By Robert Williams

Editor

ast Master Jon Anderson of Mt. Tabor Lodge No. 106 in Detroit Lakes appeared during the open forum of the Frazee City Council meeting to make a donation of a Fire Suppression Tool (FST) to Police Chief Tyler Trieglaff and Mayor Mike Sharp.  ¶  The Fire Suppression Tool (FST) is a portable, non-pressurized fire suppression device designed for fast, simple deployment during the early stages of a fire. The tool provides an easily accessible and mobile resource to help control a fire until the fire department arrives.  ¶  Anderson grew up in Frazee, graduating from the high school in 1993.  ¶  Mt. Tabor Lodge celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2024 and supplying FSTs to local departments was a side project of Anderson’s and a fundraiser of the lodge.  ¶  “We raised enough money to buy five of them, one for Lake Park, Audubon, Frazee and two for the Becker County Sheriff’s Department,” Anderson said.The units run approximately $1,500 each and are made for first responders to a fire. The unit emits an environmentally-safe aerosol in eight seconds that snuffs out an early fire.

“On behalf of the Mt. Tabor Lodge, the Grand Marshal of Minnesota and the Minnesota Masonic Charities, we are donating one to your police department,” Anderson said.

Anderson also announced that if the unit is used in a fire the Grand Lodge will replace it free of charge.

Annexation

A public meeting on an annexation petition that includes the pickleball courts, the new and updated school ballparks was held. 

The unincorporated Burlington Township school land of 31.36 acres is behind the elementary school and includes the varsity fields up to the junior varsity baseball field and the pickleball courts.

City payments

Council approved a proposal from nuvei, a company that provides online payments, e-billing and autopay enrollments. The platform is designed to make it easier for residents to pay and see account information. It also allows the city office to communicate with users in an emergency, like announcing a water main break and its location.

“That is something we don’t have right now,” Poegel said. 

The service upgrade will not change any of the existing payment processes already in use.

The option to pay city fees with a credit card at the city office is another benefit that currently does not exist.

Candidate forum

CornerStone Executive Director Mackenzie Hamm spoke during the council’s open forum about the upcoming League of Women Voters Frazee Candidate Forum that will be held at the Event Center on Monday, Oct. 5. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., and the forum begins at 6 p.m.

Candidates for the school board, city council and mayor will be participating in the question and answer session. 

A trained moderator will lead all three forums, allowing all candidates equal time to answer questions. Members of the audience will also be allowed to ask questions of the candidates by submitting questions in writing.

A presentation on the Minnesota Permanent School Fund constitutional amendment will also be shared.

Refreshments will be provided by CornerStone and Corner Collective. 

Donations

Two donations were made to the Frazee Rescue Department, $1,340 from Bubba Samuelson’s 2026 Mid Summer Extravaganza and $100 from Jim and Val Kjelstrup.

FCDC

A formal request by the Frazee Community Development Corporation (FCDC) to end bill backs from the city to the non-profit organization was approved. FCDC suggested the council commit 10 percent of city administrator staff time to park and recreation tourism support. The FCDC request states that if requirements grow beyond 10 percent that costs and billing should be revisited.

In 2026, approximately three percent of City Admin’s time was spent on Wannigan Park, however, that included the work of the former Community Development Coordinator, a position that was half-dedicated to servicing FCDC and the park’s needs. The Coordinator position was eliminated as of Aug. 31.

“Every dollar FCDC is not required to pay the City, for its staff time, is a dollar we can invest directly into the park,” that agreement concluded. “We can continue to grow an amenity that is already paying dividends for the whole community. We are grateful for the City and its staff’s role in this success, and we look forward to continuing to build Frazee’s future together.”

Mayor Mike Sharp addressed the concerns briefly before further discussion.

“I want to make it clear: FCDC is helping us, not the other way around,” Sharp said. “We vitally need their partnership in order to move Wannigan Park forward.”

City Administrator Stephanie Poegel asked to clarify staff time beyond her work, as other staff members work for and with the park.

“It’s not just one person in the City who works on this,” Poegel said.

FCDC Board Member Polly Andersen commended staff on their efforts and acknowledged it is not just the work of one person and she noted she does not see future needs pushing beyond 10 percent of staff efforts.

“We would like to not be charged for that; we would like the City to continue to track that staff time because that is of real value to all of us and we can use that number when applying for grants and so they can see the City of Frazee is committed to the project,” said Andersen.

She reiterated that FCDC is more than willing to cover any consistent costs over 10 percent.

Council member Andrea Froeber spoke in support of the partnership with FCDC and suspending the billing, citing the 37,000 visitors brought to Frazee by the park.

“FCDC has basically propelled this forward in ways that none of us ever thought,” she said. “It’s a win-win.”

The motion passed unanimously, effective June 30 in regards to invoicing.

Housing

Mayor Mike Sharp brought up a special July 21 meeting held with Turnkey Solutions & Development Vice President Jason Francis to discuss a proposed 34-unit apartment complex in the city-owned lot next to Dollar General. A follow-up meeting was going to be scheduled for October. He directed the city office to contract Francis to begin engineering discussions and work through development and TIF agreements.

Pickleball

Randi Newton announced the upcoming ribbon cutting ceremony at the Frazee pickleball courts will be happening on Saturday, Oct. 17, at 11 a.m.

Newton also discussed with the Forum how a group of her pickleball friends from Perham came to Frazee to try out the new courts on Wednesday morning. 

“Nothing but high praises were given by all, for the beautiful new courts now up and ready for play,” said Newton.

After working up an appetite, the Gobbler Grub and Pub was the next stop on their visit for a tasty lunch. Afterwards a few gals were talked into ice cream at Mama’s Pizzeria N’ Scoops. Fun was had by all on a cool fall day in Frazee.

Taxes

The Frazee City Council set a preliminary tax levy increase of 6.82 percent, an increase of $37,588.

Froeber called the number “tight” and because it cannot be raised, but can be lowered prior to December, she felt there was nothing left in reserve for emergencies.

Representing the finance committee, Council member Jim Rader was asked if the committee is going to make more budget cuts.

“We’re going to try,” he said.

Froeber was the lone dissenting vote against approval.

Wannigan Park

An archaeological survey grant for the east bank and east side of Wannigan Regional Park between the State of Minnesota and City of Frazee was approved. The grant total is $34,000 with a local match of $3,400 secured by FCDC in place. 

A request for proposals deadline was extended to allow for more bids, since the archaeological study deadline has been extended to 2027.