Photo Credit: Kristin Hassel / Gary City Council Meeting
(GARY, MN) - The Gary City Council held its regular monthly meeting June 10 at the Gary Community Center.
The meeting was called to order and Mayor Engen first heard from the current Gary Cafe Manager Christine Dalby. Dalby reported that the south-side screen door was damaged, resulting in a customer tripping, and another screen door needed repair. Engen agreed to have both screen doors replaced.
She further expressed that the cafe business is doing excellent, and she has catering jobs lined up that include funeral lunches, class reunions, and Gary Days. Dalby also noted that she has seen an increase in attendance at the Senior Meals provided, though she expects that figure to decrease somewhat during lake season.
On a personal note, Dalby asked whether one of her water hookups could be disconnected. When she originally bought the property, it was two lots, but it’s now combined into one lot, so the second connection is unnecessary. Engen explained that the original grant structure makes each utility hookup billable, even if lots are combined, and several other residents are in the same boat. He did emphasize that in these situations, where lots were combined, the resident is paying a reduced fee for the second hookup.
Water system access was a key topic again. As a bit of background, the City of Gary issues water-access keys to farmers and others outside city limits, allowing them to fill tanks to help during particularly dry years and for intermittent need. Keys require a $200 deposit, and the city charges a minimum of $8 per 1000 gallons of water used after the deposit. The key is to be returned annually in the Fall when the resident pays their outstanding water bill. Since the town is small, the bulk of the water usage system works on the honor system. Residents use their key to access the utilities, mark down how much water they used, and lock up.
Local farmers Joe Chisholm, Ashley Griewe, and Denise Griewe attended the council meeting to regain access to the water system. Chisholm had paid his bill and had a key to the water system. Using this key, the Griewes filled water into tanks, alleging they were used in Chisholm’s sprayer and not for their personal use. Thronson was informed by Olsen that the water was being accessed by the Griewes, who had not yet paid their previous year's bill. Due to this, she contacted the rest of the council, and the Council not only revoked Chishom’s access to the system, but decided to refuse a key to the Griewe’s.
Later in the discussion, Chisholm stated they were only helping him because he had issues with his truck and reiterated that the water went directly into his sprayer. There’s no way to prove who used the water once it was in his sprayer, so the discussion on use was dropped. Ultimately, the dispute was simply poor communication and a failure to return the last key and pay their bill before accessing the system. Since the Griewe’s didn’t communicate that they weren’t utilizing it themselves but helping Chisholm, it appeared as if they were accessing the resource despite their non-payment, which violates the usage policy. Netland stated:
“The thing is, when we set the policy, we don't do it to hurt people, we do it for fairness to everybody. Like we said, we do things on an honor system, but when we have a few people that take advantage of the honor system, we have to set a policy. If we let the policy slide for a few we have to let it slide for everybody. Then what good is a policy? So we gotta stick by it.”
The dispute didn’t end there. Ashley pointed out that no one had previously told them they needed to notify the city when someone else was hauling water on their behalf and vice versa. She also said they bring revenue to Gary businesses when they come in to get water, without access to the water they likely won’t patronize local establishments as they’d have no need to come into town.
Denise believed the issue could have been resolved by asking them rather that taking the immediate step of changing the locks and denying all three parties access, and she was ready to pay the bill when she went to the City Office, but Thronson said she couldn't have a key. At which point, the Griewe's returned the prior year's key and left without settling the account.
Thronson reiterated the system relies on trust, some take advantage of that and pay bills late and don’t return keys, the water system doesn’t make the town money as it’s expensive to operate, it's primarily provided for the benefit of residents. The issue isn’t with using the water, it’s with maintaining accountability and fair use of the system. For their part the Griewe’s were adamant that they intended to pay in full, bring back their key, and properly track water usage. They also stated they were unaware that using someone else's equipment to haul water violated the usage policy.
Council members agreed they are not opposed to helping others or using others machinery if needed to gather water from the system, but using others keys when your account isn’t paid goes against policy and violates the honor system. If a resident is obtaining water on another person’s behalf using their key, a notification should be sent to Thronson or another council member out of respect for the honor system and access policy.
Ultimately, the Council agreed that Chisholm should receive a key as his account is paid in full, but that if he didn’t return the prior year's key he would be required to pay a subsequent deposit for the new key. The Griewe’s will regain access once the outstanding balance is paid on their account, as they had already returned the prior years key. Despite the resolution, the Griewe’s still had questions surrounding whether it would matter going forward who’s vehicle they filled water on, a topic that continued to circle despite multiple points of clarification by the counsel that as long as both parties paid it was a non-issue which vehicle was used. In the end Engen had the final word on the matter, stating:
“As long as you’re paid and have a key to open the lock, I don't care if you're driving a go cart.”
To add to or correct any information in this report, please contact me at kristin.h@lead4earth.org.
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