|
|
CITY OF LANCASTER, MINNESOTA
LANCASTER CITY COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS
The Lancaster City Council met for its Regular Meeting on Wednesday, July 8th, 2026 at 6:00 P.M. The following persons were present: Mayor, Kathy Bernstrom; Council members: Krista Matthew, Michael Olson, John Stenquist and Kevin Grabowska. Also present, Jack Waters with Kittson County Enterprise. Matthew moved to approve the June 10th, 2026 Council Meeting Minutes, and Special Meeting for the City’s Needs Assessment on June 11th, second by Olson and carried. A copy of each meeting’s Minutes will be posted at the Lancaster City Hall and U.S. Post Office and available upon request to the clerk. The council reviewed the July 2026 bills and other bills that have been paid prior to this meeting to avoid late payments, receive discounts & meet payroll and all payroll expenses as approved in the 2026 Rates Fees & Appointments Schedule. Motion by Stenquist to approved bills and EFT’s, second by Matthew and carried. An abstract of bills will be posted with the minutes and are available upon request. Resolution 2026-11, to accept donations totaling $19,050 on behalf of the Fire Department, was reviewed and certified with a motion by Olson, second by Grabowska and carried. Breakdown of donations: Greater NW EMS Equipment/Max Reimbursement of $1,250; Greenbush Vet Clinic rent of fire hall of $300; MN DNR Fire Contract/1st half for 2026 of $12,500: and American Legion #214 Gambling of $5,000. Resolution 2026-12, to accept a $2,500 donation on behalf of the Lancaster Golf Course from American Legion #214 Gambling, was reviewed and certified with a motion by Matthew, second by Stenquist and carried. Council also approved for the clerk to cut a check in the amount of $2,500 to the golf course for this donation with a motion by Grabowska, a second by Olson and carried. The council discussed Ice Machine Maintenance as the council passed on accepting a quote from DRI at this time last year. Council reviewed and Matthew made a motion to accept Air Systems estimate of $1,190 to service both the Community Center and Liquor Store ice machines, second by Stenquist and carried. Clerk reported that the filing for the following council positions opens on Tuesday, July 14th and closes at 5:00 pm on Tuesday, July 28th, 2026. Affidavits of candidacy may be filed with the city clerk during this time for a fee of $2. The positions that are open are as follows: (1) Mayor – Two-Year Term; (3) Council Members – Four-Year Term each. The municipal election will be held on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2026. Olson moved to transfer $20,000 from the Liquor Store fund to the Community Debt Service Fund for the annual loan payment which happens in August, second by Matthew and carried. The city was contacted by the county of a tax forfeited property that was recently purchased by an individual and this Parcel 38.0049000 had Sewer and Water assessments that were amortized before it was forfeited. They needed to know if the city wanted those specials placed back on the parcel in the upcoming year. This was discussed with the council, and in the past, this was always done, so with a motion by Olson, and a second by Stenquist and carried, the council approved that the clerk would send the new land owner an Agreement of Assessment and Waiver of Irregularity and Appeal (Supplemental/Reassessment) form. If signed by the new owners, they would agree to pay the two assessments with the interest rate and balance of years as provided by the county. The council discussed un-mowed vacant properties as there had been complaints earlier this summer. Also discussed were a couple abandoned locations that the city had been mowing for the past few years. With a motion by Olson, a second by Grabowska and carried, they approved sending certified letters to the property owners providing 30 days to clear up the tall grass/weeds and if no response, the city would mow the properties at the 2026 rates of $150/hour for the Woods Rotary Mower and $125/hour for the John Deere Front Mount Mower. The mowing charges would then be certified with a resolution and provided to the county by December 31st of 2026 to be added to the property taxes. The council briefly discussed the 2027 Budget, some items being the lease agreement of the John Deere Loader; the 59 Park playground equipment; barricades for the propane tanks behind the Community Center; and purchasing bar stools for the Liquor Store. More information will be discussed at the August meeting. During a special meeting on June 11th, Bollig Engineering presented the city’s Needs Assessment and with that were two task orders. Council discussed both and a motion by Olson to accept both, with a second by Stenquist and carried. Task Order No. 2 is a lump sum payment of $45,000 to Bollig and is the meat & potatoes of infrastructure planning; technical writing and engineering reports; phased project designed and bidding process and working on project priority lists where we work together with all information and put it into action. Task Order No. 3 goes hand in hand with the other task order and for $5,000/year Bollig works with funding agencies and focuses on finding the funding opportunities for the city. Council reviewed the June Liquor Store financials only during this meeting as the city bank statement had not been received timely this month. The June and July financials for the city will be reviewed during the August meeting. Other items discussed: Council approved to hire Dean Halvorson as a part-time maintenance worker, not to exceed 25 hours per week with a motion by Matthew, second by Grabowska and carried. Also discussed: E-Bike complaints, the age requirements and Minnesota’s traffic laws pertaining to them; controlling dust on the road leading to the baseball/football fields. Mayor closed the meeting as there was no further business for council. Janet Johnson, Clerk/Treasurer Approved: Kathy Bernstrom, Mayor Other links: Lancaster Riverside Golf Course | Lancaster Public School | NW MN Multi-County HRA |
|
Home | Contacts | Meeting Notices | Minutes | Rates & Fees | Community Center | Events | Pictures Copyright © C Johnson-City of Lancaster all rights reserved |
