DRAFT – These minutes are not official until approved at the next regular City Council meeting.

City of Bigfork

Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting April 3, 2007

Members Present: Gus David, Lonnie Kacon and Richard Salmi

Members Absent: Amy Tendrup and Ann McGarry

Also Present: Eugene Rajala, John VanNyhuis and Dave Baldwin

Chairman Gus David called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m.

As Storlie had not been present, there were no minutes of the March 6th meeting.

Dave Baldwin was present representing the Edge of the Wilderness Art Center and requesting permits for four different signs. These signs were not for advertising but for pointing direction to the Center from the various entrances of the City. The first of the signs is proposed to be located at the intersection of Scenic Highway 7 and Golf Course Road, the second at the intersection of State Highway 38 and Golf Course Road, the third at the intersection of State Highway 38 and County Road 14, and the fourth at the intersection of Golf Course Road and Second Avenue. There were some questions from the Planning & Zoning Commission on the legality of attaching new signs to already existing posts. Baldwin stated that he had tried to use pre-existing posts in order to keep clutter at intersections to a minimum and maintain visibility, however if there were any issues with placing new signs under existing ones, he would be happy to alter the location. Tendrup suggested that Baldwin work with Public Works Superintendent Chuck Almhjeld on the exact placement of the signs and made a motion to approve the four sign permits. The motion was seconded by Kacon and carried unanimously.

Bigfork Township - Beach Operation: VanNyhuis was in attendance representing the Bigfork Township Board. He stated that the township has paid for training for five or six students who can work as lifeguards. Rajala asked if the City Council should be asked to advertise for the lifeguard position. Tendrup stated that this had not been budgeted for. Rajala didn't care if had been budgeted for or not and stated that the City should have the beach open and staffed. Salmi questioned if donations could be solicited to cover costs. VanNyhuis felt that Bigfork Township would be willing to contribute to the cost of the lifeguard's wages in addition to the training that they have already provided. Tendrup reminded everyone that if a lifeguard who is under age 18 is hired, there also must be an adult present when they are working. It was suggested that perhaps volunteers could be lined up rather than having to hire someone to sit there. It was determined that Storlie should solicit donations from People in Business Care, Bigfork Lion's Club, the townships and cities of the Northern Itasca Joint Powers Board, North Itasca Electric's Operation Round-Up, School District #318, and Bigfork Valley Hospital. It was suggested that donation cans could be placed in area businesses. Tendrup recommended that Jean Lexvold, as Parks and Recreation Commission, be asked to take care of this project. Tendrup thanked Bigfork Township for taking the initiative to get lifeguards trained and for supporting the City in getting the beach open for our area kids.

WilderNest Sign Permit: An application was received for a sign permit for the permanent sign for the WilderNest Housing Development. The application was approved in a motion by Kacon, seconded by Tendrup, MCU.

Title V Changes: Almhjeld has reported that a change needs to be made to the water ordinance requiring those properties needing larger than normal meters to cover the cost of the meter. Currently, the ordinance states that the cost of a meter for a new connection is included in the $500 connection fee, however meters for commercial properties can cost over $1,000. It was determined that the ordinance should state that residential meters are included in the connection fee and the cost for larger meters will be added to the connection fee amount.

Storlie noted that clarification was needed on the section of the ordinance relating to licenses and repairs. The ordinance currently provides for a licensing process whereby any person wishing to work on City water and/or sewer lines must be licensed by the City. This process includes obtaining proof of training and experience as well as insurance coverage. The question that has come up is whether or not individual users should be allowed to work on their own lines without being licensed by the City. It was the consensus of the Planning & Zoning Commission that as long as the work needed was solely in that portion of the line that belonged to the user, it was not necessary for the person doing the work to be licensed. A motion was made by Salmi and seconded by Kacon to have Storlie draft the proposed changes for approval by the City Council, MCU.

Chairman David asked for any other business and Salmi stated he would like to discuss annexation. He then asked Tendrup what she wanted to see done with annexation. Tendrup responded that the Planning & Zoning Commission had discussed annexation in the context of a long-term plan. She stated that the Commission realized that at some point the City would have to annex property if they wanted to grow. Rajala stated that there is already much property within City limits that is undeveloped and he didn't feel that we needed any more at this time. Tendrup reiterated that the discussions on annexation were for long-term planning and the only property being looked at right now was Logger's Inn. Salmi felt that it was a mistake to annex Logger's out in the first place and Tendrup agreed. Salmi stated that instead of hiring an attorney to complete an annexation, Logger's should simply be charged a higher water and sewer rate to help cover the cost of providing them those services. He felt that for the small amount of money the City would get in property taxes by annexing the property in, combined with the cost of attorney fees to get it done, the City would not come out ahead. David asked if Salmi wanted to recommend to the City Council to raise the water and sewer rate for Logger's. Salmi wanted to discuss the issue with the property owners first and Tendrup suggested inviting them, and any other property owner with water and/or sewer service who did not live in the City limits, to the next Planning & Zoning Commission meeting to discuss the possibility of raising their rate.

Salmi wanted all talk of annexation to stop until the City's wells and the airport mound system were under control. David and Tendrup both felt that the City still needed to keep annexation in mind and continue thinking long-term. Salmi felt that the City should be using any available grant money for projects in town, such as the wells, as they are more important than the airport mound system. He felt that any system installed at the airport should be a pond so that it is large enough to handle additional connections in the future. Tendrup stated that we are in this position with the mound due to the decisions of past Council's and there is nothing left to do now but deal with it as best we can. Salmi again stated that the City needs to take care of things in city limits and should never have gotten involved in that project. Tendrup countered that a study done on the contributions of the Bergquist Company to the area showed that it brought much revenue and business to the City of Bigfork and just because it was not located within city limits, it was a great benefit to the City. Salmi stated that there was no oversight on the mound project and there should have been a council member there to oversee everything. Tendrup disagreed and stated that the City hired a Public Works Superintendent and contracted a City Engineer to take care of these things for them. Salmi stated that the person overseeing the project should not be getting paid. Tendrup reminded him that the Council's job was to hold the Public Works Department and Engineer responsible for their work, not to micro-manage it. Salmi stated that he had taken a lot of heat over the poor patching job that was done on the airport runway. Rajala expressed concern that the City had paid $10,000 more than the bid amount because the contractor had used more tar than expected. He stated that anytime he bid for a job, if he bid too low, that was his problem and he felt the City should not have had to pay the overage. He added that the project should not have been done so late in the year

Rajala suggested that the City find out what brand of soaps are low in phosphorus and send a letter to water and sewer users requesting that they use these brands as they are friendlier to our municipal system. Storlie will look into this.

Tendrup stated that Almhjeld did not feel that it was feasible to turn off one-half of the street lights as the budget committee had recommended. Rajala asked about using low-watt bulbs to try to save money. Storlie will look into this.

Salmi suggested that we ask Itasca County for a larger airport contribution. They have given $6,000 toward the airport in past years and Salmi suggested increasing our request to $10,000.

Storlie reported that a party had requested use of the City's event tent for a wedding at the Golf Course. The City's policy states that use of the tent for private parties will not be allowed. Motion by Tendrup, seconded by Salmi to deny the request, MCU.

The Planning Commission meeting was adjourned at 7:23 p.m.

Angie Storlie

City Clerk/Treasurer