This transcript features **Mayor Matt Montgomery** presiding over the meeting. Note that while the provided context lists a specific set of Council Members, the transcript’s roll call and dialogue indicate the 2020 Council consisted of **Bringgold, Duncan, Gesme, Lundell, Matson, and Althoff**. Additionally, the City Administrator is addressed throughout as **"Neil"** (referencing Neil Jensen, who served in the role during this period). [0:41] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Good evening, everyone. Turn on my mic. Good evening, welcome to the August 18th City Council meeting for the City of Cannon Falls. Could I have roll call, please? [0:41] **City Clerk Sara Peer:** Bringgold? **Council Member Bringgold:** Here. **City Clerk Sara Peer:** Duncan? **Council Member Duncan:** Here. **City Clerk Sara Peer:** Gesme? **Council Member Gesme:** Here. **City Clerk Sara Peer:** Lundell? **Council Member Lundell:** Here. **City Clerk Sara Peer:** Matson? **Council Member Matson:** Here. **City Clerk Sara Peer:** Montgomery? **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Here. **City Clerk Sara Peer:** Althoff? **Council Member Althoff:** Here. [0:41] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Would you stand for the Pledge of Allegiance, please? 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. [1:28] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Okay, approval of the agenda. Do I have a motion to approve the agenda? [1:28] **Council Member Matson:** So moved. [1:28] **Council Member Bringgold:** Second. [1:28] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Motion by Gesme, a second by Bringgold to approve the agenda. Any discussion? All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Carried. We'll get right into the consent agenda. Consent agenda items may be adopted under one motion as presented or may be removed for discussion and resolution as council business. For you and the audience at home, I'll go through the consent agenda. Item A: Just and correct claims for the accounting period ending August 13, 2020. [2:08] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Item B: Minutes of the meetings for the August 4th, 2020 City Council meeting. Item C: Resolution 2500 approving the reapportionment of assessments upon land, Reimer Companies. Item D: Approve the Public Works Director position hire. Item E: Resolution 2501 accepting a grant of $500 for renewing the countryside for the Farmers Market. And Item F: Installation of a new RPZ at the waste treatment plant. Is there anything the Council would like to bring down? [2:53] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Hearing none, is there a motion to approve the consent agenda? [2:53] **Council Member Bringgold:** So moved. [2:53] **Council Member Duncan:** I'll second. [2:53] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Motion by Bringgold, second by Duncan to approve the consent agenda. Any discussion? All in favor? Aye. Opposed? In that consent agenda was approving the new Public Works Director. I'm just going to introduce him—he's sitting in the back. Kevin Zeidel. Close enough? Kevin was our pick for the Public Works Director and we're working on that and he'll soon be on the job. Welcome aboard. [2:53] **Kevin Zeidel:** Thank you, appreciate the opportunity. [3:42] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Okay, we'll get into Council business. Item A: Introduction and first reading, Ordinance 369, establishing a Park Advisory Board. Neil? [3:42] **Neil (City Administrator):** Yeah, we looked at this at the last meeting and made a couple of adjustments, and what you see in front of you is the first official reading of the establishing of the Park Advisory Board for Cannon Falls. If you've got any questions, I would like to answer them. [4:26] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Questions? It's pretty short and it just establishes a membership and stuff. So there'll be a few more coming as you're back in your goal-setting agenda from, I think it was January; there were several boards that need to be addressed. A motion to approve the first reading of Ordinance 369? [4:54] **Council Member Duncan:** So moved. [4:54] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Second? [4:54] **Council Member Matson:** Second. [4:54] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Motion by Duncan, second by Montgomery, approve the first reading of Ordinance 369 establishing a Park Board Advisory Board. Any discussion? All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Carried. Item B: Request for proposals, legal services discussion. Neil? [5:40] **Neil (City Administrator):** Also in your goal-setting agenda back in January, you had RFPs for engineering, which we just completed, and legal services, and to look at all other consulting companies that work for the City of Cannon Falls. So this is the next step in your goal-setting agenda that you guys wanted to get completed for the year. What we would do is, if you approve it, we'll go through the same process as we did with the engineering services. [5:40] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Very good. Is there a motion to request proposals for legal services? [6:26] **Council Member Lundell:** So moved. [6:26] **Council Member Duncan:** Second. [6:26] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Motion by Lundell and a second by Duncan to approve a request for proposals for our legal services. Any other discussion? All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Carried. Okay, Item C: Finance Department reclassification and compensation approval. Neil? [6:26] **Neil (City Administrator):** A couple months ago we had David Drown and Associates do a reclassification and reorganization of the Finance Department. It was determined that we could eliminate one position—actually one and a half positions—and put that work amongst the current employees and save a few dollars. With that, I had the employees fill out a form and explain their job duties and sent it off to David Drown and Associates, and they came back with a new classification. [7:13] **Neil (City Administrator):** With that comes a compensation requirement, too, that you see in your packet. There were three positions that we looked at: the Utility Billing and Office Assistant, the HR Technician/Accounts Payable Clerk, and the City Clerk/Payroll Clerk. Each one of them—the first two, the Utility Billing and the Accounts Payable Clerk—moved one step and one grade each, and the City Clerk moved two steps to Grade 12 and one step on Step 7. So with that said, the actual financial commitment for the reorganization is around twelve thousand dollars, but if you look at the savings on not rehiring the Finance Director and the part-time employee—just the part-time employee was twenty thousand—so it's a considerable savings for the city and the employees are stepping up to do this. [7:58] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** I like it. It's saving us money, we've shifted some people around, and I think it's a good thing. Right? Any other input from the Council? [8:45] **Council Member Duncan:** No, it's always good to review these things anyway, and this was an opportunity that we just looks like we couldn't pass up. So this is good. I make a motion to do what Neil just said. [8:45] **Council Member Gesme:** I'll second that. [8:45] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Okay, there's been a motion by Gesme and a second by Duncan to approve the Finance Department reclassification and compensation. Any other discussion? All in favor? Opposed? [8:45] **Council Member Althoff:** I abstain, Jon. [8:45] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Okay, five, four, and one abstention. Okay, Item D: Farmers Market discussion. Neil, you want to start us out? [9:31] **Neil (City Administrator):** At the last meeting, Mr. Olson from Artisan Plaza—excuse me—came to talk about the farmers markets in the City of Cannon Falls. I don't think it's to anybody's surprise that it's been kind of a hot topic inside and outside the City Council chambers. So it was a request to put it on the agenda for discussion and to figure out options that we could consider for the markets. In your packet, you'll find there's probably four options that you could consider, and I guess it's up to the City Council what their thoughts are. [10:25] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Well, fact of the matter is, it's not like the old days. I mean, the farmers market has been down there forever. In the fall, everybody brought their vegetables and it was a great thing. But today is today. I mean, there's ordinances now and we've got to abide by them. And it's just changed. Down in the parking lot on Saturday mornings, it's crowded. As it was pointed out at the last meeting, the number of people using that trail has doubled this year. 90,000 last year; we're going to go over 200,000 people using that trail this year. I mean, that makes for a congested time down there. And you know, we've had some incidents down there with an attack last fall. But still, I've talked to the downtown businesses—being one myself for many years—they like it down there, too. I mean, it brings some people downtown. So it's a tough issue, but Neil has given you four options here, which I think is good. I'd like to see the Council adopt one of those motions tonight. [11:55] **Tim Molly:** I don't know if you all know who I am, I'm Tim Molly. I'm a vendor downtown and I just want to have a brief statement before you make your decision. Cannon Falls Downtown Farmers Market is a place for community to unite, purchasing locally grown foods and products, venture around downtown and celebrate the unique atmosphere that Cannon Falls offers. We support all small businesses by stimulating local economies with residual economic effects. We provide a healthy food option to service those who might not have the luxury of transportation. We create a festive, exciting area to safely congregate on Saturday mornings to bring people into downtown. [12:42] **Tim Molly:** This one-stop shop is a vital location for it is a central hub of all transportation going to Hastings, Red Wing, and Northfield. There have been countless times when commuters going to and from stop to shop and ask questions about businesses within town. We gladly promote our town as the best place to eat and visit. We also promote the Chamber of Commerce by handing out Chamber booklets to visitors about our community. We have been recognized by Mayo Clinic for our efforts in contributing toward healthier lifestyles for the community. This is a unique year with COVID-19 and with a number of restricted activities closed across the state, that is preventing people from doing many things; thus, we have a higher than normal volume of bikers this year. We do not see this as a hindrance to our market, but we see it as an opportunity to sell our town as a place to visit. In fact, we welcome the extra volume of people. [14:14] **Tim Molly:** The key here is cooperation. Each business should have the right to succeed or fail based on their own doings. A business cannot hide under a rock for fear of liability. Insurance is there to address those concerns. In regards to some issues with zoning, it continues to be an evolving argument with the lack of the words "farmers market" or "open market." I can address those concerns with a state statute: Minnesota Statutes governing local cities and towns 462.357, official control zoning ordinances, subdivision 1e on non-conformities. Section A states, except as otherwise provided by law, any non-conformity, including the lawful use of occupation of land or premises existing at the time of the adoption of an additional control within this chapter, may be continued. In other words, non-conformity is basically a "grandfather clause" to protect businesses who existed prior to an ordinance put in place. [15:45] **Tim Molly:** According to the city's web page, Ordinance 152.627 permitted accessory use under B1 zoning was passed on May 4, 2006. The farmers market downtown has been existing for 30 years. The city would be in violation of state ordinances if they were to vote to try to remove the farmers market from the downtown location based on this statute. We would hope that we could come to closure on this issue for us. Farmers are at the peak of our harvest and making a change at this time of year puts us in economic hardship at a time that all small businesses are encountering similar issues. We would hope the city would show some empathy toward our needs, and I can hand out the state ordinance if you want to review it. [16:20] **Council Member Lundell:** So as far as the four options, the one I like the best is two. I could live with three if we had to. I just think a farmers market in the center of town is more convenient for everyone. Thank you. Everybody in town knows where it is. The businesses like it. If you ask the people around town, I'd be willing to bet the majority of them would prefer to have it there. Doesn't mean we can't have another one at Artisan Plaza—he can do whatever he wants out there as far as I'm concerned—but having the only farmers market literally on the farthest edge of town isn't convenient for anybody, especially those that don't drive or want to shop at other businesses. [17:10] **Council Member Bringgold:** I agree with you, Derek. This week I've had a lot of people come up to me and actually my family and mention about downtown, and other businesses support it. I just think that's where we should be. [17:10] **Council Member Gesme:** I agree with you guys. This has probably been one of the hottest issues, the most communication from citizens, and every single person that has come to call me or stop at my house or get my attention has said, "keep the farmers market downtown." And Mayor, going back to what you had said about the trail and how busy downtown is: for a town of 4,000, that we get 90,000-plus visitors to use the trail, we still have that overflow parking on the other side of John Burch Park. [17:57] **Council Member Gesme:** Nothing attracts a crowd like a crowd. Saturday morning, our downtown farmers market—the people that are pedestrians, the people that are on their bikes—look at just the people that are moving, the energy down there. I'd hate to see us take that away from the downtown businesses, but I also just hate to see that be taken away just to open a few spots for the cyclists who are our visitors. We want to treat them as guests, but there's places for them, too, and we can accommodate both. A year ago I thought, "we're a town of 4,000, why do we need two farmers markets?" I think this discussion has really shown that they're two completely different farmers markets. You've got Artisan Plaza and they can do what they want—it's their parking lot. Thank you for doing that; that's wonderful. People who choose to go there, get some flowers, get some different wares, great. But downtown has a little bit more tradition. If all those vendors said it makes more sense for us to go to Artisan Plaza, they would, and they haven't. So I don't want to take that right away from them. I think we need to change the ordinance to include farmers market and keep them right where they're at. [18:43] **Council Member Matson:** I'm kind of on the same page. The only thing is I think there should be a "number five" here. I don't think we should have brought it up tonight. I think we should wait until the ground is froze and we don't have anything else to worry about. Right now, like Tim says—god, I hate agreeing with you—but we're all moving, everybody's got their spots now. Let's let them be for this year and work on this this winter. That's all I got to say. [19:29] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** My concern is the conditional use permit. Dave Olson's got one out at Artisan Plaza; there isn't one downtown. By issuing a conditional use permit, what does that open it up to? I mean, can somebody come in and sell vacuum cleaners down in the parking lot? I think we should consult our attorney on that and make sure everything is focused towards farmers market and not turn it into a flea market. So we'd have to be careful, make sure the attorney is well aware of what our intent is and draft an ordinance like that. [20:15] **Council Member Althoff:** Well, I'm going to obviously be somewhat in the minority here. I think we should only have one market. The EDA's been working with Artisan Plaza with food aggregation and all that. They have a flat parking lot; ours is at an angle with people that can drive in and out of there, creating a lot of safety issues. We can argue about liability. We built the trailhead specifically to get bikers to come there. There's no way you can prove who brings more business to town. Parking is an issue for us, and if the Council decides they want to change the ordinance—and I don't care what Mr. Molly says about a state statute, that does not take over our zoning—we should only have one market and it should be out at Artisan. Thanks kudos to David Olson for doing that. We also got to remember the Artisan Plaza market is four times what you see downtown. I've been downtown on Saturday morning many times at both locations and it's three or four times bigger out at Artisan and three or four times the people. People are going to drive there; they are not walking. Someone mentioned a previous meeting while they walk from Cannon River? Certainly not during COVID. And there are buses that some of these places take if someone needs to get there. Our ordinance currently says no. I'm not necessarily against allowing them to finish the year up, but I am against changing the ordinance just because of a few handful of people who do not pay taxes in this town. Morrison and John, you mentioned your stores—you guys pay taxes. These people are getting freebies that should not be allowed. [22:35] **Council Member Matson:** I'd also say if you are going to change the ordinance and approve a conditional use permit, which is troublesome in and of itself in the B1 zone, that we move it to the overflow lot to not only make it safer but free up some spots for our friends coming into bike in town. [23:21] **Council Member Bringgold:** Well, I talked to—right before the meeting here—I had a downtown business owner call me and he was representing quite a few of the businesses downtown and they would like to see us fight to keep it open. So I don't think it's a fairness issue as far as the downtown business owners paying taxes and some people don't; they want to see it stay here. And also, don't all the vendors pay the same licensing fee if they're at Artisan or downtown? So when you said they're getting freebies, they pay the same to be at either location. [23:21] **Council Member Althoff:** That's right, but at Artisan they're on private property. The parking lots are on city property, so we are subsidizing them after a fashion. [24:12] **Council Member Duncan:** This is a tough one, it really is. It's not as black and white as some people might think. But just because something's been somewhere for years and years doesn't mean it is always going to be there. There is change. The times I've gone down—I've never been out to the one at Artisan Plaza, I've only heard that it's busy and they're usually about 15 vendors there—the times I've been downtown, there are three, maybe four vendors, and it's odd. The minute someone leaves early, a car pulls in because they're going to go on the trail or something else happens. The idea that people are really walking there from other areas? Not so much. Certainly people out at Sunrise Villa aren't walking downtown. [24:58] **Council Member Duncan:** And Mr. Molly, your sounds about cooperation and all that kind are falling on deaf ears here. I saw the emails that you were barraging our city employees with, and as far as I'm concerned, no matter what happens, I don't want to give you another permit. You have been so awful, you almost brought one of our employees to quit over this. It's not worth it. Now this doesn't mean we can't ever bring it back to downtown, but I don't think it's worth it to change an ordinance for this. We've got one market. Remember back in the 70s, John, when that awful Cannon Mall was built? That was going to be the end of civilization as we knew it. They had a grocery store open seven days a week, and my god, the mall versus Cannon Falls downtown became a huge issue for years. Why do we need Artisan Plaza versus downtown? That's what we've got and I just don't think it's worth it to change the ordinance for that. After fashioning yourself, Tim, as the manager of the market... this has become a lot of trouble for the city. [27:18] **Council Member Bringgold:** I think just changing the ordinance would just allow it. It wouldn't mean that it had to remain there, because the free market idea—if the vendors want to move, they'll go to Artisan Plaza. [27:18] **Council Member Althoff:** I agree if we have two spots and change the ordinance just to make it legal. But then I'm not sure a city-owned parking lot is the best place where we actually have people actively parking at that time. I would say if we were going to allow it, let's move it to the lot—either that overflow lot or even the one across from the fire station that's downtown. [28:04] **Council Member Lundell:** They tried that overflow once; it was a disaster. [28:04] **Council Member Althoff:** It's not going to be good for bikers either, is it? [28:04] **Council Member Lundell:** Well, bikers can park there; they got a bike, they can get to the trail. [28:04] **Council Member Althoff:** Yeah, but they're not from Cannon Falls, they're not going to know where they're going. [28:04] **Council Member Lundell:** Okay, if we put up different signs, you know, say "Parking to the Lots," it'll make a difference. Human nature is such that people are going to park at the closest spot if we can do it. We cannot force the bikers to park in the overflow lot; however, we can control a business which will be there. Also, when you want to consider changing an ordinance, you should have a good reason. Because it's been there for 30 years or certain people want it there—that's not a good reason to change a law. I haven't heard one yet tonight. [28:50] **Council Member Matson:** Mr. Mayor, I'd like to make a motion to move this discussion to a better time in the year, such as October or November, and we'll continue this. With that, we can have our little discussions with our attorney about the ramifications of changing it. That's my motion. [28:50] **Council Member Gesme:** I'll second it. [28:50] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Motion's been made by Gesme, second by Matson to table this issue until say November 1st, discuss it at that time. Any more discussion? [29:38] **Council Member Althoff:** It's just once again, we're kicking a can down the road. [29:38] **Council Member Matson:** I think this is where I originally kicked the can to this spring, though, so I don't think we're changing too much. [29:38] **Council Member Althoff:** Well, I think it's what we were going to do anyway. [29:38] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Yeah, we were gonna wait. And I'd like to hear the counsel of the attorney as well on this. You gotta come up with some kind of a legal description so if we open it up to farmers, it doesn't include other vendors. Well, there's a motion to table this till November 1st. Any more discussion? No. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? [30:26] **Council Member Althoff:** No. [30:26] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Five to one, motion passed. Okay, moving on. The John Birch Park football field. Neil? [30:26] **Neil (City Administrator):** At the finance committee meeting, we had representatives from the school—and I see they're all here again—to carry out a discussion on whether football, since it's been moved to the spring, can be played on John Birch Park. It's a decision that the Finance Committee had moved quite quickly to the Council. I think the Council has to take under consideration baseball also being played right after that, the condition of spring fields, the frost, the mud, etc. So I guess they're here to have that discussion. [31:45] **Dan Myers:** Yeah, I’m Dan Myers, I'm the head football coach. On a typical fall, Cannon Falls football is played at John Birch Park. There's usually eight to ten football games played there every fall and it brings the whole community together; it's an awesome event. I think football has been played down there for at least 75 years. This year there will be no games played down there in the fall because the High School League has moved our season to the spring. What I would ask the Council is a compromise: that we would be allowed to play up to three games on John Birch Park next spring compared to eight to ten in the fall. [32:30] **Dan Myers:** That would allow us to get our varsity out there for some games. We wouldn't play any JV games on John Birch Park this spring. We wouldn't pull the bleachers out because I know those bleachers are pretty heavy, and when the field is wet and there's still frost, it wouldn't be a good time to pull anything heavy out there. We're actively looking for other sites to play at—we've got a few communities around that have artificial turf—but we can't guarantee that we can find something. So I would ask that you allow us to play up to three games if the conditions are right. Obviously, April—you never know what it's going to be like down there. There could be a foot of snow, the ground could still be frozen; in that case, we wouldn't play down there. But if the conditions are right, we would ask that you allow us to use the park. [33:15] **Council Member Althoff:** Dan, what would be the issue with playing at the school instead of down here? Just because of tradition? [33:15] **Dan Myers:** No, one thing: there's no lights at the school, so we would have to play day games. [33:15] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** There you go. [33:15] **Dan Myers:** Yeah, if we could do it on a school day. There's no lights on the field, and that field itself is not in game condition—it's a lot of weeds, it really needs a lot of work. That's something that we've been trying to get going for a few years now, but it's not an ideal playing surface. It could be done, but John Birch Park is a much better place to play football. [34:01] **Council Member Althoff:** Well, certainly a lot of the younger grades always played games at the high school. [34:01] **Dan Myers:** Yeah, up to 8th grade. Junior high games are played there and flag football. So yes, there are games played there. [34:01] **Council Member Althoff:** And of course, day games you can always play them on a Saturday. I really do worry about any games in the spring on John Birch because of what it potentially can do for the baseball field. Traditionally, when you play in the fall, there's sometimes damage. The damage takes so long to recover. Even last summer, my son was still playing Legion baseball and you could see in July the imprint and damage to the outfield from the bleachers that were still sitting there. So I am really concerned about allowing that to take place. I also know you didn't mention it, but usually there's been one boy and one girl soccer game down at the field every year; I'd rather not take down the baseball fence for the one or two soccer games this season. I would not want the field to be put to that potential damage. If you start baseball, which would start mid-May, some kid is going to get hurt because of a field that's beat up. We all know what it does to the field. [35:35] **Council Member Duncan:** I'm a former Bomber myself way back in the olden days. I just can't see us approving that kind of play that close to... I would like to maybe propose another compromise. How about if we allowed you to have your parents' game or your seniors' game—you know, you always do one where you're honoring the seniors or the parents' night. So one game? The senior night? I think that's fair. I know it's a big thing for you to switch everything over; on the other hand, we don't even know if there's going to be football even in the spring. But I'm really sensitive to the fact that I think John Birch Park is a baseball diamond. I really do. I think it's a baseball diamond that we've been playing football on. I feel for you in that you're having to ramp up—if you play at the high school, you'll have to ramp up pretty quickly—but I just don't see how the two seasons can really coexist like that. That's just me. I'm going to let... Reid, do you want to speak? [37:07] **Reid Olson:** Reid Olson, Activities Director, new to the district. Thank you for the opportunity. Correct, since I am new I have not witnessed the tradition down at John Birch. A couple things: obviously if the fence does not come down, then that will null and void the soccer matches. The other piece of this: the High School League, when they made their changes, they also made reductions to the number of weeks of the season and the number of games. We don't know what the schedule looks like; anything I've had on paper to this point no longer exists. We are anticipating that we would have three home games. You're right, we're looking at some neighboring opportunities that could host us on a turf facility. That depends on their rental facility tickets and allowing visitors to come; if they tell us yes now, that could change down the road. But in regards to the three that we would take a look at, trying to do varsity only... Dan mentioned if the field is playable. What would constitute it's "okay" to play on or not? We all know about this Minnesota snow and frost coming out of the ground. [39:25] **Council Member Althoff:** We're talking about the one on campus? [39:25] **Reid Olson:** No, no, no—the John Birch one. [39:25] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Because you know, the chatter along with that is: what are the schools that are further up north going to do at that time frame? Yeah, that's why we don't know. The speculation is it's going to start March 15th. There's a bone of contention among us who have been Bombers: do we stay downtown or do we do what most schools do and play on their own property? This is also a golden opportunity for the school—I know financially it's a bad time—but that's where the move should be made. I know Mary Jill didn't mention it, but her dad put a million dollars... you got those nice bleachers back there. It's time for the school to step up and actually use it. [40:12] **Council Member Gesme:** Well, to go back to John Birch Park instead of the school—I agree with your concerns of what spring in Minnesota could be. But at the same time, when Mary Jill says "we might not even be playing," we have to ask ourselves: this issue isn't just John Birch Park, it's us as a city allowing the school to keep their home. If we say no, we kick them out. We make them homeless. We're dealing with a pandemic; we're going to be pushing them out of a 75-year tradition because it might get a little messy? And we talked about seniors—what if every game was an away game or if Farmington was home for three nights? I think at the end of the day, when we look at the big picture, it's better for the community for us to say, "let's let them play." Let's not shut the door and send them out. Frank Hawks Field is a beautiful baseball diamond. So if those three Friday nights rip up John Birch—I hope it doesn't happen—but if it were to happen, it'd be a lot easier for our Bombers to have their JV and Varsity up at Frank Hawks. [41:43] **Council Member Bringgold:** Regarding football, we don't have a backup. There really is no backup football field that you can play on. Let's not forget, the school is paying us rent for the football field—I think it's a couple thousand, fifteen hundred—plus the cost of $75 per game for lights. So they're putting money in to help us. [42:29] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** If I didn't let them play, I wouldn't charge them! [42:29] **Dan Myers:** Originally when you folks came forward, I thought you wanted to rush our decision so that would give you lead time to maybe re-sod the football field up behind the school. That was kind of what I was led to believe. [42:29] **Reid Olson:** Yes, depending on your decision, that could be one of the options we consider. [42:29] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** I'll make a motion to approve the use of John Birch Park this spring for football for the Bombers. [42:29] **Council Member Gesme:** Second. [43:16] **Council Member Althoff:** That's for three games? [42:29] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Yes, for the three games. No soccer, no JV, correct. [43:16] **Council Member Lundell:** What about playoffs? [43:16] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** And possible playoffs. Okay, motion is made by Montgomery, second by Gesme to use John Birch Park for football next spring. Is there any other discussion? [43:16] **Council Member Lundell:** I would like, if we allow this, I would like the city to be able to veto it if we deem that the field isn't playable. What I mean is, so you're not just saying "we want this week and this week," and then one of those weeks it's mud and you say, "no, we can still play on it." I think we should be able to say "no, it's not playable this week." [43:16] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Who would make that decision? [43:16] **Council Member Lundell:** Public Works, I suppose. [44:02] **Reid Olson:** The Minnesota State High School League has rules in place, and I think we would allow common sense to come into play there. Obviously, if the weather is not making the field playable, then we need to take a look at other options. [44:48] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** You've heard the motion. Any other discussion? All in favor? Aye. Opposed? [44:48] **Council Member Althoff:** No. [44:48] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Four to two, motion passed. Okay, Item F: CVT and MTST trail connection plans review and set a quote date. Neil or Bill, or both of you? [45:35] **Neil (City Administrator):** I can start. We received a grant last year to make a connection between the two regional trails. We hired WHKS to put them together and go out for quotes. What we found out after the packet was released on Thursday is the DNR has made some difficult decisions for us. What we proposed to do was to split the project because there was a considerable overrun on the estimate. We decided to focus on the gravel part so it would all be bituminous. But when we discussed this with the folks up at the DNR, they pretty much told us: "If you don't do the whole project, you're not going to get the grant." I'll let Bill take it from there. [47:07] **Bill Angerman (City Engineer):** Thank you, Neil. To elaborate, the grant match was set to be $36,000 from the City of Cannon Falls; it would now be $250,000. The positive is we actually think the city would be better off turning down the grant and reapplying in December for a larger grant versus footing more of the project out of pocket now. The risk is you might not get the grant. Neil and I asked the DNR: "If we turn down a grant, does that hurt our chances?" and they said no. What Neil and I talked about also is if we turned down the grant and did a hybrid scope, it would actually be cheaper than if we took the grant. So we think it's in the city's best interest to authorize Neil to turn the grant down and we'll reapply in December. [48:40] **Council Member Matson:** What would happen if we turned the grant down and we didn't get the new grant? Then where does that leave us? [48:40] **Bill Angerman (City Engineer):** It'd be on gravel. Then the city could do it themselves at the pace you want. The challenge with the grant is they require us to widen it—we'd have to excavate into the rock. We would not do that; we would keep it the same width, thereby saving about a hundred thousand dollars. It would save us more money than the grant itself was worth. [49:27] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** I know we once talked about getting a variance on that width because, like you say, you just can't dig into that rock effectively. [49:27] **Bill Angerman (City Engineer):** DNR told us they would deny that, unfortunately. [49:27] **Council Member Gesme:** When you said the hybrid of doing it on our own, that included the fence and the paving? [49:27] **Bill Angerman (City Engineer):** That's correct. [50:13] **Council Member Bringgold:** Is this part of the trail actually a part of the Cannon Valley Trail? Because with increased use and wheelage fees, couldn't some of that go towards it? [50:13] **Bill Angerman (City Engineer):** I'll defer that to Neil. [50:13] **Neil (City Administrator):** I believe this is part of the Cannon City Trail and then it connects to the Mill Town Trail. Technically, they're connected, but they're not the same. If we apply for another grant, the archaeological study is done, the plans are done. If they approve us in April or May, we're ready to go. I really think it should stay whatever it is—eight feet—now. The connection is vital. Then you'd end up with two regional trails connecting with bituminous. [52:31] **Council Member Gesme:** How creative could we be? Instead of going into the hillside, is there any structure that almost makes it jut out with support underneath? [52:31] **Bill Angerman (City Engineer):** Like a cantilever? It would be incredibly expensive. [52:31] **Council Member Althoff:** Neil, a question for you: I know we were planning on doing this next year. Are we budgeting for our share? [52:31] **Neil (City Administrator):** It should be in this year's budget. And this grant expires in June of '21. So this will give us an opportunity to get another grant to replace it. [54:02] **Council Member Matson:** I'll make a motion authorizing Neil to notify the DNR to rescind the grant. [54:02] **Council Member Gesme:** Second. [54:47] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Motion by Matson, second by Gesme to rescind the grant from the DNR. Any other discussion? All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Carried. [54:47] **Council Member Duncan:** Can we get a motion to apply for that next one also so we can just keep moving forward? I'll make that motion. [54:47] **Council Member Gesme:** I'll second. [54:47] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Motion by Duncan, second by Gesme to apply for a second grant. Any other discussion? All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Carried. Thank you. [55:32] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Council committee and reports. Kyle, from the Chamber? [55:32] **Kyle Paulson (Chamber):** Good evening, Chamber and community of Cannon Falls. We have a couple of good announcements. We did receive notice today from Explore Minnesota that we will be getting a grant of one thousand dollars to do advertising in any of their magazines. We're also working on a match from the Blandin Foundation. I'm going to talk about "Sizzling Summer Days." It starts with sidewalk contests. On August 24th, it's a baking competition. On Tuesday the 25th, sewing and needlepoint. On Wednesday the 26th, woodworking and Lego projects. Thursday evening will have garden produce, flowers, and a butter and cheese carving contest. 5:30 on Thursday the 27th is going to be a rabbit agility course in the parking lot behind Antiques on Fourth. If you're interested, contact the Chamber. Also, we have a new open-air fair on the sidewalks. There's no fee for a booth. Weikert’s will be doing a food shelf collection; if you bring food, you get fresh cookies from Rob. Any questions for the Chamber? Thank you. [1:00:19] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Library board. Nicole? Very quiet tonight, isn't she? Can't hear you. [1:00:53] **Council Member Duncan:** Unmute. Our speakers are off. [1:00:53] **Kyle Paulson (Chamber):** Sorry, Nicole, we can't hear you. I'll take it. On August 27th, from 2:30 to 6:30, the library will be doing their annual book sale on their sidewalk. Come on over to the library and check it out. Thank you. [1:02:10] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** The EDA. Laura? [1:02:10] **Laura Qualey (EDA):** Main topic is the Cares Act Goodhue County grant for small businesses and non-profits. I'm helping to distribute those funds. So far I've received 27 applications. It’s up to ten thousand dollars for expenses and facility modifications due to the pandemic. We will also be doing some type of relief grants here in Cannon Falls also, strictly for Cannon Falls locations. We only have until November 15th to get this money spent, so it’s like speed shopping. Also, we're working with the Housing Initiative Board helping them apply for an Otto Bremer Trust grant for up to fifteen hundred dollars so we can get the land the schoolhouse is built on into the land trust program. [1:05:15] **Council Member Duncan:** Laura, at the finance meeting last week, the school came to us and said, "Hey, if you don't spend all your money, here's what we need." I'm not opposed to giving the school that money, but shouldn't we offer that up to other non-profits? [1:05:15] **Laura Qualey (EDA):** They can apply for the Goodhue County grant. There's 2.4 million dollars there. Go after that because it's open. [1:06:48] **Council Member Duncan:** I'm thinking of groups like the Food Shelf. They've been buying a ton of masks. [1:06:48] **Laura Qualey (EDA):** And that's why we hope that people help spread the word about the Goodhue County one. [1:08:20] **Council Member Bringgold:** Planning Commission. We had Planning Commission last night. We had one item we approved tonight with the assessment agreement. Greg Jablonski brought forward a concept plan for 24 homes up on the hill near the water tower. [1:09:06] **Council Member Duncan:** Finance Committee. We had the preliminary discussion about the Bomber football team, the reorganization of the Finance Department, and the Cares money. Our budget is coming together very nicely. [1:10:37] **Neil (City Administrator):** A couple items. At the Planning and Zoning meeting, we struggle to get enough members. I'm wondering if we shouldn't advertise. We need to have four there to get that quorum. Second thing: I received an email from Cannon Bells—they would like to close the street on August 27th for the rabbit thing. It’s from five to seven. [1:13:01] **Kyle Paulson (Chamber):** I'm not sure about this art contest. [1:13:01] **Council Member Matson:** Jeff, if we close the street off, do we need to close all of Mill Street? [1:14:33] **Police Chief Jeff McCormick:** Council can either restrict them to just that area or authorize it up to Veterans Lane and then have them coordinate with staff to maintain usable roadway. [1:15:19] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** I'll make a motion to close that portion of Mill Street starting at 4:30 on August 27th. [1:15:19] **Council Member Duncan:** I'll second. [1:15:19] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** Motion by Montgomery, second by Duncan. All in favor? Aye. Carried. [1:16:05] **Neil (City Administrator):** The crow's nest received damage at the last storm. The roof is peeled back and a speaker is busted. I'll get together with the Superintendent and talk about it. [1:16:51] **Council Member Lundell:** Park board on Thursday night. [1:16:51] **Council Member Althoff:** EDA... I had somebody ask me about the grass in the ditches now that the downtown thing is down. It looks like a wasteland down there. [1:17:38] **Council Member Matson:** I think we should talk to our new Public Works Director! I'd like to thank Kevin for coming tonight. I think you're going to be a good fit for us. [1:18:24] **Kevin Zeidel:** Thank you. [1:19:09] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** We're going to get into public input. Citizens may speak to issues not on the agenda. Kindly limit comments to three minutes. Open public input. Second call. Third and final call. Motion to adjourn? [1:19:09] **Council Member Althoff:** Motion to adjourn. [1:19:09] **Council Member Lundell:** Second. [1:19:09] **Mayor Matt Montgomery:** All in favor? Aye. Carried.