By Clark Natalie

One of the first items on the agenda for the Harris City Council Monday, Jan. 22, was the adoption of a resolution approving the commitments to qualify to obtain a Comprehensive Community Development Block Grant. This grant will be used to rehabilitate approximately 10 houses, and replace or repair the lift stations in town.

At a public hearing before the council meeting, city grantwriter Bill Grasavage explained that funds would come from the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), Rural Development, and Lakes and Pines, a non-profit organization based in Mora. Lakes and Pines will also provide the administration for the grant.

Low income homeowners could apply for the program. The improvements would be for safety, such as replacing old wiring and replacing plumbing, also environmental issues, such as replacing inefficient furnaces, adding insulation and replacing windows. Grasavage pointed out that construction of additions, garages, and other outbuildings would not qualify under this program. No rental properties would qualify as the buildings must be owner occupied.

Each house would be individually assessed, and a plan for upgrading would be drawn up. The plan would then be put out to bids for contractors. The homeowner would ultimately choose the contractor, but the decision could be based on quality of work as the homeowner is not required to go with the lowest bidder. The contractors who can bid on the project must meet requirements set by Lakes and Pines. They must be licensed and prove that insurance is in place. This would include their workman's comprehensive insurance.

It is estimated that between $22,000 to $27,000 could be spent on each house. The funds would be a deferred loan to the home owner. After the homeowner has lived in the house for 10 years from the time the funds were disbursed, the loan would become a grant and not have to be paid back. Should the homeowner move or sell the house before the end of the time, a pro rated amount of the loan would be due.

The city had hoped to have its lift stations upgraded under this grant, but will not be able to. Lift station one will be upgraded during the wastewater treatment facility construction. This leaves lift stations 2, 3 and 4 to be dealt with. Each of these stations would be either left as is, completely replaced or rebuilt. Lift station 2 would be brought up to standards with the grant funds. Lift station 3 would not qualify under the grant terms because of the area it serves. This station has new controls, and can remain as is at the present time. Lift station 4 also would not qualify under the program. City Engineer Charles Schwartz explained that the city is required to contribute funds to the project. The rehabilitation of lift station four would qualify as their contribution. The estimated cost of this rehabilitation would be between $20,000 to $30,000. And the funds for this rebuild can come from the low interest loan proceeds for the WWTF.

The council had a discussion concerning certain commitments under the resolution. The first had to do with smoke detectors. The city was committed to providing smoke detectors to the houses which were being rehabbed. City Building Inspector Steve Thorp pointed out that more than one smoke detector would be required for each house. The city requires a smoke detector on each floor and in each bedroom and hallway. Also, if sheetrock is being removed from the walls, and a hard wire smoke detector can be installed, it must be. This would require the use of an electrician. Also, although not required under the building codes, it is a good idea to have a carbon monoxide detector also installed. It was finally decided that the city would contribute $50 per house for the purchase and installation of smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.

Grasavage also suggested that the city waive the building permit fee for the upgrades to the houses. Grasavage pointed out that if the city would waive the permit fee, with would improve the rating of the application. Only one out of three applications are approved. Mayor Rick Smisson pointed out that under the contract with the building inspector, the city only gets 40 percent of the fee, the rest going to the inspector. This would mean that the city would have to expense 60 percent of the fee to waive the cost to the homeowner.

During the discussion of the resolution, Councilman Wayne Buisman asked about the cost of the WWTF. It was pointed out that in the resolution, the amount of $5.3 million was used as the amount of loan that was being obtained to build the WWTF. Buisman questioned this cost compared to the cost to hook up with the North Branch system. Buisman said that at the time it was decided to build on their own, the figure to construct the facility was closer to $4.5 million. That by building their own system, the city would save over a million dollars by not hooking up to North Branch. Smisson pointed out that if the city had gone with hooking up with North Branch, there would have been no grants or low interest loans. On the documents provided at the PFA loan application, it was noted that the difference between borrowing the funds at 1 percent and funding the North Branch hookup under regular bond issues would have been $1.9 million. Also not included in the North Branch hookup costs were the phosphorus issues, which would have added additional costs. Phosphorus levels had not been set when the proposal to hook up with North Branch was being discussed.

Public comment

During public comment, the council was questioned about items that have been brought up before. John Perron said it was his perception that Mayor Smisson's explanations of the cost of dealing with the 10 questions posed by Larry Nelson was a criticism of himself and Richard Hanson who had submitted questions to the Environmental Assessment Worksheet for the Highlands of Harris. Perron felt that had the issues under the Worksheet been better explained, the need for the questions would not have arisen.

Also, Lisa Jorgenson questioned whether the questions posed had been answered. Jorgenson said that a detailed breakdown of the cost of hiring the new clerk had not been provided. Although some figures had been provided, there was no mention of the cost of using the AmericInn in North Branch to interview the candidates.

Jorgenson also asked why the checks listed in the accounts to be paid at each meeting are not in sequential order.

Finally, at the last meeting, the treasurer for the fire department had resigned and requested a private meeting with the council. Jorgenson asked for an explanation of what's going on within the fire department. She felt that the citizens of Harris should know.

In other business, the council:

• Prioritized concerns and issues for 2007. High on the list was repair or replacement of maintenance equipment, such as the dump truck and grader. City maintenance supervisor Mike Kriz said the dump truck is completely worn out and the grader has a solid engine, but may very well break in half because of the welds used to keep it together. Kriz said if a new grader is obtained before the present grader falls completely apart, it would have an approximate trade-in value of $20,000. Should it break down, it would be worthless.

Also high on the list is for all city employees, including council members, to become NIMS certified. Councilman John Pelant explained that NIMS is "National Incident Management System" and is required under FEMA and Home Security. All personnel will have to be tested. Until the city is NIMS certified, the city can no longer obtain federal grants.

Schwartz said also high on the list would be obtaining a qualified operator for the new WWTF. Kriz does not have the qualifications to run the WWTF under state guidelines. Kriz will have to take the necessary schooling and then serve as an apprentice for three years. It was decided that an engineer with the necessary qualifications would be contracted for until Kriz can complete the internship.