Before heading off to Taos for the winter, septic installer Scott Robinson gave his final recommendations to the Schroeder town board Tuesday, November 10, 2009 for a new septic system at town hall.
Robinson recommended a 1,500- gallon tank covered with six feet of soil rather than the required three feet to avoid the possibility of freezing. The specifications, which will go out for bid in the spring, call for “considerable” screening to prepare for the possibility of large crowds using the building for special events. An alarm will send a warning if the system gets plugged.
Unknown is whether blasting will be needed. Robinson suggested setting aside a separate contingency fund to cover the cost of blasting so bidders won’t have to guess on blasting costs. Charles Lamb told Robinson he would do the blasting for $3,500. Robinson guessed the cost of the project would be $10-11,000.
County Commissioner Bruce Martinson asked Robinson his opinion on the proposed countywide septic ordinance. “Pumping a tank isn’t a bad thing,” Robinson said, but “three-year pumping is kind of crazy.” Many people use their dwellings only seasonally, and this county has a lot of “conservative water users,” he said. Thedanger of contaminating neighboring property is low, he said, since settlement is so sparse in Cook County.
Robinson recommends pumping when a tank is 25-33% full. He suggests a pumping schedule that is easy to remember, such as every election year or every five years. A three-year pumping schedule is hard to remember and not always necessary, he said.
According to Rick Anderson, who is retiring from the Tofte-Schroeder Sanitary Sewer District (TSSSD) at the end of the year, 70% of the 20 septic systems along Lake Superior categorized as imminent health risks after the latest area inspection were seasonal. Fifty percent were considered failing, he said.
Town supervisor Bill McKeever took issue with Anderson, saying systems that the inspectors could not locate were considered failed. He and Anderson debated various methods of dealing with sewage.
“Hopefully some practicality comes out of this in the end,” Robinson said.
A Schroeder resident within the TSSSD is needed on the TSSSD board before the end of the year, Anderson reported. If a Schroeder resident does not fill the position, he said, Tofte can appoint a Tofte resident and Schroeder’s representation will go to one out of five on the board. Town clerk Carol Tveekrem went over a letter she had been working on outlining the reasons for Schroeder’s request to withdraw from the TSSSD. It will be sent to the town’s attorney.
Martinson said the TSSSD voted to cut its levy from $50,000 to $30,000, but he thinks they could get by with a $15,000 levy because the fund balance is “healthy.”
State requires sign removal
Marion McKeever asked the board for help appealing a Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) requirement that she remove two Satellite Inn signs from the lawn in front of the business because it was in the state’s right of way. She was told she could be charged with a misdemeanor if she didn’t remove the sign within 20 days.
McKeever said if she has to move the sign back by the restaurant, people wouldn’t see it. One of the signs has been there for 30 years, she said.
“I’m paying taxes on that land. Why can’t I have a …sign there?” she said. She said she couldn’t have a successful business without a sign people can see. She said she is considering applying for a liquor license in order to draw customers.
Mrs. McKeever said she had written letters to legislators last year when she was first told to remove her signs. The state wrote back saying the regulation regarding sign setbacks had to do with Lady Bird Johnson, who advocated for beautification of the nation’s highways. “Well, Lady Bird Johnson is dead,” McKeever said.
McKeever said she wrote to Senator Tom Bakk, whose officewrote back saying the notice followed a survey of that section of Highway 61. Years ago, she said, she had been given written permission from the state to have her sign there, but she doesn’t know where the letter is now.
Supervisor Ross Willson said the state shouldn’t be able to admit a mistake 30 years later and make McKeever move her sign now.
Mrs. McKeever’s husband, Supervisor Bill McKeever, wondered why the state’s right of way varies from place to place. It is 100 feet in some places and 250 feet in others. Commissioner Martinson said some people along the highway refused to sign right-of-way agreements years ago.
Floyd Johnson suggested that Mrs. McKeever keep a sign on a truck and move it every winter after the business closes. Supervisor Ross Willson suggested that she file for an exemption.
McKeever asked the town board to write on her behalf to the county, MnDOT, Senator Bakk, and Governor Pawlenty. The board passed a motion to draft letters to various government offices in support of McKeever.
Bill McKeever said, “That business was our retirement.”
In other business, the board discussed a need for better lighting outside the town hall/fire hall. Clerk Tveekrem said she would have an electrician talk to Fire Chief Phil Bonin about what is needed.
Tveekrem also reported that questions regarding cemetery boundaries have been answered. The town owns the property all the way down to the Cramer Road.
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