The addition to the Lutsen fire hall/community center is nearly completed. The building has been nearly doubled in size and the community center portion will now hold 100 people seated for a meal. The new garage also allows the township to store and maintain its equipment inside and now there is space to provide training for firefighters in Lutsen.
Work is almost completed on Lutsen’s firehall/townhall addition, but the town board discussed a few problems that need to be resolved before signing off on the job at its December 18 meeting.
The building needs to be cleaned and some small projects need to be finished, which shouldn’t take General Contractor Max Wahlers much time, said Fire Chief Paul Goettl.
Next, said Goettl, there was the issue of completing the wiring for six outlets for the kitchen that were not included in the architectural drawings.
“It was an oversight that everybody missed. The wires are there and covered by plates. It shouldn’t take the electrician long to put in switches and plug-ins,” said Goettl. The board approved hiring the electrician who has been doing the work to come back and finish the kitchen.
One other problem remains with the new building, said Supervisor Marland Hansen, who asked about two large cracks in the cement floor and the discoloring of the cement in the bathrooms.
“Max [Wahlers] said the cement guy is going to come back and try to fix the cracks and acid etch the cement to fix the discoloring,” said Goettl, who has worked to coordinate the project with Wahlers.
Lutsen Treasurer John Groth also noted that the electrical usage was way up during Wahlers’ work, and asked if Wahlers would be responsible for paying the inflated costs as outlined in his contract with the township.
The board discussed the matter and decided that Arrowhead Electric Cooperative Inc. could help figure out the difference between this year and last year’s electric bill for the period Wahlers and his crew worked, and Wahlers would be responsible for the difference. But Goettl said he didn’t think Wahlers should be responsible from the date the fire trucks were moved into the building.
“We’ve been opening and closing the doors and storing our trucks there. I don’t think Max should be responsible for paying the electric bill since we moved into the building,” said Goettl.
The board agreed with him and the bill will be figured from the time Wahlers and his crew worked until the building was in use by the township. A final payment of $25,000 won’t be made to Wahlers until all of the projects are done, said Hansen. All of the work should be finished by the end of December and will be reviewed following the completion date.
Goettl said a large, flat-screened TV had been purchased for the fire hall from Buck’s Radio Shack and would be kept there until the building is cleaned up. It was paid for by the Fire Department Relief Association and will be used for meetings.
Supervisor Ginny Storlie said a stainless steel refrigerator and stove had been ordered from Isak Hansen’s Hardware and the board asked Storlie if she could see if Hansen’s could store the appliances until the wiring was completed in the kitchen, which she agreed to do.
“I want everyone to know that I think that Tom Dwyer and his crew at Isak Hansen’s has bent over backwards for us,” said Treasurer Groth. “They have been giving us price breaks and going way out of their way to help us whenever we need help. The same can be said for Brad Ludlow at Buck’s Radio Shack. He has given us breaks on prices and helps when we ask.”
The board discussed ordering new chairs and tables for the community center area and after some back and forth between them decided to order 100 chairs and between 10 and 15 tables (not to exceed $1,000). They will try to order tables that closely match the ones they now have.
Groth asked when they should have an open house for the new community center for the public, and a date in May or June will be set to ensure that the “snowbirds” are back.
“After all, they are paying for a large chunk of this,” said Hansen, to which the board agreed.
In his fire chief ’s report, Goettl said his crew was called to a downed power line and a false alarm at Caribou Highlands. He also said about 40 people attended the first fireman’s ball and they were already making plans for another one next year.
Emergency Medical Services Director Fred Schmidt said his crew was called out 34 times this year, 11 times this quarter. He said he was trying to get a First Responder course for Lutsen, but he couldn’t find a teacher.
“No one has time to teach the class right now, but when we do find an instructor we will do the same thing we did last year. Anyone taking the class must pay for it out of their pocket. After one year with us we will reimburse them. In the past we would pay for the class and people would bolt for a better offer. I don’t know how many times that happened, but we aren’t going to let it happen anymore,” said Schmidt.
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