7-20-26 Unofficial Pembina City Council Meeting Minutes
Unofficial Pembina City Council Meeting Minutes for July 20, 2026
Date: Monday, July 20, 2026, 6pm
Location: Community Center
Council Members Present: Helland, Needham, Flores, Carattini, Snitker, Carpenter, T Steyn
Absent: Snitker
Guests: Koropatnicki, City Super; L Steyn, Asst. City Super; Stoiber, City Auditor; Fleming, City Attorney; Helstrom, City Engineer; Greg Kneeshaw
6pm Public Portion called to order by Mayor Helland
· Public Portion:
Public portion closed at 6:01pm by Mayor Helland
Regular Council Meeting called to order at 6:01pm by Mayor Helland
Changesto Agenda—motion by Needham, 2nd by Snitker to approve changes to agenda; all ayes; motion carries.
· Approval/Changes to June 4, 7, and 15, 2026 Meeting Minutes—motion by Snitker, 2nd by Carattini to approve; all ayes, motion carries
· Old Business
o Valley Landfill—being overcharged—tabled to August until Helland can speak w A Huttunen
o Citywide Cleanup Day—still not information for billing citizens—tabled to August until Helland can speak w A Huttunen
o Michels Construction—agreement was 18 months at Kneeshaw Cir.—they’re still not fully staffed; Helland spoke to RJ, Kneeshaw Cir. should start filling up by August.
· Committee Reports
o Rec Board – no meeting—concerns about fishing tournament participants not paying correctly for campground usage; loss of revenues; 2 picnic tables destroyed by disruptive camper; issues with septic continuously filling—Vinny’s Septic called almost weekly this year; what would it cost to upgrade Ft. Daer to 50 amp service? Get quote from Stateside on this; need large signage about cost to camp, pay for stay before setting up, etc.—Stoiber to get estimates; who pays for upgrades & signage? WB discussed once costs are known.
o Ice Rink—minutes attached
o Cemetery—no meeting
o Library—no meeting
o Professional Building—no meeting
o Daycare Committee—no meeting
· Employees Report/Concerns
o Koropatnicki:
Trailer—City needs own trailer to be able to haul equipment to various locations, Koropatnicki has been using personal trailer, but it’s not big enough to haul both large tractors or other equipment; motion by Snitker, 2nd by Needham to purchase 2026 Midsota 102”x24’ Tilt Trailer #125399 from Visto’s $15,200; all ayes; motion carries.
Water Tower Generator; cost amended to $85619.72; 7-8 month lead-time. 95% due at delivery; 5% due at start up. Stoiber got quote for loan from Stock Growers to finance until Prairie Dog Funds are received, which would likely be after receipt of generator; once Prairie Dog Funds are received, loan would be paid off. Snitker made motion to purchase generator as specified with Stock Growers’ loan after purchase until Prairie Dog Funds are received, 2nd by Carattini; all ayes, motion carries.
Jet-Black quote for 2027 concrete streets hot rubber crack repair—Motion by Snitker, 2nd by Carattini to lock in the quote; all ayes, motion carries.
· Fire Department—
o There are repairs needed on Rescue 1; flashover & vehicle fire training; new junior firefighter from Cavalier
· Engineer Report—Helstrom—Stutsman/Pembina River Bridge engineering report/feasibility study; planning—Ryan at Bolton & Benk has to design plans, then NDDOT has to approve—could be $10-$15 million for full replacement (grant writing could provide up to 80% matching); short-term fix possibly less than $500,000 (grants may or may not be available—depends on what NDDOT and Feds say), depending on what is done; this could hold 5-10 years before more work or replacement would have to be done; plans have to be approved by NDDOT; Needham—how much would entire feasibility study cost the city? Helstrom—approximately additional $40,000. Needham: allowing 3 ton or less is not feasible—need to be 15+ ton for City Super’s team to do be able to perform their jobs. Fleming—why did this happen? Is soil settling? Are you going to have a Geo Tech test soil and make sure this doesn’t happen again? Helstrom—need to get into the funding cycle—eventually the entire bridge will need to be replaced. Helstrom—another issue is “detour signage”—if temporary, City bears burden of cost $15,000+; if permanent and NDDOT approves, they will help pay for costs. NDDOT has to review all plans before work is done—have to show load values requested and plans to get approval by NDDOT. Motion by Snitker to go forward with short-term fix and to issue a check for the inspection that has been done, 2nd by Carattini; role call vote: Ayes—Needham, Carattini, T Steyn, Snitker, Flores, Carpenter; motion passes. Helstrom—work will hopefully be completed by On the Level by end of October, but all depends on approval by NDDOT and getting on the schedule with On the Level.
· Needham—bridge is definitely a crisis; what about the lagoon? Helstrom—as long as we’re not touching the pond or making physical changes, lagoon is not a priority—due to size, City is exceeding DEQ requirements at this time; however, there’s a bad valve, and will replacing it push City to change the layout of the lagoon? Being investigated.
· Attorney Update
o 2nd Street vacate request by G Kneeshaw: need to put in paper for 2 weeks for public hearing on August 17, 2026, 6pm.
· Update & Business: Mayor/Gary Helland
o Children are endangering themselves and others riding e-scooters/electric bikes/go carts, etc.—tabled to August meeting—Stoiber to get original ordinance suggestion and safety class information
o Fire Siren issues—fire/emergency siren on Fire Hall is antiquated and needs to be replaced or another option to alert citizens on East side of town—there are apps available, kind of like Amber or Silver Alerts; the community needs to help neighbors without cell phones if City goes with app; cost to replace siren is $37,619.25—due to age, parts are unavailable, and everything needs to be replaced. Tabled to August to give time to research apps and costs.
· Update & Business:City Auditor/Stoiber
o June 2026 Financials—motion by Snitker, 2nd Needham to approve—all ayes, motion carries
o Delinquent Accounts Update:—see notes
o $200,000 grant—Main shop building and professional building completed; Daycare is next on list. Ricards has been held up due to “emergencies.” Balance of buildings should be done by end of August—Ice Rink Warming House, Golf Course Club House, new pump house.
o Building Pemit—G Kneeshaw (need to wait until after public hearing for final approval). Clow—wb going to court as he feels City is violating his rights--tabled until Fleming can research dike setbacks. Needham x3—motion by Carattini, 2nd by T Steyn to approve (Needham abstains); all ayes; motion carries. Carattini x2—motion by Needham, 2nd by Snitker to approve; Carattini abstains; all ayes, motion carries.
o Set special meeting for preliminary budget discussion: 8/7/26 5pm.
o Transfer funding to cover costs: need to cover street repairs, bridge, and fire department requests. Move 3 CDs upon maturity to financial emergency and crisis accounts; move $170000 from Financial Emergency to streets and reimburse with 2 Capital Improvement CDs upon maturity; reserve $80000 in flood/crisis towards bridge; move $10000 from x2207 to cancel negative balance; transfer $70000 from x2207 to bridge related costs; Snitker—move them.
o Water Tower Generator—bridge has taken priority; see info under City Super.
o Special Sales Tax disbursement information—final rules will be discussed in August; Helland—would like to see it handled like the Wilwant Grant; Stoiber—the rules that are on the informational sheets were duplicated from the Wilwant grant, but modified for the limited funds that may be available.
o Sparks Program—will increase property tax revenue, new homes, etc.—looking for 2 lots to be donated by city. Motion by Snitker, 2nd by Carattini to vacate month to month leases of trailers at the 5th Street park and give them 60 days to move their trailers to Kneeshaw Cir. or wherever they want and donate to Sparks Program along with parcel 33-2170020 also located on 5th St.; Needham abstained; all ayes; motion carries.
o Fish Cleaning Station—citizen has gotten involved and is complicating grant process; still looking for grants to help cover part of it—F&G stated original estimate was too high and it should be able to be done for $30,000 less. Tabled to August.
· New Business
Adjournment—Motion to adjourn at 8:02pm by Needham
By: Mayor Helland
Attested to: Stoiber, City Auditor
Special Council Meeting will be held on August 7, 2026, 5pm in the Professional Building.
The next City Council Meeting will be held on August 17, 2026, at 6pm in the Professional Building.