Becker Township hosted their monthly meeting June 16. 

Open Forum

During the open forum, a gentleman approached the board with the hopes of building a garage on his 3.2 acres. The problem that arose is the size of the garage. The garage exceeds the amount of square feet allowed on the property and the only way to build it is to remove his permanent gazebo or make the gazebo a nonpermanent fixture. That way the garage contains the correct amount of footage allowed on the property. 

The board announced that it would be hard to change the ordinance for this rule considering the county has already reduced the percent allowed to build on acreage. Being consistent throughout the community is also important and that size does not work for everyone. 

Becker Legion

Next up was the introduction of the new Becker Legion Commander, Tom Lee. He went on to discuss an old pipe that hangs in the building with no purpose. The pipe is burdensome with its size, weight, and location. The pipe is disconnected so it is of no use to the Legion. 

The board agreed to remove the pipe for safety and convenience reasons. 

Planning Commission

The Planning Commission and Joint Planning Board discussed the Swan Haven Estates. They favored the recommended approval of the preliminary plat for the Estates at the meeting last week. From there, it will go to the Joint Planning Board for more discussion. 

The planning commission also is revising their ordinance to look at Interim Use Permits. There was talk about one potential wedding venue that might fit as something separate from occasional special events. More to come on this topic. 

Engineer’s Report

Excel Energy is putting in a gas line in a culvert that is getting replaced in Boulder Crossing. They are getting a Hydravac truck out this week to locate exactly where the line is and see if it needs to move or not. 

The estimate for the Co. Rd. 93 turnback was also substantially higher than anticipated with the dollar amount going up about $300,000. The amount is due to the thin construction that was done in the ‘90s. 

There was more discussion on the Swan Haven Estates. The final motion was to authorize staff to begin the necessary steps for the developers agreement and road review for Swan Haven Estates which passed. More to come from this topic later on. 

Supervisors’ Report

This report stated that they are winding down the Joint Powers towards the nonprofit. The budget was approved for CMRP, and those dues are $500. 

Road Report 

The Road Report included the general maintenance for contracts coming up expiring at the end of the year. There was talk of 67th Street with proof that the road has been maintained. 

Finally, a motion to accept the treasurer’s report was passed.