Larry Farr, a Clear Lake resident of five years, asked council to allow he and his entourage to use Goenner Park and its amenities for an upcoming birthday party scheduled for Sept. 20. Farr informed the city he plans on having live bands at the event that’ll run from noon until midnight and is open to the public.

“Maybe we’ll do it again next year and just continue it as a community event,” said Farr.

 

Farr said he doesn’t need to apply for any permits or licenses since the event will not be serving alcoholic beverages.

 

“We are asking people to bring their own in coolers and such and not bring the beverages in glass bottles,” he said. “Our group will also be responsible for cleaning up after the event to be sure the park is back to its original state.”

 

Farr also plans to have port-a-potties available if the proposed attendance is guessed to achieve 100 or more attendees.

 

“It’s for my friend’s birthday but it’s also a free community event and there will be food served and great music,” Farr said.

 

Council approved the request and told Farr to get the proper paperwork into the city clerk along with a damage deposit of $200.

 

Farr went on to ask council why the city doesn’t open a municipal liquor store to help offset the huge water bills the local citizens are paying the last few years.

 

Dale Powers said he had heard that any city that does not have a liquor store up until just a few years ago cannot start one up due to a new statute. Kari Mechtel concurred with Powers on the statute.

 

Farr also suggested the city contract with companies to allow them to dump their water and waste and the WWTF for a cost to help subsidize the high water bills.

 

Powers said he wasn’t sure about that possibility since the city of CL is in tandem with Clearwater as a sewer authority, but suggested to Farr to attend the next sewer authority meeting in October to present his ideas.

 

Dustin Luhning said July was a busy month and the front of the pavillion renovation has been done for a while. He also said the ball park’s irrigation system heads are in need of replacement.

 

He concluded by saying the city is still in the midst of doing water testing for the new well.

 

• Council reviewed and accepted a 2014-15 insurance renewal form presented by Ron Mumm;

 

• Council approved a resolution for gambling at an upcoming St. Marcus Church community event;

 

• Council scheduled a meeting for Aug. 13 to canvass primary election results;

 

• Council re-scheduled their September 1 meeting to Sept. 2 due to the Labor Day Holiday;

 

• Council scheduled a joint meeting with the City of Clearwater for Aug. 26 at 7 p.m.;

 

• Luhning plans to “resurrect” the interest in the city obtaining a GPS data map to help Luhning and his crew locate curb stops that cannot be located due to improper record-keeping from the late 1970s;

 

• Candidacy filings for Claudia Page, Dale Powers, Connie Achman and Mayor Tim Goenner’s seats opened July 29 and will close Aug. 12 at 5 p.m. Cost for filing is $2;

 

• The sewer authority is in the process of hiring an administrative assistant (5-10 hrs. a week) to handle duties.

 

The next Clear Lake City Council meeting is Sept. 2 at 7 p.m. with a budget meeting set to start at 6 p.m.