Based on the context provided and the dialogue within the transcript, here is the speaker-attributed version of the townhall meeting. **Note on Names:** The provided official list and the transcript have some discrepancies (e.g., the transcript refers to the City Administrator as "Adam," while the list names "Matt Kline"). I have used the names provided in your list for the roles they represent, while retaining names used in direct address (like "Adam" and "John") where they clearly identify a specific speaker. *** [0:19] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Um, Madam Mayor, I believe we are good to go with that. [0:19] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Okay, well then I call to order the December 7th, 2020, Bayport City Council meeting. Please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance... [0:57] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** There we go, thank you. With that—oh, go ahead. [0:57] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** No, I was just going to say, did Brad join the meeting? [0:57] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Uh, he is listed down below. [0:57] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** Okay, good, because I just had a call from him 20 minutes ago and I didn't hear my phone, so I just was wondering. [0:57] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Oh, he must be listening in instead of um, doing the camera. So, welcome to anyone who's attending virtually. With that, Adam, would you please call the roll? [1:13] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Yes. Mayor? [1:13] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Here. [1:13] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Councilmember Carlson? [1:13] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** Here. [1:13] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Councilmember Dahl? [1:13] **Councilmember John Dahl:** Here. [1:13] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Councilmember Hanson? [1:13] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** Here. [1:13] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** And Councilmember Buckley is absent. [1:43] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Good, thank you. That takes us to the approval of tonight's agenda. Are there any questions, additions, or changes? Okay, if not, would someone like to make a motion, please? [1:43] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I'll make a motion approving tonight's agenda for the December meeting. [1:43] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you, Connie. Is there a second? [1:43] **Councilmember John Dahl:** I will second. [1:43] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you, John. Adam? [1:43] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Councilmember Carlson? (Aye) Councilmember Dahl? (Aye) Councilmember Hanson? (Aye) Mayor? (Aye). [2:00] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** That takes us to our proclamations, accommodations, petitions, and announcements. The November recycling award recipient is Melissa Weidenstrom at 693 Third Street North. And she will be awarded for her recycling efforts with funding made possible with a grant from Washington County. So thank you very much, Melissa, for your efforts. That takes us to our open forum, where we set aside 15 minutes in the meeting to address topics that are not on tonight's agenda. So if anyone would like to address the Council, just please state your name and address for the record. And we do have a visitor I can see that's with us on video recording. If anyone else is here by voice, also please make yourself known. But with that, Brad—Mr. Smith, would you like to address the Council? [3:14] **Brad Smith (Guest):** Oh, we need you to unmute, please, in the lower left-hand corner... there you go. Did that work? [3:14] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** That did. Thank you. [3:14] **Brad Smith (Guest):** Sorry, this is not what I usually do. I got a picture sent to me by my bookkeeper of a letter you guys must have sent about the Greystone that was supposed to be on this meeting tonight. [3:14] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Adam, can you...? Yes, thank you, Madam Mayor. The Greystone property—or colloquially referred to as the Greystone property—is currently vacant and it is supposed to be on the vacant registration list. When we sent the registration requirements to the property owner, Mr. Smith, we have not received back the vacant registration application nor the fee for this year. So with that, we were looking to assess that fee as unpaid. It’s not on the agenda; it would be on for the next year's assessments, not this year. So that hasn't been to the Council, and we have not heard back from Mr. Smith or anybody on that item. [4:38] **Brad Smith (Guest):** Mr. Smith, I would like to sit down with whoever with the city again and try to get this figured out and finally put a business in there and get over the hurdles that we've had. [4:47] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** I believe I've spoken to a couple council members about this, Mr. Smith, and what I would like to propose is that we have a council workshop. It would be at this point a virtual meeting, but we could also have the billing official there as well as the Council and yourself, and discuss options as to move forward on that. I think it's a mutual interest for the city as well as you to determine something that works. [5:20] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Okay, so with that, we'll be in touch to coordinate that. [5:24] **Brad Smith (Guest):** That sounds great. Could someone—I'm sure you guys send things to keep record of it—but it'd be nice to get a phone call or something else to have someone set something up. And if it's again by Zoom, I guess we're doing it by a computer, that sounds really good. [5:45] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Probably, I'm not sure we'd squeeze it in yet before the holidays possibly, but otherwise right after the beginning of the year. Does that sound acceptable? [5:54] **Brad Smith (Guest):** It doesn't seem like there's much rush, not like I can open another business over there. [6:00] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** We'll leave it with Adam to coordinate and schedule that, and we will plan to attend as a Council with you. [6:06] **Brad Smith (Guest):** Sounds great. Thank you. [6:10] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Okay, thanks Brad. [6:13] **Councilmember John Dahl:** Thanks, Brad. Have a good one. [6:15] **Brad Smith (Guest):** Thanks. Thank you. [6:19] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Very good. Is there anyone else on the line that would like to address the Council? Okay, I don't believe so. If anyone does pop on, please let us know. That will take us into our consent agenda. So we'll consider a resolution adopting items 1 through 14, including minutes, payables, permits, holidays for 2021, license renewals, insurance, hiring of Jennifer Ho and Charles Braun as library clerks, donations from the American Legion and Dan and Ginny Colleene and Danica Ridgway, and the reappointment of Tom Triplett to the Planning Commission. Finally, to designate January 4th, 2021, as the next regular meeting. Any additions, changes, or comments for the consent agenda? If not, would someone like to make a motion to approve? [7:53] **Councilmember John Dahl:** I'll move to approve the December 7th, 2020, city council agenda as submitted by staff. [7:53] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you, John. A second, please? [7:53] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I'll second it. [7:53] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you, Connie. And Adam? [7:53] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Councilmember Dahl? (Aye) Councilmember Carlson? (Aye) Councilmember Hanson? (Aye) Mayor? (Aye). [8:15] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Okay, this evening we do have a public hearing. The first item is certification of past-due waste collection bills to property taxes, and the second item will be certification of past-due utility bills to property taxes. With that, I'll turn it to you, Adam. [8:39] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Thank you, Madam Mayor. Give me just one moment to pull this up. This item is regarding the certification of past-due waste collection fees to the property taxes. This year we've been working with Republic Services to eliminate properties from this list. We did get one challenge to the proposed assessment from a Mr. Bruman that was included with the packet. This is a rental property. The owner, in his appeal, claimed he hadn't been receiving invoices, but those were being sent to that property. Based on the information we received from Republic, this would meet the threshold for assessing those delinquent costs. We did not receive any appeals from any of the other properties. [11:46] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** These get certified at the end of the year. There is a 10% penalty as well as 6% interest that will be applied when they are certified to the County. This is a statutory state statute process. We are making a couple of changes to this process, but if the Council has any questions, I'm happy to answer them. [12:56] **Councilmember John Dahl:** I have one. Is the 10% city charge what the city gets back from the individuals? [13:10] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Yes, that 10% penalty is state statute and goes directly to the city for the administrative costs. We do pay Washington County a portion for them to process those as well, so that 10% covers our staff time and our costs to the County. [13:58] **Councilmember John Dahl:** I realize it's a pretty nominal amount of money, but does the city come out whole on the deal, would you say? [14:05] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** It would really depend; we come out about even. We eliminate anything under $50 because it’s not really worth anyone's time to certify those. We issue a letter giving notice to the account owner and work to get them to pay so we don't have to assess them. [15:58] **Councilmember John Dahl:** Another one—and I apologize if you answered this—but has Mr. Bruman had a chance to see the detailed letter from Republic Services? [16:22] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** The city has not sent those to him. He's been in communication with Republic. I'm a little confused about the discrepancy he mentioned, but if it’s not 60 days or more delinquent, those don't get assessed. [17:35] **Councilmember John Dahl:** So the city has been communicating with Mr. Bruman, but he's not here today to discuss this. I guess we don't really have much we can do other than to go ahead with the certification. [17:55] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Correct. The service has been being provided. He was the mailing address, but the buildings' address was changed during this. [18:54] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Okay. Are there any other questions from the Council? If not, I will officially open the public hearing. Adam, did you cover the utility bills as well? [19:28] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** I had not yet. I can do that now. This is for water and sewer delinquent accounts. This is something we've discussed over the last couple of months to give staff more flexibility. This gives everybody a benefit; it gets put onto their property taxes and allows them to start fresh with an outstanding balance of essentially zero. There is no penalty or interest on those because they are a lien on the property. We started out with about $2,200 outstanding. If they pay before the end of the year, they come off the roll. [22:42] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Are there any specific questions from the Council on the water and sewer utility? It seems very clear. Thank you, Adam. With that, I will move us into the public hearing. If we have any visitors online, please state your name and address for the record. (Pause) Since we do not seem to have any comments from the public, would someone like to make a motion to close the public hearing? [23:45] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I'll make a motion to close the public hearing. [23:45] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you, Connie. Is there a second? [23:45] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** Second. [23:45] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you. Adam? (Roll call: Carlson-Aye, Hanson-Aye, Dahl-Aye, Mayor-Aye). Any further discussion? If not, would someone like to make a motion to approve? [24:18] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** I'll move to approve the certification of past-due waste collection and utility bills to property taxes as presented. [24:18] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you. Is there a second? [24:18] **Councilmember John Dahl:** I'll second it. [24:18] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you, John. Adam? (Roll call: Carlson-Aye, Mayor-Aye). [25:00] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** That takes us to our first item of unfinished business: an amendment to Chapter 46, Solid Waste, of the city code. Adam? [25:12] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** This is an amendment because we authorized a new contract with a new hauler (Tennis Sanitation). We updated the insurance coverage and performance bond to $50,000 per the league’s recommendation. Regarding the billing process, Tennis was not in favor of doing assessments at all, but we compromised. Once bills are 60 days in arrears, we will make the hauler whole and the city will carry those costs through the year and assess them. We also expanded plastics recycling and struck the section on hazardous waste as we don’t collect it. This requires a four-fifths vote for summary publication. [28:51] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Any questions? It seems to make sense. If everyone is okay to move forward, I would ask for a motion. [29:18] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I'll move to approve the amendment to Chapter 46 of the Solid Waste city code as presented. [29:18] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you, Connie. Second? [29:18] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** I'll second. [29:18] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Adam? (Roll call: Aye). Now the second motion for the summary. [29:58] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** I'll move to approve a summary of publication for the amendment to Chapter 46 Solid Waste as presented. [29:58] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you, Michelle. Second? [29:58] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I'll second it. [29:58] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Adam? (Roll call: Aye). [30:26] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** That takes us to our new business: consider authorization for a feasibility study for proposed 2021 city infrastructure improvements. Matt and John, over to you. [30:45] **Matt Kline (City Administrator / Public Works):** Madam Mayor, we are planning a 2021 project for 6th Street North and the city cemetery access road. Both are rated 4 out of 10. We plan for a mill and overlay. We need to do soil borings to verify the underlying structure. 6th Street is full of potholes. The cemetery road is currently gravel and needs to be paved. SEH has provided a cost estimate for engineering work and a feasibility report, not to exceed $44,100. [35:04] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** The CIP says $113k for 6th Street. I'm just not sure next year is the best year to be laying that assessment on our residents. It might be a struggle. What do the other council members think? Matt, have you spoken to any residents? [35:55] **Matt Kline (City Administrator / Public Works):** I have not. There is rental property there and St. Michael's Cemetery, who would be assessed half of that road project. [36:38] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** How long can we kick the can down the road? I want to make sure we aren't creating more problems. [37:05] **Matt Kline (City Administrator / Public Works):** We believe the road is in fairly good condition underneath, but if you put it off too long, a mill and overlay might not be feasible anymore, and it becomes a total reconstruction. [38:57] **Councilmember John Dahl:** For my side, 6th is bad. I could be convinced to hold off on that, but I would like to move forward with the soil boring. In terms of the cemetery, it’s high time we get our part of that paved. I’d be disappointed if we don't move forward with that at a minimum. [39:18] **Matt Kline (City Administrator / Public Works):** We could move forward with the plans and feasibility report now because they are good for a year or two. [40:50] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** I guess I'm not concerned about stacking it because if we have the money in 2021, it should still be there in 2022. I'm good with SEH doing the specs, but in the meantime, we should reach out to homeowners. [42:49] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I tend to lean toward agreeing with Michelle on going forward with the specs. I want to find out who is responsible for the St. Michael's bill, because the churches were just hit with a street assessment and it’s rough for them right now. [44:30] **Matt Kline (City Administrator / Public Works):** The feasibility report will show the potential assessment for property owners. Putting it off a year might save money now, but costs go up. I believe three churches split the cemetery cost: St. Michael's, St. Mary’s, and St. Charles. [46:50] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Does it make sense to separate the pricing for the cemetery? [48:56] **Matt Kline (City Administrator / Public Works):** I would hold off on the cemetery if we weren't doing 6th Street. The scope is so small we wouldn't get good pricing. John, what do you think? [49:15] **John Perotti (City Engineer):** Generally, combining it with a larger project is the better approach to get lower prices. [52:01] **Councilmember John Dahl:** John Perotti, what is the shelf life of the feasibility report? [52:15] **John Perotti (City Engineer):** The study itself is good for a long time, but cost estimates would need updating if delayed a whole year—probably $1,000 to $1,500 to update. [56:15] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I’ll make a motion to authorize SEH to complete plans, specifications, and a feasibility report for 2021 improvements, not to exceed $44,100. [56:15] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you. Is there a second? [56:15] **Councilmember John Dahl:** Second. (Roll call: Aye). [1:01:09] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** That takes us to our Truth in Taxation on the 2021 budget and levy. Adam? [1:01:55] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** The 2021 budget is a full-service city budget. We are expecting full Local Government Aid (LGA) next year. We have a 2.47% budget increase, which is only about $82,000 more than last year. The property tax levy increase is about 8.3%. Factors include health insurance up 3.75%, a 3% wage increase for staff, and a decrease in building permit revenue as the Inspiration development builds out. We also added $27,500 for Emerald Ash Borer and $40,500 for fire equipment funds. The median annual property tax increase for a Bayport home is $53.14. [1:18:32] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** I didn't understand the blue section on the CIP. We need to install a generator for the air stripper? [1:19:01] **Matt Kline (City Administrator / Public Works):** Yes, the booster station pumps are for summer water usage. We are running all three pumps in the summer with no backup. The generator is for the air stripper to remove TCE from the water if the power goes out. Well number 4 is our emergency well, but it isn't treated for TCE. We are also looking at connecting to the Kahanas property. [1:25:13] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** It’s bothersome to me that the entire city is helping to pay for properties that water too much. We need to push conservation. Woodbury has increased rates for high usage. [1:33:27] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** I think the topic of water is a workshop topic. We want the new homes, but it can't be at the expense of the environment. Let's revisit that this spring. [1:34:40] **Councilmember John Dahl:** I’ll make a motion that we adopt the city budget for 2021 at $3,411,964. [1:34:40] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Thank you. Second? [1:34:40] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** I will second that. (Roll call: Aye). [1:36:34] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I’ll make a motion to adopt the resolution establishing the levy for 2021. [1:36:34] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Second? [1:36:34] **Councilmember John Dahl:** I’ll second it. (Roll call: Aye). [1:37:05] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** I move that we adopt the resolution adopting the Capital Improvement Plan for 2021. [1:37:05] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Second? [1:37:05] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I’ll second that. (Roll call: Aye). [1:38:25] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** City Council liaison reports. John? [1:38:25] **Councilmember John Dahl:** I have a meeting coming up, nothing to report yet. [1:38:25] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** The Library Board met virtually. We are back to curbside service. Washington County purchased some Chromebooks and hotspots available for residents. [1:40:41] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** The Cable Commission has a new commissioner, Todd Gardner. We said goodbye to Tom Wagner. We are losing revenue as people cut the cord, so we are looking at other sources. We need a Bayport citizen rep to replace Brian Delisle. [1:43:48] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** I attended the Fire Department board meeting. I want to thank John Buckley for his service as he leaves the Council. Adam and I also met with the Department of Corrections regarding COVID-19 at the prison. They are doing everything they can to address the situation. [1:46:06] **Gabe Kinney (Fire Chief):** November calls were 69. Fire inspections are ongoing. We have members who tested positive for COVID but have recovered. The Santa escort on November 27th was great. [1:48:26] **Jay Jackson (Police Chief):** Alcohol and tobacco compliance checks were completed. We have six new reserve officers. Tom Ruzich was promoted to Community Service Officer. We still have Toys for Tots. I’m moving the speed sign to several locations and will present data in February. [1:53:07] **Matt Kline (City Administrator / Public Works):** Public Works is mulching leaves and decorating for holidays. Thanks to the American Legion for 2,000 feet of lights and Blackwood's Tree Farm for the trees. Highway 95 is generally done. [1:57:42] **Sara Taylor (City Planner):** We are wrapping up 2021 permits. The declared winners of the election are Mayor St. Orrs and Councilmembers Carlson and Gilmore. We identified a location for public access to the Clean Water Land and Legacy parcel. [2:01:35] **Adam Bell (City Administrator):** Regarding the trash transition, last Republic pickup is December 28th. Leave carts at the curb. Tennis carts arrive starting the 21st. Republic had a billing error and charged for January; refunds will be issued. The new city website will go live a few weeks into January. January 4th is the first meeting of 2021, and we will have a workshop to orient Councilmember-elect Ethan Gilmore. [2:13:32] **Councilmember Michele Hanson:** I’ll make my last motion of 2020: to adjourn. [2:13:32] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** Second? [2:13:32] **Councilmember Connie Carlson:** I’ll second it. [2:13:32] **Mayor Michele Hanson:** All in favor? (Aye). Meeting adjourned. Goodnight, everybody. Merry Christmas!