04-22-2013 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, April 8, 2013 7:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 3 of 21 (4. Orono Police Department Annual Report, Continued) Farniok indicated it is going well and that they have already responded to approximately 9,000 calls department wide in the first quarter. 5. LAKE MINNETONKA ASSOCIATION (LMA) FUNDING REQUEST Tom Lowe thanked the City Council for a change to share his opinions. Lowe noted that he attended the meeting with the Navarre Initiative earlier this evening and that it is gratifying to see the level of cooperation between the residents and the City, and that he is hopeful to get the same type of cooperation on the milfoil campaign. Lowe noted it has been a tough year for funding of milfoil treatment on Carman’s Bay. The DNR has reduced their contribution to the LMA and the LMCD will not be contributing at all this year. The LMA feels this will be a temporary situation as we transition to a more permanent public/private funding scenario. As a recent article in the Star Tribune brings to light, various methods of public funding of AIS control and prevention are being considered by the legislature and are receiving much attention. These options would provide far more public funding than is currently available from the DNR. Orono has donated to this project in the past, and the LMA is recommending that Orono helps with a donation this year, the LMA is not seeking to establish a permanent public funding obligation for the City of Orono. The LMA would also agree with the City of Orono that an additional levy by the LMCD at this time seems excessive. Due to the variability of the current public funding system, it’s the opinion of the LMA that the residents need help this year. The LMA feels that Orono needs to modify its policy towards milfoil control, partner with the residents and be proactive in how public funding policy is formulated. Public funding of AIS control and prevention is currently being considered by the legislature. It is on the radar. If Lake Minnetonka is used by the public more than any other lake in the state, why are the mayors of the 14 cities bordering Lake Minnetonka and, more specifically, the City of Orono, not in some way involved in this process with the legislature and updating them on what is going on in this lake. The LMA would like to know if the mayors are communicating with the legislators and working to promote public funding. That is what the LMA would like to see. The LMA feels that Lake Minnetonka is the poster child for what happens when mechanical harvesting is your primary control method for over 24 years. Not much has changed in those 24 years. Residents are generally dissatisfied because mechanical harvesting is a messy, inefficient, time-consuming, antiquated solution for milfoil control. Lake Minnetonka is the most heavily used lake in the state of Minnesota, and according to research, that usage is 75 percent public, 25 percent private. It is time for the 14 cities bordering this lake to step up and advocate that the public take on more financial responsibility in the management of what is a very public resource. Some cities already appear to be doing just that. The LMA would suggest it is time for Orono to join them. The issue is not going to go away. The documentation that the LMA has introduced via email clearly makes the case for the public funding of milfoil control while Orono’s previously stated case against public funding does not stand up to rational scrutiny. Item #02 - CC Agenda - 04/22/2013 Approval of Council Minutes 04/08/2013 [Page 3 of 21]