06-23-2014 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, June 23, 2014 7:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 3 of 30 (3. LAKE MINNETONKA CONSERVATION DISTRICT (LMCD) 2015 BUDGET, Continued) Nybeck stated the LMCD is requesting the City of Orono speak with their Police Chief to find out how many officers have been trained on AIS enforcement. The goal is to have all officers trained by the 2015 boating season. Nybeck stated as it relates to the LMCD budget, the levy increase is 0.6 percent and from an expenditure standpoint there will be a 1.1 percent decrease. Nybeck noted there is a 2.0 percent increase in personnel services. Nybeck stated one of the reasons for the overall decrease in expenditures is due to the relocation of the LMCD offices. The portion of the budget dedicated to milfoil harvesting will remain at $95,000. AIS reserve fund transfer of $35,000 for equipment replacement, which is a $10,000 increase and will go towards the harvesting program. $30,000 has been allocated for AIS prevention and management, which has not been increased. Nybeck noted the LMCD meetings for a number of years were televised at no charge but that this year the LMCD will be required to pay the cable producer as well as for the online services. Nybeck noted $3,300 has been allocated for that line item to make sure the meetings are available to the public. Nybeck stated there has been a great effort since 2009 to keep the levies as flat as possible, and that the City of Orono will be experiencing an increase of $278, which is a 0.5 percent increase. McMillan asked what he envisions for the lake levels for the next couple of weeks and how that will impact the harvesting. Nybeck stated basically the milfoil harvesting program has been suspended until after July 4. Nybeck stated in his view the higher water levels has had an impact on the growth of the milfoil and curly leaf. McMillan asked if there will be any chemical treatments performed this year. Nybeck indicated the Lake Minnetonka Association had planned on performing chemical treatments this year but that he is not sure about the timing of them. Nybeck stated it was suggested to them that they review their schedule. McMillan asked if the LMCD has any control over the chemical treatments. Nybeck stated to his knowledge the MN DNR has been conducting some field work to determine where the herbicide treatments should be applied and that the LMCD is not involved in that. McMillan asked if the LMCD is incurring any expenses with the milfoil harvesting program since it has been suspended. Nybeck indicated they have not incurred any expenses at this point. McMillan noted last Saturday 13 sailboats were capsized in the bad weather. McMillan stated she will be speaking with Chief Van Eyll about doing some debriefing among the various government entities. McMillan stated given the serious nature of the situation, some amount of time should be spent discussing that and how it could possibly be prevented in the future.