Meeting was called to order at 7:32 p.m. by Chair Charles Kuettel.
Attendance: Supervisor Charles Kuettel, Supervisor Donald Swanstrom, Supervisor Douglas Dressen, Treasurer Ray Barnes, Clerk Lita Wallace. Guests: Dick Arndt, Marialiace Arndt, Deb Pomroy, Daryle Waldriff, and Ted Wallace
Clerk’s Report: The minutes of the Board of Supervisors meeting on May 14, 2019, was presented and reviewed. Motion to approve by Swanstrom, with correction on the letter from St. Louis County re-tax forfeited land, second by Dressen, motion carried, 3-0-0.
Treasurer’s Report:
MAY 2019
Total Cash on hand as of 05/01/2019 (Includes Investments) – $161,516.27
Plus: Deposits – $215.81
Less: Disbursements (May) – $2,219.00
Total Cash on hand as of 05/31/2019 – $159,513.08
May Check # 1446 – 1455
JUNE 2019
Claims (June) – $1,012.34
June Check # 1456 – 1462
No Fund Transfers Needed
Swanstrom motion to approve the May 2019 Treasurer’s Report and the June 2019 Claims, second by Dressen, motion carried, 3-0-0.
Old Business
- Update on land acquisition – Kuettel reported that they are waiting for the Assessor to physically examine the property and complete a property description. Stacy is the new contact in St. Louis County.
- Update on township land improvements – 500 trees have been planted and a thank you is extended to everyone that helped its completion. Picnic table to be built and donated by Alex Olson will be completed in August. John Wilson had installed the bench. He is requesting if he can plant a tree behind the bench. Motion to approve for Wilson to plant a tree by Swanstrom, second by Dressen, motion carried, 3-0-0. Dressen reported that he talked with Steve Nelson, Senior Planner at St. Louis County, about having a dozier clean the land that will make it feasible to apply for a grant money to push the driveway further.
- Update on West Branch Road – Work for West Branch Road are as follows:
Section 1: 195 ft ditching by #9350 500 foot (250×2) 12-18 inches shoulder with gradual slope, 56 ft retaining wall with large rock, 250 yards of gravel.
Section 2: by #9322 2 culverts for stabilization, 800 ft (400 x2 sides) 12-18 shoulder with gradual slope, 240 yards gravel.
Kuettel reported that he received two bids, one from KTM and one from Nick Elmquist. Nick Elmquist had the lowest bid for $13,400.00. Swanstrom motion to accept the bid from Nick Ellmquist for $13,400.00 contingent upon meeting with Nick to clarify and determine that what he is planning to do is agreeable to all the town board, second by Kuettel, motion carried, 3-0-0.
The board also discussed a possible speed limit and weight restrictions in West Branch Road. Dressen will check the possibility of posting signs for these restrictions.
New Business
- 2019 MAT Summer Specialized Training registration – Thursday, June 27, DECC – Wallace will register herself and the three supervisors with MAT.
- Weed Inspection – Deb Pomroy will continue as Weed Inspector for the township with a salary of $20 per hour for a maximum of 10 hours and will devise a plan on areas to work on the time allotted. Weed inspection will be concentrated at the end of Rossini Road and the township property. If there is more time, she’ll work further down Rossini Road up to the boundary. Estimated completion will be later in the summer when the flowers propagate.
Correspondence
Received:
- Invoice from St. Louis County for Automark Machine/Firmware Maintenance in the amount of $180.00
- Email from Minnesota Association of Townships: (1) May Newsletter – Summer Specialized Training and Legislative Update; (2) Disaster Declaration Request for 51 counties money available for road damages
- Email from Duluth Association of Townships with Minutes of March 21 meeting
- Email from Alex Olson that his proposal to build a picnic table at the township has been approved by the Boy Scouts of America Eagle Board of Review
- Email from Minnesota Department of Agriculture – information on Garlic Mustard, an invasive species causing concern in the region
- Invite from S. Census Bureau to participate in the 2020 Census New Construction Program
- Letter from Minnesota State Demographic Center re-2018 Population and Household Estimates
Sent: None
Public Comment:
Next Meeting, July 9, 2019, 7:30 p.m., Pequaywan Firehall, 8764 Pequaywan Lake Road
Meeting adjourn at 8:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted by,
Lita Wallace, Town Clerk