Due to the Nov. 5 2024 elections, the regular meeting of the Becker City Council was moved to Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024.
City Ordinance
Public Works and Parks Assistant Director Chris Lisson stood before council and asked that it add wording to City Ordinance 290, chapter 10, section 10.50. The additional language defines what the cities yard waste site is, what can be dumped there and what happens when people drop off unacceptable materials. The yard waste site is at 12456 153rd Street SE.
Every year, a small number of residents who use the site, dump materials that are prohibited such as concrete, furniture, and plywood. These materials have to be removed by the city and can be expensive. Because new cameras were installed at the site two years ago, the city has been able to identify these people. Punishment in the current statute has not been well defined.
Becker police have informed the city that state littering statutes do not work particularly well in these instances and the city wishes that violations not go on an individual’s record. The city prefers to handle incidents in an administrative way supported by city code. The proposed ordinance states that individuals who illegally dump can be issued a $350 fine and lose site access for a one-year period.
The proposed ordinance defines “yard waste” to mean leaves, grass, grass clippings, garden debris, and clippings from bushes and shrubs. The term does not include stumps, roots, or shrubs with intact root balls. “Clean wood” means natural wood which has not been treated, or coated with a similar material, has not been pressure treated with preservatives and does not contain resins or glues as in plywood or other composite wood products. Other unacceptable materials include tree debris greater than 20” in diameter, dimensional lumber, materials from outside of Sherburne Co., and non-organic materials (rocks, concrete, plastics, or trash).
In the past, when illegal dumping has occurred and someone has been identified, Lisson has said that the city has chosen to “deal with them in a way that makes sense.” Often, they have been approached by BPD and asked to simply remove the material. The suggested changes were approved by the city council and added to the city code.
HVAC Replacement
St. Cloud Refrigeration’s low bid was accepted by the council to replace the current HVAC system at the Waste Water storage building that was recently converted for storage. The bid was approved for $180,550, not to exceed $198,550.00.
City Finances
Finance Director Mark Ebensteiner updated council on the city’s finances.
Through September, 75% of the year has elapsed and all funds were meeting or exceeding budget expectations with the exception of the Wastewater Fund, which was down slightly due to a wet June and July. EDA funds were bolstered due to an unexpected receipt of a $250K Rockefeller Philanthropy Grant. Community Center funds were up due to strong membership. The golf fund continues to operate without property tax levy funds. Golf revenues are at 107% of the budget through Sept.
Department Updates
City Administrator Greg Lerud updated council on the construction project to renovate City Hall and the BPD.
“Exterior structural work continues,” he said. “They did set the main beam and all the steel for the new joint entrance, so that allowed the roof decking to get put on.”
Lerud said that phase one was continuing to progress as planned and should be completed in the third week of December.
Other News
A special meeting of council was held on Oct. 31, 2024 to discuss candidates to fill the soon to be vacant Police Chief position. Five candidates were interviewed in the week of Oct. 21, two did not meet the expectations of the department. Council discussed interview questions for the remaining three candidates. Those interviews were scheduled to be held Fri., Nov. 8, 2024.
Approved in the consent agenda was the appointment of Sara Waytashek to the Parks and Recs Commission. Waytashek has lived in Becker for over 20 years and has raised her family here. Her appointment was needed due to Ben Johnson’s recent resignation.
Anniversaries
Mayor Tracy Bertram announced a number of anniversaries for the month of November. Nicole Smude, Economic Development Coordinator has worked for the city of Becker for one year. Jason Sharfencamp, Golf Course Superintendent, and Public Works and Parks Assistant Director Chris Lisson, have both been employed with the city for nine years.
Several Part-time employees celebrated anniversaries at the Community Center. They are Bethany Stevens (11), Amber Gilbertson (seven), Emmy Howard (seven), and Matt Krenz (six). Kyler Klein celebrates five years at the golf course.
