October 27, 2009  Regular Meeting

The Crow Wing Township Board of Supervisors held its Regular Meeting on Tuesday, October 27, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. at the Crow Wing Town Hall.  Present were Chairman Greg Smith, Supervisors Mark Platta and Dave Schultz, Clerk Virginia Rogers and those on the attached roster.

Greg called the meeting to order.

There were 23 pair of gopher feet presented for bounty by Richard Kassube and 17 pair by Michael Beierman.

BIG WOOD TIMBER

Brad Arnold gave an update on Big Wood Timber and the recently revoked conditional use permit. The owners were present to discuss the issue and work toward a resolution of the situation. Discussion followed including the condition on outside storage and the fact that it is not feasible to move all materials inside. Short of a site visit, it appears that all conditions other than that of outside storage have been met. Mark and Melanee Strobel spoke about smoke in their home coming from the business and asked about classifying the business as a salvage yard. Dave LePage responded with information about the large wood burner that they recently installed and the additional smoke that it generates as a new unit. Mark Platta asked the owners why the conditions of the CUP were not met in a more timely fashion. Mike Nichlaus asked why a land use permit was issued if they were in violation of the CUP. Megan stated that they were not in violation because the township kept extending their one year completion deadline to keep them out of violation. Brad asked how many piles of lumber could be eliminated or relocated. Dave LePage stated that some of the lumber is too big to store indoors. He also stated that if the smoke is the biggest concern that the neighbors have, he will get another extension as soon as possible and work on keeping the furnace going around the clock, so that the initial smoke that is generated when it starts up will be eliminated. Mike Nichlaus expressed concern that if they must apply for a new CUP they could face conditions and restrictions that they could not meet. Greg asked the neighbors if they would be satisfied with a fence to screen the yard from the neighbors and controlling the smoke. Mark Strobel indicated that a height limit on the piles would be desirable. It was decided that Big Wood Timber can apply for a new CUP, the conditions that may be put on the permit will be discussed on November 10^th.

JACKSON STREET

The petition to vacate Jackson Street was considered. Zack Jackson presented a warranty deed which turned his interest in the property back over to Jim and he also recommended that the road be vacated. Zack was asked if he felt there would be any damages if the road were vacated. He indicated that he did not. Dave made a motion to set the damage award at 0 dollars. The motion was seconded by Greg and carried by unanimous vote. Greg made a motion to pass Resolution 2009-11 which is attached to these minutes. The motion was seconded by Mark and carried by unanimous vote.

WHITE OAKS GLEN

Steve Hagen and Al Kraft were present to represent the plat of White Oaks Glen. They stated that they felt that the legal costs of the project should not have been included in the total project cost, of which they had agreed to pay 40%. Discussion followed. Dave made a motion to issue a refund of the overage based on the total of the project as recorded, including attorney fees. The motion died for lack of  a second. Steve stated that this is a matter of principle, it’s not about the money. Greg noted that athough it could have been stated more clearly, the legal expenses are part of the costs. Brad Arnold stated that the agreement was for the project cost, which includes all fees for completion of the project. Dave made a motion to issue a refund based on the total project cost of $5779 with the property owners paying $2311.60, which is 40% of the total project. The motion was seconded by Greg. Mark noted that we should include the finding that the board will inform residents in the future that when calculating a final cost of a project those costs will include all associated fees including legal, administrative, mileage and every other cost specifically associated with the project. The motion carried by unanimous vote.

John Ward was present and was asked for his comments. He shared information about upcoming events and answered questions from the audience. He was thanked for attending the meeting.

Dave brought up the topic of fire service. He shared information about the possibility of having our service provided by Little Falls.

A request to purchase another table for the town hall was considered. Greg made a motion to purchase a plastic topped table this time, as the welds have not held well on the existing tables. The motion was seconded by Mark and carried by unanimous vote.

Randy agreed to serve as actuary backup. He will be paid a per diem to go along with Ken for training.

The NaTaT conference expenses were considered. Mark made a motion to pay the expenses of 707.90 over the $1000 paid by the County Association. The motion carried by unanimous vote.

Dave shared information from the meeting on retro-reflectivity.

The minutes of the October 6, 2009 meeting were reviewed. Dave made a motion to accept the minutes as read. The motion was seconded by Mark and carried by unanimous vote.

Correspondence was reviewed and payroll was reviewed and approved.

The meeting adjourned by general consent at 9:30 p.m.