During their June meeting, the Orrock Town Board had a long discussion on roads, and also called for a special meeting to continue their discussion.
The board received a quote for tree trimming which the road committee discussed. The board discussed some issues with tree trimming, and asked Town Handyman Darryl Waletzko to mark trees that were too close to the road so the owners could be contacted to either let the township take them down or accept responsibility for removal when they die.
Waletzko said the drainage issues mentioned at the May meeting could be fixed by digging out the ditch in the area, expected to cost around $2,500. Adams brought up some potential legal issues with doing so, and the board agreed to investigate the matter before moving forward.
The board called a special meeting for July 12, 10 a.m., to discuss some other road issues, including a road reclamation of 188th St. Ellinger wished to encourage everyone impacted to attend the special meeting, and wanted to hold the meeting on a weekend so folks in summer cabins in the area would be available to attend.
Sheriff’s Report
Sgt. Alex Dehn gave the monthly report for the Sheriff’s Department. The department had 162 calls for service in the last month.
Some notable calls included a lost hiker in the Sand Dunes who was recovered. Illegal burning led to a grass fire which was put out before any major damage was done. A vulnerable adult has been taking Uber rides into the area and gets lost, but the department has seen her enough now to know where she lives and how to get her home when she wanders.
There were calls regarding parking on private property near Eagle Lake. It has been an ongoing issue the department is continuing to work on.
The clerk asked a question about whether deputies should be allowed access to town hall after hours after an incident where a deputy tried to enter. Dehn responded some townships allow it, and the department would appreciate another place to use a bathroom, but it’s not necessary. The board expressed some interest in allowing them to have access. They asked Dehn to send them more information and possibly get that authorized for them.
Open Forum
A resident spoke saying he was purchasing a local property, but during the process found there was a platted holding pond. The pond was never put in, and he wished to have the issue cleared up. The board said they would discuss it during the roads portion of the meeting.
Rick Wagner also had a question about an easement. He reported problems regarding his road being washed out, and asked for help addressing the problems and finding a solution.
IT Discussion
Clerk Shelley Erickson said the board has exceeded the limit they set on IT billable hours, but there was still about 6-8 hours left of work to be done.
After some research, Erickson suggested purchasing iPads for the township supervisors instead of laptops as previously discussed. Having the devices would save on paper and allow the supervisors to see all relevant materials more easily, as well as keep confidential materials off of the supervisors’ personal devices. The decision to get such devices was approved at the annual meeting.
Supervisor Paul Ellinger voiced his discontent that the price had risen from the original amount set. Board Chair Anne Felber argued that the increase to security was worth the cost.
The board approved the extra work and the purchase of the iPads, not to exceed $6,000.
In Other Business,the Board:
• Heard the updated census data for the township, noting a population of 4,737;
• Renewed their insurance policy through the Minnesota Association of Townships;
• Made a small edit to the fund balance policy;
• Received a request for input on the county zoning and land use updates.
