During their meeting Monday night, Troy Felton from the Clear Lake Lions approached the Palmer Twp. board to discuss the new building the Lions have proposed erecting at Palmer Park. The organization has approved $20,000 for a new building there for the benefit of the township and for the Lions to use for serving beer during Palmer Day. 

 

Felton said the Lions wanted to hear the board’s thoughts on the building as there hasn’t been an agreement on where to locate it, and if the board feels there’s no room, the Lions can put the money to other uses.

 

“The issue is that 10-12 years ago we put up a building the Lions used for 2-3 years and then moved out because they didn’t like it,” said Supervisor Mike Ganz. 

 

“As for it being multipurpose I don’t know if we have enough parking space available for two big events [i.e. graduations] to take place at the same time. There’s no decent fit for another building; in my opinion, it’s too tight.”

 

He said they could definitely use a new building at the park but the board would prefer it near the tennis courts, which would be too far away for the Lions to use for Palmer Day, and suggested they look at purchasing a new tent to use instead.

 

Felton explained the Lions couldn’t use the original building because the beer wagon won’t fit inside and the setup restricts how many tappers can be run. The proposed building would be 30’x40’.

 

Treasurer Roger Johnson suggested taking down the small pavilion and replacing it with the new, larger building. Other options were also brought forward and discussed.

 

“We don’t want to force this on you if you don’t think it would be beneficial,” said Felton. “We’d only use it once a year but we felt it could be used for many other purposes. We won’t be upset if you decide you don’t want it as we have other places we can use the money.”

 

The board agreed to look at the spacing issue again once the snow has melted, and said they appreciate everything the Lions do. Ganz asked about funds for fixing the tennis courts, to which Felton said the Lions would also consider, however, the motion currently on the table is only for the new building. 

 

A decision will be made by the May township meeting.

 

 

Margaret Johnson approached the board to request a variance for a 25’ setback on 57th Street. They are erecting a pole shed behind an existing building and without the variance semis won’t be able to get between them.

 

Haus Construction approached the board to request a variance for a setback on 55th Street The property owners currently have a porch they want to add a second floor to; the building won’t be any closer to the road than it is currently.

 

Haus Construction also requested a variance on 115th Ave. The property owners want to erect a personal storage structure, but because of the septic system’s location will need a setback variance in order to do so.

 

Motions carried to send favorable comments to the county for all three requests.

 

 

The board held a discussion on whether to carry sandbags for township residents to use in case of flooding. Clerk Kelly McCann will continue looking into options and pricing.

 

A motion carried approving the Lions’ request for an alcohol permit for Palmer Day 2019.

 

Cleanup Day will be May 4 from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

 

The lake association’s annual garage sales will be May 9 – 12. Their first summer meeting will be June 8.

 

The sheriff reported 68 calls for service for February, including 29 traffic, two property damage crashes, five snowmobile complaints and an exploded mailbox, which appeared to have been caused by an incinerary device.

 

A resident also reported a phone call from a person who identified himself with the name of an actual Sherburne Co. deputy, stating they had a warrant out for his arrest. The sheriff stressed law enforcement will never call a in a situation like this.

 

The fire department reported 10 medical and four fire for February, four of which were in Palmer Twp.

 

The next Palmer Twp. meeting will be April 8 at 7 p.m.