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Paynesville Press -September 1, 2004

Township to vote again on aquatic park

By Michael Jacobson

The Paynesville Township Board of Supervisors took the following actions at their meeting on Monday, Aug. 23.

*The board agreed to put a new proposal for an aquatic park on the ballot at the general election on Tuesday, Nov. 2. City and township residents rejected a $1.25 million aquatic park proposal in April. The pool committee has scaled back the proposal and plan to raise funds for a water slide and other play features, reducing the cost to $990,000, including bonding costs.

Both city and township voters would need to approve the proposal in November for the project to move forward. Related story

*The board approved a redesigned joint powers agreement with the city for the proposed aquatic park. The agreement is identical to the previous agreement, with the township participating solely in the construction of the aquatic park and with the city being responsible for its ongoing operation and maintenance. Since the project was scaled back, the total estimated cost is $990,000, which split on a 62:38 basis means the township's maximum share would be $375,000.

*The board approved vacating the end of Brentwood Road south of Lake Koronis with the road having two cul-de-sacs instead of being a thru street.

*The board approved an easement for Scott and Nancy Hoiseth to build a fence on their property on Lake Koronis. A portion of the fence is located within the road right-of-ways of Lake Koronis Road and Cliffwood Road.

*The board reiterated their burning policy. Board members can issue permits for piled vegetative materials only. These permits are for burning between the hours of 6 p.m. and 8 a.m., meaning residents must burn at dawn or at dusk, not in the middle of the day.

Residents with a burning permit must still call the dispatcher before burning.

(For daytime fires a permit must be obtained from Paynesville Fire Chief Jim Freilinger. The dispatcher and the Paynesville Police must also be called for daytime fires.)

Because the township is billed for fire calls, whether a fire is extinguished or not, the board agreed to continue to charge residents $1,000 for fire calls if they do not have a burning permit and $500 if they have a permit but did not call the dispatcher. ( The township also charges residents $500 for fire calls with actual fires.)

*The board and police chief Kent Kortlever discussed more vigilant law enforcement on Lake Koronis Road. Three recent speed checks on the eastern end of that road revealed that motorists are still traveling too fast. About a third of the vehicles clocked by police were driving in excess of the posted 25 mph speed limit.

*The board voted to request funding from MnDOT for the installation of electronic crossarms for the railroad crossing on Cross Creek Road. These crossings cost at least $150,000, and money from MnDOT - requiring a ten percent match from the township - would not be available until at least 2008.

In the meantime, the board agreed to request that the Canadian Pacific Railroad remove a knoll west of the crossing and remove the brush that has grown over the past few years. These obstructions limit visability for north-bound vehicles looking west to about 250 feet, instead of 900 feet recommended by MnDOT, which advised the township to pursue flashing light signals at the intersection.

*The board approved a gambling license for the Crow River Trail Guards to have pulltabs at Northern Lights.

*The board set a public hearing for the proposed vacation of Woodland Road on Monday, Sept. 13, at 8:30 p.m. This platted, but undeveloped, road is approximately 300 feet long. It is located on the south side of Lake Koronis, west of Birch Beach Store, and runs across three lakeshore lots.

*The board clarified its mowing policy on low maintenance roads. In August, about two and a half feet of these ditches will be mowed. In October, a five-foot swath will be mowed.



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