Residents of Silver Bay Have Questions, Concerns and a Couple of Unfounded Accusations for the City Council

There have been an in­creasing number of resi­dents attending the Silver Bay City Council meetings of late. This is actually a good thing because we live in a participatory democra­cy and your elected officials need to hear your ideas and answer your questions about decisions that are be­ing made in your communi­ty. Thirty area residents at­tended the Council meeting on September 3rd.

While the Silver Bay Council welcomes and en­courages resident partic­ipants and wants to hear from you, folks should un­derstand the place where the proverbial rubber meets the road is probably in various committee meetings as op­posed to Council Meetings. Why? Because committee meetings are where your neighbors are actually look­ing at specific ways to ad­dress things like affordable housing, infrastructure im­provements, economic de­velopment and other issues that are in need of solutions for the city of Silver Bay. By the time those “things” get to the Council, studies have already been done, op­tions have been looked at, discussions have been had and recommendations have been made. The Council’s task is to understand the resolution, ask their own questions for clarity and then vote either to pass the resolution, table it, or reject it.

Last week’s meeting got intense at times. The major­ity of attendees asked im­portant questions or offered meaningful suggestions. A couple of people hurled un­founded accusations at the Mayor and at other Council members. This is an exam­ple of behavior that unfor­tunately we are all famil­iar with if we observe the adolescent antics that are on display in Washington in the House of Represen­tatives on a weekly basis. In practice, such behavior is neither helpful, nor will it get one who uses such tactics heard by the people who might otherwise ben­efit from your perspective. Committee members, the Council and you, the resi­dents of Silver Bay, need to pull together to address the many issues that your town is facing.

In terms of business that was conducted at the September 3rd meeting, the Council voted to ap­prove the expenditure of $281,284 to refurbished fire engine #43. The engine on #43 will be completely re­built, rendering new life to the 31 year old firetruck. A new fire engine to replace #43 would cost $644,000. Engine #43 should return to service in January. The Council voted to approve a resolution that will allow Bolton and Menk to do the geotechnical work that is needed prior to moving for­ward with the 2025 street and utility improvements for CSAH, Banks and Ed­ison Boulevards. This geo­technical work needs to be done to ensure that utilities that will be designed and installed are done properly. Cost for this work is $8,000. The Council also approved resolutions for creating the special assessment that will go along with Phase 1 of the citywide street and util­ity improvements program and the program budget al­location. The Multi-Modal Trailhead Center was on the agenda and the Council vot­ed to amend the profession­al services agreement with Bolton and Menk to cover changes in the design due to removing the Senior Cen­ter from the existing plan. This change was done as a cost savings measure. The Senior Center will move to the Industrial Arts rooms at Two Harbors High School.

The date for a public hear­ing on the cannabis mora­torium is set for Monday, September 16th at 7:00PM. The 2025 budget meeting has been set for Tuesday, September 24th at 6:00PM.

At the Economic Devel­opment Authority meeting, committee members talked about interest that has been expressed by Green New Deal Housing out of Duluth, to work with the city on re­habilitating and upgrading homes to make them more energy efficient. There are currently no definite plans to engage with Green New Deal Housing but there will likely be ongoing dis­cussions in the hope of finding innovative ways to address rehabbing tax for­feited houses so that they can be utilized as energy efficient market rate hous­ing options. David Drown suggested that as the city continues to look at ways to provide market rate hous­ing, steps should be taken so that rehabbed houses are homesteaded rather than being turned into vacation rentals.

There were five residents who showed up to the Plan­ning and Zoning Committee meeting. Planning and Zon­ing are looking at possible ways to develop city owned property around the Golf Course for residential use. There currently are no lots platted, no public utilities or roads in the area and no actual plan on the drawing board for how to best use the city owned land that sur­rounds the Golf Course. The “hot button” issue around this possible development involves the possibility of short term rentals going in around the Golf Course. No one likes this idea and opinions in favor of lim­iting short term rentals or keeping them out all togeth­er were expressed. There are potentially 37 lots that could be part of any future development and according to Steve VanHouse, 10 of those units could be allocat­ed for vacation rentals. Res­idents in attendance at the meeting would like to see that number reduced. There will be a public meeting at some point in the future so that residents can express opinions and ask questions but, now is a good time to attend committee meetings so that you have a say in plans as they move forward.

I have covered council meetings in Silver Bay for three years. As a journalist, my job is to listen, observe and document as accurately as possible what is happen­ing in your public meetings. My observations over the last three years have led me to believe that you have a good group of citizens who are working for you on the Council, at City Hall and on the committees that I have observed. If I believed that was not the case, I would re­port it with evidence to back up any accusation that exist­ed. The League of Minne­sota Cities provides ground rules around conflict of in­terest situations concerning elected city officials. Check it out on the City’s web­site. The yearly State audit monitors city revenues and expenditures. Your city has received the highest rating available over the years that I’ve been covering meet­ings. Remember that civic engagement is the linchpin that democracy and civil so­ciety depend on. Your voice and involvement are im­portant and your city needs you. Continue to come to Council meetings and get involved in committees. I have often heard Council members encourage resi­dents to attend and serve on city committees because sometimes committees lack the number of members needed to conduct business. One doesn’t have to be an economist to be involved in Economic Development, or an engineer to be involved in Public Works. Commit­tees are a “learn as you go” enterprise. The other side of the coin is that the city staff can find more ways to in­form the public about what is going on. One way that city officials are addressing this is by publishing council agendas with links to reso­lutions so that residents can read the particulars around issues that will come be­fore the Council. Addition­ally, posting recordings of all public meetings so that residents can tune in at their convenience, would be helpful.

The next Silver Bay Coun­cil meeting is scheduled for Monday, September 16th at 7:00PM.