During their recent meeting, the Clear Lake City Council discussed a couple of initiatives in the interest of trying to go paperless. 

They discussed ordering Chrome Books for the city council members and for the clerk, which would save paper since they would no longer need to print out their agenda packet for each meeting. 

Other benefits of the Chrome Books would include being able to send important documents to the council members directly though Microsoft Teams, and also the ability to have a council member attend the meeting through video call if s/he is unable to attend in person. 

The council received a quote from their current computer service provider, On-Site, but they wished to have another quote for comparison before making a final decision. 

City Clerk Lori Ollendieck also noted that, starting April 1, she will begin saving utility billing reports in an e-file instead of printing them, saving paper and storage space. 

Open Forum

Chris Goenner spoke during open forum to express his concern for the city’s plan to pay for a new fire department building. He was upset that the townships were not being billed to help pay for the project. He argued that since the fire department covers Clear Lake Township and Palmer Township in addition to the city, they should help to pay for the project, especially since the townships have larger populations and tax bases than the city does. Council Member Stefany Janish responded that they just renegotiated fire contracts with the townships, so although they are not paying for the building they are helping by paying more for fire services. Council Member Chad Nelson noted that the building will be owned by the city in the end, as well. So even if the fire department moved to a new building, the city would still own the new building they plan to build. Mayor Tim Goenner chimed in that it was also to account for the city’s growth over the next couple of decades and looking to see what the city will need at that point in time. Chris Goenner was not convinced by their arguments and finished his open forum statement reiterating his stance.

Fire Dept. Update

Chief Ron Koren reported 13 calls for service last month. Three of those took place in the city and included two medical calls and one fire. 

The chief used the opportunity to tell the council that he believed they spent too much time and money consulting their attorney on issues. He believed that certain decisions (which were not stated) should have been made already based on information from the League of Minnesota Cities. The council informed him they relied on consulting both from the league and the attorney, and that the league usually referred the city to their attorney. 

City Hall / Pavilion Rentals

The city-owned park pavilion and city hall have both become popular spaces for residents to rent to host events. There are already several back-to-back bookings coming up in spring and summer. Ollendieck recommended that someone from city staff or the council come by between back-to-back events and make sure things are cleaned up like they should be. The council discussed it, and agreed that when back-to-back events are coming up, they would discuss it at the city council meeting just before those events and find a volunteer from council to come and check

In Other Business, the Council:

• Approved a development agreement for Parkside addition three (with 57 single-family lots);

• Approved switching banks from Sherburne State Bank to American Heritage Bank, a project that has been in process for a while;

• Made and passed a motion to not allow anyone, including council members, to use public works equipment unless explicitly authorized by the public works director, and then only for projects that benefit the city;

• Discussed possibly joining the Clear Valley Business Connection;

• Approved training for the city clerk in fund accounting.