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2015 April - Spring Newsletter CITY OF SCANDIA Dedicated to Rural Community Values City of Scandia Scandia Community/ Senior Center 14727 209th St. N. Scandia, MN 55073 Phone: 651.433.2274 Fax: 651.433.5112 E-mail: mail@ci.scandia.mn.us Hours: Mon. thru Fri. 9 to Noon & 1 to 4 (except Tues. open until 6) City Council: Randall Simonson, Mayor 651.538.4320 Dan Lee 651.433.4309 Chris Ness 651.707.5689 Jim Schneider 651.433.3692 Bob Hegland 651.538.2129 Regular Council Meeting: Third Tuesday, 7:00 p.m. Council Work Session: First Wednesday, 6:30 p.m. Planning Commission: First Tuesday, 7:00 p.m. City Staff: Kristina Handt, Administrator Brenda Eklund, Deputy Clerk Colleen Firkus, Treasurer Tim Kieffer, Public Works Director Mike Hinz, Fire Chief Nick Vivian, Attorney Eckberg Lammers Ryan Goodman, Engineer Bolton & Menk Sherri Buss, Planner, TKDA PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID Scandia, MN 55073 PERMIT #6 Like us on Facebook for the Most Up-to-Date Information Community Calendar, April 2015—September, 2015 April  April 6, 5 p.m. Board of Appeal and Equalization, Community Center Board Room.  April 25 - May 2 Spring Clean- up Collection Week, SRC, Wyo- ming  April 26, Minnesota Ironman Bicycle Ride May  May 2, 4 p.m. - 8 p.m. Lions Chicken Dinner Benefit, Community Center  May 7- June 25, Thursdays, 9:30 a.m.-noon, Matter of Balance, Community Center  May 25, Memorial Day, Office Closed June  June 20, Midsommar Dag, Gammelgården  June 23, 1 p.m. - 7 p.m. Bloodmobile at Community Center July  July 3, Independence Day Holiday Office Closed  July 11, St. Croix Fat Cat Triathlon August  August 4, 6 p.m. - 7 p.m. National Night Out, Community Center  August 15, Spelmanstamma, Gam- melgården September  September 7, Labor Day, Office Closed  September 12 Taco Daze Festival  September 19-20 Marine Art Fair SUMMER RECREATION BROCHURE INSIDE For more information and a City meeting cal- endar, see the website www.ci.scandia.mn.us. For Gammelgården events, see: http://www.gammelgardenmuseum.org. Meet Your 2015-2016 Council New Appointments to Committees too APRIL 2015 VOLUME 9, ISSUE 1 CITY OF SCANDIA Inside this issue: New Tree Trimming Policy 2 Recycling Info 2 Severe Weather Awareness Week 2 New Faces 3 Accessory Dwelling Units 3 Short Takes 3 Community Calendar 4 Despite many names on the fall ballot, few changes occurred on the City Council. Randall Simonson was elected to a third two-year term as Mayor. Jim Schneider was re-elected to a four-year term on the City Council. Bob Hegland won election to the other four-year Council position. All three men were sworn into office on January 7, 2015. They are joined by Council members Chris Ness and Dan Lee for the next two years. So far this year the Council has re- viewed a number of contracted services such as police protection and building inspection. Finding a new assessor is up next on their list as Frank Langer will be retiring May 1, 2015. The Council has also reviewed policies and made appointments to committees. A few new faces have also joined City committees and commissions. Walt Anderson was appointed to a five -year term on the Planning Commission in January. Long-time resident and business owner Peter Nora joined the Wastewater Advisory Committee as a representative for the Uptown Wastewater System. Former Council member Sally Swanson has replaced Tom Triplett on the Economic Development Authority. In addition to new appointments on existing committees, the Council has also brought back the Capital Improve- ment Committee at the request of the Planning Commission. This five member citizen board will meet this summer to research and make recommendations to the Council on capital expenditures such as roads, equipment, build- ings, and parks. Members of the Capital Improvement Committee include Brad Borg, Lisa Schlingerman, Michael White, Dustin Hegland, and Cristina de Sobrino. If you’d like to know more about the issues these committees are discussing, click on Agenda and Minutes on the City’s website (www.ci.scandia.mn.us) and then link to the interested committee. Additionally, if you might be in- terested in serving on a committee in the future, watch the City’s website, local newspapers and Facebook page in November of each year. All openings for the following year are advertised for the last few weeks of the year. Left to Right: Council Member Dan Lee, Council Member Chris Ness, Mayor Randall Simonson, Council Member Jim Schneider, and Council Member Bob Hegland. A twice-yearly publication for residents of the City of Scandia, Minnesota Council Updates Tree Trimming Policy each year. The City will use the recycling reports from SRC to help identify further outreach and edu- cational efforts. There’s no reason we should be recy- cling the lowest amount of product in the County! Clean-Up Week- City- Wide Clean-up Week is scheduled for Saturday, April 25 through Saturday, May 2 at the SRC/Forest Lake Sanitation site in Wy- oming, MN. Residents may drop off rubbish items not taken by their regular trash hauler such as appli- ances, tires, furniture, mat- tresses, scrap metal and wood at the SRC facility located at 6320 East Viking Boulevard, Wyoming, MN. During this week, Scandia residents will receive a 20% discount off regular collection prices. Be pre- pared to show proof of resi- dency such as a driver’s license. Hours of operation are 8:00 am to noon on Sat- urdays, and 8:00 am to 4:30 pm M—F. Please call SRC at 651.462.1099 for more in- formation. A pricing sched- ule is posted on the city’s website. Did You Know? - Recy- cling one aluminum can New Recycling Contract, Same Great Service New Contract- In an effort to improve recycling in Scandia, the City has ap- proved a new three year contract with SRC, Inc. for residential recycling ser- vices. Recycling containers are provided to residents free of charge up to two 65 gallon bins or one 96 gallon bin. If you’re currently with another provider, you may want look into switching to receive a possible cost re- duction. The new agree- ment allows SRC to begin picking up recycling at 6:00 a.m. and requires them to provide at least two educa- tional pieces or attend com- munity outreach events Page 2 CITY OF SCANDIA saves enough energy to power a TV or computer for three hours. Making glass from recycled mate- rial cuts related water pol- lution by 50 percent. Recy- cling paper doesn’t just save trees! Production of recycled paper uses 80 percent less water, 65 per- cent less energy and pro- duces 95 percent less air pollution than paper pro- duction using raw materi- als. Every Puffs tissue box is made at the Rock-Tenn Co. facility in St. Paul, of- ten out of your reclaimed telephone books. Severe Weather Awareness Week, April 13-17 Communities in Wash- ington County are sus- ceptible to all different kinds of hazards! Be- cause severe weather can threaten the lives and property of Minnesotans at any time, April 13-17, 2015 is des- ignated as Severe Weather Awareness Week. This week is intended to increase awareness and education about steps individ- uals, businesses, and families can take to better prepare for emer- gencies. Washington County will mark this week by participating in the Statewide Tornado Drill on Thursday, April 16. Check out their website for more information on how to be better prepared in an emergency and some interest- ing facts about weather! www.co.washington.mn.us/ emergencymanagement Look under “Severe Weather Aware- ness” You can always find more infor- mation by following the Washing- ton County Sheriff’s Office Face- book Page at: Facebook.com/ wcsomn On October 16, 2012, the City Council adopted a Tree Trimming Policy. The policy governs tree trimming and clearing of brush in the public right-of-way which serves to protect the City's investment in its roads, to maintain safe roadways for pedestrian and vehicular traffic, and to maintain the general tree health. Proper- ty owners will be notified at least 7 days before trim- ming occurs adjacent to their property, except in the cases of an emergency. The policy was amended on January 20, 2015 to pro- vide a clear appeals process for property owners. The property owner may contact the Public Works Direc- tor within 7 days of receiving the notification letter and ask for an onsite visit. If any issues are unresolved following the onsite visit, the property owner has 5 days to file a written appeal with the City Clerk’s Of- fice. Appeals will be heard at the next City Council meeting following appropriate notice. The Public Works Director will mark all trees to be removed that are at least 6 inches in diameter at a point measured 54 inches above the ground. A listing of streets where tree trimming may occur over the winter months will be posted on the City’s website before or at the time letters are sent to abut- ting property owners, typically each fall. Generally, tree trimming is planned in areas proposed to have roads seal coated the following summer. The policy is available on the City’s website under Services. Building Inspections- If you’re building a new home, addition, or accessory building you may have noticed a new building inspector. However, for some of you it is a familiar face. Scandia resident and former firefighter, Chuck Preisler is the Building Official in Hugo and has recently begun providing those services in Scandia. In Feb- ruary the City began contracting with the City of Hugo for building inspec- tion services. In addition to Chuck, Scott Baller will also be doing some onsite inspections. Permitting will still go through the Scandia City Offices, but inspection should be scheduled by calling 651.762.6300. Chuck or Scott will generally be in Scandia on Tues- day and Thursday of each week. Property Assessments- After nearly 40 years of providing property assessment services in Scandia, Frank Langer will be retiring May 1, 2015. The Council is still in the process of reviewing proposals for a new assessor. Watch our website for an update soon. Signs— Permits are required for all signs, including temporary signs for garage sales and community events. There’s no fee for temporary sign permits. No signs may be placed in any public rights-of-way, on any roof, or painted on walls or attached to utility poles. Burning Permits— A (no-charge) burning permit is required for open burning when there is no snow cov- er. In all cases, please notify the Washington County Sheriff’s Office (651.439.9381) one hour before you burn. There may be restrictions de- pending on weather, time-of-day or air-quality issues. See the City office for more information and for permits. Spring Load Limits— are in effect and are expected to last for about 8 weeks after they went into effect on March 11. Make Sure Public Safety Officers Can Find You When You Need Them— Is your address clearly marked at the street? If not, public safety officials (police, fire, EMS) may be delayed in reaching you when it matters most. Please make sure your address is marked on your mailbox and/or at the end of your driveway. Every second counts. Exterior Storage and Parking— Scandia requires that all personal property be stored in a building or fully screened, with a few exceptions for licensed vehicles and recreation equipment. No more than four pas- senger vehicles per dwelling unit are allowed on parcels less than 10 acres in size. No more than 2 recreational vehicles (such as campers, boats, trailers, etc.) may be stored in the side or rear yard on any lot. Disposing of Leaves—Did you know that dumping your leaves in the ditch is also illegal? This causes ditches to fill up with sediment prematurely resulting in poor drainage or even New Faces Around Town Short Takes Accessory Dwelling Units-A New Housing Option? Page 3 VOLUME 9, ISSUE 1 Last fall, the Economic Development Authority (EDA) held a series of meet- ings to get feedback from community businesses. One of the recurring con- cerns was the lack of affordable hous- ing for their workers as well as for seniors in Scandia. One of the obsta- cles to affordable, lifecycle housing is our current zoning code. So the EDA met with the Planning Commission and the Met Council to discuss ways to increase lifecycle housing. One option is to allow accessory dwelling units on existing properties. This could include separate living quar- ters within a current single family home, garage or barn or allow for a new detached accessory building to be built. The Planning Commission has spent the last couple months re- searching other communities' policies and discussing appropriate perfor- mance standards for this type of hous- ing. A public hearing will be held on Tuesday, April 7, 2015 at 7pm in the Board Room at the Community Cen- ter. Proposed ordinance language is available in the City offices or our website. Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to provide feedback on this proposal. flooding. The decomposition helps to accelerate the forming of algae in our lakes and rivers. Please dis- pose of your leaves properly. Landscaping in the Right-of- Way—Summer is right around the corner and many people take this opportunity to landscape their yards. Before you do any work, make sure that you are not en- croaching into the right-of-way. Landscaping within the right-of-way is not permitted and you may be forced to return it to its original state. Save time and money by checking with the City first.