby, seconded by Munt.

A nomination for Assistant Mayor position to be held by Paul Cyr was made by Melby and seconded by Munt.

The Sheriff’s report was given by Mitch Bernstein who reported that Oklee has been quiet and reminded the Council if there were any damages caused by spring flooding, to make sure to keep track of expenses to be used if county was to be declared an emergency. It is doubtful at this point, since the snow has melted quite slowly. Bernstein also reported that there will be a meeting  of the Emergency Services soon and the information will be sent out to persons required to attend.

The Red Lake County Fair Board members were at the Council meeting to discuss a few items regarding the upcoming Fair in June. Sheriff Bernstein was asked to stay for this portion of the meeting since policing will be needed at the Fair.

Representing the Fair Board was Greg Melin, Ryan Gryskiewicz, and Jarrod Larson. This year, the Red Lake County Fair has contracted for a two day rodeo for Friday and Saturday night. The original location the Board was working on has not worked out. Question to the City of Oklee was about other possible locations that would be acceptable. Locations for the Rodeo to set up were discussed along with liquor licenses for the events at the rodeo, Baja race and the two dances planned. The City of Oklee requires location descriptions, along with dates and times and the Council will approve what is required. Genova made a motion, seconded by Cyr to approve the needed documents and leases needed by the Fair once the required information has been supplied to the Clerk.

Other questions were if the City of Oklee required Food Vendor Permits. The City doesn’t not, but the Food Vendors need to have their Food License up-to-date. The Fair Board is expecting potentially a 1000 persons a day with the rodeo in town for the two days and the Baja will be held on Sunday.

The Oklee Historical Society request to build quilt display cases which will require a few other displays to be relocated was brought to the table. Bonny Cote, current president of the Historical Society reported she had talked to the required person and was given permission to move the other displays to make room for the new quilt displays. The City Council have their approval to move on with the quilt project.

Utilities and empty houses was next discussed. There are a number of houses that are empty and will never house persons again. What should the City of Oklee do with these properties was the question. Usually if a house is still physically connected to the water & sewer systems, the owner is required to pay a half rate. The Council was asked to think about this so a discussion on this issue can be discussed at the next meeting.

Clerk Cross brought to the attention of the Council that the trailer lots the City of Oklee purchased earlier, were going to be available for sale, as a person has come to the City looking for lots. The Council said to go ahead and sell. 

Tougas reported on the maintenance of the City of Oklee. He would like to have Johnson Jetting to come and help get the pond unplugged once again. The use of wipes is causing issues and Tougas is expecting to get worse as it is all ages that use wipes. Unfortunately, the wipes get flushed and they do not disintegrate. 

Tougas has looked into the prices of a digester to fix the problem, but the cost is approximately $20,000 and they would have to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week all year long. The electrical needs and maintenance would also add to the cost. 

At this time, Tougas is using disposable baskets he makes to catch the wipes and other things flushed into the system, changing them out twice a week. This is expected to double according to reports he has received. Asking what was best action to take by Rural Water, Tougas was told to start with education of the public using newspapers, brochures, etc. 

Different types of systems were briefly discussed, with Tougas explaining that our system was a gravity system and McIntosh’s wasn’t. Asked if there was a way to pressurize the system, Tougas answered no, that is not possible.

Genova and Melby approved education materials to be mailed out twice a year to educate the public.

Tougas next asked if he could get a couple of volunteers for help removing sludge from the bottom of the pond. He needs one on the boat, one in the pond, and one other person. No one on the Council volunteer, they wished him well on finding volunteers. He would also like to have Johnson Jetting to come in to do the final cleaning after the sludge is removed. Rural Water is going to help with this project and will let Tougas know when it will be done. Council told Tougas to move ahead with his plan.

The Baker House water problem was once again discussed. The water has been shut off at the Skating Rink to see if that is the possible water leak.

The Financials were looked at and Mayor Burthwick suggested to the Council that a few items may be needed to be added to the future budgets. The City of Oklee/Rural Fire will soon need a new fire truck. The City may need a new skid steer this fall and a new mower is on the list also. A motion by Melby, seconded by Cyr to get bids on the mower was made and approved. 

One other item was mentioned as a FYI. The three policing contract will be up next year. 

The financial reports were approved with a motion by Genova, seconded by Melby, carried. The bills were paid with a motion by Genova and seconded by Cyr, carried.

County Engineer Korky Kleven had informed Oklee that they had been included in the EcoFootprint Grant he has been working on with Enbridge. The City of Oklee Council, told Cross to inform Kleven to go forward with the plan.

Genova asked the Council to please continue to work on the nuisance properties as we go into March. Genova mentioned three properties he felt needed to dealt with. Letters should be sent out to the owners. Genova also asked the other Council members to drive around including alleys to see what issues there are in the City that needs attention. He also encouraged continued work with a Clean Up Day and cooperation from the homeowners.

The meeting was adjourned with a motion my Munt, seconded by Genova.