March 9 Board Meeting Minutes (Reviewed)

(To be approved at the next meeting)

TOWN OF BELL
BOARD MEETING
Tuesday, March 9, 2021
7:00 p.m. at the
COMMUNITY CENTER

The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. Board members present were Roger Lindgren, James Kaseno, Andrew Sauter Sargent, Allen Hahn, Jackie Eid, MaryBeth Tillmans and Janice Olson.

Board Meeting Minutes
– Board Meeting 2/9 – A. Hahn made a motion to approve the minutes and J. Eid 2nd the
motion. Unanimous. Approved.
– Special Board Meeting 3/4 – A. Hahn made a motion to approve the minutes and J. Eid 2nd the motion. Unanimous. Approved.
– Treasurer’s Report – J. Eid made a motion to approve the report and J. Kaseno 2nd the motion. Vote (4-1) Yes – R. Lindgren, A. Sauter Sargent J. Eid & J. Kaseno. No – Allen Hahn.

Board Comments
– A. Hahn – He thanked people for their input on issues.
– R. Lindgren –  He reminded everyone of the Annual Meeting date of April 20th.

Correspondence – Reviewed

Committee Reports – Committee reports submitted prior to the meeting were reviewed.
– Fire Dept – They responded to two requests for an ambulance assistance. The South Shore Ambulance had nine calls. There were five calls in Bell, three in Clover and one in Port Wing.
– Parks & Lands – The temporary yellow rope along the beach at the end of Superior Ave. will be replaced with permanent rope to match the other existing rope. They are looking at updating the existing Campground ordinance. Pit toilets at the campground are still being considered. The Swenson pavilion is still flooding and needs to be remedied.
– Planning Commission – They talked with A. Hahn about the Transient Vendor ordinance. The dynamic radar signs were discussed too. The tag and tow part of the Parking ordinance is being worked on. Phil Moye gave an update on the Main Street plan with the Northland College students and Griffin McCafferty. He is also working on an understanding between the old land planning survey and the new survey. The Planning Commission will work with Northwest Regional Planning Commission to have step by step instructions to amend the current Comprehensive Plan.

Public Comments – None

Old Business
– Transient Vendor Ordinance – Update – Allen Hahn
He met with the Planning Commission and the Parks and Lands committee. They agreed to look into working from the City of Washburn ordinance. A special meeting will be held for a work session.
– ATV route – Klemik to Old 13 – update – Roger Lindgren
He heard back from the DOT. They are okay with a route at least 40 feet off the road. The question of safety at the corner will addressed. The next step is to apply for a grant from the DNR.
– BIG, RBF Award, HAP Grant Award -update – Roger Lindgren
To get the best value from structural engineers and contractors, it would be a good idea to combine the projects. They will each need to have separate records. There would probably be better pricing too. R. Lindgren reviewed a worklist timesheet for starting the projects. His next step is to review this with the harbor commission. The BIG funding has not been received yet. It is supposed to happen in March.
– Seasonal Road Restrictions – Matt Hipsher
The spring road limits are on early this year. All of the county roads have weight limits. The town roads have been posted too. This does not exclude deliveries of fuel, school buses, septic trucks or essential basic needs. If you have a heavy load that must be delivered you should contact M. Hipsher at the town garage.
– Open sealed bids released for back-up generator.
One bid was received from Jolma Electric from Ashland. It was for $9,647.59. A. Hahn made a motion to accept the bid of $9647.59, along with the longer maintenance plan. J. Kaseno 2nd the motion. Unanimous decision. Approved.
– Monthly review of Community Center COVID restrictions.
R. Lindgren made a motion that when Bayfield County sends out its revised protocol, we will follow their recommendations. A. Sauter Sargent 2nd the motion. Unanimous decision. Approved.
– Storm Water Drainage System Evaluation
Currently, a lot of run-off and storm water drains down Superior Ave toward Hwy 13. It ends up in the bog and the north side of Hwy 13. Randy Lund and M. Hipsher will review and have recommendations for alternate ways to get the water to the river before it gets to the corner of Superior Ave. & Hwy 13 and taking more of the water down the south ditch on Hwy 13.

New Business
– Vince Kurta – candidate for Judge
He sent his apologies. He was unable to attend the meeting.
– Request Nominations for Harbor Commissioner
Request for nominations for the Harbor Commissioner has been posted and they are due by April 10th. There are two positions that are coming due.
– Post for Admin Asst – Anna Resignation as of April 15
A. Hahn made a motion to post for the position of Administrative Assistant and A. Sauter Sargent 2nd the motion. Unanimous decision. Approved.
– Computer Training Opportunity
The price for phase one of training is $837.00, for up to twelve people. It is designed to learn as you do. Dates and times to be determined.
– Community Bulletin Board
A request was received for a community church service to be linked to the town website or community bulletin board link. Discussion was held. The Town of Bell website will only be for official town business.
– Smoke Alarms
The Emergency Preparedness committee is working with the Red Cross on making the community center an official shelter. The Red Cross is offering two free smoke alarms to each household. Smoke alarms are outdated after ten years and should be replaced. Distribution of the smoke alarms will be done through the Town of Bell Fire Dept.
– Request suggested name for Person(s) of year award
Requests for the Person(s) of the year can be sent to R. Lindgren at tobchair@cornywi.org.
– Ambulance Contract
J. Kaseno made a motion to accept the South Shore Ambulance contract and J. Eid 2nd the motion. Unanimous decision. Approved.
– Reminder of April 6th election

Bills were paid. At 8:33 p.m., J. Eid made a motion to adjourn the meeting and J. Kaseno 2nd the motion. Approved.

Respectfully submitted,

MaryBeth Tillmans – Clerk