MARCH 29, 2017
WHITE BEAR PRESS
www.presspubs.com
Lake conservation district coughs up fiscal policy BY DEBRA NEUTKENS EDITOR
WHITE BEAR LAKE — Better late than never. The group responsible for protecting the city's most previous natural resource approved a fund balance policy at its March meeting. For years, city leaders have been asking the White Bear Lake Conservation District (WBLCD) for a policy, perturbed that the board's bank balance is twice its budget. Communities surrounding the lake, namely White Bear Lake, White Bear Township, Mahtomedi, Birchwood and Dellwood, are assessed an annual fee to support the district's mission to protect and preserve the lake. The city of White Bear Lake pays the most at 45 percent and City Council members have been complaining about the lack of a policy to better steward taxpayer money. Its current fund balance is $200,000. Approved March 21, the WBLCD resolution points out that the district has a responsibility to continue operations in the event of resources being restricted or unavailable, an obligation to maintain an adequate balance for necessary programs and unplanned costs, as well as a responsibility to avoid excessive amounts of contingency funds. It was also noted the district has no line of credit to borrow funds for contingencies; its revenue is received sporadically and is not always predictable. After tabling the policy for a month,
the district board agreed to target its year-end fund balance to be no less than 150 percent of the budget for the following year and no more than 200 percent. Board members felt the district may incur unbudgeted expenses that could potentially be a large percentage of the total annual budget and could act in unison to nearly double the district's total expenses in any given year. Examples of expenses include: • Eurasian milfoil treatment, which is the district's largest expense. The cost varies according to acres treated. • Other invasive species that may enter the lake and require treatment. • Unplanned costs due to legal actions, with the deductible on its liability policy set at $50,000, or roughly half the annual budget. • Unforeseen expenses due to environmental issues, surveys, increased law enforcement and outside professional services. • A loss of office space that may require payment of market rates. The WBLCD currently has an office in the basement of City Hall. The policy also noted that the district's revenue may fall unexpectedly for reasons that may include a loss of boat slip fees in the Commercial Bay area due to low water levels, natural disasters, fire or an entity unable to pay; or a contributing community unable or unwilling to pay its annual assessment. Prior to the vote, Mahtomedi board member Gene Altstatt asked that the
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A bi-weekly section where readers will be informed on subjects of seasonal interest, upcoming events and other timely topics. WINTER PARKING RESTRICTIONS END ON FRIDAY MARCH 31ST – Cars may be parked on Township streets overnight beginning this Friday unless there is a one inch snowfall. RAMSEY COUNTY YARD WASTE SITES NOW OPEN – The yard waste site in White Bear Township resumed its regular hours for the season on March 27th, they are: Mon/Wed/Friday – 11:00-7:00, Sat/ Sun – 11:00-5:00, please have your I.D. with you. The Township site accepts leaves, grass & non-woody plants, trees & shrubs, but no stumps. They also accept source separated organics (food waste, food tainted paper or cardboard) & non-recyclable paper and/or cardboard. For additional information & site locations visit RamseyRecycles.com/YardWaste. RECAP - White Bear Township held its Annual Town Meeting on March 14th. The Annual Town Meeting is true grassroots government where residents elect a moderator to run the meeting and approve a preliminary tax levy. This year’s meeting was moderated by Eric Wesman & had approximately 30 residents in attendance. County Board Member Blake Huffman & County Attorney John Choi provided residents with updates on county activities & Andy Gitzlaff provided & update
on the Rush Line Corridor Transit Task Force work. Residents were updated on the Town’s finances from the Town Finance Officer, Tom Kelly & then approved a 2018 preliminary property tax levy of $3,582,000. LANDSCAPING DO’S & DON’TS: DO: Know what’s below, call 811 before you dig to protect yourself & others from unintentionally hitting underground lines Know your property boundaries Questions to ask yourself before planting: 1) how big will this tree or shrub get; 2) is it under a power line; 3) will it block lines of sight; 4) will it overwhelm my house; 5) For more information view the Township’s Forestry Policy on our website DON’TS: Don’t place boulders in the road right-of-way as they can damage street maintenance equipment Don’t put cement or stones around your mailbox as they can damage equipment Don’t landscape around fire hydrants – keep them visible for your safety April 2 – National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day April 15 - Easter April 21 – Otter Lake Elementary School Carnival April 29 – Trash to Treasure Day
Visit www.whitebeartownship.org or call 651.747.2750 1281 Hammond Road, White Bear Township, Minnesota 55110 maximum amount of the policy be removed, saying "we don't need to box ourselves in with an upper limit." Dellwood director George St. Germain told Altstatt the cities were
looking for a limit. He was backed up by WBLCD attorney Alan Kantrud, who stated the district will get "pushback" from the cities if the balance reaches 200 percent.
Discord in Commercial Bay prompts new committee WHITE BEAR LAKE — The White Bear Lake Conservation District (WBLCD) formed a Commercial Bay task group last week in response to discontent among business owners. Mahtomedi Director and WBLCD Vice Chair Mark Ganz will lead the new subcommittee to address allotted dock space in the bay. Tally’s Dockside owner Keith Dehnert emailed the board earlier in the month to ask for fair treatment, requesting the city of White Bear Lake docks and Docks of White Bear be within their authorized dock use area (ADUA). The city encroached to the south and Docks of White Bear has a T dock that is out 600 feet and encroaches to the north, by three slips, Dehnert said. He asked that both parties move their docks to the south. Tally’s also wants a setback on Docks of White Bear Lake (in front of Admiral D’s) from the north edge of its ADUA to allow ample navigation for everyone. A letter to the board was also sent by Peter Sampair, appealing a Feb. 21 decision to reduce his slips from 12 to 10. Sampair, who owns the Acqua property, wrote that the board’s decision was based on false information. He also objected to accusations by Lake Utilization Committee members that he was trying to “sneak in”
12 boats without approval. In his Feb. 23 letter, Sampair added that references during the meeting that he was “slick” were disrespectful and untrue. He provided the board documents showing approval of his amended dock application, pointing out his boat slip density is lower than his neighbors’. Tally’s has one slip per 2.1 feet of lake frontage, the city of White Bear Lake has one slip per 2.3 feet, and Sampair (Acqua) has one slip per 2.5 feet, he said. Sampair is asking the board to reconsider its decision, saying if his variance isn’t approved, he will no longer support variances for Brian McGoldrick, manager of Docks of White Bear, and the city’s dock variances. Ganz, who chairs the lake utilization committee, said there will be no changes to dock configurations for 2017, adding the group will find a resolution to the Commercial Bay problem by next year. In additional action March 21, the WBLCD board: • Gave administrative secretary Julie Yoho more hours (28 per week) for more tasks and a raise. Yoho will be tasked with reviewing a League of Women Voters report regarding open meeting laws to see if anything needs to change, improve commu-
nication with lake homeowners, digitally file permits and variances, assist with raingardens, and monitor articles pertaining to White Bear Lake. Her hourly rate will increase from $20 to $26 for an annual salary of $35,000. WBLCD Chairman Bryan DeSmet said the raise will amount to an additional cost of $15,500. • Heard from Mike Parenteau, chair of the lake quality committee, that the district did not receive a grant from the DNR for Eurasian watermilfoil treatment. Every year about 100 acres is treated for the invasive weed, which Parenteau said is getting worse. “The amount we treat is consistent,” he said, “but with water level coming up, it’s expanding.” The White Bear Lake board member would like to treat to a deeper level and sooner than in the past. He also reported the lake level is up but did not have an official reading because the DNR monitoring station by Manitou Island needs to be recalibrated. • Reinstated the lake level resolution committee, which will be chaired by Gene Altstatt and Pat McCann. In other appointments, Scott Costello will now head the lake education committee. Debra Neutkens
No ice out record this year Everyone expected the ice to go out weeks ago, setting a new record. It didn’t happen. Instead, winter returned and the lake refroze. “I’ve never seen that before,” said “ice lady” Jan Holtz Kraemer, the official ice-out watchman for White Bear Lake. “But at least it got people to stop thinking the ice was out.” Kraemer announced the lake ice free on March 23, a week later than last year’s record date of March 16. “There was still ice earlier in the day but once it started to rain, that was it,” she noted. “The ice was gone. Even the snow is gone this year.” The 2017 holdout was the southern corner of the lake by Birchwood and Mahtomedi, Kraemer added. “The ice got caught back in that area. It dragged on a little bit this year.” The latest ice-out date remains May 4, 1950. Debra Neutkens DALE HANDY | SUBMITTED
Docks of White Bear had some pieces float away earlier this month in Commercial Bay when high winds blew them out into open water.