WEDNESDAY, JUNE 9, 2021 WILMA TOWNSHIP BOARD OF SUPERVISORS’ MEETING

Chairman Glen Williamson called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance. Also present: Supervisors Mike McCullen and Gary Vink, Treasurer Patrice Winfield, Clerk Paul Raymond, Road Manager Alden Shute, plus Kim Felton, Pat Story, and Clay Heller. Two Creeks Campground Donation: Since the fire department had to cancel the pancake breakfast, they held one at Two Creeks and collected $1,600 to donate to the Duxbury Volunteer Fire Department and this was presented before the meeting. May Meeting Record: Paul read the record of the May meeting. Mike moved to approve; Gary seconded.

ROAD REPORT: Beaver Damage on Eagle Head Road: Alden said that the beavers who plugged up the culverts on Eagle Head Road causing flooding have all apparently been killed or moved on. He cleaned out the culverts and they are flowing freely now. Some trees were leaning and he had to remove them.
Alden bladed all the township roads. He has a revision from Jerry’s Roadside Mowing, when his first estimate did not include all of our 15 miles of roads. He now says it may be closer to $1,200; Clay said that is reasonable for so many miles. Mike moved that we hire Jerry’s Mowing to mow all of our township roads; Gary seconded, all aye.
Road Inspection: Copies of the May 11 Road Inspection Report were given to the Board, and Alden reviewed the report. He said that the culvert on Dollar Lake Road should be a 12” wide culvert and it will need to be covered with more gravel if we expect it to survive. He said we mostly do road patching when there are trouble spots instead of building up our roads so they cover the culverts. Mike said the board hired Alden to manage our roads and that the board defers to Alden’s judgment on culvert size and placement.
Patrick Story Concerns About Brushing Waste: Pat took the floor. “Last Fall Brush and Trees were cut down the full length of Lost River Rd. The work is acceptable except for the trees that were left at the top of the cul-de-sac on the land now owned by the person who bought Aldine Anderson’s A-Frame, so he couldn’t mow his right-of-way. Pat took his own Bobcat and pushed the tree scraps further into the woods. Photos of the Tamarack waste were shown to the board.
Alden gave Paul the billing for range line roads.

NEW BUSINESS: CTAS Update: The Office of the State Auditor (OSA) is announcing an update release to CTAS 2021. CTAS 2021 Update 1 is now available.

American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA): This Friday, June 11 from 10 to 11 AM, there will be free online webinar focused on how Minnesota units of government will receive their American Rescue Plan Act Local Fiscal Recovery Fund allocations from the State of Minnesota. Glen said he cannot participate but encouraged others to. Registration is required on the League of Minnesota Cities website.
During the webinar, presenters from Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB) will walk through the portal and provide step-by-step instructions to request funds. Jeff Krueger from MAT Says: “There has been a lot of confusion regarding the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) lately, so I wanted to send out a quick email.
1. MAT will be working on webinars to help everyone with registering and applying for funds along with actual examples of what the money can be used for.
2. There is no need to rush in applying for your ARPA funds. We don’t want people to delay too much but there is plenty of time. If you’re unsure of how to apply, wait for our instructional webinars.
3. Lastly, you have until the end of 2024 to obligate your funds. Unless you have an immediate need, don’t obligate your funds to your county or ANY organization until we’ve had time to get webinars out to answer your questions on what the funds can be used for.
Pine Co. will have a planning a meeting to discuss the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). On Tuesday, June 15 at 5:00 PM. at the North Pine Government Center in Sandstone. Glen said if he can go, we can carpool, but if he can’t, Paul can take Gary.
Emergency Broadband Benefit ERB: Will pay $50 per month for internet if you earn less than $198,000. The Emergency Broadband Benefit will provide a discount of up to $50 per month towards broadband service for eligible households Eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers if they contribute more than $10 and less than $50 toward the purchase price. Go to GetEmergencyBroadband.org to apply online and to find participating providers near you.
Mowing Town Hall: We have requested that the Pine Co. STS guys mow the hall lawn. Mike said they did it today, both the firehall and town hall. Paul will send a thank you, and also one to Two Creeks from the fire department.
Treasurer’s Report and Claims: Total bills for June, $7,053.94 and Patrice wants to transfer $7,000. Mike moved to approve the report and transfer the funds. Gary seconded
Motion to Adjourn: Mike moved to adjourn the meeting; Gary seconded. Meeting adjourned at 8:30 p.m.