City of Oklee appointed Sandoval as new council person for Brekke’s vacated position

The City of Oklee held their regular meeting on February 8th at 6 p.m. Members present were Larry (Snook) Olson, Matthew Genova, and Mayor Lori Gulseth. Paul Cyr was unable to attend. Clerk Derek Cross was also present.

Visitors and others were Sheriff Mitch Bernstein, Kelly Brekke, Gail Schmitz, and Daniel Sandoval and his wife.

Gulseth called the meeting to order. The minutes were looked over and approved with a motion by Olson, seconded by Genova. Carried.

Gail Schmitz went over the financial reports with the board. The financials were approved with a motion by Olson, seconded by Genova. Carried. The bills were approved with a motion by Olson, seconded by Genova, carried.

Sheriff Mitch Bernstein was asked for his report. Bernstein reminded the council that there is more Covid relief monies available from the county for business and non-profits and if they knew of any that needed help, to let them know.

Other than that, Bernstein said things were quiet. There are some people driving around in town that don’t have their license and feel they are being singled out by the police, but if you don’t have a license, you shouldn’t be driving. He also reported that the pipeline is going smoothly and there has been no trouble so far. Most of the trouble has been down near Palisade, MN. 

Next on the agenda was the home-improvement loan that Joyce Hardecopf had on her home. She passed away January 2, 2021 and still had one year left on the loan. This was a loan from a housing rehab program that if you lived in the home for 7 years, it would be forgiven. She died one year short of seven years. The council was wondering why this was brought to them and it was explained that it was money from the Oklee EDA funds that the program uses. It was also explained that the house was not going to be sold, it would stay in the family. Genova made a motion to forgive the loan, Olson seconded, carried.

Darrell Tougas, Oklee Maintenance, said since there has been very little snow to remove and it is so cold, he has been working inside on cleaning and upstairs in the Historical site working. He also presented the quotes received from Oklee Lumber for the remodeling project on the outside of the City Municipal building. Olson had also been over at the Lumber Yard and asked some questions. It was suggested after discussions that since no one really knows what is under the metal siding, that it might have furring strips that are not large enough for installers and their powered nail guns. Suggested to put larger furring strips for the siding which would also double the insulation thickness, which would save money on heating in the future. It was also decided that the council would rather use wood product instead of metal siding and try to make the building not look like a warehouse. Wood is warmer than metal also. New drainpipes and drainage in the sidewalk will be completed with the new street/sidewalk project the county is doing this summer. Most of the windows in the building will also be replace and the facia and gutters. Whoever gets the job will have to work out the timing with the county as that project will be going on also. Bids will be put in the paper and colors will have to be picked out for the siding. A motion to go ahead with the remodeling of the outside of the Municipal building was made by Genova and seconded by Olson. Carried.

The appointment for the vacancy of the Brekke seat on the board was next. Genova made a motion to close the applications for the position, Olson seconded. Carried. Genova asked Cross if any other written applications had come in according to the instructions in the advertisement in the paper. Cross said George Burthwick was interested but had not sent in an application. 

Daniel Sandoval was asked to come to the table and answer a few questions. Olson asked him why he was interested in the position and Sandoval said he had purchased a house here 4 years ago and wanted to get more involved and be part of the community. He was asked if he had ever been on a council or board before, he said he hadn’t. Sandoval was also asked if he was coming on the board for any particular thing he wanted to work on and he said, not really, the only thing that stood out to him was the poor street lighting in some areas of the town. Sandoval also said that he would make sure he attended meetings and make sure that his work schedule didn’t conflict.

So, the next question was since Burthwick was interested, but didn’t submit an letter of application, is he to be considered for the position. It was discussed and decided that the ad specifically said to put into writing your application for the position and turn into the clerk, which he hadn’t, disqualified him.

Cross spoke up and said that when Paul called to say he would be able to attend the meeting, that Paul was fine with what ever decision the council made. 

Genova made the motion that Danny Sandoval should be appointed to the vacancy. Olson made a motion that Burthwick be appointed to the vacancy. Due to a tie, Mayor Lori Gulseth made the second on Genova’s motion, appointing Sandoval to the vacancy. 

Tougas will be retiring in the future and a draft of the job description was looked at. An ad will also be placed in the paper for a new Maintenance person for the City of Oklee.

Bonny Cote, from the Oklee Historical Society, came before the council with prices from two different places for carpeting. The Society has enough money to pay for the carpeting but wanted the council to make a motion for the purchase of carpet. After describing the two choices, Cote preferred the carpet from Five Star Flooring in TRF. Genova made a motion, Olson seconded, carried.

Before adjourning the meeting, Genova brought up that the ordinances haven’t been updated in a long time and he would like to see them updated.  

The meeting was adjourned at 8:14 p.m. with a motion by Genova, seconded by Olson, carried. The next meeting will be held on March 8, 2021 at 6 p.m. at the Oklee Café.