City changes public comment rule

Starting with the next Cloquet City Council meeting on Oct. 15, residents will be heard before the council conducts its business, rather than at the end of the meeting after all the votes have been cast.

Ward 2 councilor Sheila Lamb moved for adoption of new council procedures — as she was the one who originally proposed the change — but the rest of the council voted unanimously in favor and had previously expressed their approval.

“We should hear from people before we make our votes,” Lamb previously told the Pine Knot News. “It just makes sense.”

The public comment period will now come after council minutes have been approved, but before any council business. Residents will be asked to sign up to speak when they arrive at the meeting, and limit their comments to three minutes or less. They will be allowed to speak on any issue of public business — previously, residents were asked to not address items already on the agenda, although most ignored that provision. People speaking on the same topic are asked to not repeat things already said or choose a representative to speak on their behalf.

‘Barn’ pipes leak

Councilors got bad news regarding “the Barn,” the city’s older hockey shelter, from Public Works director Caleb Peterson. On Monday, Peterson said he was informed that the ice plant in the Barn has lost all its refrigerant, due to both minor and major leaks in the pipes underneath the floor of the hockey rink. Estimates put the cost of replacing the refrigerant at $52,000.

“That’s $20,000 more than what we built the building for,” said Ward 1 councilor Bunn Carlson, who has been involved with Cloquet hockey.

In January, the city council voted to assume ownership of both hockey arenas, but have the Cloquet Area Hockey Association continue to run the facilities and programming. Because the R22 coolant used by both ice plants is being phased out by the Environmental Protection Agency — it causes holes in the ozone layer — the city is looking at up to $3 million in renovations to both facilities in the future.

Peterson acknowledged that it put the council in a tough spot, as the hockey association had planned to start making the Barn ice sheet Oct. 12.

“With an expenditure of this size, if they have to fire up the ice plant a little late … we need more information,” said At-large councilor Lara Wilkinson.

Councilors voted to wait on any decision until they can meet with CAHA and the company that maintains the ice plants in both shelters and find out what the city’s options are, and if there are other options for ice time like using the hockey arena in Carlton more.

Other matters

The council also approved the sale of $1.5 million in general obligation capital improvement plan bonds for the renovations to the Cloquet Public Library. The actual bond sale is set for Nov. 7.

The council appointed Robert Zappia to the Planning Commission, which meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8.

Police report not out

Prior to Tuesday’s formal meeting, councilors heard from Novak Consulting Groups’ Jonathan Ingram and Bill Connors regarding the recently completed study of the police department by Novak. The two men took the councilors through their process, key findings and suggestions for ways to improve the department procedurally as well as improving communication and relations between the council and the CPD.

Councilor Kerry Kolodge and Mayor Roger Maki pointed out two factual errors contained in the report, and said they wouldn’t consider the report approved until those were corrected.

The Pine Knot News was unable to obtain a copy of the report before presstime, as acting city administrator James Barclay said it will not be available in its corrected version until Monday. Look for a more detailed story on the study in next week’s Pine Knot News.