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| Crosslake City Council Settles Park Dedication Fee DisputeBy Paul Boblett, Editor The Crosslake city council unanimously voted to settle their litigation over park dedication fees with Crosslake couple, Cary and Nikki Shoutz. At the regular monthly meeting on Dec. 13, council approved a settlement and release agreement that states the Shoutzes will pay the city $5,000 out of theescrow account for their park dedication fees and any outstanding bills for the consultants. The remaining amount will be returned to the couple and the escrow account will be closed. The $5,000 amount may further be reduced dependent upon a possible ordinance amendment following a directed staff review of the ordinance within 90 days. Public hearings will be held and the Shoutzes will be asked to provide recommendations to the city in writing. The Shoutzes applied to subdivide their 40-acre residential parcel into three residential lots. City code requires a developer of a subdivision dedicate either 10 percent of the usable land, or, ten percent of the estimated market value of the land as a park dedication fee. In April the city ordered the Shoutzes to pay $9,066 as cash in lieu of land to be held in escrow as a park dedication, but in May reduced the amount to $6,946 due to estimated market devaluation. Council directed the park dedication advisory subcommittee to review the ordinance and make a recommendation to Planning and Zoning (P&Z). P&Z could then make a recommendation to council for further action. 2010 Levy Approved Council unanimously approved the 2010 levy in the amount of $2,787,699, a 2.1 percent increase from the city's 2009 levy of $2,729,176. The levy was increased to offset Gov. Pawlenty’s unallotment of Market Value Homestead Credit in the amount of $28,729. In addition to the levy, council approved their 2010 revenue budget totaling $4,021,780, and 2010 expenditure budget of the same amount. Public Safety Council approved the three-year Teamsters contract for the Crosslake Police Department beginning in 2010. It includes an increase in the pay schedule of 1.5 percent each year and an increase in uniform allowance to $600 beginning in 2010. Police chief Robert Hartman reported 145 calls for Crosslake and 59 for Mission Township. Fire chief Keith Anderson reported a total of 15 calls for November and a year to date total of 201. Park and Recreation Council accepted donations totaling $1,155 as part of the 2009 library fundraising campaign, $200 from ISD #186 for children’s book purchases, two checks totaling $75 for the Robert Soltis Memorial, and a check from the Parks and Library (PAL) Foundation of Crosslake to reimburse the city for $1,068.35 for expenditures from July to December for the library’s children's reading program. Park and Recreation Director Jon Henke recognized Ginny Hersey, Phylliss McAfee and Sharon Elmquist, and many volunteers for their dedication to the children’s reading program at the library. Public Works Approved a staff recommended increase to the fee schedule for Pinewood Cemetery in the following amounts: resident lot, $75 to $250; non-resident lot, $300 to $500; staking fee, $25 to $50; summer full opening, $150 to $400; winter full opening, $300 to $500; summer cremation opening, $50 to $150; winter cremation opening, $75 to $200; holidays/ weekend, $50 to $100. Planning & Zoning Council unanimously approved initiation of enforcement action against John and Laurel Alexander for violations of their conditional use permit and for safety concerns at the property located at 33578 Lake Street. Also motioned to proceed with enforcement action against Jean and Scott Maas for failure to install required landscaping for the property at 34418 County Road 3. In other council action: • Set a special meeting for 9:00 am on Dec. 22 to conduct year end business. • Approved the bid from Larson Allen for the city's audit of 2009 financial statements at the 2009 price. • Approved a revolving loan request for Crosslake Sales and Outdoor Insights Inc. for $65,720. The business is expanding and is in the process of purchasing the former True Value Hardware located on County Road 3. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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