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2002-08-16 Friday News The Friday News August 16, 2002 Ridder Barn Moves to Dodge Nature Center At the last meeting, the City Council approved a conditional use permit for an accessory structure at Dodge Nature Center. The accessory structure is the barn from the Ridder property given to the Dodge Nature Center. The barn will be used as a shelter on the Dodge site and to conduct educational activities. The barn was sitting temporarily on the Town Center site until this week when it was successfully moved to Dodge Nature Center. Please see the attached Sun Current article “MH approves barn’s addition to center.” Ridder House Burning Training Exercise In May, the City Council approved the burning of a home on the Ridder property for fire department th training purposes. The Fire Department will be conducting this exercise on September 7. On September th 6 at 5:00 PM, they will be conducting an additional training session in the building. Chief Maczko has extended the invitation to participate in this exercise to any City employee, Commissioner or Council member that would be interested in participating. If you are interested, please contact Chief John Maczko for further details. Meeting with St. Paul Regional Water Services On Monday, Jim Danielson and I met with a representative from the St. Paul Regional Water Services on a complaint we received about low water pressure on Delaware Avenue. We are looking at different options to help remedy the problem, without creating new issues with dead end lines or low pressure for fire flows. We will keep you updated on this issue as a plan develops. Meeting with new Met Council Representative Next Thursday, Council member Sandra Krebsbach arranged for staff to meet with our new Metropolitan Council representative, Tom Egan. Tom is Carolyn Rodriguez’s replacement, representing District 15, which includes Mendota Heights, Mendota, Eagan, Lilydale, Burnsville and Apple Valley. Tom is an attorney at Egan, Stewart and Lauer, and is a former Council member and Mayor for the City of Eagan. He is also the former President of the Association of Metropolitan Municipalities and the Municipal Legislative Commission. We will be updating Tom on the Town Center project and giving him an update of other projects and developments in the City. Marie Park Tennis Courts th At the August 6 meeting, the Council authorized staff to issue a purchase order for the repair and resurfacing of the Marie Park Tennis courts with the work to be completed by the end of September. The Council established a budget of $11,000 for this project (plus 10% contingency) and identified the Capital Equipment Reserve Fund as the funding source for the improvement. The Council also directed miscellaneous repairs to be made to the court fencing and gate area. Guy Kullander sought bid proposals from five firms experienced in tennis court repair and resurfacing, He received one bid from Dermco Lavine Construction Co for $9,840 (same contractor that recently completed Ivy Park Tennis courts). The other four contractors declined to bid for various reasons. In addition to the court resurfacing, staff also received a bid to repair the fencing at the court and to repair the basketball nets at Marie Park. Purchase orders have been issued and work on this project should begin within the next ten days. Barr Engineering presentation to Parks Commission Ms. Diane Hellekson of Barr Engineering presented the final draft of the Natural Resources Management Plan to the Parks Commission on Tuesday night. Ms. Hellekson showed the Commission vegetation maps of Mendota Heights and northern Dakota County, and said that the biggest challenge facing Mendota Heights from a natural resources management perspective was the eradication of invasive species such as Buckthorn and Mustard Garlic. Ms. Hellekson recommended that it would also be a good idea to attempt to reduce the amount of land area within the City of Mendota Heights dedicated to lawns and impervious surface. Ms. Hellekson said that the City’s first priority should be to preserve high- quality natural areas such as Valley Park, the Copperfield ponds, Rogers Park, the Ivy Hills area, and a pocket of diverse native vegetation along Highway 13 below Ivy Falls. She also advocated education and enforcement by City Staff and the involvement of local residents, schools, and community groups in the restoration and preservation of native vegetation and the elimination of harmful species. Ms. Hellekson will be preparing a prioritized sheet of action steps that the City should take for the next Parks and Recreation Commission meeting. Airport Relations Commission On Wednesday, the Airport Relations Commission met in regular session. Council member Sandra Krebsbach attended the meeting. She gave the Commission an update on the Airport Zoning Board issues and her efforts to ensure that all communities adjacent to the airport be treated the same. Patrick Hollister gave the Commission an update on his trip to the NOISE conference in Providence, Rhode Island with Mayor Mertensotto. The Commission also worked on the update to the Airport Noise Plan of Action. 2001 KPMG Audit Report Each year upon completion of the annual audit report, we have the Senior Partner of KPMG attend a th Council meeting to review the final report. At the August 20 meeting, Chris Omdahl will be presenting the 2001 audit report to the City Council. Power Line Task Force Files Supreme Court Petition Mayor Mertensotto reported that Mike Black filed a petition for review with the Supreme Court on th August 14 on behalf of the Power Line Task Force. See the attached Sun Current article “PLTF appeals Sunfish Lake court decision, will request review of Mendota Heights decision.” Sad News Airport Relations Commissioner Joe Leuman’s father passed away last week in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Our thoughts and prayers are with Joe at this trying time. Final Thought “Often the best thing about not saying anything is that it can’t be repeated.” – Suzan L.Wiener Respectfully Submitted, Cari Lindberg Administrator Attachments: Pipeline, Just the Facts, City Council agenda, Pre application Meeting Synopsis, Sun Current articles “PLTF appeals Sunfish Lake court decision, will request review of Mendota Heights decision,” “Eagan awaits resolution on airport zoning indemnification issues,” “ MAC to consider replacement for defunct MASAC,” “MH approves barn’s addition to center,” AMM News.