During last week Wednesday’s council meeting, Mayor Tracy Bertram made a proclamation that the week of Nov. 8-12 would be Kindness Appreciation Week in Becker. This proclamation goes in hand with programming at the Becker Schools. 

Supplemental Letter of Agreement

Council approved signing a supplemental letter of agreement with Short Elliot Hendrickson Inc. (SEH) for engineering work on the collaborative project between Becker City, Becker Twp., and Clear Lake Twp. on 97th St. Council Member Mike Doering asked why the city was having its own engineer take care of the city’s portion of the project rather than have one engineer tackle the entire project. A representative from SEH said that the townships each had an engineer with whom they liked to contract, but the three firms would be working closely together to ensure there were no oversights resulting from any communication errors between the firms. 

Pebble Creek Change Orders

City Administrator Greg Pruszinski presented change orders six and seven of the Pebble Creek Clubhouse project. Change order six involves replacing more roofing than was originally planned, as staff was unable to find matching shingles for just a small area. Change order seven involved changing the plan for the parking lot so the snow plows won’t tear it up over the winter, with additional work occurring in the spring to bring it back to the original specifications of the plan. 

Committee Reports

Budget and Finance:

The Becker Community Center is continuing to recover from COVID-19 losses.

Planning Commission:

The planning commission held a public hearing for edits to the chapter 11 ordinance. They also spoke about the fence ordinances and set a public hearing for other ordinance changes at their next regular meeting. One of the members of the planning commission is coming to the end of his term, so the commission will be accepting applications for the position.

Golf Committee:

Pebble Creek has continued to increase sales over the years. Construction to add the golf simulators is still underway. Concert at the Creek next summer will take place during Labor Day weekend. The golf committee hopes that this will get more people to attend, as attendance has declined in the past few years. The Fabulous Armadillos featuring Chris Hawkey will be playing and food trucks will be available. The date may change as the golf committee determines interest in the event. 

In Other Business,the Council:

• Heard the third quarter financial report from Mark Ebensteiner, head of the finance department;

• Approved updates to chapter 11 of city code, regarding adult entertainment establishments;

• Merged some properties within the industrial park;

• Made a change order to include a gate in the municipal well project; 

• Purchased a new bucket truck for public works; 

• Entered an agreement with Xcel Energy to allow Xcel to complete an environmental survey on city-owned property;

• Called for a public hearing for citizens who have outstanding utility bills with the city Nov. 16, which allows citizens to make their case to the council before the charges are added to their property taxes.