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PREBLE TOWNSHIP Fillmore County, Minnesota
Preble Township Board Meeting Highlights The following topics were discussed at the regular meeting of the board of supervisors held on Tuesday, April 20, 2010, beginning at 7PM. Official minutes of this board meeting have not yet been approved.
Township officers attending the meeting were Gerald Peter, Brad Kelly, David Williams, David Larson and Charles Olson. Conrad Obieglo, township road maintenance engineer, attended the meeting. Visitors to the township board meeting included township residents Carroll Johnson, Al Barth and Paul Olson. Keith Matheson from Milestone Quarries and Chad Wiltgen from Wiltgen Construction also attended the meeting.
Gerald Peter, township president, called the meeting to order and led the discussion.
Topics Discussed
Treasurer's Report
Chuck Olson, treasurer, reported that the township checking account balance at Rushford State Bank was $73,517.09 as of March 31, 2010, after the payment of all March bills. Olson stated that $6,065.50 was expended by the township during March.
Outstanding Bills
The township board reviewed bills received by David Larson since the March meeting. The total amount of outstanding bills, excluding current wages, was $6,725.81. Of this amount, $3,316.10 was incurred in replacing culverts and cleaning ditches. All outstanding bills were approved for payment.
Drake Road Cartway Maintenance
David Williams provided the township board with a report on the status of the pending litigation over Drake Road cartway maintenance. Williams attended a meeting of the Fillmore County Board of Commissioners on April 13th, at which the county commissioners considered Preble Township's petition requesting that the commissioners host a mediation effort to assist Amherst and Preble townships to resolve the Drake Road dispute. Upon recommendation of their special county attorney, the commissioners denied Preble Township's request. The county commissioners concluded that they had no jurisdiction over the township cartway dispute because (agreeing with Preble Township) (i) Drake Road is not a townline road and (ii) the 1990 road maintenance agreement between the two townships is inequitable under the applicable Minnesota townline road maintenance statute. The county commissioners (and their attorney) had concluded that they only have jurisdiction over townline road disputes, not cartway or non-townline road disputes.
The township board discussed strategy for resolving the pending litigation.
Road Report
The township board reviewed road rock quotes submitted by various quarry operators, including Sorum Rock, Wiltgen Construction, Bruening Rock Products and Milestone Quarries. The township board heard presentations from representatives of the two quarry operators present.
Al Barth stated that a culvert near the end of 194th Street is washed out, and should be replaced. Carroll Johnson stated that 198th Street needs additional rock on the surface of the road. Tom Wunderlich has requested that additional rock be spread on Apple Road between County Road 12 and the bridge. The township board considered other roads identified from the recent road tour that need applications of rock. Rock would be ordered for these roads within the coming week.
Property Tax Board of Appeals
David Larson reported that the Preble Township property tax board of appeals met on April 13th, and that no property owners appeared to contest their assessments.
Local Cemetery Association Concerns
Chuck Olson stated that the Choice Cemetery Association recently met, and discussed concerns among several cemetery associations that unidentified visitors have been spreading human ashes at cemeteries. The township board discussed whether this is a problem for the cemeteries. Olson asked whether a township ordinance prohibiting such dumping of human ashes would be a solution to this perceived problem. The issues will be studied and discussed at a future township board meeting. |