Litchfield’s downtown is expected to have a fresher look by the end of 2022. The City Council, during its June 6 meeting, granted certificates of appropriateness for renovations to 10 properties within the city’s historic district.
Proposed renovations ranged from brick tuck-pointing, stucco removal, re-roofing and window and door replacements to painting and new signs. All of the projects had been evaluated by the city Historic Preservation Commission prior to their approval by the council. Details on a couple of proposals were modified or deferred pending additional information, but most were approved as presented.
According to documents provided by the HPC, the properties are located at 129, 213, 214, 217, 225, 229, 231, 237, 240, and 311 North Sibley. Property owners were listed as Tim Cook, Larry Ackerman, JSI-32 Inc., Charles Burdick, Jesse Narr and Garmon Tipka.
HPC Chair and City Councilor Darlene Kotelnicki told the council that several of the applicants had been making renovations in stages, as materials and labor were available, and that the renovations approved by the HPC were part of a longer process on several of the properties.
The council debated the merits of granting future six-month extensions to certificate holders, due to the realities of material shipment delays and labor shortages. The council decided that granting such extensions for up to two years was appropriate as long as progress was being made on the authorized renovations.
City-owned land on North Gorman Avenue will be sold to Gregg Schilling, in response to a competitive Request for Proposals process sent to a half-dozen potential developers who had expressed interest in the land.
Schilling was one of two developers who followed through on submitting an RFP to the city. He offered $25,000 for the lots, on which he would like to build seven or eight units of multi-family housing.
Another developer had proposed building one or two single-family homes there, but he was not willing to pay the city anything for the lots as they lack sewer and water utility access. City administrator Dave Cziok indicated staff preference for single-family homes as that use would require less action by the planning commission, but most councilors concluded, with Ron Dingmann the only dissenter, that the lots, currently zoned R-2, are in a mixed-use area suitable for a small multi-family development. It was noted that Schilling was willing to pay for the lot rather than have the city give away the property. (The lot, previously the site of a city well house, had recently been assessed at a market value of $34,400.) “We need so much housing that anything would help,” Kotelnicki commented.
The city is still in possession of other excess vacant lots, located on Nelson Street in an R-3 residential zone and valued at $45,600. City infrastructure extension is also needed to develop these lots. An RFP had been received for this property, but the developer requested $20,000 from the city to help cover the cost of extending utilities there.
Councilors turned down this RFP, stating objections to the “negative $20,000” initial impact on the city. Instead, they directed Cziok to arrange for a public auction to sell the property to the highest bidder. Several council members thought adjacent property owners and/or a developer might be interested and willing to pay something for it.
Several city staff received promotions: Mitch Keuchle was promoted to mechanic; Glendon Caron was promoted to lead maintennce worker and Bryce Manning was promoted to golf course lead. Staff had recently rewritten job descriptions for these positions.
The council also agreed to re-instating sergeant positions within the city police department. Positions will be posted internally after job descriptions are updated (The police department has not had sergeants since 2017; each sergeant position would add about $6,500 to the police budget.)
Several seasonal part-time workers were approved for liquor store, parks, golf course and other city operations.
The council conducted a half-hour workshop with city staff on canine concerns and needs within the city. Cziok reviewed proposed locations for dog waste stations. Consensus was that having stations on the walking path around Lake Ripley, in Prairie Park and at several other locations would be appropriate.
Council members expressed opinions that “kids, dogs and food don’t mix well,” and that dogs should again be prohibited, as they once were, in other city parks, except for trained service animals. Although no action was taken during the workshop, councilors mentioned issues with dogs in those parks where food is often served, including Central Park and Legion Park.
Dogs are required to be leashed or otherwise ‘under control” within city limits. Cziok commented that “If we prohibit dogs in some neighborhood parks, we should make some accommodations for dogs elsewhere.”
Locations for a designated off-leash dog park were discussed. It appears that none of several suggested options is ideal. Some dog owners feel that an unfenced area now used as a dog park is too close to a highway. There is also a concern that, if fenced, it would prevent the area’s use for overflow Watercade parking. Using an area near the city water plant raises wellhead protection concerns. An area near the airport was considered too remote, and there would be significant development costs for another suggested location near the Watercade shed. Mayor Keith Johnson suggested that asking for about $20,000 from groups who want a dog park would be reasonable.
- The council heard from resident Miranda Gohn, who encouraged council members to manage the spread of infectious disease to vulnerable residents by establishing time slots with higher precautions once the city’s proposed Wellness Canter is built. She distributed a Star Tribune editorial about the effects of Long Covid. Mayor Johnson said he would bring her concerns to the joint committee working on the Wellness Center.
- City Engineer Brad DeWolf reviewed seasonal pavement overlay plans with the council. He plans to open bids June 26 and have the work done in late summer and early fall. This will overlay about five percent of the city’s streets; he said.
- The council decided to order three sets of seasonal banners, using community reinvestment funds and donations. The banners would be mounted on the 18 downtown “acorn” light posts. One set would be patriotic, another would have a general Litchfield theme and the third set would be winter themed. Vinyl banners, including mounting hardware, would cost between $4,000-$5,000. Councilor Betty Allen noted that the Downtown Council has agreed to fund the patriotic banners.
