2015 Road Improvements

The city has been taking a slow and deliberate approach to paving some of the streets within the city.  It is the goal to get all gravel roads paved but recognize that this will take a considerable amount of time and resources to accomplish.  This is particularly true when you consider the city would like to make these improvements without incurring debt.  

This is a very conscious decision in picking and choosing those roadways that make sense to pave. With the number of vacant lots throughout the community that becomes a concern, particularly if the lots are tax forfeited parcels.  These lots can be assessed but with no one to pay the assessment they become a drain on the city to finance until such time as they are sold.  With assessments paying for the improvements it should be affordable to property owners.  That being said most individuals want paved streets but really don’t want to pay for them.  The goals for improvements can be difficult with property owner objections as well as tax forfeit properties.

There are only so many resources that can be accumulated to do improvements without incurring debt.  Some general fund revenues have been recognized and some assessment income from past projects can be used.  Road improvements are costly.  What may seem like a lot of money doesn’t go very far when you talk about paving roadways.  

This summer the city will be considering the paving of Snowman Circle and a small section of Thrane Drive.  Plans and specifications for the paving of Snowman Circle and a portion of Thrane Drive have been approved.   The council has authorized the seeking of bids for these projects.  If the cost for the paving is considered favorable, the project will move forward with an assessment hearing.  With a favorable outcome, paving of these roadways will get completed this summer. 

City Campus Expands in Land

The area of City Hall and City Park has seen expansion throughout the years. Originally much of the property was acquired from private property owners but as the opportunity presented itself tax forfeit parcels were acquired and additional lots were purchased within the area.  With the additional land, came the development of the city park, the ball field, and parking for the public landing.

  

With the future in mind the city included a goal in the Comprehensive Plan to acquire additional property in this area for expansion of the city campus.  The area referenced in the plan is bounded by the platted roadways of North Spruce Drive (Minimum Maintenance roadway section) and North Drives.  The goal provides that it could be put to use as a Park or possibly other public uses.  A good deal of this area is and was tax forfeit property.  Portions of it continue to be held by private parties.  

Recently it was noticed that properties north of the Public Safety Building along Co. Rd. 11 were listed for sale.  There are 6 lots owned by an individual between North Spruce Drive and the Public Safety Building, which comprise 1.74 acres.  Upon review the City Council was asked to consider this purchase.  The listing for the property was at $20,000 while the county has it appraised at $17,200.  Upon council consideration an offer was extended to purchase the property for $17,200.  The offer has been accepted and the purchase will occur in April.

Police Video Server

The events we have all witnessed on the national news concerning use of force by police departments have raised considerable interest in their actions.  In Breezy Point the police officers have used squad car cameras for many years.  Over the years technology has changed and so has the use of video evidence.  With changes in technology more can be done, images are sharper, and the need to preserve this evidence becomes more important.  Storage of video evidence uses a great deal of hard disk storage on computers.  It also requires a faster processor and the ability to process that information quickly from squad car to the server. 

Maintaining this data has become a bit onerous on the computer systems currently used by the city.  Hard drive storage is being rapidly used and it became more and more apparent that a separate system was needed for this type of data.  The increased use of video is also becoming more pressing with the use of body cameras being discussed nationwide.  There are a number of policy and data privacy issues that need to be worked out before body cameras are common place.  The day will come however when these issues are worked out and body cameras become the norm.   Having a system that meets current needs and is prepared for this future was needed.  It was felt the department should provide for both the here and now and the future. 

Recognizing these needs, a new camera system for squad cars was pursued along with a better system for managing video data.  To address these issues, a dedicated server to store the video data along with a Wi-Fi hotspot to download the videos into the server was needed.  This is a rather significant investment.  Total costs for the in-car camera and server came to $10,855.  A portion of these costs were budgeted but part of the funds will be handled with the use of alcohol forfeit funds.  With these secondary funds the budget isn’t affected as the resources are available to make the purchase.  

A Change in the Making

The city acquired the Edgewater Inn building; others may know it by Knoxies, through a donation at year end.  The owners had been trying to sell the property for a good number of years but were not having success with it and asked the city if we were interested in the property, if it was donated.  The city council agreed to acquire the building with the understanding that there were no conditions placed on the donation.  The council determined if acquired it should be razed. 

We have been working towards removal on a few fronts. The first order of business is a required asbestos survey.  If materials were found that exceed a certain threshold they need to be removed as hazardous waste.  The survey and testing was accomplished.  One area of about 350 square feet of textured ceiling was found that needed to be removed and that was accomplished.

Habitat for Humanity had an interest in removing what they could from the building.  The materials removed would be resold in their Re-Store.  They were also interested in recycling what they could such as copper wires.  They have been working on removal of items from the structure.

The Pequot Lakes Fire Department was asked if they were interested in a training burn of the building.  They have an interest in this and also asked if a Search and Rescue training could be accomplished as well in the structure.  This will be done jointly with Ideal Fire Department.  The training burn of the building has not been scheduled as of yet but will likely be done in early April. 

Although the building was a piece of history for Breezy Point for many decades, with lack of use it became more and more of an eyesore as time passed.  The building is being put to a good use in its final days with recycling and training.  Once the building has been reduced to ashes and rubble the spoils will be hauled away along with the concrete and asphalt from the site returning it to an open area. It will be seeded and left as such until future plans for the site are developed.