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Otsego View_Summer2016PUNT for a CONTEST TRUCK NEWSLETTER • SUMMER 2016 VIEW IN THIS ISSUE: Upcoming City and Parks/ Recreation Events Reminders: Irrigation Restrictions, Street Maintenance and Burning Permits Otseg o The Otsego Prairie Festival will feature familiar events and activities that so many have enjoyed in previous years starting at 10:00 A.M. ON SEPTEMBER 10, 2016 at Prairie Park. The Otsego Prairie Festival includes activities for all ages and interests including displays by community organizations and businesses and there will be more than 50 craft vendors offering their works. OTSEGO ROD AND CUSTOM will partner with the Prairie Festival to host the car show open to all street, modified, restored or hot rod cars, trucks and motorcycles. A wide variety of food vendors will service festival attendees. There will be LIVE MUSIC and CARNIVAL RIDES during the day followed by FIREWORKS AT DUSK! We look forward to seeing you and your family at the Otsego Prairie Festival this year! otsego Night to Unite! Otsego Night to Unite is Tuesday, August 2, 2016. Sponsored by the Otsego Public Safety Commission, this is a great opportunity for neighbors to come together and get to know one another. If your neighborhood is planning an event for that evening, and would like a visit from the Wright County Sheriff or Fire Department, please register no later than Thursday, July 28, 2016. To register online, please visit the Parks and Recreation Department within the City website or call the Parks and Recreation Department at 763.235.3148. SAVE THE DATE September 10, 2016 08.02.16 Street Maintenance The City has established a pavement management program that includes ongoing preventative maintenance such as crack filling, seal coating and overlays to provide for safe travel and extend the usable life of City streets. Maintenance activities are funded through property taxes with overlays paid 50% by the City and 50% by benefiting properties in accordance with City policy. Information regarding the location and schedule for street maintenance this season is posted on the City’s website. New for 2016! PUNT A FOOTBALL 35 YARDS TO WIN A FORD TRUCK AND A YEAR’S WORTH OF GAS! SPONSORED BY: CONTEST DETAILS: • You must register at otsego.recdesk.com. • One contestant will be chosen from the registration pool • Each registration is $5 • Register has often as you want • No age minimum to participate For event, sponsors and exhibitor information, please visit otsegoprairiefestival.com BURNING PERMIT FAQ If you have a burning permit, it is not legal to burn until the permit is activated. Why do you have to activate the permit daily before burning? When the permit is activated, it shows on a map. The map is viewed by local dispatch offices, law enforcement and fire departments. To provide a clear and up-to-date map for these emergency managers, the map is reset every day at 8:00 a.m., so they know who is actively burning that day. How do I activate my burning permit? You may activate your permit in two ways: » Visit mndnr.gov/burningpermits » Call 1- 866-533-2876 and follow the instructions in the pre-recorded message. 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. 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. EMERGENCY SIRENS The City has installed outdoor emergency warning sirens to increase public safety. The sirens are activated by Wright County and sounded in the event of severe weather or other public emergency. There are two additional sirens in the City operated by Xcel Energy located northwest of CSAH 19/80th Street and the other at Lily Pond Park. Outdoor emergency warning sirens are not intended to be audible indoors so people are encouraged to purchase a weather alert radio. DOGS AND CATS Dogs are required by the City Code to be kept within the boundaries of their owners’ property or otherwise leashed or controlled by electronic device by a responsible person so as to effectively be under control as by leash. Cats are also prohibited from running at large. The Parks and Recreation Commission has established a dog park as well as the area west of the baseball fields at Prairie Park and Carrick’s Waterfront Landing as off-leash areas for dogs. Feces must be picked up and disposed of from yards, City parks and trails. To report a dangerous dog, dog or cat running at large, or barking dog that is disturbing the peace, please call the Wright County Sherriff by dialing 911. NORTHWOOD PARK Northwood Park is underway for construction this fall. The City’s newest neighborhood park, located at Quenroe Avenue and 72nd Street, will feature a playground, baseball field, soccer field, parking lot, and walking trails. One special feature of the park will be a community garden that will include both raised beds, and ground plots. Development of Northwood Park is occurring on land dedicated to the City as part of the Wildflower Meadows subdivision and funded with cash fees paid by subdividers as a requirement for new development in the City. A map of the planned park is available on the City’s website or by calling the Parks and Recreation Department. SEVERE WEATHER AWARENESS SEVERE WEATHER TORNADO WATCH: Means be prepared – severe weather/ tornado possible » Check for forecast updates » Plan where to take shelter if needed » Stay weather ready SEVERE WEATHER TORNADO WARNING: Means take action – severe weather/ tornado expected » Take shelter indoors immediately » Find the nearest shelter if driving » Check forecast updates » Stay weather ready Ways to receive a weather alert: » NOAA weather radio » Local TV and radio » Internet sites » Wireless emergency alerts and weather apps » Outdoor sirens » Family, friends and co-workers For more information about being weather ready from the National Weather Service visit www.weather.gov. WHAT IS A BURNING BAN? A burning ban is a restriction issued for a specified part of the state under extremely dry conditions in which existing burning permits are canceled and new permits not issued. Burning in approved burners, recreational fires, and even smoking outdoors may be prohibited, depending on the fire danger. This action is generally taken when fire risk becomes extreme across a broad area of the state. A burning ban is used only in the most severe conditions and is more restrictive. WHAT ARE BURNING PERMIT RESTRICTIONS? Burning permits are not issued in fire-prone portions of the state in the spring when fire danger is traditionally high. A variance to permit open burning, however, may be obtained for special circumstances such as prescribed fire projects, approved agri- cultural practices, construction projects, or economic hardship. Variances may only be issued by DNR Forestry personnel. Dates of the restrictions are posted on this website each spring. These restrictions only regulate fires that require a permit. Recreational campfires not larger than 3 feet by 3 feet are still allowed under annual restrictions. WATER QUALITY The way you maintain your yard can have a large impact reducing phosphorous, decreasing algae growth and promoting overall water quality for plants, animals and you. By following these techniques your lawn will look great and will not be harming nearby wetlands, streams, lakes or rivers. » Leaving grass clippings on the lawn provides the equivalent of one application of fertilizer per year. » Sweeping lawn clippings from sidewalks, driveways and streets will greatly reduce the amount of phosphorus that reaches area water bodies. » Maintain a 20 foot buffer of native plantings from any wetland or stormwater basin to filter out nutrients that cause algae and water plant growth – these plants will also keep geese from your yard. » Water lawns between 4:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. to reduce evaporation and minimize the potential for diseases to harm your lawn. » Wash your car on the lawn using non-phosphorus soap to keep water out of the storm drain and irrigate the grass at the same time. » Use pesticides and herbicides only to the extent necessary and by following the label directions exactly. » Compost containers must comply with City Code requirements and be set back from water or drainage ways to avoid leaching phosphorus directly into the water. » It is illegal to dispose of yard and tree waste with house- hold garbage or to deposit it on City outlots, drainage easements or park property, which may result in a $200 fine. Contact your waste hauler for a yard bin or visit the City’s website for information on compost sites. » The City is required to inspect 20 percent of the storm water basins within the City each year and provide maintenance to ensure that they function as intended to prevent flooding of surrounding properties and provide treatment for water quality. The inspection includes evaluating the amount of sedimentation within the storm water basin inflow, outflow and overall depth, vegetation growth and fences installed without permits that en- croach into the storm water basin. City staff will access the storm water basins using easements recorded at the pe- rimeter of every lot and over the storm water basin itself. IRRIGATION RESTRICTIONS Beginning in 2016, irrigation restrictions will be in effect May 1 – September 30, 2016 for all Public Water System customers. Addresses ending with an odd number may water on odd numbered days and even numbered addresses may water on even numbered days between 5:00 p.m. and 11:00 a.m. Restrictions include no watering between 11:00 a.m. and 5 p.m. Violations of the watering restrictions may result in a $50 code enforcement fine assessed on the customer’s utility bill. A 30 day exception is provided for newly establishing lawns and landscaping. Please visit the City Website, www.ci.otsego.mn.us, for additional details. Your cooperation is appreciated; water conservation will keep water rates low and help to ensure an adequate water supply is available. For more information about irrigation restrictions, please contact the Utility Billing Department at 763.441.9163. 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. 2016 ELECTION Otsego residents will head to the polls on August 9, 2016 for Federal and State primary elections. The polls open at 7:00 a.m. and close at 8:00 p.m. The City is divided into three precincts that will vote at two polling places. The polling places are: Precinct 1-A Prairie Center, main entrance 8899 Nashua Avenue NE Precinct 2-A Otsego Elementary* 8125 River Road NE Precinct 3 Otsego Elementary* 8125 River Road NE * Look for signs directing you to the appropriate entrance. To determine which Precinct you are in visit the Minnesota Secretary of State’s website at http://pollfinder.sos.state.mn.us. A map showing the Precinct boundaries and polling places is also available on the City’s website or by calling City Hall. Filing for City Offices opens August 2, 2016 and closes August 16, 2016. Filing must be done in person at City Hall. Wastewater Treatment Facility Improvements The City is undertaking improvements at its East and West Wastewater Treatment Facilities to increase efficiency and improve operations. • The East Wastewater Treatment Facility have added aeriation and mixing equipment to an existing structure this year. The project provides process options for Utility staff. Engineering is currently reviewing equipment electrical requirements for the project and a bid has been awarded by the City Council for the installation. • The West Wastewater Treatment Facility digester equipment is being improved to increase capacity of this component to match the capacity of the rest of the facility and improve operations. Concrete work is on-going and electrical and process piping installation will occur throughout the summer. The projects at the East and West Wastewater Treatment Facilities are both expected to be complete by November this year. Updates and more information about each project may be found on the City’s website under Project Updates or by calling the Utility Department.