Excited family members crowded in for the start of this past City Council meeting, watching as Two Harbors Mayor Lew Conner swore in two new officers for the Two Harbors Police Department: Helen Phenning and Tori Kaufman. In turn, the two repeated their oath of office and officially signed in, then had time for photo sessions with family.
Department reports began with Finance Director Miranda Pietila, who is preparing a preliminary budget to be finalized and hopefully approved during the next scheduled meeting on September 28th. Two Harbors’ new City Planner, Robin Caufman, is organizing a pop-up at the September 26th Farmer’s Market that will have information on the upcoming Highway 61 project, a flier on housing rights, and a park survey (also available online with details to come) which will allow residents to weigh in with their priorities for the Parks Master Plan.
City Engineer Andy Brotzler went over more details on the Highway 61 project portion of the pop-up, which is slated to include handouts and toolkits for businesses with guidance on how to prepare for the project, which will cut off a good portion of the road through town and is expected to hamper access to many local stores. Brotzler is hoping information provided by the City will spread via social media to ensure as many as possible are aware of plans and aid. The City is also tentatively holding a second meeting with local business owners to discuss the project in late October.
Regarding other projects, Brotzler is also working with Lake County on the Odegard Trail, which may be starting construction as early as Spring 2027. The 2024/1015 Street Improvement will have its final project cost numbers soon and will likely come up during the next Council meeting on the 28th.
The City Planner and several other members of City staff were also busy doing interviews with Golden Shovel Agency, an economic development firm hired by the Two Harbors Economic Development Authority (THEDA) to help guide Two Harbors with an economic strategy for attracting more businesses while keeping the City healthy. Golden Shovel Agency’s Director of Content Management, Chuck Friedbauer, made an appearance and ran the Council through a question-and-answer session to show the type of data the Agency uses to start their process. Friedbauer emphasized that every city or organization has different needs and strengths, and the Council was game to talk about what they considered Two Harbors’ current strengths and weaknesses.
Committee reports began with Public Arts and Beautification: Artist contracts were signed as part of ongoing projects and possible alternative projects for the artist hired to paint the old band shell were discussed. A design for the electrical box wrap was also finalized, with the Council approving it this session.
THEDA discussed options for the 2nd Avenue project and is currently gathering community feedback with the Golden Shovel Agency. The Housing Committee had some housing updates with Lake County and held the groundbreaking ceremony for Northshore Flats; it was noted that more homes in the City are on the market lately.
Public Safety’s main problem was recent issues residents have had with higher-speed vehicles in alleyways. Police Chief Rick Hogenson reminded those present that Two Harbors follows the Minnesota state standard of a 10 miles per hour speed limit in alleys. Officers are patrolling and keeping watch for speedy offenders, but say that if you have a “frequent flier” in your alley, take note of the license number and call it in. The committee discussed the possibility of adding speed limit signs within alleys, though the matter is complicated by where said signs would be placed, especially as many poles are owned by Frontier rather than the City.
Another ongoing safety concern discussed was the current location of the skate park, which has had a number of reports involving its secluded positioning being abused. Although cameras were noted as a possible improvement, the consensus was to ideally move the park to a more visible public area as part of the Master Parks Plan. Until then, Hogenson asked residents to keep an eye out, and “if you see something, say something.”
Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) held a short special meeting to approve time-sensitive documents. Finally, Public Works met with the City Band and Friends of the Band Shell Park to talk over options for the soon-to-be-demolished band shell’s replacement. Councilor Todd Redmann was delighted at the collaborative effort with those who used the band shell regularly and fully supports the temporary proposed solution found by the members of the public: a temporary stage/trailer listed for sale. The possible purchase of this item was approved by the Council later this session. Interested parties are also continuing to look into other options should the item in question turn out not to be desirable. On a related note, the group talked over removal and storage of the remaining band shell equipment. Redmann also confirmed the band shell’s demolition is planned for this fall.
Approved consent agenda items of note included: Two Harbors Moose Lodge 1463 to be open September 13 and 20; October 4, 11, and 25; November 1, 15, and 29; and December 6. Arrowhead Cemetery Services doing annual cemetery headstone resetting and leveling; a two-year Delta Dental renewal; a Minnesota Health Care Consortium Health Plan rate confirmation; and several ongoing project payments. One consent item, concerning hunting “an abundance of geese” at Two Harbors Airport, was taken off the agenda as it was determined the approval of last year’s hunt applied to this year and onward as well.
One item on the business agenda was approved, but with a caveat requiring a thorough explanation from City Administrator Patty Nordean: an agreement between MnDOT, the City of Two Harbors, and Lake County. The agreement was reviewed by city staff and gone over “with a fine-toothed comb” at the urging of City Engineer Brotzler, leading to several concerns over changes in the document that would put the city at a financial and legal disadvantage. Nordean listed out the issues and her requested improvements for the Council, and the Council’s subsequent approval includes the updated agreement being accepted by Nordean.
The Council also approved an annual maintenance plan with Syntech Software Services for work at the Airport; a contract increase for the CSAH 36 & 35, County 105 and City of Two Harbors Fifth and Sixth Avenue Project; taking steps to receive state funding for the Highway 61 Project; putting a hold on essential golf course equipment from MTI to save on future costs as recommended by Finance Director Pietila; and formally declaring certain parcels as needed for the City’s Recreational Program as part of the transfer of the Agate Bay Waterfront property.
The Police Department had several approvals, most of which involved cars: the sale of a police vehicle and several forfeited vehicles at auction, the donation of two other vehicles for city/county training purposes, and transfer of a police vehicle to the Fire Department for their use. Non-car related was specialized training for a few officers, including one of those sworn in this session.
