The Silver Bay City Council breezed through its monthly meeting in about 20 minutes on Monday night. There was a fairly short agenda with only a few items that required decisions by Council members..
Readers may recall that at their last meeting, the Council was considering replacing the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system at the wastewater treatment plant. Council members had some questions about the extent of what needed to be done and wanted to talk directly with staff in the Public Works Department so that they had a better understanding of the scope of the suggested upgrades. In light of those discussions, it appears that the entire system does not need to be replaced and the upgrade can be achieved by simply replacing the controller. Barr Engineering, from Duluth, will be handling the upgrade.
A motion authorizing a Stertil-Koni lift for the Street Department was carried by a unanimous vote. This will allow the Street Department to perform maintenance on heavy equipment.
Representatives from the Park and Recreation Department have been discussing the future of the building that houses the Senior Workshop with Mayor LeBlanc and the Principal of William Kelley High School, Dan Johnson. The current building is in need of rehabilitation and discussions are revolving around how best to address those needs while keeping the program going. Options that were discussed on Monday night included upgrading the existing building, the possibility of providing space for the program at WKHS or possibly moving the program to the Mary Mac Center. The search for solutions is ongoing. Stay tuned for further updates.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has requested an Access Agreement from the city so that they can investigate and possibly remediate any lead contamination along the shoreline where the Gun Club used to be. This agreement will simply allow the MPCA to cross city property to do their work. The Council agreed to the MPCA’s request.
A Tax Abatement hearing for the Housing Incentive Grant Program is scheduled for April 8th at 7:00. The meeting are held at WKHS. Further details will be forthcoming.
The Council took a moment to endorse the DNR Record of Decision on the expansion of the Mile Post 7 tailings dam. Council members commented on the importance of the decision with regard to the necessity of expanding the dam to keep the mine functioning. The Record of Decision is based on an Environmental Assessment Worksheet which is the first step in an environmental review, if the MCPA Commissioner decides that no further review is required. An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) allows for a more in-depth review.
The next Silver Bay Council meeting will be held on April 1st at 7:00.
