The Clear Lake City Council met Monday evening and took action to formalize the process for exploring the building of a new Fire Hall.  The current hall has numerous inadequacies, from low ceilings to deteriorating infrastructure, and a replacement building has been discussed for several years.

At Monday’s meeting, Fire Chief Ron Koren and Assistant Chief Matt Lunser asked the council to consider three agenda items to get the process back on track: regularly scheduled meetings moving forward, the development of architectural plans and exploring funding for the construction and associated costs.

The plans are needed so the department can pursue grant funding opportunities, as most of the ones available are for “shovel ready” projects.

Council agreed to hold a workshop meeting in the near future to discuss how to move forward, while Interim City Clerk Sandy Borders will consult with the auditor to see how the funding streams should be kept separate in the budget.

City Engineer Keith Yapp discussed the process, from an RFP to construction, and how it could all be accomplished.

No timeline or final decisions were established for construction, but financing options will be explored.

In other public safety news, Sgt. Kevin Grams of the SCSO reported on April’s 49 calls for service, which included one 2nd degree drug arrest.  Mayor Tim Goenner repeated his occasional plea for additional enforcement to crack down on speeders in town.

Jennifer Dierkes of McDonald’s Meats was at the meeting to address questions regarding replacement signage at the business, and her plans received unanimous approval from Council.

Assistant Public Works Director Matt Landwehr noted hydrant work, fluoride reporting and repairs from winter damage to infrastructure as the duties keeping his department busy.

A change to the developer’s agreement for the Parkside addition was approved by council, giving LGI representative Jay Roos the ability to apply for the letter of credit needed to get started on the next phase of the project.

Goenner discussed plans to hold a meeting in June to discuss plans for a new park area at Hunter Lake Bluffs, re-using as much of the equipment fro the old site as possible.  It would be an opportunity to engage with the public about what should be located at the new site, and Goenner noted that the developer is responsible for the move, not the city.  Fencing was discussed for the new parcel, which is about 3 acres in size.  The Mayor also reminded everyone that power, gas, sewer and water is already stubbed into the park parcel, which could be considerable savings in the future.

In final action, council set a workshop meeting for Friday, May 10 at 4 p.m. to discuss several agenda items, including a response to a request from the Minnesota Unemployment Insurance department.