The meeting was called to order by Chairman Peterson at 7:00 p.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance. Supervisors Peterson and Johnson, the Clerk, Chief Schultz, and two residents were in attendance.

Motion by Johnson, seconded by Peterson to accept the minutes of the March 7th Board Meeting, and the March 21st Reorganizational Meeting as presented. Carried unanimous.

There was nothing presented during Open Forum.

Chairman Peterson gave the Planning & Zoning report as follows:

1. There were nine permits issued in March; 1 commercial, 5 land/septic, and 3 shoreland alteration.
2. Of the two variance requests reviewed previously, one had been approved by the county, and one is pending.
3. An Extractive Use permit for a new gravel operation on the north side of Wild Acres Road will be heard at the county planning commission on April 21st. Shawn Platt answered questions about the permitting and plans for the operation.

Chairman Peterson presented the Road and Bridge report as follows:

1. The annual road review has been completed.
2. A work plan for 2016 will be presented at a future meeting.
3. The crew have been building dumpsters for the transfer station.
4. The wing blades have been removed from the plow trucks for the summer season.
5. The ash pile left from burning brush at the Transfer Station has been hauled to the disposal pit.
6. Peterson & Rahm met with the Mathiowetz Company regarding the haul roads for the Hwy 371 project. Some of the aggregate for the project will be hauled over township roads; Wild Acres Road, Buschmann Road, and Nelson Road. All haul roads will be inspected prior to hauling and will be brought back to that condition or better after hauling is done.
7. There were no safety incidents.

Chief Schultz asked about road construction this year. Peterson said the plan is not finalized yet, but prices are down so expected to be able to do more work this year than usual. Ken Stoltman asked about repairs needed to road surface at Fire Station II.

Bill Wortham mentioned that the culvert under Forest Knolls Road was not flowing and causing water level to rise on Grass Lake. Peterson will have crew take a look.

Chief Schultz gave the Fire Department report as follows:

1. There had been 13 emergency runs during March – 4 fire, and 9 first responder calls. Total year-to-date is 33 runs.
2. Firefighter Darian Rubner had submitted his resignation and it was accepted at the last department membership meeting. The department is now down to 24 members, but will be looking to hire for Station II.
3. The annual ladder & pump inspections were completed – one ladder was replaced.
4. Hose testing is coming up.
5. The new fire truck, Engine 16, has been repaired and is back in service.
6. The fire boat and docks will be put in soon. Gate is to be closed on May 1.
7. The department will participate in annual roadside cleanup and will be doing CR 16 from CR 39 east to the township line.
8. Pre-plan info requests have been sent to commercial and large developments. About half of the properties have returned their info and it is now entered into the Active911 system so it is available on the iPads in the trucks.
9. There were no safety incidents.

Supervisor Peterson presented the Transfer Station/Recycling Center report as follows:

1. 49 permits sold in March.
2. Will begin being open on Wednesdays & Saturdays starting April 15.
3. Have finished clearing & posting the surveyed property lines.

Supervisor Johnson presented the Parks & Recreation report as follows:

1. The siren was tested on the first Wednesday and works well.
2. Johnson has reviewed the park & maintenance building property. There are two parcels that could be combined. The first step was to complete a survey to confirm boundaries and status of wetland area. A proposal for the survey work from Stonemark showed a cost of $2100-$2600 and would include update to the town hall property survey to show the addition. Motion by Johnson, second by Peterson to accept the work proposal. Carried unanimous.
3. Johnson had visited the Community Gardens in Crosslake to get ideas for the Ideal Gardens. Still looking where to situate the gardens. Motion by Johnson, second by Peterson to create a 5-member Board of citizens to manage the project. Carried unanimous.

Peterson spoke about work to establish an emergency siren on the north side. He is starting the process working with Trout Lake Camp to site the siren at the top of the hill near the microwave tower.

Motion by Peterson, second by Johnson to accept the treasurer’s report for March as amended. Report is to be amended to allocate the receipt of the proceeds from the sale of old Engine 16 to go to the Capital Projects Fund. Report includes receipts #5078 through #5095 totaling $38,446.76 and disbursements #IRS030216 through #20469 for total of $53,942.31. Carried unanimous.

Motion by Johnson, second by Peterson to approve the April claims as presented; claims #42370 through #42416 totaling $24,947.81. Carried unanimous.

The Clerk presented a list of donation requests. The Board reviewed each request and approved donations as follows:

1. Crow Wing County Fair $250.
2. Crow Wing County Historical Association $100
3. Paul Bunyan Scenic Byway Association $1000
4. Crisis Line $250
5. Pine River/Backus Food Shelf $100
6. Pine River/Backus Family Center $100.

Peterson presented proposal information regarding the road sign inventory & engineering project. Four companies provided bids to locate each road sign, evaluate its condition and placement, and make recommendations for removal, adding, or replacing signs according to MN DOT standards. Motion by Peterson, second by Johnson to accept proposal from Widseth Smith Nolting for $4800. Carried unanimous.

Upcoming calendar items were reviewed as follows:

1. MAT Legislative & Research Committee Meeting on Wednesday, April 12th at the Midpoint Event Center in St Paul.
2. Legal Short Course on Thursday, April 21st at the Burnsville Best Western;
3. Annual Local Board of Appeal & Equalization on Friday, April 22nd at 10 am.
4. May Board Meeting on Monday, May 9th at 7 pm.

The Clerk presented a series of correspondence:

1. The Ideal Community Service Organization requested that their scholarship applications be made available on the township website. The Board felt that would be ok.
2. Crow Wing County sent letter regarding classification of tax forfeit land off of Forest Knolls Road. Unless the Board objected, the land would be classified as non-conservation lands and would be then available to be sold. No Board action.
3. Liquor licenses for 3 businesses are to be renewed by June 30th. Motion by Peterson, second by Johnson to approve. Carried unanimous.
4. Reviewing the software, OneNote, to be used as a collaboration tool for Board members and employees.

There being no further business to transact, the meeting adjourned at 9:20 pm.

John Plein,
Ideal Township Clerk
April 25th, 2016