This transcript features the **Bayport City Council** meeting from January 8, 2024. Based on the context provided and the dialogue, here is the formatted transcript with speaker names. *** **[5:27] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** All right, I’d like to call to order the January 8th, 2024 meeting of the Bayport City Council. Let’s all stand to do the Pledge of Allegiance. **[5:35] Group:** I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. **[5:55] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** All right, okay. You want to call the roll, Matt? **[6:03] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Thank you, Madam Mayor. Councilmember Carlson? [Aye]. Councilmember Dah? [Hi]. Councilmember Gilmore? [Here]. Councilmember Hill? [Here]. Mayor Hansen? [Here]. We're all here. **[6:14] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Okay, great. Um, do anyone want to make a motion to approve the agenda or suggest any changes to it? **[6:25] Councilmember (Connie):** I'll move to approve the agenda as it's been submitted to us. **[6:28] Councilmember (John):** Second. **[6:30] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Thanks, John. All right, thanks, Connie. All right, all those in favor? [Aye]. All right, agenda is approved. We'll move on to proclamations, commendations, petitions, and announcements. Um, first of all, the December recycling award recipients are Amanda and Andrew Nelson at 486 Minnesota Street. And then the second thing on the list is the Mayor for a Day essay contest winner. Um, just a little background on that. **[7:15] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** All right, we—so the League of Minnesota Cities does a contest across the whole state where kids in fourth, fifth, and sixth grade, I think it is, can submit essays about what they would do if they were Mayor for a day. And so we decided that we would have—I volunteer with a fifth-grade classroom at Anderson Elementary, so we had all the fifth graders asked to submit an essay. They could submit it to the League of Minnesota Cities and then also to the city. We chose the winner; they would receive a $50 gift card to Mabel's in Bayport. So we ended up getting six fifth graders to send us essays, and the city staff actually did the selection. I agreed that Addison Kuby is our winner, and she's here today. She is going to read us her essay if she can get the little microphone to bend down. And she's been practicing. And this is the fun thing about what I just learned in the hallway: she didn't type this essay, she spoke it to the computer and the computer typed it for her. How smart is that? I think she should be Mayor. All right, so you want to read us your essay? **[8:40] Addison Kuby (Winner):** Yeah, okay. "If I were Mayor for a Day" by me, Addie. If I were Mayor for a day, I would start the day with an announcement for the whole town. I was going to take suggestions for improving the town and also I have a suggestion myself. I would like to create a gathering place for the whole town where we can host parties and we'll have speeches and it would be just a wonderful place for everyone to gather. After that, I would select four or five suggestions that seem like they would make the town better, and I would try to make them come true. For example, an ice cream party—I mean, that's reasonable, right? And who doesn't like ice cream? I think it would be a nice thing to gather together with. I know that everyone would have a great time. After that, I would go out in town and see how people like to experience living in town. I would talk to people walking their dogs, people bike riding, and owners of stores and see what they think of the town and the connections we make in it. I guess basically I just want to be able to create a place where there is kindness and peace where people love each other and can be with each other. I love being around people and leading them and working with them. I feel like I can create a better place to live and work and I think that's really important for towns. That is what I would do if I were Mayor for a day. **[10:07] [Applause]** **[10:10] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** You did such a nice job. You want to come up here? Congratulations. Nice job. And um, are you running for Mayor of BizTown too? **[10:25] Addison Kuby (Winner):** Uh, that election already passed and I lost. **[10:28] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Did—it was very close. Well, at least you won this, so that's awesome. So she actually tried to run for the—the fifth graders go to a place called BizTown where it's actually a little city where they have a restaurant and there's a Mayor. **[10:50] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** They learn about how a city operates and taxes and all those kinds of things. **[10:55] Addison Kuby (Winner):** It’s tomorrow. **[10:56] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Oh, it's tomorrow? Yeah, so she was running for Mayor of that at the same time. Very important. Handling the money for sure—tell Mary Goulette that, right? Okay, great. Well, thank you guys so much for coming and for participating. And I didn't even see that you were here too, thank you. That's a teacher, Mr. Small, awesome. Yeah, you're welcome to leave if you want. Thank you so much. I think she said everything that I always feel about being a Mayor. **[11:45] Councilmember:** You haven't given us any ice cream yet! **[11:50] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Go to the ice cream social! I'm there scooping it for you guys every June, remember that? I’m kidding you. Okay, so now is the Open Forum. It's a portion of the meeting to address the City Council on subjects that are not part of the agenda. A total of 15 minutes is allotted. Is anyone here for that? It looks like there's a lot of fans of Sergeant Slinger here. **[12:35] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Okay, Consent Agenda. We're going to consider a resolution adopting items 1-12 [Minutes, Payables, Permits, Refuse Licenses]. A monetary donation from the Bayport American Legion for the Centennial Pavilion. Appointment of interim Sergeant Aaron Slinger as Sergeant for the Police Department. An MOU with Washington County for election funds. Promotion of Tasia Downing to Library Clerk. Purchase of a replacement Bobcat for Public Works. And renewal of the joint powers agreement with Woodbury for warning sirens. Does anyone want to make a motion? **[14:15] Councilmember (Connie):** I'll make a motion approving the consent agenda as presented. **[14:20] Katie Hill (Councilmember):** I second. **[14:23] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Roll call. Councilmember Carlson? [I]. Councilmember Dah? [Hi]. Councilmember Gilmore? [Hi]. Councilmember Hill? [Hi]. Mayor Hansen? [Hi]. **[14:35] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** All right. Now we're going to have a ceremony to appoint Sergeant Slinger. Jay, you are Chief—I should call you Chief, right? **[14:46] Jay Jackson (Police Chief):** Jay is good. Thank you, Michele. Just a little bit of background here with Aaron. He has actually been with the department for quite a long time. He started here as a Reserve Officer in 2009. He was promoted to part-time officer in 2011. He left to be a dispatcher in 2015 with the State Patrol and returned in 2018 as a full-time police officer here. He has worked the majority of his time on afternoons and nights. Recently he's been our investigator and interim Sergeant starting back in August when I took over as interim Chief. Aaron will be filling the role of Sergeant. The process we went through was pretty extensive—oral interview, written test, emergency drill, and a mock media release. Sergeant Slinger passed with highest numbers. We are very lucky to have him. I’ll have your wife, Katie, come up for the pinning. **[17:15] Jay Jackson (Police Chief):** [To Katie Slinger] Thank you. You're supposed to scream when she does it! **[17:34] [Applause]** **[17:40] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Congratulations. We'll take a quick minute. I know most of you are here for him, so if you guys want to head out to the hall to take pictures, we can do that. Thank you so much, Aaron. I am very, very proud of you. **[18:25] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** All right, we don't have any public hearings, so we'll move on to Unfinished Business. We're going to discuss a revised draft of the MOU for shared use of Barker's Alps Park with the Stillwater Area Public Schools. Matt is going to present it. **[18:45] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Thank you, Madam Mayor. City Council held a joint workshop on November 13th and another on December 4th to recommend minor changes. Those changes are included in your packet. One thing that was missed under the expanded parking lot section: language will be added that "any replacement shall meet or exceed the quality of the current features." Regarding public use, we added "during park hours" and "in the same manner as any resident and public member." This means if there are no reservations, the school can use it as they see fit, but if there are reservations, the standard reservation rules apply. Staff is looking for the council to adopt the MOU with those noted language additions. **[22:05] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** How’s everyone feeling about it? I’m very happy with how this has turned out. **[22:15] Councilmember (Connie):** One thing, Matt... when somebody rents a pavilion, there’s a sheet of paper that goes on there. How is the park identified so someone doesn’t just say "I’m using it"? **[23:55] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Currently, the Pavilions and ball fields are the only areas available to rent. Because it’s really only the VAA and SC Croix Prep who utilize the ball fields, we don’t necessarily put up signs every day because the schedule doesn't change. We might need to consider signage moving forward if conflicts occur. **[25:35] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** I just wanted to make that part clear because we didn't really talk about how that could happen too. I think we're finally there. And we've already run this by School District staff? **[26:15] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Yes, ma'am. **[26:55] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Okay, do we have a motion to approve the memorandum? **[27:05] Councilmember (John):** I'll move to approve a memorandum of understanding outlining terms of shared use for Barker's Alps with Stillwater Area Public Schools for the tentative relocation of Anderson Elementary School. **[27:20] Ethan Gilmore (Deputy Mayor):** Second. **[27:23] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** All those in favor? [Aye]. Great, we’ve done it. **[27:45] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** On to New Business: overview of the city's draft storm sewer analysis and drainage study completed by SEH. Eric Kar is going to present this item. **[28:15] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** If I can give a quick introduction—in June of 2023, SEH completed a storm sewer analysis. It identifies vulnerabilities and looks to mitigate risks associated with runoff and flooding. This will be a road map for future street projects so we understand what to do with storm sewers while we're working on construction. I’ll turn it over to Mr. Kar. **[29:30] Eric Kar (SEH Engineer):** Good evening. I’m Eric Kar with SEH. We looked at the overall storm sewer system and looked for inefficiencies. The red lines on the map are segments we analyzed—14 different segments. We modeled the 5-year and 10-year storm events. Green means the pipe works fine; yellow is surcharged (under-sized but no ground flooding); and red indicates surface flooding in the gutter. **[33:48] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Can I ask a question? Some parts of the city don't have a pipe system, right? Natural gravity runs it down until it hits the pipes? **[34:55] Eric Kar (SEH Engineer):** Correct. **[35:10] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Madam Mayor, to simplify, a lot of our piping is associated with Highway 95. West of that, it’s open ditches and culverts. We’re looking at the watersheds coming down the hill and whether the pipe capacity at 95 is big enough to handle it. **[36:55] Eric Kar (SEH Engineer):** We focused on three priority areas for improvements: Segment 1 (Fifth Ave North), Segment 2 (Second Street North), and Segments 6/7 (Highway 95 and the alley). For Fifth Ave, we suggest increasing pipe size. For Second Street, we have two alternatives involving elliptical "squash" pipes to fit under the street. For the Highway 95 area, we looked at options to upgrade the sewer in the highway and cut across Third Ave. This is for future planning so if the State redoes Minnesota Street, we have a plan ready. **[45:15] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** So ultimately you’re asking the Council to accept this study so it moves from draft form to accepted form? **[45:30] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Yes, Madam Mayor. It will be incorporated into the Capital Improvement Plan. **[48:50] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** How does a project like this work for assessments? **[49:10] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** For major trunk sewers like these, we likely would not assess individual property owners because it’s for the good of the whole community. It would be a city cost. **[50:15] Councilmember (John):** I move to accept the storm water sewer analysis and drainage study and incorporate the recommendation into the city's Capital Improvement Plan. **[50:28] Katie Hill (Councilmember):** I second. **[50:35] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** All those in favor? [Aye]. Thank you, Eric. **[51:10] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Consider resolutions accepting a feasibility report and setting a public hearing for the 4th Avenue North Improvement project. **[51:25] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** This is specific to 4th Avenue North in front of Anderson Corporate headquarters. The feasibility report identified five lots. It proposes a 50/50 split for assessments between the city and the property owner. Construction is slated for summer or fall 2024. Total project cost is $344,450. **[54:15] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** My one question is the timing. That’s the access to our boat launch. If it’s in the summer, that would mess with that. Can it be fall? **[54:40] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Absolutely. We can specify that in the bidding. **[59:15] Councilmember (John):** I'll make a motion to adopt a resolution accepting a feasibility report for the 4th Avenue North Improvement project. **[59:25] Ethan Gilmore (Deputy Mayor):** Second. **[59:33] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Roll call. [Council responds Aye]. **[59:55] Councilmember (John):** I'll move to adopt a resolution setting a public hearing for February 5th, 2024 for the 4th Avenue North Improvement project. **[1:00:10] Ethan Gilmore (Deputy Mayor):** Second. [Motion passes]. **[1:00:25] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Appointments, designations, and City Council liaison assignments for 2024. **[1:00:40] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** If there are any changes anybody wants to ask for, let’s do it tonight. **[1:01:25] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Right now we've got John on Middle St. Croix Watershed; Katie on Planning Commission; Connie on Library Board; I'm on Fire Relief; Ethan on Cable Commission; I'm on Lake Elmo Airport; and Katie is the new Bayport Community Action League liaison. I’m good with mine. Connie, are you still good with Library? **[1:02:15] Councilmember (Connie):** Good with that. **[1:02:45] Councilmember (Connie):** I'll make a motion to approve the 2024 assignments. **[1:03:00] Katie Hill (Councilmember):** Second. [Motion passes]. **[1:03:30] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Setting meeting dates for the rest of the year. Only the September meeting is moved due to Labor Day. We will need a special meeting in November after the election to certify results. **[1:05:10] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** April 1st is my birthday, so if we have it, I better have cake! **[1:07:05] Katie Hill (Councilmember):** I move to approve the 2024 regular City Council meeting dates. [Seconded and passed]. **[1:07:35] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Liaison reports. John? [Nothing to report]. Ethan? [No]. Library Board, Connie? **[1:08:20] Councilmember (Connie):** The Library Board met on the 17th. They had "Lelo's Lunchbox" with applesauce—Public Works had to go because applesauce ended up on the ceiling! But the kids had fun. Jill Smith was also asked to join the Anderson School Planning Group. Meeting rooms are seeing record usage. **[1:10:40] Katie Hill (Councilmember):** BCAL elected officers. And a bunch of us were at the Lighting of the Green on the 6th. **[1:11:30] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** I attended the Regional Council of Mayors. I also met with Pam Johnson regarding the Barker’s Alps MOU. I attended a Met Council listening session in Lake Elmo. And I met with the Nolans about green initiatives. Regarding the old school building, the District is leaning towards not selling it and using it themselves. **[1:16:00] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Staff reports. Chief Kinney (Fire) reports call volume is at 1,228 year-to-date, up from last year. Chief Jackson, you have the Police report? **[1:16:55] Jay Jackson (Police Chief):** Our Toys for Tots drive was a success. Staff and citizens stepped up with donations. Officer Cornell was featured on KARE 11. We also have a pending donation from the Masons for a portable fire suppression system. It’s a chemical tool we can toss into a fire to suppress it before the fire department arrives. Calls to date: 6,816. **[1:20:45] Simon (Public Works):** Villas of Inspiration is wrapping up. Sewer cleaning and televising is complete—we're reviewing that video now. And we secured the $217,000 grant for Barker’s Alps Woodland restoration! **[1:22:45] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Are we going to make the ice rink this year? **[1:23:15] Simon (Public Works):** It’s supposed to get cold, so we’re going to try. It takes about two weeks to build up the layers. **[1:25:30] Matt Kline (City Administrator):** Sarah Taylor (Planning) is out sick, but the city newsletter is at print. We’re also preparing for the March 5th primary. On the admin side, we’re hiring an Office Accounting Specialist. **[1:28:25] Michele Hanson (Mayor):** Happy New Year, everyone. Motion to adjourn? **[1:28:35] Councilmember (John):** Move to adjourn. **[1:28:40] Katie Hill (Councilmember):** Second. [Meeting adjourned].