The repair of concrete streets in Blue Earth, above, is also under discussion by the Street Committee and the City Council.

The Blue Earth City Council devoted a lot of discussion to upcoming projects at a meeting held on Monday, April 15.

City engineer Ben Rosol opened the discussion with an update about the ongoing tennis court reconstruction project at Putnam Park.

Rosol said the project contractor was expecting to start grading and prep work this past week, and the concrete crew is expected to arrive at the beginning of May.

“They will be in town for one to two weeks,” he added.

Mayor Rick Scholtes then shared that the Blue Earth Area Tennis Association had requested that a backboard be installed in the northeast corner of the new courts. They are also interested in installing cut-outs in the fence near spectator seating so it is easier to view matches.

“That would be nice for anybody who is a spectator to go watch tennis, and not have a fence in the front,” Scholtes considered.

However, city attorney David Frundt observed that having a gap in the fence near spectators might be a liability issue.

“The other issue is, what does the USTA require if the courts are going to be used for any sort of tournaments?” he added.

Frundt will research both concerns prior to the council’s next meeting on Monday, May 6, at which point the council will vote on both proposals.

Rosol also brought forward a proposal to evaluate the condition of Blue Earth’s existing concrete streets.

He explained that while most of Blue Earth’s recent street improvement projects have involved full reconstruction, some of the streets that do not require such extensive repairs might still benefit from surface-level maintenance.

“The Street Committee discussed evaluating those concrete streets to see if any necessary maintenance can be done,” Rosol said. “Not removing or replacing them – just evaluating them, and seeing if something can be implemented on the city’s five-year maintenance plan.”

Council member John Huisman, a member of the Street Committee, added, “The Street Committee wants to have this resource for us to look at as we look at the entire street needs in the city of Blue Earth.”

Rosol said roughly 24,000 to 25,000 square feet of concrete streets would be eligible for evaluation.

The council directed Rosol to bring a proposal for the evaluation to the next City Council meeting.

Council member Stephanie Walter also inquired about some of the city’s sidewalks which are in poor condition.

“I think if we are working on the streets, we should also see about the condition of the sidewalks,” she suggested.

City administrator Mary Kennedy said she had been contacted by a company who could assess the city’s sidewalks. She plans to bring their proposal to the Street Committee’s next meeting.

“It is something worth exploring, only if the council is seriously interested in having a discussion about sidewalks,” Kennedy added. “If you’re not seriously interested, I think we should put it on the back burner for now.”

Finally, the council approved two task orders for Bolton & Menk.

Task Order No. 2 authorizes Bolton & Menk to perform engineering and survey work for the 2024 Street and Utility Improvement Project.

Task Order No. 3, meanwhile, concerns an upcoming project at the Blue Earth Municipal Airport to construct a new T Hangar.

Ninety-five percent of the project’s estimated $78,000 cost will be funded by federal and state funding, leaving five percent of the cost to be covered by local funding.

In other business, the Blue Earth City Council:

• Reviewed a draft of the annexation agreement between the city of Blue Earth and the Township of Blue Earth City.

Since the last City Council meeting, the agreement has been revised from a five-year agreement to a three-year agreement.

According to the agreement’s updated property tax reimbursement plan, Blue Earth would reimburse the township for a sum of $50,000 over a three-year period, paying $16,66.67 a year in 2025, 2026 and 2027.

The council noted that the current draft of the agreement does not list all of the parcels which will be affected by the annexation, and requested that Frundt bring the final draft, with those updates, to the council’s next meeting for approval.

Frundt clarified that the agreement will need to be published 10 days prior to that meeting for the council and the Township Board to be able to adopt it legally.

• Unanimously approved an ordinance to amend Section 5.13 of the City Charter, which changes the Charter’s language concerning the procedure for recalling an elected official.

• Unanimously approved an ordinance to amend Section 12.02 of the City Charter, which concerns the sale of city-owned property. Prior to the amendment, the council needed to approve property sales through the ordinance process, which significantly delayed property transactions. Now, property sales can be approved by a single resolution.

• Heard Randy Anderson’s comments on the council’s dismissal of former Blue Earth Community Library employee Mollie Halverson following a public hearing on April 1.

Observing that Halverson had been given notice of the hearing at the end of her shift on Friday, March 29, Anderson questioned whether she was given adequate notice to obtain legal representation by the following Monday.

“There was no mechanism in the notice to ask for a continuance of some kind if she wanted to bring legal council,” Anderson said. “Going forward, to protect yourselves, it might be fairer to offer some accommodation when you drop a notice on somebody on a Friday, for a Monday hearing.”

• Discussed renovations at Blue Earth’s future City Hall, the former Wells Fargo building.

Kennedy informed the council that Brunton Architects has completed the building’s design layout, and is nearing completion of the mechanical designs.

She inquired whether the council wants to add controlled access to the building, and the council agreed that both exterior doors should be wired as such.

The council also agreed that City Hall’s existing contracts for vendors and contractors for items such as trash and recycling, office supplies and pest control should be bid out for orders for the new City Hall.

• Considered adjusting the city’s compensation rates for elected officials, which have not been raised since 2014.

The council directed city staff to prepare a report documenting the compensation rates of other elected officials in the area for comparison.

• Approved Mick Ankeny’s application for a minor subdivision at his property on Highland Drive.

• Approved the city’s membership in the Minnesota Environmental Science and Economic Review Board, and approved the associated Joint Powers Agreement.

• Approved the hire of Darren Bettin as a full-time officer for the Blue Earth Police Department.

• Approved a solicitor application from Adam’s Detailing & Decal Design, LLC.

• Was informed that the Blue Earth Area School District will be hosting its second annual Spring Carnival on Wednesday, May 29, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.