City Council - Regular Meeting

Call to order the regular meeting of the Elverly City Council for Monday, July 27th, 2026. Clerk, please call the roll.

Councilor Christensen. Councilor Baker. Here. Councilor Herman.

Here.

Councilor Olson.

Here.

Councilor Van Beek.

Here.

Councilor Anderson. Here. And Mayor Murray.

Here. Would you please rise and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance. God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Welcome to everyone tonight, whether you're here in person or online, we're glad you're with us. With that, we'll move along to ceremonial items. We have none tonight, so next up is item four, the public forum. Do we have people on the public forum tonight? Thank you. Thank you. ALL RIGHT, UP FIRST IS TALLY ROCOS. DID I SAY THAT CORRECTLY? AND PLEASE CORRECT ME IF NOT. ROCOS? ROCOS, THANK YOU. WELCOME.

THANK YOU. LIKE YOU SAID, MY NAME IS TALLY ROCOS, AND I LIVE AT 122- LIKE I SAID, MY NAME IS TALLY ROCOSTE AND I LIVE AT 1223 MADISON AVENUE IN ALBERT LEE, MINNESOTA. THIS IS MY SON, JARVIS. AS YOU CAN SEE, HE'S AUTISTIC. HE'S NINE AND A HALF. AND SINCE WE MOVED HERE, WE HAVE BEEN THROUGH ABSOLUTE CHAOS AND TORMENTED AND HARASSED. NONE OF HIS NEEDS HAVE BEEN MET BY THE COUNTY, TO WHICH I'M FILING A FEDERAL LAWSUIT. More recently, I came before you in February requesting the condemnation and eviction of a drug house next door to me, hoping that that would be the end of it. It wasn't. He's come back repeatedly, day after day, him and his friends. They sabotage my mower. They break into my home continuously. All these reports, I'm told, they don't have resources for. They're just allegations, so forth. Even when the neighbors can ID the perpetrator, nothing gets done. character has taken the storm drains down off my house and rearranged them, taken hoses off my house, destroyed the backyard. Most recently, in July on the 11th, my sump pumps mysteriously both stopped functioning at the same time. I don't believe that's coincidence in the least at all. They say there's no breaking and entering to my home, no obvious damage. That's not true either. The boards are bent. The screen's ripped. People are using cards. People are smart. They use keys to other houses to get into your house. It's not hard. People can become locksmiths. It's not hard to get in. The neighbors have them on ring cam. person has a gray hooded sweatshirt and lo and behold I seen the old neighbor and his girlfriend in town that day both wearing gray sweatshirts. It doesn't take two and two to put it together. So at this point we don't feel safe. I've gone to the crime victims advocates and discussed putting restraining orders on them but it's also their friends and like I said his girlfriend and other people and I don't think anything will get done. Even when they can be identified in the act and seen, nothing gets done. I don't feel safe. It's not safe for my son. I'm constantly stressed out, and it's not okay. It's not okay behavior. I just want out. I'm completely exhausted. I'd already be gone, but houses where I'm from are $2,300 deposit, $2,300 first month's rent, $300 for three hours of moving expenses, a truck, so forth. And what do I get? I get notices in the mail. dated the 14th and the 16th, right after I talked to the victim advocate, telling me, mow your grass, clean up the boxes. So I stopped bringing things up from the basement, making our living conditions even worse. I am on Social Security. I only get paid once a month. I think everybody knows that. And... I CAN'T DO ANYTHING UNTIL I GET PAID IN A FEW DAYS. I'VE TRIED SEVERAL NEIGHBORS, SEVERAL FRIENDS. PEOPLE TELL ME THEY'RE GOING TO COME TAKE CARE OF IT. THEY DON'T. I'M TOLD SOMEONE'S GOING TO DO IT TONIGHT OR TOMORROW AT THE LATEST. I DON'T KNOW, BUT I CAN'T DO ANYTHING UNTIL I GET PAID IN A FEW DAYS. I'M ASKING FOR SOME... I'M ASKING FOR SOME COMPASSION. I'M ASKING THAT EVEN WHEN I MOVE, SOMETHING GETS DONE ABOUT THESE PEOPLE. THEY ARE TRADING VEHICLES, THEY ARE BORROWING EACH OTHER'S VEHICLES, AND THEY ARE GANGSTOCKING PEOPLE, FOLLOWING THEM TO THEIR DESTINATIONS WHILE OTHER PEOPLE ROB THEIR HOMES, ROB THEIR CARS. IT'S RIDICULOUS. AND I CAN IDENTIFY SEVERAL OF THEM. MOST OF THEM ARE ON PROBATION ALREADY. I have homeless people living in the storage units behind me and the sheds behind me, homeless people living in the vans behind me, homeless people living in a gray truck and a lot behind me. Something's got to get done. It's not okay.

Thank you, Tally, for coming and sharing with us tonight.

Come on, baby.

All right, next up is John Koka.

WELL, THAT WAS HEARTBREAKING. THIS IS NOT QUITE SO SERIOUS, BUT STILL SERIOUS. SO GOOD EVENING, MAYOR MURRAY, MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL, CITY MANAGER RIG, AND STAFF. MY NAME IS JOHN COCKETT, WARD TWO RESIDENT AND FORMER BUILDING MANAGER AT THE MARION ROSS COMMUNITY THEATER. I'M STANDING BEFORE YOU TONIGHT NOT TO RAISE A COMPLAINT, BUT TO OFFER A SOLUTION AND PROTECT OUR COMMUNITY'S ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL ASSETS. FIRST, I WANT TO COMMEND THE CITY FOR MAINTAINING BASELINE MUNICIPAL LICENSING THROUGH ASCAP AND BMI UNDER FUND 101. THE CITY ADMINISTRATION HAS TAKEN RESPONSIBLE STEPS TO COVER STANDARD MUNICIPAL OPERATIONS. HOWEVER, THROUGH MY ADMINISTRATIVE WORK WITH THE VENUE AND OPERATIONS AND DETAILED REVIEW OF OUR MUNICIPAL BILLING LEDGERS AND THE DETAILS OF OUR ASCAP AND BMI CONTRACTS, I'VE IDENTIFIED A CRITICAL STRUCTURAL GAP AND HOW FEDERAL COPYRIGHT COMPLIANCE IS BEING APPLIED LOCALLY. MUNICIPAL BLANKET LIMITS. OUR CITY BLANKET LOCAL GOVERNMENT ENTITY LICENSES COVER CITY-OPERATED FACILITIES, BUT FEDERAL COPYRIGHT TERMS AND THE ASCAP AND BMI CONTRACTS DO NOT PERMIT SUBLICENSING TO THIRD-PARTY 501C3 NONPROFITS, LIKE THE MARION ROSS COMMUNITY THEATER, THE CVB, OR ANY OTHER INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY FESTIVALS. THE 25,000 MISCONCEPTION THERE IS A COMMON UNDERSTANDING THAT EVENTS UNDER 25,000 ARE AUTOMATICALLY COVERED UNDER THE CITY HALL'S BLANKET POLICY. UNDER FEDERAL PRO CONTRACT TERMS, THAT 25,000 THRESHOLD APPLIES EXCLUSIVELY TO EVENTS DIRECTED, PRODUCED, MANAGED BY THE CITY ITSELF, NOT TO INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTIES. UNINSURED RISK. FEDERAL STATUTORY COPYRIGHT DAMAGES RANGE FROM $750 TO $30,000 PER SONG. AND STANDARD MUNICIPAL GENERAL LIABILITY POLICIES ROUTINELY EXCLUDE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY CLAIMS. OVER THE PAST SEVERAL WEEKS, I'VE CONDUCTED AN AUDIT OF OUR LICENSING STRUCTURES AND SUBMITTED A COMPREHENSIVE COMPLIANCE BRIEF AND A PROPOSED LIVE MUSIC COMPLIANCE PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM TO CITY LEADERSHIP. MY GOAL, AND YOU HAVE A COPY OF THAT, EVERYONE. MY GOAL IS TO ESTABLISH A PROACTIVE, VOLUNTARY PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE CITY, ALITA, THE CVB, AND OUR LOCAL ARTS ORGANIZATIONS AND BUSINESSES. BY STANDARDIZING LICENSING PROTOCOLS NOW, WE INSULATE OUR MAYOR, THE CITY STAFF, COUNCIL, DOWNTOWN BUSINESSES, AND COMMUNITY ORGANIZERS FROM UNEXPECTED FEDERAL ENFORCEMENT OR FINANCIAL LIABILITY. I'VE PROVIDED EACH OF YOU WITH A PACKET CONTAINING THE COMPLIANT SUMMARY AND KEY CONTRACT PROVISIONS. I RESPECTFULLY REQUEST THAT THE COUNCIL DIRECT ADMINISTRATION TO REVIEW THIS BRIEF AND SCHEDULE A SHORT WORK SESSION ITEM SO WE CAN RESOLVE THIS GAP TOGETHER COLLABORATIVELY. IF ANY MEMBER OF THE COUNCIL WOULD LIKE A MORE IN-DEPTH REPORT WITH E-MAILS, CONTRACTS, EVENT PERMITS, AND SUMMARIES OF MEETINGS WITH CITY STAFF, I WOULD BE HAPPY TO MEET INDIVIDUALLY OR AS A GROUP. So thank you for your time and for your continued service to Albert Lee.

Thank you, John. Next up, Heather Rooley.

Hello, my name is Heather Rooley.

I live on Jansen Street. I've lived there for almost 10 years. Home Solution has been there for a long time on First Avenue. Over the years, they've gained more employees, so parking has become pushed further and further down Jansen Street. Last year, it got worse. We kind of dealt with it. This year, it's moving more and more into residential, like my house and then the neighbors. Somebody will park in between there, across the street. Sometimes we don't get our garbage picked up or recycling. Recycling comes twice a week. I have a 16-year-old. It can become very difficult to turn onto Jansen Street or turn off when it turns into a one-way street. I would love if something would be done with that, even if turning it to just one-sided parking, maybe only residential parking past a certain point. My fear is if we do turn it into a one-sided parking, that they'll just keep parking further and further up.

All right. Thank you. We appreciate you coming and sharing tonight. Thank you. All right, that concludes the public forum. We'll now move along to item five, consent and approval of agenda. A is approval of minutes of the July 13th, 2026 regular council meeting. Item B is approval of minutes of the July 13th, 2026 work session. Item C is license and permits. Item D is a resolution authorizing the Minnesota office state strike team mutual aid agreement. Item E is a resolution accepting the bid for the airport snow removal equipment door replacement project job number 2608. ITEM F IS RESOLUTION DESIGNATING THE ADDITIONAL HANDICAPPED PARKING SPOTS SUNDAY ONLY FROM 7 AM TO 1 PM ON WATER STREET. AND ITEM G IS A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING PURCHASE OF THE ARENA PLEXIGLASS IN 2026 INSTEAD OF 2027. AND COUNCIL?

Move to approve, Your Honor, with the addition of $11,000 for the benches in 5G.

Okay, so as amended, we've got a motion. Is there a second? Second, Your Honor. Second by Councilor Anderson. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion, signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Opposed, no. Motion carries. Item six is Petitions, Requests, and Communications. And tonight we have an update on the Rec Facility Project by Kathy Malachowski.

Welcome. Thank you. Good evening, Mayor and City Council. And I think Daphne will be pulling up my presentation. I did email the presentation to the council and to Ian during the break between meetings. OK, so it has been a long and hard journey with these recreational facility improvements. But we are just about there. And once we finally arrive, we are going to have a lot to celebrate. So here's what I'm going to cover tonight. Big question, are we over or under budget? We're gonna talk about the fire alarm issue. I'm gonna call on our city attorney to give an update. We're gonna touch on our plan for filing for the federal incentives. I'm gonna go through the schedule and talk about some of the delays and then talk about next steps. So I'm gonna call on Christie to go over where we're at with expenses.

There was an updated copy. Do you want to pull that one up? Is that one up? You might have gotten another one. This is an updated copy. There's some additional expenses on the splash pad. But these are the expenses as of today. Are they final? No. I mean, we're still not expecting anything major coming up as far as Kathy and I have discussed. But there might be some smaller things that are going to come along. So I want to make sure that we're not saying this is it. This is all there's going to be because... There may be additional expenses, and as those come up, we'll give you another update later on. But this is the majority of them. The actual expenses for the arena came in at about $11,096,624. And there are some additional expenses, about $83,000 that we haven't paid for yet. That's what those additional amounts are. So we're looking at a total estimated of $11,180,000. We budgeted $10,959,000. So we are over about $220,000. And again, Kathy's going to go over the overs and unders and some further explanations later. on those later in the presentation. The Aquatic Center, right now we're at 850. We're expecting about another 35,000 expenses for a total of 885. We budgeted 952, so we're actually gonna be under, on that project, about $66,000. The theater, we were looking at two, so far we're at 283. We're going to have an additional about 13,000. So the total estimate on that project is almost 300,000. We were budgeting about that 300,000, so we're about $2,099 under on those projects. 2099 over, I apologize. The splash pad, the total estimated with the amount that we have left to pay is about 176. We were estimating the budget would be about 250. And that project is going to end up under about $73,000. Financing costs, we actually had some election costs. Actually came in about 220 we were estimating that would be about 225 so about under $5,000 on that line item so right now. We're showing an in total and estimated under budget for the whole entire project about $78,000 Again the additional amount is 148 is what we know right now that we're going to own that project And as if there are any changes, we will definitely update you on later when we have the exact final information in. But right now, this is very close. Any questions about any of this? Again, Kathy, I'll go over the over and unders.

Christy, State Manager. Thank you, Your Honor. Originally we were told it was about 63 or 67,000 over in total, but I understand that there was something just today that was that we had to add on?

Yeah, we had to add on that additional amount in the splash pad, that $15,967. There were some additional costs for the splash pad that we weren't aware of until this morning. So those were added on just this morning.

And that was the labor for our crews doing the work, I believe?

Yeah, most of it was. About 11,000 of it was labor. Our crew, our city employees were actually keeping track of every hour they spent over there. And then we charged it back to the project. So that was the balance of that. And then there was another smaller item that they hadn't paid for yet.

The reason we do that for capital, excuse me, the reason we do that for capital when our staff work on it as opposed to when we do it more administratively or others, can you?

Well, this project in particular, we knew that we were going to charge city staff time because I think originally we were thinking that, I mean, when we looked at the 250, I believe, and Steve can correct me if I'm wrong, that If we would have had somebody outside do it, I think is where the 250 came from. But when we decided that city staff was willing to take on the project and take care of the project, we knew we had to charge that time back to the project. So whether we charge back time to a project is always going to depend on each individual circumstance. But this project was very specific that they were going to spend time on the splash pad, and it was going to be part of the cost of the splash pad.

Thank you.

All right.

Thank you, Christy. Steve, did you have anything to add about the splash pad?

No, just that was, I mean, we basically said we were going to dedicate people to the project, and we basically had three park guys that worked, you know, fairly full time on it. Versus, but when we got bids for it, the cheapest one was, and we were at 250 to 300, and one was higher than that. So that's why we chose to do it ourselves versus hiring it out.

Okay, any other questions about the numbers? Okay. So the main projects that put us over budget were all at the city arena, and they included the drainage project. Anyone who has been to our city arena knows it sits at the bottom of the bowl. We received all the runoff from the surrounding fields. We knew that drainage was a big problem to fix. We replaced that back rink floor because it was heaving and it was cracked and that was due to the saturated soil underneath it. The freeze and thaw cycles over the last 25 years led to that floor heaving and cracking and needing to replace it. So drainage was a big problem. You can see the before on the left there and the during the actual drainage project happening on the right. You can also see some of all those downspouts coming off the city arena roof. The city arena is a hundred thousand square feet so even the roof itself is a big drainage area. We also ended up having to rent a temporary chiller so we would have one sheet of ice for the hockey and figure skating season. That was not in the original budget because The refrigeration system was supposed to be up and going in time for the winter season last fall, and it was not. And then we have the fire alarm system, and we'll talk more about that in a few minutes. So I just want to really emphasize the drainage issue. These are still shots from a video taken of the foundation under the recreation office at the city arena. The video was taken last April 30th. When you watch the video, it looks like you're looking at a fountain We had water spewing out of several places. Looked like a spigot. One here, one here. And so that's where the additional drainage need came in, is we wanted to make sure we took care of that problem. We didn't want to leave that problem to show up years down the road. And now let's talk about the fire alarm system. So when we expanded the lobby at the arena, we doubled the size of the lobby kicked in the requirement for a new fire alarm system not just for the new lobby area but the entire facility remember it's a hundred thousand square feet and so there was a wrong assumption made that the current system which was installed in 1997 had capacity for additional sensors that is the old fire alarm panel there well as i said that was a wrong assumption and so last November, I came to the council and asked for authorization to proceed with replacing the fire alarm system, not because I thought the city was responsible for that omission in the design, but because we needed that system in place to open to the public. And so the council did agree, and we did spend slightly over $125,000 for a new system. And I want to stop here and note that Every single part of this project has been monitored by recreation staff, mainly Josh Heilman, the foreman for our arena and aquatic center, with strong backup from Afton Walkles, our recreation office manager. No component has been too small for their oversight. Whether it's gaskets on locker room doors that did not hold up to hockey player traffic with big bags to big ticket items like the fire alarm system. Josh has insisted on a level of excellence throughout this entire project. He really is truly the project manager here. So as I mentioned, the city is seeking financial contribution toward that fire alarm system. That's our new system. You can see we have three panels now, not just one. And I'm going to turn to Joel Holstead, our city attorney, to provide an update on where we're at with asking for that financial contribution.

City attorney? Thank you. The first thing I'd like to clarify is when Kathy Malachowski said that the assumption was incorrect, the assumption was on the part of the general contractor. We are of the position that our bid documents are very specific, that a fire alarm system serving the entire arena THE ENTIRE PROJECT AREA OF THE ARENA IS INCLUSIVE IN THE FACT THAT THEY FAILED TO DETERMINE PRIOR TO SUBMITTING A BID, SUBMITTING BID DOCUMENTS IS NOT OUR PROBLEM, IT'S OUR PROBLEM. WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE CONTRACTOR SINCE THIS PROBLEM WAS FIRST IDENTIFIED, OH, HOW LONG AGO? IT'S A YEAR.

I FIRST HEARD OF IT IN APRIL OF 2025.

AND ORIGINALLY THE CONTRACTOR INDICATED THAT THE ADDITIONAL COST THAT THEY WERE DEMANDING WAS GOING TO BE SOMEWHERE NORTH OF 300,000, AS I RECALL.

THAT'S RIGHT, THAT AGAIN IS WHERE RECREATION STAFF STEPPED IN AND SAID THAT'S UNACCEPTABLE, WE THINK WE CAN FIND SOMEONE TO DO IT CHEAPER, AND THEY DID.

ESSENTIALLY WHAT ARENA STAFF DID IS FOUND LOCAL CONTRACTORS THAT WERE WILLING TO PROVIDE THE NECESSARY UPGRADES TO THE SYSTEM WITHOUT without simply taking advantage of the fact that it was a municipal contract bid and the contract work was chosen to proceed because if we had not initiated the project without resolving the issue with the contractor, we would not have been able to open in time and we would have had further losses due to lost ice rental. The question Kathy had asked is for an update on the status of the issue. We've made a demand to the contractor to address THE COST OVERRUN, AND SPECIFICALLY THE DEMAND COMPENSATION FOR THE ADDITIONAL COSTS THAT WE WERE FORCED TO BEAR IN ORDER TO MITIGATE OUR DAMAGES MITIGATION, MEANING WE HAD TO SPEND MONEY TO AVOID LOSING MORE MONEY THAT WE WOULD SUBSEQUENTLY BE LITIGATING. THEY RESPONDED BY SAYING THAT THEY FOUND NO CONTRACT LANGUAGE OBLIGATING THEM TO TAKE THE DIFFERENCE. WE HAVE RESPONDED IDENTIFYING THE VERY SPECIFIC LANGUAGE, AND THAT HAS BEEN SIX WEEKS NOW, I THINK, KATHY?

CORRECT.

since we've identified the specific language in the contract that obligates them to take full responsibility for the fire alarm system and they've chosen not to respond to that, to our office in any fashion whatsoever. We are prepared to pursue additional claims that we have against the contractor for lost revenue leading to the need for the temporary chiller as well as the fire alarm system and are simply at a loss as to why they're refusing to even acknowledge the specific contract language that we brought to their attention. I'm not sure how much additional language there is at this time other than the fact that We've made a demand, we've been very specific in the reasons our contract language, in our opinion, is all inclusive, and they've been unable to tell us why they feel that this is somehow excluded from the contract. And we took steps necessary to make sure that our losses weren't made worse because of their inability to honor what we see are clear contract obligations.

Larry, did you have a question? I was just going to say that I know that this company, from the perspective of the cities, I think that if there's anybody in any other city that comes to us and asks us what we thought of this company's style or how they handled it, I don't think we should give them a very good recommendation.

I have one number that I think will tell the story.

And I know that the county has also had issues with this company, too. So, yeah, I just wanted to bring that up and just let everybody know.

I'd like to add to that that our response will be factual and very specific if anyone makes an inquiry, and we won't be making editorial observation, but the facts will be easily interpreted by anybody that makes an inquiry.

Okay. Thank you.

Okay, on a brighter note, we do have plans to apply for nearly $2.5 million in federal incentives. These are financial incentives to help offset the cost of the energy savings projects. Our big energy saving project is that refrigeration system, new system for both sheets of ice at the arena. That's the control room there. It's an ammonia system. It's pretty complicated, and that's one reason why it took so long to build. So this is funding that's available under the Federal Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, and as Kristi mentioned earlier, we have retained Deloitte LLP of Minneapolis to file for those incentives. So let's talk about the completion date. So the good news is that the vast majority of the projects were all completed last year in 2025. So for the new Coal Strip Rink floor, the new refrigeration system for both the Nystrom and Coal Strip Rinks, everything at the arena, the completion date that Inbuilt provided originally was November 14th, 2025. The current completion date is this Friday, July 31st, 2026. That is a difference of 258 days. In other words, what was a seven-month project Become a 15 month project and that Larry is the number I would offer Now I'm gonna deter her just a little bit because I ask myself all the time How did we get in this situation? I hear questions and comments from the public the parks and rec board fellow staff members Why inbuilt? Well, back in 2023, we put out a proposal for qualifications to assess all our facilities for energy savings. We received two. One was an international company with a much higher price tag, and one was a Minnesota-based company. That Minnesota-based company was inbuilt. They had a robust profile with lots of similar projects listed in it. Recreation staff, myself included, did visit one of their project sites We visited with the city staff at that project site. We checked the references. And I searched through the internet, and I saw no red flags. The best way to predict future behavior is to look at past behavior. And I can say I saw nothing that would have predicted the lack of response or the lack of momentum in this project. So back to that completion date. September 8th, I remember it well. The project manager from inbuilt was here to explain that all we weren't going to be ready on November 14th. Now we had a new date. So that first delay was of 47 days. It was due to drainage. I have absolutely no doubt it was because of the drainage. You saw how much drainage work had to be done. The problem was the lack of communication. If they had been up front and said, hey folks, there's a chance, that this refrigeration system is not going to be done for your entire hockey and figure skating season, we could have done so much better planning and so much more to manage expectations. And after that, that wasn't the first delay. We meet once a week with Inbuilt. We have a construction meeting with their project managers, on-site superintendent. And then they just started coming. Every four weeks, two weeks, every week, another delay, another delay. In December, we heard the delay was a lack, a shortage of pipe fitters. Because of the huge Mayo project going on in Rochester and some big projects in the cities, the reason was, well, we can't attract enough pipe fitters here. And as you can see, so that's the pipe and the coal strip floor before we laid the concrete. It's a lot of pipe. Another problem is we have a very small control room You just can't get very many crew members in there at one time to do the work. Then once we finally had the floor done and we thought, oh, we're so close to being able to make ice in Coal Strip, this is in April, when Josh went to clean the floor, he discovered all these cracks. and the new floor for Kohlstrup. And that was very concerning to us because we just replaced a cracked floor. And my first fear was, oh, my gosh, should we not do enough drainage? And I was assured by a subcontractor, I have a full report on all the drainage done. That wasn't the reason. So we had to stop work. So an engineering study can be done, and a plan can be put together. And I kept hearing from Imbelt, oh, everything meets standard. Everything is according to design. I finally reached out directly to the subcontractor, and I got a full explanation. It's a very long explanation, but basically it comes down to we use an accelerant. to hurry up the curing process, and that led to these superficial cracks in the floor. They have been repaired with a sealant. I also invited that contractor, Total Mechanical, to come to our construction meeting with inbuilt. And that was probably the most productive construction meeting we've had to date. At that meeting, Total Mechanical said they have so much confidence in that floor, they extended the one-year warranty to three years. And we do have that in writing. Total mechanical knowledge, it's expensive to take ice out and put it back in. So what does this mean? It means we don't have to take the ice out next spring to check the floor. We can wait up to almost three years. And then the last delay is on recreation staff. And that is because we've never been in this situation before. We have two people who can open the mechanics at the pool and two people with a lot of help to put in ice. They're trying to do both at the same time. Of course, the pool took priority. It's summer, we needed to get the pool open. So the Coastal Prink did finally open on June 29th this year, and we've had hockey camps, figure skating practice, public skate, open hockey. It's a lot of fun to see all that traffic coming back into the building. And now we'll talk about the remaining work. So we need some roof repair. This is the original building, 60 years old, meets the new lobby roof here. And despite numerous fixes and exams and everything, we still have water pooling on top. That is unacceptable to Josh Heilman, and so he is working to get that fixed. And I'd like to note, so we first noticed this leak because beautiful new windows in the lobby, one of them was leaking. Turns out it wasn't, well, now we do have a window leak, but originally the answer was that it was the roof. It was Josh who took the lead and convened all the necessary parties, the architect, the contractor, the roofing company, inbuilt. He even brought in a local roofing company, someone we could trust to make sure that the fix was really going to work. As you can see, we're still working through that. We also need to seal a lobby window. And then we have a chemical tower. We have a lot of buildup in the piping because of all the minerals in the water. Another design flaw, a software wasn't included. And so we're making sure that gets added. And because it hasn't even started up yet, that's not going to be a change order that the city has to pay for. That's that company's responsibility. And then Josh has been chasing this down for months. We have a leak in the reverse osmosis system for water to make ice. And so I can assure you that we will make sure all of this gets done and is up to Albert Lee standards. So I do want to just do a brief recap of projects. I'm not going to talk about all of them. If there's something you have questions about, I'm happy to talk about them. But we've spent $12.7 million. It was a huge scope of projects, and we got a lot done. All kinds of items at the Marion Ross Theater, including new doors that are accessible, and windows. We did a lot at the aquatic center, including a new admissions building. We did a whole lot of work at the city arena, and I highlighted the electrical system there because I think that is underrated. I don't think that gets enough attention. That in itself was an incredible project. Before we did this work, I remember Bob Furland, our former recreation manager, saying, He wasn't sure if we turned the power off to the building if it would come back on. We no longer have that concern. Of course, we did the remodeling. There's another shot of the new refrigeration system. And then our parks department built this wonderful restroom building downtown by the splash pad. I know people are really excited to see that open. It opened in May this year. So that leads to our next steps. Well, we're at the fun part of the project. We have this beautiful new lobby to furnish. And we've met with the hockey association so far. We're going to meet with some other user groups to furnish that. We have a plan to do it through donations. And so this is going to be fun to put like a wall wrap or other things that really identify it as an Albert Lee community building. We're going to start working on year-round ice programming. And we can't forget those annual meetings with inbuilt to look at our energy savings, because remember, they're guaranteed. So if those energy savings aren't as high as inbuilt predicted, inbuilt has to pay the difference. And then lastly, this is the 50th year of Albert Lee have on the city arena. And we didn't really get to celebrate last season because of all the projects. So we're going to make up for it this season. In summary, I would just say we fulfilled the city's mission of delivering exceptional services that enhance the quality of life of current and future generations. To me, we stopped kicking the can down the road. We made some tough choices, we did some hard work, and now this 60-year-old building is sustained for decades. So I thank you, the city council, our user groups, our local contractors have been fantastic, and our whole community for your support. And with that, I will take questions.

Then questions from the council. Councilor Baker. In regards to the drainage and all the issues that they had, and I'm sure there's a bunch of, I'm sure they did a lot of tiling and everything around there. My question is, once that stuff all is collected by the tile, where does it go? More to the lake?

It goes to the ditch alongside Lake Chippewa Drive.

Okay.

AND I'M GOING TO LOOK TO STEVE, AND I'M GOING TO LOOK TO JOSH, BECAUSE I'M NOT SURE IF IT GOES TO THE HOLDING POND FIRST AT THE CORNER THERE, IF IT GOES TO THE CREEK THAT GOES TO THE LAKE.

CITY ENGINEER, MR. YONKEY? IT DOES. THERE'S A, AS KATHY SAID, THERE'S A CREEK BEHIND THERE THAT IT DRAINS INTO, AND THEN IT GOES ACROSS THE STREET INTO THAT HOLDING POND, AND THEN EVENTUALLY STRAIGHT DOWN TO THE GOOSE LEG.

YEAH, IF YOU'VE DRIVEN OUT THERE IN THAT FENCED-OFF RETENTION POND.

CITY MANAGER. YES, THANK YOU. I don't really have a question. I just want to say, first of all, nothing about this is easy. And if you're able to stay within half a percent of a project where you are, which you don't even know fully what you're going to unearth or uncover in a remodel project, but you're able to still stay within half a percent. And that half a percent The reason we're able to do it is because of the dedication and the hard work of our staff. I think that really does say a lot about who our employees are, about who the city is. So I do want to thank the Parks Department for their participation in building the restroom that saved us from the slides earlier a significant amount of money. I ALSO WANT TO THANK YOU, KATHY. I KNOW YOU THANKED YOUR STAFF A LOT, BUT YOU ALSO WERE VERY IMPORTANT IN MAKING SURE THAT THIS WENT FORWARD AND STAYED ON TRACK AS BEST AS ANY OF US COULD. AND I WANT TO THANK JOSH, WHO IS HERE. I WANT TO THANK AFTON AND SOMEONE WHO ISN'T HERE BUT ALSO PLAYED A VERY HUGE ROLE IN THIS PROJECT IS BOB FERLAND, AND I WISH TO THANK HIM AS WELL. SO WITH THAT, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU. ANY ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION OR QUESTIONS FROM THE COUNCIL? Well, I'd like to also thank everyone for continuing to work on this, and I know having been involved in many of those meetings, it was a long task, and so I'm glad to see that it's coming to completion. As the city manager mentioned, to come in on something of this magnitude with a half percent, or I think with the update tonight, I figured it was about six, 65 hundredths of a percent, so we've kept that down to a pretty small number. COMPARED TO THE OVERALL PROJECT COST. AND SO I THINK IT CAME IN IN VERY GOOD SHAPE. AND SO THANK YOU FOR EVERYBODY THAT WAS DOING THAT, AND THANK YOU FOR THE COUNCIL TO CONTINUE STAYING ON TOP OF THIS THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE PROJECT. SO WE APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU, KATHY.

THANK YOU. AND PLEASE COME OUT AND LOOK AT THE PROJECTS.

ALL RIGHT. WITH THAT, WE'LL MOVE ALONG. UNFINISHED BUSINESS. WE HAVE NONE TONIGHT. NEW BUSINESS. WE HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING THE DISPOSAL OF 12 PROPERTIES. And A is a resolution declaring no public interest in these 12 properties. We'll open the public hearing with a staff report. City Manager?

Thank you, Your Honor. We have a total of 12 properties. We have, in no particular order, 409 Clark Street and 915 Autumn Street. THESE PROPERTIES HAVE HAD SINGLE FAMILY HOUSES CONSTRUCTED AND WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THEM GO ON THE MARKET AND BE SOLD TO OWNER OCCUPIED PREFERABLY AND TO HELP IMPROVE OUR HOUSING STOCK SITUATION HERE IN THE COMMUNITY. WHAT IS BASICALLY 1207 NEWTON AND 1211 NEWTON or 34-040-0090 and 34-040-0100. We do have proposals on those lots to build a twin home, to take those two lots and build a twin home on those. FROM TURNING POINT. THEY WERE THE ONLY ONE THAT SUBMITTED A PROPOSAL ON THAT PROPERTY. BUT BEFORE WE CAN SIGN A DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT, WE MUST GO THROUGH A PUBLIC HEARING AND PROPERLY DISPOSE OF THEM. THE REASON WHY WE ARE RECONVENING THESE IS BECAUSE ORIGINALLY WHEN WE HAD LOOKED AT THE DISPOSAL, THEY, I BELIEVE, HAD DIFFERENT PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS AND HAD SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT LEGAL DESCRIPTIONS BECAUSE WE CHANGED THE We did some lot combinations and divisions there. Then we have the two lots on the 1100 block of Virginia Place. This would be pit number 34-640-0030 and 34-640-0040. THESE PROPERTIES AS WELL, JUST LIKE NEWTON, ARE VERY SMALL AND WOULD BE USED TOGETHER TO BUILD A TWIN LOT HOME, NEW CONSTRUCTION. AGAIN, BY TURNING POINT, THEY WERE THE ONLY ONES THAT SUBMITTED A PROPOSAL ON THOSE PROPERTIES. 2101 South Shore Drive, we did receive a proposal for new construction single-family house. We do have to clear up some easement access issues with that, so we will be taking care of that before we officially except the offer, but this hearing would allow the city to dispose of it. Currently, it is a green space that has just set open that the city owns, and staff believe its highest best use, just like with the other properties, would be turning it into residential development. We have... 725 Plainview, or PIN number 34-0590930. This property right here, we did receive a proposal for a single-family home. It would be a smaller home similar to the neighborhood and area, and we have someone ready to go and is very anxious to get started there. And again, we had looked at it, this property, as well as the other properties that we were looking at, some of the difficulties behind them, other than 409 Clark Street or 915 Autumn. But these currently empty lots, they have had issues, or they could potentially have issues with flooding if not properly built. So these would be slab foundation houses in order to protect the house and not have storm water flow into a basement. 825 First Avenue South, which is PID number 34-064-0600. This property was a property that we just recently demolished. The lot is only 40 foot wide. It is without another lot next to it. It would be extremely difficult to build anything there. So our best, highest use and recommendation of the staff is to dispose of the property and adjoin it to the neighboring property to which only one, to which there's only one neighboring property. And we did receive a request, a proposal for that. 809 Clark Street West or, hold on here. PID number 34-007-4010, and also described as very lengthy. I'm not going to get into it. Then the legal description, but that property was also recently demolished, and the neighboring property to the south, does not have a conforming lot, but by the combination of this with the neighboring property on Moran Lane, that's the, yeah, I believe it's Moran Lane, we would actually have a fully conforming lot at that point, which would improve the values of the existing lot and putting it on the tax rolls. There's a lot on Vine Street, PID number 34-1180181. We did have a hearing on this earlier when it was a complete lot. We subdivided it. However, since then, the one lot had been adjoined to the neighboring property, and the one that is in question now DID NOT GET ADJOINED, BUT WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT, UNDER THIS NEW PID AND LEGAL DESCRIPTION, LOOKING AT ADJOINING THAT PROPERTY TO THE NEIGHBORING PROPERTY TO THE SOUTH. AND THEN LAST, WE HAVE 108 GILES, OR GILES, EXCUSE ME. THAT PROPERTY IS BASICALLY THE PARK. IT'S DIORDA PARK. And we had some initial assumptions that this would be similar to some of the other properties that were green space that had come into city ownership, but there did not seem to be any recreational use of recent memory, no equipment, no signage. But after being approached about potentially using that as a way to correct certain zoning issues as it related to the neighboring properties, which would be maybe something that would be standard and the property didn't want and be vacated, we have continued to find certain complications to this property that has now made it where staff does not recommend vacating DISPOSING OF THIS PROPERTY. AND WE DO FEEL THAT IT'S ACTUALLY STRONGER IN THE PUBLIC'S INTEREST TO RETAIN OWNERSHIP INSTEAD. AND WOULD RECOMMEND, WHILE WE WOULD RECOMMEND THE OTHER ONES BEING FOUND TO BE OF NO PUBLIC INTEREST AND MOVING FORWARD, WE WOULD RECOMMEND THIS PROPERTY, PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION NUMBER 34, 778-0010 or 108 Giles, excuse me. Also known as Deidre Park. We remove this from the resolution in a motion and proceed with the other properties.

You finish on that one.

Oh, yes, I did mention 915 Autumn and 409 Clark together, yes, because we would be doing the same thing. Those ones we've recently put a house on and have listed but need to officially dispose of today. I realize I signed the contract about seven hours too early, so the realtor in attendance hears otherwise from the council.

All right, any questions from the council? Hearing none, for the first time, would anyone like to speak regarding this resolution? For the second time, would anyone like to speak? And for the third time, would anyone like to speak? We'll close the public hearing and I would like a resolution. Councilor Baker.

Move to approve, Your Honor, with the exception taken out 108 Giles Avenue out of this proposal.

All right, thank you. Is there a second?

Second. Second by Councilor Anderson. Any further discussion?

I think we'll do a roll call on this one.

Councilor Baker.

Aye.

Councilor Herman. Aye. Councilor Olsen. Aye. Councilor Van Beek.

Aye.

Councilor Anderson. Aye. And Mayor Murray.

Aye. Motion carries. Item B is a resolution approving the donation of Eddie Cochran's statue at northwest corner of Marion Ross Street and North Broadway Avenue, 2026, miscellaneous 172. City Manager?

Thank you, Your Honor. The Parks Advisory Board approved the placement of the Eddie Cochran statue on the corner of Marion Ross Street and Broadway Avenue North. The statue will be situated in the city right-of-way and will be a bronze statue of Eddie Cochran playing the guitar. THE EDDIE COCHRAN GROUP WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL COSTS, LABOR, AND MATERIAL ASSOCIATED WITH THE STATUTE IN LINING UP THE CONTRACTORS NEEDED TO COMPLETE THE WORK. DURING THE 27 EDDIE COCHRAN EVENT, THE GROUP WILL DONATE THE STATUTE TO THE CITY. THIS STATUTE FITS THE CRITERIA SET FORTH IN THE DONATION POLICY. STAFF RECOMMENDS APPROVAL.

COUNCIL? MOVE TO APPROVE, YOUR HONOR. WASHINGTON BY COUNCILOR BAKER. IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND, YOUR HONOR. SECOND BY COUNCILOR HERMAN. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION?

I just want to say, I want to say thank you for the people that are that are moving forward with this and raising the money for this. And also I think with Eddie being on the corner across from Marion, I think that'll alleviate her loneliness problems that she has. So anyway, I just wanna thank you guys. Appreciate it, thank you.

All right, any additional questions from the council? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion, signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed, no. Motion carries. Item C is a resolution approving the Broadway Ridge Grant, 216 South Broadway Avenue. City Manager?

Thank you, Your Honor. John and Adeline Russ submitted an additional Broadway grant renewal for reimbursement for up to 50% of costs associated with gutters and downspouts at 216 South Broadway. They were previously awarded $13,425 in matching funds for a complete roof replacement in March of 26th. The gutters and downspouts were completed as the second phase of the overall project, which is allowed by policy. Total improvement cost is $3,146, of which the grant will pay $1,573. All improvements have been completed and reviewed by city zoning and building official for compliance with application requirements. Staff recommends approval.

Council? Move to approve, Your Honor. Motion by Councilor Baker. Is there a second?

I'll second, Your Honor.

Second by Councilor Herman. Any further discussion? ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE. OPPOSED, NO. MOTION CARRIES. ITEM D IS RESOLUTION ACCEPTING DONATIONS AS PRESENTED TO THE CITY OF ALBERT LEE. CITY MANAGER.

THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR. THE CITY OF ALBERT LEE IS GENERALLY AUTHORIZED TO ACCEPT DONATIONS PURSUANT TO MINNESOTA STATE STATUTES 465.03 FOR THE BENEFITS OF THE CITIZEN. STAFF RECOMMENDS ACCEPTANCE OF THE FOLLOWING DONATIONS AS SUBMITTED TO COUNCIL REVIEW AND APPROVAL. The Alden Area Activities Association has given $300 to the Albert Lee Police Reserves. Council?

MOVE TO ACCEPT THE DONATION, YOUR HONOR. MOTION BY COUNCILOR OLSON. IS THERE A SECOND?

SECOND.

SECOND BY COUNCILOR ANDERSON. ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE. OPPOSED, NAY. MOTION CARRIES. ITEM NINE IS THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL REPORTS. AND WE'LL START TONIGHT WITH WORD FOUR. COUNCILOR OLSON.

ALL RIGHT. HAD AN AIRPORT ADVISORY MEETING. THE MAIN THING WE DISCUSSED WAS KIND OF THE INS AND OUTS OF A TEAHANGER THAT'S GOING TO BE BUILT OUT THERE. next year, I believe, and how the funding and everything that is going forward. Obviously, it's like 5% city cost with a large majority of the federal aviation dollars, smaller part from the state and the smallest part is us. So we had our architect there just talking about a couple different things that we could do with with a couple of like the little side units that aren't big enough for planes, but if we use those for our own personal storage or kind of attach them to the kind of end units, so that'll kind of be as we figure it out as we go with that project. Also discuss the garage door that we had on the on the consent agenda. And there's also gonna be another regatta here in the fall for the big air gliders. Not sure how many people, but it's not gonna be a national competition. Just a bunch of the guys that were here when we did have an official, THEY REALLY LIKED THE TOWN AND THE AREA, AND THEY ASKED IF THEY COULD JUST KIND OF COME BACK AND JUST GO AROUND AND CRUISE FOR FUN. SO THEY REALLY LIKED OUR FACILITY AND THE TOWN AND EVERYTHING THAT WENT AROUND HERE, SO IT WILL BE GOOD TO HAVE THOSE GUYS BACK. AND THAT'S IT, YOUR HONOR.

ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. WARD FIVE, COUNCILOR VAN BEEK.

THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR. RIGHT NOW I'M WORKING ON TWO DIFFERENT WARD ITEMS. COMING UP TOMORROW NIGHT, I HAVE AN HRA MEETING, AND THAT'S ALL I GOT, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT, WARD SIX, COUNCILOR ANDERSON.

YOUR HONOR, RECENTLY HAD A BUDGET MEETING, A PRETTY INTENSE BUDGET MEETING WHEN WE STARTED GOING BY LINE BY LINE THROUGH EVERYTHING. BUT IT'S NECESSARY, AND IT'S ACTUALLY KIND OF FUN WHEN IT'S OVER. to know that you've really looked at everything hard like you're supposed to. HRE meeting tomorrow night, and yeah, I don't have anything else, but I would like to say that the staff at the pool is doing a great job. It's been really busy there this year, as it should be. It's been warm, and people should go see the pool if they haven't been there and make it a point to stop by. It's one of the coolest things in our town, at least for me. Thanks.

All right. Ward 2, Councilor Baker. Thank you, Your Honor. I do have a... award item that the city manager is working on at the moment. And I only have one other thing to talk about, and that's the HRA meeting we have tomorrow night. And we should be getting some more information as far as The house goals, just so everybody knows, that's still on track to be done. The only change that might happen instead of a wood foundation, we're looking at maybe going with a concrete foundation. So we'll talk more about that at the meeting tomorrow, and then we will come back and give you a full report as to where we're standing. But last I heard, they're looking at toward the end of August to set the house. All right. Thank you.

Ward 3, Councilor Herman.

Thank you, Your Honor. I attended the budget meeting as well, and I'd like to say that our financial department does an outstanding job in keeping us involved and keeping us informed of what's going on with the city of Albert Lee financially. Tomorrow I have a CVB meeting, and I'll make a report on that on our next city council meeting.

All right. Thank you. Over the last couple weeks, I started off on July 14th down at Kate Radio and had a little stars mentoring, what would we call it, battle of words with the mayor of Austin, Steve King. And so we were having a good time setting it up for our grill off, which was last Friday night. ALSO HAD TWO ELITA PROJECT MEETING UPDATES DURING THE PAST COUPLE WEEKS, AND I ALSO WENT DOWN AND SPOKE WITH STEVE FIELDS, WHO IS THE OWNER OF RENEWAL BY ANDERSON, DUE TO SOME OF THE PARKING ISSUES GOING ON THERE, JUST LOOKING FOR SOLUTIONS TO SEE IF THERE'S SOME DIFFERENT THINGS THAT CAN BE DONE WITH THAT BUSINESS. THEY'VE HAD SOME TREMENDOUS GROWTH OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS, AND SO WE WANT TO LOOK AT WAYS THAT WE CAN POSSIBLY HELP THEM OUT THERE. ALSO HAD, ON JULY 22ND, A JOINT CITY-COUNTY MEETING. SO WE SIT DOWN ON A QUARTERLY BASIS, I BELIEVE. AREN'T WE QUARTERLY? AND JUST DISCUSS ISSUES WITH THE COUNTY TO SEE IF THERE'S WAYS THAT THE COUNTY AND CITY CAN WORK TOGETHER. THERE ARE A NUMBER OF PROJECTS, WHETHER IT BE TECHNOLOGY OR LAW ENFORCEMENT OR DIFFERENT THINGS LIKE THAT, THAT WE END UP WORKING TOGETHER WITH THE COUNTY. AND SO IT'S GOOD TO GET TOGETHER FROM TIME TO TIME TO TALK ABOUT THOSE ISSUES. ALSO HAD A ALITA BUDGET REVIEW MEETING ON JULY 23RD. LOOKING AT THE BUDGETING FOR 2027. AND THEN THURSDAY, THE 23RD ALSO, THAT EVENING, WE HAD THURSDAYS ON FOUNTAIN. PAPA GREEZY WAS IN THE PARK DOWN HERE AND GAVE A GREAT CONCERT FOR AN HOUR AND A HALF, SO THAT WAS A LOT OF FUN. AND THEN FRIDAY NIGHT, WE HAD OUR STARS MENTORING COOK OFF. AND IT WAS MYSELF VERSUS STEVE KING FROM AUSTIN, AND LOGAN, THE MAYOR FROM CONGER. AND I'LL BE HAPPY TO REPORT THAT I DID GET THE TROPHY BACK IN ELBERT LEE AGAIN THIS YEAR. SO THEY'LL BE PRESENTING THAT AT OUR NEXT CITY COUNCIL MEETING. STARS MENTORING WILL BE OVER. AND THEN YESTERDAY I ATTENDED AN EDDIE COCHRAN FUNDRAISER. THERE WAS MUSIC BY THE BALDY HOLLY BAND OUT AT THREE OAKS WINERY. AND IT WAS A LOT OF FUN. A LITTLE WARM OUT THERE, BUT IT WAS A LOT OF FUN GETTING TOGETHER. AND THESE GUYS ARE WORKING REAL HARD AT RAISING SOME MONEY FOR THIS EDDIE COCHRAN STATUE. AND THEN ALSO, WE HAD INTERVIEWS HERE A LITTLE OVER TWO WEEKS AGO FOR THE ASSISTANT EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ROLE AT ALITA. AND WE DID MAKE A JOB OFFER, AND IT WAS ACCEPTED. SO WE WILL HAVE A NEW PERSON IN THAT ROLE STARTING, I BELIEVE, AUGUST 17TH OR 19TH, SOMETIME IN THERE. AND I WILL ADD THAT SHE IS A LOCAL GAL, GREW UP HERE NEAR ELLENDALE, GENEVA, I BELIEVE IS WHERE HER FAMILY IS FROM. SO IT WAS NICE. SHE DID A GREAT JOB WITH HER INTERVIEW. SHE KNEW OUR CITY, SHE STUDIED, SHE KNEW OUR BUSINESSES, AND JUST REALLY WAS IMPRESSIVE. SO WE DID MAKE HER AN OFFER, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH HER. AND THEN ITEMS COMING UP HERE OVER THE NEXT FEW WEEKS, THURSDAY, JULY 30TH. THURSDAY IS ON FALTON AGAIN, AND WE'LL BE SEEING THE MUSIC OF MELISSA SCHULZ. SO ENJOY SOME ROCK CLASSICS AS WELL AS COUNTRY FAVORITES STARTING AT 530 THIS THURSDAY. And then the six best days of summer start. Freeborn County Fair, August 4th. Great food, great entertainment, a lot to see. And so everybody get out and check out the fair this year. AND THEN ALSO, ON THURSDAY NIGHT, BETWEEN 6 AND 9, I BELIEVE, OUT AT THE MOOSE LODGE, THEY'RE DOING A FUNDRAISER. AND IF YOU MISSED THEM, THE BALDY HOLLY BAND WILL BE BACK THURSDAY NIGHT. SO COME ON OUT, LISTEN TO IT, AND HELP THEM RAISE SOME MONEY FOR THAT EDDIE COCHRAN STATUE. AND WITH THAT, I BELIEVE I AM DONE WITH MY REPORT. WE'LL MOVE ALONG TO ITEM 10, THE CITY MANAGER REPORT.

Thank you, Your Honor. As the mayor had mentioned, the county and the city had met to go over a few different items, everything from shared services such as dispatch to our IT shared services and other future projects such as the trail and how we will proceed moving forward. A highly productive meeting. Very much appreciate their efforts in preparing and meeting with us. I, too, also sat in on the stakeholders' interviews of the candidates for the executive assistant position for Alita. And all three were, I think, exceptional people. All three would have been great hires. But the one that was hired, she spoke my language when she said tid. Because it took about two years for me to stop using the term TED when I talk about incentives because that's a Wisconsin term from her time in Wisconsin. So I was like, oh, there we go. A reminder of what not to say in Minnesota. The... Again, there was the mention of the parking issue on Janssen. I hope that the company is able to meet with staff to go over some options there to discuss what can be done to alleviate the situation, either both short-term and long-term planning. we do plan on bringing it forward to the council. I know it was discussed last meeting, but it'll be brought forward a little bit later in the season, but before the snow starts hitting the ground. We are working on the budget, which also coincides with working on preparing for union negotiations. And so if I have any outstanding items or continued agreements that I need to work on, just know that I am thoroughly distracted by those working on those items right now. BUT I'M HOPING TO AT LEAST CLEAR SOME MAJOR HEADWAY AND THEN FEEL COMFORTABLE GETTING BACK TO THOSE ITEMS ONCE I'VE SORT OF HOPEFULLY DIRECTED THINGS IN A POSITIVE MANNER. SO WITH THAT, YOUR HONOR.

ALL RIGHT. ITEM 11 IS APPROVAL OF CLAIMS. A IS THE RESOLUTION APPROVING CLAIMS AND ONE IS PRESENTATION OF CLAIMS OVER 25,000. CITY MANAGER. THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR.

Okay, up on the screen, thank you. We have $26,281.94 to United States Treasury. These are arbitrage payments for the 2021 GEO bonds. We have $30,975.27 to Freeborn Mauer Electric Cooperative for electricity at the sanitary storm lift stations and water plants. $30,993.75 to Ulan Brothers For our payment estimate number one, street overlay, job 2602, $31,777.49. Platinum Plumbing Solutions, LLC, payment estimate four for lead service line replacement project, $33,542.86 to Freeborn Mower Electric Cooperative, electricity at the wastewater treatment plant, $44,040 to Solar Connection. This is for the solar at the fire station. $58,800 to Bolton and Mink for the Valley Avenues and Southeast Marshall Reconstruction Project. $147,074.94 to Jensen Excavating, payment for St. Mary and 14th Street Reconstruction. $147,539.75 to Ulan Brothers Reconstruction. For payment estimate number one for neighborhood improvement project, job 2601, $408,667.58 to inbuilt LLC, recreational facilities project. I just want to highlight that this is the portion of the energy savings project and retention release, so that way we can submit our tax incentives here at the end of the month. Additionally, we have $46,000 $416.16 to the Albert Lee Port Authority. This is TIF payment for, this is TIF District 5-13 payment, also known as Farmland Foods. $51,435 to Dave Severson for a 2026 Dodge Ram 300 chassis, Unit 921 Fire. This actually came in $2,000 under our original estimate and under state bid price. $57,032.58 to St. John's Lutheran Home, Albert Lee. This is a TIF payment for TIF District 5-24. And then $353,366.55 to Vortex Cold Storage. This is TIF 5-28, the pay-go payment.

Council? Move to approve, Your Honor. Motion by Councilor Baker. Is there a second?

I'll second, Your Honor.

Second by Councilor Herman. Any further discussion? ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED, NO. MOTION CARRIES. ITEM 12, WE'LL NOW BE GOING INTO CLOSED SESSION, SUBJECT TO MINNESOTA STATUTE 13D-5, SUB 3B. IS THERE A MOTION TO GO INTO CLOSED SESSION? SO MOVED. MOTION BY COUNCILOR ANDERSON. IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND. SECOND BY COUNCILOR BAKER. CLERK, PLEASE CALL THE ROLL.

COUNSELOR BAKER. AYE. COUNSELOR HARMON. AYE. COUNSELOR OLSON. AYE. COUNSELOR VAN DEEK. AYE. COUNSELOR ANDERSON. AYE. MR. MURRAY.

AYE. WE ARE NOW IN CLOSED SESSION.