Official Minutes for June 13, 2022, Pembina City Council Meeting
Council members present: Mayor Mike Fitzgerald, President Jeff Watts, VP Ron Fritz, Greg Koropatnicki, Jennifer Martin, Allen Huttunen
Absent: Pat Burton
City Employees present: Debi Stainbrook
City Attorney present: Rob Fleming
City Engineer: Brad Bail
Others present: Brenda Masloski, Ashley Schafer, Blaine Eisenbeis, Betty Pelletier
Meeting called to order by Mike Fitzgerald at 6:00pm
1. Changes to Agenda: Add lagoon under Brad, add 4th of July under committee reports, audit under new business, Ambulance under old business, weight limit signs, Dean Moore under new business. Motion by Koropatnicki second by Watts to approve agenda as amended. Ayes all present. Motion carries.
2. Approval/Changes May’s Minutes. Motion by Watts, second by Martin to approve May’s meeting minutes. Ayes all present. Motion carries.
3. Old Business
- Ambulance – Asking for an additional $200 per month to cover the loan. It would be $1300 per month instead of $1100. Motion to amend amount by Allen, second by Martin. Ayes all present. Motion carries.
- Drainage west end along dike/mci drainage ditch – Waiting on Gastrak on how much it will cost. Koropatnicki will talk to Twamley about this.
- Garbage truck/rates – no update. Mayor will talk to Chip
- Generator - tabled
- job posting – Rob pulled information to see what the population of the city is, to see if it would be possible for Koropatnicki could work for the city and be on the council. As of July 2021, the population of Pembina is 503. We lose an average of 7 people per year. The city can make the determination to say we are under 500 so Koropatnicki can work for the city and be on the council. Koropatnicki got the offer letter. He will decide this week to accept or decline. Koropatnicki also came with a letter from his workplace about working for the city and his workplace.
- Weight Limit signs – Watts will be putting the weight limit signs up tomorrow
4. Committee Reports
- Fire Department – Started the fire fighter auxiliary non-profit. The state is now auditing. Anything we do to raise money (donation feeds, etc) are now public funds. The state has been taking money illegally so we need to determine how it will go back to the departments. The new truck has an oil cooler issue.
- Rec Board – baseball and tee ball are underway. Matt Gruenberg made a pitchers mound. We have 7 home games and will be serving concessions. Recommendation from Mayor is to wait until almost the end of the game to close concessions. The bathrooms will be getting a facelift. The city plans to apply for the Pembina Co. self-help betterment grant for the repair/maintenance project of the south Pembina washrooms and shower. Motion to apply for the self-help fund by Watts, second by Huttunen. Ayes all present. Motion carries. Need to find out how often septic tanks need to be dumped. To clean firepits, Grayson has a key to the shed and can use garbage cans to clean them out, then throw trash in the garbage. Watts is asking if a budget can be created. Clean up day is Wednesday.
- Ice Rink – Materials have been ordered for the Tin Project. The tin project is simply putting tin on the outside perimeter of the rink boards for aesthetic purposes and less maintenance to the boards.
- Swimming pool committee – at a standstill. Have had good and really bad responses.
- Library – we put together a new board for the library. Jennifer was appointed to the board, other members are Kayla Schiltz, Marcy Cleem, and Gretta Ohmann. Have been updating our circulation books. Library has a fresh coat of paint. Will have a book sale on Wednesday. We are required to have one laptop by the state for patron use. Currently only have one laptop that we use for circulation. Asking to purchase two new laptops up to $1000 each. Motion by Allen, second by Watts to approve the purchase of two new laptops up to $1000 each. Ayes all present. Motion carries.
5. Employees Report/Concerns
- Training for Banyon program – Debi would like formal training on Banyon programs. Banyon charges $100/hr. The company said it will take roughly two hours for each program. Looking at an upwards of $600 for training. Motion by Watts, second by Huttunen to approve training. Ayes all present. Motion carries.
6. Engineer Report/Brad Bail
- Working with DOT with their bridge, Brad doesn’t have the historical documents. Putting a 10-ton sign up (sign can’t exceed 26 tons). The county owns all the bridges that are in the county except if they are in the middle of the town. The one crossing to south Pembina is our bridge. The bridge is getting close to needing to be worked on. Pond – hasn’t been discharged in a while. The gates to let water out are frozen and rusted out. We need to get it fixed and be operational. Brad will send us information to get some bids going.
7. Attorney Update
- We weren’t sure who Schwengel was as they had asked about an update on 152 Hayden St. Fritz knew who it was and stated she lived there as a child. We have notices for the vehicles and camper and will be put on after the meeting. Issued grass clipping notice.
8. Council business/concerns:
- Vet vaccinations – Edinburg vet will not be coming up this summer due to a surgery.
- Spring Cleanup Day – Koropatnicki will get in contact with someone about this
- Trails End Garage Door quote – The ground is saturated, and the summer crew is not experienced enough to mow the dike with our mowers. It’s not safe as the wheels do not stay on the ground. Mowers should also be in circulation every 3 years. Koropatnicki talked to a company in Greenbush that has zero-turn machines with tracks. Koropatnicki is looking at a venterac that is meant for slopes and side mowing. Asking for a demonstration on Wednesday. Will revisit and make a decision once we see a demonstration.
- Camper in south Pembina – putting notice on camper
- Crack seal – We need to order some. $5.69 per barrel. It’s readily available and good for about a year. Motion to purchase 8 barrels by Allen, second by Martin. Ayes all present. Motion carries.
- Mosquito spraying – we have started spraying. Going to try and spray every third day, weather dependent. Will post on website so residents are aware. Koropatnicki also has been larvae citing to keep the count low. Watts and Kenny will be spraying while Koropatnicki is out of town.
- Cars on 2nd and Rolette - discussed in Attorney's section.
- Stump Grinding – Took care of a couple of trees that went down in south Pembina. Watts will get a quote to grind out the stumps.
9. Update & Business: Mayor
- Flood committee. The river is still holding. There was an engineering crew looking at the bridge today. Not sure who it was. Brad will look into this. Sandbags are put away. Thank you to everyone who helped. The Fire Dept cooked burgers and brats as a Thank You meal.
10. Update & Business: City Auditor/ Debi Stainbrook
- May Financials – no report
- May bills – Motion to approve May’s bills by Watts, second by Fritz. Ayes all present. Motion carries.
- Printer lease – Motion to approve Advanced with canon by Watts, second by Martin. Ayes all present. Motion carries.
- Sam’s Credit Card – look into a state credit card instead
- Choice Bank credit card – look into old statements to see purchases and if we can find information about this credit card before applying for another card for the city to use
- App for the city – council would like a demonstration
- Gift voucher Golf Membership for Schiltz - tabled
- Spring Cleanup – already discussed above in council business
- Northern Plains Resource Conservation and Development Council dues – tabled. See what it’s about, how long they have been around, where those 13 students are from, if we have any students that are interested.
- Water Tank Inspection Report – emailed council a copy of the report.
- Update on storage rentals – invoices were sent. For those who haven’t paid up to current month, set up a notice so they are paid by next council meeting.
11. New Business
- Audit – Recommended to have an audit every 2 years. Have quotes for July meeting.
- Dean Moore – His water usage has been extremely high. Allen will stop by his house after the meeting.
12. Adjournment Motion to adjourn by Fritz at 8:17pm
By: Mayor, Mike Fitzgerald
Attested to: Debi Stainbrook, City Auditor
