By Clark Natalie

The city of Harris began the year with a request from the Harris Fire Department to purchase an equipment truck. The department has schematics and specifications ready to be sent for bids on the truck. At the Jan. 20 meeting, Fire Chief John Pelant said he would get at least three bids on this truck, as just the chassis is estimated at $50,000. He said they definitely want bids from local companies, General in North Branch and Custom in Osceola, Wisc., because of concerns about service on the vehicle. He was assured by the council that they were not bound to take the lowest bid.

Pelant also received permission to order three sets of bunker gear for a total of $1,600. These will be sets of ìchiefsî gear for himself and the two assistant chiefs. Their gear will be passed down to other members. At the present time the department has only 11 sets of newer gear.

The application for membership on the fire department will now include language saying the applicant will have to pass a drug and criminal background check. Pelant said he wanted this not only for new applicants, but also for existing members. He said any time there was an ìincidentî that the member would have to submit to a drug check. The Council not only approved this, but Mayor Rick Smisson wanted a code of conduct developed for the department and be included in a handbook.

Pelant said the department handled 45 fire calls last year. The majority of these were in Harris and on the I-35 corridor. Pelant said Harris covers all of the costs for the I-35 corridor. He would like to share this cost with other entities that the department services, such as Fish Lake and Sunrise Township. The income generated from this service is put into the department fund to purchase equipment and update the department which is a benefit for everyone.
Water treatment plan on schedule

City engineer Chuck Schwartz reported that the Waste Water Treatment Facility plan continues to move along on schedule. He said a series of required meetings will be held in February. Part of these meetings will be to explore avenues to fund this facility. Schwartz said someone from Ehlers and Associates will be at the next council meeting to explain funding options. He said he met with North Branch staff and needs to set up a meeting with North Branch and the WWTF committee. The final meeting in February will be a public hearing.

Schwartz also asked for direction as to the distribution of the remaining waste water units left on the present system. Are they to go to each developer as his site is developed, or will they be reserved for specific projects the council wants? Where the remaining units go will have to be approved by the Minnesota Pollution Council Agency.

In other business:
ï A parks and trails plan was brought up. Mayor Smisson said the issue would be discussed at the next meeting. Don Cardinal, who is on the city park board, asked Schwartz to explain the reason for the plan and why it is so important. Schwartz said the importance is that it ties into the cityís development plan. The city can charge developers park fees, paid in either land or funds. A park plan must be in place if they are charging this fee. Schwartz said at least five meetings will have to be held, including a public hearing.

ï The need for a city planner was brought up. Councilmembers expressed apprehension, considering the past experience with city planners. It was decided that Schwartz will provide names and recommendations of planners with experience working with communities of the same size as Harris.

ï It was also decided to review the water and sewer rates. If the city is operating at a profit, the rates will be left as they are. It was noted that when the rates were increased before, the city was trying to catch up from 15 years without an increase. Any additional funds will come from developers.

ï Corporal Shane Carroll of the Chisago County Sheriffís Department presented the last quarterís incident information. There were 196 calls in Harris. The Sheriff had discovered a problem that has been corrected. In the past, if a citation was written in Harris, unless the officer was working under the contract with Harris, the citation funds went to the County. Going forward, any citation written in Harris will be attributed to the Harris contract, and any income from those citations will be split with the County and Harris. Carroll said the city should not expect to receive payment for all citations as they are not all paid.

ï The Council also approved the sale of pull tabs at Big Daddyís by the North Branch Hockey Association.

ï Approval was given to the maintenance supervisor to purchase outerwear for city employees, which have the City name and employeeís name on them. A set of shirts, slacks and jacket will be purchased. It was felt this was both a safety and professional issue.

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