Hampton City Council Regular Meeting Minutes for July 13, 2021

The Hampton City Council met on Tuesday, July 13, 2021 at the Hampton City Hall for the regular scheduled meeting. Present were Mayor John Knetter; Council Members David Luhring and Anthony Verch. Also present was Marlin Reinardy, Water/Sewer Superintendent; and Brad Fisher with Bolton and Menk.

Regular Meeting called to Order - Mayor Knetter called the Regular Scheduled Meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Disclosure of Interest – None.

Approval of June 8, 2021 Regular Scheduled Meeting Minutes – Motion by Verch seconded by Luhring to approve the June 8, 2021 regular scheduled meeting minutes. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 3:0.

Approval of Disbursements – Motion by Luhring seconded by Verch to approve the July disbursements. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 3:0.

Public Comment – None.

Petitions, Requests, and Communications:

Schedule August meeting time to review budget – Knetter noted that the August City Council meeting is scheduled for August 17th and recommended that the budget be reviewed at 6:30, prior to the regularly scheduled meeting.

2019 Internal Audit – Anthony Verch – Knetter asked Verch if he had anything to report. Verch responded that everything was correct and true and that it went very well.

2020 Internal Audit – David Luhring – Luhring stated that he had a similar report, that a complete audit was done and there were no deficiencies. Knetter thanked both Verch and Luhring for their participation in the Internal Audits.

Ordinances and Resolutions – Resolution 2021-06 – Accept Work of Muska Electric on Main Street Lift Station Generator Project – Brad Fisher with Bolton and Menk mentioned that he reported last month that the work on the generator project was essentially complete, but that there were a few miscellaneous items that needed to be completed before the final paperwork and invoice submission from the contractor could be done. All paperwork has been completed, a certificate of final acceptance was issued to the contractor, and an invoice was submitted for payment in this month’s disbursements. Fisher asked that the resolution to accept the work done by Muska Electric on the project be approved. Knetter reported that he was present for the training and testing of the generator, that it works fine, and that he is satisfied with it. Motion by Luhring seconded by Verch to approve Resolution 2021-06. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 3:0.

Marlin Reinardy, Water and Sewer Superintendent, suggested that the City should have a maintenance contract on the generator. Knetter stated that that was discussed on site during the training and testing, and he agrees that it is a good idea to contract with those who are experts on the maintenance of the generator. It was suggested that the company that supplied the generator, Interstate PowerSystems, Inc., be considered as a potential provider of the maintenance service contract. Discussion. Motion by Verch seconded by Knetter to pursue an annual maintenance contract for the generator. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 3:0.

Reports of Officers, Boards, and Committees:

Engineer Report – Brad Fisher with Bolton and Menk stated that the resolution to accept the work on the generator project was all he had, and asked Councilors if they had any general engineering questions. Knetter thanked Fisher for his work on the generator project.

Water / Sewer Report - Marlin Reinardy, Water/Sewer Superintendent, began by stating that he contacted Peine Plumbing about the solenoid valve. Due to the fact that the valve is soldered in, the replacement will be difficult, but doable. Cost will be a little higher than anticipated. Reinardy also had asked Peine about inspecting the backflow preventers annually. A company needs to be certified in order to do the work, so Reinardy will need to find a company that is able to perform the inspections, as Peine is not.

For sewer-related items, Reinardy referred to documents that he prepared that were included in Councilor packets regarding the sludge reduction in pond #1. He feels that, because of the successful sludge reduction that was indicated by recent testing and because of recent discussions with Steve at State Industrial Supply, that the City can reduce the quantity of chemicals used for this process by 2/3 as now the chemicals will be needed for maintenance of the ponds rather than sludge reduction. Discussion ensued about the importance of keeping up with the preventative maintenance of the ponds.

Knetter acknowledged that a Dakota County Deputy had come in to the meeting during Reinardy’s report and asked if he had anything to report. He said he wanted to stop by to provide reminders regarding the importance of locking up vehicles to prevent theft. There had been a recent increase in vehicle break-in reports to law enforcement. Knetter informed the Deputy that the City had recently installed some No Parking signs near the ball park.

Park Report – Verch reported that he is still waiting for quotes for the tree removal by the ball field. Otherwise, not much to report, mainly due to weather conditions. Discussion ensued about options for tree replacements.

Street Report – Luhring stated that there is nothing to report. 

Old Business – None.

New Business –

City Councilor appointment – Knetter stated that he hasn’t spoken to Nick Russell recently, but when he had spoken to him within the last month, Russell said he was still interested in being on the City Council. Knetter asked Councilors their opinion about offering Russell the open Council seat, mentioning also that Russell was the next highest vote getter in the last election. Council opinion is to make the offer to Russell and, if he declines, make an offer to Jerry Huddleston. Motion by Luhring seconded by Verch to offer the Council seat to Russell, and if he declines, ask the next highest vote getter from the last election. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 3:0.

Adjournment – Motion by Verch seconded by Luhring to adjourn the meeting. Motion passed 3:0. The meeting adjourned at 7:22 pm. All voted in favor. None opposed.

Respectfully submitted, Judy O’Brien

Hampton City Council Regular Meeting Minutes for June 8, 2021

The Hampton City Council met on Tuesday, June 8, 2021 at the Hampton City Hall for the regular scheduled meeting. Present were Mayor John Knetter; Council Members Cindy Flodeen, David Luhring, and Anthony Verch. Also present was Marlin Reinardy, Water/Sewer Superintendent; Brad Fisher with Bolton and Menk; and Jesse Gesme of 23215 Hampton Blvd.

Regular Meeting called to Order - Mayor Knetter called the Regular Scheduled Meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Disclosure of Interest – None.

Approval of May 11, 2021 Regular Scheduled Meeting Minutes – Motion by Luhring seconded by Flodeen to approve the May 11, 2021 regular scheduled meeting minutes. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.

Approval of Disbursements – Motion by Flodeen seconded by Luhring to approve the June disbursements. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.

Public Comment – None.

Petitions, Requests, and Communications:

A request was made by Councilor Luhring to add to New Business that there be further discussion of the new No Parking signs that will be installed, and the means by which enforcement will be handled. Motion by Verch seconded by Flodeen to add parking sign discussion to the agenda under New Business. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.

Ordinances and Resolutions – Resolution 2021-05 – Participate in Dakota County All-Hazard Mitigation Planning Process – Knetter explained that the benefit to the City is that it provides joint powers in the event of a disaster, and also provides an incentive for the City to update its disaster recovery plan. Motion by Verch seconded by Luhring to approve Resolution 2021-05 to participate in the Dakota County All-Hazard Mitigation Planning Process. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.

Reports of Officers, Boards, and Committees:

Engineer Report – Brad Fisher with Bolton and Menk updated the Council on the Main St. back-up generator project. The generator is installed and fully commissioned. There was a meeting on site with City staff this past Friday to go over maintenance and operation of the facility. Also present at the meeting were the supplier and project manager. User Manuals for the generator were received and distributed to City staff. The project is essentially complete, but still have some punch list items to take care of, such as restoration of the site and miscellaneous paperwork that needs to be done to close out the contract. If all items are completed before the next Council meeting, a final invoice would be submitted for payment and paperwork would be signed to close out the project.

The second item to update is the water tower replacement project and potential funding options. At last month’s meeting Council asked Fisher to contact the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) to get clarification regarding whether or not SHPO would have any involvement with regard to the water tower replacement. Fisher did contact SHPO and was told that, if the project is 100% locally funded, then there is no need for SHPO involvement and no need for an Environmental Review related to the project. However, if federal funds and/or state grants are used for the project, then SHPO would have input on the project. Fisher continued that, if we want to keep our funding options open, taking the next step and reaching out to SHPO to find out what their requirements would be, would not mean that the City would be required to go beyond that to the next step, which would be the Environmental Review. Fisher was asked what the cost would be to take the next step in reaching out to SHPO. He stated that it would just be the cost of Bolton & Menk Cultural Resources Group staff time to prepare a report submission to SHPO. Fisher mentioned that he had discussed with his Cultural Resources Group the time that would be involved in the preparation of the report, and they thought it could be done in less than one day’s time. However, he mentioned that there is a very long lead time on this, as from the time of report submission to when Bolton & Menk would hear back from SHPO would be approximately two months. Luhring stated that he feels the City needs to keep its options open because he doesn’t feel it would be possible to fund the project locally.

Verch asked about the process of doing the environmental review, and wondered if the City could acquire some state or federal funding for that. Fisher responded by saying that the review would involve fish and wildlife agencies and that, for these types of agencies, the process would go much more quickly, at possibly a 3 to 6-month timeframe, whereas with SHPO, the process may take up to 18 months. So, it is much more important, at this point, to initiate the process by reaching out to SHPO because they likely will have the most regulations that will need to be dealt with. In reference to the historical significance of the existing tower, Fisher explained the process used by SHPO to look at how many similar towers are in existence within a certain radius of the City’s. Discussion ensued regarding timeframes, the interpretation of the historic designation of the water tower, and options available to deal with SHPO regulations. Council unanimously directed Fisher to proceed with reaching out to SHPO.

Water / Sewer Report

Marlin Reinardy, Water/Sewer Superintendent, began by stating that he is still working on the replacement of the solenoid valve on the #2 well. He feels that the body of the valve is in good shape, and that it is the solenoid itself that is the problem. He plans to take the unit to a supplier to see if it needs to be replaced. If a plumber is needed for the repair, Reinardy has someone in mind that he thinks he can work with on this.

For sewer-related items, Reinardy mentioned that they are currently transferring waters between ponds. He contacted the Minnesota Rural Water Association (MRWA), about measuring the sludge because it’s been a year since the sludge reduction process began with the use of chemicals purchased from State Chemical Solutions. He hasn’t heard back from them yet, so will follow up so that the measurement can be done yet in June so that it can be determined whether or not the reduction process is working. Reinardy plans to report on this at the July Council meeting.

Park Report – Verch mentioned that it was reported to him that there are 3 or 4 dead trees by the home dugout at the ballfield. He did check on them and said there are leaves missing on the tops of the trees. He contacted a couple of contractors to get estimates of what it would cost to remove and replace the trees. Verch further reported that there are some weeds on the softball field by the Black Stallion but, because of the heat, chemicals won’t work right now, so they will be mowed and sprayed when weather conditions improve. Verch also checked on the status of the chips in the parks. He feels that there is an adequate amount of chips, but that they just need to be raked and spread around. Verch also reported that he had spoken to Ottomatic Lawn Service about the bushes at the entrance to the Heights. He said they are somewhat overgrown and probably need to be pruned back for visibility. Luhring responded that there is plenty of money in the streets budget for that to be done.

Street Report – Luhring stated that there is nothing to report. Reinardy asked for confirmation that Council wants the Resident Parking Only signs purchased that were discussed at last month’s meeting. He felt it was unclear that those should be ordered for the streets, along with the other signs that were purchased for the parks and ballfield. In discussion Council felt that the purchase of the Resident Parking Only signs had been approved at last month’s meeting and directed Reinardy to purchase the signs. Knetter asked for a motion to purchase the Resident Parking Only Signs. Motion by Luhring seconded by Verch to approve the purchase of 4 Resident Parking Only signs, to be placed on the opposite side of the street of the Parking for Park Events Only signs. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.

Old Business – None.

New Business –
Gambling/Temporary On-Sale Liquor License for St. Mathias Fun Fest - . Motion by Luhring seconded by Verch to approve the gambling/temporary on-sale liquor license for St. Mathias Fun Fest. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.

Conditional Use Permit--Jesse Gesme, 23215 Hampton Blvd.—Recommendation from 05/27/21 Planning Commission Meeting – Motion by Luhring seconded by Verch to approve the Conditional Use Permit for Jesse Gesme, 23215 Hampton Blvd. All voted in favor. None opposed. Motion passed 4:0.

Filling 5th City Council Seat – Knetter asked Council members what their preference would be as far as filling the open City Council seat. He asked if Councilors would prefer that the City advertise for this or that someone would be appointed. His suggestion is to put this on the agenda for next month’s City Council meeting, and that the top two vote-getters from the last election be considered for the Council seat. Discussion. Knetter also stated that, technically, he could appoint the Councilor, but his preference is that this be a Council decision. Knetter will reach out to the two candidates to ask about their interest in the position.

Parking Enforcement – Luhring stated his reasons for wanting this topic to be added to the agenda. He feels that there needs to be further discussion among Councilors regarding future enforcement of parking violations. There has been much discussion on this issue in the past, and the City attorney has had input on this regarding changes to the ordinance and what the City needs to do to enforce parking violations. Discussion. Luhring mentioned that, historically, the City has had notices available to be put on windshields of vehicles that are in violation of parking ordinances, and his preference is to continue doing that. Council asked the City Clerk to create the notices, that will include wording that vehicle owners must contact City Hall within 30 days of receiving the notice to report that the vehicle has been moved.

Adjournment – Motion by Luhring seconded by Verch to adjourn the meeting. Motion passed 4:0. The meeting adjourned at 7:38 pm. All voted in favor. None opposed.

Respectfully submitted, Judy O’Brien