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January 2009 |
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The Victoria GAZETTE |
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The Scoop at City Hall |
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STAYING PUT FOR THE TIME BEING AT VICTORIA CITY HALL ON ROSE STREET In updating councilmembers about the mold issue at City Hall, Administrator Don Uram reported on December 11th, “We have continued to do our due diligence to try to reduce our costs. The initial estimate to fix this building was $200,000. We got it down to $100,000 to $125,000 and are working to reduce it further. My recommendation is to come back to Council at the first meeting in January with contracts.” In November, councilmembers had voted 5-0 to obtain quotes to locate a temporary modular City Hall in the Skate Park area near the Field House in Diethelm Park. The motion had included authorizing city staff to follow through with accepting the quotes and getting the job done. City Attorney Mike Norton reminded councilmembers of state statute in this regard. According to Administrator Uram, contracts over $100,000 require the city to go through a sealed big process. Contracts between $25,000 and $100,000 can be made by either the sealed big process or by obtaining two or more quotes. Contracts less than $25,000 can be made by obtaining quotes or through a request for proposal process.
SCHMITTY’S TAVERN IS SOLD TO BECOME THE VICTORIA BAR AND GRILL Council approved the transfer of the on-sale, off-sale, and Sunday liquor license from Schmitty’s to the Victoria Bar and Grill, contingent upon approval of the MN Department of Public Safety Alcohol Enforcement Division. In introducing the sale and the request of the new owners, Administrator Don Uram reported on December 11th that the City of Victoria does not have a Transfer Fee and Investigation Fee on its Fee Schedule, as several other cities do. Following his recommendation, Council established a $250 Transfer Fee and a $150 Investigation Fee. Mike Meents, new owner of the place, spoke to councilmembers that evening. “We ended up in a difficult position with Schmitty’s,” he said. “We inherited nothing. We want to clean it up. We’ve got a great group of people working down there and we want to keep them.” The city administrator said that Gregory Hulstrand is the co-owner. Said Councilmember Jim Paulsen, “I’ll vouch for these guys. I’m told you’ve got some of the best burgers in the area.”
SEWER AND WATER RATES GO UP IN 2009 FOR RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES OF VICTORIA Council approved the 2009 Enterprise Fund Budgets on December 11th for water, sanitary sewer, and stormwater management. As Finance Director Jylan Johnson stated, “This proposes a 2% rate increase for sewer and water utilities and a 9% increase -- from $11 to $12 per quarter -- for stormwater. The 2% increase for water will result in $19,000 in revenues. We’ll stay above water until 2013, no pun intended. The largest expense we have is the debt service for the water treatment plant. The 2% increase for sewer will generate $9,500 in revenues. The 9% increase for stormwater management is primarily labor, maintenance, and street sweeping.” She reported that utility billing will remain an in-house job and it will also remain a quarterly job. “The monthly outsourcing of billing would mean an additional $50,000,” she said. Councilmember Kim Roden commented, “Monthly billing (versus quarterly billing) would help prevent sticker shock after watering lawns all summer.” However, there was not advocating of monthly billing at this time.
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Victoria City Offices will remain at 7951 Rose Street, at least for the time being. City Administrator Don Uram is gathering quotes to fix the mold, mildew, rot, and other unhealthy working conditions related to the building. |
