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“I want them to be ….

“I want them to be …. “I want them to be ….

“I want them to be identified so that I know who to call,” Bub said. He noted that when you raise a complaint to the subcontractor they will say it looks fine to them, and he wants to know who to call next.

“I think we should do a better job of looking out for the property of our residents,” he said.

Alderman Christine Weix agreed that there should be better communication with residents. She gave the example of residents coming home to find they have a pole in their front and back yards or that the yard they just seeded is torn up. “If people know in advance they could plan their personal work around it,” she said.

Alderman Greg Knight said the companies are not following right of ways, noting that when TDS Telecom was installing fiber along 7th Street, he spoke to the crew to ensure they knew where the property lines were.

“The issue is with subcontractors,” said Mayor Mike Wellner. He said as part of the permitting process the city could require subcontractors to display on their trucks who they were working for on that project.

Bub also raised questions about the garbage collection service. The city is about halfway through a 10-year contract with GFL for waste and recycling collection. Under the terms of the contract, if residents have extra garbage one week from, for example, hosting a graduation party, they could place additional items next to the garbage cart to be collected.

The company suspended that provision in the contract last year citing COVID- 19 as a reason. Bub said he was getting questions from residents and felt the company should start following the contract again. “How long are they going to keep not following the contract?” he asked.

Harris replied that the company has been told it must pick up the extra items. This does not apply for large pieces such as furniture. The company will collect those items, but residents must contact them and arrange in advance with pickups on Monday.

According to Harris, people who routinely have more garbage than fits in their cart are required to purchase a second cart.

In other business council members:

_ Received an annual update from district administrator Pat Sullivan of Medford Area Public School District about the district’s activities and plans over the past year. He said that the district is doing what it can to meet immediate needs at the high school in the face of losing a pair of referendum votes in the past year. He said as far as the future, the board has not decided on what to do moving forward and is instead looking at options, including the possibility of applying for FEMA grant funds for a storm shelter dome that could be used as a practice facility. He noted the district plans to be back to normal for operations this fall with the return to the normal school day and no additional COVID restrictions and with in-person instruction. He also reported that he has been told by Sen. Jerry Petrowksi that the state budget will meet the federal requirements for “maintenance of effort” so that schools do not lose federal ESSER grant money. The “maintenance of effort” rule is that in order to continue to qualify for federal funds, the state government needs to budget at least what was in the last budget for education. The joint finance committee had proposed cutting state funding for education and having schools use federal grant dollars to make up the difference. Sullivan explained that the federal grant dollars have stipulations attached to them about how they can be spent and that using it to pay for something like a math teacher’s salary would not be allowed.

_ Reviewed the compliance maintenance annual report for the wastewater treatment plan. Superintendent Ben Brooks reported there have been no issues at the plant and that it once again received straight A’s in the state’s annual report card. “We are known as the flagship of the north,” Brooks said of Medford’s reputation for having a wellrun and well-maintained facility. He said they are often called from other cities with people asking how they do things in Medford.

_ Approved the remainder of the liquor and operator license renewals. The licenses expire on June 30 and must be renewed before then.

_ Discussed the condition of the islands on Hwy 13. Alderman Tim Hansen noted the concrete islands are decaying rapidly. Harris said the state is planning to do work on Hwy 13 in 2024. “There won’t be any islands left by 2024,” Hansen said. Harris noted that as a state highway, Hwy 13 is out of the jurisdiction of the city and is maintained by the county.

_ Received an update on the pedestrian crossing signs on Hwy 64. Harris said that within the next few weeks the directional drilling will be done to install conduits and the posts will be put up with the signs to be placed following that. Pedestrians will be able to push a button that will turn on a flashing sign to signal their intent to cross the road at the designated intersections.

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