By MaryHelen Swanson

North Branch is getting a new post office.

For the thousands who visit the post office each year, that could mean less congestion in the lobby and potentially easier access and better parking outside.

Monday night, March 12, U.S. Postal Service representative Gary Mattox stood before the city council and said by his presence at the meeting, that means a new post office is coming to town.

He said the new facility will be very nice and that the residents of North Branch will like it.

Where it will go is the next issue.

Mattox figured it will take about six months to determine the new site. It could be somewhere close to the present post office, he said, or elsewhere.

Mattox said there will be public comment periods on site locations, but it is imperative that the site be selected to make sure North Branch doesn't lose the federal funding for a new post office.

There will be a lot of work to locate the site, but the one thing certain, Mattox assured the council, is that there will be a new post office in North Branch.

Water treatment facility

Serious discussion at the meeting this week centered on another "site" issue where NB Water and Light Commission (W&L) proposes to construct a water treatment facility.

Months of planning has gone into the proposal and specifications. W&L is ready to go out for bids for the project.

A little over a year ago, the council talked about allowing W&L to use a parcel of land behind Tanger Outlet Center, which had been donated to the city for a public use.

Discussion followed, at the request of Councilman Larry Erickson, about adding two bays for fire department use, to the water treatment building.

W&L provided an estimate of $500,000 to add the fire bays, but said the commission could not fund that amount, but might be willing to fund half of one bay, $125,000.

The problem is that according to City Code Article IV, Sec. 58-167.a, W&L cannot use trunk water funds to construct fire bays.

According to Councilor Kathy Blomquist, who sits on the water and light commission, W&L would have to find a funding source other than trunk fees.

At one point in the discussion, it appeared the city was going to require W&L to pay for the use of the property. W&L cannot, by law, own property.

But Rick Hals, who is a member of W&L, went to the podium with questions.

Why should the city charge W&L for the land, he asked, when it was given for public use?

Hals said the city gives land to people (businesses) who just come to town, and to the library, why not the W&L which has been around a long time.

There appears to be an issue of fairness to those city residents (about 50 percent) who do not use water and light from the city and the donation of city land for the W&L purpose.

Eventually, thought, Mayor Gloria Karsky said she was not in favor of charging W&L for the use of land.

After a series of motions, the council finally approved, 4-1 (Councilor Theresa Furman opposed and Councilor Amy Oehlers absent) to allow W&L to use the parcel of land west of the freeway for the construction of the water treatment plant. The motion also included a statement that the city would talk with W&L about some kind of compensation for the use, but the motions was not contingent upon this stipulation.

Councilor Furman said she was not opposed to allowing the use of the land, just the compensation part.

In other business, the council:

• Appointed Officer Daniel Meyer to the position of Lieutenant at the salary of $62,089. Meyer has been with the NBPD since 1999. During that time he served as the training officer for use of force, controlled force, firearms instructor, taser instructor for other officers and as field training officer for new employees. He has a bachelors degree in law enforcement and in 2006 completed the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension's police management/supervision series. He will serve a 90-day probationary period. The council then authorized the process to fill the officer position.

• Approved a conditional use permit for Abundant Life Church for an addition to the church building with six conditions.

• Approved an ordinance amendment to allow auction houses in the I-2 General Industrial District as a conditional use.

• Approved an ordinance amendment to add scrapbooking, quilting, stamping and other arts and craft activities as a home occupation. Maximum participants is 15 and may include overnight lodging. The operation must comply with all federal, state, county and city requirements. A home occupation permit will be required.

• Supported a resolution (came from city of Sartell) that would provide for using the most current population data for determining Regional Center Aid eligibility for Local Government Aid (LGA) from the state. A city is eligible for this aid if it is over 10,000. The current formula uses only census data. NB's population in the 2000 census was 8,023. The state demographer estimated that the population in 2005 was 10,234. The next census will not be until 2010. If the new figure is used, NB's LGA could increase by almost $300,000.

Comment from Cydelle Klande , 3/20/07

THANK GOODNESS A NEW POST OFFICE IS COMING!! I HAVE BEEN DISGUSTED WITH THE SERVICE AND SIZE OF OUR CURRENT POST OFFICE AND FINALLY WE ARE GETTING A NEW ONE!!! WHOOO HOOO!!