Laserfiche WebLink
MINUTES OF THE <br />ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING <br />Monday, October 22, 2007 <br />7:00 o’clock p.m. <br />___________________________________________________________________________________ <br /> <br />PAGE 8 <br /> <br />(City Engineer’s Report, Continued) <br /> <br />Kellogg stated in his view the way the City had been certifying their miles in past years was accurate in <br />terms of the statutes but that he wanted to know how State Aid interpreted that language. <br /> <br />On April 6, a meeting was held with MN/DOT where they were asked whether the mileage being <br />certified by the City is appropriate. The City did not hear anything back from MN/DOT until the last <br />week in September when the City was informed that this issue was discussed in a subcommittee of the <br />screening board and that they had reached some conclusions that are not favorable to the City. On <br />September 27th, a meeting was again held to discuss this issue and the conclusion was that the City is in <br />error to include their “private roads” and that they should be penalized for including them in the past. <br />Kellogg noted the Screening Board is the ultimate decision making body. Kellogg noted the Screening <br />Board will be holding a meeting on October 23rd and that a representative from Bonestroo will be in <br />attendance to present the City’s case on this issue. <br /> <br />Kellogg stated the issue appears to center around the City’s rural cul-de-sacs, which are constructed to <br />city standards. An underlying easement given to the City does allow use of those roads by the public <br />but requires private maintenance. Kellogg indicated the whole basis for the state aid system is meant to <br />move traffic through the city and presumably a significant amount of those vehicles are coming from <br />residences located on the rural cul-de-sacs within the City. <br /> <br />Kellogg stated in his opinion this issue should be studied further over the next six months by the <br />Screening Board rather than arriving at a final decision tomorrow. Kellogg stated if the decision comes <br />in against Orono, they could be expected to receive less in state aid. <br /> <br />Murphy asked how much the state aid would be reduced. <br /> <br />Kellogg stated at this time he cannot answer that because the condition of the roads also plays a factor in <br />determining state aid. Kellogg indicated the total mileage that the City claims at the present time is <br />roughly 53 miles and that the private roadway mileage is approximately 18, which accounts for roughly <br />30 percent of the total. <br /> <br />Rahn inquired whether other cities are facing the same situation. <br /> <br />Kellogg stated this has been a self-policing process throughout the years and State Aid has not verified <br />the accuracy of the figures provided by the various cities. Kellogg indicated his office wanted some <br />clarification on how the miles were determined. Kellogg noted Orono has been a state aid city since <br />approximately 1959. <br /> <br />Bremer inquired whether all private roads have the underlying city easement, noting that there are some <br />roads posted in the City as private roads, do not travel on. <br /> <br />Gaffron stated all private roads that have been created since 1978 have an underlying easement. <br /> <br />Bremer inquired whether there are private streets that do not have an underlying easement. <br /> <br />Gaffron stated there are a few private streets that do not have an underlying easement. <br /> <br />Item #02 - CC Agenda - 11/13/07 <br />Approval of Council Minutes 10/22/07 [8 of 10]