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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION – NOVEMBER 16, 2020 12 <br /> <br />F. TCAAP RAB Council Participation <br /> <br />City Administrator Perrault stated the City was recently made aware of renewed efforts on the <br />part of the Army to re-engage citizen volunteers to serve on the TCAAP RAB. The Council then <br />requested a discussion on whether or not they should have a Councilmember as a representative <br />on the board. According to the website for the RAB, their job is to: <br /> <br />Review documents prepared by the Army about the environmental restoration process <br />taking place at the former TCAAP and provides an opportunity for local citizen input into <br />the cleanup process. The status of each of the sites undergoing cleanup is available on <br />their website. Community input is critical to ensure understanding and acceptance of the <br />decisions made by the U.S. Army, the MPCA, and the U.S. EPA. <br /> <br />City Administrator Perrault reported no RAB meetings are currently scheduled. The Army had <br />hoped to hold a meeting to talk to and encourage community members to serve on the RAB, but <br />due to COVID-19 social distancing requirements, they were unable to hold an in-person meeting. <br />The Army plans to hold a virtual public meeting related the Round Lake Proposed Plan before <br />December 2020 and the details will be available on their website. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holden commented she did not believe any City Councilmembers should be <br />representing the City on the RAB. She stated if any Councilmembers wanted to attend these <br />meetings, they could represent themselves, but not the Arden Hills City Council. She suggested <br />RAB representatives be invited to attend a future City Council meeting. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holmes stated she had mixed feelings on this because she feared if a resident <br />were to serve on the RAB, the information from this group may not be fully relayed to the City <br />Council. She noted in the past, Lois Rem served on the RAB as a resident even while she was a <br />City Councilmember. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant recalled Lois serving as a resident on the RAB. He reported he served on the Arden <br />Hills Foundation and he happened to be the Mayor. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holden discussed the Round Lake issue and noted the City was observing this <br />issue. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant reported this was the case and noted Betty McCollum’s office has been good about <br />keeping the City apprised on this issue. <br /> <br />City Administrator Perrault stated the City does reach out to the MPCA three or four times <br />each year regarding Round Lake. He explained he requested Public Works Director/City Engineer <br />Blomstrom attend the previous RAB meeting, and would request the director attend future, <br />applicable meetings <br /> <br />Councilmember Holmes supported the City having a staff member at these meetings. She <br />indicated these meetings appear to be rather technical in nature. She stated this staff member <br />could then provide the Council with feedback on the meeting. <br />