MARCH 14, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 5
Milltown clarifies Bering Street Tiny road and access to Hwy. 35 questioned by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer MILLTOWN – A curious little triangleshaped property alongside Hwy. 35 in the village of Milltown was the subject of a neighbor’s query at the latest Milltown Village Board meeting on Monday, March 12. That little triangular property and tiny former gas station has a street behind it, Bering Street West, with a confusing, tiny spur that connects to Hwy. 35, or so it seemed. Michael Moos lives on Bering Street and asked the board about keeping that access open to Hwy. 35, while also asking about snow-removal policies and a recent business change that has the owners parking cars on the property. “I don’t wanna raise any waves, but ... he’s parking cars on it.” Moos asked. As it turns out, that road is a dead end, according to Milltown Public Works Director Rick Fisher. “It’s used like a road, but it could be a dead end,” Fisher said. “That’s why we’re careful not to plow it out.” Village President LuAnn White concurred, noting that it may be used like a road access, but it is in reality just for the business at hand. According to Fisher, when the state rebuilt Hwy. 35 years ago, they essentially closed Bering Street’s Hwy. 35 access, but kept it open as an access to the corner business, which has been everything from a gas station to a convenience store to construction shop to its most current use as a used car dealership. “The state was going to close it off for good [but kept it open] to get access for that business,” Fisher said. Moos thanked the board for their help, smiled genuinely and nodded. “At least I know where I stand!” Moos joked. “Don’t worry, your road is safe, but it could be a dead-end,” White said. The road is open to the west to Second Street for Hwy. 35 access, but not through
Town to host meeting on Hwy. 8 project TOWN OF ST. CROIX FALLS - The Town of St. Croix Falls will be hosting an informational meeting on the DOT’s Tier II study of Hwy. 8 and the intersection of Hwys. 8 and 35 on Friday, March 23, at 6 p.m. at the town hall on 200th Street. The meeting, held at the request of state Sen. Sheila Harsdorf, will provide a forum for comments, discussion and questions regarding the study along with public comments. Both Harsdorf and state Rep. Erik Severson will be in attendance. No formal action will be taken at the meeting, according to a notice published by the town chairman, Steven Palmer. with submitted information
Frederic school board/from page 3 hard decisions. And Frederic science teacher Jeff Larcom said the school board did what it needed to do. Part of that needed school business was the formal approval of the four layoffs and two cuts in hours. The layoffs included the half-time positions of an English and a U.S. history teacher and the full-time positions of a special education teacher and the 6-12 counselor as well as reductions in hours for a math teacher and the band director. The counselor position is being replaced by the new assistant principal/counselor position with different licensing qualifications.
Michael Moos (standing) addressed the Milltown Village Board about a tiny road near his home, Bering Street West, and whether a tiny spur access to the highway is really a road. Photo by Greg Marsten the triangle lot. In other board business: • Pat Hyden addressed several concerns about the Milltown Community Center, including possibly advertising its specs, photos, assets and more on the village Web site. “It’s time we really put some effort into promoting it,” he said. “To put it in the best light.” He noted the past few years have had more competing venues emerge as options in nearby communities, which may have reduced their rentals. The board agreed that they should have more photos of the center on the Web site, and also noted that they just installed new carpeting in the past month. “I’m hoping we can spark something!” Hyden stated. They also debated an issue of access to the fuse panel and furnace for maintenance and the like, that anytime a fuse blows during off hours they need to call the police, as the only access is through the police department office. Hyden recommended swapping the back room and storage area with the police department, but it was met with a lukewarm response, especially by White. The board took no action, but will seek
a solution to the fuse and furnace access problem. • The board voted to enhance their sewer replacement fund, per recommendations from their accountant, Tom Coen. “It’s not like we’re throwing it away,” Coen said. The fund is meant to help with sewer system repairs and/or upgrades in the future, and Coen suggested they build it back up to approximately $140,000. • The issue of apartments on Main Street surfaced again, after a resident requested finishing an apartment conversion at the former bank building. The board took action last fall to enforce provisions limiting Main Street residential rentals, mainly due to parking limitations. “It goes back to 1995, when we decided we didn’t want apartments on Main Street,” White stated. The board took no action, but was in consensus with White to enforce the issue, allowing just one apartment per building on Main Street. • The board debated village office hours on Good Friday, April 6, and after some debate, moved to close all day. • Eric Kube of Habitat for Humanity gave the board an update on their rehab project under way in the village. Kube
also showed a locally produced video by Cine-Cermin Productions that highlights their programs, retail ReStore, upcoming projects and their participants. “It’s very important that people know we‘re not a charity,” Kube said. “We don’t give these homes away ... they’re 20- to 30year loans, but only on principal.” The homes HFH builds have mortgages and strict requirements for occupant families, although they are interest-free, with the money used to keep the cycle of projects moving, and for employees and material purchases. “All the funds are spent locally,” Kube added. • Police Chief Andy Anderson told the board they are having scheduling problems with being down one full-time officer, who is currently on administrative leave facing domestic-abuse allegations. “We might have to borrow a neighboring [municipality’s] officer,” Anderson said. “It’s getting hard to keep up.” He also outlined issues they are facing with clearing a 1976 Corvette they impounded over two years ago from a drug arrest and how they are hoping to make it available for the Milltown Community Club to auction off this summer. Clearing the title has become a problem, as the state of Minnesota has been less than helpful on the issue, according to Anderson. “It’s taken a lot of time,” Anderson said, also mentioning several recent drug arrests, court testimony requirements and more. The board offered no solutions to the shorthanded staff, but may be able to address it once the officer’s status is clarified. • The board later adjourned to closed session to address the police issue and an employee retirement concern, according to White. “We just talked about changes in the police department in regard to replacing [the officer],” White said the next day. “No decisions were made, as some research has to be done before any decisions are made.”
New fitness center eyed at Unity by Mary Stirrat Leader staff writer BALSAM LAKE — Last month, the Unity School Board of Education asked district Administrator Brandon Robinson to study the use and options of the school’s fitness center, and last week Robinson brought his findings to the planning and building committee. The good news is that fitness center is a popular and well-used space, averaging 20 students and 10 adults each weekday. Each Sunday, on average, nine adults and nine students make use of it. The bad news is that the space isn’t big enough for such heavy usage. “We’re having space issues,” said Robinson, “and ultimately some safety problems.” Robinson presented four options to remedy the situation, and outlined the strengths and weaknesses of each. These options are to remodel the current facility,
move the fitness center into space at the new clinic, purchase the old clinic building and renovate it for a fitness center, or add a new fitness center by the high school entrance to the school. The committee discussed that the ideal location for the fitness center would actually be by the pool, but there is no parking or public entrance in that area of the building, making that location “awkward.” When Robinson suggested that the topic be a matter of ongoing conversation at future meetings, committee members Chad Stenberg and Joe Tilton both said they felt the matter should not be put off too long. “We need a plan on how to get it done,” said Stenberg Tilton agreed, saying that the close quarters in the fitness center don’t make it very family friendly for parents wanting to bring their children in for fitness training. “It always comes down to cost,” Tilton said, “but I think we need to find a way to
do this. It needs to get started.” Robinson said he would put together a proposal that committee members could “sink their teeth into,” with a tentative location, design and cost estimate. Other business • The committee looked at the district’s long-range plan, which is typically reviewed at this time of year. Robinson said that the school will be doing the aeration and fertilization of athletic fields in-house rather than contracting the work. There was a brief discussion on contracting out the lawn mowing. • While no bus replacement is scheduled for this year, the committee discussed trading in two minivans. Mileage on each is between 60,000 and 75,000 miles, making this a good time to trade them in, said Robinson. Cost for replacing them will be about $18,000 each.
Two very large beers Man registers .344 BAC on “two beers” by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer TURTLE LAKE – A 48-year-old Turtle Lake man made the mistake of littering in view of a police officer in Turtle Lake late at night on Saturday, March 10, and when the officer confronted the man, he was found to be extremely intoxicated, which violated several stipulated bond conditions. After the officer stopped Adonis Mosay, he told the officer that he had approxi-
mately two beers, but appeared highly inebriated and unsteady on his feet. Mosay currently has several pending cases in both Burnett and Polk counties, all of which state that he is not to consume or possess alcohol. After the officer confronted Mosay again, he submitted to a portable breath test, which showed him to have a blood alcohol concentration of .344 percent, which is almost five times the legal limit of .08 BAC. Mosay was arrested and taken to Cumberland Memorial Hospital for a blood draw before he was taken into custody for possible bond violations. “They must have been vary large beers,”
stated Polk County Sheriff Peter Johnson. Mosay now faces two counts of felony bond violations and made an initial court appearance before Judge Molly GaleWyrick on Monday, March 12, where she set a $1,500 signature bond, with similar no-drink provisions. Mosay’s current files of active cases in Burnett and Polk counties includes pending charges of felony third-degree sexual assault, misdemeanor battery, bail jumping and disorderly conduct. Those cases all go back to last year, with various court appearances set for the coming month.