Thirty Lakes Watershed District
Board of Managers Meeting
June 23, 2008

Board Present:  D. Armstrong, T. Ebnet, J. Hampl, K. Svee, B. Yund.  Absent: None.

Also present were Rick Johnson and Bob Albrecht of the Advisory Committee, County Commissioner Rosemary Franzen, Kristin Dupre and Alan Cibuzar of A. W. Research Laboratories and Thirty Lakes Staff M. Peisch and T. Lauer.

The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by President Ebnet in the office of the Thirty Lakes Watershed District, 17064 Commercial Park Road, Brainerd, MN.

Agenda:  MOTION BY ARMSTRONG/YUND THAT THE AGENDA BE APPROVED AS PRESENTED WITH THE ADDITION OF DISCUSSION ABOUT THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND A PROPOSED PROJECT AT IVEN’S ON THE BAY.  ALL AYE, MOTION CARRIED.

Secretary’s Report:  MOTION BY ARMSTRONG/YUND THAT THE MINUTES OF THE JUNE 9, 2008 BE APPROVED AS PRESENTED.  ALL AYE, MOTION CARRIED.

Treasurer’s Report:  Reviewed by the Managers and filed for audit.

Monthly Bills:  MOTION BY ARMSTRONG/YUND THAT THE MONTHLY BILLS BE PAID AS PRESENTED.  ALL AYE, MOTION CARRIED.

Advisory Committee:  Bob Albrecht, Chairman of the Advisory Committee, suggested that recruiting within the District be done to fill the two vacancies in the Committee.  D. Armstrong suggested that teenagers be recruited to provide a “fresh” opinion.  Advertising may be done at Central Lakes College.

It was suggested that a copy of the BWSR letter addressing the selection of Watershed Managers be sent to each of the County Commissioners.

B. Albrecht suggested that a “memo of understanding” be drawn up between the Managers and the County Commissioners that members of the Advisory Committee would be given special consideration for appointment to the position of Manager.

Iven’s on the Bay:  The proposed project was to create a rain garden or shoreline buffer on the north end of the parking lot.  Funds may be available through the DNR or LCCMR.  These funds come from fishing & hunting licenses and the state lottery.

Gilbert Lake:  The meeting with the residents of Gilbert Lake has been postponed until Fall due to  scheduling conflicts.

Jolly Rogers Common Interest Community:  Two large storage buildings are being constructed.  This resulted in a lot of clearing of trees and compaction of soils.  There is also an issue of water and sediment entering the neighboring wetland.  An amendment to the original Permit will be required, since some of the original units are gone, and there are some new buildings not included.
MOTION BY HAMPL/ARMSTRONG TO MEET WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF JOLLY ROGERS REGARDING AN AMENDED PLAN AND PERMIT, AND THEN INVITE THEM TO ATTEND A FUTURE WATERSHED MANAGERS MEETING.  ALL AYE, MOTION CARRIED.

Whitebirch Common Interest Community Wash-Out:  D. Armstrong and J. Hampl showed photographs taken during an onsite inspection.  The vegetation has not been established, and there was erosion taking place. 

MOTION BY HAMPL/ARMSTRONG THAT THE DRAWINGS DATED 9/14/06 BY LANDECKER & ASSOCIATES BE ADDED TO THE ORIGINAL PERMIT #99111 THEREBY AMENDING IT TO INCLUDE THE NEW POOL BUILDING.  ALL AYE, MOTION CARRIED.

MOTION BY ARMSTRONG/HAMPL THAT A LETTER BE SENT TO JEFF JOHNSON REQUESTING THAT EROSION CONTROL MEASURES BE PUT INTO PLACE AROUND THE POOL BUILDING UNTIL THE VEGETATION HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED.  ALL AYE, MOTION CARRIED.

*note:  Beth Hippert of Crow Wing Soil & Water Conservation District is managing the NPDES Permit for the MN Pollution Control Agency on this project, and was advised of the erosion situation.

Pelican Lake Stormwater Project:  T. Ebnet stated that this project is too small to justify the cost of establishing a Stormwater Utility District.

Mark Hallan will be invited to submit a bid for the engineering of Phase 2.

Some of the questions that must be answered are:  Can Thirty Lakes Watershed District finance the project and be paid back by the property owners?  What is the cost of assessment to the benefiting properties?  How much will Thirty Lakes contribute to the project?

Another public meeting with the stakeholders will be set for July 12th or 19th.   At the last public meeting, residents resisted the idea of losing 15 parking spaces for the retention area.  Topics for further discussion will be:  How many parking spaces are they willing to give up, and what other area(s) can be used for retention?  Can off-site parking for boats be used?  Does the Breezy Point Resort have the rights to the entire parking lot?

Budget Workshop:  Set for July 14th, following the regular meeting.

Drahos Northwood Development:  Attorney Kurt Deter has reviewed the Homeowner Association documents and stated in his June 16, 2008 letter that the interests of the Watershed District are protected.  He further states that a legal description of the Conservation Easement property will be required.

Letter to Representative Oberstar:  MOTION BY HAMPL/ARMSTRONG THAT A LETTER BE DRAWN UP USING COMMENTS OF BOTH DRAFT LETTERS AND SENT TO JAMES OBERSTAR WITH A COPY OF THE WATERSHED DISTRICT GUIDE BOOK.  ALL AYE, MOTION CARRIED.

Letter to FAA:  No letter will be sent to the FAA at this time.

Stearn’s County Model:  The Managers reviewed this Excel model which estimates the total Phosphorus runoff of a given parcel, together with the sizing of a bioretention area.

Werring Procedure:  Kristin Dupre of A. W. Research showed the Managers a Power Point presentation about the Werring Procedure.

DNR Public Waters Work Permits:

Earl Hemmerich:  The Permit was issued on 6/16/08 for Pelican Lake Channel Access Improvement.  There were questions as to where the spoils will be taken, how they will be protected until they are moved, and if a dredge fence will be used during excavation.

Brian Wiswell:  This application indicates that work will be done during the winter months.  This information will be confirmed.  If it is done in the summer when the lake is not frozen, then a dredge fence will be required.  The location of the excavated spoils must be determined, and anything over 200 yards must be moved out of the area.

Policy for Project Cost Sharing:  Administrator to contact other Watershed Districts to obtain a copy of their cost share policies, as well as SWCD and the University of MN.

Etc.  Crow Wing County Fair:  MOTION BY HAMPL/YUND THAT THIRTY LAKES WATERSHED DISTRICT FOREGO THE BOOTH AT THE CROW WING COUNTY FAIR ND EXPLORE OTHER AVENUES  WHERE TIME AND RESOURCES CAN BE INVESTED TO INCREASE OUR PROFILE IN THE COMMUNITY.

ROLL CALL VOTE:  D. ARMSTRONG – AYE,  J. HAMPL – AYE,  K. SVEE – AYE,  B. YUND – AYE,  T. EBNET – NAY.  MOTION CARRIED.

MOTION BY AMRSTRONG/YUND THAT THE MEETING BE ADJOURNED AT 2:40 P.M.