[0:12] Oh, good evening and welcome to the
[0:15] Rapids City Council meeting for Monday,
[0:17] August 3rd, 2026. If you could please
[0:21] rise and join us for the pledge.
[0:24] I pledge allegiance to the flag of the
[0:27] United States of America and to the
[0:29] republic for which it stands, one nation
[0:32] under God, indivisible, with liberty and
[0:35] justice for all.
[0:38] >> Let's call the role.
[0:39] >> Council member Griscoak
[0:40] >> here.
[0:41] >> Council member Butler
[0:42] >> here.
[0:42] >> Council member Novak
[0:43] >> here.
[0:44] >> Council member Gesler here.
[0:45] >> Council member Armstrong here.
[0:47] >> Council member Carlson
[0:48] >> here.
[0:48] >> Mayor Cook
[0:49] >> here.
[0:52] >> Lost track of my phone. I wanted to make
[0:53] sure it was on silent. [laughter] I
[0:55] don't appear to have it.
[0:57] >> All right. [snorts] Uh let's see. Why
[0:59] don't we uh approve of this evening's
[1:01] agenda?
[1:02] >> Move approval.
[1:02] >> Second.
[1:03] >> Motion by Gu Gesler and a second by
[1:05] Butler to adopt the agenda. Any
[1:08] discussion?
[1:09] >> Hearing none. All in favor signify by
[1:11] saying I.
[1:12] >> Opposed. And the agenda is adopted.
[1:15] >> We're up to our minutes from the July
[1:17] 21st, 2026 meeting. Mr. Mayor,
[1:20] >> I move to approve the minutes. Second
[1:23] >> motion by Novak and a second by Butler.
[1:26] Any discussion or corrections?
[1:30] Hearing none. All in favor signify by
[1:31] saying I.
[1:32] >> I. Opposed.
[1:34] >> Motion carries. Two abstensions. Gesler
[1:37] and Armstrong.
[1:39] Um and then we have just a whole bunch
[1:42] of items on our consent agenda.
[1:46] >> Um
[1:46] >> your honor, before we continue,
[1:47] >> Yes.
[1:48] >> could I get a hard copy of the agenda?
[1:49] I'll just run back and get it. I phone
[1:52] doesn't seem to be loading it.
[1:54] >> All right.
[1:54] >> Oh, thank you.
[1:55] >> All right. First item is to adopt
[1:58] resolution 26-81 calling for a public
[2:00] hearing to vacate drainage and utility
[2:03] easement located at 12547
[2:07] Riverdale Boulevard. Uh the vacation is
[2:10] being considered due to a portion of an
[2:12] existing easement on the Costco site
[2:14] that needs to be vacated and
[2:16] reestablished for the proposed gas pump
[2:19] area. A new drainage and utility
[2:21] easement will be created as a separate
[2:23] document and the new easement will be
[2:25] brought to the city council for
[2:26] acceptance at a future date. And this is
[2:28] all part of them buying the TGI Friday
[2:31] building and moving their gas pumps over
[2:33] to that side. So, we're looking to adopt
[2:35] resolution 26-81,
[2:38] which calls for a public hearing on
[2:40] September 1st, 2026 for a vacation of a
[2:44] drainage and utility easement for Costco
[2:47] located at 12547 Riverdale Boulevard.
[2:52] Next item on our consent agenda is to
[2:55] approve a joint powers agreement with
[2:57] the In Noah Henipin School District for
[2:59] a pickle ball facility at Northdale
[3:01] Middle School. uh they came to us
[3:03] earlier and proposed that the city split
[3:06] the cost of the project equally and the
[3:09] public would be invited to use the
[3:10] courts during non-school hours and days
[3:13] when school is not in session. The total
[3:15] estimated cost of the project is
[3:17] $220,000
[3:18] and the city share would be $110,000
[3:22] in the 2026 budget is $50,000 and the
[3:25] park improvement fund for a joint
[3:27] project with them. um as the district
[3:29] had indicated last year was interested
[3:31] in this. Um and then the balance of the
[3:33] city share of the project, another
[3:35] 60,000 would then be add or can be added
[3:38] to the 2027 budget. Um we have a joint
[3:41] powers here agreement here between the
[3:44] city and them that formalizes the terms
[3:46] of the arrangement and this would add
[3:49] this would resurface the existing six
[3:52] tennis courts to create 12 pickle ball
[3:55] courts. Um uh okay. So we're looking to
[4:00] approve the attached joint powers
[4:02] agreement with the inaipin school
[4:04] district.
[4:05] Next on our consent agenda is to approve
[4:09] a temporary onsale strong beer and wine
[4:11] liquor license to Rapids Northstar
[4:14] Lions for the military softball
[4:16] tournament at San Creek Park. Um this is
[4:19] going to be on September 11th, 12th, and
[4:22] 13th. The fees have been paid.
[4:24] background investigation is being
[4:25] completed and the certificate of
[4:27] insurance has been ordered. Uh the
[4:30] temporary on sale strong beer and wine
[4:32] liquor license will be valid from 8 a.m.
[4:34] to 11:00 p.m. from September 11th
[4:36] through September 13th. Approval of the
[4:38] temporary on sale strong beer and wine
[4:40] liquor license is contingent upon that
[4:42] background investigation and submittal
[4:45] of the insurance. Um, but we're looking
[4:47] to approve a temporary strong beer and
[4:50] wine liquor license for Rapids
[4:52] Northstar Lions for use at a military
[4:55] softball tournament to be located at San
[4:58] Creek Park, 1008 Northdale Boulevard on
[5:01] September 11, 12, and 13, 2026
[5:06] contingent upon a successful background
[5:09] investigation and submittal of a valid
[5:12] certificate of insurance for liquor
[5:14] liability.
[5:16] Um, next on our consent item five is to
[5:20] approve a waiver of fees for portable
[5:23] the portable stage for an NOA Ramsey
[5:25] Community College. Um, Anoka Ramsey has
[5:28] their big concert coming up September
[5:32] 17th called uh, Rhythm of the Rapids.
[5:36] And the money they raise um is money to
[5:38] inspire learning and help with student
[5:40] success. The portable stage fee that the
[5:43] city owns uh is $540 per day, but Anoka
[5:47] Ramsey Community College is a partner of
[5:48] the city, particularly during the Fourth
[5:50] of July community celebration. The
[5:53] college allows the city to use its
[5:54] parking lots for public parking during
[5:56] the event, and members of the college
[5:59] work with the organizing committee on
[6:00] lighting needs and other requests as
[6:03] needed. They attend pretty much every
[6:05] carnival meeting that happens through
[6:07] the year. Um the city also has a
[6:10] facility use agreement for parking lot 4
[6:12] at the college which has been used in
[6:14] the past as an overflow parking uh
[6:16] during the Rapids street lighting
[6:18] festival. We also use it I know for the
[6:20] firefighters open house. Um so staff
[6:24] members feel this cooperation and
[6:25] partnership make it reasonable to wave
[6:27] the stage use fee. So, we're looking to
[6:30] wave the stage fee of $540
[6:33] and the city will require Anoka Ramsey
[6:35] Community College to sign an agreement
[6:37] and provide liability insurance listing
[6:39] the city as an additional insured.
[6:42] [clears throat]
[6:43] Um, the next item is to adopt resolution
[6:46] 26-76
[6:48] accepting a grant from the state of
[6:50] Minnesota for a fishing education
[6:53] program. The police department applied
[6:55] for and received a $2,500 grant to be
[6:59] used to implement a fishing education
[7:01] program focused on youth and underserved
[7:04] communities. The grant is funded by the
[7:06] state of Minnesota through the
[7:08] commissioner of national resour natural
[7:10] resources.
[7:12] Um so while the exact date and details
[7:15] of the program are still being
[7:16] developed, the goal will be to create a
[7:18] how to fish event within the city
[7:21] focusing on youth and families. This
[7:23] grant will be used to provide all
[7:25] equipment and supplies needed to fund
[7:27] the event and once finalized, the police
[7:29] department will advertise the details of
[7:32] the event. So, we're looking to adopt
[7:34] resolution 26-76
[7:37] accepting the grant from the state of
[7:38] Minnesota commissioner of n natural
[7:42] resources.
[7:44] Um, the next item uh is to receive the
[7:47] schedule of electronic payments. We do
[7:49] this at every council meeting and we are
[7:51] looking to receive the schedule of
[7:53] electronic payments from July 16, 2026
[7:57] through July 28th, 2026.
[8:02] Uh the next is to adopt resolution 26-77
[8:08] accepting a donation of a police K-9 and
[8:12] training. Uh Mr. Mark Mcdana, a retired
[8:15] long-term K-9 handler for the city of
[8:17] Rapids Police Department, owns and
[8:19] operates a police K-9 training business
[8:22] named Mcdana K9. And Mr. Mcdana is
[8:25] donating a police K9 and the associated
[8:28] training of the dog and handler to the
[8:30] city of Rapids in support of the
[8:32] police department's K9 program. And the
[8:35] training program for the dog and
[8:36] handlers approximately 16 weeks of
[8:38] classroom learning, practical exercises,
[8:41] and testing. Once completed with
[8:43] training, the dog will be certified as
[8:45] dualpurpose, meaning it can be used for
[8:47] criminal apprehension and firearms
[8:50] detection. This will be the first
[8:52] firearms detection trained canine in
[8:55] Anoka County. The new dog will be named
[8:58] MAC and will be partnered with Officer
[9:01] John Roth. The team will start training
[9:03] in a few weeks and the value of this
[9:05] donation for the K9 and training is
[9:07] $22,500.
[9:10] So, we're looking to adopt resolution
[9:12] 26-77
[9:14] accepting donation of police, K-9, and
[9:18] training. And for those keeping track,
[9:20] we have two items left on our consent
[9:23] agenda. The next one is to adopt
[9:26] resolution 26-78
[9:29] appointing Andrea Hatchet, Tim
[9:33] Boer, and Julie Gardner to the
[9:36] Sustainability Commission.
[9:39] Uh there are currently four vacancies on
[9:41] the sustainability commission and staff
[9:43] solicited applications for the vacancies
[9:45] and reviewed three applications.
[9:47] Interviews were conducted for the three
[9:49] applications. After review and
[9:51] discussion the three applicants, Andrea
[9:53] Hatchet, Tim Buer, and Julie Gardner are
[9:56] recommended for appointment to the
[9:58] commission. So we're looking to adopt
[9:59] resolution 26-78
[10:02] appointing Andre Hatchet, Tim Buer, and
[10:04] Julie Gardner to the Sustainability
[10:06] Commission. And if I'm mispronouncing
[10:08] those names all three times, I
[10:10] apologize.
[10:11] Um, and then the last item on our
[10:14] consent agenda is to in planning case
[10:18] 26-27,
[10:20] approve [clears throat] the final plat
[10:22] Maric art, which is the old fire station
[10:25] 3 2831 113th Avenue Northwest, Ibiza
[10:30] LLC. and the plan. The applicant is
[10:32] requesting final plat approval to create
[10:34] eight lots for the purpose of building
[10:36] an 8-unit single family residential
[10:39] development. This application was
[10:41] submitted on July 28th, 2026. The
[10:44] associated preliminary plat was approved
[10:46] by the city council at their July 7th,
[10:48] 2026 meeting. The planning commission
[10:51] held a public hearing on the preliminary
[10:52] plat and subdivision variances at their
[10:54] June 18th meeting and with no public
[10:57] comments received. At the meeting, the
[10:59] planning commission voted to recommend
[11:00] to the city council approval of the
[11:02] preliminary plat and variances. And then
[11:04] at its July 7th meeting, the city
[11:06] council voted to approve the preliminary
[11:08] plat and requested subdivision
[11:10] variances. Uh this final application
[11:13] relates to the two parcels. Uh the final
[11:16] plat has not been significantly altered
[11:18] from the preliminary plat and no new
[11:20] engineering firing I'm sorry firing no
[11:23] new engineering fire or sustainability
[11:26] comments have been added since approval
[11:29] of the preliminary plat drainage and
[11:31] utility easements are shown on the final
[11:33] plat document and the final platars will
[11:36] not be released until staff have
[11:38] determined that all relevant conditions
[11:40] of approval have been sufficiently met
[11:42] and building permits will not be issued
[11:44] until the remainder of all conditions
[11:46] have been met. So we're looking in
[11:48] planning case 26-27.
[11:51] We're looking to adopt resolution 26-80
[11:55] approving the final plat for Marik art
[11:58] subject to conditions stated in the
[12:00] resolution. And that's our consent
[12:02] agenda.
[12:02] >> Your honor,
[12:03] >> council member Novak,
[12:04] >> I move that we approve the consent
[12:05] agenda.
[12:06] >> Second.
[12:07] >> Motion by Novak and a second by Geisler.
[12:10] Is there discussions or questions? your
[12:12] honor.
[12:13] >> Uh we'll start with Council Member
[12:14] Novak.
[12:15] >> Um this is actually a question for Chief
[12:17] Steiner. Uh Chief, I've been a firearms
[12:20] instructor for 23 years. I've never even
[12:22] heard of a dog that could detect a
[12:23] firearm. Tell us a little about that.
[12:26] >> Well, there's um it's a new thing to
[12:28] Anoka County, but the dog is trained in
[12:30] the detection of firearms, both for the
[12:32] purpose of locating, say, in vehicles or
[12:34] discarded firearms uh from somebody that
[12:37] may be fled on foot. And the dog is
[12:39] trained, I believe, on primarily the
[12:41] oils and and sense from discharging a
[12:44] firearm. It's a first in Anoka County,
[12:46] but there is one other in the metro area
[12:48] that I'm aware of, and it's a it's a new
[12:50] resource for us, so we're excited about
[12:51] it, and it'll still serve the the basic
[12:54] apprehension function that most of our
[12:55] dogs do.
[12:56] >> That is absolutely incredible.
[12:58] [clears throat] That's
[12:59] >> we're excited about it. So,
[13:02] >> cool, Mr. Mayor. Council member Carlson,
[13:04] >> I just want to thank Mark Mcdana and
[13:07] Mcdana K9 for donating yet another right
[13:10] >> very valuable dog to our police
[13:12] department with this training. He's an
[13:13] incredible trainer. He is known
[13:15] everywhere. As a matter of fact, I think
[13:17] his last year as a K9 handler in Kon
[13:19] Rapids, he won the state championship
[13:21] and uh incredible trainer and uh I think
[13:24] that this train's leaving the station
[13:26] pretty soon with [laughter] K9 with
[13:28] Mcdana K9. So, it's it's great that we
[13:30] uh it's great that we uh uh took this
[13:32] opportunity to have yet another donation
[13:34] from Mark Mcdana. Uh like I said, he's
[13:37] been very very generous to our police
[13:38] department.
[13:40] >> Mr. Mr. Mayor, council member Armstrong,
[13:42] >> I I would like to echo what what uh uh
[13:46] council member Carlson said with regard
[13:48] to uh Mark Mcdana, great great cop for
[13:52] Rapids for years and years and great partner for the the
[13:56] Rapids Police Department K9 unit. Um,
[13:59] also I just wanted to to uh compliment
[14:02] the city staff on the uh on the coming
[14:06] up with the the pickle ball court idea.
[14:10] Um,
[14:11] I that that's in my that's in my ward
[14:14] and I've driven past those tennis courts
[14:16] I don't know how many times and they
[14:18] looked decrepit,
[14:20] >> unused, etc., etc. So, it with with all
[14:24] the calls that we've had for for more
[14:27] pickle ball courts in the city and and I
[14:29] think it's a great idea, great
[14:31] partnership for the use of that. Um, I
[14:34] also wanted to give just a quick shout
[14:36] out for the uh for that uh Minnesota
[14:38] softball military appreciation
[14:40] tournament coming up in September. If if
[14:42] you haven't been to it, uh I would I
[14:45] would highly recommend you you go out
[14:47] there on on the on September 11th. Um
[14:51] they have a a special tournament that
[14:54] day for the different military branches.
[14:56] Um the the color guard and the the um
[15:01] just the festivities that go on down
[15:03] there are just are just a great thing to
[15:05] be a part of. And last but not least,
[15:08] thanks for the three new appointment
[15:10] appointees to the sustainability
[15:12] commission. I know we're constantly
[15:14] looking at filling those additional
[15:16] positions. So, thank you for anybody
[15:19] that's volunteering to help with those.
[15:22] >> Yeah,
[15:23] >> Mr. Mayor.
[15:23] >> Council member Butler.
[15:24] >> Uh, Council Member Armstrong took a lot
[15:26] of what I was going to say. So, you know
[15:27] what I what I would just add too is that
[15:29] there's still one vacancy on
[15:30] sustainability commission and we
[15:32] definitely would encourage residents to
[15:34] apply. We we really appreciate all the
[15:36] citizen engagement across all of our
[15:37] commissions.
[15:39] >> Yeah. I would just uh do a little piling
[15:41] on on the uh the military softball
[15:44] tournament because when it hits and it
[15:46] hits on September 11,
[15:48] >> it's always a even bigger deal. It's a
[15:51] very somber, very impressive opening ceremony and they have that on
[15:58] that'll be on the 11th and then there's
[16:00] also a ceremony on the 13th and then
[16:02] it's just lots and lots of tournament
[16:05] play in between and it's uh pretty
[16:07] impressive.
[16:09] So, all right. Any other discussion or
[16:12] questions on the consent agenda?
[16:13] >> Mr. Mayor,
[16:14] >> Council Member Krisco,
[16:15] >> I just wanted to make one quick note. We
[16:17] had a long consent agenda tonight.
[16:19] Almost everything that we're doing
[16:20] tonight is on the consent agenda. Uh,
[16:22] but I just wanted to point out we've
[16:24] talked about all a lot of these things.
[16:25] I see four of the items we've done,
[16:27] we've talked about in work session, the
[16:28] other things we've talked about as well.
[16:30] So, uh, business that was pretty much
[16:32] all done prior tonight. That's why on
[16:34] the consent agenda, I did have a
[16:36] question on the K9. Uh, Chief Steiner,
[16:38] does that bring what does that bring our
[16:40] strength to in K9 force, sir? Is that
[16:44] >> Council Member Grisco? We have three
[16:46] apprehension K9s. Uh, two of them uh
[16:49] dual certified in narcotics and this one
[16:51] in gun detection. Then we have one
[16:53] facility wellness dog.
[16:55] >> Okay. So, four total.
[16:56] >> Four total. Okay. Thank you.
[16:58] >> Different purposes completely, but
[16:59] >> Right. Exactly. Thank you. That's it.
[17:02] >> Cool.
[17:03] >> All right. Any other discussion?
[17:05] We have a motion and a second. All in
[17:07] favor signify by saying I I opposed. And
[17:10] the consent agenda is adopted. And we
[17:13] are up to item 11,
[17:16] which is to consider resolution 26-79,
[17:21] accepting a local housing trust fund
[17:23] grant from the state of Minnesota. Mr.
[17:25] Brown, you want to hit the highlights on
[17:27] that one?
[17:27] >> I can. Yes. So, staff had uh submitted
[17:30] an application for this grant several
[17:32] months back. Uh this was a new program
[17:35] that was funded by the legislature over
[17:37] the last couple of years. Uh aren't a
[17:41] lot of strings attached to it other than
[17:42] that the dollars have to go toward
[17:45] serving the households meeting the
[17:46] established income guidelines. We of
[17:49] course have a wide array of housing
[17:53] programs here at the city. Uh so we're
[17:56] able to simply use this grant to
[17:58] supplement those. So what we had
[18:01] submitted was to use uh these funds for
[18:04] our deferred loan program which serves
[18:07] households earning earning 60% area
[18:09] median income or less. Uh that allows
[18:13] them to make improvements to their home
[18:14] and the loan uh doesn't has a 0%
[18:19] interest rate and also doesn't have any
[18:22] required monthly payments. So it's
[18:23] simply due when the house is sold. So
[18:26] those dollars are actually tied up for a fair fairly long time in some
[18:31] cases. So the amount of this grant is
[18:33] $150,000. It's basically a 50% match.
[18:37] Over the last few years, we've uh loaned
[18:40] out around $100,000 a year through that
[18:43] program. So that would basically uh pay
[18:46] for about half half of the program over
[18:49] the next three or so years, which is
[18:52] also the term of the grant agreement.
[18:54] So, I can answer any questions, but
[18:56] pretty straightforward. We're simply
[18:57] using it to supplement uh our existing
[19:00] programs.
[19:00] >> Very good. Any questions of Mr. Brown?
[19:02] >> Mr. Mayor,
[19:03] >> council member um Butler,
[19:05] >> I move that we adopt resolution 26-79
[19:08] accepting a local housing trust fund
[19:10] grant and approve a grant agreement with
[19:11] the state of Minnesota.
[19:12] >> Second.
[19:13] >> Motion by
[19:15] Wow, it's gone. Butler, second by
[19:17] Gesler. Discussion,
[19:20] >> Mr. Mayor, Council Member Grisco. Well,
[19:23] obviously it's great that we're getting
[19:24] this grant from the state of Minnesota.
[19:25] It's a it's a large grant. It's
[19:26] $150,000.
[19:28] So, I just had one quick question of Mr.
[19:30] Brown, and if you don't know the answer
[19:32] tonight, that's fine. But I understand
[19:34] that the grant funds from the state of
[19:35] Minnesota are coming from the uh local
[19:38] affordable housing aid legislation, or
[19:40] how or where is the funding coming for
[19:43] this? Is it Aloaha sales tax?
[19:46] >> It it is not. I I don't I don't know the
[19:49] exact exact answer. I know it was
[19:51] budgeted basically through the state's
[19:53] uh general fund. It is it is not coming
[19:56] from the sales tax proceeds or LAA th
[19:59] those are dollars that we simply receive
[20:02] twice a year from the state. Those are
[20:04] incidentally also going into our local
[20:06] housing trust fund uh to help fund those
[20:09] various housing programs.
[20:12] >> Okay. Well, regardless, it's nice that
[20:14] we're getting $150,000 of uh of uh tax
[20:17] money back into the state of or the city
[20:19] of Rapids.
[20:20] Thank you.
[20:21] >> All right, we have a motion and a
[20:23] second. Any other discussion?
[20:26] Hearing not, all in favor signify by
[20:28] saying I. I opposed.
[20:30] >> And that motion carries. [clears throat]
[20:32] We are up to the open mic public comment
[20:34] portion of the meeting.
[20:37] If you are here for open mic, please
[20:39] come up to the podium. It provides an
[20:41] opportunity for the public to address
[20:42] the city council on subjects that are
[20:44] not part of the regular meeting agenda.
[20:47] You are invited to express any concerns
[20:49] they may you may have which are relevant
[20:51] to the affairs policies or practices of
[20:53] the city of Rapids and you'll be
[20:55] limited to three minutes. Uh please
[20:57] approach the podium. State your name and
[20:59] address and all remarks will be made
[21:01] from the podium and address to the
[21:02] council. Uh what do we go? That should
[21:05] be enough.
[21:06] [laughter]
[21:07] >> Thank you, Mayor Cook. Members of the
[21:09] council, my name is Derek Lind. I'm I
[21:10] live in Ramsey. 28-year resident,
[21:13] Ramsey, four-year member of ASI, ANO
[21:16] County Election Integrity Team, a
[21:18] private citizen group. Uh, tonight's
[21:21] subject is EAC certification of the
[21:24] machine tabulators. If you could, if you
[21:26] could take that packet, please, and turn
[21:29] to the very last page.
[21:31] So, it's the last, it should be page 16,
[21:34] I believe. There's some yellow
[21:36] highlighting there. This is a letter
[21:38] from ESNS, which is our machine
[21:41] tabulator manufacturer. They sent this
[21:43] letter directly to Inoka County and they
[21:44] said, "You got to take those
[21:45] certification stickers off the machine.
[21:48] You're not certified." And the reason
[21:50] you're not certified or we're not
[21:52] certified is because of the modems. If
[21:55] you could turn back two more pages,
[21:58] there's another letter. So, this would
[22:00] be on page
[22:03] 13. Actually, it's a two-page letter.
[22:06] Also
[22:08] got some yellow highlight on there.
[22:09] That's a that's a letter from the US
[22:12] Election Assistance Commission. We call
[22:14] it the EAC. This is the federal body.
[22:16] They sent that letter directly to ESNS
[22:18] and they said, "We got a problem with
[22:19] your your machine tabulators. You got to
[22:22] take those stickers off." And that's
[22:24] what that's what triggered this. If you
[22:26] look at the dates of this, this is March
[22:27] 2020 and then April of 2020. This is
[22:29] right about the same time that COVID
[22:31] hit. Um, and then one last page. If you
[22:34] could look at page four and five, it's
[22:36] towards the front.
[22:41] Page four, please.
[22:44] This is the Secretary of State's website
[22:46] and Noa County's website. Their
[22:48] communications to the public. If you
[22:50] read through that in your own time, they
[22:52] say federal this, federal that. They're
[22:54] making the public think that these
[22:56] things are on the up and up on the
[22:58] federal side. So, what we're asking you
[22:59] to do is compare this page, page four,
[23:02] with those two letters that I just got
[23:04] done showing you. Now, it's a long
[23:05] packet. I'll let you read that on your
[23:07] own time. Couple other points I want to
[23:09] make that the state of Minnesota, we've
[23:11] been pressing the state of Minnesota and
[23:13] the county on this, and they're
[23:14] admitting to us, yeah, they're not EAC
[23:16] certified, but they don't have to be.
[23:18] We're saying that's fine, but let's get that out to the public. Let's
[23:22] let the public know that the machine
[23:23] tabulators that we use to count our
[23:24] votes are not federally EAC certified.
[23:29] Uh this was featured in the movie
[23:31] Minnesota Mau. The other thing to to pay
[23:33] attention to here is there's a strong
[23:35] commitment to the modems. This is really
[23:37] about the modems and the tabulators.
[23:39] That's why they had to take the stickers
[23:40] off. I think if this was something that
[23:42] came to me, I would have said, "Okay,
[23:43] fine. Let's take the modems out. We
[23:44] don't need it." But there was there was
[23:47] a commitment to those modems. They paid
[23:48] extra for them. I think they they submit
[23:51] the um the early totals. I don't know
[23:54] why they had to have them, but they they
[23:56] kept them in. Um
[23:59] I'm not sure if you guys have checked
[24:00] any of your votes when we do the post
[24:02] election review. I don't know if
[24:04] Rapids has been selected in that. You
[24:06] only do four out of 128, but it's kind
[24:08] of interesting. We put a lot of faith in
[24:09] these machine tabulators, and according
[24:12] to this, they're not federally EAC
[24:14] certified. Last comment. If you guys
[24:17] want to invite us back for a work
[24:18] session, you know, I can spend more than
[24:20] three minutes up here on a microphone.
[24:21] We can have a little more dialogue. We
[24:23] got some people that have been studying
[24:24] this a long time. That's up to you. So,
[24:26] with that being said, do you have any
[24:28] questions for me? I know you probably
[24:30] weren't
[24:31] expecting this, but it's a lot to
[24:34] digest.
[24:36] >> Thank you. Thanks for your time.
[24:38] Appreciate it. Have a good evening.
[24:39] Thank you.
[24:42] >> All right. Anybody else to address
[24:43] council for open mic this evening?
[24:56] Mayor and council, my name is Dave
[24:58] Ecbomb.
[25:00] I uh excuse [clears throat] me. I went
[25:02] to the U commissioner's meeting and I
[25:04] spoke at that time concerning the uh
[25:07] decisions that are being made with the
[25:09] uh old they call it the old the family
[25:12] center mall which is I'm about a block
[25:15] and a half away from that. So I'm a
[25:18] little concerned. [clears throat]
[25:20] Dave David Eckbomb and I'm at 11206
[25:24] Crocus Street Northwest in Rapids.
[25:27] I've lived at that address for 42 years.
[25:31] Since 1984, excuse me, [clears throat]
[25:34] I've seen multiple changes around the
[25:36] community from the location of
[25:38] businesses, new businesses coming to the
[25:40] areas. I mean, I could go on and on what
[25:42] I've seen come and go to my own home.
[25:45] There has been significant number of
[25:47] upgrades in the and I'll tell you why
[25:49] I'm thinking or saying this in a second.
[25:52] specifically to the outside, including
[25:54] two times I've shingled the house, new
[25:56] siding, I tore down a garage, I put
[26:00] another garage up, concrete driveway,
[26:03] planting new trees. You get the picture.
[26:06] I'm sorry to say that few improvements
[26:08] have been made to the Family Center Mall
[26:11] with the exception of of uh Grand Slam.
[26:15] Thanks, Mike, for doing the things at
[26:18] the Grand Slam. And it's a a success.
[26:20] we've seen all the people that go over
[26:22] to Grand Slam. Uh recently, uh District
[26:25] 11 was there and so they made some
[26:26] improvements as well.
[26:29] Uh some some time ago out the outside of
[26:32] the building was painted, lights were
[26:34] added along some of the potholes were
[26:37] added along with some of the potholes
[26:39] were filled somewhat recently, but for
[26:42] the most part, the building and the
[26:43] outside building is a mess.
[26:47] Uh when I went to the commissioner's
[26:48] report meeting, they had 11 propositions
[26:51] and I can read them quickly. Paint the
[26:53] exterior. Replace the weather sealant
[26:55] along the bottom. Add decorative lighting. Replace all rusted
[26:59] metal exterior doors. Work with the
[27:01] staff to add landscaping to the parking
[27:04] area. Repair deteriorating sections of
[27:06] the asphalt. Restripe
[27:09] uh paint parking light poles. Repair
[27:11] secure fence around the loading dock.
[27:14] Remove the vacant Burger Time building
[27:16] and dumpster enclosure. Repair paint.
[27:19] Clear scrub vegetation vegetation uh
[27:22] covering the pylon sign along Crooked
[27:24] Lake Boulevard. And then there's other
[27:27] things. A sidewalk along 113. It goes on
[27:29] and on and on. The point is is that
[27:33] this is kind of a disaster over there.
[27:34] And I've been watching this over the
[27:36] years. I've seen the businesses kind of
[27:38] come and go. And now we're at a point
[27:40] where I'm hoping after seeing the work
[27:43] that was done with the two malls that
[27:45] are west of me
[27:47] on Crooked Lake by Kudrass Boulevard
[27:50] plus the uh the beautiful bridge uh over
[27:54] uh by by Lilyutt all the building that
[27:57] took over the area where the old uh post
[28:01] office was. You know the area I'm
[28:02] talking about Sniders was in that area.
[28:05] the homes that are being built and the ice arena. Beautiful ice arena.
[28:10] My my granddaughters use that. The new
[28:12] fire station. Unbelievable. It's like
[28:15] the Taj Mahal.
[28:17] But now I see the Family Center Mall and
[28:20] I just go, "What's going on here? Why
[28:23] haven't we had some new new buyers?" I
[28:26] understand that the old buyer has is is
[28:28] now deceased and and the and the kids
[28:32] are probably somewhat unloading the
[28:35] site. The building dates back to the 60s
[28:38] and if a person I'm I'm sorry we're way
[28:42] over the three minutes here. Are you are
[28:43] you just about to the end?
[28:44] >> Just about done. Yeah.
[28:45] >> Okay. Thank you. So anyway, to kind of
[28:49] come to the end and I'm sorry the three
[28:51] minutes, but but we've we've seen so
[28:54] many good things happening within in
[28:56] Rapids. We we appreciate it. But
[28:58] now we're coming up to a charter school
[29:00] that's been designated to be at that
[29:02] location. And not only a charter school,
[29:05] but there's a religious religious group
[29:07] coming in there, too, which is we have a
[29:10] copy of the architectural drawings, and
[29:12] we can kind of see that that's going on.
[29:14] Okay. What we need is as neighbors, we
[29:17] want transparency.
[29:20] The the what was the purpose of the
[29:22] particular charter school coming to this
[29:23] particular area.
[29:25] Isn't it necessary to have neighborhood
[29:27] input? Let's be transparent. The
[29:30] neighbors want again to be have input.
[29:33] Thank you.
[29:34] >> Thank you. Thank you.
[29:47] This is not my cup of tea. [laughter]
[29:50] My name is Vicki Akbomb and I'm his
[29:53] wife. Um I'm going to talk primarily
[29:57] about charter schools.
[30:01] But first, I want to ask you to please
[30:03] look at the commission um meeting and
[30:06] listen to what he had to say before. It
[30:08] talks about um the road s systems in
[30:13] that area and it t and
[30:16] there was something else he talked
[30:17] about. I can't remember what but those
[30:20] are very important to this whole
[30:22] discussion.
[30:24] However, when it comes to um charter
[30:28] schools, I want to ask are there
[30:30] sprinkler systems in the building? Who
[30:32] knows?
[30:34] Um it's a school zone. It is not it it
[30:39] is not a school zone. It's a commercial
[30:42] zone.
[30:44] That's important.
[30:46] Um
[30:47] are there enough bathrooms in that area
[30:52] to accommodate
[30:54] 500 plus students?
[30:57] There weren't when I was in that
[31:00] um building.
[31:03] Um, I'm wondering about a gym for that
[31:07] school.
[31:09] Sometimes charter schools don't think
[31:11] gyms are important. I heard a people say
[31:14] last time, "Oh, well, they have a recck
[31:16] room." A recck room is used for games,
[31:20] parties, relaxation to be used with
[31:24] virtual reality and social video games.
[31:27] We need gross motor activity areas,
[31:32] not video games.
[31:35] Are the rooms large enough for for
[31:38] school activities? Are they do they have
[31:40] fresh air? Do they have windows? Is
[31:43] there enough room in those classrooms to
[31:46] move around for students for um student
[31:50] engagement?
[31:53] um busing and drop off, pickup and
[31:57] [clears throat] drop off for for um
[32:00] cars. That really bothers me. I saw some
[32:04] area for if you look back, you can find
[32:08] the areas for
[32:10] buses and how they have that set up. But
[32:13] I didn't hear anything about drop off
[32:15] and pickup. And that's important. I've
[32:19] been in charter schools. I've worked in
[32:21] charter schools. And I can tell you that
[32:23] sometimes that is not
[32:27] um what am I trying to say? It's not
[32:31] safe. It's just not a safe area. And I
[32:34] heard nothing about drop off and pickup.
[32:37] Um I'm concerned about crosswalks
[32:40] patrols. There's three busy roads there
[32:44] and one road is 113th. And I heard
[32:48] people say, "Well, there's just not that
[32:50] many people living there." But there are
[32:54] people living there, and that's
[32:56] important that we respect those people
[32:58] living in that area.
[33:01] Um, so crosswalks,
[33:04] not only for the safety of the kids, but
[33:06] for the safety of the neighborhood,
[33:08] should be available.
[33:10] And then outdoor play. I've been told I'
[33:13] I've heard,
[33:15] well, we can kids can play anywhere.
[33:17] They can play on a parking lot.
[33:20] Really?
[33:21] And and a parent comes in. This happened
[33:24] to me. A parent comes in to where the
[33:26] kids are playing and the parent says,
[33:29] "Well, I can pick my kid up here. I pay
[33:32] for this." And it's not safe for a
[33:36] parent to drive their car where the kids
[33:39] are playing.
[33:41] These are grave concerns in my my
[33:44] estimation for a charter school anywhere
[33:47] and for our neighborhood.
[33:50] Like Dave said, we've been there 42
[33:52] years. We don't want to move.
[33:56] Are you going to force us to?
[33:59] >> This is Go look at that place. It's a
[34:02] mess.
[34:02] >> We drive by it all the time.
[34:05] >> Thank you. Thank you very much.
[34:07] >> A block away. It's a mess.
[34:10] >> Help.
[34:11] >> Totally. I totally understand. Thank
[34:13] you.
[34:19] Anybody else here for um open mic?
[34:24] [clears throat]
[34:25] And we will close that portion of the
[34:27] mic of the the meeting.
[34:34] Why am I closing that? I got a couple
[34:35] responses.
[34:48] We uh we had two folks visit us for open
[34:51] mic last meeting and the first one was
[34:54] Mr. Scott Nellis uh with concerns about
[34:57] the storm that had gone through and um
[35:00] additional street sweeping and
[35:03] uh we got out immediately after that and swept that neighborhood.
[35:09] And the takeaway is residents and
[35:12] property owners may choose to
[35:13] proactively assist in protecting storm
[35:16] water by adopting a storm drain and
[35:19] providing volunteer cleanup activities.
[35:22] Um but even ahead of that um staff
[35:25] encourage residents and property owners
[35:27] to submit non-emergency maintenance
[35:30] concerns by using report it the city's
[35:33] online reporting system found at the
[35:35] city's websitem.gov
[35:38] and requests can also be made by calling
[35:40] public works 763755-2880
[35:44] option three and leaving a message
[35:47] there. um we we really when streets do
[35:51] get um get to be a mess, we do want to
[35:55] get out there and sweep it up, but with
[35:56] over 400 lane miles, we might not know
[35:59] that it's messy. So, it'd be good to let
[36:02] us know. Um and then uh the other uh
[36:07] person here for open mic
[36:09] um I was uh uh wondering about the legal
[36:13] authority to require franchise
[36:14] agreements for broadband providers
[36:17] including gateway gateway fiber and
[36:19] there are numerous benefits to
[36:21] franchising for the broadband provider
[36:23] the city and the public versus
[36:24] right-of-way permitting. Right ofway
[36:26] permitting is limited to construction
[36:28] installation in the right of way while
[36:30] franchising provides an agreement for
[36:32] specific public benefits for the use of
[36:34] the public right ofway. And these
[36:36] benefits include compliance with city
[36:38] code, streamlined access to the public
[36:40] right ofway, improved permitting
[36:42] efficiency, potential for preferential
[36:44] positioning, defined dispute
[36:47] resolution/c
[36:48] customer service mechanisms, better
[36:50] access to city data and planning
[36:52] coordination, and a reasonable build out
[36:54] of the system in the city. And there's
[36:56] additional things. Uh the city is open
[36:58] to negotiating franchise agreements with
[37:00] broadband providers like Gateway Fiber,
[37:03] but to date no provider has reached out
[37:05] to the city for that purpose. And that
[37:07] is the end of our open mic responses.
[37:13] And
[37:15] um I just wanted to be clear, I know I
[37:17] was smiling. It's not because I disagree
[37:19] with anything you said. We are we are
[37:22] really dialed in on that property
[37:24] >> for sure. But it's it's private sale,
[37:28] private. It it didn't go the way we were
[37:31] all hoping it would go. Um but
[37:35] we'll get a response from staff and and
[37:38] believe me, we all heard you.
[37:41] Um all right, other business. Council,
[37:44] >> Mr. Mayor,
[37:45] >> council member Gryler.
[37:46] >> Uh I just wanted to uh double down on
[37:48] the reported use. Um reported is a great
[37:51] resource. Um I've used it to report
[37:53] roadkill. staff comes and gets it out of
[37:55] the street for you. Uh potholes, downed
[37:58] limbs, dangerous things on trails, you
[38:01] know, overhanging brush. It's really a
[38:04] way for the citizens to let us know
[38:05] that, hey, work needs to be done here.
[38:07] And staff looks at it, prioritizes it,
[38:09] and gets to it. It might not be the
[38:11] instant, depends on the severity of it,
[38:13] but it's really a great way for citizens
[38:15] to let us know that something needs to
[38:16] be done. Um, and it keeps track of it
[38:19] and really easy for them to get out
[38:21] there, especially public works, they've
[38:22] got a lot to do. Um, and they really
[38:24] prioritize getting those done. So, I
[38:27] just wanted to double down on that. Uh,
[38:29] the other thing,
[38:30] >> can can I add on to that just for a
[38:31] second?
[38:32] >> Um, to add on to that,
[38:34] >> um, street lights.
[38:35] >> Yes.
[38:35] >> They have no idea the street lights are
[38:37] out because they drive in today. So,
[38:39] it's uh it's important that those get
[38:41] mentioned.
[38:42] >> Yes. So, please let us know when you see
[38:44] things. That's a a great way for us to
[38:46] come and help you.
[38:46] >> And when you see them flashing, when you
[38:49] see them flashing, know that they're on
[38:50] their way out. Okay. Now, Council Member
[38:53] Gesler, back to you. I'll quit
[38:54] interrupting.
[38:55] >> Thank you. Uh, the other thing that I
[38:56] was gonna mention, uh, today there was a
[38:58] blood drive up at city hall here. I
[38:59] happen to have a chance to go. I really
[39:02] want to encourage folks if you are
[39:03] willing and able to please do that.
[39:05] There is a blood emergency right now,
[39:07] um, for both Red Cross and NBC. NBC does
[39:10] uh, Memorial Blood Centers does have a
[39:12] facility in Riverdale um, to go visit.
[39:15] So, if you're able, please consider. Um,
[39:18] there's there's really a big need right
[39:19] now. So, just from a public opportunity,
[39:22] think about that. Thank you.
[39:24] >> All right, you're on.
[39:25] >> Council member Novak.
[39:26] >> Council member Gesler stole my thunder.
[39:29] I was actually over at uh the Memorial
[39:31] Blood Clinic in Riverdale this last
[39:33] Tuesday donating blood. Uh there's a lot
[39:36] of different ways you can do it, folks.
[39:38] And as he said, there's the second blood
[39:41] emergency right now going on just this
[39:42] summer. I believe only about 4% of the
[39:45] population actually donates blood. And
[39:49] odds are at some point in your life,
[39:50] you're going to need it. So, please, if
[39:53] you can donate, it's going to save
[39:56] lives. You know it will. Thank you.
[40:00] >> All right,
[40:01] >> Mr. Mayor.
[40:02] >> Council member Carlson.
[40:03] >> Heck, they even called me. I was at NBC
[40:05] [laughter]
[40:05] on Friday morning.
[40:08] >> Yeah, absolutely. There is this severe
[40:11] shortage right now. And I just want to
[40:13] mention, of course, night tomorrow
[40:15] night. Great way to get out to see your
[40:17] neighbors. And there's going to be a
[40:18] community night at Lions Park from 5:00
[40:21] to 7:00. If you don't have anything
[40:22] going on in your neighborhood, go down
[40:24] to Lions Park and there's a community
[40:25] one going on there. Uh last last concert
[40:30] in the park is on Thursday, Revolution
[40:32] 5, a Beatles tribute. Probably the
[40:36] biggest crowd that they'll have all
[40:37] year. It's a great great uh uh great
[40:41] music. Um last concert this Thursday,
[40:45] Rapids Dam at 7 o'clock. Do you
[40:47] know if we're going to have shuttles for
[40:49] that? Because in the past we have um
[40:53] because the parking fills so
[40:56] intensely for that.
[40:57] >> Mr. Mayor, I do not. But we will look
[40:59] into that and let you know.
[41:01] >> Um and then the other thing I'd say is
[41:04] get down there early. If you get down
[41:06] there at 5:30, you'll have plenty of
[41:07] places to park and put your chairs. And
[41:09] the Northstar Alliance will be serving
[41:11] dinner from 5:30 till 7. And it's uh
[41:14] it's a great way to start the evening.
[41:18] All right. Um we still got our uh
[41:21] farmers market Wednesday afternoons over
[41:23] at the ice center.
[41:25] Uh any other business to come before
[41:26] council? Yes, Miss Lensmire.
[41:28] >> Mr. Mayor, council members, a reminder
[41:30] that next week, Tuesday, is the primary
[41:34] election. So, the polls will be open
[41:36] from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. If you have
[41:38] questions about where to vote, please
[41:40] give us a call at the clerk's office and
[41:42] we will help you find that.
[41:45] >> Awesome. Yeah. So, this week our council
[41:47] meeting is Monday night because tomorrow
[41:48] night is night to unite and next week um
[41:53] Oh, next week we have a workshop. Never
[41:54] mind.
[41:56] >> Nobody cares. [laughter]
[41:59] >> It's just won't be on Tuesday,
[42:01] >> right?
[42:01] >> Mr. over here. Council member Armstrong,
[42:03] >> I just wanted to to uh give a a shout
[42:06] out to uh Mercy Hospital. I kind of had
[42:09] to smile when the the three gentlemen
[42:12] were talking about donating blood. They
[42:14] didn't Thank goodness I didn't need it,
[42:16] but uh um few weeks ago I had a I had a
[42:21] fishing mishap. Tiny tiny deal, no big
[42:25] deal. But five days later, I'm up in
[42:28] northern Minnesota and it becomes a big
[42:30] deal. Um, and when I discovered it, I
[42:34] had my choice of waiting 2 hours for a
[42:38] clinic to potentially be opened up or
[42:41] drive 3 and 1/2 m 3 and 1/2 hours back
[42:43] to Rapids to have it addressed
[42:47] here. And thank goodness I did. Um,
[42:51] because if if you ever think you're
[42:52] having a bad day, go go to the waiting
[42:55] room at uh or the emergency room at
[42:57] Mercy Hospital. Saturday afternoon,
[42:59] there was over 50 patients there. And I
[43:02] thought I was having a bad day, but
[43:04] there was others having even even worse
[43:06] day. And the the front office staff, the
[43:11] security, I I thought security was there
[43:13] to do security. They do a heck of a lot
[43:16] more than security as far as helping
[43:18] patients out and whatever else. But long
[43:20] story short, what I thought was a slight
[43:23] little fishing mishap ended up that I
[43:25] was in the hospital for four days. They
[43:27] did emergency surgery. I was in there
[43:29] for 4 days. Realized it was
[43:31] significantly more seriously than I than
[43:33] I thought. But that being said, um Dr. I
[43:38] was I was asked not to give full names,
[43:41] but Dr. G and his uh surgical team, uh
[43:45] the nursing staff, Jack, Rose, Cece,
[43:48] their attention to patient care, their kindness and uh just overall care
[43:55] that they gave not only to me, but to a
[43:58] number of patients that I saw there on
[44:00] the floor. Um I'm not telling you
[44:02] anything you don't already know. We got
[44:03] a great facility over there, great
[44:06] partner here for the city. But boy, when
[44:09] you need them at the spur of the moment,
[44:11] we are so lucky to have them.
[44:13] >> And I can't say enough about them.
[44:17] >> We are very fortunate to have Mercy in
[44:19] town here. That's for sure.
[44:20] >> And if there were 50 people in the
[44:22] waiting room, there were at least
[44:22] another 50 in the rooms in the back.
[44:26] >> Yep. Yep. They were they were hopping.
[44:30] >> All right. Any other business to come
[44:31] before council this? Yes, ma'am. Council
[44:32] member Geyser. Uh, one more thing that's
[44:34] going to happen before our next big
[44:36] meeting, uh, on Sunday the 16th from
[44:40] 11:00 to 1:00 at the civic center here
[44:42] is the school supply and kids clothes
[44:45] swap um, being hel uh, the our folks
[44:48] over at the recycling center and staff
[44:50] is putting that together. But, uh, so
[44:53] August uh, 16th 11 to 1 at the civic
[44:56] center, school supply and kids clothes
[44:58] swap.
[45:00] >> All right.
[45:01] >> Right in time for school.
[45:03] Perfect. All right. Any other business?
[45:06] >> Motion to adjurnn. Second.
[45:08] >> Motion by Carlson, second by Butler to
[45:10] adjurnn. All in favor signify by saying
[45:12] I.
[45:13] >> I. We're adjourned.
[45:22] [music]