HomeMy WebLinkAboutMarch/April 2004 Volume 2, Issue 2
March/April 2004
HILLS HAPPENINGS
�iRN HILLS
J:wm &e Dej k of 5& eitq admhtb&at"
(a new regular column from the administrator)
t p 2
March 2nd marked the six-month anniversary
since I started with the City of Arden Hills. The
� time has gone by so quickly. I am very happy to
be here and I enjoy my position very much. This
is a great group of employees and there are
�
any, many good things happening in this City.
Thank you so much to all of you for spending time
.a with me for the employee interviews. I learned so
` - much about all of you, both personally and professionally. I appreciate your
Ha �a willingness to share your thoughts about work, the City, your department, the -
,.
budget, and many other topics. I'm going to be putting together a report with a
list of ideas to pursue. A few are underway already. For example, I heard in
fri3' some of the early interviews that we really needed to look at having a City credit
San , card, and also look at being able to accept on-line and credit card payments.
Murtuza has researched this topic and we tentatively plan to present information
to the City Council at the April work session.
Sana
Life has continued to be very hectic and busy. My husband (Art) recently
Pete' ' accepted a new position and begins next week. His first week will be spent in
Illinois training, which leaves me busy with the kids. The beauty of his new job,
however, is the amount of schedule flexibility he will have once the training is
complete. This is important as Alex and Josh keep busy with gymnastics,
Happy Anniversary. . . swimming lessons, skating lessons, and soon baseball. (It also ensures his
ability to attend the fishing opener!) Lately as a family we have been faithful
Mike Schifsky,March 5 and excited fans of the Timberwolves, attending several games and watching
(24 years} others. The last week has been tough as fans but we have faith that this is just
a blip! They WILL make it past the first round of the playoffs, and beyond!
Joe Mooney,April 1 Thanks again for all of your support, help, assistance, and just plain hard work
(18 years) during the last six months. It is a pleasure to work with all of you.
Fred Reed,April 3 -✓Il1lcKeePe 2Unqffe
(26 years)
d
t4
Tom Moore,April 5
St. Patty's Day
Build-Your-Own-Sandwich
(5 years)
Irish or not,join everyone at City Hall in the lower level Community Room on Wednesday, A
Dave Winkel,April 1O March 17th at 11:30 a.m.for a St. Patty's Day get-together. Please sign up to bring something
to build your own sub sandwich. A sign-up sheet will be posted in each facility. Please sign
(26 years) up as soon as possible so we know where we might be lacking in sandwich items. You must
wear green to participate! (Not hard given the City colors are tan&green!)
Page 2 Volume 2, Issue 2
ADMINISTRATION/
COMMUNITY SERVICES
BY AARON PARRISH, ASSISTANT CITY ADMINISTRATOR
In an ongoing effort to keep our Bethel College has also proposed a
printer in business, my title has dorm to be built this Spring. While
changed from Director of Commu- Dave and Eric were initially worried
nity Development / Assistant City that there would not be enough pro-
Administrator to plain old Assistant jects for this year, they have been
City Administrator. In the process, I pleasantly surprised with the
will be assuming a bulk of the duties level of activity (it
previously performed should be under-
by the Deputy Clerk / stood that
Human Resources Di- there is a fair
rector. I will also con- r--- v amount Par-
III tinue to coordinate _.--4i*--( rishian sarcasm
cable television and associated with
technology. To fill the gap in Com- t:• this sentence).
munity Development, we are in the , On the per
process of recruiting for a new Com- conal front, Pe-
munity Development Director. On ter recently
the homefront, things have been fun, celebrated his six month of marriage.
fun, fun. Reed recently took his first In Wisconsin culture, the six month
steps at about 9 months of age and anniversary, along with the seventh,
will be getting ear tubes next week. eighth, ninth etc . . . is the cheese an-
Lisa is considering a leave of absence niversary. On the political front, Pe-
from teaching to stay at home with ter has been actively lobbying in
the kids for a few years. Grant has Washington on the Defense of
hit the Scooby Doo phase of life. It Cheese Act. No word on whether
seems like everything comes full cir- that will catch on. Dave's daughter
cle, because Scooby Doo was cool recently turned seventeen and is
when I was a kid. I'm not sure if Doo planning a college visit to UMD with
goes back all the way back to the pre- Dad over spring break. In a move he
historic Mooreazoic time period, will surely regret, Dave has also chal-
but it has been around a long time lenged yours truly to a game of rac-
none-the-less. quetball. Eric is taking classes
through North Hennepin's Building
On the Community Development Inspection Technology program and
front, things keep ticking along with has recently completed a course in
Guidant. They will be constructing arson investigation for the Lake
another 9o,000 square foot addition Johanna Fire Department.
to their research and development
facility along with a 600+ stall park- With my new duties, I also have the
ing ramp. TCAAP is also progressing opportunity to supervise the City's
on a number of fronts. We will be top notch office support staff. Jackie
holding an environmental sympo- "the Axe" Gritz recently cut loose our
sium in March and the GSA is cur- vending company and will be work-
rently appraising the property. The ing on getting a new and improved
proposed North Heights Church ex- vender in. For a small fee to be de-
pansion is also on the front burner posited in a Swiss bank account of
and occupying a lot of Peter's time. (continued on page a)
Page 3 Volume 2, Issue 2
OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE
BY THOMAS J. MOORE, DIRECTOR OF
OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE
{. Congratulations to Michelle Olson "Lead Ing Ganeer" which gives him
who is going to be a mother— the authority to perform all special
Godmother that is. Even more projects in Arden Hills and
impressive is her recent record "Negotiations 400" where he has
setting efforts at the casino—losing learned how to win over the other
$250 in 90 minutes! side to your new point in less than 3
hours,with only three swear words!
Jim Perron has been in
the home improvement Joe Mooney is leaving for
mode as of late and has Vegas the week of March 7.
remodeled his living Because he is so sure of his
room and kitchen and future big winnings in
installed a new fireplace. Vegas, he has already
He is getting ready top lanned a fishing trip to
challenge "Ty" for his Canada.
carpentry on the home
improvement program Tradin While recently visiting the
Spaces. Dominican Republic with his bride,
Mike Schifsky was offered the
Aaron Andrews received his SD presidency of Haiti (which shares an
license last week. On the home front Island with the Dominican Republic).
he has enrolled his daughter in Unfortunately Mike had to turn it
karate. Apparently dad is preparing down because he said he has a
her for the dating years. Next dad mission to fulfill at the O&M
will be taking gun safety courses for Department in Arden Hills.
his part in the preparation.
It must be vacation time for the
Recently photographed at the O&M guys because Dave Winkel
Oscars was our own Fred Bell also will be vacationing in a much
accompanied by Diane Keaton. This warmer climate come March—the
- � was a "thing" that came out of his Caribbean.
New York trip. Keep watching
Entertainment Tonight for further Not to be outdone by the rookie and
developments on this"thing". his partner in crime Pete, Scott
Freyberger also received his SD
Also receiving his SD license last license. We hear he is going to
9=00 week was Pete Saxe. Though we celebrate by taking his lovely wife to
don't know if he'll be able to put it to Mexico in the not too distant future.
use since he is using a cane these
days since he will be a grandpa 4 Like Big Mike, I have received an
times over. irresistible offer as well, but not for a
presidency—to be a judge in the
Bravo to Fred Reed for being a Strong Man Competition.. After
model employee and receiving two, seeing our newsletter department
count`em , two licenses in one week: Continued on page s
May the leprechauns be near you,
To spread luck along your
• may all the Irish angels,
Smile •• • Day.
Hills Happenings Page 4
FINANCE DEVELOPMENT w,
BY MURTUZA SIDDIQUI FINANCE DIRECTOR/CITY TREASURER �Bu
Finance staff is in the midst of a num- implement in a consistent manner.
ber of special projects, including the The Task Force will meet over the a `
preparation for the year—end audit. next couple of months and forward
its recommendation to the Council by
Last month, the City Council ap- the end of May for their action.
pointed members to the Assessment
Policy Task Force. The Task Force is Another area we are currently re-
made up of six residents plus a Coun- searching is to have the ability to ac-
cil and a staff liaison. cept credit cards. This
David Grant is the Coun- 40 will be a great conven-
cil liaison and Murtuza ® ience for our residents
Siddiqui is the staff liai- and businesses that may
son. The purpose of this prefer to pay for permits,
Task Force is to review licenses, utility bills,
our existing assessment sports registration, etc.
policy and to study alter-
natives and to make it Stay tuned for more excit- ���
simple to understanand o r ing news from the Fi-
d
s
nance crew!
ADMINISTRATION/COMMUNITY SERVICES UPDATE
(Continued from page z) to his Elmo tapes. Finally, Pang and
her choice, Jackie can now notarize Paul are busy getting their house in
documents. The final payment will order so they can put it on the market.:`
be made on the Gritzmobile in April
As such, she is planning for a major Illustrating that wishes really do
breakdown sometime in May. come true, "Persistent Pam"finally got
the new and improved postage ma-
In an effort to ensure timely com- chine. In a coordinated effort, rumor
pletion of the agenda packets, Pang has it that "Persistent Pam" may em-
"the Whip" Silseth continues to mas- ploy the services of"the Whip" if peo-
ter the finer points of subtle, and not ple do not correctly code their mail.
so subtle, persuasion. Pang has also On a personal note, Pam recently re-
been hard at work pulling together turned from a trip to Florida with her
the Spring and Summer Recreation two grandchildren, daughter, and son-
Guide. Showing that they are chips in-law. While the drive down with two
off the old block, Pang's 5th grade young kids was not for the faint of
daughter Melodic made the A honor heart, they had a good time none-the-
roll at Fridley Middle School while, less. Those Sweeney's sure can party.
Sunshine was recognized by the Pam's daughter also recently up-
Fridley Lions for her "anti-drug" graded their digs by buying a new
poster. Little brother Jordan is house in Andover.
ready to join Sesame Street after ; � - -.
wearing out the family VCR watching
Hills Happenings Page 5
STAFF GET TOGETHER IDEAS SOUGHT
At it's February 25th money commitment on staffs part.
meeting, the Employee
` Recognition Committee
® ® ®: (ERC) discussed holding To solicit your feedback, we have included a
y a staff-only get together survey in this newsletter. Your input is needed
�J away from our offices, and regarding this topic; as well as the topic of an
" o— totally employee funded. Employee Wellness Program. Please take a
We would like to know moment of your day to answer the questions and
everyone's interest level in return the form to Pam or Jackie.
attending future get-
togethers; as well as ideas for these events. Thank you in advance for your input.
An idea the ERC discussed was a staff-only (with
family) picnic. The staff picnic idea is to hold a
picnic at a park pavilion that might accommodate
such possible activities as volleyball, swimming,
softball,etc. "L_
Another idea discussed is a bus trip to a casino
which would involve meeting a minimum
requirement of roughly 15 people (in order to get a
free bus)and staying at the casino for 3-5 hours.
Both of these items would require a time and
OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE UPDATE
(Continued from page 3) • The booster station reconstruction project is
logo, they were impressed with my physique. I may proceeding right on schedule.
have to leg wrestle Michelle Wolfe for the PTO days • Road restriction signs have been posted on
however. No bets on who would win please. (You city streets.
can stop laughing any time now.) • The new city-wide street signs project is in
In general, the O&M department has been keeping the final phase of Council approval.
P g Work is progressing on the 2004 PMP project
busy with the usual projects as well as the in the Edgewater Neighborhood.
following: • The summer recreation guide was mailed this
week.
• Pumps have been installed at Lift Station *7-
And
This project should be completed within the finally, the lads participated in a Traffic
next two weeks. Work Safety Seminar—no one was injured.
. .,�
'
Day Light Savings Time Starts Arilg
thr
Did you know that Arizona, Hawaii, and most of Indiana do not observe daylight saN Ings
a t
yaau, a �
Employee Spotlight:
I'
Dave sits on the Board of Director's for the 10,000 Lakes
I Chapter of Building Officials,where he has been past Sec-
Dave
ec-
Dave Scherbel retary and Treasurer also. In 2003 he was appointed to the
Minnesota State Appeals Board. Gee,I wonder if they
Submitted by Pam Sweeney will call him for City Hall arbitration?
When it comes to hammers,nails and wood,Dave is more
comfortable then most people are with knives, forks and
spoons. As a former building contractor there is not much
that Dave can not do when it comes to construction projects.
Dave grew up in St.Paul,the oldest of nine siblings. He
Hat's Off To . . .
graduated from Brady High School,and attended the Uni-
versity of Minnesota for a year before enrolling in Rose- for fellow employees!
mount TVI. There he studied and received a degree in Ar-
chitectural Technology.
Eric Nordeen for continuke
-
While in school he worked for Knox Lumber Co an m
'T'p y ing to show exemplary work
their answer booth,as an estimator,selling cabinets,and
selling Geodesic Dome Homes. During this time a contrac-
tor dents oArden Hills. During
and dedication to the City and the resi-
f
invited him to come and work for him. It only took a g a recent in-
year for Dave to realize that he knew,as much,if not more, spection of a new building, Eric was Con-
then his boss,so he started his own company. cerned about the level of light in the exit
path. To help determine if the lighting was
For seventeen years DS Construction Services was a highly adequate Eric made an inspection after
respected,busy company doing residential and small com s
mercial work,along with all the display work and out build hours, when it was dark. Eric has routinely
ing s for the Knox Stores in this area. Dave also found time made inspections like this, on his days off,
to design and build two different homes in Hawaii,one in weekends, and before and after hours, ac
1981 and the other in 1988. During one of these trips to the commodating residents and clients in Arden
big island Dave experienced lava up close and personal Hills. Keep up the good work!
Ask him about this exciting adventure,and also look at the
beautiful pictures he took.
When twelve to fourteen hour days,seven days a week,
landed Dave flat on his back in bed with two bulging,rup-
tured disks.... it was time for a lifestyle change. Wanting to Look for the answer in the
stay in construction and eventually become a building offr- next edition.
cial,he enrolled in Inver Hills Community College and re-
ceived his Associate Degree in Building Technology. In
1995 he started working as a housing inspector for the City
of Richfield. He was there until 1997 when he came to the
City of Arden Hills,and the rest is history.
Dave and his wife Theresa,a special education paraprofes-
sional at Bridgeview School in St.Paul, live in Mahtomedi,
in a beautiful home on more than two acres that he designed
and built. Their daughter Carley is a junior and the proud "
owner of Dave's Dodge Dakota pickup that he retired after
318,000 miles. Their twin sons,Derek and Reed are middle
school sixth graders.
g
Any free time is spent up at the family cabin between
Longville and Hackensack,where he loves to fish,hunt or
snowmobile depending on the season. Dave is also an ac-
complished trap,skeet and sporting clay shooter active in
league competition. Check out his winning team's Jesse
James look in his office some time. Even with his busy
schedule he still finds time to coach his son's soccer team
year after year. Jan/Feb Answer.
Pang Silseth