A regular meeting of the Council for the City of Crystal Falls was held in the Council Chambers of the City Hall on Monday, September 9, 2002, at 4:30 P.M. Central Time.

Roll call: Mayor Nylund, Councilors Hendrickson, Thrasher, Benda and Lind.

Also Present: City Manager, City Attorney and City Clerk.

Mayor Nylund called the meeting to order at 4:30 p.m. and led all present in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Councilor Benda supported by Councilor Thrasher moved to approve the minutes of the special and regular meetings of August 12^th and also the special meeting of September 6^th, 2002 as written.

Motion carried.

Mike Ferguson, Chairman of the DDA, updated the Council on matters relative to the DDA.

Councilor Hendrickson supported by Mayor Nylund moved to appoint Mike Santi to the Downtown Development Authority for the remainder of a 4-year term that expires November 30, 2004.

Motion carried.

Mayor Nylund supported by Councilor Hendrickson moved to recognize the Downtown Development Authority welcome sign as an official welcoming sign of the City of Crystal Falls.

Ayes: Mayor Nylund, Councilors Thrasher and Hendrickson.

Nays: Councilors Lind and Benda.

Motion carried.

Councilor Hendrickson supported by Councilor Benda moved to approve the September – November quarterly billing for fire protection in the amount of $28,720.29.

Motion carried.

Manager Nordeman reported on an inquiry about the Manor building by a party interested in it for a business venture. Mark Agnessi will be present at the next meeting with further updates on the Manor Marketing progress.

The recommendation from the Crystal Falls Planning Commission regarding the re-zoning of certain "Light Industry" areas to "Residential" is to postpone the re-zoning pending the implementation of a Master Plan and new zoning ordinance for the City. Councilor Hendrickson supported by Councilor Benda moved to postpone the public hearing scheduled for October 14, 2002 for the consideration of a zoning ordinance amendment.

Motion carried.

Gloria Fredericksen, representing the Crystal Theatre, explained the need for the City to take ownership of the recently acquired annex to the Crystal Theatre. Mayor Nylund supported by Councilor Lind moved to accept the transfer of the deed from the Crystal Theatre Board to the City of Crystal Falls for the Crystal Theatre annex.

Motion carried.

Gloria Fredericksen also asked Mayor Nylund to appoint a City representative to the Crystal Theatre Board. Mayor Nylund stated that he would like to leave that appointment for the newly elected Mayor who will take office in November 2002.

Councilor Hendrickson supported by Councilor Thrasher moved to authorize Attorney Lawrence to proceed with the drafting of deeds for properties in the Industrial Park to the Crystal Falls Professional Center, LLC and to Crystal Falls Springs Incorporated as per the revised MOU’s for each entity.

Motion carried.

Deb Strelecki of Waste Management advised the Council of the need to change the garbage pickup to curb side due to the increased size of the garbage trucks. She noted that the alleys are simply too narrow and in some cases the overhead wires are too low, creating a navigation problem. She noted there would be some exceptions and she would look into each of them, along with Manager Nordeman, as needed. A notice will appear in the local papers prior to the start of this procedure.

Councilor Benda supported by Councilor Lind moved to appoint Donald Boulanger and Kristine Coopman to serve on the Crystal Falls Planning Commission with both terms expiring April 30, 2005.

Ayes: Mayor Nylund, Councilors Lind and Benda

Nays: Councilors Hendrickson and Thrasher

Motion carried.

Councilor Hendrickson supported by Councilor Benda moved to send a letter of appreciation to Jim Burke for his time served on the Crystal Falls Planning Commission.

Motion carried.

Councilor Benda supported by Mayor Nylund moved to accept a bid from Florence Motors for a new 2003 Ford Crown Victoria squad car. The final cost to the city after trade-in (1996 Ford Crown Victoria) is $21,200.00.

Motion carried.

Manager Nordeman presented the Council with some concerns about the accumulated vacation time currently due to City employees and suggested the Council consider some restrictions. He will present a proposal at the next council meeting for consideration.

Manager Nordeman reviewed a report on an American Disability Act survey conducted on several city owned buildings. He noted that a recommendation to allow for the compliance of the City would be shared with the Council in the near future.

A recommendation from Manager Nordeman and Police Chief Bicigo to keep North 6^th Street and Wagner Street designated as "no parking" following the detour will be examined and brought back to the Council for consideration.

John Moon asked the Council to assist Baraga Telephone in securing the cooperation of Ameritech to insure the expansion of Baraga Telephone’s services to customers on the eastside of the Paint River Bridge. Manager Nordeman will see what, if anything, the City can do to help.

Councilor Hendrickson supported by Councilor Benda moved that the payrolls and disbursements in the amount of $299,690.36 for the month of August 2002 be approved, and the City Clerk be instructed to draw checks on the City Treasury in payment of same.

Motion carried.

Councilor Hendrickson supported by Councilor Benda, moved to accept the following reports for the month of August 2002:

Police Chief’s report indicating 182 complaints, 18 of which were closed by arrest and 2,008 patrolled miles.

Joint Fire Authority report submitted by Fire Chief John Ahola indicating answering 6 fire calls; spending approximately 44 man-hours fighting fires; and holding 1 practice and training session.

Chief Electrician’s report of department activities.

Public Work foreman’s report on department activities.

Motion carried.

There being no further business to come before the Council, meeting adjourned at 5:59 p.m.