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OtsegoNewsletter_Spring20151990-2015 25 YEARS 25 years » 1990 2015 « OTSEGOCITY OF 25 years 1990 » 201525 YEARS NEWSLETTER • SPRING 2015 VIEW IN THIS ISSUE: Spring Clean Up Online Communication Tool Winter Reminders Annual Easter Egg Hunt Otseg o Otsego Tidbits Beginning primarily during the 1970s and continuing to the present, Otsego has experienced a substantial increase in development and population growth. With the 1990 population estimated at slightly below 6,000 persons, the Otsego Township ranked as the second largest local government within Wright County. The development and population increases brought with them change in the community which were both positive and negative. There had not, however, been an associated increase in local control and authority to respond to urbanization and govern growth management. Wright County still exercised final determination on most major decisions which affected Otsego. While County governance was positive, the volume and extent of activity was placing a strain on County resources, personnel and regulations for adequately addressing Otsego’s needs. The need had become increasingly evident, therefore, for Otsego to gain more localized direction, to correct problems, and to manage growth and development. Consideration of changing from a Township form of government to a municipality was not seriously pursued until early 1990. On 8 March 1990, a special Town meeting was held to consider this matter. Following a presentation of factors to be considered on whether or not the community should be in- corporated, residents attending the meeting voted 121 to 87 in favor of a change in legal status. After further consideration, the Town Board on 21 May 1990 directed the filing of a petition for incorporation with the Minnesota Municipal Board. On 15 August 1990, the community began presenting its petition and the justification for incorporation to the Municipal Board. The format of Otsego’s petition was based upon the criteria in Minnesota Statutes, which lists the factors that the Municipal Board is to consider in reaching its decision on the matter. A summary of several of the major points outlined within Otsego’s petition include: • Otsego’s population, development densities and resulting public service needs are urban in character and warrant municipal classification, and due to its geographic position and development stimulus such as TH 101 improvements, Otsego will continue to grow and urbanize. • There is need for local control and growth manage- ment and need for more direct responsiveness to citizens’ needs than can reasonably be expected of Wright County. • Otsego faces critical and major environmental problems notably in the area of ground water pollution, storm water drainage and agriculture preservation which must be confronted by the community. 25th Anniversary Otsego was incorporated as a City on November 15, 1990. To celebrate the 25th year anniversary of Otsego being granted municipal status, each edition of the Otsego View in 2015 will include history about the incorporation process and the change from Otsego Township to the CITY OF OTSEGO. Anniversary Celebration Volunteer Committee The City Council is also organizing a volunteer committee to plan events to celebrate the occasion with information to be announced at a later date. If you are interested in being part of this committee, contact City Hall. Source: Incorporation Analysis, August 1990, by Planning Consultant David R. Licht, AICP Otsego Township Board of Supervisors, 1990: Norm Freske, Chair Douglas Lindenfelser Floyd Roden Spring Clean Up The City will again partner with Metro Appliance Recycling to provide residents an opportunity to do some spring cleaning of their yard and home with Clean Up Week between Monday, May 4 and Saturday, May 9. Clean Up Week with Metro Appliance Recycling offers City residents discounted rates for disposal of unwanted goods for recycling that cannot be handled in the regular trash. People will need to present identification to verify residency and drop items off at Metro Appliance Recycling at 16403 60th Street in Otsego between the hours of 9AM to 5PM Monday Friday and 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. The following is a list of items accepted and the cost for residents: Items not accepted include: paint, oil, antifreeze, yard waste and general garbage. Contact Metro Appliance Recycling at 763.241.8787 with questions. Residential Appliances: $11.00/each CRT Televisions/Monitors: $0.40/lbs. Electronics and computers: $0.30/lbs. Scrap metal: Free Stuffed chair/couch: $35.00/each Wood furniture: $15.00/each Batteries: Free Light car/truck tires: $5.00/each Tractor/heavy truck tires: $45.00/each Fluorescent bulbs: $0.50/each Cell phone: Free SAVE THE DATE! SEPTEMBER 12, 2015 SUMP PUMP INSPECTIONS The City Code prohibits discharge of storm water from sump pumps to the City’s sewer system. Each gallon of storm water discharged to the City’s waste water treatment facilities costs the City approximately $15 in lost capacity. The cost to unnecessarily treat storm water at the waste water treatment facility is ultimately borne by the users of the system through higher utility rates and the need for premature expansion to increase capacity. City staff has been monitoring influent amounts at the West Waste Water Treatment Facility (W-WWTF) in relation to rainfall events and the numbers are alarming. During some prolonged rainfall events, amount of influent being received at the W-WWTF is nearly double normal levels and it is estimated up to 20% of the annual inflow at the W-WWTF is sump water. If the amount of storm water discharged to the storm water system continues, the City will need to implement an inspection program for properties that are connected to sanitary sewer and water utilities. Property owners would be required to allow an inspection of the sump pump by City staff and make any necessary corrections to their sump pump discharge or be subject to a significant surcharge fee. Homeowners can help abate this problem by ensuring that the discharge from the sump pump in your home is connected to a pipe draining to the outside of the home (either into the yard or City storm water system) and not into a drain connected to the sewer system, such a laundry tub sink. More information about the proper installation of a sump pump is available from the Department of Building Safety. SATURDAY, MARCH 28 The annual Easter Egg Hunt will run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Prairie Center, 8899 Nashua Avenue This free event is sponsored by the Otsego Parks and Recreation Commission. Kids are invited to hunt for hidden Easter Eggs (replenished throughout the event) as well as visit with the Easter Bunny. A bike giveaway, face painting, stickers and tattoos are also planned. For more information, visit the City’s website under the recreation tab or call the recreation office at 763.235.3148. Cable Franchise The City has a franchise agreement with Charter Cable to provide cable television service within the City of Otsego. The current agreement expires in November 2017, and Federal law requires a 36 month period whereby the City and Charter may negotiate a renewal of the franchise prior to its expiration. A subcommittee of the City Council will be meeting with representatives of Charter in the coming weeks to discuss renewal of the franchise agreement. As part of these discussions, the City has the opportunity to address any issues it has identified regarding Charter’s service to Otsego. The City is inviting public comment regarding Charter Cable’s service to Otsego to be submitted at City Hall before April 1. Comments may be submitted via phone, mail or the online portal on the City website. Greetings Neighbors! SHELTER RESERVATIONS The shelter at Prairie Park may be reserved by families, organizations or other groups during the weekends throughout the summer. The shelter has picnic tables, charcoal grills and electric service available. Three hour reservation periods are available each day of the week. There is a fee to reserve the shelter of $10.00 for weekdays and $20.00 for weekend days (plus State sales tax) for each three hour reservation period. To reserve the shelter at Prairie Park, visit the City website at www. ci.otsego.mn.us under the recreation tab for online reservations or call City Hall. The clearing of snow and ice from the City streets is one of the most important functions of the City of Otsego Streets Department. The policy established by the City Council states that the Streets Department will respond to plow streets once two inches of snow has accumulated and every effort is made to clear the streets as soon as the snowfall has ceased. Each snow event is monitored and staff is on-call to respond within one hour of the Street Supervisor’s decision to mobilize. However, there are many times that the Streets Department must respond to light blowing snow, freezing rain, heavy wind, etc. The Otsego Streets Department has a number of tools at its disposal for addressing snow and ice on streets; anti-icing, chemical pre- wetting, salt/sand application and mechanical snow removal are the main ways the Streets Department battles the winter elements. ________ The most efficient way to clear the City streets is by plowing. The City is divided into seven main snow plow routes and five cul-de-sac routes with full time staff, as well as seasonal on-call staff, responding to snow events as needed. Equipment includes seven heavy trucks, six pickups with plows, three tractors with snow blower or plow attachments and loaders or road graders as needed. At the Street Department’s current staffing levels, it takes over six hours to clear every street and cul-de-sac in the City. ________ Operators of City plow equipment also have different combinations of chemicals that they apply to the street surface as they are plowing based on the type of street and conditions. The crews are typically applying at least a 50/50 blend of salt/sand to the street surface. However, trucks that are running primarily on arterial and collector streets may apply a higher concentration of salt based on higher traffic volumes and speeds. And, trucks that are plowing local streets within neighborhoods are applying a higher concentration of sand versus salt. The City Council has approved acquisition of anti-icing equipment to treat high priority arterial and collector streets ahead of major snow events to aid in the removal of snow and ice from the roadway surface. Salt that is applied dry does not work until it breaks the ice down around it into water, which then enables the melting process. The liquid applied with this new anti-icing equipment is either a salt brine solution or a combination of salt brine and a beet juice derivative, which is applied to the streets to prevent the bonding of ice/snow to the pavement surface. The beet juice additive allows the liquid to melt ice down to a much lower temperature. Anti-icing can be very effective, however there are many variables that are taken into consideration prior to pre- treating streets such as temperature, wind and type of precipitation, and as we all know, no two winter storms are the same. Often times, it is not advisable for the Streets Department to do anti-icing and there are occasions when it is not done. ________ The City does not have a “bare pavement standard” to clear all snow and ice from City streets or to treat all residential streets end to end with salt due to cost. Operators are directed to apply chemical to stop signs, turn lanes, intersections and curves. The travelling public needs to drive appropriately for the conditions of the streets and realize that there may be times when there is snow and ice on sections of City streets for the duration of the winter. ________ Implementation of the City’s street policy is a continuation of the City Council and Streets Department’s efforts to ensure safe streets within Otsego and provide efficient, cost effective services. ________ Winter will soon come to an end and as it does the City Council wants to say thanks to our crew for the many hours they have put in clearing streets and trails in Otsego this season. No t e s f r o m t h e M a y o r Address Display To aid fire, police and medical responders, residents are reminded that all properties in the City are required by the City Code to display address numbers on the principal building that are easily visible from the street. If you have painted or resided your home, please be sure to reinstall the address numbers. Address numbers must be at least four inches high and be a contrasting or preferably reflective material and color. PRSRTD STDU.S. POSTAGEPAID PERMIT NO. 1791 TWIN CITIES, MN Time Dated Material CITY HALL: 13400 90th Street NE Otsego, MN 55330 PHONE NUMBERS Main: 763-441-4414 Building Dept.: 763-441-2593 Utility Billing: 763-441-2310 Fax: 763-441-9163 RECREATION INFO LINE: 763-235-3148 OFFICE HOURS: Monday–Thursday 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Friday 8 a.m. – Noon CITY COUNCIL: Jessica Stockamp (Mayor) Tom Darkenwald Vern Heidner Doug Schroeder Jason Warehime CITY WEBSITE www.ci.otsego.mn.us * Information listed herein as being available on the City website will also be mailed upon request by calling City Hall. HYDRANT FLUSHING The Utility Operations Department will be flushing fire hydrants throughout the City in April. Flushing the hydrants removes sediment and mineral build up within the City’s water lines to maintain water quality and also tests the system for adequate flows. Note that the cap may be left off of some hydrants after the water is turned off to allow the fixture to drain completely but City staff will return to replace the cap. The schedule for flushing is as follows: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Riverwood National: April 2 East of Nashua Ave.: April 13-17 West of Nashua Ave.: April 20-24 PRIDE IN OUR PARKS & ADOPT-A-STREET The City encourages people of all ages, including residents, community groups and businesses, to help keep Otsego clean, safe and more attractive through two community programs: PRIDE IN OUR PARKS volunteers assist in picking up debris, raking leaves, planting and maintaining vegetation, special projects and to help identify needed repairs in our parks. ADOPT-A-STREET is a partnership between volunteers and the City Public Works Department whereby participants assist in picking up debris, planting and maintaining boulevard vegetation, special projects and to make visual inspections of roadway areas to identify maintenance issues. PRIDE IN OUR PARKS and ADOPT-STREET volunteers make a two year commitment for activities. City staff provides basic oversight, safety vests, tools and materials as may be needed. The City also places a sign within the park or at the approaches to the adopted street crediting the individual, group or organization for their efforts. More information about Pride in Our Parks and the Adopt-A-Street programs, including possible projects, available parks or streets and application forms, is available at the on the City’s website or by calling City Hall.