It might still be winter in Minnesota, but the Becker Twp. Board met Monday evening and took several actions to prepare for roadway maintenance once the ground thaws.

Two. Engineer Wes Davis presented several items for board consideration, including the LRIP Grant proposal for 97th St.  Clear Lake Twp. and the City of Becker are cooperating partners on the project, which will seek state funding to reconstruct the road to a 10-ton design with wider lanes and an overall safer profile.

Davis explained that if the project were funded, construction would most likely be for the 2023 construction season because of the number of agencies involved.  The board unanimously approved the grant proposal and thanked both of the adjacent governmental entities for their support of the concept.

Davis also received approval of the Joint Powers Agreement with Sherburne County which allows for utilizing their bidding structure to gain more favorable pricing on certain road projects.  

Road Supervisors Joe Danielson and Robin Boros have been working with Davis to develop plans and specifications for projects on 164th Ave. and 142nd St. The board approved Davis to advertise for bids on the two roads, as well as several chip seal projects.  These will be advertised for two weeks and bid opening could take place at the April board meeting.

In other road related news, Danielson reported that some brush cutting has been accomplished and other areas will be addressed in the coming months.  He and Boros conducted meetings with the business owners and residents who will be affected by the work on 164th Ave. and received their support for the project.

Planning

Planner Ben Wikstrom reported that Sherburne County is working on securing a CUP from the township for the stockpiling of material related to work they plan to do on the trail system in Bridgeview Park.  The work is in the county park itself, while some town right of way will need to be used for temporary storage of materials. 

Sheriff’s Report

Sgt. Dan Frank of the SCSO reported to the board on the 139 calls for service within the last period, including 50 traffic stops.  He said reports of mail tampering have slowed down within the township, although they are still occurring in neighboring communities.  He pledged to keep the board updated on the situation.

Fire Dept.

Supervisor Luke Babler shared that the turnout gear purchased with the CARES Act dollars had finally arrived and all that is left to be delivered is the coveralls used for medicals.  These remain on backorder but are expected to be delivered soon.  The new truck has also arrived in Minnesota and is at the dealership in Apple Valley undergoing final preparations.  Babler also reported that the Eddy Foundation had donated $4,000 to the department to be used for whatever needs are identified.

Recycle Day

Recycle Day, the event formerly known as Clean Up Day, will again be held in conjunction with the city.  This year’s date will be May 1, but the location will change to be held at Northern Metals Recycling.  According to the plans received from the city, no trash will be accepted this year.  

The board held a lengthy discussion as to the goals of the day, as they would like to have the ability to collect trash at the event even if it meant charging participating residents a higher fee for the service.  If trash is not collected, it is many times found in the ditches of township roads through the spring and the costs of clean up for these items trickles down to the township anyway.  Because an event like this takes a good deal of time to plan and organize, the board decided to keep it as a combined event this year but will look at holding its own event in the future if trash collection is not part of the city’s plan.

Franchise Agreements

The board and legal counsel continue to work through franchise agreements with a pair of broadband providers in Midco and Tekstar (Arvig). Discussion was held on how to address right of way work and restoration that is not done up to acceptable standards.  One way to address the issue is through a letter of credit from the companies, while a plan B is to have the township contract necessary work and charge it back to the companies.  After a discussion about the pros and cons to each option, the board directed legal counsel to pursue option B because of the timeliness of the work, as well as the control it would give the township to ensure any restoration is done properly.

Up next for the town board will be this year’s election and Annual Meeting to be held March 9 at the Becker Legion (old fire hall), followed by the board’s regular March meeting at 7 p.m. March 15 at the Town Hall.