July August 2012 Gem Lake Newsletter

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Gem Lake News Page 4 of 6 Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road? Basically, it was to come to Gem Lake and lay eggs. The city council is now in the process of "laying" out a proposed new ordinance covering the keeping of chickens by residents of Gem Lake. It will cover such things as how many chickens you can keep, or better yet, the size of the chicken coop required for various numbers of chickens. Noise, smell, cackling, crowing, you name it, we are discussing it. Find out if the chicken made it to the other side of the road at the August city council meeting. It will be held August 21 at Heritage Hall. DWI Traffic Initiative The Ramsey County Sheriff's Department was active in the White Bear Area on Saturday, June 23 from 8:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. the following morning, when they conducted a High Visibility DWI Saturation Project. Officers focused their efforts on the area around County Road E and I-694. Out of 310 traffic stops the following happened: *112 citations were issued *26 people were taken into custody *14 people were arrested for DWI issues *15 drivers were cited for Driving after Revocation and Suspension. Events like this one are scheduled regularly by the Sheriff's Department. Increased Pollution in Gem Lake (continued from page 2) Gem Lake is also included in a MN Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) study of impaired waters in the VLAWMO watershed. The MPCA study identifies a goal for each impaired lake and creek in terms of the plant nutrient phosphorus. That phosphorus is carried to Gem Lake in stormwater running off the landscape that drains to the lake. As stated previously, the goal for Gem Lake is a 24% reduction in the amount or pounds of phosphorus flowing to the lake every year. The City of Gem Lake, the other local agencies, VLAWMO & the MPCA will be putting together a plan to reduce the amount of phosphorus going into Gem Lake. The City and the other local agencies hold a stormwater permit from the MPCA which will require annual reporting on the progress toward the goal of improving Gem Lake. Local residents and business owners will be important stakeholders in the plan to help Gem Lake achieve a healthy lake status. City News Page Run for Office in Gem Lake There will be two spots on the Gem Lake City Council, as well as the office of Mayor up for Election this November. If you are interested in being a candidate, you need to file an Affidavit of Candidacy anytime between July 31 and August 14. The forms are available on the Ramsey County web-site. You must be 21, a resident of Gem Lake for at least 30 days and eligible to vote in Minnesota. You file the form at Heritage Hall. The position of mayor is currently held by Bob Uzpen and the council seats up for election are currently held by Jim Lindner and Tom Rasmussen. MS-4 Report Ready to Be Reviewed By Public A state mandated report on storm water management, called the MS-4 Report has been completed by council member Jim Lindner and submitted to the State of Minnesota. Jim spent countless volunteer hours trudging all over Gem Lake to document and photograph inflows and outflows in our city, as required by the report. The document is now on display at Heritage Hall for anyone who wants to read it. As mandated by law, it will be on display for 30 days to allow for the expected throngs. Just in case you don't get a chance to stop by, we are holding a public hearing on it, also required by state law. The public hearing will be held August 21, during the August City Council Meeting at 7:00 p.m. at Heritage Hall. Our thanks to Jim Lindner for taking on the task of completing this very detailed report. 2008 Comprehensive Plan Approved by Met Council and City Although it was written and submitted almost four years ago to the Metropolitan Council, the Gem Lake Comprehensive Plan is finally official. Since 2008, the plan has worked its way through the approval process. This involved getting input from neighboring cities and making adjustments and edits requested by the Metropolitan Council, many of them involving density and low income housing targets for future development. Work on the 2008 plan began in 2006. Plans are required every 10 years by the Met Council, and must be extraordinarily detailed in terms of housing, development, road and sewer construction, etc. Planning for the 2018 plan will begin in 2016. We get a couple years off now between plans so we can think and plan our next plan.