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City of Gem Lake City Council Meeting Minutes May 16, 2023 2 | Page Gem Lake Trail and Sign Discussion Resident Kim Anderson-Uzpen has been working on gathering information for trail signs to be put along the Gem Lake Trail. The two current entry signs the City has would be replaced with newer wood look posts and along the trail there would be five (5) interpretive signs, two (2) large and three (3) medium sized. The large sized signs will have information on the native grasses and wildflowers and share how they are important and different. The medium sized signs will have information on milkweed/butterfly, the pollinators and butterfly identification. Quotes were received from two (2) companies, Vacker Sign and Bright Idea Shops. Bright Idea shops quoted the city $6,774.00 with additional costs for artwork and graphics which are estimated per hour. Vacker Sign quoted the city $4,850.00 with no additional costs. Councilmember Lindner introduced a motion to accept the Vacker sign quote in the amount of $4,850.00, seconded by Mayor Artig-Swomley. Voice vote taken, all voted yes, motion passes, Vacker Sign has been approved for the Gem Lake Trail Signs project. 3930 Scheuneman Road Follow Up Discussion City Building Official Mike Johnson shared with the Council that he met with the tenant Jeremy Charles and did a walkthrough of the property. All trailers and vehicles on the property were licensed and the lumber is neatly stacked and covered. Mike Johnson discussed with Mr. Charles that any auto repair is going to be limited to personal vehicles and must be conducted in the garage with the door closed. No business auto repair or rental car storage is to be kept on site. At this time Mike Johnson is satisfied with the progress. Mayor Artig-Swomley asked Mike Johnson is he has any suggestions for the city’s nuisance ordinance that is currently being revamped. Some suggestions he had were to possibly include a square footage requirement for storage of recreational vehicles on the property. Setting a limit on the amount of vehicles one person can own is difficult to enforce. He also feels that portions of the ordinance could be broken down into their own ordinance. New Business Tessier Road Condition Discussion Tessier Road was not included in the sealcoating quote that was approve at the April 18 City Council meeting due to the condition of the road. The road would not benefit from a sealcoat and instead needs to either have a mill and overlay or be completely reconstructed. Public Works Director Dale Reed suggested that the road be patched as a temporary fix and has reached out to City Engineer Justin Gese to discuss the long term fix and get quotes for a long term solution. Future Charitable Gambling Donations White Bear Lake Emergency Food Shelf Mayor Artig-Swomley suggested that the Council make a donation in June in the amount of $1500.00 to the White Bear Lake Emergency Food Shelf. Councilmember Lindner introduced a motion to request a donation in the amount of $1500.00 for the White Bear Lake Emergency Food Shelf, seconded by Councilmember Johnson. Voice vote taken, all voted yes, motion passes, Acting City Clerk will request a donation to be approved at the June City Council meeting. Community Outreach to Other Cities and Government Bodies Mayor Artig-Swomley shared that the City still has not gotten a response from Vadnais Heights regarding the letter that was sent to them accepting their proposal regarding water billing procedures. City Attorney Kevin Beck has sent Vadnais the same letter on different letter head and labeled it as a letter of understanding. Kevin Beck has still not received anything back. At this time Vadnais Heights is installing a piece on the current meter that will enable Vadnais to read the meter via a radio. Although it is being installed, the agreement has not been fully approved.