8/23/11
The Indider has learned that a resident of Shorewood has prevailed in a zoning violation case due to faulty wording in the ordinance.
The ordinance contained the word "or" when it should have used "and." This seemingly small difference made the meaning ambiguous and was enough that the resident won the case.
Two years ago, the City lost an enforcement action involving a yacht club that claimed it had the right to have power boats, not just sailboats. The permit used the word "boat" while the City had intended it to say "sailboat." The court held for the yacht club.
How many more of these wording flubs are in City ordinances? Should the City go on a flub hunt? Where was the City Attorney when these ordinances and permits were written? What about the City Council and Planning Commission? Don't they have a duty to carefully review these things before enacting them? Maybe this is another case of what the Mayor described once as an attitude of staff knows best.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Shorewood Buys Another House
8/23/11
Shorewood has purchased a second house. It's located on Smithtown Rd just a few doors west of the Legion and has been for sale for many months.
The Insider has learned that the sales price of $131,000 was Shorewood's second offer and below the owner's asking price. According to sources who should know, the house is to be torn down by the City. The land will be held in anticipation of the City making it available to a developer who might, in the future, develop the whole "Smithtown Crossing"" strip which extends to the corner where the old Bayt gas station is located.
Is this a good use of City funds? Maybe. The Planning Commission has been considering development options for this strip of land. They recommended the purchase as a step in making sure that a developer could acquire all the property needed to have a successful project. The City is using money from its infrastructure fund ($1.8 million) which is not earning much interest anyway.
Only time will tell if this is a good deal or another albatross. The City currently owns an albatross house next door to city hall. It was acquired by the Love/Lizee administration at nearly the peak of the housing market and is now worth considerably less. At least this new purchase will not have a house that the City has to try to rent and is at a price consistent with today's distressed real estate market.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
Shorewood has purchased a second house. It's located on Smithtown Rd just a few doors west of the Legion and has been for sale for many months.
The Insider has learned that the sales price of $131,000 was Shorewood's second offer and below the owner's asking price. According to sources who should know, the house is to be torn down by the City. The land will be held in anticipation of the City making it available to a developer who might, in the future, develop the whole "Smithtown Crossing"" strip which extends to the corner where the old Bayt gas station is located.
Is this a good use of City funds? Maybe. The Planning Commission has been considering development options for this strip of land. They recommended the purchase as a step in making sure that a developer could acquire all the property needed to have a successful project. The City is using money from its infrastructure fund ($1.8 million) which is not earning much interest anyway.
Only time will tell if this is a good deal or another albatross. The City currently owns an albatross house next door to city hall. It was acquired by the Love/Lizee administration at nearly the peak of the housing market and is now worth considerably less. At least this new purchase will not have a house that the City has to try to rent and is at a price consistent with today's distressed real estate market.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Aquatic Invasive Species - Shorewood Support MCWD As Responsible?
8/20/11
Shorewood has a resolution on the 8/22 council meeting agenda which calls for the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District to be made responsible for AIS activities regionally (including Lake Minnetonka and Christmas Lake). Is this a good deal for Shorewood? Maybe!
Earlier this year, the MCWD suddenly woke up to AIS as a threat and in a heavy handed manner decided they would take control and launch steps to deal with AIS and its threats across the watershed. This was after years of ignoring AIS as a threat or a MCWD responsibility, even to the point of not providing any financial support to control programs which other agencies (especially the LMCD) were providing.
The MCWD does/can have staff and technical expertise to define and manage programs for AIS management and prevention. They also have independent taxing authority (property tax) allowing them to raise significant amounts to dedicate to AIS. In contrast, the LMCD has very limited staff and very little ability to raise funds as its "membership" fees from its 15 member cities are set by law and based on households in the member cities.
The Insider is concerned that the MCWD seems to be in knee-jerk mode and listening to some special interest groups. Among these is the Lake Minnetonka Association and its Executive Director, Dick Osgood. Mr. Osgood makes his living consulting on AIS. So, any increase in activity trickles down into his pocket as increased consulting business. Aiding and providing support is Shorewood's Mayor who seems joined at the hip with Mr. Osgood and Eric Evenson, the MCWD Executive Director.
Readers of this blog should know that Shorewood and other cities have no control or vote at the MCWD. The MCWD, in fact, does not report to anyone other than its board and that is appointed by Hennepin and Carver County boards. Yes, there is a Shorewood resident on the MCWD board, but he is not there due to any action of Shorewood's Council and the Council cannot give him any direction or remove him.
Those of you who are interested in AIS and what the MCWD is thinking about doing should attend their 8/25 meeting at Minnetonka City Hall, 14600 Minnetonka Blvd., starting at 6:45pm. It's only your voices that might make sure that any decisions and actions are rational and in the best interests of Shorewood.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
Shorewood has a resolution on the 8/22 council meeting agenda which calls for the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District to be made responsible for AIS activities regionally (including Lake Minnetonka and Christmas Lake). Is this a good deal for Shorewood? Maybe!
Earlier this year, the MCWD suddenly woke up to AIS as a threat and in a heavy handed manner decided they would take control and launch steps to deal with AIS and its threats across the watershed. This was after years of ignoring AIS as a threat or a MCWD responsibility, even to the point of not providing any financial support to control programs which other agencies (especially the LMCD) were providing.
The MCWD does/can have staff and technical expertise to define and manage programs for AIS management and prevention. They also have independent taxing authority (property tax) allowing them to raise significant amounts to dedicate to AIS. In contrast, the LMCD has very limited staff and very little ability to raise funds as its "membership" fees from its 15 member cities are set by law and based on households in the member cities.
The Insider is concerned that the MCWD seems to be in knee-jerk mode and listening to some special interest groups. Among these is the Lake Minnetonka Association and its Executive Director, Dick Osgood. Mr. Osgood makes his living consulting on AIS. So, any increase in activity trickles down into his pocket as increased consulting business. Aiding and providing support is Shorewood's Mayor who seems joined at the hip with Mr. Osgood and Eric Evenson, the MCWD Executive Director.
Readers of this blog should know that Shorewood and other cities have no control or vote at the MCWD. The MCWD, in fact, does not report to anyone other than its board and that is appointed by Hennepin and Carver County boards. Yes, there is a Shorewood resident on the MCWD board, but he is not there due to any action of Shorewood's Council and the Council cannot give him any direction or remove him.
Those of you who are interested in AIS and what the MCWD is thinking about doing should attend their 8/25 meeting at Minnetonka City Hall, 14600 Minnetonka Blvd., starting at 6:45pm. It's only your voices that might make sure that any decisions and actions are rational and in the best interests of Shorewood.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
Monday, August 15, 2011
Shorewood 2012 Budget - No Tax Increase?
8/15/11
At the 8/8 Shorewood council work session, the discussion resulted in direction to staff to balance the budget for 2012 with no increase in the tax levy. If this sticks to the wall, it'll be the fourth year in a row the City has been able to maintain or enhance service levels while not taking more property tax money from residents.
See: http://windowsmedia.alphameetings.com/LMCCShorewood/080811shorewood.wmv starting at about the 55 minute point for the beginning of the budget work session.
Balancing the budget will be done by taking $21,000 from the $1.8 million infrastructure fund to use in the long-term road plan implementation; moving about $30,000 of cell antenna revenues from the Water Fund to the General Fund (the water fund has more than $3 million of reserves!); and using part of the more than $400,000 in excess General Fund reserves the City has on hand (note that this will still leave the City's reserves above the City's own policy level, above what the City's auditors recommend and above the recommendation of the State Auditor).
As usual, the Mayor had little useful to add to the discussion. She did express frustration with Council Member Woodruff who seemed determined to get some useful results from the meeting after two previous sessions where the Mayor allowed the discussion to wander around discussing philosophy of budgeting.
The budget must be sent to the County by 9/15. The Insider hopes that it stays as-is and gets Council approval at the 8/22 meeting.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
At the 8/8 Shorewood council work session, the discussion resulted in direction to staff to balance the budget for 2012 with no increase in the tax levy. If this sticks to the wall, it'll be the fourth year in a row the City has been able to maintain or enhance service levels while not taking more property tax money from residents.
See: http://windowsmedia.alphameetings.com/LMCCShorewood/080811shorewood.wmv starting at about the 55 minute point for the beginning of the budget work session.
Balancing the budget will be done by taking $21,000 from the $1.8 million infrastructure fund to use in the long-term road plan implementation; moving about $30,000 of cell antenna revenues from the Water Fund to the General Fund (the water fund has more than $3 million of reserves!); and using part of the more than $400,000 in excess General Fund reserves the City has on hand (note that this will still leave the City's reserves above the City's own policy level, above what the City's auditors recommend and above the recommendation of the State Auditor).
As usual, the Mayor had little useful to add to the discussion. She did express frustration with Council Member Woodruff who seemed determined to get some useful results from the meeting after two previous sessions where the Mayor allowed the discussion to wander around discussing philosophy of budgeting.
The budget must be sent to the County by 9/15. The Insider hopes that it stays as-is and gets Council approval at the 8/22 meeting.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Fiber Optic Project - Is it being killed?
8/11/11
Is the LMCC's tonkaconnect fiber-optic network project being killed? Seems some of the local city councils want it that way and the LMCC is getting cold feet.
As reported here earlier, Shorewood's council voted 4 to 1 against spending any more of the LMCC's money on tonkaconnect. Now, Victoria, Greenwood and Orono councils have done the same. Each has cited that government should not be in a business. Also cited is the fear that taxpayers would somehow be stuck with the cost of building and operating the network.
Of note is that the recent LMCC survey of residents showed that more than 60% approved of the LMCC getting into the fiber-optic network business. The www.tonkaconnect.com website says that if any taxpayer involvement might be required that can't be known until a business plan for the network is done. The plan is supposed to cost about $55,000, money the LMCC, up until recently, said it had in its budget in 2011 or could be budgeted for in 2012. In fact, the LMCC sent DVD's to all city council members three weeks ago in which all this was explained so the councils could prep their LMCC representatives before the 8/16 LMCC full commission meeting.
Now, it seems the LMCC has gotten cold feet and the whole project may die. The LMCC has circulated a draft 2012 budget that excludes any funds for tonkaconnect. So, on 8/16 the full commission is being asked not to provide funds.
KSTP TV was interested enough to do a piece on the network and the need for it this week. See: http://kstp.com/news/stories/S2232942.shtml?cat=1 . The Insider recalls that lack of access to broadband and cable TV were two key reasons for considering tonkaconnect. These reason still exist and the LMCC appears to be ready to tell the residents who have these issues: "too bad, we're not going to do anything."
Also of note is that Shorewood's Mayor believes this project is so important to kill that she plans to attend the LMCC's 8/16 meeting (she made this known at the end of the 8/8 council meeting).
Happy Reading
The Insider
Is the LMCC's tonkaconnect fiber-optic network project being killed? Seems some of the local city councils want it that way and the LMCC is getting cold feet.
As reported here earlier, Shorewood's council voted 4 to 1 against spending any more of the LMCC's money on tonkaconnect. Now, Victoria, Greenwood and Orono councils have done the same. Each has cited that government should not be in a business. Also cited is the fear that taxpayers would somehow be stuck with the cost of building and operating the network.
Of note is that the recent LMCC survey of residents showed that more than 60% approved of the LMCC getting into the fiber-optic network business. The www.tonkaconnect.com website says that if any taxpayer involvement might be required that can't be known until a business plan for the network is done. The plan is supposed to cost about $55,000, money the LMCC, up until recently, said it had in its budget in 2011 or could be budgeted for in 2012. In fact, the LMCC sent DVD's to all city council members three weeks ago in which all this was explained so the councils could prep their LMCC representatives before the 8/16 LMCC full commission meeting.
Now, it seems the LMCC has gotten cold feet and the whole project may die. The LMCC has circulated a draft 2012 budget that excludes any funds for tonkaconnect. So, on 8/16 the full commission is being asked not to provide funds.
KSTP TV was interested enough to do a piece on the network and the need for it this week. See: http://kstp.com/news/stories/S2232942.shtml?cat=1 . The Insider recalls that lack of access to broadband and cable TV were two key reasons for considering tonkaconnect. These reason still exist and the LMCC appears to be ready to tell the residents who have these issues: "too bad, we're not going to do anything."
Also of note is that Shorewood's Mayor believes this project is so important to kill that she plans to attend the LMCC's 8/16 meeting (she made this known at the end of the 8/8 council meeting).
Happy Reading
The Insider
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Freedom Foundation of MN On Fiber-Optic Project Vote
8/2/11
The Insider just found this in the FFM's website.
http://freedomfoundationofminnesota.com/tonka-disconnect-shorewood-pulls-plug-on-joining-costly-taxpayer-funded-telecom-network
Seems outsiders question the Shorewood Council's decision too.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
The Insider just found this in the FFM's website.
http://freedomfoundationofminnesota.com/tonka-disconnect-shorewood-pulls-plug-on-joining-costly-taxpayer-funded-telecom-network
Seems outsiders question the Shorewood Council's decision too.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
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