Grand Marais city taxpayers will see a 1.9 percent – at the most – increase in their tax levies next year following city council’s decision to pass a preliminary levy of $839,783.92.
The unanimous vote Sept. 10 means the 2015 levy cannot increase, but could go down before final certification at year’s end.
City Administrator Mike Roth told councilors the draft budget they were asked to vote on was basically unchanged from the version they reviewed two weeks earlier. That vote followed meetings with the city’s department heads, which took place earlier in the day.
Roth said the proposed budget will allow such things as a study on the liquor store and a bid process for a public utilities facility to move forward, but will not allow enough funding for big-ticket items such as public restrooms or any street improvement projects under consideration. For that, he said, council will have to gradually increase the levy if it opts for those bigger things.
Councilor Tim Kennedy asked about the possibility of constructing public restrooms in the section of City Hall that is being vacated by the Visitors Bureau. The effort to build more public restrooms has come before council numerous times over the years, each time being stalled by a lack of a suitable site or necessary funds – or both.
Roth said he was “scared” about what it costs to build bathrooms, and replied, “I can’t say we have enough to do that.” Council had discussed retrofitting a section of City Hall to accommodate more restrooms in earlier budget sessions, but Roth said it looks like that is “something else we won’t be able to do next year” without a substantial levy increase.
Regarding future years, Roth said it would be a good idea to come up with a new priority list in 2015, since there will be several new council members beginning their terms in January. Items on the most recent priority list include the public works facility; liquor store facility study; Highway 61 corridor improvements; street and utility reconstruction on West First Street; and numerous projects at the Rec Park including an improved marina and park office.
In other business, council honored two requests for funds from organizations totaling $9,000.
The first request came from Paul Nelson of the Cook County Local Energy Project (CCLEP), who asked for $3,000 to pursue rebidding the excavation portion of the district heating project by hiring a consultant to look for other funding sources. Nelson said he hopes to get the project in line for state bonding in 2016, and CCLEP is now working to “put more effort into it” than was done this summer, when the biomass district heating project did not make it onto the governor’s bonding list. Nelson said he still believes the project can result in substantial energy and cost savings to downtown customers, and noted that $3,000 more in expenditures is small price for the potential savings that can be had.
Council voted 4-1 to allocate the $3,000, with Mayor Larry Carlson voting no. Carlson stated that there are lot of people out there opposed to the project, and what the cost of fuel will be can’t be assumed. “People are not nearly as excited about this project as you are,” the mayor told Nelson.
According to Roth, the city has committed up to $10,000 for the biomass district heating project, and has spent about $6,500 to date.
The second request was made by Jim Boyd of the Cook County Chamber of Commerce, who asked for $6,000 to help meet a shortfall created when the Northspan Group of Duluth was contracted about two years ago to create an economic analysis of the county and a list of development priorities the Go Team determined were “critically important” to the county’s future.
Boyd said the work was financed through contributions from the county, Cook County/Grand Marais Economic Development Authority (EDA), city, Arrowhead Electric, hospital and North House Folk School. However, the project took 18 months instead of the anticipated six months to complete, with a price tag of $46,000 rather than $16,000.
Boyd said he is asking the original sponsors to again contribute to the cause “to make Northspan whole.”
Councilor Jan Sivertson called the project “an amazing effort by a lot of people,” and said the study has brought lot of people together. Kennedy commented that “it is the economic health of the community that makes us who we are,” and urged council to honor the request with a second contribution of $3,000.
The Go Team’s request was approved by a 5-0 vote. Also on council’s agenda: . Council approved the hiring of Mark Luttinen as a part-time library tech following interviews with three good candidates. Roth said Tom Knutsen has agreed to stay on board on a limited basis to help with training and cataloging until a backlog is alleviated. . Kathi Sullivan appeared before council during the Open Forum portion of the meeting and thanked Mayor Carlson for his proclamation recognizing Sept. 21 as International Peace Day in Grand Marais. She also said the 7:30 p.m. candlelight service has been moved to the Recreation Park pavilion. . Jay Arrowsmith DeCoux appeared before council and invited members to attend a Sept. 23 presentation on rural demographic and economic trends for small towns. The program by the University of Minnesota- Morris Center for Small Towns will be held at North House Folk School from 6:30 to 8 p.m. . Councilor and park board member Bill Lenz reported on a proposal that came before the park board to operate a Segway touring business between the Rec Park and Artist Point. Roth said there’s really nothing the council has to do. “We can’t tell them no,” he said. But Councilor Bob Spry said he was concerned about the business being profitable, or even breaking even. “What do you see?” he asked. “It’s not like Grand Marais is a big city.”
Proclamation
City of Grand Marais, MN International Peace Day Sunday, Sept. 21, 2014
I, Laurence Carlson, Mayor of Grand Marais, Minnesota, hereby proclaim September 21, 2014 International Peace Day in Grand Marais, to be recognized by a candlelight service at the Grand Marais Recreation Park pavilion at 7:30 p.m. on that date. All citizens from Grand Marais and the surrounding communities are invited to join in a united hope for world peace. I pledge to make Grand Marais a city of peace, for only in our homes and towns can we begin the process for the world.
In witness whereof, I have here set my hand and caused the seal of the City of Grand Marais, Minnesota, to be affixed this 8th day of September 2014.
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