CRANE LAKE WATER & SANITARY DISTRICT (CLWSD)

BOARD OF MANAGERS’ REGULAR MEETING

Crane Lake Chapel Fellowship Hall

Wednesday, February 5, 2025 – 1:00 PM

The meeting was called to order at 1:00PM

Members present: Mark Anderson, Bonnie Caughey, Deena Congdon, and Rob Scott.  Also present: Maintenance Worker Jeff Truebenbach, Pumper Truck Driver Scott Halldorson; and Clerk/Treasurer Jo Ann Pohlman.

Members absent:  Darrell Scott.

Minutes: A motion was made by B. Caughey, supported by R. Scott, to approve the minutes of the 1/8/25 Regular & Reorganization Meeting.  All voted in favor and the motion carried. 

Correspondence:  The correspondence list was reviewed by the Board.  A motion was made by B. Caughey, supported by M. Anderson, that the correspondence be placed on file and acted upon as required. All voted in favor and the motion carried.

Treasurer’s Report:  Clerk/Treasurer J. Pohlman presented the December 2024 Financial Statements, which were Previous Year Comparisons and had been reviewed with Jennifer of Glorvigen, to the Board.  January 2025 payroll:  Admin – $2,630.00 & Operating – $7,775.00.  Payroll Taxes:  PERA – $1,217.86, Fed Dep. – $1,965.00, & MN Dep. – $325.00.  2024 Final Tax Apportionment was received on 1/27/25:  Levy – $582.86 & S.A.R. – $219.81. A fund transfer of $13,434.31 was made from Capital Reserve savings to Operating Fund checking for Valve Replacement at the WWTP and a trailer.  Ziegler Co. was paid $95,095.59 for pumper truck updates.  A motion was made by M. Anderson, supported by D. Congdon, to accept the Treasurer’s Report as presented and to approve the January bills as follows:  Admin – $3,608.00, Legacy Fund – $17,830.00, & Operating – $6,501.89.  All voted in favor and the motion carried. 

Funding Balances:  The balances were reviewed with the Board. The MPCA-CWP Loan was unchanged.  A motion was made by R. Scott, supported by D. Congdon, to use Legacy Funds for ISTS payments before using the ARPA Funds.  All voted in favor and the motion carried. 

Levy Considerations (Admin/Operations): The Board is reviewing their account distribution within the District funds with the advice of their accountants.  There was no action.

Administration

• Rate Study:  D. Congdon & Bonnie Caughey continue with the study.
• Land Use Permit:  A motion was made by D. Congdon, supported by M. Anderson, to approve Jeff Truebenbach’s application to St. Louis County for a Land Use Permit to construct an accessory building.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Board Requirement (Options):  Legislative action would be needed to reduce the Board from 5 to 3 Managers. The Board is considering the Clerk/Treasurer as a Manager.  A motion was made by R. Scott, supported by B. Caughey, to approve the Clerk/Treasurer as a Board Manager following procedure for appointment.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.  The Clerk/Treasure is a paid position. The District’s attorney will be asked if the Clerk/Treasurer could still be paid if that person were also a Manager.  

Joint Powers Board

• State and Federal Grant Funding:  1.2Million has been approved by the Clean Water Council, per the JPB request. The amount that Crane Lake will receive to continue ISTS installations is yet to be determined.
• WWTP Testing:  The expense of required testing at the plant is extremely high.  R. Scott requested that the JPB & St. Louis County help in the search for a remedy.  Work continues.

S.E.H. Engineering Update 

• District Update:  There was no update needed. 

O & M. (Decentralized)

• Management Program Update:  The Schwanke Install was discussed at the committee level.  The committee recommendation was to pay a portion of the final billing for the install.  A motion was made by R. Scott, supported by D. Congdon, to pay $6,003.90 of the final bill, with the Schwanke’s paying the remaining $11,848.60.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.  A release form will be created for signature by both parties.  A heat tape to prevent freezing needs to be installed at the property – Jeff Truebenbach will talk to Ron Rutchasky of Rutchasky Enterprises about completing this.
• Yearly O&M Review:  There was no update.

CLWSD Meeting Minutes –February 5, 2025

O & M Update (Centralized)

• Operations Report:  Rob Scott Jr. provided the following report:  We met all the MPCA effluent limits for the month of December.  The plant is operating well. The influent volume has seen some increase, which is a good indication that there are some snowmobilers moving through the area. The plant water temperature is 34 degrees.

There was an issue at the new Crane Lake Visitor Center a couple of weeks ago. One of the new grinder pumps had a broken bracket that must have vibrated before burning out, that must have caused a crack in the coupler/check valve, that moves the water from the grinder pumps to the main collection line. This issue should be resolved this week once Casper receives a new pump and valve. We will be sending a bill to the contractor for Lance’s and Jeff’s time to help resolve this issue, since this is still an open contract for the Visitor Center.

• Pumper Truck:  Scott Halldorson reported on the pumper truck update. Much of the update has been completed, but the truck is in need of valve repair, muffler replacement and other work.  Some of this work can be done by members of the District.  There was discussion of the need for general clean-up and storage of items around the WWTP.  A motion was made by R. Scott to move the truck to a storage building in Greaney and analyze for further repair.  The motion died for lack of support.    

Public Comments: There were none.

The meeting was adjourned at 2:00PM

Jo Ann Pohlman, Clerk

NEXT MEETING:   Board of Manager’s Meeting – March 5, 2025 – 1:00PM, Fellowship Hall

This draft of the CLWSD minutes has been posted solely for preliminary informational purposes.  Minutes are unofficial and subject to change until they have been approved by the CLWSD Board of Managers.