The Lutsen Township board of supervisors had a lot of ground to cover during their monthly meeting on Tuesday, April 19. Supervisor Andrew Beavers updated the board on his research into the issue brought up at the previous meeting regarding lighting at the bottom of the Caribou Trail.
Beavers stated that he received an email from John Twiest, operations manager at Arrowhead Cooperative, explaining that plans to install a light are already in motion.
“There apparently is already a plan that MnDOT (Minnesota Department of Transportation) has in effect to light the bottom of the Caribou Trail starting in August,” Beavers stated. “They have it on the books as something that is ready to roll.”
During the previous meeting, the suggestion to install a light met with mixed responses. Some noted that because the Lutsen fire hall is located near the base of the trail and because bad weather can make the trail difficult to spot, the light would be a safety asset. Beavers also mentioned he had spoken to several Lutsen citizens who thought the light was a good idea as well.
On the other hand, Supervisor Rae Piepho stated that she had been in contact with several people who live on the trail and said many were not convinced the light was necessary.
“With the people I talked to, there were more who said we do not need more lighting at the bottom of the Caribou Trail,” Piepho said. “They live on the Caribou Trail and they have no problem.”
Concern regarding light pollution and maintaining Lutsen’s quiet, small-town quality has led some to insist that a light should not be installed without good reason.
“I think it bears repeating to our constituents that this is something that is imminent, and if there are really strong opinions about it, the time is fleeting to express those opinions,” Beavers concluded.
Also on the agenda for the meeting was a new sign ordinance and updated Comprehensive Land Use plan presented by Tim Nelson from County Cook Planning and Zoning for the board to consider.
“Our ordinances always have county provisions, and then Lutsen specific provisions,” Nelson explained. “During this rewrite, what we did is we considered all of the Lutsen provisions going forward and we thought the best thing to do would be to have a countywide ordinance instead of having to divvy it out to townships or other locales.”
Nelson went on to explain that the Lutsen specific provisions, which had been listed as article 10 in the sign ordinance, had been folded into a comprehensive list of provisions for the entire county.
“We wanted to come before you as a township and have you be able to take a look at the ordinance and any changes in these provisions and see if you guys as a township would be okay with removing the Lutsen specific provisions in lieu of the county-wide provisions,” Nelson concluded.
After a brief discussion, the board decided to postpone a decision until the following month so they would have time to compare the ordinances and see if there were any significant differences.
“One of the major sticking points that I would see is making sure that current signage wouldn’t have to be changed,” Beavers stated. “Just because I know that there have been some new signs put in and that would be very frustrating to the owner to have a sign that was put up in the last few years and have to change it because of the new ordinance.”
Nelson stated that this would not be a problem since the new ordinance was partly based on signage that is already present in Lutsen.
In other business
* The board considered compensation for town officers and employees. They opted to leave the majority of the compensation the same, with a few exceptions. The hourly pay for supervisors was raised to $20 per hour to match the pay for other town employees. * The board also agreed to raise the monthly stipend for both the chiefs and assistant chiefs of the EMS and fire department by $25. * Fire Chief Larry McNeally asked for a raise for the First Responders and firefighters as well. However, since compensation for these employees is based on the number of calls, the board requested that both chiefs come back next time wages are considered with more data so the board will have a clearer idea of the monetary impact of the requested pay raise. * At the beginning of the meeting, Beavers was voted in as chairperson and Rae Piepho as vice-chairperson. The reports from the treasurer, EMS chief, and fire chief were quickly approved.
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