Skating rink location discussed by city council

By Barbie Porter

Editor

The Frazee Council was informed by its city attorney, Tom Winters, that the property at 606 East Main Avenue now belongs to Becker County.

Before the property was tax-forfeited, Deborah Chounard owned it. A fire on Jan. 24, 2019 left the home uninhabitable. The structure stood unrepaired and untouched, which put the council in motion to require the structure be repaired or razed. As court proceedings slowly progressed, the property was tax forfeited to the county. 

During the monthly city council meeting on Monday, Sept. 20, Winters explained because the property has a new owner, the council would need to start over with the process of requiring repair or removal. Or, the council could wait and see what the county decides to do.

The council agreed the hazard didn’t disappear with a new owner and agreed to start the process again.

Skating rink 

location discussed

The city’s sole skating rink location was discussed. Now that the downtown building is being constructed, the former site is no longer an option. 

The council discussed placing the rink near the elementary school and at the storm retention pond site along Main Avenue that often attracts ducks and is the home of a storied sculpture by Paul Eppling. 

Raised garden beds were also put in place, but it was stated at the council meeting the bottoms of the beds were deteriorating and would need to be replaced.

If the garden beds were removed the skating rink would be located away from the retention pond, and a fence would separate the rink from the pond. 

The site was favored by the council as it was downtown and held an ambiance as well as trees to protect the skaters from the wind.

The Council heard staff reports from:

• The police department, which stated 103 calls were taken in August with 20 being traffic stops. 

The department is attending training that will help detect those carrying narcotics, as well as training for a positive community norms coalition in the Frazee community.

• The fire department has 56 fires on the year, which was stated to be up slightly from the previous year. 

There are three openings for firefighters to join the department. Any interested applicants can apply at the city office.

In a letter to the council, Frazee Fire Chief Joe Nelson explained the department’s grass rig has went out on two calls recently, in which it returned to the fire department on a tow truck. The department is looking to purchase a new one with restricted savings funds.

It was also noted a tanker has a hole in the water tank, which is under warranty. The department is working to determine who will pay the cost to remove the tank for repair, as well as replace it back on the tanker.

• The city utilities department reported the water plant pumped 5.443 million gallons of water in August. There was 891/2 pounds of fluoride added to the water supply.

Utilities Superintendent Larry Stephenson stated the old water plant is “pretty much gone” and grass seeding was underway. He noted a hydrant still needed to be removed at the site.

As for the wastewater treatment plant, 2.4  million gallons were pumped. A total year discharge was about 23 million gallons.

Stephenson added the month of August recorded 2.91 inches of precipitation.