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2013-12-20 Friday NewsFriday News Mendota Heights Weekly Report on City Activities Code Enforcement Officer /Building Official Retires after 34 Years of Service City Council, staff and retirees gathered to celebrate Paul Berg's retirement this past week. During Paul's service to the g city, he was responsible for the review of building plans, building inspections and code enforcement. Over half of Mendota Heights' residential prop- erties and most of the industrial park were initially developed and constructed under his watch. Paul professionally and skillfully addressed all building codes, zoning ordinances and regulations for building plans. We have a deep appreciation of Paul's work and he will definitely be missed. Congratulations Paul! "The quality of a community reflects the dedication and commitment of those who serve it. " Skiers in action at the Par 3 This week, two loops were groomed for cross - country skiing at the Par 3. Loop one is approximately 1.5 miles and loop two is 3 /4ofamile. Thank you to St. Thomas Academy Nordic Ski team for the use of their snowmobile and groomer. The trails are open to cross - country skiers. Enjoy! Dates to Remember: December 24 and 25, 2013 City Hall Closed January 1, 2014 City Hall Closed Attachments: Pipeline, Just the Facts Holiday Office Hours City Hall will be closed on Tuesday, December 24 and Wednesday, December 25 next week. Offices will be open for regular hours on New Year's Eve, and closed on Wednesday, January 1. The next Friday News, Pipeline and Just the Facts will be emailed Friday, January 3rd. Mendota Heights City Hall 1101 Victoria Curve www.mendota- heights.com (651) 452 -1850 Facebook.com /MendotaHeightsMN Twitter.com / @mendota_ heights NEWS LETTER Public Works En4ineerinq Code Enforcement Public Works Tie 'i np- I i n P_ December 20, 2013 �N-Appy Hol;�lays� The Parks Crew checked the warming houses daily. They continue to flood the rinks. They also plowed the trails, all cul -de -sacs, parking lots and rinks. They attended the Respectful Work Place Policy training at City Hall. A groomer was picked up from St. Thomas and taken to the Par 3. The Utilities Crew checks the lift stations daily. The lift stations were shoveled and salt put down when needed. The pumps were reset and overloaded fuses changed out at the Veronica lift station, this work falls under the warranty of the rehabilitation project completed this past summer. Grease was cleaned off the floats at the Veronica lift station. The Streets Crew was assisted in snow plowing efforts. The Streets Crew plowed the streets after the snowfalls this week. The cutting edges were changed on the wings. The bridge decks were cleaned of snow. Engineering City Projects (construction year) Hunter Lane /Orchard Place Neighborhood Improvements (2013) -The project is considered substantially complete and the final lift of wear course asphalt will be placed in the spring. Crown Point &Overlook Neighborhood Rehabilitations (2013) -The contractor will need to finish the final punch -list items in the spring. Sanitary Sewer Cleaning and Televising (2013) -Staff is reviewing televising data received from the contractor to determine which sections of sewer require lining in 2014. Sanitary Sewer Lining (20131 -This project will install a liner in place on sections of sanitary sewer main that have been identified as having multiple root penetrations or other faults. All lining activities this year were identified by the 2012 cleaning and televising contract. Minor traffic impacts should be anticipated while the contractor accesses manholes. Lining is expected to add up to 25 years to the life of the sanitary sewer main. Highway 13 Trail Connection (2014) - Construction will not begin until the spring. A utility conflict with Saint Paul Regional Water Service needs to be resolved prior to construction. Victoria Road Reconstruction &Rolling Green Neighborhood Rehabilitation (2014/2015) -Staff will be soliciting for consultant services for the design of this project in the coming weeks. The entire project will be designed, but it will be constructed in phases. The first phase, scheduled for 2014, will reconstruct Victoria from Lilydale to Marie Avenue and rehabilitate the Stratford /Walsh /Rolling Green neighborhood. The remainder of Victoria was put off to a future date, but it is anticipated for construction in 2015. Staff anticipates bid opening in May with construction beginning June 2014. State Proiects Highway 13 Reconstruction (2015) -The section of Highway 13 that was not rehabilitated in 2012 is scheduled for reconstruction in 2015. This section is from I -35E south and west to 2nd Street in Mendota. This section will receive a widened shoulder, curb, gutter, and storm sewer to help alleviate drainage and erosion problems in Lilydale. Highway 149 (Dodd Road) Resurfacing (2015 ?) -Dodd Road is scheduled to be resurfaced from Highway 55 in Eagan north to Annapolis Street in 2015. At this time, there are no plans to widen the State Highway, but some alterations for drainage and public safety are possible. The project may be delayed until 2017 to be constructed in conjunction with the Highway 110 resurfacing project. Highway 110 Resurfacing (2017) - Preliminary project scoping has begun. This project will not reconstruct or alter the alignment of the State Highway, but modifications to access points, traffic signals, shoulders, drainage, and pedestrian facilities are likely. Other Activities Future Cities Competition -Staff continued to assist 6t" through 8t" grade students at Friendly Hills Middle School with their entries in the annual Future Cities Competition. The students submitted their Sim City computer models earlier this year and just completed their research essays. The teams are now working on the scale models and their presentations for the State competition on January 18t ". After the holiday break staff will assist the teams with their dry runs of their presentations and participate in the "all school" competition for the teams that were not selected to go to the State competition. DECEMBER 20, 2013 � Stay safe for the holidays � OM ALL OF � M HPD t)EA R SANTA , r Oat PL EA. E LEA VE ME STUFF TO NICK FROM CARS THIS XMAS t A. CA R CRI MIN' A LL DON'T AE S A NTA S LITHE HELPED i 5 I 1 "PIP E JCF Af, rp- C J. t .Came .. i dw T . ZRfMF SPE r =, 1 1 - i 1,_ - 1 LJ ruor cFF?o�s I DONOrrR� ' top— t SUPPORT STAFF `I Kim Henning Trista Miller Becky Pentel POLICE OFFICERS Jerry Murphy Scott Patrick John Larrive Bobby Lambert - Tanner Spicer Todd Rosse Jeff Vonfeldt Steven Meyer Denise Urmann Michael Shepard Peyton Fleming SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER Jennifer Fordham INVESTIGATIONS Mario Reyes ' Chad Willson SERGEANTS Neil Garlock Brian Convery Eric Petersen RESERVES I Randy Pentel Jim Knox Jeff Parker George Castillo CHAPLAINS I Frances Cuenca Joel Detlefsen Lynn Liberman Butch Millett Sue Plucker , John Snider David Wick CHIEF Mike Aschenbrener DECEMBER 20, 2013 � Stay safe for the holidays � OM ALL OF � M HPD t)EA R SANTA , r Oat PL EA. E LEA VE ME STUFF TO NICK FROM CARS THIS XMAS t A. CA R CRI MIN' A LL DON'T AE S A NTA S LITHE HELPED i 5 I 1 "PIP E JCF Af, rp- C J. t .Came .. i dw T . ZRfMF SPE r =, 1 1 - i 1,_ - 1 LJ ruor cFF?o�s I DONOrrR� ' 0 QcToQUo00 Saturday 0349 hours Officer Denise Urmann responded to a report of a female party standing alone near a restaurant, shivering and freezing. On her way there, she noticed a disabled vehicle with front end damage. She ran the plate and headed back to find the female party; along the way she was flagged down by a witness who stated the female and her dog were still there. She soon found her, by a light pole, and upon approach, it became clear she had been consuming alcohol. After Officer Urmann ensured she was OK and did not need medical treat- ment, the female informed Officer Urmann she had been driving her car when she suddenly struck "the thing that sticks out on the side of the road." She stopped the car, grabbed the dog and started walking. State Patrol responded and took over the DUI arrest. Officer Urmann cleared. DAR Saturday 1853 hours While on routine patrol, Officer Peyton Fleming ran a check on a vehicle in front of him and the RO came back as "revoked" with license plates flagged as "impound for alcohol." He could not determine if the driver appeared to be the RO, so he pulled it over. He did not find the RO driving the vehicle, but the person who was driving stated he had just purchased the vehicle. Officer Peyton informed the new owner he would have to impound the plates and then asked for the driver's valid license. He learned the driver did not have one, but the passenger did. Since there were two small children in the car, he agreed to follow them to their ad- dress and remove the plates once they were home. He removed the plates and left them with a citation for driving after revocation and driving without proof of insurance. Officer cleared. Theft —gas Sunday 1619 hours Yet another gas drive off, this one committed by someone driving a silver Toyota sedan, bearing a WI plate, and filled with junk; the car also had some red and silver paint on it. Surprise, surprise, the plates didn't match the vehicle, as it came back to a blue Volvo. Case inactive. Accident Monday 1427 hours Officer Patrick responded to a business district where an accident had occurred between a car vs truck; no injuries, minor damages, thankfully. Officer cleared. Missing Person Monday 1746 hours Officers were dispatched to a report of a missing vulnerable adult. Officer Steve Meyer learned the party had left on foot to an unknown location. The entry was made into NCIC and a search was conducted. The party was soon found and returned safely to the home. Officers cleared. Mail Theft Tuesday 1020 hours Question: Should you ever put the flag up on your mailbox? Answer: No! A red flag is exactly that, waving to criminals, "Steal me!" A resident put several bill payments /letters in the mailbox, raised the flag and soon found checks had been fraudulently created on his account. Luckily, he learned this when the suspect at- tempted to use one of the checks, but was thwarted by the bank teller, who was suspicious of the transaction. When asked to come inside and present ID, the suspect drove off, leaving behind all the evidence. Forward - ed to investigations. D To ncl U000 Accident Wednesday 1142 hours Officer Bobby Lambert responded to a local gas station for an accident that had occurred in the parking lot. Upon arriving, he found both parties waiting —one vehicle had minor damage and one had moderate damage. He heard the story of what happened, observed the damage incurred and determined which was the striking) vehicle. No citations were issued. Officer cleared. Check Welfare Monday 1746 hours While at work, an employee began making suicidal comments to coworkers. Officer Todd Rosse responded) and discussed the situation with the employee. He admitted the comments were selfish and stated he didn't really mean it. After discussing the seriousness of the situation, the officer decided to allow him to stay. A co- worker offered to watch over him. Officer cleared. Scrappin' Thursday 0043 hours Officer Spicer was conducting traffic safety enforcement when he stopped a truck with the taillights not work- ing. The truck was carrying a lot of scrap metal that appeared to be in danger of falling off the truck. He ap- proached the driver and asked him where he got all the scrap, which included industrial shelving and lots of wire. The driver and passenger both agreed it had been free and they were just heading home to put up shelv- ing. Both parties started searching for their driver's licenses and some proof of insurance. When the driver at- tempted to open the glove compartment, the passenger told him "no" and the compartment was quickly shut._ Hmmm. He also soon learned the passenger was a well -known scrap metal thief and meth user. When asked if they had drugs in the car, he observed some shifty eyes and weak responses, but both said, "No." He asked if al narcotic K -9 could come and verify that; they both said yes. He did so, but the K -9 found nothing. They were released but warned that if any scrap or valuable metal was found stolen, he would be in contact again. Officer cleared. DWI Thursday 2343 hours Officer Spicer stopped a speeding vehicle were the driver was attempting to make a curvy road just a little more dangerous. Upon approaching the cracked window of the vehicle, he could distinctly smell alcohol. Of course,) the driver stated he only had one beer at his friend's house, but the field sobriety tests were started anyway. They did not go well, nor did the PBT, which showed a .142. The driver agreed to submit to a blood test; driv- er was booked at the Dakota County jail and released pending test results. Officer cleared. I � Watch for JTF again A 2014.. 7, 1 1 M st =FJI 7s.Ta_H o o4 t oot t AMr t� MON I L , " r " g as in in 201 s I ! g 6T,, p �"jpj yLN, a 0 i i i i *V PP _T I 0 D _T 0 0 o I _V_ _V_ -fl- $TAFF FVI DD I � � I 12/13-12/20 2013 YTD 0 I I Calls for Service 109 8104 I I Citations 10 1483 TOY WATCH I I Warnings 6 1200 Watch for pictures I and an update on Police Reports 16 1008 I our most generous I Response Time Average 6.35 5.25 Toys for Tots p g I donation to date Check out the MH Crime Map! Click below to search your neighborhood: in the I httj2://mendota.j2roj2hoenix.com/CS/CrimeMapping.aspx 2014 JTF issue. Aa �p t In the meantime RGFTi MHPD caught onf` KARE 11 for If you are a Mendota Heights resident and you are going out of town or on Y g Y g g Toysfor Tots: vacation, you can notify MHPD of our outing and we will be more than ha to Y Y Y g happy keep a watchful eye on your home while you are away. The House Check Request h t t p ; / / online form is available on our website; we have similar forms in the MHPD lobby w w w . k a r e 11.com/ and we will take your info over the phone. videos /news /local/ outreach/toys-for- tots/201 3/12/19/4134 285/ �/ MHPD offers monthly Car Seat Safety Checks. To schedule an appointment, call 6 S 1.4S 2.13 66 to contact Officer Jennifer Fordham. Please send us your positive feedback on our staff to: M pdrecords@ Take it to THE BOX mendota- heights.com 2''our feedback zs greatly MHPD has a Medication Disposal Box in the lobby of the PD where Dakota appreciated and helps boost County residents can safely and anonymously dispose of their prescription drugs the morale o f our staff. and over - the - counter medication. 4