The Financial State of Eureka Township!

At the July 8, 2019, Eureka Township meeting, Treasurer, Marcia
Wilson gave the Treasurer's Report as of June 30, 2019.

                            Township Bank Balance:

     Checking Account Balance - $1,513.54 (Outstanding
     checks - $620.74)

     Savings Account -  $167,215.48

     Bank CDs - $106,698.92

     Petty Cash - $100.00

                                   Total - $274,907.20

Disbursements:

     $101,401.93
   
     Payroll:  $4,130.77

                                    Total - $105,532.70

The Treasurer stated, "THERE ARE NO RESERVES!"

BUDGET:

     The Township is 1/2 way through the year and has paid 6 months'
     worth of bills. The City of Lakeville billed $41,371.00 for
     the annual fire protection they provide. Farmington bills
     quarterly for the fire protection they provide.

     Township Administration (Town Board Supervisors, Planning
     Commissioners, Treasurer, Deputy Clerk and Clerk)- 72% of the
     annual budget has been spent. We are spending $2,500.00 more
     per month for Township Administration than budgeted.

     Communications - 65% of the budget has been spent.

     Town Hall Upkeep - 88% of the budget has been spent. We are
     spending $1,100 per month more that what is budgeted.

     Miscellaneous (including mileage) - 72% of the annual
     budget has been spent.

     General Fund - $73,000 currently. June claims are $62,000.
     $10,000 needs to be transferred which takes care of the balance
     in the General Fund.

     Our tax payment income is a little less than $100,000 which
     is what we have for the rest of the year in the General Fund plus
     any permit income that might come in.

     Bridge Fund - $37,000. The Road Contractor bill this month is
     $40,000 which will come from this fund.
                                                     
Roads - Mark Ceminsky

     $122,926.00 is left for the rest of the year. There are 4 months of
     grading to do. Averaging bills will be $56,000.00 for 4 months
     of road grading. $40,000.00 of gravel has not been billed yet. This
     will leave $26,926.00 for snow removal for 2 months. Snow
     removal last year averaged $32,000 per month.

     This year the Township cut way back on gravel due to maintenance
     costs. Mark stated, "There is NO money left for dust control."All roads
     are in need of grading. Grading is done as needed only!

     Two culverts will be replaced in Eureka Estates at the cost of $9,000.00
     which does not include asphalt repair. Numerous instances of
     ditch cleaning which needs to be completed is not in the budget.
     The Township is over on asphalt maintenance by $325.00. Butch Hansen
     stated, "We, are at the point where we need to pay regular monthly bills
     and no extra."
     Supervisor Murphy stated the Township is operating on the levy
     that was set the year before.  Perhaps the levy approved at the last
     Annual Meeting will enable the Township to "catch up."  Chair
     Palmquist stated the Township is spending more than budgeted.
     Treasurer Wilson stated, "There are no reserves to dip into."
     Butch Hansen stated, "Cut back on staff hours - work only two days
     per week." Chair Palmquist reminded Mr. Hansen that the Township
     needs the staff. There are two lights in the lobby which need to be
     replaced with LED lighting. The Township will wait until the third
     burns out to save replacement costs.

Township Audit:  The audit is conducted every two years. The bill
     for 2019 is $6,700.  The Audit report was positive.

Certificates of Deposit:  Earlier, Treasurer Wilson had been directed
     by the Board to investigate rates involved in purchasing a CD at the bank.
     She stated that things have changed since then and she did not recommend
     doing so. The Township might have to cash out a CD as funds are getting
     low.

Marcia Wilson suggested the Board look at how the Township is spending
money. She recommended the Township not take on any special projects.
She would like to see someone go through the General Budget line item by
line item to see if there is any way to make cuts. Chair Palmquist and
Supervisor Murphy agreed to meet with Treasurer Wilson to review the budget.

JUST ONE THOUGHT:  The Commercial/Industrial "work group" 
has spent over $2,500.00 in PHASE I of the C/I zoning study.
At the Open House on July 10 the "work group" was NOT able
to provide answers to the following questions:

1) What are the dollars and cents costs and benefits of a zoning
change?
2) Has a cost analysis been done to determine the expenses to
the citizens?
3) Has a Fiscal Impact Study been done to compare changes in
local government costs against changes in government revenue?
4) What will be the cost of the above studies and other studies
that will be necessary for C/I zoning?
5) Has an analysis of the citizen tax burden been done?
6) How can the Township adequately police industrial zoning
with the current staff? If more staff is needed, how many and the
cost?
7) What would be the increase in cost for fire protection and road
maintenance not done by the C/I businesses?
8) How would the C/I zoning benefit citizens south of 225th? Would
it increase their property values?

The "Financial State of the Township" reported above does not convince
me that the rezoning proposition is financially feasible and beneficial
to the citizens of Eureka Township. The Eureka portion of some 
residential property taxes are close to and even over what the C/I use
at Highview and 225th pays to Eureka. Their tax went down from 2018 to 
2019.


Stay tuned?  Will the Town Board approve Phase II?

A detailed Treasurer's report can be obtained from the Clerk at the
Town Hall.
The above information was taken from the CD copy of the July Town
Board meeting.






      

   

TURN UP THE VOLUME! YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS THIS!

A number of times during recent Town Board meetings, certain of its members have referenced that Castle Rock Township has Commercial/Industrial (C/I) zoning, implying that this would be a good thing for our township to have, too.

Castle Rock's Ordinances pp. 35-37 and 94-108 address these uses.  See Castle Rock ordinances here.

Pages 35-37 outline these uses including a Conditional Use for adult establishments. Pages 94-108 give the regulations for Sexually-Oriented Business.

Since a township may not  be able to prohibit sexually oriented businesses once it has allowed C/I uses, the best it can do is to make such use a Conditional Use and subject to regulations and licensing.

Township Attorney Chad Lemmons has publicly stated the difficulty to prohibit these uses. These uses are constitutionally protected under freedom of expression or speech. (See emphasized portion of "Conclusions of the Town Board" below.) When this was raised, Butch Hansen characterized it as an overreaction that Eureka would have such "adult" businesses. What he doesn't seem to grasp is that once the Ordinances contain this use (which may happen if we allow C/I), the Township cannot stop a sexually oriented business here. Yes, it can be a Conditional Use, but those usually cannot be denied if the applicant agrees to any and all reasonable, related and roughly proportional conditions relative to the possible negative impacts. A Conditional Use is one allowed under the law of the community. Granting or denying one is a quasi-judicial decision, not a legislative decision in which the courts would likely give more latitude. (An public entity generally can pass the laws it wants to live under.) Court history shows the tendency to back up legislative decisions. Quasi-judicial decisions, however, are frequently litigated, and Eureka would have to obey its own Ordinances. This puts us in a conundrum.

Castle Rock Ordinance Excerpts:

6.07 C/I Commercial/Industrial District
(p. 37)
H. Conditional Uses. Adult establishments, subject to the regulations as set forth elsewhere herein and any conditions set under the conditional use permit. No adult establishment may be located within 1,000 feet of another adult establishment, a residential use, a day care provider, an on- or off-sale liquor establishment, a park or public facility. No two (2) adult establishments shall be located in the same building.

 and

7.18 Sexually-Oriented Business.
(p. 95)
C. Conclusions of the Town Board. In direct furtherance of the substantial goals of public health, safety, and welfare, the Town Board adopts the following licensing regulations, recognizing that it has a great interest in the promotion of health and the prevention of criminal activity. It is not the intent of this Section to inhibit the freedom of speech component of sexually-oriented businesses; instead, this Section represents a balancing of competing interests: reduced criminal activity through the regulation of sexually-oriented businesses versus the protected rights of participants in sexually-oriented businesses and their patrons. Thus, this Section is designed to alleviate undesirable social problems that accompany sexually-oriented businesses without curtailing the constitutionally protected expression. (Emphasis mine.)

Not putting the content here, but you might check out D. Definitions, # 25 and #26 on pages 99 and 100. This is what we could be dealing with. I'd rather pass!

Empire Township has similar Ordinance language as it also allows C/I uses and includes sexually oriented uses (Ordinance 260). It may be of note to you that each of these townships, Castle Rock and Empire, have residential zoning districts and are not completely zoned agricultural as Eureka is. The Metropolitan Council representatives have repeatedly stated that it sees Eureka as agricultural until 2040 at the earliest, with sewer and water not allowed until possibly then as well.

REMINDER that there is an Open House on considering C/I zoning to be held at Town Hall on July 9th, starting at 7:00 p.m. YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN ATTENDING...

THE "SECRET SOCIETY" MEETS AGAIN! AND YOU'RE NOT A MEMBER!

After the July 2nd Planning Commission meeting ended, I noticed that the four members of the Commercial/Industrial "work group" were all inside the small conference room at Town Hall. I tapped on the door and asked if they were having a meeting. They indicated they were, so I and another citizen started to enter. We were told by Butch Hansen that we could not come in. !!!!

We were not being allowed to exercise our right to simply observe their discussion because, Hansen declared, "It is work product." Now, nowhere in the state statute for closing a meeting does it state that "work product" is a reason to close a meeting. Indeed, the TKDA Planner is contracted by the Board to work for the Township -you and me. Our taxes are paying for this, but Butch Hansen doesn't think taxpayers have a right to observe a Board-appointed committee discuss Township business that they are interested in! This group was going over the materials they are going to present at the upcoming Open House. (Town Hall, July 9th, 7:00 pm.) These materials are public information! These meetings are subject to the Open Meeting Law. What ARE they afraid of?

This meeting was not on the Township website, nor was it posted on the official bulletin board on the south side of the Town Hall. I told them they hadn't even posted the meeting and that they couldn't have secret meetings! Mr. Hansen repeated a shooing motion with his hand and said in a less-than-friendly tone, "Good-bye!" and again, "Good-bye!" and again and again and again...all the while dismissively shooing me away." How disrespectful of any Board Supervisor to treat any citizens in such a manner! This is simply outrageous behavior, and it has to stop. The rest of the "work group" was silent...

                     HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!

                          HOW IRONIC...

Time To Get A Handle On The Open Meeting Law!

                              
Township government, when it works well, is one of the best
forms of American government. It can also be one of the most
difficult when a board member, planning commission member of
committee appointed by the governing board fails to comply
with the laws which guide the township government.
                                                                           
The Eureka Township Board appointed four members to
serve on a committee to explore the feasibility of re-zoning
parts of the Northern corridor. This Board (which a few members
like to call the "work group,") are obligated to follow the
Open Meeting Law.

With limited exceptions, the Open Meeting Law (Minnesota
states, chapter 13D) says ALL meetings of public
bodies in Minnesota must be open to the public. The Open
Meeting Law also describes when a public body is required
or permitted to close a meeting.

On Thursday, June 27, I heard the "work group" was conducting
a closed meeting at the Town Hall at 7:00 p.m. I
decided to attend the meeting. When I arrived the Planner from TKDA,
(hired by the Board) and another citizen were waiting by the Town Hall
door as it was locked.

The Planner knocked on the door and Butch Hansen unlocked the
door and stepped out to let the Planner pass. He told me and the
other citizen that we were not allowed to come in as the meeting
was closed. We walked in with the Planner.

The meeting was going to be held in the conference room. Butch
Hansen was quite upset that we entered the building. Mark Ceminsky
met us in the office area and stated it was a closed meeting
and that we needed to leave. I explained to him that the group could not
conduct a closed meeting according to the requirements of the
Open Meeting Law. Mark stated that they can because they are a
"work group." Butch came out of the conference room
and stated that, "You do not know what you are talking about." The
meeting did not have to be posted and that they only posted
other "work group" meetings out of courtesy. Butch also stated
that there was not a quorum there, so the meeting did not need
to be posted. (There was a quorum of the committee at this meeting.
Three out of four members were there and the fourth member arrived
around10 minutes later).

Black's Law Dictionary: Quorum - The minimum number of
members (usu. a majority of all the members) who must be
present for a deliberative assembly to legally transact business.

The "work group" has NOT recorded their meetings and there
are no public minutes.  All closed meetings must be posted and the
recordings kept for three years. Before a public body can close a meeting
it must cite the State Statute that allows them to do so and indicate
the reason for the closed meeting.
See the State Statute below.
                                     
This "work group" was appointed
by the Board, works within a budget set by the Board and is spending
tax payers dollars. They are a Board-appointed committee. I reminded
Mark and Butch that if they are allowed to have a closed meeting
it needed to be posted as well as the reason for the meeting
which they did not do.  Mark strongly disagreed and stated that he was not
going to argue with me and that we needed to leave. I stated I was not
leaving. Mark then "threatened" that he would have to call the Sheriff.

Butch suggested I speak with my attorney. Mark stated the Planner
is an employee of the Township and they were discussing
her billing. (The Planner is not an employee of the Township. She
works for TKDA and the firm has a contract with the Township.
There is a difference between these two terms.)
                                   
Mark once again stated, "You need to leave," and "Come on, let's go."
He started walking towards the front door. The other citizen and I did
not follow him and Mark once again stated he guessed he would
have to call the Sheriff. We stayed and he walked outside the inner
front door, seeming to be quite frustrated. He then came back in.
I made the statement that it seems"no one is supposed to know what
is going on in this meeting."
Mark stated "not at this meeting." I asked if they were
going to report to the Board and he said they would.

Butch Hansen stated, "They can stand out there all night long."
They closed the conference room door. The other citizen and I left.

It is time to return to conscientious governing and work together to
build and create a strong, cohesive and supportive community.
Tax paying citizens should not be threatened with removal from the
Town Hall for wanting to attend a meeting which should have been
posted and open to the public under the Open Meeting Law.

The Minnesota Association of Townships offers seminars which
will educate our elected and appointed officials on the laws that
guide their duties and responsibilities.

13D.01 MEETINGS MUST BE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC; EXCEPTIONS. (listed

Subdivision 2.)

Subdivision 1.In executive branch, local government.

All meetings, including executive sessions, must be open to the public

(a) of a state

(1) agency,

(2) board,

(3) commission, or

(4) department,

when required or permitted by law to transact public business in a meeting;

(b) of the governing body of a

(1) school district however organized,

(2) unorganized territory,

(3) county,

(4) statutory or home rule charter city,

(5) town, or

(6) other public body;

(c) of any

(1) committee,

(2) subcommittee,

(3) board,

(4) department, or

(5) commission,

of a public body; and

(d) of the governing body or a committee of:

(1) a statewide public pension plan defined in section 356A.01, subdivision 24; or

(2) a local public pension plan governed by sections 424A.091to 424A.096, or chapter 354A, or Laws 2013, chapter 111, article 5, sections 31 to 42.

Subd. 2.Exceptions.

This chapter does not apply

(1) to meetings of the commissioner of corrections;

(2) to a state agency, board, or commission when it is exercising quasi-judicial functions involving disciplinary proceedings; or

(3) as otherwise expressly provided by statute.

Subd. 3.Subject of and grounds for closed meeting.

Before closing a meeting, a public body shall state on the record the specific grounds permitting the meeting to be closed and describe the subject to be discussed.

Subd. 4.Votes to be kept in journal.

(a) The votes of the members of the state agency, board, commission, or department; or of the governing body, committee, subcommittee, board, department, or commission on an action taken in a meeting required by this section to be open to the public must be recorded in a journal kept for that purpose.

(b) The vote of each member must be recorded on each appropriation of money, except for payments of judgments, claims, and amounts fixed by statute.

Subd. 5.Public access to journal.

The journal must be open to the public during all normal business hours where records of the public body are kept.

§

Subd. 6.Public copy of members' materials.

(a) In any meeting which under subdivisions 1, 2, 4, and 5, and section 13D.02must be open to the public, at least one copy of any printed materials relating to the agenda items of the meeting prepared or distributed by or at the direction of the governing body or its employees and:

(1) distributed at the meeting to all members of the governing body;

(2) distributed before the meeting to all members; or

(3) available in the meeting room to all members;

shall be available in the meeting room for inspection by the public while the governing body considers their subject matter.

(b) This subdivision does not apply to materials classified by law as other than public as defined in chapter 13, or to materials relating to the agenda items of a closed meeting held in accordance with the procedures in section 13D.03or other law permitting the closing of meetings.

Also from 13D:

0. What constitutes an open meeting. A meeting is open when proper notice was given in advance of the meeting, the public may attend and observe, and relevant materials are available to the public.
   Exceptions to the law. A meeting may be closed based on a limited attorney-client privilege, and for the purposes of labor negotiations, employee evaluations, and discussion of security issues and property transactions. The law does not apply to a governmental body exercising quasi-judicial functions involving disciplinary proceedings.