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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1976 Stillwater City Newsletter• • CITY OF STILLWATER, MN. Fall, 1976 GENERAL ELECTION Have you registered to vote? If not, it can be done on election day at your polling place, but you must bring some type of identification with you - you will first register and then you can vote. The General Election will be held on Tuesday, November 2, 1976. Polling places will be open from 7:00 A. M. to 8:00 P. M. and if you do not know the location of your polling place, please call the City offices 439-6121 to obtain this information. For your information the following persons are on the ballot for the Municipal Election for two council seats: James B. Gannon Roger A. Peterson William H. Powell Glenn C. Thompson FALL PICKUP The following dates have been set for the annual Fall Pickup of leaves or grass trimmings, tree and hedge trimmings: Monday, November 8 to 12:00 P. M. Wednesday, November 10th all property from the North City Limits to the North Side of Myrtle Street Wednesday, November 10 (12:30 P. M.) thru Friday November 12 all property from the South side of Martha Street to the South City Limits This pickup will NOT include appliances, building materials, used furniture, trees or tires. Drop boxes are provided by the City on the Municipal Building Parking Lot for any citizen of the City to deposit the aforementioned articles. Articles that cannot be placed into the drop boxes should be left beside the boxes and City forces will deposit them inside the boxes. --- REHABILITATION GRANTS for low-income homeowners are now available in the City of Stillwater. These rehabilitation funds have been appropriated to the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency and are being cooperatively administered by the Metropolitan Council HRA and the City of Stillwater. Eligible homeowners must have an annual adjusted gross income of less than $5,000 and occupy the property to be improved. The maximum amount of a grant is $5,000 with priority for elderly homeowners and for energy-saving improvements such as insulation, weather- stripping, roofing and caulking. A total of $33,858 in rehabilitation grant funds have been reserved for Stillwater Residents. For more information about the program, and to apply for a rehabilita- tion grant, call the City Clerk's office at 439-6121 during the hours, of 8:30 A. M. to 4:30 P. M. WASHINGTON COUNTY LIBRARY FALL BOOKMOBILE SCHEDULE First Presbyterian Church 1:45 to 2:10 - Nov. 11, Dec. 9 and 23. (over) Again, as a part of its continuing Dutch Elm Disease and Tree Replace- ment program, and in celebration of ARBOR DAY 1977 and as a Bicentennial Project, the City of Stillwater is offering seedlings and saplings free of charge to all residents who want them for planting on their property. Orders for trees must be made on the form below and returned to the City Municipal Building, 216 North Fourth Street NO LATER THAN DECEMBER 10, 1976~ Trees will be bundled and delivered during the week of April 30th - ARBOR DAY. Residents must do their own planting. The Jaycees - will again help the elderly to plant their trees if requested to do so. This years' trees will "De of a larger caliber, transplants that have larger root systems. You may order one of the following per residence. CHECK YOUR CHOICE ADDRESS ARBOR DAY -- FREE TREES -- 1977- GREEN ASH 6 - -8 Feet - Hardy large - growing tree HONEYLOCUST, thornless - fast growing tree with fine textured leaves, open spreading growth habit POPLAR, Robusta - cottonless cottonwood THESE TREES WILL BE PURCHASED WHOLESALE AND MAY VARY SOMEWHAT FROM THE HEIGHTS MENTIONED ACCORDING TO SUPPLY AT THE TIME OF ORDERING. THE CITY OF STILLWATER MAKES NO GUARANTEES, IMPLIED OR OTHERWISE. NAME PHONE NO. I am a Senior Citizen and I would like to have the Jaycees help in planting my trees (check with an "x" ) (over) • OF STILLWATER, PEAT. $UMM$R 197.6 copies made, the Stillwater!PAlic.tibraryhasa which is available to the public` during. their regular business hours. XEROX COPY SERVICE If you have a need to have coin operated Xerox copier VOTER REGISTRATION Are you a new resident of our community or have you, ; moved within Our City since the last election in 1974? If so it is necessary that you fill out a registration form to make yourself eligible to vote - :the Primary Elec- tion, September 14th and the General Election, November 2nd. These forms are.available at the City Hall, 216 N. 4th $t. .or .at.the Auditor's''Offide, Washington County Courthouse on 61st Street. Completsdlcar•.ds :axe tonbe:. returned to the County Auditor's office at an early date to enable the clerk's to get the files completed for the election judges. . ,By State Law all voter registration offices:. are requires 'to remain open on the .following dates prior to the .September.' Primary. Election to enable .the voters to obtain and complete, forms hO rs: - _E.< Friday, August 20 Saturday, August 21 Monday, August 23 Tuesday, August 24 Until 9:00 p. M. ti 10:00 A. M. to 4:00 P. Until 9:0G P. M. Until 9:00 P. M. Residents of the City of Stillwater may register either at the C.ty ll, 216 North Fourth Street or at the Washington Countyaparthouse PO, 6lst Street North. It is also possible to register the same day you vote, but it will mean a delay in voting since you will have to first get in line to register and then you will have to get into the voting line... We :strongly urge' that you register ,. prior to the elections. ELECTION JUDGES The City Clerk's Office is now accepting applications for election judges for the upcoming elections. If you are interested in serving as an election judge, please contact 439 -6121 and leave your name, address, phone number -and party affiliation with the receptionist and you will be contacted at a later date. DUTCH ELM PROGRAM Well over 200 trees have been marked to be removed they are diseased. After your tree has been marked by a member of the Public Works Department-, you will receive a letter from the City regarding of same. If you are approached by a tree trimmer, to have a tree removed, be sure the contractor is licensed to operate in the City of Stillwater., If in doubt, . just call City Hall - 439 -6121. Dutch Elm Trees should not be trimmed during the period from April 15th to the end of August since this is the time that thebeettles are very active. At no time should trimmings- or any part of elm trees be deposited at the Dump Boxes behind City Hall. APPLICATIONS FOR THE PLANNING COMMISSION Any requests for Special Use Permits and/or variances must be submitted toy. the City Clerk's Office at least ten days prior to the first Monday of each month, which is the normal meeting date for the Planning Commission, so that they have ample time to study same before their meeting. If ;you have any questions, please call 439 -6121. PAGE 2 SUMMER 1976 GARBAGE RATE INCREASEE The new rates effective July 1, 1976 are as follows: Single Family $3.80 per month Duplex - First Unit $3.80 per month - Second Unit $3.00 per month Multiple - First Unit $3.80 per month -Remaining Units $2.40 per month Senior Citizens $1.00 per month Bills which are 90 days overdue as of October 10th, will be certified on your next year's property taxes along with a penalty charge. CONTRACTORS We have received numerpus calls recently about contractors approaching home owners to do repair and/or maintenance work for them. All suCh contractors should be licensed by he City to work here and if you 'have any questions about a given contractor, give us a call and we can verify this for you - this is for your own protection that you are engaging a properly licensed contractor to do work or you. FROM YOUR PIRE DEPARTMENT The following is an article written by John Zolier, assistant Chief in the Stillwater Fire Department. He has Served in the Fire Department for twenty years as both a full-time firefighter and as a volunteer: Dear Editor and Citizens of Stillwater: "As most of you know, some of the residents of this city have recently been the unfortunate v of fire. In the past few weeks there have been four dwelling fires - one involved a six-piex, two were duplexes and one a single family dwelling, In two of these fires the people involved were very fortunate in that someone was awakened in some way by the products of com- bustion. I was involved in these two fires and 1 personally believe that a few more precious minutes and there would have been a tragic loss of life. These few minutes can be gained by the installation of one or more approved smoke detectors. Whether they are the ionization type or the photo-electric type makes no difference in my opinion as they are equally responsive to the products of combustion They are in my opinion superior in response-to the heat detector type as applied to the saving of human life. I have two in my home and am going to add a third. I know from personal experience that they work. In my case, what could have been a major loss was held to a very minor one when my unit acti- vated. State law reqm.res detectors in all new dwelling units, but no pro- visions are made for e isting dwellings. It is up to the individual to take the initiative and ins all his own. There are vari us brands being sold and all must meet the standards set up by the State of Minnesota. I hope I can convey to you how strongly I feel about this. It i an investment in peace of mind. If you love your family, please take ti e to check into the purchase of one or more of these life saving devices. ey would make a very worthwhile and practical gift. It could be the most portant purchase of your loved ones lives." This article pints up the need for these detectors in dwellings and Fire Chief David Chial recommends that they be installed in all homes and apartments. He does n t recommend any particular brand, but would caution you against spending t o much for such detectors - they are available for less than $60.00. If you have any questions, please feel free to call the Fire DeparLirient - 439-6120. (over) WI R 1976 DOG LEASH LAW PAY SEWER/GARBAGE BILLS AT ST. CROIX DRUG Effective immediately, you may pay your Sewer and Garbage bill at St. Croix Drug at Main and Chestnut any time they are open. The City Council authorized this new procedure in response to requests for extended office hours and the increase in postage, from 100 to 130 Water bills, however, still can only be paid at the Water Board office at 204 North Third Street. In December, the City Council adopted an amendment to the Dog Ordinance requiring that all dogs must be under physical re- straint when they are off your property. Formerly, they had only to be under your voice control. If the dog remains in your yard, voice control is still sufficient. In addition, the Council de -sexed the license fee portion of the Ordinance. In an effort to get all animals licensed, the fee for unspayed females was reduced from $25 down to. $3, the figure that still also'applies to males and spayed females. License renewals are due May 1, 1976. LIBRARY JOINS METRO COOPERATIVE LIBRARY SERVICE AGENCY Through a contract arrangement with the Washington County Library, Stillwater has become an associate member of MELSA (Metro- politan Library Service Agency). One of the first signs that Stillwater residents will see of this will come in March when the library will begin to issue new borrowers' cards. Stillwater residents with a valid Stillwater Public Library card will b a able to boo ro w books from Washington County Library branches and most other libraries in the seven county metropolitan area. If you want a book which the Stillwater Public Library doesn't have, the library can request a copy for you through inter-library loan. Also, reference questions that they can't answer can be referred to larger libraries. But there are a lot of questions the library can answer for you and a lot of services that it can provide, from reader °s aid to Xerox copying. At the Stillwater Library there are lots of new books, records, magazines and pamphlets. Story hours are still scheduled for Wednesday morning, but you might very well find a parents' "story hour" going on at the same time. During February, the talks will be on how to be an effective parent. The library's Bicentennial project, the micro - filming of old Stillwater newspapers, is well underway. April 4-10 is National Library Week this year and the Stillwater Library has a range of new services to offer. . Special programs for both children and adults are on the drawing board for the month. of April. Details will be published later in the Gazette and on WAVN. Library Adult winter hours are from 10 A. M. to 9 M. Monday thru Thursday, 10 A. M. to 5 P. M. Friday and Saturday. Childrens hours are from 10 A. M. to 5 P. M. every day except Thursday which is 10 A. M. to 9 P. M. Their number is 439 -1675. JOINT PLANNING AGREEMENT WITH STILLWATER TOWNSHIP • The County Board with its vote last month to join the City and Stillwater Township in a Joint Planning Agreement has paved the way for a coordinated planning effort on the north side of Highway 36/212, west of the A SiW, all the way out to County Road 15 (Berg- mann's). Most of this area is in Stillwater Township and is part of the Orderly Annexation Agreement between the City and the Township. By the terms of the agreement, that property will come into the City as it is ready to develop. By actual 2ount, there have been only 11 commercial buildings built within the city limits of Stillwater since 1945. Hopefully the burden on the residential property tax payer can be eased and employment opportunities increased through a thoughtful joint planning effort in this area. As an older community, we are fortunate to be able to have this opportunity for expansion of our commercial/industrial tax and employment base at this stage of our development. RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY::: In case an/ one asks you if we had any rain last summer.... Boy, did we have rail last summer April 6.56" (Record) May 4.38" June L0.20" (Record) July 3.33" August 8.02" (Record) On top of this, the March snow melt was equivalent to about 10" of rain. No wonder that we had a few problems with our drainage system. (Fortunately the new system we built as a part of the Sewer Separation project in 1973 survived the severe test). The problem related to Lily Lake and the areas tributary to Long Lake. In order to protect the Ice Arena, the Brick Street Lift station and a couple of houses, 50,000,000 gallons of water were pumped from Lily Lake to the St. Croix. The pipe and pumps used for that purpose will ultimately be used (if we can get a permit) to periodically pump water from Lily to McKusick (which needs water) and then an outfall to the east, down the Mulberry ravine (as it once flowed) to the =iver. The ravine, which is virtually all owned by the City, hopefully could then be turned into a very scenic linear park. And McKusick Lake could better be utilized for recreation purposes with a few foot increase in its level. We are still struggling with what to do with Long Lake. The pond problem on County Road 5 has been pretty well settled with the installatioA of a storm sewer overflow to Long Lake. We have applied for several permits for the control of the level of Long Lake. Right now the lake is about 3 feet higher than we would like it. Several property owners are quite concerned about this level question. All of the commercial/industrial land referred to in the item about the Joint Planning Agreement drain into Lily or Long Lakes. No permits for extensive developments will probably be DOG LICENSES DUE STAPLES FIELD TENNIS COURTS VOTER REGISTRATION If you have moved you must change yo you can now regist time for you and t application forms County Auditor's 0 If you call (439 -6 convenience. BURGLARIES SPRING 1976 Dog licenses were due for renewal on May 1st. A renewal (for both males and females) costs $3.00. A current rabies certificate (less than two years) must be presented. The Staples Field 'Tennis Courts, a gift to the City from the Margaret River Foundation should be completed by the end of May. The a plication of the color coat is a sensitive process and temper tures must be above 60 before it is laid down. O or within the City in the last two years, ✓ voter registration. It is true that ✓ to vote at the polling places, but to save make it easier for the Election Judges, re available at the City Hall or at the f ice . 21) we will mail the forms to you for your Over the past year there has been a drastic increase in the number of house burglaries in the City. One of the most frequent points of entry is through open garage doors. Residents are asked to make rure that all doors to their homes be locked when there is no one home. The modern burglar is quite astute at detecting unoccupied homes and can strip your home of valuables in a very short period of time. . Operation Identification equipment and information is available at the offices of the Washington County Sheriff. (439 -9381)