Thanks to a few anonymous private donations, the playground on Beech Lane in Southbrook will include some extra equipment.
Those donations covered the addition of a climbing feature, a six-foot high deck and a spiral slide with a total cost of $11,553.19, and the city council approved the purchase of the equipment during its meeting on Monday, Aug. 5.
Installation of the playground was scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, Aug. 12-13. The additional equipment had already been ordered prior to the council meeting so it would be on hand in time for the park installation by the Annandale Lions.
The donations, along with the cancellation of an order that led Flagship Recreation to make the original equipment available to Annandale at a reduced price, have allowed for significantly more playground equipment at the park than originally expected.
The council approved the purchase of $45,000 worth of playground equipment at a cost of just over $25,000 during its June 3 meeting, and the extra donations push the total value of the new playground over $55,000 without the city contributing any additional funds.
City administrator Kelly Hinnenkamp indicated that the donations were not necessarily a surprise, and that the additional equipment had been planned for when the council approved the initial playground set in June.
After the playground is installed at the beginning of this week and the concrete has time to set, a concrete curb will be poured around the play area and will need to set before fill material can be added. It may be several weeks before the playground is ready for use.
Liquor delivery
The council also approved an ordinance providing for off-sale liquor delivery in the city with some additional regulations above state requirements. Initial approval was given at the July meeting, but the ordinance will officially amend the city code to allow the delivery.
However, a change to the action taken in July is that the city has decided to drop the limitation on the amount of alcohol that could be delivered, which was one of the concerns voiced by Annandale Roadhouse owner Tim Frei. Frei started the discussion about liquor delivery this summer when he approached the council for approval on the matter.
Despite the council’s approval in July, Frei said the Roadhouse has not yet begun delivery and that he may wait until fall before starting.
"I don’t think we’ll get going until next month. We’ve got to take it slow. I just want to do it by the book and not have any issues with doing anything wrong," he said. "It makes sense to me to just sort of ease into it. We can maybe get going this fall and try to perfect it so we really have it fine-tuned by the time we hit the spring and summer of next year. Then we can weed out some of the issues that will probably come up."
Other items
In other business, the council:
■ Heard a report from public works director Joe Haller that the water tower cleaning and re-painting is expected to begin mid-August with a completion goal of Labor Day weekend.
The tower will be repainted with the new city logo on two sides.
While the tower is offline during the cleaning, water pressure will be maintained by operating the pump on a variable frequency – similar to cruise control on a car, Haller said.
■ Agreed to help purchase a new antenna for the City of Maple Lake since the cities have shared a previous antenna owned by Maple Lake that is used for monthly meter reading.
The total cost of the purchase is $3,400 plus tax and shipping.
"It’s a good use of our tax dollars … It works well to share," said Haller, noting that the cities share many items of equipment.
■ Accepted the resignation of deputy registrar Deb Jones, who had been with the city for 22 years. Jones will continue working into October.
■ Conducted a brief public hearing for a property tax abatement for Dingmann Marine, which is purchasing a 4,000-square foot property from the city.
The abatement is to help reimburse the city for expenses associated with serving the proposed development property with utilities. According to a memorandum from city consultant Shannon Sweeney, it is expected the property will generate property taxes of about $2,500, which can be applied to costs not covered through the sale price of the property for a period of 15 years.
A similar hearing was held earlier this summer, but a second hearing was needed after the property to be purchased was changed.
■ Approved a request from Tootsies Bar and Grill to close a portion of Chestnut Street between Maple Avenue and the alley to the east starting at about 12:30 p.m. for a breast cancer bike run on Saturday, Sept. 14.
This is the second year that Tootsies has been a stop for the run. Last year about 450 motorcycles stopped in town, and more are expected this year. The bikers are expected to arrive between 1:30 and 2 p.m. and depart after an hour to an hour and a half.
■ Approved a request from the Annandale Roadhouse to use the city’s municipal parking lot for a street dance on Saturday, Aug. 31. The band Dirtee Circus, featuring Beau Lasavich from American Idol, will play from 7 p.m. to midnight.
■ Approved the closing of Oak Avenue between Highway 55 and Cedar Avenue from 3 to 5 p.m. on Oct. 31 for the chamber’s Halloween event. Fire trucks will block both ends of Oak Avenue and barricades will be placed on Chestnut Street for safety.
■ Approved a three-year engagement with Conway, Deuth & Schmiesing for auditing services in 2013 through 2015.
The cost for this year is $23,750, which is the same amount paid in 2012. Under the new agreement there will be a two percent increase in 2014 and 2015.
City staff noted that there is value in a multi-year agreement for consistency, and that the costs are not out of line for a city of Annandale’s size. The three-year agreement also resulted in a reduction of the 2013 rate, which for a single year agreement would have been $24,650.
■ Approved the expenditure of not more than $3,000 to do patching at the Pleasant Lake boat access. One quote for that amount was received at the time of the meeting from Mid-Minnesota, and city staff hoped to receive a second bid before going forward with the work.
■ Approved a contract with Principal for life insurance with a premium increase from the previous year of $1,135.08.
The council also approved a quote from Delta Dental for coverage, which will result in an estimated cost savings of $3,479.40 per year in exchange for plan modifications that will have a minor impact on employees, according to a city memorandum.
■ Tabled an amended fire contract with Lynden Township pending review by the city attorney.
■ Approved changes to fire safety standards for commercial buildings to require fire hydrants within 300 feet of the structure, to require lock boxes on all new commercial buildings to allow firefighters access when an alarm is activated, and to disallow post indicator valves on fire sprinkling systems.
■ Heard a report from Christie Gleason on how United Way is active in the Annandale area.