April 3, 2017 minutes

Alexandria Township

Alexandria, Minnesota 56308

Minutes of the meeting of April 3, 2017

A regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors of Alexandria Township was held on the 3rd day of April, 2017 at the Alexandria Township Conference Room, 324 Broadway.

ROLL CALL: Supervisors present were Jul Feuling, Jeff Oberg, Joel Dahlheimer, Rod Eldevik and Russell Niskanen. Also present were Bonnie Fulghum, Deputy Clerk, and Mona Billmark, Treasurer. As said members formed a quorum and the meeting was called to order by Deputy Clerk Fulghum at 6:00 p.m.

Deputy Clerk Fulghum called for nominations for chairman. Feuling nominated Rod Eldevik as chair. Nominations ceased and a unanimous ballot was cast for Eldevik as chair. The meeting was turned over to Chairman Eldevik.

Chairman Eldevik called for nominations for vice-chair. Oberg nominated Joel Dahlheimer as vice-chair. Nominations ceased and a unanimous ballot was cast for Dahlheimer as vice-chair.

Niskanen, seconded by Oberg, made a motion to adopt the agenda with the additions of AAEDC representative under Old Business; Jack’s Family Recycling and the nuisance ordinance under Planning and Zoning. Motion carried unanimously.

Oberg, seconded by Niskanen, made a motion to approve the minutes of the 3/20/2017 regular board meeting as written. Motion carried. Feuling abstained.

Niskanen, seconded by Dahlheimer, made a motion to authorize payment of claims 17060 – 17070 in the amount of $17,943.17, net payroll $3,990.89 totaling $21,934.06 with no transfer of funds from savings. Motion carried unanimously.

CITIZEN’S CONCERNS: none

PLANNING AND ZONING: The board discussed the ongoing clean-up effort at JFRC as well as potential zoning violations at adjoining properties. Supervisor Oberg suggested a letter be sent to the MPCA concerning their role in monitoring this situation. The board also discussed properties situated along Highway 82 E and E. Lake Jessie Road that are in violation of the nuisance ordinance. Consensus to have Zoning Administrator Oleson provide an update at the next meeting.

ENGINEER’S REPORT: Deputy Clerk Fulghum reported that Engineer Kuhn will be meeting with Clerk Raisanen to discuss the 2017 road improvements.

OLD BUSINESS: Nicole Fernholz, Executive Director for the AAEDC, reported that the township’s representative to the AAEDC Board of Directors, Mark Watkins, has resigned and she is recommending Nicole Klimek, owner of Lowry Manufacturing, as his replacement. Niskanen, seconded by Dahlheimer, made a motion to approve Resolution 17-01, a resolution appointing Nicole Klimek as the Alexandria Township representative to the AAEDC Board of Directors for a three year term. Motion carried unanimously.

Deputy Clerk Fulghum reported we received one RFP for summer road maintenance from Alden Just Road Maintenance. The proposal includes all the requested information. The fees quoted for services are as follows: blading and maintaining of township roads – $85/hr.; packing of gravel – $60.00/hr.; mowing weeds and ditches – $66/hr.; spraying of weeds – $62/hr; sweeping streets/roads – $64/hr; sign installation/tree removal/other maintenance – $35/hr/worker. Base fuel rates are as follows: $2.349/gal for dyed fuel and $2.399/gal for highway fuel with a $1/hr. fuel adjustment for $0.12/gal increase in fuel prices. Feuling, seconded by Dahlheimer, made a motion to award the 2017 summer road maintenance contract to Alden Just Road Maintenance at the fee schedule provided above for the period of April 4, 2017 – September 30, 2017. Motion carried unanimously.

NEW BUSINESS: Deputy Clerk Fulghum provided information secured from Emily Siira, DNR Area Hydrologist, concerning the dredging of the channel between Lakes Victoria and Geneva. Supervisor Niskanen reported he had received a request from a resident to clean up this channel due to its shallow depth. Niskanen stated he had spoken with Scott Green of Douglas County Public Works regarding associated costs involved with dredging of this channel. The board requested Niskanen to follow up with the county and to also ask Ms. Siira her availability to attend a future township meeting.

REORGANIZATION MEETING:

  1. The following Board appointments were made for 2017:
  • LAR  –  Supervisor Oberg, with Patrick Running serving as the township representative
  • AAEDC – Vice-chair Dahlheimer, with Nicole Klimek serving as the township representative
  • Planning & Zoning Subcommittee – Chairman Eldevik and Supervisor Niskanen with Commissioners Dokken-McFann and Steidl from the planning commission
  • Roads – Vice-chair Dahlheimer and Supervisor Niskanen
  • Sewer District – Vice-chair Dahlheimer, with Chairman Eldevik serving as the township representative
  • Transportation Subcommittee – Chairman Eldevik and Supervisor Niskanen
  • Parks and Recreation Subcommittee – Clerk Raisanen and Supervisor Oberg
  1. Planning commission term expirations – Consensus to re-appoint Shad Steinbrecher and Linda Dokken-McFann to 3-year terms expiring March 2020.

 

  1. Per diem rate – Feuling, seconded by Oberg, made a motion to have the per diem rate remain at $80/meeting with an extra $20/meeting chairing a meeting. Feuling and Oberg amended their motion to add the phrase “per diem to apply per meeting where minutes are taken.” Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Inspection rate – Oberg, seconded by Feuling, made a motion to have the inspection rate remain at $40/inspection. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Incidental labor rate – Dahlheimer, seconded by Niskanen, made a motion to have the incidental labor rate raised to $17.50/hr. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Administrative Assistant salary – Feuling, seconded by Dahheimer, made a motion to increase the administrative assistant’s salary by $.50, raising it from $19.43/hr. to $19.93 and to allow the day after Thanksgiving as a holiday in place of Veteran’s Day. Feuling and Dahlheimer amended their motion to reflect a salary increase to $20/hr. and to exchange the Veteran’s Day holiday for the day after Thanksgiving. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Treasurer’s and Clerk’s salary – Feuling, seconded by Dahlheimer, made a motion to have the treasurer’s and clerk’s salary remain the same at $735/month. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Mileage rate –Dahlheimer, seconded by Niskanen, made a motion to adopt the IRS millage reimbursement rate. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Official newspaper – Feuling, seconded by Dahlheimer, made a motion to designate the Echo Press as the township’s official site for legal notifications. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Township bank – Niskanen, seconded by Oberg, made a motion to designate Bremer Bank as our depositor of funds. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Attorney – Feuling, seconded by Niskanen, made a motion to designate the Pemberton Law Firm as legal counsel, with Paul Johnson serving as the township attorney for general township matters and Charlie Good serving as the township prosecution attorney. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Weed inspector – Oberg, seconded by Feuling, made a motion to designate all town supervisors as weed inspectors with Vice-chair Dahlheimer as chief weed inspector. Motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Deputy clerk – to be appointed by the town clerk at a later date.

 

  1. Group life insurance – Niskanen, seconded by Oberg, made a motion to retain coverage at the silver level. Motion carried unanimously.

Being no further business, Dahlheimer, seconded by Feuling, made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Meeting adjourned at 7:16 p.m..

Respectfully submitted….

______________________________________

Bonnie Fulghum, Deputy Clerk

Approved this ____ day of ________, 2017

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Rodney Eldevik, Chair