Call to order:
The regular Randolph City Council meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Mayor Marie Jacob.
Roll Call:
Present were Mayor Marie Jacob, Council Members Jacob Friedrich, Todd Carlock and Tony Price, Treasurer Sandy Nicolai and Clerk Mary Haro.
Also, in attendance was Bolton & Menk engineer, Matt Blazer and legal counsel, Greta Bjerkness.
Approval of Agenda:
Motion to approve the agenda with the move of Randolph Trailblazers as the first item under new business, was made by Jacob, seconded by Friedrich. All voting in favor, none opposed, motion passed 5:0.
Public Comments:
None.
Prior Meeting Minutes
A motion to approve the October 11, 2023 regular council meeting minutes was made by Friedrich, seconded by Jacob. All voting in favor, none opposed, motion passed 5:0.
Treasurer's Report and Payment of Bills:
Motion to approve the payment of bills was made by Friedrich and seconded by Haro. All voting in favor, none opposed, motion passed 5:0.
Old Business
Change Orders for Sanitary Sewer Project
We will put this on the agenda for the January meeting.
Fire District Bylaws
Marie sent an email to the individuals on the Hampton City Council appointed to work on this project with the draft documents (Bylaws and JPA) and indicated that there is no cost to them as we have paid the expenses for this but she has not heard back from them on getting together to work on this with the committee that is being formed. The Mayor and Dave Lehring are the two appointed individual in Hampton. We can't move forward without their assistance. She is going to attend their monthly meeting which is next week and just ask them about it.
Surge Protector in Well House
Marie talked to Bryce about this. The VFD is susceptible to power surges. An electrician replaced it with something that is a better system so we don’t need a surge protector. She was told that what is in their now is the right fit and right thing –it just needs to be adjusted. Bryce and the electrician's recommendation is that we purchase a second one to have on hand in case we run into this again. This is a lot less cost and the electrician was going to get some prices to Bryce.
New Business
Randolph Trailblazers
Dan Lee on behalf of the Randolph Trailblazer indicated that their trail goes through the land that we are purchasing from the Endres'. They asked if they can receive permission to have the trail go through the property. We just have to be sure that any materials that
are being moved and stored there will be out of the way of the trail. They were given the go ahead.
Wetland Delineation Plan
As part of the county project they are installing a storm water pond on Dixie and need to do a delineation for working in a wetland area that we are following all rules.
Haro made a motion that we approve the wetland delineation and wetland replacement plan, seconded by Friedrich. All voting in favor, none opposed, motion passed 5:0.
Bolton & Menk Sewer Update
The road has been paved with a very thin layer. They will be coming out the next week to pave the sidewalks with temporary asphalt They will be removing the “Road Closed” signs as soon as possible. They still plan to work on Dixie before winter. All the materials on Dickman will be moved to the property where the holding ponds will be once the land acquisition and permits are completed. They attended a hearing at the Randolph Township planning commission for the CPU permit. They tabled it as they had some questions to be answered but they will be having a special meeting before their regular board meeting and if they approve it, it will go in front of the township board for their approval. Once the permit is approved the materials can be moved and they can start moving dirt. The materials need to be placed as far away from the snowmobile trail. It was asked that they do an update to the citizens. We should be hearing from the state next week regarding the permit.
Council Member Reports
It was noted that there are chickens roaming around. Clerk Haro sent a letter to the homeowner with a copy of our current ordinances. Chickens are not allowed to roam.
There is a tree on the property owned by Progressive Rail. Marie had talked to them and they indicated that they would look at it. Carlock indicated someone was interested in taking it down but it was noted that they should get permission from Progressive Rail before doing any work.
We discussed the back wall of the fire department and Friedrich had a discussion with Frandrup Masonry to fix the back wall on the fire department. They indicated that they had zero concern with the blocks defacing. He indicated that we should pressure wash all the paint off of the blocks and cover it up with tin siding so that the blocks can breathe. As far as the leaking you can’t know what’s truly leaking until you take off the top and then there are options of what can be done. They found 3 down spouts back there. All the water coming off the roof is coming down the wall. They recommended removing the dirt behind the block to see the rest of the shape of the block and waterproof and drain tile and fill it back in. You can fill the holes or go higher and check the blocks but you won’t know what it is until you get into it. The suggestion is to dig everything out, membrane it, fill in the holes that are there and then put in drain tile and fill it back it, pressure wash the blocks, tin it and get the down spouts so the water flows away. If it leaks after that then the next step would be to start at the top. But the suggestion steps need to be done first. We need to decide what to do and they asked to see an “As Built” which could not be found. He will put a quote together for us and then we can decide.
The next meeting we need to do our final budget do you want to start earlier. Clerk Haro will update the budget and send it around. It was recommended that we get Ehlers involved in the budget next year.
It was asked if we got estimates for the pavillion and roofs on the garage. We will submit a claim with the insurance company.
Marie attended the Township Officers meeting . They are held quarterly and the next one is scheduled for March, 2024. She learned that the Dakota 911 funding is on hold. They are going to come up with a new plan. They received a lot of feedback and every small city and township had signed on with the exception of one. They do still plan to hire new deputies.
Dave from ProRail discussed with Marie that they have an opportunity from MNDOT for a matching grant for railroad improvements. He asked if the city would be willing to write a letter that we approve of improvements on the railroad. It was asked if we could see the letter prior to her sending it to the railroad.
Mayor Jacob moved to close the meeting at 8:00 pm to attend a closed meeting to consider an attorney-client privileged legal matter.
Closed Meeting
Mayor Jacob at 8:01 p.m. called to order a closed meeting pursuant to Minn. Stat. 13D.05 subd. 3(b) for attorney-client privileged communication to discuss the proposed settlement of the Endres property for the sanitary sewer project.
Mayor Jacob moved to reopen the meeting at 8:35 p.m.
Motion to accept Resolution No. 23-15 Approving the Settlement and Stipulation with Endres Revocable Trusts in the amount of $1,555,000 made by Mayor Jacob, seconded by Carlock. Voting in favor, Mayor Jacob, Councilmembers Carlock, Price, Friedrich and Clerk Haro, none opposed. Motion passed 5:0.
Adjournment
Motion to adjourn the meeting made by Haro seconded by Jacob, the meeting was adjourned at 8:38 p.m. All voting in favor, none opposed, motion passed 5:0.