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City of Gem Lake City Council Meeting Minutes September 20, 2022 4 | Page A new permit was issued to Gem Lake on November 16, 2020. An application for reauthorization (part 2) was approved on August 10, 2021. Coverage was extended November 12, 2021 and updates are being worked on now. The annual report was submitted to the MPCA on April 29, 2022. Mayor Artig-Swomley informed those in attendance that the Council would begin with the MS4 public hearing, and that the public would have a chance to provide input on the topic. Councilmember Lindner introduced a motion to open the public hearing at 8:12 p.m. on the MS4 report, seconded by Councilmember Johnson. Voice vote taken, all in favor, motion passes, the public hearing is opened at 8:12 p.m. The public had no comments on the public hearing. Mayor Artig-Swomley had a question regarding the required annual public education and outreach and if past newsletter topics would be ok to reuse as the topics required have been mentioned in past newsletters. Ms. Jennings replied that it is ok to use past newsletter stories as long as they are brought current with any changes that may have been implemented. The public and Council had no additional comments or questions. Councilmember Lindner introduced a motion to close the public hearing at 8:15 p.m. on the MS4 report, seconded by Councilmember Johnson. Voice vote taken, all in favor, motion passes, the public hearing is closed at 8:15 p.m. Gem Lake Infrastructure Issues Review of September 12, 2022 Water Summit / Next Steps SEH City Engineer Justin Gese, Community Development Specialist Kristin Prososki and Senior Water Engineer Richard Parr gave a presentation on the Water Project Funding options available for a municipal water system project in Gem Lake. Areas of discussion included: • Potential Water Supply Issues • Potential Water System Options • Water Project Costs • Project Funding Options • Project Development • Next Steps • Open Discussion & Questions The presentation helped the council and public get a better understanding of what would need to happen in order to conduct this project. The presentation was strictly informational and not a decision on what the City plans to do. Although no decision has been made, the City may plan to apply for funding grants and bonds due to the amount of time it can take for the application to go through the lengthy process of a couple years. Applying for funding does not obligate the City to move forward. It is possible for the project to be funded by both State bond funds and Congressional funds. The presentation was given to inform the community about a potential project. The next steps to be taken are: • Gather more well samples or analysis by the MPCA • The City and SEH to gather information from a formal survey from residents • Discuss more ideas and begin a funding request cycle, if appropriate Gem Lake Trail Update / Tree replacement Proposals At this time the Washington Ramsey Watershed is still holding on to money from Hanson’s Builders, the Villas developer, and will not release it until reseeding has happened in the area they oversee.