MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
PALMER TOWNSHIP
January 13, 2025
The regular meeting of the Palmer Township Board was called to order at 7:00 p.m. at the Palmer Township Hall, with Chairman Ganz, Supervisor Demeules, and Supervisor Wipper present. Also, present was Amy Bragelman Township Clerk and Treasurer Roger Johnson via Zoom. The meeting was opened with the Pledge of Allegiance.
Treasurer’s Report: Treasurer Roger Johnson read the balances from the Treasurer's report. Supervisor Demeules made a motion to approve the Treasurer’s Report. Supervisor Wipper seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
Sheriff’s Report: Capitan Ben Zawacki read the Sheriff’s report for December. There were 82 Total calls for service as compared to 65 calls for service in 2023. There was 1 trespassing, 6 accidents involving an animal, 25 traffic stops, 12 security checks, 6 extra patrols, 4 medicals, and 2 suspicious activities to name a few. Zawacki reported that it was a very slow month.
Road Maintenance/Signs: Chairman Ganz reported Herbst was out plowing and sanding. Supervisor Wipper mentioned that a 911 sign is damaged near the Briggs Lake Access. He will see what he can do to fix that. Jeff picked up some signs to install, last week. Chairman Ganz suggested replacing several Stop and Stop Ahead signs this spring. Supervisor Demeules talked with Scott Dahlke about getting bids for Briggs Creek culvert and a culvert on the North end of Julia. The supervisors will seek bids on stripping the roads around the lakes.
Fire Department: Chief Koren reported for December. The monthly call report for 12/09/2024 to 1/12/2025 shows 18 calls for the Clear Lake Fire Department. Six of those calls were for Palmer Township all were medical.
P.E.C: Roger stated that the application for score grants has to be in by the 15th of February.
Park Report: Chairman Ganz reported that there isn’t enough snow for ski trails, at this time. Supervisor Wipper reported that the porta potty was tipped over on New Year, but has since been put back.
Two Inlets: Supervisor Demeules reported that they are getting together proposals for 2025-2029. The map of what and where they are planting is on the bulletin board in the hall. The Moorhouse property will eventually be planted in Oak Savannah. Phase 2 deconstruction is coming to an end. They had some difficulty capping one of the wells. They brought in fill for one of the building basements. They had 83 ½ tons of construction debris and 13 ½ tons of scrap iron that was recycled. They are looking for funding from the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission to pay for the Moorhouse property in 2025. They have 2 ½ million bonding request from the State for phase 3 deconstruction and phase 2 development. There will be community outreach engagements as the County looks for road entry improvements, intrepid learning programs, and the Northern Reliability work. In 2025 the dairy barn will be cleaned out
with the possibility of an auction. Lastly, they are going to begin the process of nomination and submittal to the National Register of Historic Places.
Park Committee: Nothing new to report.
Lake Association: Shelly Alger-Peyton reported that they just had their meeting on Saturday. The GEO fencing is up and running, at the end of the season they will be able to receive a report of where people were ice fishing. They voted in Carp Solutions to do a Carp management program this June and July. They are applying for a grant which is a 75/25 match through Sherburne County Soil and Water. The Alum Treatment Grant can not be applied for by the BLCA the Tlid will have to do that, it has to be a government entity. That is a 90/10 match grant. Membership forms went out last week.
Tlid: Nancy Hahne Reported on behalf of the of the Tlid. They welcomed Duane Anderson to the Tlid board. Dan Cibulka from Sherburne County Soil and Water attended the last Healthy Lakes meeting. He is going to help facilitate both the Alum and Carp grants. Only Briggs Lake qualifies for the Alum treatment due to its depths. The estimated cost is one million dollars. The Clean Water Fund Grant would cover all but $100,00.00. They will need to vote on this at the August meeting. Nancy estimated that it would cost $233.00 per member. If the grant was approved and members voted yes, they would start the Alum Treatment in 2026. Nancy talked about the Carp and the impact that they have on the phosphorous levels. They will have two big projects going on simultaneously the Tlid feels it is important to act now on these grants which may not be available at a later date.
Approval of Minutes: Supervisor Demeules made a motion to approve the December minutes Supervisor Wipper seconded, and the motion carried.
OLD BUSINESS: Nothing
NEW BUSINESS: City of Clear Lake Council Member Chad Nelson came to talk to the Township about separate fire contracts for Townships and the City. Nelson stated that none of the funds from the new Fire contracts or Palmer Township will go toward a new Fire station in Clear Lake. The City has levied funds for a new building. The new fire contract will show an increase in budget by 10%. Separate from the Fire Contract the Firefighter relief fund will increase from $2,000 to $3,000, for each contributing entity. Nelson mentioned that unexpected cost has a huge effect on the Budget. For example, the radios that they currently use are no longer able to be serviced so they will need to be replaced and weren’t budgeted for. They hope that soon the budget will reflect what it costs to run a fire department, at this time they can get by with help from grants and donations but those aren’t guaranteed.
Request for Preliminary and Final Simple Plat of MJ Acres, Supervisor Demeules stated that this is a standard simple request that he sees no problems with and he will send comment to the County.
Supervisor Wipper made a motion to approve election judges for 2025. Trained and approved Judges are Amy Bragelman, Muriel Brown, Barbra Keenan, Sandy Kunstleben, Sheila Reineke, Nancy Lorenz-Berg, Marilyn Humble, Paul Braun, Kristi Schendzielos, Char Demarais, Nancy Hahne, Virginia Demeules, and Shelly Alger-Peyton. Chairman Ganz seconded and the motion was carried.
Supervisor Demeules mentioned that individuals participating in Ice Day need to park off of the road and only along one side. Ice Day is held on February 8th.
Katie Cantin introduced herself as Palmer Township’s reporter for the Patriot newspaper.
COMMENTS/QUESTIONS :
Supervisor Demeules made a motion to approve claims #25001- #25020, plus Conexus, $15,273.19. Supervisor Wipper seconded.
Chairman Ganz made a motion to adjourn. Supervisor Wipper seconded and the motion was carried. The meeting adjourned at 7:58 p.m.
Amy Bragelman, Palmer Township Clerk Approved as reviewed February 10, 2025