Call to order the regular meeting of the City Council for Monday, June 8th, 2026. Clerk. Please call the roll. Councilor Christensen here. Councilor Baker here. Councilor Herman here. Councilor Olsen here. Councilor van Beek here. Councilor. Anderson here. And
Mayor Murray here. Would you please rise and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance? I pledge. Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God,
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Welcome to everyone tonight. Whether you're here or online, we're glad you're with us. And I would just like to make an announcement that if you are here tonight and wish to speak on the public forum, make sure
you're signed up because you need to be on that list in order to speak. Um, item three tonight is ceremonial items. We do not have any, so we'll move along to the public forum item for. Thank you. All right. Our
first speaker tonight is Todd Breck. Come on up. Welcome. Good evening everybody. Never been here before. Thank you for allowing me to be here. Um, short story, I guess, uh, two
years ago, my wife Joann, and I moved back to Albert Lea. Uh, we were from the Twin Lakes area. We moved up to Waterville, where we lived for four years. Wanted to come back. Kids, grandkids. Bought a house right across the lake over here on North Shore Avenue. Um, bought it quickly because things seem to happen
that way. First thing I did was a survey. Uh, with the survey, I learned that my pervious, permeable, allowable hardscape water runoff was already 3% existing over what was allowed. Uh, when I bought the house, I thought, oh, I've fixed some other houses, built a house. I thought, we'll spend some time,
we'll fix it up. We'll do some things. Um, with the 3% over, every time I get someone in there, try to do something. It's. What do you want to tear out to start the sidewalk part of the driveway? You want to lose some of your hardscape? Uh, to try and get the percentage to get a permit to modernize and do some work
there. What I'm here about is, is I've had some different sets of eyes in there and look at it, kind of try and come up with some ideas what to do. Uh, you folks, the city owns a half lot behind me on Giles. It's about a ten, 12 foot elevation
from my property to it. It's steep slope, but the square footage of it, if I was to be able to acquire it. Take it off your hands. The square footage of it would allow us to have allowable extra square feet. So if we wanted to do an addition, wanted to do some work, wanted
to do some things where my goals take me, it wow us to do it. Um, in a nutshell, you guys have a half a property behind us there that I could utilize if it was any way doable. And without it, I'm kind of against the hard spot
here. Um, I don't want to tear out sidewalk or driveway just to try and do work in other places of the house. So it's a problem I've dealt with before. But the other lake property is that, um, it's not going to go away, but it's just one way here. I thought I'd show up and
see if there's a way of remedying it by taking over some city property. Possible. Okay, I appreciate that. And I'm just going to ask you if you will contact either, um, the city manager or your counselor. Ward for Reed Olson.
And just at least give them your phone number, okay, so that they can reach out to you. Okay. All right. Thank you. All right. Thank you. Hold on. Can I have a repeat of the address? The address. You're referring to. 941 North Shore Avenue. Okay. Thank you. Thank you folks.
Thank you. Todd. The second speaker tonight is Kim Hamer. Welcome. Thanks. Um, after I talked to Rachel today, she asked me to come and, um, tell you guys kind of
what we spoke about with regard to the cats at large part of the ordinance. Um, my point in this, I, in fact, I had all your phone numbers written down. I was going to contact you after last meeting because, um, I got a few phone calls
that made me think that maybe you weren't going to get the effect that you were hoping for. With that particular part of the ordinance. Um, I think that with, um. All right, I'm going to start by saying
statistically, um, 75% of people or 75% of the cats that people own come from the streets, so that being said, if you have a cat that, um, wants to go inside, outside, um, and
you and you're pushed to the line as far as keeping it inside or letting it go again, I would say that in my experience, most people are going to let them go, either rehome them or just put them back outside. Um, because
having a cat in your house, in your house that doesn't want to stay in your house, if you know, you know it, it doesn't work very well. So, um, and to put that into kind of Albert Lee perspective, statistically, 30% of Minnesota households
have cats. If they have one cat, they generally have the average is two. So in Albert Lee, 30% of the homes would mean that there's probably about 4000 cats in town. And if
75% of those came off the streets, that's about 3000 cats. So, um, I just think I had some phone calls asking if I would help rehome these, uh, cats. That would have to be inside. Outside the Humane Society doesn't adopt out cats
to be outside. We always adopt out cats that are inside. Cats. If we have cats that need to be outside, we have a program called the Working Cats Program, and we find homes for them on farms or in businesses that want rodent control or
whatever. And they're free. But they're they're part of the agreement is that they'll take good care of these cats and feed them and, and keep them contained so that they know where home is. But as far as our adopted animals go, they're
inside cats. So when people ask us to help them rehome these cats that want to be inside, outside, we don't have a whole lot of resources to do that. We don't have a lot of farm properties that are begging us for cats and that kind of stuff. We have a few and we and
we do that with the cats that can't be socialized and adopted out into, you know, into homes. But, um, it kind of it kind of panicked me a little bit that this part of the ordinance might have a different effect
than what you were hoping for. So I just wanted to, uh, I just wanted to tell you that so that you can consider that. Thank you. Kim. You're welcome. All right. Next, we have Brad
Kirshner. Welcome. Thanks for the chance to speak. Um, I had an idea after your last meeting, or I would have shared it sooner. It might be a little late, but, um, with when people have a lot of animals, I
know tons of people that have lots of animals. They generally take very good care of them. And the people that generally you see animals running amok and rampant, not being taken care of. Well, they usually just don't pay much of attention. And the thought that
I had is if you we already know that the police are tracking the number of calls because they cited how many calls they had. If a Google doc could simply be created and a demerit system created where if so many visits happen to a house, and
when I say visits, justifiable abuse or mis, you know somebody that's not doing something, not just a neighbor trying to get mad at another neighbor and get back at them by calling, you know, and complaining because they know they have a pet. But a demerit system that would allow that the the police at
that point to take it to another level, know what that another level is or how many demerits it is, but just a simple system that would say, okay, obviously this particular household has a problem and deal with it one at a time versus, you know, I work for a company and sometimes we get
rules that cover everybody, and everybody isn't breaking the rules. So trying to keep it simple. I know we have limited staff and people to be able to deal with all this, so just something that would be of a case where you could go in and say, okay, this is obviously a problem. We're going to either
take those animals away or deal with fines or whatever it may be, to try to change the behavior, because a lot of people that are in those situations, they they don't care about the animals. And I mean, I'm thinking about the animals too. Kids get taken away from bad homes. Animals shouldn't be any different. I
know they're not as high on the chain, but some people, animals are their kids. So that's all I had to say. All right. Appreciate it. Thank you. All right. Item five is a consent and approval of agenda A is the approval of minutes of the May 26th, 2026
regular council meeting. Item B is the approval of minutes of the May 26th, 2026 work session. Item C is licensed in permits. Item D is a resolution approving plans and specifications and ordering advertisement for the airport snow removal equipment,
building door job 2608. Council moved to approve consent and approval of agenda, Your Honor. Motion by Councilor Baker. Is there a second? I'll second, Your Honor. Second, by Councilor Herman. Any further discussion? All in favor of the motion, signify by saying aye. Aye. I opposed nay.
Motion carries. Item six is petitions requesting communications. We have none. Tonight we'll move along to item seven. Unfinished business and A is ordinance 26156 amending chapter eight. Article two animal control. Second reading. City manager.
Thank you, Your Honor. The proposed amendments to the Animal Control Ordinance ordinance update and modernize and modernization of the city's approach to responsible pet ownership, public safety, and community expectations. Several sections of the existing ordinance were outdated, no
longer aligned with current best practices and needs or community concerns. The revisions aim to clear to clarify definitions, strengthen nuisance and safety provisions, and ensure consistent, enforceable standards for both pet owners and animal control staff. Key amendments are
outlined in the summary included. Um, excuse me, that line is no longer added. Uh, I would say that the key summary of the changes since the last time the council discussed this and, uh, passed the ordinance
as an amendment, as amended, did reduce, um, excuse me, uh, took away the separation of cats and dogs at two each and made it for animals altogether per household. So it could be
three dogs, one cat, four cats, four dogs. Um, or less, of course. So that was the key change that was made since the last meeting. Is that it? That is it.
All right. Thank you. Council move to approve, your honor. Motion by Councilor Anderson. Is there a second? I'll second, Your Honor. Second, by Councilor Herman. Further discussion, councilor. Baker, I would like, uh, the police Chief Hansen, to come up and speak about the the
enforcement difference than what it used to be. And I've had people ask how this is going to work and just to maybe clarify that a little bit more. Again, would be appreciative. Chief Hansen, welcome. Good afternoon. Or good evening, I should say.
Um. Yes. Enforcement is, uh, one of those topics that, uh, there is a lot of discretion in it because you do have a lot of good pet owners that maybe may make a mistake once, and you have others where it's repeated. And we need to adjust
that behavior somehow. Uh, sometimes we can do it through education. Sometimes that's not effective. Um, we're currently dealing one property in town where we've issued, I believe, five citations recently for dog at large. Trying to change that behavior.
So we're working hard to adjust those behaviors as we identify them. So in a situation like that, you have five citations. What does that amount to as far as the homeowner is there. Is there a penalties or um.
You know, that's for court. Um, okay. I believe there's probably some sort of standard fine that they can pay. They probably do not have to go to court on it unless we force that issue. Okay. Additional questions,
discussion. City manager. Uh, to, uh, also explain a little bit more as to as it relates to enforcement. Um, of course, when you get into this, you might have to get the courts involved potentially, or have certain, um, exigent
circumstances. But we do also have the ability under the ordinance to remove the animal from a situation where there is potential danger or a continued nuisance or unsanitary conditions. So that is something that has been added that was not in the ordinance
previously. Previously, it was always about fines. Uh, and um, this I believe, was added that we could actually remove the animal, uh, from the uh, from the home. If, if that was what
was necessary. Previously or currently. We can only remove the animal if the animal's in danger or causing a danger to someone else. Okay. So with this new ordinance, um, if you write a citation, are there fines that. I mean, can it be.
I believe it's a petty misdemeanor violation. So it only be a fine. Yeah. There's not jail time or anything. No, but it would be like a speeding ticket or something like that. Yeah. That's correct. Correct. Okay, so there are there are fines. And may I comment. Briefly. City attorney. Be aware. That a citation results in a
first appearance of court, which currently is going to be October or November. So there's this belief that issuing a citation causes some sort of expedited response. In fact, issuing a citation to a person almost inevitably delays their obligation to deal with the
issue. A first appearance results typically in a setting of either settlement, conference or a pretrial jury trial calendar, which means if first appearance in October is likely going to be dealt with in December or January. The
next comment I'd like to make as defines yes, we have standard fines and we assess them all the time, and we rarely collect them because a disproportionate number of offenders are people that qualify for public defender, meaning they are politely said, under-resourced. And so a
defendant like that will get a fine, whether it's mandatory or not. But if they can't pay it, we don't put them in jail for non-payment of fine. We tend to certify it into the state collection system, which means they're deducted from future tax returns or tax refunds, as is the premise. The people that
we have that are under-resourced and getting a citation and a $300 fine or $250 fine generally are not getting tax refunds. So they essentially are just ting unpai we don't have a realistic means of collecting. So the
educational component and the personal contact that the department has as a response is the most effective tool that I've seen work. It is just good old fashioned human beings from the community, talking to people in the community and making an evaluation of that
individual circumstances is what's dealing with the problem. The courts are really a lousy way to deal with the issue because they're just not very effective. Our police department is very effective. Right. Thank you. Your Honor. Councilor Anderson. Well.
Chief Hansen is up here. I wanted. Him to discuss the the trap and release. I've had a few comments about, uh, people are concerning that we're outlawing the feeding of cats, but really, you're just. We're controlling it a little bit better. You want to know where they're being fed so that it's coordinated so we can further please elaborate.
Correct. We have several areas where they've become makeshift feeding stations, so to speak. And we do have new ones that pop up from time to time. Uh, we'd like to be able to monitor them and know where the feeding stations are, because the feeding stations will work hand
in hand with our TNR program. Uh, when we have a new feeding station pop up that may bring more animals in. Um, you know, it takes us time to identify it. And it makes the problem kind of grow exponentially with the cats. Um, instead of being able to focus our efforts on a
handful of feeding stations, uh, Camp Companion needs to spread their efforts out wider to look at other areas where feeding stations are popping up. Um, where we have done the TNR, we have had good success controlling the numbers. It brings the numbers down. The
cats appear to be less aggressive in my opinion. So would you say that the way that the ordinance is written will actually help your efforts with with TNR? More? If, you know, getting the public coordinating with that sort. Of to my understanding, yes. Um, you know, Camp Companion is the one that truly runs the TNR
program. Um, I try and give them the resources they need to be effective with what they do. Okay? Your honor. Counselor Christiansen. Thank you. Uh, Chief Hansen, do you have a specific officer? That is to be
the liaison with the Humane Society? Uh, we don't have someone designated that, uh, Lieutenant Strom, uh, has taken that role. He communicates somewhat regularly with Kim. Is that, um, I'm wondering if
we're being as effective as we can be with our communications. And I'm wondering if a little better, um, regularity or structure to that relationship might help, because I know the
Humane Society and the other people who are involved if if they have, like, we know that every third Monday we're going to do a check in or email or something so that there's a set, uh, expectation that that
there's going to be a reach out and a response that might be beneficial. Oh, point taken. Communication is always beneficial. Yeah. Um, yes. And I guess I' naive that there was a discrepancy or not enough
communication going back and forth. Um, so we can improve that. Um, we've kind of been in a little bit of a holding pattern knowing that animal ordinance is going to change, and we really want to look at what our response is and how can we improve that response. That would be that would be
really good. But we didn't want to put the cart before the horse not knowing what the ordinance was going to be. Go ahead. Okay. So I just want to I think everybody here knows, uh, my feelings on animals. I'm an animal person through and
through. Uh, what I appreciate about this community is that we have so many people who are caring about the animals. Uh, it's to the least of these that we share our humanity. And that also lifts us up as a community. And I'm not I'm not
necessarily I'm not talking to you necessarily. I'm just talking to to the public. I think it's important that we do pay attention to those people who are on the front lines. Our police and our humane society, the camp companion people and the volunteers that are working
so hard. We all received an email today, and I thought it was very poignant and eloquent, very well stated. And it encourages not just us, but others in the community to get active and involved, to care. Uh, last last meeting, I was
kind of making a point, you know, be a good neighbor, take care of your animal, do the things that you're supposed to do so people don't have to complain about you or, you know, if you're being bothered, don't be afraid to just do a neighborly reach out and say,
how can I help? I mean, your dog is barking all the time, and is there anything that we can do to solve this together? Because you guys don't have time to be dealing with that sort of stuff. It ends up being kind of nonsense for you to have to. I mean, your skills
and your need is so much greater than than those things. So, uh, so that's that's my point. That's my that's up to a dollar now, but, uh. And we do see that the neighborhoods where the neighbors know each other, they
work out their problems amongst themselves in the neighborhoods where they don't know each other. Sometimes they have no interest in knowing their neighbors. And that's where we get lots of the nuisance type calls, where I think a lot of those could be handled with the conversation if they knew each
other. Um, um, but when you get the police dispatch to your door that doesn't, uh, build those bridges. Your honor. Councilor Baker. Two to Chief Hansen's point about the neighborhood getting to know your neighbors. Um, I
live in a neighborhood that is. Everybody pretty much knows everybody. And there's a lot of dogs in the neighborhood, and, uh, I can't remember any time that we've ever had any issues with dogs. Typically, they all get along. Everybody takes care of their dogs, and, uh, it, you know, we're a dog loving
neighborhood. So, um, it can work. That's all I needed to say. All right, any further discussion or questions, Your Honor? Councilor Anderson. One more thing. I just I just wanted to say that, uh, I supported this last time. The first three day. I'm going to
support it again. Uh, knowing full well that it's not perfect, but there's no such thing as a perfect ordinance. I would argue that the ordinance as it exists today is even less perfect. I think there's going to be a little bit more enforcement tools for you guys, and I would like to bring back what the city attorney said. I think those are great points,
because those conversations that you guys have, that education, uh, I think it started a public discussion about this, about being better pet owners, because really, that's what it boils down to. All in ordinances is a framework, a framework probably for enforcement. And a lot of this is going to fall on the police department's shoulders.
But I think we've heard from a lot of people, and I think the their voices have been there, they've spoken, the public has spoken, and it's not going to be perfect. But I think this is an improvement. Your Honor. All right. Thank you. Chief Hansen. We appreciate your comments
tonight. All right. If there's no further comments or discussion clerk, please call the roll. Councilor Christensen. I. Councilor Baker. Councilor. Herman I. Councilor Olsen. No. Councilor. Van beek.
No. Councilor. Anderson. High and. Memory II. Motion carries. Item B is a resolution permitting the publication of ordinance 26156. Summary. Chapter eight animals. Article two Animal control City manager.
Thank you, Your Honor. Ordinance summaries may be published if they reasonably inform the public of the effect and intent of the ordinance. Summaries. Fulfill the legal requirements as if the entire summarize matter had been published, and also direct the public on how to obtain the complete ordinance. Staff
recommends approval. Approval requires 5/7 vote. Council move to approve. Your motion by Councilor Baker. Is there a second? I'll second. Second by Councilor Anderson. Any further discussion? Clerk please call the roll. Councilor. Baker. Hi. Councilor. Herman.
Hi. Mr. Olson. I. Van beek, I councilor Anderson, high councilor Christensen a in memory. A motion carries item eight is new business and a is a resolution approving the final plat of Bateson, Renton
edition. City manager. Thank you, Your Honor. Uh, the Planning Commission held a public hearing on June 2nd, 2026. Review of preliminary plat of Bateson. Uh, wrench. In addition, for compliance with chapter 38, subdivisions, the purpose of the plan is to
subdivide a smaller four acre parcel out lot A in order to facilitate the eventual sale to Vortex Cold Storage for future expansion. The property is currently zoned R-1 or Single Family Residential. However, an application to rezone out lot A
from the residential to industrial zoning was submitted in conjunction with the plat application. Planning Commission recommends approval of the final part of the Olson Ranch. In addition, staff recommends approval. Council move to approve, Your Honor.
Motion by Councilor Baker. Is there a second? I'll second. Second by Councilor Herman. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor of the motion signify by saying I. Aye. Opposed? Nay. Motion carries. Item B is the ordinance
amending zoning and the land use map from single family residence R-1 to Industrial District I two outlet A of Bateson wrench. In addition, this is the first reading City Manager. Thank you. Honor. The owners applied to rezone outline a of
the additions from single family to industrial in order to accommodate the eventual sale and future expansion with vortex cold storage. The property directly abutting to the south, is also owned by Vortex Cold Storage, and the remaining Port Authority lot. Uh Port Authority number three,
or Lita. Jobs Park, is currently zoned industrial, which eliminates concern of spot zoning. Uh, the 2040 Comprehensive Plan Use Plan identifies this area as residential in nature. However, as the Leader Jobs Park has filled over time, the industrial users have continued
to grow and expand. While housing this area has not. Staff believes that the market has demonstrated that this area is better suited for industrial rather than housing. Uh, the Planning Commission held that the uh held a public hearing on June 2nd, and after consideration, the staff report, in addition to public
testimony, the Commission recommends approval based on the following. Rezoning the property will not have an adverse effect on the existing and adjoining properties, as the area is largely industrial, the use meets the general zoning requirements of the surrounding industrial
district. Planning Commission and staff recommend approval. Council move to approve. Your Honor by Councilor Christensen. Is there a second? No second. Your Honor. Second, by Councilor Anderson, any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor of the motion signify by saying aye.
Aye. Opposed. Nay. Motion carries. We are now going to jump down to item I in the new business list. And this is a resolution providing for the issuance and sale of $5,310,000 of general obligation bonds. Series 2026 a
city Manager. Thank you. Honor. Per the city charter of the City of Albert, Lee has the authority to issue general Obligation Improvement bonds to provide financing for public improvement projects undertaken by the city. Staff recommends the signing of the bond to be $5,310,000 to finance the bonding costs.
Assessments, water portion and levy funded portions of the projects as estimated below. The original um sale report that the council had received was for a term of 15 years. However, if the Council wishes to reduce that to ten years,
that is certainly a viable option. The bonds will be sold on July 13th, 2026. The project amounts were summarized below. Uh staff does recommend approval. However, the difference between ten years and 15 years is a policy decision for the the council.
Uh, and I would make a record that as part of the recommendation, if, uh, a recommendation is made. Council. Your honor. Councilor Christensen. I move we approve the resolution and issue the bond for a ten year majority. Okay. Thank you. A second, Your
Honor. Second, by Councilor Anderson. Any further discussion? All in favor of the motion, signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Nay. Motion carries. We'll move back up to item C. Resolution approving the
conditional use permit for bridge R 114 for replacement on the Songbird Trail. City manager. Thank you. Your Honor. The City of Albert Lee, in partnership with Freeborn County, applied for conditional use permit for a pedestrian
bridge replacement in the f one floodway district. The bridge is situated within the former Union Pacific Rail Corridor, as part of the overall Songbird Trail development, and needs replacement in order to correct safety issue. The proposed bridge meets the conditions of
the flood district by not impacting public waterways, wetlands and having and having proper erosion and sediment prevention plans, and by eliminating a design that will not change the current flow characteristics of the channel from which, for what is
existing. In addition, while the bridge itself is within the F one flood district, most of the station construction will take place in the Up rail corridor, which is outside the district. Lastly, the proposed bridge is consistent with the 2030 Comprehensive Plan, which designates Songbird Trail as a
future trail network. Planning Commission recommends approval of the Conditional Use Permit with conditions that Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan be kept on file as part of the Cup approval. Staff recommends approval. Council move to approve, Your honor.
Motion by Councilor Baker is there a second? I'll second. Second by Councilor Herman. Any further discussion? All in favor of the motion, signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Nay. Motion carries. Item D is a resolution approving the State of
Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development Deed cleanup Grant agreement number 281697 for the Family Housing Development Project. Tapestry job 2611 City manager. Thank you, Your Honor. This resolution is to execute the
state of Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development Deed Cleanup grant agreement for the Family Housing Development Project, also known as Tapestry Project. The grant can fund approximately 75% eligible work with a total reimbursement amount not to exceed $267,487.
This project involves excavating and disposal of contaminated soil, backfilling and grading of on site clean soil throughout the project area for development of the family housing development project. Engineering is recommending entering into this agreement. Staff recommends
approval. All right. Council. Move to approve, Your Honor. Motion by Councilor Baker. Is there a second? I'll second. Second by Councilor Christensen. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor of the motion signify by saying aye. Aye.
Opposed. Nay. Motion carries. Item me is a resolution calling the public hearing for declaring no public purpose and waiving planning Commission review portion of Warren Park. Job 2612. City manager. Thank you, Your Honor. This is calling for a hearing that will be held on July 13th, 2026 at 7
p.m. for the purpose of authorizing the sale to Minnesota Department of Transportation. Transportation of a small piece of the southeast corner of Warren Park that is currently owned by the City of Albert Lea, but for which permanent easement has been granted to the Dot. Uh, this would be for the existing
sidewalks. Americans with Disabilities Acts and roadway improvements. No additional property aside from what has already been granted in a permanent easement, is currently being used, what is currently being used by the state, uh, for for these purposes would be sold within this transfer. Staff recommends
approval. Council move to approve, Your Honor. Motion by Councillor Baker. Is there a second? I'll second. Second by Councilor Herman. Any further discussion? All in favor of the motion, signify by saying I.. Aye. Opposed? Any motion carries. Item F is a resolution
authorizing the execution of the DNR. Meyer. Big Island State Park sewer collection system. Design and service cooperative agreement. Job 2619. City manager. Thank you. Our staff has been working with the DNR since 2017
to get, uh, Meyer Big Island State Park connected to the city sewer and abandoned their current pond wastewater system project will involve the DNR construction and collection system and lift station at the park, and then, uh, constructing a force main from the state park along the state
park road 780 or 700 and 80th Avenue, to a city manhole located near the East Main Street and 780th