I'll call this meeting of the International Falls City Council to order. It's 5:30 on Monday, August 25th, 2025. Pre, please rise and we'll say the pledge algiance 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. All members of the council are present
for the record. We will move on at this time to new business, which is to discuss the International Falls Ambulance Service. This is a special city council meeting to be noted specifically for this
purpose. Excuse me. When I came to city hall this afternoon, I had a letter in my mailbox from the office of emergency medical services
that I would like to read um aloud for the record. This letter was dated August 21st, 2025 addressed to myself. Hello, Mayor Dill. Thank you for reaching out. And actually, before I read it, I'll just
preface this that there's been several letters that have been approved by the council and sent out uh to our friends in Rineer, the county of Cooching, the the county of St. Lewis, the Office of Emergency Medical Services, and others.
So, this is a response to a letter that we uh wrote. Thank you for reaching out to the Office of EMS with your question. Minnesota Statutes Chapter 144E does not provide an avenue for a licensed
ambulance service to surrender a license once granted. The service may however apply for a license to offer a new type of service under section 144E.11 or transfer ownership under section
144E.14. Otherwise, the licensed ambulance service must continue to provide the type of service for which it is licensed for the 2-year life of the license. When it becomes time to renew the licenses,
the service could choose not to renew one or both licenses at that time. Currently, International Falls Ambulance holds two licenses, basic life support license and part-time advanced life support license. These are valid through
12312026. At a minimum, the ambulance service is required to provide service at the BLS level 24 hours a day, 30 65 days a year. The part-time license allows the service
to provide advanced level care when a paramedic is staffed and ALS medications and equipment are available. When the renewal period opens for the ambulance licenses next year, the service could choose to apply for renewal of the BLS
license only and allow the part-time ALS license to expire. The service could also choose not to renew any license and discontinue service on January 1st, 2027. I would add that the context of the
letter is not necessarily at this point representative of any actions that we may take, but rather for information is open for discussion. Seeing no discussion, I will add some updates that um have
been received since the last meeting. The city of Rineer has reached out and added two representatives to the ambulance committee. Todd Colom, councelor Dennis Wagner, Mayor
Cuching County has already established that Commissioner Roach and Commissioner Schoblum will be present for discussion and representing our community, uh, Councelor Holden and myself.
I would add that St. Louis County has verbally expressed great interest um in the establishment of a district to guarantee full-time service availability for the area of their county that's either
served or within our PSA. I think notably CAB at Togo Ash River and Ash Lake areas, excuse me. Commissioner Shoblam from Cuchaching County
has informed me that the county board will dis be discussing the city letter uh in as I indicated the city has sent out many letters. Uh this will be happening tomorrow at their regularly scheduled board meeting for
anybody interested in attending. The county has also drafted a letter to the Rineer City Council to formally engage them between county and municipality on this topic.
and Commissioner Roach and Commissioner Shoblam also plan to present directly to the Reineer City Council um as soon as practical on the topic of establishing
a district to support our ambulance service. Floor is open for other updates um or conversation at this time. Please, Chief Manassa. Uh yeah, Mayor Dill, I was just curious if you've had any other correspondence with the Office of
Emergency Medical Services other than the letter. And the only reason I asked is some of this information is a little contradictory to what we received in 21. So the the part of allowing the ALS license to expire and go down to a BLS
license, I think has always been somewhat of an option. Not a not a they didn't like it, but they would allow it. But if I would have to find the letter I received in 21, but it outlined what would happen if we were to
give up our license. And it wasn't as simple as not dis or however this is worded here, not renewing a license and then discontinuing service in 27. It was more the fact that we had to have somebody lined up to take that license or we had to transfer the license. So,
I'm just curious if something legislatively changed that you're aware of or we got bad information then or are getting bad information now, but it's not exactly lining up to what we had in 21. Um, I think all great talking points. I
like I said, I came to city hall and um found this in my mailbox. So, like I had indicated and I think you're doing the same that for contextual
purposes um there's some meaning um in the letter that points to a regional support for the asset or regional ownership of this very very important
service makes I think a lot of sense to the council. That's certainly the direction that we've gone. So, Yeah, I like I said, I just um I I guess I feel like I've been lying to the council for two years now or three years because this is not the
information we were given in 21. So, um like I said, something something has changed. So, I I maybe I'll follow up with Charles or uh uh Dylan and find out about that. But, like I said, impression that we had to either
transfer that license or have on paper somebody contractually willing to take over that PSA was the understanding I was under from 21 and I will try and find the letter that states that but I just I think we maybe been operating in
a again either we had that information then or we don't have accurate information now so be nice to know exactly what our not that I I'm in favor of that option But I just I didn't think that was even an option. So,
well, and yeah, I but just so you know I whatever the case was in 2021, I certainly wasn't here and I wouldn't feel appropriate questioning that. So, I think, you know, when we reached out, it wasn't the most comfortable letter and
thank you to administrator Bergstrom for um taking care of that and uh whatnot. But with the idea was to do the factf finding as we go through the process with um the other parties. So the the
the gist of it is that we can come up with a way to have this excellent service and also pay for it in an equitable manner. So I would but I would like you said have you reach out to see what happened just
so sounds like maybe clarification for yourself more than anything and us but it so you're not as uncomfortable with how you're feeling or whatever and never and and don't I and I never assumed any of this that you weren't telling us what
you thought was the case. Yeah. I don't remember. We had Dylan on uh in those meetings, so I don't remember if it was said in a meeting or if it was a letter we received, but that was made very clear at the time. So, yeah, hopefully we're not going that
route anyway. So, I understand. Thank you, Chief. Is there any more discussion or business for the council? Please, Administrator B. clarification, mayor, that um county
board meeting, I believe, is in Big Falls tomorrow. They are doing, you know, remote locations for their meetings. I did their agenda did say Big Falls for those if they're interested in attending at 9:30 at the community center in Big Falls is what my email from county
indicated. Thank you for clarifying. Uh I guess I had not remembered that. We saved uh probably some folks going to the courthouse wondering where the meeting's at. Um
at this time we will offer audience open form which uh would be name and address for the record if you have uh comments of any kind and it is three minutes. Seeing no comments at this time, is
there any more business to come before the council? I'd just like to add like we all don't know it and we're all trying to get this done as fast as we can, but we're coming in on September so we can start making, you know, sooner than later. I know
everybody realizes that, but I just wanted to state it record so we can budgets and all that stuff. Thank you, councelor. And uh I would just like to I guess add
that councelor Wgner and I have been working with the county on a different issue. It's gone I would say relatively well. Um and I would say that so far that this councelor Holden and I have been working
on this and and there has been a a sense of of need and and urgency. So, I I just want to get the information out there that we don't have boxing gloves on or, you know, throwing hot coffee at at each other. Not that that's the proper way to
explain it, but that it's civil and there's certainly a sense of of urgency for the needs. So, if there's no further business to come before the council, it is 5:43 p.m. and I believe
it's at 6:00 for those that would like to join us. We will be discussing the open house over the rebuild of the city band shell. Until then, this meeting is adjourned. Thank you.