03-10-2025 Petition LID Forest Lake - Opposition

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I was at the Feb 24th meeting to present our opposition to the Lake Improvement District in Forest Lake. I feel the information shared tonight is necessary as Orono will soon be asked to consider LID's in other bays. This will also tie into your consent agenda#11 for the LID created under Denny Walsh in 2017. Minnesota DNR "In short, LID's are a special purpose type of government"and are always under the governance of the city or county with jurisdiction. State of Minnesota 6115.0980 Subp. 2. Legal responsibilities and liabilities of lake improvement districts. Nothing in these parts shall be construed to relieve a lake improvement district of the legal duties,obligations,or liabilities incident to the programs, plans, or actions of the district. The lake improvement district shall assume all legal risks and,liabilities, including those for damages or any injury to persons or property, arising from the construction, operation;maintenance,alteration,or abandonment of its programs,'plans,or actions. In the event of termination of the district,or failure of the district to meet its obligations, these responsibilities and liabilities shall fall upon the unit or units of government which established the lake improvement district. Subp. 3. Limited"state liabilities. The establishment of a lake improvement district shall not impose any liability upon the state of Minnesota, its officers,employees,agents,or consultants,for any damage or injury to any persons or property resulting from the activities of the;lake improvement district. LMCD Presentation Eric Evanson presented at the LMCD board meeting on 2/12/25. Paraphrased from his presentation " He wants more LID's without putting more treatment costs on public agencies". He also suggested the use of DiQuat for treatment. In Forest Lake he suggested the use of either Diquat or ProcellaCOR. See attached pages and areas highlighted. Summary We reject the idea of private citizens taking on any financial and/or legal responsibility to manage "a public body of water". We as lakeshore owners should not be asked (or petitioned to do so)to operate in this capacity. We ask that our city rejects the formation of LID's and their liabilities as well.